Ch. 49
Imported from SF2 with no description.
--Penance--
I hated doing it. I hated that his plan was to send me away. But it's what he needed. What they all needed. And it made sense. I knew it did. But I could feel it, prickling at the edges of my thoughts. The feeling I was making a huge mistake. But I did what he asked. First to the lake. It took too long. It was already well into the night. I could have sprinted it in half the time, but the woman wasn't up for it.
I'd have about killed to have Staccato there, but that wasn't going to happen, either. I could tell they stopped, for a while. Food, sweat, fire. They stopped, for the night. Then they left, into the hills. The scent was easy to pick up. On the back of Tempest's scent, the acrid scent of the ashes. She'd had her hands in the dying embers, not to snuff the flames. She was clever, I'd give her that. Following them would be simple.
Gwen was at least capable of continuing. She understood the urgency, and we made our way along the narrow trace they followed. Her footsteps were confident and sure, even by the light of her lantern. I was grateful to not be trying to lead Wendy through it all. The narrow trace and all the ways it twisted, seemingly back and forth over itself, the rocky slopes, and the loose dirt. I wondered how far she could even have gotten as we made our way up the incline.
The scent was smeared, here and there, a brush against the bark of the trees, on the standing rocks. Tempest had marked her way. It was getting more faint as we went on, but she'd done me a favor. Done us all a favor. As long as Gwen could keep going, I would too.
It was well into the deepest parts of midnight as we made our way to the summit, following the marks Tempest had left. Her scent was growing stronger, we were catching up. Gwen was panting with the exertion, but didn't ask to stop when we got to the top. Only winced and began to walk forward again.
A familiar voice called to us from the shadows, and as I turned, I saw Annabelle, who was making her way to us at a full run, scrambling over standing stones before skidding to a halt at Gwen's feet.
“Why are… what… No." She faltered, trying to ask several questions in one breath before Gwen ran her hand gently over the lucario's head.
“Trouble, Annabelle. Lots of it. We need to find the others. Don't know if it'll be anything, but it might. Her little friend is down there right now spoiling for a fight." She said with a sigh. “Made sure I was out safe, but he's not going to leave. Neither is Helena. Roped some others into it, too."
Annabelle stared for a moment, then shook her head. “You sure that's a good idea? You know how Morrigan is. Her daughter is the spitting image, except better trained. Those two go down there, whoever it is he's fighting won't live to regret it."
Gwen shook her head. “Nothing for it. We knew this was coming, even if neither of us wanted to admit it. They've been after Helena for a long time."
Those words made my fur bristle. They were after the absol. She probably knew about it. And kept him there. Asked him to protect her. From them. With what? Sticks and rocks? She knew. She damned well knew they were after her.
“And where is she?" Annabelle asked, growling quietly. “Never around when you need it, that's for damned sure."
“She stayed with the boy," Gwen reiterated, shaking her head. “Won't leave his side." Gwen replied with a smile. “So there's our silver lining. She made a friend. Could work on her timing a little."
“You're kidding. All this time, and all the effort we've made and she makes friends with the guy who … you know what? Nevermind. This isn't getting us anywhere. Go get the others." Annabelle said, gesturing down the other side of the hill. "It's a bit of a walk. Left, off the trail, in a cave. Look for the light. I'm going to go on ahead. With any luck they won't do anything stupid before I find them."
I felt a fresh flash of anger at that. The unspoken words hanging in the air. “She makes friends with the guy who…" Who what? Who fell in love? Made us feel like it was okay to love him back? I managed to bite back saying it, but I couldn't stop myself from thinking it; Fuck you. Fuck everything you are.
But it didn't matter. None of it mattered. Then and there the only thing that counted for anything was that he was out there, and the only thing I could do that would help was to be quick. He needed that. My speed, my strength. He needed me. They needed me.
I needed them.
It felt like hours, winding our way down the mountain. Maddening slopes and switchbacks down a steep rocky incline. The sun had come up, at least we weren't doing it in the dark. Still, with the old woman in tow, there was nothing to do but to take it slowly.
--Wendy--
It was a very familiar barking that woke me up.
Penance's bark echoed in the depths of the cool, still cave. From above, the hill above us. I called out to her, and heard the rocks cascading down the side of the hill as she scrambled down to me. A voice called out after her, and I made my way out of the cave, limping and leaning against the wall. My feet protesting it still, yet far less than before.
“Wait, I said! Goodness, I'm not as spry as I used to be!" The ranger from before called out after Penance who skidded to a stop at my feet and nipped at my shoe, tugging it twice before turning back to the hill.
“Penance, what's gotten into you? What's going on?" I asked, trying to push myself forward. My whole body was stiff and aching, it was almost impossible to make any real progress.
“Oh, there's trouble." The ranger, Gwen filled in. “A lot of it. Your friend stayed behind and made poor Penance lead me to you, and she so impatient there was simply no stopping until we found you." She said with a sigh, leaning against the stones and finally sitting on the ground. “I'm afraid my old bones need a rest. And it's dangerous out there."
Tempest came out next, and looked to Penance, who offered brief words and a lot of worried looking back over her shoulder. I didn't understand until about halfway through, when I felt a curious sensation, like a prickling inside my head. It was Morrigan who came out next, and her words, I understood clearly. Unfortunately, I wasn't afforded the luxury of marveling at the development.
“So they've come for the girl. How many? Where?" Morrigan asked, calmly. “When was the last time you saw my daughter's … friend?" The important questions. I felt a kind of methodical rhythm to it all. Something that set my own agitation aside, forced my heart to quiet.
Claire followed, and looked to her mother. “The girl?" She asked, before looking to Gwen, and then to me. “They'll have to stay here. We can't very well carry them down the mountain."
“No good." Morrigan replied, dismissing it with a wave of her hand. “They've already had problems with me in the past. They know about this place." She shook her head at that, and answered the question. “An absol named Helena. People … labor under misapprehensions about her abilities. It has been a long time coming."
“Staccato." I said, my hand coming to rest on the pokeball hanging from my belt. “He could get Gwen and I out. But where would we go?" I asked, looking to Gwen. “I don't know this place at all, and -"
Penance interrupted me. Her voice tight with frustration. Impatient, worried, tense. Her whole body betraying her emotions. “The lake. He said he'd look for us near there. To stay hidden and wait. If things got bad, to leave." She turned to face Claire. “He said you would find him. The light in the darkness. That you would know what it meant."
“The light in the darkness... He's … He's in trouble. He knows he's in trouble. When did he tell you this?" Claire shook her head, trying to make sense of it. “If he's awake, he's trying to make himself stand out, so I can find him. So I can know where he is."
Penance visibly tensed, and met Claire's gaze. “Before he sent me away. To lead the ranger to you. Yesterday evening. Nothing had happened yet."
Tempest growled at that and sighed. “At least he's not fool enough to forget where he's been. But we can't do anything about that now. We need to get away from here."
Gwen shook her head, and sighed. I could practically feel the aching in her bones. The way her head pounded and how badly she wanted to just sleep. It was written all over her face, I didn't need to hear her say it. “And I only just sat down. Can't you do an old woman a little kindness, and just let me rest? Just a moment?"
There was nothing for it, I knew. My hand coming to rest on Gwen's shoulder as I sat down beside her. “I'll stay with her. I still have Staccato. I can barely move anyway. When she's recovered a little, we'll get to the lake. Okay? Just… all of you. Go. Go find him. Go make sure he's safe!"
--Claire--
As if she had to tell us that. I didn't spare the old woman a passing glance, as I urged the growlithe on with a thought. I didn't wait for them to figure out what they were doing. I didn't care. Tempest was with me, and the only man in the world who mattered was on the other side of the mountain.
And if I knew him at all, he wasn't leaving without a fight. A fight that may already have happened. Damn him for his stubbornness. Damn them for their timing.
I tried to seek him out, my thoughts reaching as far and wide as they could, but there was nothing to reach back. Nothing to find. Wherever he was, he wasn't a beacon. There was just no way to know, until we found him.
It was that damned mine, all over again.
This time, though, at least someone knew where he had been. We could go from there. That little growlithe had his scent all over her. The familiar scent of his skin. I missed that scent. I missed that scent in my own fur.
So we would walk all night. As long as it took. I wasn't going to wait, so everyone else would just have to keep up. And when I was done scolding him for being an idiot, and when we were done fighting whoever was stupid enough to pick a fight with my lover, I'd have him in my arms again, and show him how much I missed him. And that little growlithe could envy me, instead.
--Penance--
As tired as I was, I still lead the way back, up the winding switchbacks, climbing the loose, rocky ground. Nobody said a word, but I could hear Tempest, an almost constant low growl. Her claws moving against each other.
Her agitation, her anger, it radiated off of her in waves. I felt sorry for the first thing to get in her way, and I considered, briefly, moving to the back of the line. The pressure of her presence was unbelievable. I didn't have to ask or wonder; she'd have killed for him. Without the slightest hesitation. I could almost have felt sorry for whoever it was that he was fighting.
Almost. But I knew in my heart if he had a scratch on him, there would be hell to pay.
Up the mountain, our winding back and forth ascent seemed oddly fitting. It was a little frustrating to recognize that. It was much more frustrating to know how long it was taking. The sun would be up before we reached the top, at this rate.
It might have been for the best, I realized. If we were going to go searching for him, it wouldn't do us any favors to be doing it in the dark, with our enemies looking, too.