FSE

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Jason and Sarah hurriedly made their way towards the academy after the explosion with fear and uncertainty in their hearts. They feared for the safety of their parents and the other people inside and they had no idea of what awaits them inside. Were they going to see that the others are okay? Were they going to get there in time? Regardless of all of their uncertainty, they pushed forward as fast as they could physically muster.

At first, they both ran on their two feet. But with time working against them in a rather unfair battle, they had to pick up the pace. Sarah and Jason both decided that they'd arrive much faster if Jason were to carry Sarah on his back and ran without the worry of leaving the Kirlia behind. With the Kirlia on his back wrapping her arms securely around his neck, the Riolu swiftly leapt forward, running in wide strides, allowing them to cover more distances quickly. It wasn't the most fun or comfortable ride that the Kirlia's been on, and she was thankful now more that ever that her stomach didn't have much to throw out, but they made she had to hold on and be strong... she has no intention of losing another family.

They ran through the winding streets of the concrete jungle, weaving part streets and alleys, over fences and obstacles, and through the thick crowd of recruits being vacated deeper into the residential areas. Avalon's Military District was in complete but moderate chaos (considering the discipline that the people had). All around them the soldiers worked to herd the people safely to their homes while others worked on locking down the district. There were also several of them that ran around, checking if there were other hostiles lurking about our if it was just the hacking and... the Hypno.

Jason's mind spun with the fresh new wave of fear the enveloped him. He recalled how the Hypno had managed to walk out of the room before the explosion happened meaning that the Hypno was still out there somewhere... and after him. His mind wandered to the thought that he was bringing the Kirlia into danger. But then again they were already headed into something potentially dangerous and they've had this conversation before. Besides, the Academy was just around the corner now and they haven't run into the Hypno yet. And even if they do end up running into him, his mother managed to land some pretty nasty shots before he got away, the Hypno's injuries would make fighting him relatively easier.

When they reached the next right turn, the two were surprised to see a huge roaring inferno in front of the Academy's gate. What's even more puzzling was that the soldiers ahead, a small squad of rock and steel type Pokemon as well as a Blissy which seemed as the medic, seemed to pay no attention to the flames as they ran into the Academy. As the two approached the inferno however, they were surprised yet again when they were greeted by a slowly solidifying mass of people gas that soon transformed into the Mismagius Jason knows to be Rebecca.

"What's going on here?" Jason asked as he let down the Kirlia.

"Please pay no attention to the flames before you." Rebecca said with, what Jason's assumed was, the voice and tone of a cliche tour guide. "I'm just here to make sure none of you guys waste your time here, they have it all under control." Rebecca's voice went from humorous and fun to all known seriousness. "Don't even waste your time asking why, just get your asses in the Academy now before it's too late to save them."

Jason didn't need to be told twice with an argument like that and neither did Sarah. Without another word or a moment of hesitation, the two dashed inside the Academy.

---

They weren't even sure anymore about how much time has actually passed since the explosion, and that testified them greatly. The main hallway of the Academy was a bit dusty and bits and pieces of the ceiling had fallen to the floor. If the building wasn't reinforced as it was, perhaps it would collapsed as soon as the explosion happened. Still, the way the Academy was reinforced beyond anything modern skill and technology could, at present, accomplish. For that explosion to be able to damage the building like this was terrifying, even more so what it could do to the Pokemon standing directly in the epicenter.

Jason's head spun, nauseated by the fear of what might've happened to them, but he forced himself to proceed. Sarah sensed Jason's uneasiness, but didn't really realize how grave the situation was.

"Hey..." Sarah spoke soft, forcing out a reassuring smile as she placed a hand on the Riolu's shoulder. "They're gonna be alright..." even she herself didn't believe those words even though she desperately wanted to. "We saw that rescue party come in before us right? And besides, you Avalonians are known for their toughness. I'm sure they just shrugged off that explosion like it was nothing."

Jason wondered what kind of stories the Arkhans tell their children about the people of Avalon. They may have been physically superior compared to most others, but they weren't invulnerable. "Still... it would be best if we helped--"

Jason's sentence was cut short when a familiar, but spine-tingling sensation washed over him: the sensation of death. His sensory ability was in its passive state at present and couldn't have possibly reached the war room where his parents were. It was also possible that the other Pokemon within the building have been killed, but he couldn't sense the presence of an intruder nor did he hear any fighting outside other that within that inferno Rebecca was guarding. His mind then arrived to the conclusion that the intruder was among those killed. That theory was reinforced by the faint presence of life from an ally. However... that presence was very weak... it was dying... it was...

"Harrison!" Jason almost choked on his words as he screamed loudly, surprised and terrified by the bloody sight before him. There at the end of the hall, through a collapsed wall, laid the dying body of Jason's Garchomp guardian. His entire right arm had been chopped off and there was a bloody gash on the left side of his face, though the low lighting and the fact that the Garchomp had his eyes closed hid the fact that the eye was damaged beyond known repair.

Jason didn't even realize that they sidetracked, moving away from the war room rather that towards it. He didn't know that he was following the sensation but now he was thankful that he did. Sarah, on the other hand, was just following Jason around assuming that the Riolu knew a shortcut or something. She recognized the Garchomp as one of those that welcomed them to Avalon and that he was probably the Sceptile's assistant or something. She, however, didn't recognize the other Garchomp with identical injuries that lie dead beside him.

Jason ran to Harrison's side and his hands were immediately covered by the flowing blue energy that is his aura. He held his left hand above the Garchomp's right shoulder and his right on the Garchomp's eye as they began healing healing the wounds. Jason didn't even bother holding back the tears s he concentrated on saving the Garchomp. Soft whimpers could even be heard from the Riolu as his emotions were slowly getting that best of him.

Sarah, on the other hand, approach the other Garchomp to further investigate. The dead dragon Pokemon lay on his stomach with blood pooling on the floor around his head. The similarity of the wounds of this Garchomp with Harrison's was eerie, and judging from the fact that this Garchomp's wounds are old, it's possible that this one was sick or egoistic that he'd make his victims look like or suffer like him. Compared to Harrison's badly beaten body, this one showed minimum injury other than that single puncture hole through the head. What's even more puzzling was that the gun was in this Garchomp's hand.

* cough* * cough*

The sounds of coughing startled the Kirlia, who was studying the dead body intently, to the point that she yelped. For the Riolu, however, the Garchomp's coughing and healthy(ish) breathing brought about a wave of joy and hope as Harrison slowly came to.

"Hey... there... kid..." Harrison said weakly, smiling amidst his current state and even managing a small chuckle. "A second later and I'm done for..."

Jason made a weird combination of the sounds of crying and laughing at the Garchomp's comment as he continued with healing the Gatchomp's wounds. The bleading's stopped at least, all Jason has to do now was to fully mend the wound, the broken bones, and maybe speed the body's efforts with replenishing lost blood.

"Jason..." the Garchomp whispered.

"Shh..." the Riolu hushed. "You need to rest."

The Garchomp's hand moved to grab the Riolu's hand. "You need to get up there as fast as you can before it's too late to revive them." Jason's heart skipped a bit as he suddenly remembered that their parents were also in the building and were in grave danger. "I'll be fine... you've stopped the bleeding... I'll live... now go, and hurry."

"I'll stay with him." the Kirlia said as she signaled for the Riolu to go on ahead.

Jason didn't need to be told a third time. He nodded quickly and turned around, his body seemed to tingle as the energy coursed through his veins. His heart raced and time seemed to slow down around him and, with even more powerful strides than before, took off using extreme speed leaving behind a trail of dust in his wake. He kicked himself forward for every step, jumping on walls to quickly navigate sharp corners. Of course, he shouldn't be running to fast inside the Academy, especially with the building's integrity this damaged. Running and jumping too fast might cause more harm than it would good, and Jason had little to no room for error.

The Kirlia watched in awe, both amazed at the Riolu's potential and thankful that he didn't use that while he was carrying her. She didn't think that she would've been capable of holding on to something going that fast. The sounds of coughing made her turn her attention towards the injured Pokemon that she promised to look after. Now that Jason was gone, it seems that the Garchomp no longer made an effort to smile as his face was now showing his pain. Sarah wasn't really that gifted in healing, she feels a bit embarrassed about being worse than a fighting type. Still, it's better than nothing at all.

She moved closer to the Garchomp and stretched out her hand, her psychic energy emitting a faint glow as it began soothing the Garchomp, dying the pain. "This is the best I can do right now... I'm sorry if it isn't much..."

"It's enough..." the Garchomp spoke reassuringly. "Thank you."

After about half a minute of silence has past, with an ever growing number of questions buzzing inside the Kirlia's head, she to a deep breath and sighed audibly. "Just what is Jason to you people?"

"Pardon?" the Garchomp sounded as though he had just woken from his sleep. Then again, in his current condition, perhaps it would've been better if she had let him get his rest.

"The two of you seemed... felt... close. But your boss doesn't really feel that way about him... in fact... none of the people from earlier did, not even his own father." she paused. "Just what is he to you... all of you?"

The Garchomp was silent for almost a minute, thinking about what to tell the inquisitive little one. In all honesty, he's taking that long because his fatigue and the amount of blood lost was making it harder to think straight. Still, it would be rude to their guest if he didn't say anything. He at least had to say something. "Just... let me rest... I promise that I'll answer your questions... once I'm better..."

Sarah had guessed beforehand that the Garchomp would say that and as much as it disappointed her that she wouldn't get her answer now, it would be best if the Garchomp rested. As the Garchomp closed his eyes and drifted into sleep, Sarah stared at the direction that the Riolu ran towards. "Oh, Jason... why are madmen after you?"

---

It didn't even take Jason a minute before finally arriving at floor where the war room is located. UI there he could see the telltale signs of the steel and rock types' work, those being the reinforcements that they've infused writing the walks. With one final leap, Jason quickly arrived at the entrance where he almost had his face gored by the large steel spoke of an Agron that was backing out of the room.

"Oh, sorry kid... Wait, you shouldn't be up here. It's--" the Agron's body on its own was large enough to block most of the door and with an arm stretched a bit to the side, he's blocked Jason's way in.

"Let me through!" Jason commanded as he tried pushing past the Agron's blockade. Tears began streaming through his eyes and it became difficult to mask his sorrow as his sensory ability was slowly painting him a picture of what he was to expect inside... and he prayed dearly that, for once, he was wrong.

"You're Jason right? The Alexander kid? Please, for your own good..."

"I said..." his voice was shaking as his emotions got the best of him. His heart pounded against his chest, his ears were ringing, his nose began to clog, and his eyes were blinded by his own tears as he slowly grew more and more desperate. " Let. Me. Through!" He roared out as he balled his fist and punched the Agron at his gut. Accompanied by his aura, the Agron was launched across the room and crashing against the opposite wall, luckily missing everyone inside.

"Jason?" the Sceptile was surprised, and gladdened at the same time, to see the Riolu at the entrance of the room. He shouldn't be here, that's for sure, but at least the Hypno didn't get him.

The room was actually less damaged than Jason first expected. The center, where the Sceptile, the Charizard, and the two Gallades stood, barely had any form of damage to it other than the cracks in the floor. The walks around them may have been obliterated but the roof seemed to be supported well enough by charred wood. In fact, there were also several shattered pieces of wood scattered all over the floor. At the end of the room, next to where the Agron crashed, stood a Graveller, a Tyranitar, and a Rhihorn. Rushing to there side was an Audino, probably a medic that Jason didn't see go in a while ago.

Of course, Jason was too upset and distraught to notice any of this. It was as if he had tunnel vision, with only his parents in his mind (mainly because he's confirmed that the others are alright at least). Glancing to his left, he caught a glimpse of a pink figure, the Blissy he saw earlier, eyeing him worryingly. Beside her was the Blastoise. He was unconscious and the compartment for the right cannon was cracked open but he was alive. Jason took a step towards their direction but was stopped abruptly when his foot was caught in a grass knot.

Jason eyed the Sceptile with his piercing, rage-filled, golden eyes, his lips curling into a snarl as flames from his foot burned away the grass knot which was quickly replaced by thick roots that wrapped around the Riolu's body.

"Jason, for your own good, get out of here!" the Sceptile sternly commanded.

With both the Agron and the Sceptile wanting Jason to leave, he was clearly getting the hints about the condition that his parents were in. But he refused to believe it, he had to first see it for himself. With a loud grunt, his body was lit on fire, burning away the Riolu's before they could drag him outside. With a powerful punching motion, and in a blind fury, he shot out a large ball of aura towards the Sceptile.

The Sceptile was to injured to dodge the attack, the rescue team present were ask weak against the fighting attack, and the Charizard would be to slow to shield or push the Sceptile out of harm's way. Luckily, the Gallades' barriers were raised fast enough to block the attack.

The Gallades were about to make an attempt to restrain the Riolu or get him out of the room, but they stopped when the Charizard raised his arm. "If he wants to see his parents, let him."

"Ignatius!" the Sceptile shouted softly, much more of an angry whisper actually.

Jason didn't wait for confirmation or a second repetition. He turned to where the Blissy was. The medic yelped a bit in fear and surprise and she quickly darted away, revealing a scene that Jason wished had never happened. In front of him, next to the unconscious body of the Blastoise, lay the bodies of his parents. His mother was alive at least, she had more damage than the Blastoise, but Jason could assumed that the Blastoise manage to shield her from some of the damage. His father on the other hand... The burn marks around the Blaziken's body was evidence enough that he was exposed to the explosion. The other pokemon in the room lacked those burn marks, giving Jason the idea that those wood pieces on the ground had something to do with it. Other than the severe burn marks, there were bloody pieces of shrapnel of different sizes lying next to the Blaziken. The Blissy may have pulled them free from the Blaziken's body and patched up the wounds, but judging by their sizes...

"No..." Jason's voice was whimpering, his jaw quivering uncontrollably as the tears began streaming down his eyes. "No no no no no..." Jason rushed beside the bodies strewn on the ground, placing his trembling hands on the lifeless body of his father. Jason's whole world spun around him, his ears started ringing and his vision blurring. Jason felt that he was about to lose it, to lose himself. He wasn't even certain if he was still conscious or if his own fear had given him a heart attack. Whatever the case, Jason, in a sense, was gone; no thought, no consciousness, nothing but cold, crushing emptiness.

The Sceptile watched in fear as the temperature in the room began to elevate quickly. He knew Jason was special in more ways than most people would realize, but he fears that there was more to Jason than he realizes. As much as he wanted to intervene, to try and make things better, he was afraid that his action might make things worse. He stood there, frozen by uncertainty, and watched as everyone present in the room slowly glowed a golden light. At first they were all startled and afraid, but when their bodies began feeling its effects: their wounds healing and their bodies invigorating, they couldn't help but relax.

Soon, everyone in the room was shrouded in Jason's strange aura. Nobody knew how Jason, a mere Riolu, could project something like this and have it spread and distributed to several Pokemon at once. What's more is that the two Gallades couldn't tell whether the aura was natural or not. It didn't feel at all like the aura that a Lucario would project, regardless of whether it was combat, healing, or analysis. It was unlike anything they've ever encountered, be it personal experience or through written data. And now, they feel that they are about to witness a miracle, for if one thing right now was for certain, whatever was happening with Jason, he was not going to let it end here.