Pokémon Mars

Chapter 52: The Battle

Thalassa was one of the few people who slept that night. After so many moonless nights, Romulus seemed as bright as the sun, but Thalassa was content. She contributed to a scientific achievement so real that it was visible in the night sky.

She dreamed of that columned cave again. This time, it was as clear as Jin's last dream about Azelf. She felt the icy touch of the water that filled the imprint on the floor. Her socks were soaked. It smelled faintly musty. Dripping water wasn't the only sound. She heard distinct scratching on stone. The claw used to mark the tallies on the wall was absent from its bowl. Uxie was as clear as the water. It marked a tenth strike on the most recent line. Then it turned to Thalassa.

'You have done well.'

Thalassa heard the distinct rumble of thousands of stampeding feet. The water remained perfectly still as the ground trembled. Dazzling light surrounded Uxie. The sound wasn't in the dream. It was in the real world. Even as Thalassa awoke to hear the voices of hundreds of frightened Pokémon fleeing the sewers, she heard one distinct voice over them.

'Continue to pursue knowledge. Your battle is not yet over.'

Her feet were cold. When they touched the floor, her socks squelched. She glanced sharply down. She was no longer dreaming, but her socks were wet. She pulled them off and sniffed them. They smelled distinctly of the musty cave. If she told anyone that the Uxie of the heavens spoke to her through a dream, let alone that it seemed as if she impressed it, they would think she had the Mars madness. She wondered if she did. Yet her wet socks suggested she didn't only speak to Uxie, but somehow set foot in its celestial domain.

There were more pressing things to think about. Panicked Pokémon filled the streets. The remaining pets of Ironville woke their Trainers in fear. Zorua jumped on Nyx's head.

'Zorua! I'm already awake! I can hear them! Now what's going on?'

'I think it's that thing I told you about...'

Sirens blared from speakers. Blue and red lights woke everyone who was still asleep. Rudolph's voice followed.

'A dangerous Pokémon is on the loose! Citizens of Ironville, head to emergency shelters immediately!'

Local police were already out on the streets. Elderly residents were led to the shelters first. Rudolph gave his orders from his bunker, deep in the bowels of Mars below the Town Hall. Despite their argument, Luke immediately accepted his offer of guaranteed safety in the bunker.

Damson was up on the roof. Burly security guards seized him. Before he had the chance to make a snide remark, a needle sank into his arm. He was sedated. The guards carried him to the nearest shelter. Zeph's eyes welled up when he found his friend unconscious. Tariku said it was how it had to be. Damson was a danger to everyone otherwise. Koji said nothing.

Nessie and Megara were ushered to a shelter, but they both sobbed. Alec was missing.

Nyx pulled on her skates. She zipped past the policeman in the corridor. He couldn't keep up. He had to ensure Firmino did as he was told and helped to guide the evacuated citizens. Before he got the chance to speak, he slumped to the floor. Sonnet held the mug that knocked him out. Firmino blinked.

'Uh...'

'You looked like you needed an excuse to get past him, so I thought I'd help. What is going on here?'

Nyx glanced back at Mercury.

'You better get photos of this.'

He followed her on his skateboard. He ducked to avoid a lunging security guard. More police screamed at Nyx to stay back, but she shoved past. She already felt the chill of masses of Shadow Pokémon auras. The 'dangerous Pokémon' wasn't the only reason people were marched into shelters. They couldn't see that the local police attempting to subdue it used Shadow Pokémon. They desperately tried to trap it in a playground. It was exactly what Zorua expected, because it was what happened to its mother. Resentment and hatred swelled until Joshua's murdered Zoroark was reborn as a Hisuian Zoroark.