Weapons, Chapter Thirty-Nine

 It was only once I was in the air above the cycling road that I remembered I hadn’t sent the gastly and Zickkiar through to Oak. I frowned and looked back towards the town, but Keyare dived lower and started to move south.

 “Remind me later,” I said to Kera, shifting slightly in an attempt to get more comfortable.

 “About what?”

 “To send the gastly and Zickkiar through to Oak. I forgot this morning.”

 “I’ll try.”

 “I’ll remember!” Keyare called back, roaring at the cyclists as we drew level with the road.

 I winced and ducked my head at the noise, but there was just laughter from the bridge, and a few cheers.

 “There’s Elliot,” Kera said, pointing.

 I looked over, spotting the cyclist that was waving to us. I smiled and waved back. “Keyare, move closer.”

 The charizard tilted to the side and we glided nearer the bridge, almost clipping the railing.

 “Race?” Elliot called, pedalling easily.

 “Sure you want to risk it?” I called back, grinning.

 “Yeah!”

 “You’re on, then!”

 Elliot pedalled faster and leant into his bike, pulling away.

 “Keyare,” I whispered, but the charizard was already speeding up his wing beats, keeping pace.

 Hantri dived past us towards the waves, and Keyare roared and dived after him. I grabbed his horns and flattened myself to his back, closing my eyes against the wind.

 “He’s not who we’re racing!” Kera yelled.

 “So?” Keyare laughed. “I can beat both of them.”

 We were low enough now that the water could splash at us. I stared down into it, seeing mostly nothing, occasionally a pokémon. Keyare dipped a claw in and sent up spray around us, which Kera doesn’t appreciate too much.

 Hantri lifted up before us, wings shimmering in the sun, and Keyare followed him to loop around the cycle road. I could maybe get used to this flying, if only he didn’t jerk about so much.

 He levelled out above the road and slowed down a little, allowing me to sit up slightly. I peered over his side to look down at the bridge. There were a few bikes headed to the south end… which one was Elliot?

 Before I could ask, Keyare folded in his wings and lunged forward, diving towards the end of the road. I yelped and grabbed onto his horns again, forcing myself flat. Kera laughed nervously, ears flat against her skull. Maybe goggles would be a good investment now, if he was going to keep doing this.

 

 Keyare landed – eventually – on the other side of the cycle road waypoint. I pretty much fell from his back, glad that my hair wasn’t long enough to get badly tangled. Still hurt to pull a hand through it, though.

 “You’re joining us, then?” Elliot asked, leaning on the handlebars of his bike.

 “Seems like it.” I nodded.

 “Hey, I beat both of them to the end of the path. Never said anything about landing.” Keyare turned his head to the side, snorting a small flicker of flame.

 I grinned and patted his side. “Maybe we’ll let you know next time, then.” I started to walk along the path, slowly heading for the town.

 Elliot swung off his bike, pushing it along between us. “The safari zone’s in this town, isn’t it?”

 “You’re asking the wrong person.” I shrugged. “No idea.”

 “There’s also a gym,” Kera said, brushing at her fur.

 “Thanks. Kinda done with them, though.”

 “What’s that?”

 “Oh – Kera’s saying there’s a gym in town.” I frowned. “Don’t know how she knows, though.”

 “Someone has to.”

 Elliot nodded. “But you’re not going for the badges anymore?”

 “Not if I can help it. Four should be enough, right?”

 “Probably. They can’t keep up the safety precautions forever, can they?”

 “Shouldn’t think so.”

 Fuschia was a smaller town than Celadon, but then I don’t think that would be too difficult.

 “Oh! Ax.” Keyare tapped my shoulder. “You wanted reminding, Zickkiar and the gastly to Oak.”

 “Thanks.” I smiled at him. “I’ll go do that.”

 “Something to do?”

 “Sending pokémon to Oak,” I replied. “Shouldn’t take too long.”

 “Right.” Elliot nodded and seemed as if he were going to say something else, but he was cut off by his phone ringing. “Sorry.”

 “It’s fine. Catch you later, yeah?”

 “Sure.” He pulled it out, waving as I ran on to the centre.

 

 As I waited for the call to go through, I pulled out the two pokéballs and put them by the transporter. I could tell which one held the gastly just by touch, which was… worrying. Though maybe it was normal to be able to tell. I’d never really checked with the others.

 “Ah, it’s Alexandra! And how are you?”

 “Oh – fine.” I blinked, looking up. “In Fuschia.”

 “For the gym, or the safari zone?”

 “Eh… more just travelling.” I held up the pokéball with Zickkiar in it. “Got some pokémon to send through.”

 “Of course.” He nodded, turning on the machine beside him. “One at a time, whenever you’re ready.”

 I placed the ball on the pad and pressed the transfer button. The computer beeped and the ball flashed red before disappearing.

 There was an answering beep from Oak’s side and he picked up the pokéball to show me. “A magnemite?”

 “Yeah, caught it over by… Rock Tunnel?” I nodded, pushing the other one into place.

 “You’ve been all over, have you?”

 “Well, travelling… no point if you don’t, I guess.” I pressed the transfer button.

 The computer beeped, and a cross flashed up over the button. What? I frowned and pressed it again, harder. Again, the same result.

 “Is something wrong?”

 “Yeah… it’s refusing to transfer this pokémon.”

 “What’s coming up?”

 “No error message, just a cross over the button whenever I press it.”

 “Is the pokéball on the mat?”

 I glanced at it. “Yeah, right on the middle and everything.”

 “Hm…” Oak tapped at something I couldn’t see. “Well… there doesn’t seem to be a problem. The last one came through fine.”

 I picked the ball from the pad and placed it down again, pressing the button. Again it refused to send. “Huh. Looks like I’ll be keeping this one, then.”

 “If you have more–”

 “I know.” I nodded. “Hang on a minute… just counting them.”

 “You could send back Hantri,” Kera said.

 “Eh… it’s fine.” I shook my head. “Don’t need to send any over.”

 “Really?”

 “Yeah.” I nodded. “Just miscounted, that’s all.”

 “Alright then. I’ll take care of this one for you.”

 “Thanks.” I waved, turning off the machine. “Bye.”

 Kera sat back on the table beside it, grooming her tail. “And you lied to him why?”

 “It’s not like I’m battling anymore, and even if I were, I wouldn’t use more’n six. That gastly… is staying in my bag.”

 “What’s the trouble with her? She’s done nothing to you, and you just freaked out.”

 I stood up, shaking my head.

 “Well – I guess there was the thing in the tower, but that was before she was caught.”

 “What?” I stared back at her.

 “Oh – in the tower? With all the stuff going down… the ghosts were a bit crazy. I guess she was one of them, but she doesn’t seem too bad now.” Kera scrambled up onto my shoulder when I picked up the pokéball.

 “Well… that could explain why she freaks me out, I guess.” I frowned, leaving the building.

 “You should give her a shot.”

 “Hm.” And yet I found myself walking towards the edge of the town, into the trees where I could get a bit of piece.

 “Where you heading?”

 “Holy hells!” I jumped as Keyare spoke from behind me. “Jeez!”

 “I guess you didn’t hear me land, huh?” He grinned.

 Hantri landed in a tree before us and I shook my head.

 “Can you not do that?” I fumbled for the pokéballs of the rest of my team, releasing them. “Uh – go hunt, I guess? Or train or whatever.”

 “What, planning for another gym?” Echer tilted his head.

 “Not really.” I shook my head. “Just figured you could do with some time to stretch yourselves.”

 “Sure.” Echer grinned. “I think it’s growing on you, though.”

 “Eh…” I wavered a hand. “Kera, you go too. I… I want to do this alone.”

 She jumped from my shoulder onto Keyare, looking back. “Sure?”

 “Yeah.” I nodded. “Can’t be that bad, right?”

 “What’re you on about?” Keyethin asked, looking up.

 “I’ll explain later,” I replied. “Go’n… do your stuff.”

 “I’ll explain when we’re out of hearing,” Kera countered. “Come on.”

 I watched them leave, trying to work myself up to do this.

 Even just holding the ball – I pulled it out of my pocket again – was enough to set my skin prickling. Wish I’d kept one of them with me now, but they were gone. Couldn’t even hear them.

 With a sigh, I released the gastly and pressed myself back against the tree behind me.

 “So… are you willing to talk now?” It – Kera had said she – looked around, slightly more visible in the shade.

 “What’s your name?” I asked, working to ignore the rising panic.

 “Kyirin. And you… are Ax.”

 “How – how d’you know that?”

 “There is quite a lot that I know about you,” she whispered, not moving from the spot. “You are scared.”

 “Well – not scared exactly. More like – how can you tell all this? How – what do you know about me?”

 “I know that your name is Alexandra Katri but you prefer Ax, I know that you didn’t want to be a trainer but you’ve been doing the gyms in any case, I know you’re using this as an excuse to look for your father, and I know that you are not all that you seem.”

 I blinked several times in quick succession, shaking my head. “How?”

 “Your head is easy to get into, even with your… passenger.”

 Vision flickered. I closed my eyes tightly, trying to concentrate. “Passenger?”

 “You don’t know? Well… he’s even more despicable than I thought.” She sounded like she was getting closer.

 “Stop – stay there.” I held out a hand to stop her, still with my eyes closed. “What’s going on?”

 “I don’t think he wants you to know. But… he does not command me. I answer to a higher master.”

 “Don’t tamper, little ghost,” the words oozed from my mouth, but they weren’t mine. “What I do is no concern of yours.”

 “I don’t suppose it is, really… but now I am bound to your trainer.”

 My head snapped up, eyes opening as I glared at the gastly, not far from where I was. “And that was a mistake I should soon rectify.” My hand, still raised, started to glow with a faint purple light.

 Kyirin pulled back and then laughed. “What can you do against me?”

 “Ax! Ax, tell me you have an antidote in that bag!” Keyare landed with a thump between Kyirin and me.

 “What?” I shook my head, in control of myself. “What’s happened?”
 “It’s Kera.” He held her out to me. “There was a koffing, she got poisoned.”

 The pikachu coughed, uncurling to look up at me through runny eyes.

 “The pokécentre. Now.” I grabbed my bag and swung around Keyare, onto his back. “Hold on, Kera.”

 Keyare took off and shot towards the red roofed building, not wasting any time.

 I stumbled from his back as he landed and took Kera, running inside.

 “There’s no rush, dear,” the nurse said as I slammed into the counter.

 “Please – she’s been poisoned.” I offered her Kera. “You can help, right?”

 “Of course we can. This won’t take long.” She took Kera, standing up. “Just wait here, alright?”

 I nodded, stepping back. “I – uh, I left my other pokémon outside. I’ll just… get them. Or send Keyare to get them. Something.”

 As she left into the back of the centre I ran outside again.

 “She ok?” Keyare asked. “I shoulda torched that thing quicker…”

 “She’ll be fine. Get the others?”

 “Can’t carry them all.”

 “Get them back here, somehow. Don’t care.” I shrugged, stepping back towards the door. “Thanks, Keyare.”

 He took off as I opened the door. Oh… did he know about Kyirin? I shrugged. Didn’t matter. The gastly was creepy as hell anyway.