A
Puppet
Without
Strings
By Ade B
Chapter I - It Begins!
The 21st birthday party of Danny Waterstone was a party to end all parties. The drink flowed freely, the conversation was relaxed, the music was excellent. And the host himself was on fine form. Every girl's dream, his finely sculptured face, jet-black hair and well-toned body ensured that he was never without a gaggle of admirers. Which suited him just fine. As always, one girl in particular caught his eye, a slim redhead, and they slipped away as the party descended into chaos. Mind you, nobody went to one of Danny's parties expecting a peaceful time.
And this was why Danny woke up the next morning in his bed with a naked woman and a raging hangover. Staggering out of his bed, he pulled on a pair of jeans and lurched to the bathroom. Opening his bathroom cabinet, he caught sight of himself in the mirror. God, he looked as bad as he felt. He reached clumsily into the cabinet, pulled out a bottle of aspirin and downed twice as many as he was supposed to. Well, a hangover this bad required a heavy-duty solution. He staggered out again. On his way downstairs, he paused at the bedroom door. Boy, that girl was cute. Perhaps he might even bother to get her phone number this time. Shaking his head, Danny headed downstairs to the kitchen where he found his flatmate busy cooking breakfast. He grinned at Danny as he walked in.
"You know the cure for a fucking hangover, don't you?" the other man chuckled. "A big greasy breakfast with an extra helping of fat."
"Fuck off, Joe." Came the less than witty response. "You never seem to get hangovers and I hate you for it."
"Well this wouldn't happen if you stuck to spirits." Joe cackled. "I only drink vodka and it hasn't done me any harm. So it's coffee for you, is it?"
"Of course."
"And what about your little friend upstairs?"
"I dunno, she was still asleep when I got up." Danny paused, trying to remember her name. It came back eventually. Miranda. "Oh, just pour an extra cup out. If she doesn't drink it then I'll have to find some other use for it, won't I?"
"Is there any other use for a cup of coffee?" a female voice giggled from behind Danny. He groaned and turned around. Miranda was stood there in a loose fitting T-shirt, her red hair cascading down her back. "I have mine white with one sugar, thanks!" Danny slumped on the table despairingly. This amount of chirpiness was the last thing his hangover needed! "What's wrong?" Miranda asked him.
"Ignore him, he's a real bear in the morning." Joe chortled.
"Oh, really? Well all you need to do is relax a bit, I reckon." Miranda moved behind Danny and began to massage his shoulders. Danny stood up sharply.
"No, no, no!" he groaned. "All I need is a breath of fresh air. And for everybody to stop yakking in my ears 24 hours a day." So saying, he stormed out of the house, leaving behind an awkward silence.
"You're right, he is a bear, isn't he? Well, he's not giving me a brush-off like that!" Miranda snorted stubbornly, before shooting off in hot pursuit. Joe shook his head in disbelief.
"Oh my God, she's nearly as stubborn as he is. Boy, this isn't going to be pretty…"
At that moment Danny was doing his utmost to escape from the relentless girl. "Look, just give me some fucking space!" he snapped at her, and began to walk faster. Miranda broke into a jog to keep up with him.
"What is up with you? It's like you've undergone a personality change overnight!" she yelled at him. He kept walking. "Look, you were fine last night…"
Danny wheeled round viciously. "Look. Number one, I have a killer hangover. Number two, I could use a little peace and quiet right about now. And number three, last night. I don't know what you think last night was, but it was really what I like to call a 'one night stand'. Sure, it was fun, and sure, if you're up for it again I wouldn't say no, but I think it's about time that you said your goodbyes and strolled off into the sunset. Okay?"
"Is… is that all it meant to you?" Miranda lost her sunny demeanour in an instant. Her eyes filled with tears. "Just a bit of fun?"
"In a word - yes." Danny turned his back on her. "Now run along, there's a good girl." And he strolled off down the street, leaving Miranda stood there, her pretty face a mixture of sorrow and fury. She clenched her fist and yelled after Danny.
"FINE! SEE IF I CARE, YOU BASTARD!!!" she yelled, before running off with tears flowing down her cheeks.
Danny was sat in the park when he heard her scream. To be honest, he was feeling rather guilty for treating her so badly. She wasn't really all that bad, and it certainly wasn't as clear-cut as he made out. He sighed deeply. Well, he'd certainly blown his chances of ever seeing her again. Which was a pity. And then he heard the shrill scream of fear as he rose to leave. That scream could only belong to one person. Miranda. Danny shot off quickly, tearing down numerous side alleys to the source of the sound. What he found when he got there made him recoil in surprise. Miranda was floating on her back in mid-air, as if she were chained by invisible shackles. He rushed to her side.
"What the hell's going on?" he asked urgently.
"Please… help me…" Miranda begged him. And then he saw the cloaked figure behind her.
"Just who the fuck are you?" he snarled menacingly. The figure merely laughed quietly to itself.
"Me? I'm here to help you."
"How's this supposed to help me?"
"Now, now, calm down. I do so hate to see all that emotion go to waste. Anyway, I had to get your attention somehow, didn't I? I have a proposition for you."
"Put her down first."
"Not until I get you to agree to my proposal. I'd like you to agree to participate in a little… experiment I have planned. Should it work, you'd become the strongest human alive!"
"How's about you cut the 'evil wizard' act, huh?" Danny scoffed. "Not on your life. Now put her down!" He charged at the mysterious person, but a bizarre force caused him to freeze just inches away.
"Oh, I'm so glad that I didn't have to hurt you. You humans are just so predictable."
Danny sighed. "Fine, you have me. Happy now? Just put the girl down, you no-good piece of shit!" The person - or was it? - merely laughed.
"Well, I did say that I would, right?" The figure raised a hand. Danny was horrified to see that it was grey and ended in sharp talons. But at least Miranda was now free. She fell to the ground with a thump. "Oh, but Danny? I never said I wouldn't hurt her, did I?" And Miranda began to scream again. Danny couldn't turn to see what was happening, he couldn't turn his neck at all. He was totally paralysed.
"What the hell are you doing to her, you fucking bastard??" he yelled furiously. The figure merely cackled evilly, and the shrill scream stopped abruptly. There was a splashing noise and a dull thump. Danny didn't want to think about it. He was glad he was paralysed, he didn't have to look, he had an excuse not to turn around…
"Now. To business." Sneered the stranger. "Just stay right there. Mind you, you have precious little choice, do you?" And then everything went mercifully black.
Danny came to in a strange place. The walls, floor and ceiling were all made from a dull red stone. The windows were magnificent stained glass arches depicting various mythical creatures. At one end of the room was a large marble altar with a golden bowl set in centre place. A mysterious blue fire emanated from the bowl. And Danny… Danny was tied to a cold stone table in the middle of the room. He struggled frantically, but to no avail.
"It won't do any good, you know." An unwelcome voice cackled from behind him. "I've had centuries of practise at this, you know."
"Who the fuck are you, anyway?" Danny snarled angrily. The cloaked figure stepped into view.
"I've been called many things in my time…"
"That figures."
"But you can call me…" Here the figure removed it's hood, and Danny gasped in amazement. A grey tiger-striped reptilian head was leering at him, crowned by black feathery hair. And just one look into those hollow eyes told Danny that this was not a nice kind of creature. It laughed. "You can call me P'Tana Kzar."
Chapter 2 - The Puppet Master
Danny stared uncomprehendingly at the creature that had kidnapped him. He'd been outwitted by a pokemon! It was true that this was a Psyros, a super-rare pokemon famous for being far more intelligent than humans. But it was still hard to shake the idea that pokemon were supposed to be inferior to humans…
"I suppose you're wondering exactly what I'm going to do with you now, aren't you?" the Psyros said. Danny nodded weakly. "Well, I'll tell you. For some time now I have been working on a device that can capture and contain a person's psychic energy. In fact, I perfected it last week. And in the bowl on the far side of the room I have contained the psychic powers of a Mewtwo. All I want to do is see if I can transfer them to you. Just think what a human with a Mewtwo's power could achieve!" Here he paused for a moment, regaining his composure. It would do no good to start ranting now; for once he would save his gloating for afterwards. "I appreciate that this experiment has already been tried from a purely scientific standpoint, to create a being with a human's will and a pokemon's powers. But that created nothing more than a deviant. I don't intend on melding the two as they did. I just want to give you a little psychic boost. And create the ultimate warrior."
"What makes you so sure that I'd work for you, even if you do succeed, you overly hammy dinosaur?" Danny spat, glaring at his captor.
"Oh, I have my ways." P'Tana smirked. "Now. Let us begin." He placed a cold scaly palm on Danny's forehead, causing him to slip once more into darkness.
When Danny woke up he could no longer feel his body. He tried desperately to move, but found it impossible.
"I wouldn't waste your energy, my friend." P'Tana smirked. "Your body belongs to me now."
"What the fuck have you done to me, you goddamn son of a…" began a furious Danny. P'Tana Kzar silenced him with a finger.
"Don't get so worked up! I'd have thought that you'd be grateful. I've just made you the most powerful human in the world, now isn't that something?"
Danny groaned. "Is this the part where you tell me 'unfortunately there's a big but'?"
"Something like that. There is a downside from your point of view. I'm afraid to say that I can now take complete control of your body at will. Which means that you're now little more than my tool. I could have wiped your mind clean as well, but it's so rewarding to see the look on your face; I'm glad I didn't bother. So, I suppose you're wondering what happens now."
"The thought had crossed my mind." Danny replied with a sigh, resigning himself to his fate.
"Well, I thought you could use a little training on how to use those new powers of yours. After all, I'm not entirely unfair. That is the nature of Chaos. I could be your best friend and your worst enemy at the same time. I could…" Here he checked himself. "But that goes without saying. After we've had our little… training session, I think I'll put you through your paces. A little trial run, as it were."
"What do you have in mind?"
"Ah, you'll find that out soon enough. So then, shall we begin?"
"Do I have any fucking choice?"
Kzar laughed cruelly. "That's the spirit! Now, do exactly as I tell you and you'll learn everything you'll need…"
The training was long and gruelling. Danny quickly lost track of time. It was a terrible strain on his energy, but after - what, days? Weeks? - Kzar was finally satisfied that his reluctant pupil had mastered all that he needed to.
"So then. Let's rehearse." Kzar said in his darkly sinister voice. "Levitate." Danny lifted a few inches off the ground. "Now, I want you to deflect this little missile…" Kzar held out both palms. There was a faint crackling sound. A ball of white-hot energy formed in front of his hands. And it shot straight at Danny. But Danny was prepared. He knocked it away with a quick swipe of an arm. "Oh, very nice." P'Tana sounded slightly surprised. "Now how's about a return shot?" Danny smiled savagely.
"With pleasure!" he snarled. He mimicked Kzar's actions and shot back an energy beam of his own. The Psyros vanished instantly, reappearing just inches to the left of where the beam had hit.
"I think you need to work on your aim." Kzar chuckled. "But at least you know the theory. Now for the final test. Teleportation. I want you to take your teleport and get out of my sight." He turned his back on Danny. "I'll contact you shortly and we'll have a go at that… trial run." Danny looked furious, but for once he restrained his temper. With a snarl he faded away slowly, leaving the creature to it's own devices.
He was called upon that night. Half-asleep on the sofa with a video and a can of lager, he was almost beginning to dismiss the earlier events as a bad dream. Until a most unwelcome voice boomed inside his head.
"Wake up." The voice of P'Tana Kzar sneered. "It's time that I put you through your paces."
Danny sat bolt upright. "Where are you? What the fuck do you want from me now?"
"Don't be alarmed, I'm communicating with you telepathically. And as to what I want…" Here he gave an ominous chuckle. "I just want to make sure that my hold over you is absolute. Here's what I want you to do…"
Joe came home late that night. He'd been drowning his sorrows in the pub. Both Danny and Miranda had been gone for two whole weeks. Last night they found Miranda's body. Her head seemed to have been twisted right off. But there had been no trace of Danny. So Joe feared the worst for his friend. And the last thing he expected to see was Danny sat in the living room just like old times.
"Danny!" Joe cried, running excitedly up to him. Danny turned to face him, his face wracked with anguish, his cheeks wet with tears. Joe stopped suddenly. Something was wrong here. Danny never cried! And the way he moved… it wasn't quite… normal, as if invisible strings were pulling his friend about. "What's wrong?" Joe asked nervously. Danny lurched towards him, visibly trying to restrain himself. He held up his hand.
"Joe!" he screamed, a deadly urgency in his voice. "Get the hell out of here!" Joe hesitated, captivated by the glowing sphere that was forming at Danny's hand. Danny glared at him. What was so hard about his instruction? "NOW!!!" he yelled angrily. Joe finally took the hint and ran, just as a burst of bright energy demolished the wall behind where he was standing. Danny breathed a sigh of relief.
"Nice try." A mocking voice rang out in Danny's head. "But not good enough." And Danny blinked out of sight.
Joe ran down the deserted street, unsure as to where to go, or indeed what had happened to his friend. But it was pretty clear that Danny was no longer the man he used to be. In fact, Joe was so engrossed in his own confusion that he didn't see the fist flying at him until it was too late. It hit him firmly in the stomach, knocking the breath from him, forcing him to drop to his knees. He looked up. Danny.
"What the fuck are you playing at, man?" Joe asked, a trace of panic beginning to creep into his voice. Danny reached down and wrapped his hand around Joe's throat in a vice-like grip. He hoisted him roughly to his feet and held him high. Even now his face remained locked in an expression of anguish and regret.
"I can't help it!" he cried in a near scream. "He won't let up! He won't give me back control!" He could feel the power beginning to build up in his hand, and his voice took on a near hysterical edge. "Joe! Joe! Please… forgive me!" And in an instant, Joe's head vanished in an explosion of white.
Danny found himself on his knees on a deserted road. He glanced down, and recoiled in horror. Joe's body. Only the head was no longer there. Just a ragged stump for a neck gushing thick red blood. Danny raised a hand to his face and stared uncomprehendingly at it. He saw blood. Joe's blood. And then the reality of the situation hit him like a wave. Joe was dead. And it was all his fault.
"JOEEEEEEE!!!" he screamed in a near hysterical state of anger and upset. Joe had been his best friend for as long as he could remember… when they were little they had played together. Danny was always the ringleader, but Joe was always the one who could talk him out of doing anything stupid. As teenagers they had sneaked into pubs together… and were usually thrown out together, too. And later in life they were roommates, holding wild parties whenever the opportunity presented itself, consuming vast quantities of alcohol and generally having the time of their lives. But no more. Because Joe was dead. Danny had killed him.
"Hurts, doesn't it?" Danny was too wrapped up in his own grief to notice P'Tana Kzar materialise beside him. "But you'll appreciate that I had to ensure that my hold over you was absolute… after all, what better test could I devise? Besides, you no longer have any ties to this place. Which is how I want it." Danny looked up at the grey monster, and his grief gave way to a burning rage. No… Danny didn't kill Joe; it was this demonic puppeteer who could take over his body like it was his own. It was Kzar who killed Joe, and Danny was going to make him pay dearly. He sprung at the Psyros with a burning intensity.
"I'm going to send you to hell where you belong, you son of a bitch!" Danny screamed, tears flowing from his eyes even now. He suddenly felt an overpowering force making him grind to a halt. He seemed to recall trying this once before. His fist stopped just inches away from his tormentor's lizard like snout. Kzar shot him a withering glance.
"I expected you to be smarter than that, Danny. I can take over your body, you poor fool!" There was a slightly crazed tone in the Psyros's voice. "Don't you realise that your pathetic efforts are nothing to me? You…" Kzar coughed, slightly embarrassed by his own outburst. He continued in a calmer fashion. "Besides, you have more important things to sort out. Like getting out of here before you're spotted. And don't concern yourself with what happens next. That's my problem. Adios, Danny… or should I call you my tool?" P'Tana laughed, his evil, wicked cackle, and faded away into nothingness. Leaving Danny alone with his pain.
Chapter III - Why Does Everyone End Up Here?
Danny sat on the floor of the darkened house, staring at the man grovelling before him with a dark glare. What an idiot! Didn't he realise that his fate was sealed? Pleading with him wasn't going to make Kzar show any compassion. Kzar didn't know what compassion even meant. The man on the floor was now near hysterics.
"Please don't hurt me!" he cried. "I'm sorry! I'm sorry! I won't do it again!" Danny half-smiled in pity for the man. This guy had tried to double-cross Kzar and now it seemed to be payback time. Danny felt for him. At least he had the option of double-crossing that demon.
"I'm not the one you should be pleading to." Danny sighed. "Sorry, buster." He added as his foot came down hard on the poor man's head. His foot went clean through it with an almost satisfying crunch, and the pleadings instantly stopped. "Well, I did say sorry," he said defensively, taking a cigarette out of his pocket and lighting it.
"Filthy habit." Danny noticed that Kzar was stood behind him. He wheeled round and stuck two fingers up at the creature. God, this thing had serious influence! What would everybody else think if they knew that a pokemon had a hand in pretty much every major enterprise going? The Psyros Mafia, now there was a scary thought.
"Why don't you do your own dirty work for once, you asshole?" Danny snorted. "God knows why I bother. The pay's lousy, there's fuck all perks, no holidays, plus the laundry bill's astronomical." Here he glanced down at his boot, covered in blood and indeterminate gobbets of the man's head. He shuddered involuntarily. "You said this was only the beginning when you called me this time. Exactly what the hell did you mean by that?"
Kzar laughed hollowly. "I have another little task for you. I think you'll like it. For once I don't require your services as a pest exterminator."
"Then what?"
"You're now going to be a pokemon hunter."
"What?" Danny laughed out loud, as if he found the idea funny. "I'm to be catching pokemon for a pokemon?" P'Tana's lip curled back in a poorly concealed snarl of rage.
"I'll pretend I didn't hear that." The Psyros said coolly, and his tone warned against Danny pushing the point. Danny shrugged and took a drag on his cigarette.
"Okay, okay, just make me a decent offer and I'll give it a go on my own and you won't even have to get off your ass to control me." He blew out a cloud of grey smoke. "However, I'm not one of those stupid shit-for-brains who devote their whole fucking lives to pokemon. I wouldn't know half the pokemon if I fell over them."
"I wouldn't expect you to know what I'm after, even if you were 'one of those stupid shit-for-brains'" came the calm reply. "Which, incidentally, you are most of the time. Now take a look at this." Kzar passed Danny a photograph in his scaly hand. Danny studied it carefully. It showed a fluffy white animal with large, soulful eyes, magnificent silver wings and a pointed tail. It was a magnificent creature, even Danny had to admit it. Angelic, almost, particularly seeing as the creature had a halo.
"That's quite something."
"I don't expect you to go 'awww' at one, I expect you to find one and bring it back to me. They have some quite fascinating abilities that I would like to study in more depth."
"Then pass onto some other poor mug, no doubt." Danny threw the photo onto the floor angrily. "What the hell are they called, anyway?"
"Clegencyana. " Kzar replied, turning away from Danny. "I believe that there is a whole community of them living in the depths of Mt. Moon. Just bring one to me. And maybe it will be worth your freedom."
Danny suddenly snapped to attention. "No shit? Fine, no problem, if you let me go then sure, I'll get you as many as you like."
"That's my boy." Kzar cackled, and vanished just as suddenly as he had appeared.
And that was why Danny found himself on the edge of a vast abyss, staring down into the inky void. It was hard to believe that anything could live in that darkness, let alone a creature as angelic as the Clegencyana. Still, he had a job to do. And Danny prided himself on doing a job well. Which was why he had done some research beforehand. He was likely to find Geodudes. Zubats. Paras. Clefairy. The occasional Onix, although a report of there being a whole community of them sounded slightly farfetched. And somewhere in there he would find a Clegencyana, capture it, and exchange it for his freedom. It seemed a shame, really, he thought to himself as he leaned forwards into the gloom, inviting the darkness to swallow him whole. And then he fell. The ground rose to meet him, but there was no trace of worry in Danny's blue eyes. He simply smiled. And stopped.
He enjoyed the sensation, floating horizontally above the ground. It was relaxing, this state of weightlessness. But he had no time to relax; it was time to begin his search. He swiftly up righted himself, landing on the ground softly. How was he supposed to find anything in this gloomy cavern? He began to wander aimlessly, his nerves beginning to get the better of him. God, he would kill for a cig right now! But he knew better than to attract unwelcome attention with his smoke. So he continued to grope around in the darkness, hoping to ensnare a pokémon that he didn't really want to capture. Why hadn't he thought to bring along a torch? His leather boot suddenly caught on something, sending him head over heels, tumbling in the dirt. He looked up and glared at the obstacle with barely concealed rage.
"Fairy?"
Danny stood up sharply, brushing the dirt from his coat. Stupid thing. He shot the pink pokémon a withering glance. It backed up slowly, scared of the way that the man was looking at it. Danny sighed and turned away.
"You're quite cute, you know that?" He suddenly spun around venomously. "But I'm looking for beautiful, not cute, so get the fuck out of my face!" And without further ado he booted it across the cave. It wailed in surprise and ran away. Danny exhaled slowly. That felt good. He couldn't have his cigarettes, so unwarranted violence would have to do. He turned away and carried on with his quest.
It was beginning to get late and Danny was starting to lose hope. Why hadn't he planned ahead better? How was he supposed to find his way around this huge place? When he did find a Clegencyana, how was he supposed to get out again? It was a little late for doubts, he knew, but that didn't stop him from cursing his own lack of foresight. He just hadn't organised this trek at all… he could be lost down here forever… Danny stopped abruptly, leant against a stalactite and decided to risk a cigarette. A thin smile crossed his lips as he lit it. So what if he was stuck? He'd rather die down here than spend the rest of his life as the slave of a demented dinosaur. He took a long drag on the cigarette, the nicotine instantly calming his nerves. To hell with it. This was miles better than being Kzar's lapdog.
It was at that point that he saw it. The faintest chink of light coming from an opening that seemed to be a million miles away. Danny's curiosity got the better of him, and he walked carefully towards the light. An opening in the cavern wall. Hardly daring to believe it, Danny took a cautious step into the blinding light…
He was surprised… no, stunned, at the sight that met his eyes. A gigantic cavern bathed in an almost unnatural light. Everywhere he could hear the beating of wings. He looked up, and saw the source of the noise. Huge silver wings, or smaller golden ones.
"Gen gencey!"
"Clegency! Gencyana!"
Danny sat down sharply. He just couldn't believe it. He had actually made it! There were hundreds of them, these Clegencyanas. And some smaller, furrier creatures, similar to them but with golden wings and fluffier tails. Danny stared in awe. This was a truly breathtaking sight, but…
But his psychic abilities felt something behind him. He slowly turned around, staring uncomprehendingly at the large black furry pillar that had somehow appeared behind him.
Wait a minute.
A furry pillar?
Danny's blood ran cold, an insurmountable fear beginning to cloud over his mind. His eyes ran up the supposed pillar. There was another identical one beside it, and four more behind them. He couldn't deny it any longer. These weren't pillars. They were gigantic legs. Legs going into a dark red body with a purple chest. The fur was slightly spiked with static. A pair of long, whip-like tails lashed behind the creature, one ending in a cross made from lightning bolts, the other ending in a huge golden ball. And the head! That was basically canine, with giant fangs and black Pikachu-esque cheeks. But those eyes! Those horrible, horrible eyes, dark slits in the monster's face! The instant Danny's eyes met those of this… creature, he became overwhelmed with a fear like he had never known before. His instincts told him to get away, but he was paralysed with fear. All he could do was take a few faltering steps backwards, but he tripped and fell harshly on his rear. Terrified, he risked another look, and found the creature smirking at him. As if it knew that there was no escape. A black paw reached down for Danny, as he fought the overwhelming urge to scream.
"Mana manamanachu." The creature smiled evilly, and then there was nothing but darkness.
Chapter 4 - Out of the Frying Pan…
Danny came to in a cramped cell. He groaned and held his head wearily. Not again…
"Shit! Why can't I just not fucking pass out for once?"
"Cle?" A white furry head poked up through a hatch in the door. Danny half-smiled at the creature. He had fallen for these pokémon in a big way.
"Hey, I can't understand you, you know." He shrugged., "I'm a psychic - can't you use telepathy or something?" The Clegencyana nodded happily. He heard a soft, almost ethereal voice inside his head. The dreamy tone matched the creature's outward beauty perfectly.
"Of course. It's fortunate that you're a psychic, otherwise I wouldn't be able to communicate with you like this…"
"Yeah, yeah, cut the crap, what the hell am I doing in this cell?" This caused the Clegencyana to look sad.
"It wants you here."
"What does?"
"The Manachu. The one who captured you." The creature added, seeing the incomprehension on Danny's face. Danny groaned in disbelief as the events of the past few hours rushed back to him. He slumped against the wall, trying unsuccessfully to get his head around the situation.
"So why does it want me here?" he said miserably. The Clegencyana turned it's head, unable to make eye contact.
"We are in no position to ask for reasons…" it sighed. "But it gets bored easily, and I guess… it wants you here because… it wants to play with you a while." Danny didn't much like the way that the pokémon said 'play'. In fact, he wasn't exactly thrilled with the way that this conversation was going, really. All this was doing was confirming what he already suspected. He eyed the Clegencyana wearily. It was pretty short for its kind. Perhaps it was just younger than the rest. At any rate, it appeared far too sweet and innocent to be involved in anything overly sinister. But then again, appearances could be deceptive.
"I get it, I'm on death row." Danny laughed mirthlessly, and then his voice took on a more serious tone. "Are your kind in on this, too?"
"No!" The Clegencyana sounded horrified. "No, we don't condone the Manachu's behaviour in the slightest. Although the Waruiyana don't seem to care, but they've always baffled me…" Danny made a mental note to ask what a Waruiyana was, although he suspected that he'd soon find out. His furry guard continued. "At any rate, we have precious little choice."
"Why?"
And the Clegencyana told Danny. How the Genceys and Clegencyana were easy prey for other pokémon. How they lived in fear for their lives. How the Manachu was brought to the community, and how it agreed to guard them in exchange for their co-operation with the acquisition of what it needed.
"And what does it need?" Danny asked.
"It loves to hear the screams of others…" the Clegencyana said sadly. Danny gave a low moan of desperation as the penny finally dropped. He was here to be tortured for the Manachu's warped entertainment, he knew that now. But it was also clear that he might just have a friend in this desolate place.
"It's a no-win situation for you, isn't it?" Danny said. "Believe me, I know the fucking feeling. Anyway… this Manachu's seriously psychic, I take it it's a Psychic type pokémon?"
"Psychic, Dragon, Electric and Ghost."
Danny whistled. "That's some combination… did it read my mind, is that why it caught me? My slave master sent me to capture one of your kind. Did the Manachu find out? Is it holding me here because I might be a threat to this place?"
"I doubt that has anything to do with it." The Clegencyana shuddered. "A few perfectly nice trainers have ended up here, and they had no intention of harming the community, but it captured them anyway. We've done a deal with the devil, it…" The communication stopped suddenly and there was a startled squeal. The hatch slammed shut suddenly, and Danny's powers allowed him to translate a heated conversation on the other side of the cell door.
"What are you doing here, boy?" This voice was darkly seductive, with a somewhat dangerous edge to it.
"I was… I was… just curious…" The voice of Danny's new friend.
"Curiosity can be dangerous. You will have to be punished."
"Please! No!!!" There was a scream from outside, which grew steadily fainter until it was nothing at all. Danny stood transfixed. What was going on out there? What had scared the Clegencyana so much?
Danny soon found out as the cell door flew open suddenly. There it stood. This creature looked like a Clegencyana, but it certainly wasn't. The wings, instead of the silver angelic wings of the Clegencyana, were large and bat-like. And it's expression, that was just so wrong! Gone was the friendly, caring air of a Clegencyana. It had been replaced by a cool, calculating air that thoroughly unsettled Danny. Was this a Waruiyana?
"Come. You are wanted." It said flatly, it's eyes half closed, making it look bored. A sudden psychic force whisked Danny off his feet, and he began to float after this creature, which began to fly slowly down a twisting rocky corridor. Danny knew perfectly well where they were headed, so he struggled against the force. But nothing came of his efforts. "You shouldn't waste your efforts, even if your power was sufficient to overcome mine, the Manachu would hunt you down anyway." The same flat tone. This creature sounded like this was an everyday occurrence. Well, perhaps it was in this place.
Eventually they came to a halt.
"Here he is." The Waruiyana said. Danny raised his head to find himself in the place that he had originally arrived at. Complete with the Manachu. It looked down at Danny and leered horribly.
"Thank you, Tsuna." It smirked telepathically in a horrible voice. Danny got the distinct impression that it was only using telepathy for his benefit.
"Waruiyana warui?" the creature named Tsuna asked. The Manachu paused for a second.
"Why yes, Tsuna, I believe there is something else you can do for me." It turned its evil gaze upon the Waruiyana, it's eyes glowing a sudden yellow. Tsuna gave a startled cry and began to turn grey from the legs up.
"War…" she groaned, showing emotion for the first time. The Manachu merely laughed, a laugh even darker than Kzar's and a million times more unsettling.
"Tsuna, Tsuna, did I not tell you to lay off Orestes? I protect the Genceys and Clegencyana, the last creature in this place that requires my protection is you. Did you really think I wouldn't find out? DO YOU TAKE ME FOR A FOOL???" it roared angrily. Danny figured that it was referring to whatever had happened to the little Clegencyana earlier. The Waruiyana was stone up to her neck now, and was weeping piteously. The Manachu carefully picked her up with one of it's front paws and sneered. "Besides, you were getting far too full of yourself anyway." It threw her roughly against the wall. Her stone body shattered instantly, leaving just the head to fall on the floor. Danny gaped in horror. He did not want to be involved with a creature like this. But it was too late now. The Manachu settled back down and fixed it's gaze upon Danny. "Well, Danny, nice of you to drop in." it thought to him.
"How… how do you know my name?"
"Oh, that one look I gave you when you first barged in here, that was ample time to explore every nook and cranny of your mind. I know everything about you, Danny, possibly even more than you do."
"So why bring me here?" There was a trace of worry in Danny's voice. He wasn't expecting a nice answer. And he certainly wasn't expecting the answer he got.
"For your benefit." The Manachu explained. "As you gathered from your conversation with Orestes, I protect the creatures that live here. The Genceys, the Clegencyana, even the Waruiyana and Torrent, although he is perfectly capable of looking after himself."
"Torrent?"
"A Ranachu. I think he's sulking with me… I can't think why, though." Here the Manachu cackled nastily. "But that really has nothing to do with you. You may see him about in your time here. Anyway, as I said, I am the guardian of this community. But it seems that your friend Kzar may pose a threat to them. And to cut a long story short, you can relax because you may be of some use to me in the future, so I don't think I'll kill you. Yet."
"Gee, thanks a fucking bunch." Danny's anger overrode his fear. "For some strange reason I'm getting sick to death of these shitty situations. So why the hell would I co-operate?"
"The reasons are twofold. Firstly, Kzar cannot grasp the psychic reins that he has installed within you as long as you remain here. But it would be simplicity itself to take hold of them myself. And secondly…" The Manachu pinned Danny to the floor with surprising accuracy. It held a razor-sharp talon just inches away from Danny's head. "Secondly, if you defy me then I will make you beg for a death like that of Tsuna. Now you are here I cannot let you go. But as long as you do as you are told then I see no reason for your life to be anything other than bearable. Do we understand each other?"
"Fuck you."
The Manachu glared angrily at Danny, and the claw bore down towards Danny's face. Since the Manachu was so large it hardly needed to move. Danny gave a cry of pain as the claw dug a deep gash over his left eye. The Manachu released its hold of him.
"Fool. I should skin you alive right now," it snorted, "but I have to admit to being slightly impressed by your guts. You'll do as you're told or I'll take a good look at those guts myself… ah, there you are, Torrent. Still trying to cheer your girlfriend up? I trust you don't have any more plans of freeing her, you do remember what that got you last time, don't you?" Danny used his one good eye to look at this new arrival. A wolf-like creature coloured midnight blue, with grey stripes running down its back. It was just slightly smaller than he was, and was clearly in a bad mood.
"Rana. Rana ranachu." It huffed. Danny shuddered. What a horrible voice! It was like… like blood running down a hill. Danny didn't know what compelled him to describe it like that, but it seemed the only apt way to describe the noise.
"Manachu mana," the Manachu told it. The Ranachu picked up the weakened Danny easily in its powerful jaws. Danny stared at the Manachu dopily, blood now flowing freely from the deep gash on his face, getting in his eyes. The Manachu held a paw to its head and resumed telepathic communication. "Torrent will take you back to your cell. Think on. We can play this the easy way or the hard way. I'm kind of hoping we have to play it the hard way. It's so much more entertaining." And the Ranachu dragged Danny roughly back to his cell.
Danny just lay on the floor, numb. This was all getting too much for even him. The small figure outside looked over him as he lay there. This was bad. Danny seemed to be in shock. Orestes turned to go, but found his way blocked by the Ranachu, Torrent.
"Are you going to turn me in, too?" Orestes asked timidly. Torrent shook his head sadly.
"That's three," he snarled angrily. "Why does that Manachu still need to have her when it has two humans to play with?"
"He's getting meaner by the day."
Torrent laughed hollowly. "You got that right. And do you think he'll listen to reason and let my Eeeee go? Hah! Some chance!" He hung his head sadly. "It hurts, Orestes. It hurts so bad. Every time I go to see her and see her lying there bloody and torn, it cuts me up so bad. And then that bastard turns me to stone for my troubles. I thought he was supposed to take care of this community, the sadistic…" Torrent checked himself. "Just be careful, Orestes. And whatever you do, don't get caught." He put extra emphasis on these last three words. Then he turned and walked slowly away, a single tear splashing on the ground. Orestes afforded one last look at Danny before leaving himself. And Danny was left alone, his only company the cold, hard floor, and the slash over his eye that reminded him to never, ever get a Manachu angry.
Chapter 5 - You are not Alone
In the end Danny chose the easy way. It wasn't really all that bad a deal once Danny had accepted his fate. He was pretty well fed, and Orestes had taken it upon himself to help Danny in any way possible. In fact, the only creatures in the community that Danny tried to avoid were the Manachu itself and the Waruiyana. The Manachu seemed disappointed when Danny agreed to co-operate, it had obviously been hoping for him to put up a bit of a fight. But despite its sadistic nature, it had a warped sense of honour, and so let Danny live. So Danny was making the most of it. After all, he was being encouraged to settle the score with Kzar, and that had to be a good thing.
But Danny hadn't reckoned on the events a few days later. He had been sat in his cell as usual, trying hard to perfect his powers, when he suddenly heard a long, wailing female cry. He rushed to the cell door and banged hard on it. He was rewarded by Orestes opening the little hatch and peering in.
"What the hell is going on, man?" Danny shouted. His words came out a little harsher than he had intended. The little Clegencyana fidgeted nervously.
"It's… her," it responded telepathically, "They're taking her back."
"Who back? To where? Are you trying to tell me there's another bloody human in this place?" By now the wailing had died down to a pitiful sob, but Danny could tell that it was getting closer… very close. In fact…
They burst suddenly into vision. A pair of Waruiyana, flying along and forcibly dragging a third figure along behind them. It was this third figure that instantly captured Danny's attention. It was a young girl dressed in the tattered remains of a summer outfit. She didn't look much older than eighteen. A ripped T-shirt, filthy Lycra shorts, bare feet. Long, messy, midnight-blue hair dangling over her face. And what a face! The girl was effortlessly pretty despite her ragged clothes, despite the scars she wore on her forehead and cheek, despite the anguished look that was on her face. Danny noticed that her cheeks were wet with tears, and he instantly felt for her. And a glance at her body merely confirmed what he suspected. It was far from unattractive; if Danny was any judge in these matters she was physically everything he ever wanted. Perfect. Except for the large network of scars that criss-crossed her body. As far as Danny could make out, about the only parts of her body that had escaped damage were the palms of her hands and the soles of her feet. Everywhere else seemed to be scarred. And some of those wounds were fresh. They were still bleeding, causing her to leave a trail of blood behind her as she was dragged along. A clear victim of the Manachu's more sadistic desires.
It was at that point that the girl looked up and saw Danny. Their eyes locked. He saw a crystalline green, a pair of emerald eyes set into her face. She saw eyes the same colour as the ocean. Danny's heart melted instantly. He wanted to call out to her, but she was gone as suddenly as she arrived, leaving a lasting imprint on Danny's memory.
"Who is she?" he asked in awe. His Clegencyana friend shrugged.
"Nobody knows her real name. I doubt that even she can remember now. She's been here for longer than I have. The only thing that I know is that when the Manachu gets really bored it'll send for her and carve her up until she gets the way you saw her then. Because it's a sadist. It loves to hear the screams of others."
"Sounds like some other fuckwit I know." Danny snarled. How could anyone delight in hurting such an innocent-looking girl?
Orestes must have seen the look on Danny's face because he shook his head and sighed sadly, "There's nothing you can do for her. You know your powers will only work here if the Manachu wants them to, and trying to escape would be worse than suicide."
"I'm not stupid," Danny replied, "But hell, I just can't let her be… used like this. Shit, what the fuck can I do? The Manachu seems to be pretty businesslike at times, isn't there anything that I could trade with for her freedom?"
"You could always offer yourself. That's what Eeeee did. She gave herself to the Manachu so that her friends could escape." Danny nodded, Torrent had already told him a little about the Vaporeon. But he just wasn't the heroic type - besides, his plans involved them both making it out alive. "Or you could find something better for it to play with." And then he was hit by a flash of inspiration. It was obvious! The Manachu was too big to leave the cave, wasn't it...?
"So that's my offer." Danny found himself saying to the big red monster. "For every 24 hours that I let you have total control of my body, will you grant me one favour?"
"I could quite easily take control of your body anyway if I chose to. You aren't exactly offering me anything that I couldn't already acquire." The Manachu sounded bored.
"Won't it be much easier for you if I was willing? If I'm consciously allowing you to use me, your influence should override Kzar's, shouldn't it? Then you could send me outside. I'm pretty sure someone to run a few errands for you in the outside world would be useful." The Manachu pondered this for a second.
"There used to be a Mewtwo in the community many years ago, I kept him alive for the same reason that you are suggesting. It's true; it would be extremely useful. But before I agree on anything, exactly what are you hoping to get out of this arrangement?"
Danny breathed in. He wasn't sure how the Manachu would react to his terms. "I want four things. My freedom is the priority. I want to know about the other human you keep down here. And then I want to take both her and Orestes with me when I leave."
"You ask too much of me." The Manachu turned away as if it had lost interest in the conversation.
"Then can I make a suggestion?"
"Haven't you wasted enough of my time, Danny? Very well, speak, but this had better be good or you can say goodbye to any privileges I may have been granting you during your stay here."
"If what's bothering you is finding a replacement for the girl, I have an idea. Can't you use me to lure Kzar down here? I'm sure he'd be much more entertaining. Besides, as you said, he's a threat to the community." The Manachu blinked, then laughed out loud. It wasn't a nice noise.
"You're getting very good at this mode of thinking, Danny, I'm beginning to see your logic in that. Kzar would make a better toy than the girl would, I have to admit. I do so love bringing those who think they are all powerful down a peg or two. Very well, then. I shall control your body for four whole days, and when those days are up, you may leave. But there's one small clause I wish to add. Orestes and the girl can only come with you once P'Tana Kzar belongs to me."
"Fair enough. Thanks."
The Manachu eyed him suspiciously. "I wouldn't do this if it weren't beneficial for me, so don't go thinking I'm going soft." It settled down on the ground, resting its chin on its front paws. "Tell you what. In a mark of good faith I think I shall tell you about the girl that you want so badly, right now."
Chapter 6 - No happiness in slavery
"Her name is Magdelia," the Manachu began, "although nobody has called her by her name for quite some time now. I think it best if I start from before she found her way here. After all, I know everything about her, just like I know all about you. It was her tenth birthday, and she had just acquired her pokémon licence. Yes, if given the opportunity she would have been a pokémon trainer. A good one at that. She had that… something that your Reds and your Drols seem to possess. And I don't mean a big mouth." The Manachu grinned nastily, recalling its encounters with both of the trainers in question. "Unfortunately she was denied that opportunity." The Manachu was finding this rather funny. "She took her first pokémon, a Squirtle, and set off."
"Excuse me, but who's Drol?"
"He was League Champion many years back, long before Red. A child prodigy. He quit after a year as champion and vanished. Nobody's sure where he lives now."
"Do you?"
The Manachu chuckled. "I would be disappointed with myself if I didn't. He lives on the outskirts of Saffron City. But we are getting a little side-tracked here. Magdelia ran into her… problems when she tried to take a short cut through the caverns here. To be blunt, she was an inexperienced navigator and the poor thing got herself hopelessly lost. She was wandering around here for days on end trying to get out. Oh, if you felt sorry for her now, you should have seen her when I intervened. She was like a little skeletal rag doll!" The cruel tone was creeping back into the Manachu's voice. "Even I felt slightly sorry for her, so one day I decided to go and fetch her. You should have seen her face when she saw me, it was hilarious! She was too weak to scream, but I'm sure she would have done."
"Hang on," Danny interrupted, "You knew she was here all the time?"
"You shouldn't interrupt so, it could be bad for you health. But yes, there isn't a single thing that goes on in these caverns that I don't know about. Anyway, it seemed rather wasteful just to let her waste away, so I took her back here to recover. My charges are very good at that sort of thing. Wasn't that nice of me? Okay, we couldn't let her leave, but…"
"I refuse to believe that you'd save her out of the goodness of what passes for your heart. What was the price she had to pay? Or have I witnessed it for myself?"
"You're fairly perceptive for a human, Danny, but the initial agreement was totally different to the one we have now. At the beginning I confiscated her pokémon. A Squirtle, a Rattata, an Oddish, a Butterfree, a Pikachu and a Pidgey. Sadly just small fry. But they sufficed. So for the first few months she regained her strength, and I let her wander about freely. She was a good little girl and I knew she wouldn't try to escape. Besides, I must have felt slightly sorry for her back then. In those few months she made a lot of friends. After all, my charges are mainly soft-hearted creatures. Even Torrent is all bluff. And somehow or other she even was on good terms with the Waruiyana."
"So what went wrong?"
"She discovered what I was doing to her pokémon. She came to me and literally begged me to stop. The naive girl couldn't hope to understand why I do what I do. She was of the belief that there is always some good in everybody. She hoped to appeal to my better nature."
"You don't have one."
"…No, I suppose not. At least, not on the human scale of things. I think this is one of my better moods. After all, I'm talking to you, aren't I? As I recall it, I wasn't in the mood to humour her, so she got a flat refusal. The stupid girl wouldn't take the hint, and kept pestering me, the nuisance that she is. But I couldn't release her pokémon, not without something in return. And she had so little to offer me! So she gave it a little thought, and offered me… herself. So it was a deal. I let her pokémon go, and she became one of my toys. A noble sacrifice, but a stupid one. I never could fully understand you humans, you seem so eager to let your emotions be your downfall. As I was saying, normally my toys would last up to about a year until they break, usually much less. But I just can't bring myself to finish her off. We have far too much fun together." The Manachu grinned cruelly. Danny didn't like the way this conversation was going, so he tried to think of something to say to change the subject.
"How long has she been here?" he asked finally.
"Nine years."
"You're taking the piss, right?"
"I never joke." Danny's jaw dropped open. Nine years!!! Any hesitation he might have felt about this plan earlier was swiftly removed. The girl had to be freed, and fast. If it wasn't already too late for her...
"Okay, okay, I get it." Danny finally said. "So, you wanna get started right now?"
"I was thinking along those lines myself. After all, there's no time like the present, is there?" The Manachu grinned horribly at Danny, and its eyes began to glow dark red. Danny soon felt that unpleasant but familiar sensation as his mind became detached from his body, and his body was given over to his new puppet master.
The first day was a real trial. Danny was used to Kzar's handling of his body, but the Manachu's tactics were completely different. It never let up, not once. Danny hardly ever got a chance to rest as he was sent back and forth, collecting items for the various members of the community. The Manachu wanted fresh victims. The Genceys and Clegencyana required grapes gathering. The Waruiyana wanted allsorts of bizarre items. And if the Manachu was aware of the limitations of the human body, it didn't really care. And it was clear that it didn't trust Danny. He could even feel its dark presence hovering over him when he stopped for a toilet break.
At one point during his labours, the whole purpose of this exercise became clear to Danny. He was busy struggling with a particularly stubborn Ponyta, trying to bring it back for the Manachu's sick enjoyment, when he felt a sharp twinge intrude on his consciousness. A familiar twinge. Kzar's influence. But as soon as it became clear that Danny couldn't be reclaimed, Kzar backed down. After all, two psychics couldn't control him at once. It was then that Danny realised that this was the beginning of a very nasty trap.
A trap for a certain Psyros.
That night Danny slept like a log. He had never worked so hard in his entire life! He was too exhausted to notice Orestes slip quietly into the dark recesses of the cell and linger there quietly, looking sadly at Danny until he was asleep. Orestes couldn't understand this. This man was risking everything, he was playing a very dangerous game for the sake of Magdelia and Orestes. And Orestes loved him for it. He looked on at this man with the ponytail and the piercing eyes, smiled happily and curled up next to him. Soon Orestes was also in a deep sleep.
The second and third days passed in a similar way, although Danny found his missions becoming more physically draining. And the influence he had over his body waned, too. His consciousness became more and more detached, as if he was no more than a bystander to this whole unspeakable affair. Eventually he learned how to rest his mind and let the Manachu have total control of him as he slept. Which meant that for the most part he was blissfully unaware of the many atrocities that the Manachu forced him into committing. And he didn't care to pry. After all, what he didn't know couldn't hurt him, right?
When the fourth day finally arrived Danny knew something was amiss. The angelic residents of this community were flocking about in a panic, their shiny gold or silver wings making a mighty flurrying sound. Besides which, the Manachu hadn't taken control of him yet. Something was definitely wrong, and Danny decided to go and find out what. As he went to go to the Manachu, Orestes swooped gracefully down and alighted on Danny's shoulder. He was surprised at how light the little pokémon was. Mind you, it was little for its kind anyway.
Danny was about to speak, but a sinister voice boomed in his head, cutting out any thoughts of companionship.
"Danny. It is time."
Danny nodded, he understood perfectly. "Agreed."
"I expect nothing less than your full cooperation in this little enterprise. Orestes will be the bait, but you will have to act as the snare. And time is short. So go. And don't you dare disappoint me, or those that you care about so much will crumble to dust in my paws."
"Okay, okay, I get your drift. Don't you know anything about human nature? There's a matter of vengeance here. I'm just as eager to get him as you are. So let's get on with it."
With a sudden flare of white light, Danny and Orestes vanished, only to reappear in a small clearing just outside the cavern. Danny sighed happily, feeling the fresh breeze on his face, lapping up the much-needed change of scenery. He never thought he'd be this relieved just to be outside! And Orestes was positively glowing with excitement, his eyes trying to take in everything at once. Danny had to laugh, this was the first time the Clegencyana had seen the outside world. It was a whole new world for him. But Danny soon sobered up with a disheartening thought. This was a world where creatures every bit as evil as the Manachu walked. This was a world where P'Tana Kzar hatched his nefarious schemes.
This was a world where Kzar was stood waiting for them, arms folded, and a very, very angry look on his reptilian face.
Chapter 7 - Facing the Inevitable
"You took your time." The Psyros glared angrily at Danny. "And don't think that I'm so stupid as to not know what you've been trying to do."
"What the hell are you on about?" Danny grimaced, trying very hard to keep his cool. Did Kzar suspect something? Too much was at stake to blow this now... Danny thought of Magdelia, of Orestes. No, he just couldn't let them down. Besides, how could Kzar know? Unless he was far smarter than Danny was prepared to give him credit for.
"I'll tell you what I'm on about. You discovered the Manachu down there..."
"Hang on, you knew it was in there all along!?!" Danny suddenly grew angry. Very angry. How could Kzar send him to certain death?
"And what do suppose all that training was leading up to? You weren't supposed to disturb it. But instead what you do is see its powers to be greater than mine and try to take refuge in its cavern." Kzar noticed the scar over Danny's eye for the first time and chuckled to himself. "But I can see that you've discovered the futility of that plan for yourself. Oh, I bet you had a wonderful time in there. I guess you've suffered enough. Just hand over that Clegencyana and you can leave." Danny gripped Orestes tightly, more out of tension than anything else, and paced over to the Psyros. Kzar was waiting with open arms, ready to take Orestes. But Danny stopped short of his grasping Talons. "Well?" he asked impatiently.
"**** you!" Danny aimed an energy beam at the evil creature. There was no way he was going to let Orestes get anywhere near this... demon. A bolt of yellow energy hit Kzar, who was sent crashing into a tree, the shot having taken him by surprise. He staggered upright again, pain flowing through his body. But the pain turned into shock, which in turn changed into a burning rage.
"You ingrate!" he screamed in anger, the veins bulging in his neck from sheer fury, a fury that burned deep within the remnants of his age-old soul. "What do you think you're going to achieve??? I'll just make you hand over that thing! And then I'm going to make you beg to be let back in with that Manachu!!!" With this he sent out psychic tendrils towards Danny, invisible to all but the most powerful of psychics but ready to grasp the reins that he had personally inserted in Danny's brain. They brushed against Danny's mind and Kzar's fury quickly vanished. In its place was a totally alien sensation to the Psyros. Fear. The reins weren't there. But something else was. Something far more impassionate and powerful than he could ever hope to be. He stared incomprehendingly at Danny, who had let Orestes perch on a nearby tree. Danny's eyes began to glow an unearthly red, then he spoke with a voice that was definitely not his own.
"You possess precious little common sense for your years, sorcerer," he smirked in an unearthly voice, dripping with a sinister undertone. Kzar froze in terror. It was the Manachu. "You send an unwilling slave into my community with the intention of taking away one of those that I have promised to protect. You know full well of my existence, you know full well that even the powers that have been bestowed upon you are as nothing next to mine. So you work to the assumption that I will either not notice or not care, despite knowing more about my nature than most. The triumph of hope over realism, I suppose. You underestimate me, and you underestimate this human." Here it paused. "That's so sloppy, Kzar. I expected better from you."
"You... you've taken over his reins!" Kzar stammered. The Manachu was right. Why had he been so stupid? He hadn't underestimated them, though, he had overestimated his own hold over Danny. It never struck him that the Manachu could override his control. And now that he was known to the Manachu as a threat to its community, he had precious few options left. "Fine. You have a point. I didn't anticipate this. But what's one little Clegencyana?"
The Manachu smiled evilly using Danny's mouth. "I promised to protect them. That means all of them. There are no exceptions." It paused for a moment, letting Kzar's sense of dread grow. Eventually it grew tired of playing games. "So then, where to now? I was kind of hoping that you would come to us seeing as you want a Clegencyana so badly, but I suppose one mistake is carelessness but two is stupidity. I don't think you're stupid, Kzar. So I guess I'll have to use force to drag you to me." It grinned broadly. "You know, I do so enjoy this bit." The superior tone in the Manachu's voice caused the anger to flare up once more within Kzar. Him? The Lord of Chaos? The one who had survived countless millenia? Both servant and master to the dark forces? Become the Manachu's latest plaything? He didn't think so.
" It's true, your power is far greater than mine," he snarled, "And I doubt I would get very far if you were actually here. But as it is, you are using a mere vessel. And , for that matter, it is a vessel that I prepared. So if I have to, I will destroy what I created!"
"I'm glad you feel that way, sorcerer. I was hoping for a little sport before I bring you in." Danny's body rose an inch off the ground. "But I warn you, this man's powers are not what you imagine them to be."
"Then what are they?"
Danny's lip curled into a patronising smile. "You poor fool. Do you honestly expect me to tell you?" And with this, Danny vanished.
Out of instinct, P'Tana teleported as well, and the two met in midair. Kzar dodged an incoming fist and opened his mouth. A long green tentacle shot out and bound itself tightly around Danny's throat. Danny merely grinned evilly. "And exactly what is this supposed to do?" the Manachu's voice laughed. "You cannot hurt me. And I really don't care how badly the human gets injured." Kzar smirked to himself.
"Oh, don't worry, the best is yet to come! So you won't mind if I do this!" Kzar concentrated for a moment, and electricity began to flow through the tentacle that his tongue had become and into Danny's body, causing Danny to scream in agony. The scream was Danny's. Not the Manachu's. Kzar knew it was an unachievable goal to hurt the monstrous creature, but he couldn't help being a little disappointed.
He released the human from his grasp and let him fall to the floor. Danny plummeted through the air, hitting the ground with a loud thump. He didn't move again. Kzar shook his head sadly. "These humans are so easily broken," he sighed, lowering himself gracefully to the ground. He booted Danny's prone body over to face the right way round, and found Danny's face grinning at him.
"Like I said," the Manachu's voice said, "it doesn't matter what happens to Danny. In fact, I think he might have passed out. Which makes it all the more easier for me to control his body." It sprung upright gracefully. P'Tana Kzar glared at it, filled with a fury that was quite unlike anything he had ever felt before. How dare they play with him like this!
"That's fine!!!" he yelled. "I'LL JUST HAVE TO DESTROY THAT BODY COMPLETELY!!! SAY GOODBYE TO DANNY!" In sheer desperation he fired at energy beam at Danny. He - no, it, the Manachu was inside Danny's body now - made no attempt to move. It just stood its ground, a curious smile fixed on its face. And as that smile grew, Kzar's faded. The beam struck Danny full on, but he didn't even budge. Instead the beam rebounded like a ball thrown against a wall, shooting straight back at its sender. Kzar yelped in alarm, and teleported a few inches to the right, narrowly avoiding his own attack. He was obviously shaken up. "W... what the... that was your power that did that, right?" Kzar's voice had lost all traces of its former confidence. Now he sounded almost scared. "That wasn't the power that I gave him..." The Manachu cackled sadistically.
"You poor, deluded fool," it said, shaking Danny's head in mock pity. "I cannot add to what this man has. Anything I may use is within him anyway. Perhaps I know more about his power than anyone. You did give this man a Mewtwo's power, but in the process you awakened a much greater power within him. He is one of three. One of those that can use the most dangerous of psychic powers. He has been gifted with the Psycho Power." He floated above the ground, a yellow fire enveloping his entire body. "Now. It is time to end this." And Danny hurtled towards Kzar like a human torpedo, the mystical fire burning all the while. Kzar's eyes widened. He couldn't hope to move quick enough to avoid this attack. It struck him head on.
The sight that greeted Danny when he finally regained consciousness made him recoil in horror at first, but on closer inspection he became convinced that he had gone mad. Was that really Kzar lay beside him, completely out cold?
"Cle?" Orestes had been sat on Danny's chest for at least an hour, waiting for him to come to. "Gencyana!" He cried happily as he noticed Danny's eyes were open. Danny smiled and ruffled the pokémon's white fur affectionately.
"Hey buddy," he smiled weakly, "We made it." Orestes nodded his cute little head in agreement, then fluttered off Danny so he could get up. Danny rolled over only to feet a sudden burst of pain in his chest. He winced. His ribs were probably broken. Staggering to his feet, he risked a closer look at the unconscious Psyros beside him. Kzar appeared pretty beat up, but Danny didn't remember anything about the fight. "He shocked me... then I remember falling. After that, nothing. Did I really do that?"
"Gencyana! Cle clegencycle gency clecle yana!" Orestes jabbered excitedly. Danny raised his one remaining eyebrow, puzzled.
"I don't recall anyone teaching me an attack like that..."
"Well, you won anyway, with a little help." A murderous voice rang out inside Danny's head. "Now be a good boy and get him back here before he wakes up. I'm sure Orestes will be able to guide you." Danny nodded in compliance. Soon, now, he would be free of this madness.
"Okay, Orestes, let's get this son of a bitch back to the Manachu."
"Clegency!" Orestes hopped onto Danny's shoulder, and Danny grabbed Kzar's ankle, mindful of the oversized claws. He doubted Kzar would be easy to carry without the injured ribs, but as it was Danny would have to drag him back. Cursing the Psyros for never teaching him how to levitate objects other than himself, he began to physically drag him back into Mt. Moon .
It had been a real effort. In his weakened state Danny just wasn't fit to be lugging this heavy dinosaur through the tunnels of Mt. Moon. He was just thankful that Orestes knew the way back. He didn't much fancy getting lost again. But eventually they made it, and Kzar was laid out in front of the Manachu. Danny sat down to get his breath back, then recalled he has the powers of a Mewtwo, and that included Recover. He mentally kicked himself.
"Well, there he is," he puffed, suddenly realising that nobody had told him how to use that move either. The Manachu had been too busy sniggering at Danny's inner frustration to respond, but it eventually picked Kzar up in a gigantic black paw and examined him critically.
"Hm. He seems a lot smaller than I thought. Ah well, size isn't everything, I suppose.." At this point Kzar woke up. Seeing the position he was now in, he screamed in absolute terror. The Manachu looked somewhat pleased, and its eyes began to glow a soft yellow. Very soon Kzar was just a stone statue in its paw. "That's you shut up," it giggled cruelly, setting him to one side gently. "There'll be plenty of time for that later." It turned its attention to Danny. "Well, Danny, you have lived up to your end of the bargain, so I shall honour mine." Ending the telepathic conversation, it barked loudly. "Manamana! Manachu!" A Clegencyana flew up and dropped a shining silver key in front of Danny. He picked it up and studied it cautiously. The Manachu looked at him with contempt. "That's the key to Magdelia's cell," it said as if this should have been obvious. "I'm sure you would rather be the one to break the good news to her. Go get her, then you may take her and Orestes out of here." The Manachu then turned away from Danny.
"Thanks," Danny said gratefully, and headed towards the cells.
Chapter 8 - Is there such a thing as evil?
Magdelia sat in the cell in total silence, as she had for as long as she could remember. It was a lonely existence, but she didn't complain. It was infinitely preferable to the alternative. She would rather be here than in the Manachu's grasp. It was truly demonic in its torments. It cut. It crushed. It pulled and pushed. It subjected her to a lifetime of violence and pain. But she never resisted, never felt her lot in life to be unfair. She knew full well that she was here by choice. She would gladly suffer the pain tenfold if it meant that her pokémon were safe from harm. Idly, she wondered how they were doing. Were they even still alive? Perhaps they had found new owners, ones that could take good care of them. Whatever their fate, it was better than being held captive in a bare cell with only your own unpleasant memories for company, awaiting the next round of agony. She looked down at her arms, at her legs. They were covered in deep and permanent scars, constant reminders of all the pain she had suffered. Sometimes it was just impossible to hide her anguish, and so she sobbed quietly to herself, her blue hair falling over her face, hiding her sorrowful eyes from the rest of the world.
Still, there was at least a glimmer of hope now. There was another human in this godforsaken place. That really wasn't too odd, she remembered quite clearly the time that three other people had been held here by the Manachu. Two oldish boys with scruffy brown hair, and a girl with long green hair tied in plaits. But they never saw her. They didn't even realise that she was there, even though she knew of their existence. She had even wept in relief when their freedom was bought. But this new one had seen her. The handsome man with the deep blue eyes. She shivered with excitement just thinking about him, it was definitely a case of love at first sight. So now life was slightly more bearable. Although it seemed a hopeless fantasy, the thought of this man was the only thing that gave her any pleasure, the only thing that gave her hope to carry on.
There was a sudden rattling behind her. The sound of the cell door being unlocked. Out of instinct Magdelia backed away, as far away from the door as she could manage. It was a futile exercise, she knew full well that you couldn't run from the Manachu. In this evil place there was no safe place to run. So instead she closed her eyes tightly, awaiting the emotionless calls of the Waruiyana guards. They never came.
"Hello?"
A voice? A normal, human, male voice? Here? No, it couldn't be... Hardly daring to believe it, Magdelia slowly opened her eyes, expecting this to be just another cruel joke of the Manachu. But it wasn't. When she did open her eyes, she saw a vision that only ever came in her dreams. Him.
He seemed a little roughed up - his hair had fallen out of its ponytail and his clothes were dirty and ripped - but despite this he was every bit as handsome as she remembered. She wanted to speak, but found herself tongue tied. All she could do was stare in shock.
"Hi. I'm Danny." He sounded a little unsure of himself. "Look, I saw you a while back, remember?" Magdelia nodded dumbly. How could she forget? "I don't have time to explain why or how, but I've come to get you out of here."
"No!" Magdelia at last found her voice. "You can't! The Manachu will find out, then it'll destroy you!" Danny held out his hands to placate the worried girl. He found it quite touching that she was already concerned for him.
"Relax, would you? I've given it something in return. And believe me, those two deserve each other." Danny walked over to where she was cowering, afraid of making her panic even more. He offered her his hand. "Listen, I'll explain along the way. Just please accept the fact that I want you... to come with me." Danny added hurriedly. He couldn't go blurting things out like that to someone he'd just met! In all honesty this girl was getting to him more than he cared to admit. "So how about it?" Magdelia looked at him sadly.
"I don't want anyone to suffer on my behalf..." she sighed finally. "I chose to be here."
"It's a little late for that now. I know why you're here, the Manachu told me about it. But the... thing he's got now deserves far worse than the treatment he'll be getting. As far as I'm concerned he's more evil than the Manachu is."
"I doubt the Manachu considers itself evil. As far as I know it finds the concepts of good and evil rather childish. It just does what it does. I wouldn't call it evil. Selfish, maybe, but not evil."
Danny shook his head is disbelief. After all the Manachu had done to her? At this point Orestes fluttered in, beaming happily. Magdelia looked at the Clegencyana fondly. "Hello, Orestes. Are you in on this as well?"
"Gencyana! Cle clegency!" Orestes cried joyfully, and Magdelia smiled for the first time in nine years. She took Danny's hand and allowed him to help her to her feet. She stared into his eyes, and suddenly the weight of nine years of mental and physical anguish finally caught up with her, destroying what little composure she had left. She fell crying into Danny's arms. He held her tightly.
"I just want to get away..." she sobbed. "Please... take me away from here... anywhere... just not here..." And she burst into a fresh flood of tears. Danny felt instantly saddened. It seemed like the girl was finally letting it all out. He stroked her long hair comfortingly.
"I promise," he said solemnly, "to take you as far away from this place as I can."
As they were leaving, they found the Manachu waiting for them. It viewed Danny, Orestes and Magdelia with an expressionless face.
"Well, it appears that this is the end of an era," it shrugged. "You three are leaving now. Until the next time."
"What do you mean, 'the next time'?" Danny yelled, suddenly losing his patience. "Are you going to be my new puppet master now?"
The Manachu merely laughed, although without its usual menace.
"I cannot say I will ever understand you, Danny, or your companions. But we do have one thing in common. You all feel a bond with this place. And no matter how hard you try to deny it, you are all, in one way or another, members of the community now. So should the day come when we are in need of your services once more, you will know. And you will come willingly. But until that day arrives, go and live your lives as you see fit. You have no more business here, and I will detain you no longer."
"Thanks," Danny said. The Manachu looked slightly puzzled.
"What is your gratitude to me? As I said, I doubt I will ever understand you. Just go." Danny nodded, and turned to leave, Orestes close behind him. But Magdelia still lingered.
"What's up?" Danny asked her curiously. She didn't respond. She just walked cautiously up to the Manachu and put a hand on its furry leg.
"I forgive you," she said.
"I said go, woman!" the Manachu snapped, "Before I change my mind!" Magdelia nodded and clumsily tripped after her new companions. The Manachu watched them go, watched until they faded into the darkness of the tunnels, until its superb night vision could no longer detect them. It sighed, a trace of loneliness in its voice. "You know," it said to itself, "I think I'm almost going to miss that stupid girl. It's just as well I have a new toy to play with. But still... I had a lot of fun with her. Although I doubt she felt the same way." The Manachu picked up a crudely fashioned bowl, suitable for its size, and drank from it. Blood. It raised the bowl in a warped mockery of a toast.
"Hey... good luck in your new life... my Magdelia."
THE END
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