Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Pokémon: The Golden Apocalypse, Chapter Seventeen

Red stepped forward, his foot sinking into the mossy ground. The glade was sheltered and the air was still, yet there was no hint of stagnation. Everything, from the sun's bright rays shining from above to the faint moisture in the air from the pond, felt pure. He walked on, leaving Nyoromo to waddle slowly after him. He approached the old man who, content with his fishing, didn't seem inclined to conversation. That suited Red well, and he sat nearby. He removed his shoes, and allowed his feet to dangle into the water, where a collection of magikarp swam stupidly in circles. At the base of the rocky spur, Nyoromo dove into the water, and as the ripples reached Red, he laid back, happy. The man was certainly odd, and he had dragged Red here mostly against his will, but even so, the glade was the most peaceful place Red had seen. He could see why the man hadn't left Fallen Viridian. He began to doze lightly, as the fish nibbled at his toes, and the man sat with his staff-turned-rod.

Red awoke to the smell of roasted magikarp. He sat up, wincing at the unexpected pain from his previous exertions, and turned. Though he felt like he had only slept for a short time, it was already quite dark, however the height of the surrounding cliffs could have something to do with that. On the shoreline, Nyoromo and the man were sitting by the glowing remains of a fire, over which a makeshift wooden structure held fish, still cooking. Obviously, they had been cooking for some time, as more magikarp was piled on a stone slab nearby, well browned. Even more fish sat on the man's wooden plate, though he paid it no mind and it fell onto the dirt as he cut Nyoromo's fish into pieces small enough for the diminutive creature. When the man saw his dirtied meal, he tossed it into what Red had thought to be a handful of large stones. The objects converged on the food, and Red could make out faint growling.
He rose and walked to the man, who waved towards him as he adjusted a cooking slab. Nyoromo looked up from his fish, which he had set upon with vigor, and bubbled happily as he saw his master. Red sat by him, in front of a second wooden plate, onto which the man was already placing some magikarp. He was handed a knife, but no other utensil. Red attempted to cut his food, but found it difficult without anything to hold it with. When he finally managed to carve off a piece and taste it, he was amazed at the taste. The purity of the glade seemed to have seeped into the fish too. It tasted as nothing Red had eaten before, yet he knew, somehow, that this was how all things should taste. He savored it, but even so it was gone far too soon.
"This is delicious!" he exclaimed as he struggled to cut away more. The man smiled at him.
"I'm glad to hear that. Samuel and I used to always come out here for lunch. We'd fish for hours, though it didn't take that long to catch a meal." He gestured at the tower of fish beside him. "I was the better fisherman, though Samuel cooked them. He was always better at that sort of thing; he loved science, and cooking was like it. He tried to teach me, but I somehow manage to cook out most of the flavor."
"Buh thif ith delifouth!" protested Red, his mouth now full of fish once more.
"I may have gotten a little better over the years, but Samuel's cooking was a league of its own." The man stared at the coals for a minute, and absently tossed some food into the group of creatures. Red looked at them again.
What he had thought were grey rocks in the twilight were actually a collection of dull purple and blue creatures. The purple ones were larger, maybe two feet tall, and had jagged ears and spines, which blended well with the surrounding cliffs' rock. A short, sharp horn protruded from their foreheads, set above two large eyes, which glinted in the firelight. They squeaked quietly, and their rodentine teeth moved a little with every sound.
The blue creatures, which were slightly smaller, also had the spiky ears and backs, but these were less pronounced, as were their horns. They were rounder than their purple companions, but seemed to possess the same basic structure. Their only distinctive characteristic, other than color, were their four whiskers, two to a side.
Seeing Red's interest in the animals, the man spoke. "Are you fond of the nidoran? They never came when Samuel was around. They must like you. They gather whenever I fish here, and they manage to eat all my leftovers, no matter how many magikarp I catch." He fell silent for a moment, studying the pokémon.
Almost as if on cue, they stopped eating, and froze. Their large ears tilted upward and their sounds ceased. The man frowned, and his brow furrowed. A black shape appeared in the sky, and flew down at a terrifying pace. A screech rent the air, and the nidoran bolted, disappearing into the cliff face. Red scooped up Nyoromo and made to run, but the man grabbed his shirt collar with an iron grip. The bird reached them, and landed on the man's shoulder, squawking madly. Red recognized as a spearow, though he had never seen one interact with a human without violence. The man seemed to almost listen to the bird, and then spoke to Red gravely.
"Put out the fire. Quickly. We can't stay here." He looked at the sky, blue above their shadow. The light seemed ominous now.

8 comments:

Elphaba said...

Yay! Your creative process returned! Congratulations, Reogan!

Reogan said...

Thank you for that constructive criticism.

The URL of this post's page calls it chapter thirty. Odd.

Elphaba said...

Well, I liked the suspense at the end. It was pretty cool. And I wonder who Samuel is?

Reogan said...

You started a sentence with 'And.' That is not to be done.

Samuel is explained in chapter thirteen.

Thank you.

Elphaba said...

You're welcome. I just didn't remember.

Reogan said...

I forget most details myself.

Met said...

Although you still manage to be an excellent writer.

Reogan said...

Thank you.