Vol. I, Part 3: Chapter 27

  Clink.

  Another clash came from the darkness.

  Clink. Clink.

  “What’s going on?” Bianca cried, her voice pitching up in panic as she pressed her back against Cheren.

  The shadows clinging to the vaulted ceiling began to detach. The stalactites were raining down.

  Clink. Clink. Clink.

  A heavy, round object slammed into the dirt three feet from Rosa, kicking up a spray of gravel. It hissed, metal plates grinding together as it began to spin.

  “Tepig, use Ember! Light it up!” Hugh roared.

  Tepig whipped around, snorting a volley of fireballs. The flames struck the object, illuminating it in a burst of flames.

  The light revealed a steel shell covered in thorns, spinning rapidly with yellow eyes glaring from the darkness.

  “Ferroseed!” Cheren shouted. “It’s an ambush!”

  The ceiling came alive.

  Clink. Clink. Clink.

  Dozens of them dropped, landing with the weight of anvils. The Ferroseed rolled towards them, forming a tightening noose around the team.

  “We’re cut off!” Hilbert yelled from the rear. “They’re blocking the exit!”

  Rosa spun around. Their only escape route was gone, buried under a writhing wall of thorns. The Ferroseed closed the gap, their metal bodies scraping against the stone floor as they advanced.

  “Defensive circle! Now!” Skyla shouted, cutting through the panic. “Everyone! Pokémon out!”

  She grabbed three balls from her belt and hurled them into the air. “Swanna! Braviary! Mandibuzz! Take to the sky!”

  The three birds materialized with howling screeches, winds kicking up dirt from under their wings.

  Rosa fumbled for her Poké Ball, her fingers trembling. “Blitzle! Help us!”

  Blitzle burst out, hooves stomping on the stone. It took one look at the sea of yellow eyes and let out a defiant, crackling neigh. Beside it, Riolu dropped into a combat stance while Tepig blew smoke from his nostrils.

  “Bianca, stay behind me!” Cheren shouted, grabbing her wrist and shoving her into the center of the ring.

  “Cheren, I—”

  “Hilda! Hilbert! Help me guard the rear!” Cheren enlarged a Poké Ball. “Go, Herdier!”

  Herdier materialized, immediately bashing away a Ferroseed that had launched itself at Cheren.

  “Let’s do this, Da!” Hilbert shouted, stepping to Cheren’s side. “Go, Scraggy!”

  “Mienfoo, go!”

  Both Fighting-types appeared at Herdier’s flanks, instantly putting themselves between their trainers and the encroaching horde.

  “They’re closing in!” Hilda screamed.

  “Braviary, Mandibuzz! Push them back with Air Slash!” Skyla ordered, pointing a gloved finger at the front line. “Swanna, clear the center with Hurricane!”

  The bird Pokémon moved into action. Braviary and Mandibuzz strafed the perimeter, their wings glowing white as they fired blades of compressed air into the mass of steel. The Air Slashes sliced against the metal shells, knocking the Ferroseed back several feet.

  Swanna hovered in the center, beating its wings furiously to summon a Hurricane. It blasted into the crowd, picking up handfuls of the heavy steel Pokémon and hurling them across the cavern with the sound of a car crash.

  Nate pointed Riolu toward the front line. “Force Palm!”

  A Ferroseed leaped at Nate, glowing silver with Iron Head. Riolu intercepted it mid-air, thrusting his palm forward and slamming it back towards the horde.

  The cavern erupted into a frenzy of shouted commands and flashing lights. Pin Missiles zipped through the air like green tracers.

  “Scraggy, Brick Break!”

  “Mienfoo, Reversal!”

  “Herdier, Bite!”

  The battle dissolved into absolute chaos.

  A low, grinding whir filled Rosa’s right ear. She turned just as a spinning Ferroseed dove from the darkness, inches from her face. She barely had time to register the attack. She squeezed her eyes shut and ducked, panic welling up inside her.

  A force intercepted the steel sphere. Riolu knocked the threat aside, sending it clattering across the stone floor.

  “Rosa!” Nate yelled, grabbing her arm, his body positioned as a shield.

  Rosa gasped, opening her eyes. She was trembling.

  Hugh stepped into the gap in front of them. “They’re getting too close! Tepig! Flame Charge! Lap the perimeter!”

  Tepig ignited, engulfing himself in fire and sprinting at the horde, creating a protective barrier between the Ferroseed and the Trainers.

  Rosa saw the left flank crumbling. A cluster of Ferroseed was rolling toward the group, unchecked.

  We need a wall.

  She scrambled to her feet, ignoring Nate’s hand. “Blitzle! Don't let them through! Join Tepig with Flame Charge!”

  Blitzle cloaked itself in fire, its speed boosting with every hoofbeat. The two Pokémon began to race in a tight circle around the team. Every Ferroseed that tried to cross the line was met with a super-effective collision of fire.

  But for every one they knocked back, two more dropped from the ceiling.

  This book is hosted on another platform. Read the official version and support the author's work.

  Clink. Clink.

  Then, a sound that shook the foundations of the cavern.

  CLANG!

  The cavern floor buckled, throwing dirt and jagged rocks into the air like shrapnel. The shockwave of the colossal impact snuffed out the ring of fire, scattering Tepig and Blitzle and completely breaking their defensive perimeter.

  From the settling dust, a fortress of steel and thorn rose. A Ferrothorn. It suspended itself on three thick vines that writhed with immense strength. It roared like the sound of grinding gears and raised its vines high above its head.

  “Look out!” Hugh screamed.

  Power Whip.

  The massive appendages plummeted from the darkness with the force of a hydraulic press. Rosa, Nate, and Hugh scattered, desperately trying to avoid the incoming vines.

  The attack was aimed at the center of the group right where Bianca stood, frozen in terror.

  “Bianca, move!” Rosa screamed.

  She lunged, shoving Bianca hard to the right.

  The vines slammed into the stone where Bianca had stood. The physical shockwave hit Rosa like a truck. She was blasted backward, hitting the ground hard and rolling uncontrollably until she came to a halt. She coughed as dirt filled her lungs from every gasp of air.

  “Rosa—”

  She heard Nate’s voice through the ringing in her ears. The sound cut off with a violent cry of pain.

  Nate crashed onto the floor, bent on all fours. Hugh grabbed him by the back of his jacket, hauling him away from the encroaching Ferroseed horde.

  The massive steel hulk dragged itself forward, slamming its thick vines into the ground to form an impenetrable cage of thorns, physically blocking the rest of the team and isolating its prey.

  Rosa scrambled backward on her elbows, staring up as the beast retracted its vines. It stood less than a foot away.

  Ferrothorn locked on to its target. It hovered over her, blocking out the dim light of the cave. Its feral eyes fixated on Rosa. She was defenseless, prone, and completely alone.

  A high-pitched whine began to vibrate the ground. A glowing silver light emanated from Ferrothorn’s gaping maw, concentrating into a sphere of pure Steel-type energy.

  Flash Cannon. Aimed directly for her.

  Rosa stared. Frozen.

  The world narrowed down to that single point of light. She held her breath, paralyzed not by fear, but by the certainty of death. The light grew brighter, pulsing with lethal intent. It reminded her of the stars. Bright. Powerful. Beautiful.

  For a fraction of a second, the terror vanished, replaced by a crushing sorrow. She would never see the lookout. She would never see the stars over Aspertia.

  Nate… I’m sorry…

  She squeezed her eyes shut, waiting for the end.

  A small shadow drifted over her face.

  A little, puffy grey cloud hovered between Rosa and the monster. A peculiar sight in the darkness of the cave.

  “Castform! Sunny Day!” Ms. Gabby’s voice tore through the commotion, desperate and fierce.

  The little cloud inhaled, and then ignited.

  A light, greater and more terrible than the Flash Cannon, shot into the cavern air. The entire cave was bleached white. An artificial sun, the size of a basketball, suspended itself in the middle of the cavern. It radiated no heat, but it gave off a blinding, searing luminance that filled every dark corner.

  The Ferrothorn screeched, recoiling from the sudden brilliance. Its Flash Cannon fizzling out as it clamped its eyes shut.

  Above Rosa, Castform began to change. Its grey body glowed, distorting in the light. A gelatinous, red sphere erupted around its head, glowing like a miniature star.

  Sunny Form.

  “Weather Ball!”

  Castform gathered the searing energy of the artificial sun. A sphere of swirling fire formed in front of it, supercharged by the harsh light. With a cheerful chirp, it unleashed the flaming ball of energy, striking Ferrothorn dead center.

  The Grass-Steel type, shrieked as the flames engulfed its metal shell. The blast force lifted the heavy Pokémon off its vines and threw it backward into the wall of rubble with a sickening crash.

  Rosa gasped, air rushing back into her lungs as the heat of the attack washed over her face. She was alive.

  Strong hands grabbed her denim jacket. Gabby hauled Rosa to her feet and shoved her backward without a word. Rosa stumbled, her legs feeling like jelly. Hilda was there instantly, catching her and pulling her deeply into the center of the defensive circle.

  “Rosa!” Bianca threw her arms around her. She squeezed so hard it hurt, burying her face in Rosa’s shoulder. She was shaking violently. “You saved me… I’m so sorry, I didn’t see it coming. I—”

  “It’s alright, Bianca. You’re safe,” Rosa wheezed, patting Bianca’s trembling hand.

  She scanned the cavern. They were backed into a tight ring. Gabby and Skyla stood at the perimeter, flanked by the Pokémon, forming a desperate wall against the steel tide. The Ferroseed had recoiled from the sudden brilliance of the Sunny Day, spinning in confusion, but the shock was fading. The grinding of gears started up again, louder and angrier than before.

  “They’re recovering!” Gabby shouted, her voice tight with strain. “We can’t hold this line forever!”

  Rosa looked up, squinting against the harsh glare of the artificial sun suspended in the center of the void. It was blinding, but through the haze of light, she could see an opening.

  High up, near the vaulted ceiling there was a dark tear in the rock face that had been invisible in the gloom.

  An exit.

  “There! Look!” Rosa screamed, stabbing her finger toward the ceiling. “Up there! Behind the sun!”

  They all looked up. Past the blinding glare of Castform’s artificial sun, they saw the opening formed on the side of the wall, just below the ceiling.

  “It’s too high!” Hugh shouted, still supporting Nate upright. “We’ll never reach that in time!”

  “Not on foot we won’t!” Skyla grunted. She placed two fingers in her mouth and whistled. “Braviary! Mandibuzz! Get us out of here! Swanna, hold the line! Hurricane, full power!”

  The birds obeyed instantly. Braviary and Mandibuzz grounded themselves inside the defensive perimeter. Swanna screeched, beating its wings to summon another chaotic vortex of wind that slammed into the encroaching wall of steel, buying them precious seconds.

  Skyla ripped three more balls from her belt and hurled them into the air.

  “Tropius! Altaria! Skarmory! Everyone out! Now!”

  The cavern filled with the thunderous beat of massive wings. The three flying Pokémon materialized, hovering over the defensive circle.

  “I’ll hold them off with Swanna!” Skyla yelled over the gale-force winds. “Braviary, Skarmory, and Tropius can take two each. Everyone hop on, we’re flying out of here!”

  Cheren immediately seized command of the chaos. “Gabby, get Bianca on Tropius!” he ordered, bringing Bianca towards Gabby. “Hilda, Hilbert, take Braviary! Nate and Hugh, Skarmory is yours! Rosa, take Mandibuzz! I have Altaria!”

  The cavern flashed with a frantic sequence of overlapping red beams as each Trainer recalled their Pokemon. Riolu remained, refusing to return to his ball as Nate was currently battling immense pain.

  “Blitzle! Return!” Rosa placed Blitzle’s ball safely away.

  The team scrambled. Hugh grabbed Nate by his good side, practically throwing him onto Skarmory’s steel-plated back before vaulting up behind him.

  “Hold on tight!” Hugh yelled, wrapping an arm around Nate’s waist to secure him as Riolu hopped up to sit between Nate’s legs.

  Hilda and Hilbert leaped onto Braviary. Hilbert clamped his hat down over Joltik. “Don’t let go, Da!”

  Mandibuzz lowered its long, vulture neck, extending a dark wing like a ramp. Rosa scrambled onto the Pokémon's back, burying her hands into the thick, coarse ruff of feathers at its neck. She held onto Mandibuzz’s fluff like the reins on a Rapidash.

  “Fly!” Skyla screamed from the ground.

  The fleet launched.

  They rocketed upward, the g-force pressing Rosa flat against Mandibuzz’s back. Below them, the Ferroseed colony recovered from the wind. They launched a volley of Pin Missiles. Glowing green needles streaked through the air like anti-aircraft fire, locking onto their targets.

  The birds banked hard, weaving through the barrage. Rosa heard the sharp ping of needles deflecting off Skarmory’s steel armor, but the birds powered through, driving toward the hole in the rock.

  On the ground, Skyla was alone. The circle of steel was closing in, inches from her boots.

  “Swanna! Pickup!”

  Swanna broke its attack run and swooped down with the speed of a jet. Skyla didn’t wait for it to land. She sprinted at the wall of enemies, leaped into the air, and grabbed Swanna’s leg as it passed overhead.

  She swung herself up, vaulting onto the bird’s back just as the Ferroseed slammed into the space she had occupied moments before.

  They made it through the tunnel entrance above them. Castform’s artificial sun sputtered and died. The brilliant light vanished. The cavern plunged back into pitch blackness, leaving the screeching horde of Ferroseed snapping at empty air.