The Murder

[Sem]

Get this out of the way before I bring out the next fic. Can be read if you've only read up to Superlative In Reverie. Enjoy~


-Part 1-

Fida gazed at the sky as a flock of Wingull flew overhead. There cries were loud, but so was everything in the port town of Canalave. People crowded the streets, and the various conversations combined into an ever-present dull roar.

The girl stood on the deck of a ship that was pulling in the harbor. The famous Canalave Bridge had been raised, allowing the vessel to pass through into the city. She had boarded the ship in Snowpoint – the Aqauises waved at her as she left, her new parents. They had been more than gracious in accepting the girl into their family.

It was a strange experience, living with a normal family. Actually, that was a lie. The Aquaises weren’t normal. They lived in a laboratory in the middle of snow-covered-no-where. They had a large snake that sword fought with Jadis, Sem’s Froslass. There was a large Persian that lounged where it pleased, a Pokémon shaped like the letter ‘A’ that wandered aimlessly around the lab. Her mom wore an Ekans around her neck, and there had recently been a certain glitchy Porygon that had tried to take over the lab and the world.

But, they were normal in the fact that they didn’t beat her and they treated her like a human being – not even that: they treated her like a member of their family and loved her.

She had recently finished a year of homeschooling, allowing her to catch up and surpass other kids that were her age. She had turned ten just the other day, which surprised her. The last two years of her life seemed as if they had just flown by. She went from runaway, to trainer in training under the tutorage of her first ever real human friend. Then she lost her friend, found a new one, and through him found her way to a new family, having adventures along the way.

Now she was on her own for the first time since leaving her home in Violet City, which lay all the way in another part of the world. Back then she was scared and powerless. Now? Now she was confident and trusted in her own strength as well as the strength of her companions.

The boat came to stop and in moments passengers were filing out onto land. Fida followed suit, stepping off of the ship and taking a big breathe of ocean air. This was the first stop in her journey towards Sandgem Town. From there she would begin traveling the region.

Reaching into her coat she drew out a Pokéball, a Timer Ball specifically. She pressed the button in the center of the device. It cracked open, releasing a strange Pokémon whose most recognizable features where the two magnets on either side of its spherical body.

Magnemite was a recent addition to her team, given to her by Sem’s parents. There were many Magnemite kept in the lab, and this one had seemed to grow ‘attached’ to Fida as time went on.

The Aquaises had officially given him, her, it, to Fida the day she left, as a going away present. Fida accepted it graciously, thrilled to have a new companion to join her on her adventures.

She let Magnemite out of the ball, allowing the creature to orbit her as she continued walking. It was her way to get used to the Pokémon, who was unlike her other partners in that Magnemite wasn’t even organic. It behaved differently than the rest of them, reacted differently. Fida wanted to tap into these differences in order to know how to train it best. During her year of study she also spent much of her time looking into training guides, battle strategies, and the general study of Pokémon themselves. She had learned a lot, but there was so much more left to learn that she wouldn’t be able to obtain from a book or the internet.

The girl tugged at the lanyard hanging out of her front jeans pocket, at the end of which was a device that looked very much like a flip-phone. It was purple with silver colored Pokéball symbols. She opened the PokéGear and brought up her map function, showing her current locations as well as marking out where important locations were. Locating where the Pokémon Center was she closed the device and put it away, setting off for the center.

Fida took in the sites around her with eager eyes, seeing if there was anything she could do in Canalave before she set off for Sandgem. There were many shops and restaurants along the canal. Many of the restaurants were sea food establishments, while many of the shops and stalls were meant to attract tourists with a variety of colorful trinkets and knick-knacks. Further away from the water lay the businesses, proper stores, and residential areas.

After a short while of walking the iconic red roof of the Pokémon Centre came into view. Fida approached it with a quickened pace, walking through the sliding glass doors with a sense of relief. It had been too long since she had been in a Pokémon Center, or so it seemed. She used to live in them not long ago, at least when she wasn’t sleeping on the ground. It was a moderately sized building, not like one of the hotel-sized clinics that were found in the large cities, but certainly not tiny like the ones found in smaller towns.

She went up to the counter and rung the bell that sat upon it, summoning the pink-haired nurse.

“Hello!” she greeted Fida, setting both hands on the counter.

“Hello, Nurse Joy,” Fida greeted back. “I want to get a room, please.”

“Of course,” the nurse nodded. Fida took out her trainer ID and passed it to the nurse. The card was taken and scanned, bringing up Fida’s information. After a few moments of typing Joy gave the girl her ID back along with another card, the key to her room.

“There you are, young lady, room forty-three,” Nurse Joy said cheerily. “Is there anything else you need?”

“No ma’am,” Fida shook her head and smiled.

“Have a good day then,” Joy replied with a nod of her head.

Fida said the same and then walked towards the elevator. She pressed the correct button as she stepped inside, watching her blurry reflection manifest before her as the metallic doors slid shut. The lift hummed as it rose to the first floor and dinged after only a moment. The girl stepped out and briefly glimpsed the signs in order to discern which way her room was. She walked down the hallway, which hardly differed from a hallway in any other Pokémon Centre she had been in – all of them seemed to be mostly uniform.

She came upon her room and swiped her card through the lock, gaining her access. Turning on the light as she stepped inside she looked around briefly, seeing that the room wasn’t much different either. Fida set her bag on a chair and stood there, wondering what to do with the rest of her day.

Dinnertime was in a few hours, and she felt that she should treat herself to dinner in a restaurant as opposed to settling for the Centre’s food, despite the fact that it was free. She would get plenty of it in the months to come, and she would be crazy not to try out one of the many enticing food places that lined the canal.

Magnemite still hovered around her, humming softly as he always did, being the machine that he was. Fida observed him and noted that she could probably get in a battle before dinner. She would easily find a challenger at the public arenas. Deciding on this course of action she left the room, leaving her bag behind.

After asking Nurse Joy for directions she left the centre and made her way there. They weren’t that far actually, which made sense. Upon her arrival she was quickly spotted and approached but a boy a little older than she was.

“Nice Magnemite!” he commented as he jogged up to her, not commenting on Elvia since she wasn’t actually visible, and thus he wasn’t even aware of her presence.

“Thanks,” she said, quickly looking over the boy in his yellow t-shirt and black shorts. He had a full head of red hair which burned brightly against his white skin.

“You wanna battle?” he asked, a hopeful expression on his face.

“Sure,” came her reply. “My name’s Fida.”

“Jeremy,” he said, extending his hand and smiling warmly.

Fida shook it before asking “You wanna make it a doubles match?” She was in the mood for a good double battle.

“Heh, sure!” he replied as he led them to an empty arena. He took the opposite side as he pulled out two Pokéballs. The arena was a simple plot of dirt with white lines painted onto it to mark out the center and the trainer boxes.

“Just two on two?” he asked.

“Yeah!” Fida yelled in response. “Go, Magnemite,” she told her magnetic friend as she pulled out another Pokéball. It was black with a red middle and green spots – a Dusk Ball. She tossed it onto the field as well, letting loose a black glob of energy that left behind a tiny black bird. The bird had a bushy tail and head feathers that resembled a witch’s hat. The crow squawked, stretching out his wings before shooting a glare at Fida. It looked around with a vague sense of familiarity.

Kieran was her most temperamental Pokémon. He was better than he used to be, listening to her most of the time. But there were still the odd time where he wouldn’t. She wasn’t sure if he just didn’t trust her still, or was too proud of himself to take orders. Either way, she hoped that today wouldn’t be one of those days.

“Magnemite and Murkrow…” Jeremy said. “Not typical girl Pokémon.”

Of course, Fida Valens was not your typical little girl.

Jeremy summoned his Pokémon – a medium-sized black and blue feline and a small white and blue bird. Luxio and Wingull were her opponents.

It was in that moment before the battle started that two things happened. First was that Magnemite went ballistic in response to Luxio’s presence. It sped towards the Pokémon, who seemed unsure whether or not to attack without a command from its trainer.

The second was a large flock of black birds that flew overhead. There were two dozen of them, all of them being led by a large bird. In response to this Kieran immediately took off towards the mass of birds, cawing madly at them.

Fida was at a loss for words, between watching Kieran fly off into the distance and her Magnemite orbiting Luxio like a moon orbits a planet. “I’m sorry!” she said, pulling out the Timer Ball and returning Magnemite. She was certain that Jeremy thought she was unable to control her Pokémon at all. He probably thought that she was a rookie!

She immediately ran off after the flock of birds, going as fast as she could. “Kieran!” she yelled. Fida hadn’t noticed Jeremy was running after her until he called her name.

“Fida!” he said as he caught up. “They’re heading towards the canal, we can cut through this way!” he told her, taking her hand and leading her away from the direction in which she was running. They dashed into an alley, dodging bins and a Glameow as they sprinted.

“I’m sorry!” she said again in regards to their battled. “I didn’t know that would happen!”

“It’s ok,” he said as they ran out into a small street before disappearing into another alley. “Every beginner has problems controlling their Pokémon. I had the same issue for a while.”

Fida’s cheeks flushed vibrant read, and was glad that he wasn’t able to see her. “I’m not-“

“There!” he said, pointing up in the sky as they reached the canal. The water lay bellow them as they stood by the edge, watching as the cloud of black flew farther away along the canal. “There’s still no way we can catch up to them…” he told her.

Thinking quickly, Fida pulled out another Pokéball, saying “Yes there is!” The Lure Ball burst open over the water, letting loose an large amount of pure white energy. The energy formed itself, leaving behind a creature of monstrous size, even when compared to others of its own species.

The Gyarados let loose a roar the caught the attention of everyone that was able to hear it, causing most of them to stop whatever what they were doing in order to stares, faces stark white with fear.

“Calhoun!” Fida yelled, calling the attention of her Pokémon, too focused to notice Jeremy staring dumbfounded with his jaw open. “Follow those birds!” she said, pointing in the direction of the flock.

With an acknowledging growl Calhoun lowered his massive head, allowing the girl to climb on. She turned back to Jeremy, giving him strange look. “Coming?” she asked.

Shaken from his thoughts he looked briefly from the girl’s face to the Gyarados’ fierce eyes. “Y-yeah,” he answered, getting on.

Once the boy was settled Calhoun sped down the canal as fast as he was able, going around boats and ships. People were less worried now, seeing Fida on Calhoun’s head. Still, seeing a leviathan speed past would unsettle most people.

It took a bit for Jeremy’s heart to stop beating so fast. Still, it was an adrenaline rush, sitting atop such a large creature. Gyarados were difficult to train, and you mostly saw only advanced trainers with them.

“Is this your Gyarados, Fida?” he asked, thinking that maybe it belonged to a parent, which explained why it would obey her.

“Yeah,” she nodded, looking at him. “Caught him when he was a Magikarp.”

“Oh,” Jeremy replied with a nod. There went his theory. “Good job!”

“Thanks,” she chirped before looking ahead to see the flock. They weren’t exactly going straight, more like swaying back and forth over the canal. They were still faster, being airborne, but Calhoun was swimming much faster than if they would be if they were running.

It was then that she noticed a disturbance within the flock. Looking harder, she noticed they all of the Murkrow were attacking a single Murkrow, and she had a pretty good idea which one. She gripped Kieran’s Dusk Ball in her hand, watching on with a worried expression as she urged Calhoun to go faster.

Kieran dodged the attacks made on him, diving and rolling away from each Murkrow that flew at him. Kieran had the advantage of being trained, and trained well. Despite this, he was vastly outnumbered and it would be only a matter of time before he would be hurt. He countered against the ones who attacked him, causing them to fall from the sky.

Kieran seemed intent on reaching the leader of the group, the largest bird. The Honchkrow stared imperiously down at Kieran as Murkrow after Murkrow threw themselves at him in an attempt to stop him from reaching their leader. Kieran seemed too determined however, avoiding and dispatching any of his fellow avians that got in his way.

“Kieran!” Fida yelled as Calhoun reached the group, looking up at Kieran as he prepared to attack the Honchkrow. He flew up and arched down into a spiral towards the boss bird in a Drill Peck maneuver.

The larger crow flew back and narrowly avoided the attack, countering with a Shadow Ball that met its mark. Kieran was hit, crying out as he fell. He flapped his wings in a desperate attempt to regain flight, but before he could anything of the sort a black string of energy hit the bird, turning him the same color. The energy flowed back into the Dusk Ball like a trail of ink, trapping the bird safely inside.

Fida sighed in relief as she held the ball in her hands.

“Uh, Fida?” Jeremy said, tugging on her arm and pointing at the flock.

The girl looked and her eyes went wide for a moment, seeing the flock rushing at her, beaks and talons at the ready. Calhoun let loose a mighty roared that caused the flock to pause, victims of Calhoun’s Intimidate ability. Despite this, the Honchkrow encouraged them to continue their attack, and again they flew at the girl.

“Hold on!” Fida said, grabbing onto one of the Gyarados’ horns as he reared his massive head back, firing a powerful jet of water at the incoming birds, taking out a good number of them. The rest of them were about to attack, no doubt in retaliation for interfering in their affairs with Kieran.

At the last moment a number of them collided with a shield of purple energy that surrounded the girl and the boy – Elvia’s Protect. The sphere vanished as the air sparked and crackled with electricity, quickly expanding outwards and hitting the birds - paralyzing them with Thunder Wave.

Elvia fired off a Thunderbolt in the general direction of the Honchkrow, though not directly at him, as a warning. After a moment the boss-bird cawed and flew away, taking with him as many birds that were still capable of flight.

“What was that?!” Jeremy yelled after they had gone. According to his perspective, Fida was the one who had done those things.

In response the air around the girl rippled as the Mismagius showed herself.

“Sorry…” Fida said, blushing again. “This is Elvia, she’s my first Pokémon.”

“Oh…” the boy replied, nodding in greeting towards the Ghost Pokémon. There was far more to the girl than what met the eye.

“I’m going back to the Pokémon Center,” Fida told him as she put Kieran’s ball away. “Sorry about our battle…”

“That’s ok,” Jeremy replied, grinning after a moment. “Don’t worry about it. I should get going too or my parents will wonder where I am. I said I’d be home an hour ago…” he murmured, blushing as well in embarrassment. “Plus I have to tell them about how you went up against The Murder.”

Fida looked at him strangely. “The what?”

“The Murder,” he repeated. “That’s what we call that flock of Murkrow. They’re kind of notorious to everyone who lives in Canalave.”

“Oh,” she nodded, seeming to understand that that particular flock a birds probably caused a lot of trouble.

Calhoun swam over to the edge and lowered his head again, allowing the humans to step onto the concrete.

“Thank you, Calhoun,” Fida said warmly, massaging the side of his head as she returned him to the Lure Ball. She turned to Jeremy and smiled. “It was nice meeting you! Thanks a lot for helping me.”

Jeremy shrugged. “It was no big deal,” he said. “Glad you got Kieran back safe and sound. See ya around.” With that he waved and began walking away.

-------

Back at Fida’s room in the Center the girl sat on her bed, holding Kieran’s Pokéball in her hand. Pursing her lips, she pressed the button and released the bird. He manifested onto the bed, legs and wings folded as he sat turned away from the girl.

“Kieran…” Fida started. “This can’t keep happening. You need to trust me.” She was a broken record when it came Kieran, always seeming to be scolding him.

He didn’t respond, only sat there with his eyes closed.

It was dusk now; the sun burned a bright orange and cast its light into Fida’s otherwise dark room.

She sat and thought for a moment in the silence, absentmindedly playing with her hair, which had grown quite long. It was nowhere near as long as the hair it was modeled after, but long enough.

“Are you ok?” she asked him, though she figured that the only thing hurt was his pride.

Still no response.

“Look…” she sighed. “Do you wanna go for a walk?”

He opened his eyes and shot a glance at her.

“But!” she exclaimed. “Only if you promise not to fly away.”

After a moment the tiny bird nodded.

Fida smiled and outstretched her arm; Kieran fluttered up into the air and landed on it, slowly walking up it until he rested on her shoulder.

The girl left the center with her bird, pulling her coat tighter against her body as a chilly breeze blew through the street. Having lived for a year in Snowpoint, she was used to a bit of cold, but not to the point that Sem was. The boy seemed to not notice the cold at all.

They walked in silence, as they wandered the streets with no specific destination in mind. Walking for walking’s sake was always good though, or so the Aquaises told her.

Kieran looked around calmly, still seeming as if he had been to Canalave before, and Fida was beginning to catch onto this.

As they neared the canal again they were in a segment of the city that was mainly warehouses. Rows upon rows of them rested by the water, easy access for loading their contents onto ships.

It was here that Kieran became a bit restless, looking around a bit anxiously.

“Ow!” Fida said in response to Kieran’s feet gripping her shoulder too tightly. Before she knew it Kieran had flown off again, though he didn’t go far. She watched at he flew up to the eaves of the nearest warehouse. He disappeared underneath the eave and was there for a moment until Fida saw a reflective object fall to the ground.

Running over she took a closer look and saw that it was locket. She was about to pick it up when another object fell, and then another. Fida realized after a moment that this must have been Kieran’s old stash of shiny objects, which confirmed her suspicions that Kieran had been to Canalave before. More than been to, actually – he had probably lived there for quite some time.

After a moment it seemed as though he got the last of it and flew down to Fida, returning to her shoulder. She knelt down and gathered up the objects, putting them into her pockets, trying to pull together Kieran’s history.

She had first seen him Johto, which was a long ways away from Canalave. And judging from his reaction to the flock of Murkrow here, ‘The Murder’, it could be that he was once a member of that flock. Thinking further, she recounted the fact that Kieran seemed only interested in attacking the Honchkrow. Perhaps there was a dispute over who should lead the flock and Kieran lost…

“Kieran…” Fida started as she got to her feet, walking back towards the Center. “Did those other Murkrow used to be your friends?”

He nodded after a moment, as if reluctant to admit it.

Fida thought for a moment before speaking again. “If you want… I’ll help you defeat that Honchkrow.”

Kieran immediately fluttered down the ground in front of her, forcing her to stop. He leered up at her.

“That’s what you want, right?” Fida asked. She did have a plan. If she could help him defeat the Honchkrow, than perhaps that would restore his pride and secure his trust in her ability to be his trainer. “I’ll help you do it.”

Still, the bird stared up at her for the longest while. Finally, he nodded his head and returned to her shoulder.

Fida sighed and smiled. “Lead the way.”

 

[Tatile]

Whilst he may not be the ousted alpha, I do rather hope this won't become a tried case of "and then they were happy" should the Hounchcrow be beaten. Which it won't because you're better than that.

It's nice to see Fida again - and it's nice to see her shattering people's perceptions of a) female trainers and b) young trainers.

Also, you used the wrong version of cite, you probably wanted site (or possibly sight?).

Fida took in the cites around her with eager eyes

 

[Sem]

Oh my gods it's finished x_x After more than three months. This should've taken me no more than two weeks! Ah well. Here it is, the second half of this short story thingy. I'm quite happy with the outcome I must say =D Typos will no doubt be present and all that. I'll go over it laterz, I just really wanted to get it up. As always, feel free to critique.


-Part 2-

Kieran led Fida to the city’s outskirts. Most of the city was nestled into the arms of a thick forest. After only a few minutes of walking into the swarm of trees it was easy to forget that the city was still close by. It was here that Kieran led his trainer, cutting into the trees without any hesitation. Fida on the other hand was more wary, but entered despite herself and continued following her bird. Her heart rate kicked up and her senses sharpened due to the adrenaline that flowed into her veins out of fear.

Forests never sat well with the girl, not after the event that had occurred almost two years prior. She avoided them when it was possible, but she swallowed her fear this time in order to help her Pokémon.

Kieran knew exactly where he was going, looking like it had only been the day before that he had last flown through those trees. He tried to go slow enough for Fida to keep up, but he was far too eager for his revenge, and Fida often lost sight of him for a few moments.

She wondered what could have happened that led him to Violet City, which was in an entirely different part of the world. Either way, the more she thought about it the more she concluded that this was the reason that he always acted the way he did: with some sort of superiority that at the same time did and did not suit him.

Soon enough they entered a small clearing, illuminated only by the half-moon and its halo of stars. It wasn’t very large, but it was littered all over with bits of rubbish and scraps. Lumps of what may have once been food lay decaying on the ground and the trunks of the trees were scratched and worn. This place appeared to be a nest of sorts, but it had been abandoned for a long while by the looks of it.

Fida took a moment to catch her breath, watching as Kieran flew a few circles around the clearing before suddenly shooting towards a specific tree branch and perching there. The girl looked at him curiously before realizing that that must have been Kieran’s usual spot to rest. The bird gazed at the scene with a glazed look in his eye, perhaps reliving a memory.

Walking around, Fida looked around a bit herself, careful not to step in anything that sticky or foul smelling. She felt Elvia’s presence around her thicken, which Elvia often did in order to stay cautious. With her presence so thick she could materialize instantly and launch an attack.

“I’m sorry, Kieran,” she said, looking at the tiny bird Pokémon. “I guess they must have moved.”

He didn’t say anything as he fluttered down to the ground. Fida couldn’t exactly read how her Pokémon felt, but she could tell that he wasn’t happy. She didn’t want to leave, but she knew that they could search around Canalave all night and not find anything. They had a better chance during the day.

“Let’s go back, Kieran,” Fida said a little hesitantly. “I promise we’ll look again tomorrow.”

Kieran turned and looked at her before nodding in compliance.

The walk back to the center was quiet, and it took the girl and her Pokémon a while before they got back. It was bit late by the time the girl climbed into bed, and even longer until she finally cleared her mind from the day’s events and succumbed to her body’s exhaustion.

-------

Fida awoke early and showered. She got ready for the day as fast as she could before running down to the cafeteria and grabbing a quick breakfast. Going outside, she released her Pokémon, smiling and say good morning to each of them before giving them their breakfast as well. Kieran wasn’t interested in eating, and ignored his food entirely. Elvia and Fida’s Magnemite also did not eat, but that was become none of them required physical sustenance.

Once Rin, her Vileplume, and Calhoun had had their fill Fida returned them to their Pokéballs and set out to putting the bowls and food away. Calhoun’s bowl was enormous, which made the girl glad for the existence of item balls, which made it possible to store large objects as well as large amounts of a single thing, like the Water-type’s food. Her Gyarados could do well on the large servings she fed him, but it was very expensive. It was also healthy for a trainer to allow their Gyarados to hunt for food.

Which everything picked up she debated letting Magnemite stay out of his ball. In the end she decided to let him follow after Elvia agreed to keep an eye on him. Fida traveled quickly across the city, heading for Canalave’s famous library. The building was vast, and smelled entirely of books. It was silent save for the sound of turning pages and fingers tapping against keyboards.

After putting Magnemite away for fear of something terrible happening again, Fida quickly located a group of books that were dedicated solely to the Murkrow and Honchkrow species. She flipped through them quickly, looking for information she didn’t already know. Fida made it a point to research as much as she could about the Pokémon she owned. She wasn’t finding much of anything, but her hope was to discover something regarding behaviors and how the birds operated in a flock. Anything she found could help her assist Kieran.

After an hour or so she gave up. She had found what she was looking for, but none of it seemed helpful. What she did find was that Murkrow who belonged to flocks often followed under the leadership of a single bird. In the most advanced flocks, this bird was a Honchkrow. The rest of the birds were fiercely loyal to their leader, who tended to be the strongest of them all. If a Dusk Stone was ever found by a member of the flock (and indeed, Fida learned that one of reasons for a Murkrow’s instinctual drive to procure shiny objects was the hope that it would find a Dust stone.) then that bird would notify its leader.

What Fida envisioned in her head was of Kieran, possibly the alpha at the time, being notified of a Dusk Stone that was found. There was perhaps another strong Murkrow – the current Honchkrow – who felt envious (which was also common amongst members of the flock) and stole the stone, using it to evolve. After proving himself to be the stronger bird after evolving Kieran was ousted, probably for refusing to listen to the new alpha.

Fida would probably never know, but it made sense to her. It would also explain why he was so strong when she captured him just south of Goldenrod. Either way, speculation would not assist her. She needed to use to opportunity for Kieran to gain closure – but she also realized that if he did beat the Honchkrow then he might decided to become the flock’s leader. The thought of that happening filled Fida with a sense of sadness which made her almost want to back-out on her promise with Kieran, but she knew she couldn’t.

Returning the books to where she found them Fida also realized that she needed to know where to find the Murder. She decided that she would ask around to see if anyone knew.

“Why on earth would you want to find their nest?” the librarian asked with a raised brow.

“I, uhm,” Fida started, realizing that any reason she gave would sound ridiculous. “I’m just curious.”

The man continued to stare at her with a raised brow. “I’m sorry, miss, but I really don’t know. And even if I did, I’m not sure I would tell you. Those birds are dangerous – I would stay away.”

“I understand,” Fida said with a nod, realizing as well that she would have the same conversation with any other adult she asked. As she was leaving the library and letting Magnemite back out of his Pokéball Fida realized that maybe Jeremy, the boy from yesterday, might know where to find them

With this in mind she raced back across town to the arenas in hopes that she would find him there. After arriving she was able to locate the boy. He was currently engaged in a battle with another young trainer, using his Luxio against their Sneasel. Fida stood back and watched Jeremy battle, noting that he was a decent trainer. She was sorry that she wasn’t able to battle him the day before.

After a few moments Jeremy was able to win the match after using Spark against Sneasel. After a few moments he noticed Fida after returning Luxio to its Pokéball. “Hey!” he greeted her warmly.

“Morning,” she replied.

“Did you come back for that battle?” he asked.

Fida shook her head. “Actually I wanted to ask you something…”

“Oh, yeah?” he said, walking closer to her. “What is it?” he asked, poking Magnemite as it hovered past, slightly disturbing the Steel-type’s orbit around Fida’s head.

Fida looked around before sheepishly asking, “I was wondering if you know where those flock of Murkrow nest at…”

Jeremy blinked at her, blowing a bit of his red hair out of his freckled face. “Why would you want to know that? Didn’t you get enough of them yesterday?”

“It’s Kieran,” Fida explained. “He used to be a part of that flock – I think he used to be its leader – and he really wants to get back at that Honchkrow. I don’t want to just leave because then he’d never forgive me. This is my one shot to get him to trust me…”

Jeremy scratched the back of his head and sighed, seeing where Fida was coming from. “Yeah, I don’t know where their nest is though. Most people think it’s in the forest somewhere…”

“I was afraid of that…” she replied. “It could take me forever to find it then.”

“Well…” the boy said. “You could wait till really early tomorrow morning when they stop flying around and follow them to their nest. But they won’t be that easy to see at night…”

Fida thought for a moment. It was a decent plan, but the problem was that it would be very hard to track black birds at night. Murkrow were mostly nocturnal, and only started leaving their nests at around supper time, and went back to their nests before dawn.

“Well… it’s worth a shot I guess,” Fida replied, figuring that Kieran would be able to track them easily at night, and Elvia could keep track of Kieran. “It’d be great if I could find them during the day when they’re resting.”

Jeremy didn’t answer at first and simply stared past Fida. “Well, that one isn’t resting,” he said, pointing over to a Murkrow that was pecking at the ground.

“Huh?” Fida looked over the bird. She realized that chasing it would probably lead them directly to the flock’s next – it was too good to be true! Quickly and quietly she returned Magnemite, took out Kieran’s Dusk Ball, and released her bird. He looked up at her, and in response she pointed at the other Murkrow. Needing no further explanation Kieran cawed fiercely and took off after the other bird.

“Quick! We have to follow them!” Fida said, already running. Jeremy was only a second behind her, not really knowing why he was taking part in the mad chase. They chased the birds all the way to the tree line, which was a good mile from where they had started. The two Murkrow vanished into the trees, making it impossible to pursue them.

“No!” she yelled as she forced herself to run after them, but she knew that she had already lost them, and she couldn’t run another step without resting. “Elvia!” she said in desperation, hoping that Elvia would go after him. However, instead of leaving behind her trainer, Elvia had another idea. The Mismagius’ presence shifted and moved, filling the girl as it fused to her limbs and the rest of her body.

The girl gasped out of shock, but it was over soon. She had not even a moment to look at herself before Elvia gave her a telepathic impulse to run, and so she did. Fida could hardly believe it once she had started running, but she was going much faster than she, nay, even the fastest human could run. She felt as if she were hardly touching the ground. It took some getting used to, but Elvia helped her, allowing the girl to gracefully skip over stumps and jump over fallen trees. Elvia’s massive energy stores were powering her limbs and gave her body the speed and agility she was experiencing. The girl phased through trees when she needed to, allowing her to quickly gain ground.

“Elvia!” Fida said with a sense of awe. She knew that it wasn’t time for her to feel all giddy just then though – Kieran was the priority – she had even forgotten about Jeremy, who was no doubt staring dumbfounded into the forest behind them.

Soon enough she caught sight of Kieran, still chasing the other Murkrow through the woods. Fida caught up after a few moments but her Pokémon failed to notice, too focused on his quarry to even hear her call his name. After a few more moments they broke into another clearing, only this time it wasn’t empty. Fida slowed down, studying the old shack that was there. It looked as if the building hadn’t been used by humans for decades, but signs of its ongoing use where strewn everywhere. Like the old nest, rubbish was all over the place. Pieces of rotting food could also be found. It looked fairly desolate, and indeed, it was very likely that no other Pokémon even went near the shack.

But as empty as the place seemed to be, something was stirring from within the structure. Birds in the form of black clouds burst from holes in the walls, showering the area with more black feathers. The dozens of Murkrow vanished into the trees, but from the looks of it the flock was much larger than Fida thought. There were more birds present there then there were the day before.

As soon as the last bird left the shack Kieran flew in, and after a mere moment a commotion was heard. Claws scratched against the wooden floor and objects where shaken from their places. Fida bit her lip before rushing forward. Elvia was still fused to the girl, which allowed Fida to be very quick. The girl opened the door in time to duck out of the way as a mess of feathers flew over her head. Kieran and the Honchkrow were locked in battle, but Fida was unable to discern who had the upper hand. She could feel Elvia getting uneasy the longer they stayed, but Fida needed to stay for Kieran.

She watched as he narrowly avoided a Dark Pulse attack so powerful that it bent the tree it hit. The Honchkrow was no pushover it seemed, and it lashed viciously at Kieran with its talons in the form of Night Slash.

Kieran was grazed by the attack and cried out in pain, but he retaliated quickly enough with an Aerial Ace. The battle continued to go back and forth for another minute or so until Kieran successfully pulled off a Thunder Wave, an attack that Fida had helped him master. The Honchkrow crashed into the side of the shack, shaking the building. However, before Kieran could rush in to deliver his winning blow the rest of the flock rushed back in, shoving Fida to the ground and literally covering her. Their beaks and talons were all ready to injure her in ways she didn’t want to think about.

“Elvia…” she uttered, frightened. Of course it was too easy to find them… this was a trap.

The Mismagius responded by trying to calm her trainer’s mind, but she was unable to do anything physically. If she tried Fida could end up getting hurt.

With Elvia’s help Fida managed to keep her cool, but her heart was still racing faster than it ever had. Well, faster than it had in a long time. Of course, the last that it happened, she was also in a forest. Things didn’t turn out so well for her then. She tried not to think about it, knowing that if she did she would start to lose it. Fida needed to find a way out of this.

A yell alerted the girl that Jeremy had managed to follow her. The remaining birds pinned him and his Luxio down as well. Luxio had probably been used to follow her scent, which was smart thinking on Jeremy’s part, but that wasn’t going to help him now.

“Jeremy?” Fida said.

“Fida! What’s going on?”

“I don’t know!”

“Oh no…” he answered, sounding like he was about to lose it.

“Listen! We’ll get out of this!” Fida said. “Stay calm, ok?”

“Calm?! I’ve got a like a million Murkrow waiting to slit my throat!”

Fida worked on regulating her breathing, getting her heartbeat to slow down just bit, but it was still going strong. She tried not to look into the eyes of the Murkrow and wondered if she could reach any of the other Pokéballs. The Murkrow would tear Rin to shreds, but Calhoun… No, it was too dangerous. Calhoun wouldn’t be able to help them without injuring them.

What the Murkrow had done was rather smart. Sinister, but smart. Kieran was now stuck with a choice. He could either finish his battle, as the Honchkrow wasn’t in a condition to continue fighting, but then Fida and Jeremy would be surely injured, or worse. What Fida would later realize was that this choice they gave to Kieran actually helped her.

Kieran seemed unsure of what to do. If he chose to back off then that would mean that Fida would be safe. He had to choose between what was more important to him. Vengeance, or the trainer that he had reluctantly grown attached to over the past few years. She had put her life in danger for his sake, which touched the bird in a way so deeply that Fida would never understand. Kieran decided then that he no longer had anything to do with this flock. He belonged to a new flock, and Fida was his leader, and more. She was the one who took care of him. Kieran wouldn’t at first admit it, but if Fida hadn’t captured him when she did he would not have survived. At that point in time he hadn’t eaten in days, able to get only what other Pokémon had left behind. She took him in, she fed him, and she made him stronger. Strong enough to where he knew he could finish his battle. The fact that the situation had escalated to the dangerous point it was currently at meant that he had already won. Kieran realized this, and also realized that he now needed to show his loyalty to his trainer.

Kieran backed away from the injured bird, and cawed angrily at the rest of the avians. After receiving orders from the Honchkrow the Murkrow released their captives. Elvia, who seemed to guess what was happening, wasn’t about to take the chance that the Murder might go back on their word, and so while Fida and Jeremy retreated back into the woods she let loose a powerful Thunder Wave, crippling a large part of the flock. Kieran seemed satisfied with this and caught up to Fida along with the ghost.

-------

“That was so crazy!” Jeremy said as they exited the sea of trees. “I’m going to stop hanging out with you now. Bad things happen when I’m around you.” He seemed serious at first, but then he nudged Fida and chuckled nervously. “Just kidding! Sorta…”

Fida smiled, or tried to. She was mostly relieved that they had escaped that situation unscathed. Her heart was just then beginning to slow down to a normal rate. “Yeah, well, I won’t be here much longer. Leaving tomorrow,” she explained as Kieran landed on her shoulder. She smiled at him, piecing together what had just occurred thanks to a little help from Elvia.

“Really?” Jeremy said. “Will we get to battle before you leave? Even though I think I’ll lose…”

Fida giggled. “Yeah, I would like that battle.”

“Good. I’ll meet you down at the arenas tomorrow morning at 10?” he asked.

“I’ll see you there,” Fida said with a nod, waving as Jeremy ran off, no doubt to go back home and rest.

Rest sounded good to Fida then as well. Having your life threatened took a lot out of a you, and she was more than ready to climb into a bed and sleep. Fida Valens returned to the center and as she fell asleep she reflected upon what was only the start of her Sinnoh journey.

 

[Secad MS]

Hmm. At first, when I saw this fic today, I thought it was about a homicide. Now, I see that you referenced an animal group.

I found this story quite entertaining and well-written. It showed how Pokemon aren't just battling machines, but debate between their wishes and the safety of their trainers.