Insane World 107

  Insane Escapism

  Pokémon List:

  Luna (Kirlia)

  Fay (Riolu)

  Midna (Zorua)

  Fay closed her eyes, ready to embrace the stillness of the night.

  The clearing was lit by the soft crackling campfire that formed the hearth of the group. An array of sleeping bags, camping supplies, sleeping Pokémon and humans were spread around it in a circle.

  Around them the tree line was thick and threatening. A mass of darkness that threatened to swallow any Pokémon that drew near it.

  But the fire staved off the dark and allowed Pokémon and humans alike to sleep.

  Some of the sleeping ones were dead quiet, others had more trouble sleeping quietly and instead produced a low rumbling sound. The Zorua, especially, couldn't stay quiet and instead insisted on sleeping in the most annoying way.

  Fay gave the scene around her one last look. She felt oddly at home with this group. Sure, every single one of them was weird, but in a good way. She didn't mind spending her nights like this.

  She rested her head against her trainer's leg, using the combination of his warmth and the blanket as a nice pillow.

  The aura of everyone at the camp blazed like a calm bonfire, proving warmth and safety. Not quite a home, but something close to one.

  There were only two exceptions. Dust's Aura that was more akin to a fire consuming itself, shifting and phasing through its natural boundaries, twisting infrequently, sometimes even fading before reigniting itself. Then there was Ash's Aura. His was like a forest fire.

  Luckily, by now, Fay had learned to ignore their Aura signatures and purposefully pushed them from her perception.

  Fay's eyes drifted up, to the boundless black sky.

  A thousand little lights hung in the heavens, arranged in a chaotic pattern that made the sky feel both alive and completely hollow.

  An ocean of stars, her mother had once called them. She wondered how such a marvelous creation could exist. And if she'd ever got to see them up close. Be one of them, a shining star of pure Aura. A pure light that could defy all the dark.

  Fay's thoughts began to slip. The flickering of the bonfire lulled her into a drowsy haze. Her senses began to dull and a sweet numbness began to overtake her. However, right before she closed her senses off completely she felt something in the distance: Three separate sources of aura.

  Without realizing it, the little Riolu fell asleep.

  It was later, she didn't know how much, when Fay's eye slipped open. Something wasn't right.

  There were hushed voices, movement.

  Her instincts screamed at her to get up. To lash out and fight.

  With great effort she suppressed those feelings. Instead she tried to slow down.

  She tried to remember what Dust had told her to do in such situations.

  Examine the situation. Evaluate the odds and then make a plan of action.

  She closed her eyes, instead using her Aura senses to see around her. Immediately a sea of flickering flames surrounded her. However, three particular ones stood out.

  She tried to focus on them.

  Three people were standing very close to her. Auras she hadn't seen before. Wait, no, only 2 of them were Human signatures. The third aura belonged to a Pokémon.

  She pointed her ears slightly, trying to catch what they were saying.

  "Which one should we take?" One of the voices whispered. Despite the figures trying to keep it quiet, she could distinctly recognize this voice as belonging to a female human. It was really high pitched.

  "Not Pikachu," This voice sounded more masculine than the other one. Still really feminine.

  "How about the Aipom?"

  "Not the Aipom," A third voice mingled itself into the conversation. "We did that two times before."

  "Fine, we let's switch things up."

  "Wait, one of them is still awake."

  "No no no! We can't have that, Meowth, put it back to sleep."

  Fay's eyes widened. She extended her claws and got ready to jump up but all of a sudden, her senses were overwhelmed.

  The figure in front of her was giving off purple psychic waves. The wavy lights turned into a vortex. Fay tried to make sense of what she was seeing but it just seemed impossible; the patterns were indescribable; like a—

  Fay's eyes snapped open. She got up and shook her head, trying to lose the lingering dizziness.

  "Pika!"

  Her eyes switched to the side. She tilted her head.

  It was still dark out. The bonfire had died down to a small smoldering pit of fire. The dark had encroached on their little campsite, leaving only the inner most circle safe.

  Judging the position of the moon, it was still very close to midnight. In front of the charcoal pit, Fay could see Pikachu, also awake.

  The rodent slowly approached her. He slightly moved his tail towards her. A lightning shaped lightning rod was carefully balancing a glass of water.

  "Chu," Pikachu quietly offered her the glass.

  "Oh, thanks." Fay took the glass and gulped it down. As her thirst was quenched, the memories flooded back as well.

  "What?!" She asked Pikachu.

  While trying to keep his voice down, Pikachu began to explain. Finally, when he was done Fay only had one thing on her mind.

  "Seriously?"

  Pikachu shrugged.

  She shook her head. "That's insane,"

  Again, Pikachu shrugged.

  Did you know this text is from a different site? Read the official version to support the creator.

  Fay slowly tried to come to terms with this piece of information. Team Rocket coming in; trying to kidnap either him or his teammates from Ash was just a Tuesday for them.

  It bothered Fay slightly how relaxed Pikachu was. It wasn't the first time Fay had seen an abduction; but it was the first time she saw someone being this 'chill' about it.

  "...so…" Fay began, lightly tapping the ground. Still trying to wrap her head around the situation. "Shouldn't we wake up the others?"

  "Pikachu…" Pikachu pointed at Ash's face. He walked over to it and then, out of nowhere. Continued to zap him.

  Nothing happened.

  Fay considered it a little bit worrisome that Pikachu prioritized a good night's sleep over rescuing Luna. On the other hand, if she was completely fine and Pikachu knew it, then there was no harm, right?

  Fay had to shake her head. "You're really not bothered by this at all?"

  Fay wondered why Team Rocket even bothered to steal Ash's Pokemon if they got rid of them everytime. Was it just some game to all of them? Was this world truly this insane?

  "Pika." Pikachu sighed.

  Then, its ears perked up. As if it was struck by a brilliant idea. A gleam came over the lightning creature.

  Fay slightly backed away. She recognized that look. She had seen it multiple times, and every time it appeared; insanity ensued. She was not going to leave the comfort of the fire.

  "Chu?" He tilted his head, an innocent pout.

  "No!"

  Fay backed away, taking another step.

  "..." Pikachu's eyes grew big, it began to puff up its red cheeks. As if it was about to cry.

  "Not falling for your tricks!" Fay tried, though her resolve was breaking down quickly. "No! I won't help you rescue Luna!"

  "...Pika…" Pikachu sighed. His ears lowered and he looked even more pitiful.

  Fay was going to regret this.

  ----

  30 minutes later Fay found she was right.

  She was, indeed, already regretting this.

  She should have just laid down, pretended not to notice Luna's abduction and then pretended to be surprised the next morning.

  They would go on a silly rescue mission and all would be well in the end.

  Now, she was trailing behind a Pikachu in the dark. Something her mom had always warned about.

  The Pokémon in front of her was happily wagging his tail left and right, clearly not minding the stroll through the moonlit forest.

  Fay, on the other hand, was terrified.

  There were sounds coming from all around her; the quiet whistling of the wind. The sound of something moving between the bushes, the giggles of a hiding Ghost Type. The shadows' growing eyes watching her.

  "Are you sure we are headed the right direction?!" Fay asked once again.

  "Pika." The yellow mouse answered wearily.

  "Just checking." Fay muttered.

  Pikachu waved his tail, spinning it in a circle while giving her a determined grin.

  Fay didn't doubt that Pikachu could hold his own, but still. Being out like this, without her trainer. It scared her a little.

  Around them, the forest cleared up, thinning out into an open cliff side.

  "Wow." Fay awed as she took a step forward.

  The view was simply amazing.

  Underneath her the woods stretched out for miles, forming a dark green blanket filled with potential beauty.

  Even though it was night she could still see life bustling inside the forest. All covered by a layer of fine silver light, granted by the moon above. The Pokémon who were most active under the cover of the moon swiftly moved around. Kricketot and Hoothoot still moved around and about. Singing their own nocturnal song.

  Above her, the entire canvas of stars stretched out into eternity. Lighting the sky on fire and turning it into a beacon of light.

  In the far distance she could see a city, the lights faintly glowing, like a sea of soft candles. That must be their destination: Alamos Town.

  Fay closed her eyes and focused on her Aura senses. Slowly she could feel the entire forest in front of her come to life.

  An ocean of tiny flames stretched out for miles. Flickering lights in a sea of darkness, yet together they formed a beautiful tapestry of just life in all its abundance. She could vaguely sense their emotions. They were all so peaceful.

  "Pikachu?"

  Fay turned her head to the left. A blush formed. She had completely forgotten about his presence. Or why they were there in the first place.

  "Sorry, I was just lost in my thoughts." She shook her head. "Anyway, what now?"

  Pikachu walked towards the ledge. Fay thought he was going to jump over it but he simply pointed his tail over the ledge.

  Fay followed and looked straight down.

  "Oh."

  Underneath the cliffside was a small camp set up. Just a tent, a quenched campfire, some camping supplies carelessly tossed around and a wooden cage with one sleeping Kirlia.

  She could sense that the humans were in the tent. The Pokémon was inside as well, a smaller one. Both seemed asleep.

  Fay pulled her head back up and looked at Pikachu.

  "Okay, what now?"

  Small little sparks began to flicker around his cheeks. A mischievous grin appeared.

  "No!" Fay said. "If you do that you'll wake up the entire forest. Besides, this is our rescue mission."

  "Pika?" The rodent rubbed his head.

  "We got to do this quietly." Fay narrowed her eyes. “My trainer taught me about this. It’s called stealth.”

  Pikachu nodded, thoughtfully, and then gestured to Fay to take the lead.

  Fay walked along the side of the cliff, trying to find the best angle to drop down from. It was a sharp drop, roughly three grown trees tall, nothing dangerous but she wanted to do it stealthily.

  She saw some rock formations that were about the right height a bit to the side.

  "You know Quick Attack?" She asked Pikachu. He nodded, still scratching his ears in confusion, though Pikachu was clearly intrigued.

  "Watch me." Fay bent her knees, aimed for the right angle and ran forwards. She felt the energy built up around her just as she took her first leap.

  Around her the cool air surrounded her and she took a leap towards that endless expanse of stars.

  A flash later and she was standing on a small platform, made up of blunt rocks that jutted out of the cliffside. She aimed for the next patch of steady ground, this one a little lower, and released more of the built up energy.

  With 2 more of those jumps, she had found herself standing near the campsite.

  She looked up and saw Pikachu carefully following her example, albeit a bit more clumsily. Still, he managed to get down without a sound, and only his latest jump had overshot its target, but he’d gotten down without harm or making so much as a whisper.

  Fay walked towards the cage with the sleeping Kirlia. Making no sound as she did.

  Pikachu trailed behind her, following her example.

  The campsite was littered with stuff that had been carelessly thrown about. From socks to half finished meals and discarded technological equipment. It was quite messy.

  Fay reached the cage without too much trouble.

  It wasn't exactly sturdy looking. In fact, it didn’t look much like a cage. Instead it looked like something kids would make out of woods and twigs while playing. Couldn’t Luna teleport out anyway?

  "Luna." Fay hissed.

  Inside her makeshift cage, Luna began to stir. She lazily opened her red eyes and gazed around until she found Fay looking at her through the bars.

  {Fay!?} Luna practically yelled in her mind. {Why are you here!?} The flimsy veil of sleep had been shredded completely. Luna was now operating at full capacity.

  She tilted her head. Behind her red eyes Fay could see tens of tiny calculations being made. {And why is he here?} Luna pointed at Pikachu.

  Behind Fay, Pikachu waved his tail. “Chu!”

  "You were kidnapped." Fay said in a hushed voice. "But don't worry, we'll get you out of there."

  Luna blinked. Then she cracked.

  {No no no no no!} Luna began pacing around the cage, rubbing her head. {No this wasn't what I wanted.}

  Fay was flabbergasted. She glanced at Pikachu, trying to figure out if this was another weird thing that was actually normal. Pikachu shrugged.

  Luna turned to Fay. Her red eyes were practically glowing. {No, Dust was supposed to rescue me! He would rescue me from these evil doers like a Knight in shining armor.}

  "Pika?" Pikachu asked.

  "You are saying…"

  Luna sighed dramatically, gazed up at the ceiling of her cage as if asking the stars how this could be, before she suddenly disappeared with a flash.

  She appeared next to the cage a single blink later. The same deadpan expression on her face as well.

  "..." Pikachu shook his head.

  Fay as well was at a loss for words. She’d learned many words from Dust for such an occasion, but her mind failed to recall any of them.

  Luna’s expression turned into a scowl. Though it quickly turned into a smile that the Kirlia desperately tried to hide.

  Ultimately, she failed. A light giggle escaped from her. "Hahahahahaa. This makes you my Knight in shining armour, Fay."

  Fay too, cracked a smile. She chuckled softly.

  Luna looked at her, trying to keep her expression straight but again she failed.

  Soon, the two Pokémon began to laugh out loud, unable to contain their joy. All the while, Pikachu just watched as the two girls were overtaken by the infectious laughter.

  Eventually Pikachu joined in and the chuckle became a chorus of laughter that grew louder and broke the nice quiet atmosphere.

  It didn't go unnoticed. Sounds came from inside the tent.

  "Huh?"

  "Stop laughing in your sleep, James!'

  "Wasn't me!" a male voice groaned back.

  Luna looked at the tent. Fay could see her grin grow even wider. {Well, now it’s my time to save this dazzling knight.}

  The Kirlia closed her eyes. Purple energy began to bleed out from her eyes and horns. She pushed her hand forward in the tent's direction.

  Her eyes burst open and a wave of psychic energy was unleashed right above that little tent.

  Suddenly water poured down on the tent. As if an invisible portal on the bottom of the sea had opened up above the campsite.

  The downpour of water stopped just as quickly as it had manifested but the damage was done.

  Screams erupted from the tent. Curses and other unholy words Fay doubted her mom would allow her to hear.

  "Chu." Pikachu whispered. A small trace of lightning arced off his cheek and leaped over to the drenched campsite and hit the water that pooled around it.

  A second wave of curses and screams erupted and shattered the quiet of the night sky.

  Luna smiled dizzily and then stumbled towards Fay. {I’m spent. You’ll have to carry me home, fake knight.}

  Above the night continued to sparkle.

  Fay wasn't sure what she had exactly accomplished tonight. She just knew that her mom had been right.

  Don't ever follow a strange Pokémon into the dark.

  A/N a nice relaxed chapter for the end of the week. Hope you all are doing fine. Thanks for all the joyful commnents.

  Not much to say except that I wish you loads of luck next week and that I see you next time with another chapter.

  -CaptainMoonShine-