I :
E X O D U S
Part Two
The elder made a dramatic sweep as he pointed to the forbidden mountain. Tuck’s heart flopped.
Crazy Man said with a gleam in his eye, “That pile of bones was closed to the public ever since a few decades ago.
As the path was already dangerous, it wasn’t the only reason it was prohibited. Spectators long ago caused a ruckus over seeing the legendary Moltres take wing
around the island and take roost at the very top of our summit. I saw it with mine own eyes too.”
Tuck paled at the sight of the monstrous hunk of outlawed rock, nearly obscured by fomenting thunderclouds. A Moltres? Here?
He looked in the path of the Champion who was disappearing in the cheering crowd of fans and aspiring Trainers,
and heard Crazy Man mumble further, “And to this day, no one has seen it leave. Roman’s here to catch it, of that I’m sure.”
“Not on my turf,” Tuck was a bit astonished to murmur.
“Nonsense!” the old man broke into an amused chuckle. “But I like your gusto.”
“I’m gonna catch it first, Crazy Man, and I don’t care what you say!” Tuck screamed while he sped off running back to the hills.
He gave out hollers and whoops, like a wild child, and no one noticed, too wrapped up in the festive spirit and the fame of the Champion.
Crazy Man shook his head and buried his face into a hand, “This… did not go well.”
“Oof…” Tuck groaned, wiping sweat off his brow, and staggered onto another shaky ledge. The rocks were uneven, born and decaying out of arbitrariness.
His sneakers dug and sank into some cracks, and it took some time getting released from. Pebbles clinked from a startling scrape. He glanced over his shoulder.
It would be a far, steep fall down in one slip, and nowhere in sight was an easier way down. “Maybe this was a bad idea… yeah, maybe.”
With an elbow over, Tuck climbed another soiled shelf, gripping at weeds and roots, and managed to roll onto his back, having succeeded another several feet closer.
Something strongly tremored at his waist. He glanced down and realized it was one of the PokeBalls. It clattered and rattled urgently. He frowned, “Angelus?”
He looked up above and saw that he was not far from the summit. In a flash, a smile spread across his face. He was going to make it.
With another elbow, he reached the top of the mountain.
When Tuck summoned his Absol, it came as a shock once Angelus started to scream.
Within seconds, Angelus butted its head into Tuck’s stomach and drove him backwards, dangerously by the edge.
Tuck wrangled out of its way, flushing red in anger, “What’s the matter with you!”
Angelus snapped a scowl before it made a long stare at the fiery clouds that circled the mountain peak. Its forlorn gaze came back, this time to the small villa of Prism.
Tuck seemed to catch on. He spoke quietly, “You really think something bad’s going to happen.”
Angelus looked straight in his eyes, and no other act could’ve been clearer.
Rumbling came from behind them. They spun, but there was nothing but a wall of shivering stone.
Tuck looked down the path that winded around the peak and saw narrow steps that led to the mouth of a smoky cave.
Angelus whined. Tuck ignored and returned the Absol to its PokeBall before he braved his entrance into a lair in which no one has ever been before.
Fiery ash hissed and exploded in pops, dancing and expiring glows. Tuck gulped.
“Now really, should I turn back?” he started muttering to himself, wringing his hands. “This is a bad idea. Bad, bad, bad idea. Go back. You need to go back…”
As if to answer him, a sudden roar sent chills up his spine.
The murky room lit to life when a giant tortoise combusted into flame, a Torkoal, before they were bombed with Smokescreen.
Tuck collapsed, gagging on the black fumes, before he dropped a PokeBall. Whatever came out, he didn’t care, just as long something did.
A short burst of light pilfered through but was muffled. Fire Spins ripped through the dark and smashed into the walls, roaring ear-splitting destruction.
Then the wind shifted direction.
“Angelus,” Tuck realized.
A disc burned back and the smoke finally cleared with it in one attack, slashing across the Torkoal’s face smack center. It barely made a sound.
It stomped the ground a few times, unfazed. Angelus bristled and growled fiercely. Tuck hadn’t seen it behave that threatened before.
He stood to his feet but had to dive again before another Fire Spin whipped out and scorched the wall behind him. This really was a bad idea…
“Quick Attack,” Tuck stammered.
Angelus ran left, turned right, and then coming from behind, struck hard across its face with a thick and powerful paw.
The Torkoal bounced back instantly and withdrew into its own shell, then the shell began to spin erratically. It was a Rapid Spin and it was going to be everywhere.
Tuck’s eyes widened as he leapt to his feet and headed outside.
Angelus turned tail but by then, the shell exploded into momentum and crashed into its side, taking both Pokemon into another collision with the wall.
Angelus growled weakly, completely defeated. Tuck returned it to its PokeBall. The Torkoal rumbled to its feet, still unfazed. Still aggressive.
He hesitated about sending in Cloud. It was going to be a mess. He did not have this.
The Torkoal puffed with cinders and unleashed a shower of Fire Spins.
He was finished.
Tuck cringed and felt nothing but an abrasive gust of heat. He didn’t feel harmed at all.
He opened his eyes. A shadowy Dragon was in the way, a Salamence. He looked to his side and saw Roman, the Champion, staring at him disapprovingly.
He stammered but nothing came out.
“Protect!” Roman hollered, disarming another flaming inferno. “Now, Crunch! Again!”
The Torkoal reared on its back legs before caving in the tunnel. Suddenly, Tuck was dragged out onto the summit under the night sky.
Roman took a good look at him before he grimly spoke, “You have no idea what you’re doing here, kid.”
“Yes, I do,” Tuck flared with defiance. “Well, I did, anyways. I know why you’re here.”
“I doubt that,” Roman crossed his arms, “because if you really did, you wouldn’t be up here.”
Tuck frowned at him, “Why?”
“No point hiding it now,” Roman whispered for a moment before he regained his proud and faithful volume,
“Natural disasters have struck the rest of the world. There was a nasty thunderstorm in the Kirroh region. Turned out to be Zapdos.
There was also a blizzard in the Hoenn region. As you can guess…”
“Articuno,” Tuck said breathlessly. “And now that Moltres is here…”
“I have to stop it,” Roman nodded, “Before… well, before anything is to happen.”
The ground gave way under them, crumbling into brittle rocks and dirt, jumping violently and continually sinking.
Roman grabbed Tuck and clung to the slope as they watched trees teeter and uproot.
Tuck screamed and jerked his face off the earth which seared extremely hot red.
“This is no mountain!” Roman shouted before he tossed him on the Salamence that flew to their aid and leapt on, “Salamence, to the village! We got to warn the others!”
Tuck screamed, “What’s happening, Roman?”
“Moltres came here because you had a volcano. That volcano’s about to go!”
On cue, the mountain ruptured its cap and in an outrageous detonation, the rain of magma pillared into the clouds, a vivid fountain of horror.
Faint screaming trailed from the villa of Prism. Tuck dared to look back.
The path that Tuck managed to climb was surreally being splintered and torn in random directions, and from the chasms bled molten gold.
Tuck couldn’t help but obsess on the fact that Angelus knew something was wrong.
And it was completely dead on.
END PART TWO.
NEXT, I: EXODUS PART THREE.