Part Two
Forged By Fire
Ikiji was numb. His mother...his father...in less than a minute, his closest family was gone...
The men were ransacking the room, looking for something. One of them began to search his mother's corpse; Ikiji suddenly felt an overwhelming fury. These men had taken everything from him. He had no reason to hide; what was left for him? He waited until one of the men drew near, then prepared to leap out and make his final move...
Then, suddenly, he felt something next to him. He looked over, and saw Matsuko, shaking from fear. He stopped. That's right...I still have to watch over her...I can't leave her alone in the world...
Suddenly, a brilliant flash of light flooded the room. In the far corner, a pokeball on his father's belt had come loose. Standing by the fire was a Vaporeon. Ikiji was horrified. No! Kami, run! Get out of here! The Vaporeon, the proud creature that had led Ikiji's father into the chronicles of great trainers, now gazed upon his master's broken body. He let out a piercing cry, and turned towards the men. The trio were still reeling from the flash, and at the sound of the cry, they began yelling in panicked, unfamiliar tongues. Kami fired a vicious Hydro Pump and slammed one man into the wall at breakneck speed; Ikiji heard something crack. Not the wall.
Now, the other two had started to recover. One took aim at Kami and fired off several shots. The Vaporeon smoothly evaded the shots of the first, but was less successful with the second's. He staggered backwards from the impact of the bullets, let out a pained cry, and collapsed to the ground. He did not stir. His death barely registered with Ikiji; he simply stared on, completely numb. One of the men dragged the injured one to his feet; as he was pulled off the ground, he let out a howl of pain. They conversed in quick, breathless tones, apparently arguing about something. One took out a small device, pressed a button, and threw it down a hallway. The other two followed suite, throwing similar devices into different rooms. They ran off out of sight; Ikiji barely noticed. His mind was blank; he felt nothing, thought nothing. After several moments, panicked cries from his left brought him back. Matsuko was crying at him, and he saw why: the entire house was in flames!
No...! Mother...! Father...! I can't... Matsuko raised the intensity of her cries, and he felt a shock as the tiny pokemon desperately tried to rouse him. Matsuko! I have to get her out of here...! Ikiji kicked the grate open, and leapt out. He turned and pulled the frightened Matsuko out as well. He ran, holding her tight, trying to escape the inferno around him. He paused a moment, glanced at the bodies of his parents, and continued his flight. He felt an overwhelming sadness, but tears would not come. A massive flare burst out of the door in front of him, and he flinched back; a large piece of debris fell from the ceiling and slammed into him and Matsuko. The startled Pichu let out a painful shock as she lost conscoiusness, and Ikiji struggled to hold onto her. He inched his way out of the debris, and trudged along through the hallway, flames licking at him the entire way.
Suddenly, another flare! Ikiji flinched again, and recovered to a horrid sight: Matsuko was on fire! Screaming, Ikiji desperately drowned the flames with his sleeves, ignoring the pain he himself was feeling. He managed to douse the fire, but Matsuko had a terrible burn on her chest. Ikiji stood, the flames growing ever more intense, and continued.
By some miracle, he found himself outside. Sirens wailed in the distance, but he shrank from them; he didn't want to deal with anybody right now. All he wanted was to be alone. He trudged over to the tall fence, dropped to the ground, felt for his secret switch, and opened a poorly-concealed hole in the fence. He squeezed through, careful not to harm Matsuko, and
fled into the woods. He ran and ran and ran, and finally came to a tree with a large opening in the base. He checked it, and carefully lowered Matsuko into it, followed by himself. He hid there with his injured friend.
And then he cried.
He cried and cried, all of the sadness of the night bursting from him in a single outpouring. He thought of his poor mother, taken so suddenly; his father, proud and strong; Kami, so noble, and now gone. Everything had been taken from him in a single act of violence, and he did not understand why. He felt an unbearable emptiness. I have nothing... He wished in that moment for death; to be taken from this harsh world, and to be reunited with his loving parents...
He heard a sound. Startled, he'd just realized that Matsuko had sunk into a troubled, but restful, sleep. He realized that he did have something. He did have something to live for...
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<Ikiji...?>
<IKIJI!>
He snapped out of his trance, and felt the soft rain hit his face. He lowered his eyes, and met the eyes of Matsuko.
<Are you alright?> She inquired.
"Yes. I was...reminiscing."
<You were thinking about...back then, weren't you?>
"Yes."
<You seem to be doing that a lot lately.>
Ikiji looked at his friend. She had since evolved into a Pikachu, but even that transformation could not hide the blackened fur on her chest, and the many scars on her face and tail. He recalled the fire...
"I like to keep my motivation close at heart."
<Ah. I see...>
Ikiji stared at her. He thought how close the escape had been, how they had nearly both died...he though of his mother and father...and he thought of Matsuko...
<Hmm? Kij, what's wrong?>
"Hmm? Nothing."
<There was...sadness in your eyes. I saw it.>
"Just...a moment of weakness. Nothing more."
<If you say so...the Gym is there. See it?> She indicates a large, circular building with her paw. <If we're to find a lead in this town, it'll likely be there.>
Ikiji remains silent.
Matsuko looks sullen. She tries to comfort him. <You know, I can try to earn a Badge for you, if you like...>
A Badge... in another time, I might've taken you up on that offer in an instant, but now... He shook his head. "Badges mean nothing to me. There are only two things I am interested in."
<...your sister...>
Saiya Murasashi was in the Orange Islands at the time of the fire. She was reported missing soon afterwards. Her body was never found. Ikiji clung to a desperate hope that somehow, somewhere, she was still...
<Shall we go?>
"One moment." He gazed out at the town, and felt the rain on his skin. He closed his eyes and tried to remember the face of his mother. He saddened when he realized he could not recall the color of her hair. Then, his sadness vanished. No. I have no more tears to shed. I cried that night. I cried until the first rays of dawn. I have no tears left. All I have left now is thirst...
Thirst for the blood of those who took everything from me...
Well? What do you think? Anyone like to see more stories about Ikiji and Matsuko?