Almia Shadows - Chpt 15

Chapter 15 - The Final Gem! Search Hippowdon Temple!</u>

Entering the Haruba Village…

“It was nice of Sven to drop us off here,” Alex commented. “I like it when a person is true to their word.”
Sven doesn’t look like the sort who isn’t true to their word, Ryder stated. But you and I both know who aren’t true to their word, right?
“Yeah, well…less said about that bunch the better,” Alex sighed. “What the--!?”

NIRRRRRRRRRRRRR!!

“What is that guy doing over there with that Gigaremo?!” Alex asked in horror. “No wonder there’s a bad sandstorm here!!”
I’ll get it; I can’t miss with Aura Sphere, Ryder volunteered, forming the sphere of aura in his paws. He fired it at the yellow Gigaremo, destroying it upon impact. The sandstorm died down as the hypnotised Hippopotas returned to their original states and returned to the desert.
“What did you do?! I was planning to make money with that cappuccino machine!” the man nearby fumed as Alex and Ryder approached him.
“No, I know what a cappuccino machine looks like,” Alex began. “And a cappuccino machine that was not. That, sir, was a Gigaremo!”
“Gigaremo? I’ve heard about those in the paper,” the man said calmly, holding up a newspaper regarding the Gigaremo units.
“And you mistook it for a cappuccino machine?!” Alex asked angrily. “The Hippopotas were suffering as a result of your naivety!”
“Oh my gosh, I’m so sorry!” the man apologised. “I will never make that mistake again!”
“It’s alright, I’ll let it slide for now,” Alex began. “We need to get to the Hippowdon Temple as soon as possible anyway.”
“Oh, you go through the desert,” the nearby boy stated. “Just go up here and the Hippowdon Temple is just ahead.”
“Thanks, kid, much appreciated,” Alex thanked.

A short while later…

Alex and Ryder approached the Hippowdon-shaped entrance. There was a hole in the path, making them unable to access the temple.
“O-kay…who’s idea was it to put that hole there?” Alex sighed. Ryder looked around and noticed something in the trench beneath them.
Alex, look! He pointed to a lone Hippowdon wandering around the sand. Maybe Hippowdon can get us in the temple!
“That wouldn’t surprise me,” Alex stated. “Let’s go.” She and Ryder ran towards the trench by running down the stone steps leading there. Alex quickly captured the nearby Doduo and got on its back. “Ryder, can you attack from afar? All I need you to do is to make it stop in its tracks.”
I can do that, no problem, Ryder complied. What attack should I use? Aura Sphere or…
“Surprise me,” Alex smiled. “HYAH!” The Doduo raced across the sand and approached the Hippowdon. Ryder ran along the edge of the trench, on the sidelines.

FSHOOOOOOO!!

A couple of the small tornados surrounding Hippowdon managed to hit Alex and the Doduo, causing damage to the Doduo and Alex. Hippowdon attempted to make an underground escape.
Not so fast! Ryder held out his right paw as it and his eyes glowed blue. The Hippowdon was surrounded in the same light as it was lifted out of the sand. Now, Alex!
“Capture on!” Alex shouted, firing her capture disc from her styler. Hippowdon’s vulnerability made the capture quick and easy. Hippowdon was gently lowered back to the ground. Alex dismounted from Doduo and left the trench, followed by Hippowdon. The Doduo went about its business as normal.

“Hi-POW!” Hippowdon released sand from the holes on its back and poured it into the hole, eventually filling it up. The Hippowdon left soon after, allowing Alex and Ryder into the temple.

Inside, they found three wild Golem wandering around. They were more astonished by what they saw at the other end of the room; a familiar looking Buizel encouraging Alex and Ryder to follow it before leaving the room.
“Was that…?”
There’s no mistake; that Buizel is Keith’s partner Buizel!
“But I’ve never seen the two separate before! Something must be wrong!”
Let’s see where he’s trying to lead us!
“Good idea””

Eventually…

“What…the…crap…” Alex and Ryder found themselves in a very complicated room; the pathway was very narrow, with the vast majority of the remaining space occupied by flowing sand, and the holes in the walls around the room fired out large balls of sand.
I can always destroy those sand balls if they get in my way, Ryder stated confidently.
“That’s not what worries me,” Alex began, pointing to a hole in the floor, near one of the pathway’s sections. “If we’re not careful, we may have to rinse and repeat.”
Then let’s try not to, Ryder suggested. He started making his way along the narrow path.
“If you insist…” Alex reluctantly started following Ryder. Paying more attention to her feet, she failed to notice the oncoming sand balls.
“AAAAAAH!!” the first one hit Alex in the back.
“D’AAAAAH!!” the second one struck her left hand side, knocking her onto the flowing sand. She wound up back at the start of the room. She attempted to try again, avoiding the first two balls she collided with.
“YAAAAAH!!” a third ball crashed into Alex’s right shoulder, causing her to stagger around for a while.
“D’OOMPH!!” a fourth one – from the same direction as the third – hit Alex right at the front of her body. The force of the blow knocked Alex down, causing her to land on her back. She tried to get back onto her feet.
“AAAAAAAAAH!!” a fifth one – from the opposite direction as the fourth – struck her on the back, almost instantly after she got back onto her feet. She got knocked down onto her knees, and was barely keeping awake; the damage she received from the onslaught of sand balls had worsened her Boyleland injuries.
“D’UH!” a sixth ball – from the same direction as the fifth – hit Alex on the head, rendering her unconscious. The sand balls completely bypassed her at that point.

A while later…

“Urrrgh…Nnnnuh…” Alex gradually regained consciousness and found Ryder looking down at her.
Alex? Are you okay? He asked. I managed to get you outside, he added. Alex sat up and found herself on top of the Hippowdon Temple’s entrance.
“Wh-what happened?” she asked dizzily.
The sand balls knocked you out cold, Ryder explained. I used Psychic to get you out here while using Aura Sphere to protect you from further harm.
“How long was I out?” Alex asked worriedly.
No need to worry, we only got here 30 seconds ago, Ryder smiled. You were out from the sand ball area, though. By the way, Keith voicemailed.
“Yeah?”
He sounded strange, Ryder began. He asked if we were getting closer and if we’re coming with the gem.
“What? We haven’t even got the bleeding thing yet!” Alex stressed. “Hell, we’ve only hit the half way point!”
I wish I could’ve said that, Ryder began. But he hung up before I had the chance to talk. Alex managed to get to her feet.
“Anyway, let’s keep going,” she sighed.

Later…

Alex and Ryder entered a vacant room with a hole in the floor. They noticed Buizel jumping into the hole, which took them by surprise.
“D-did he just jump down there?” Alex asked in shock. Ryder ran over to the hole and looked down it.
It looks like a fair distance, he assumed. I hope we can survive.
“Just so long as we land on our feet, yeah, I think we can,” Alex guessed. She and Ryder jumped down the hole, following Buizel.

Down the hole…

Alex and Ryder managed to land on their feet; they found themselves in a different area than before. There was a bridge leading to the room ahead of them, with a ‘moat’ of water around it. The ground beneath their feet was solid and apparently nourished because of the grass nearby. Alex and Ryder proceeded across the bridge and into the next area.

Inside…

Alex and Ryder found themselves in a small area, with a pedestal right in front of them. The pedestal had the crescent shaped Yellow Gem shining in a bright light. There was a small area of water surrounding the pathway to the gem. Alex and Ryder approached the gem.

FLASH!!

“Oh, come on!!” Alex complained, having been startled by the sudden flash.

FLASH!!

“I thought this was over at the union!” she complained again.

FLASH!!

What keeps doing that? Ryder pondered to himself, looking around.

FLASH!!

BUUUYUUUUUUUUUUN!

An aurora borealis shone above the Yellow Gem and its pedestal as Cresselia descended in front of the set. The Cresselia was eager to challenge Alex.
“Oh snap…”
Is this the guardian that Keith had trouble with?
“I don’t know, nor care. I’ll make this capture for him! Capture on!!”

The capture disc was fired from her styler and started to circle around the lunar Pokémon. Cresselia’s burst of mystical purple fire broke Alex’s capture line, but missed the capture disc, allowing Alex to try again. She charged her capture disc twice, quadrupling its power. Narrowly avoiding the purple sphere of psychic energy circling around the entire area, Alex continued to control her capture disc, circling it around Cresselia. However, as Alex still had her injuries from the sand ball barrage and some minor recoil damage from the harsh landing, Alex’s control over her capture disc was sketchy at best. This was clearly one of the most pressurising captures Alex had ever had to deal with.
Alex, let me help you, Ryder offered. Let me use my Dark Pulse to weaken Cresselia’s attacks; it may be the only chance we have, given your injuries.
“If you say so, Ryder,” Alex permitted, somewhat dizzily; having to watch her capture styler circling around Cresselia was apparently making her giddy, which explained how pale her face appeared to be.
Bye-bye ball! Ryder fired a Dark Pulse directly at the forever-circling ball of psychic energy, thus destroying it.
Cresselia continued to put up a valiant defence against the capture disc, but the lunar Pokémon eventually fell to its befriending effects and was completely captured, much to Alex’s relief. Cresselia caused the Yellow Gem to lose its bright shine and it made its leave. Ryder went over to the Yellow Gem and held it in his arms. He and Alex then made their way out of the room.

“One thing still bothers me,” Alex began, slowly walking along the bridge with Ryder. “Where’s Keith?”
Maybe we should stick around here to look for him, Ryder suggested. I’m sure he’s somewhere close by.
The sound of an incoming helicopter disrupted Ryder’s train of thought as he started snarling angrily. He and Alex looked up behind them, noticing a familiar looking helicopter landing within the large space on the bridge.
“Very good! You got the gem!” exclaimed an unfamiliar male voice from inside the helicopter. The door slid open as a large-bodied, tanned-skinned blonde haired man exited the helicopter. He was wearing a yellow chest plate with black trousers, and had no shirt on for no reason. “But you a fool for following vicemail!”
“Number one, where’s your shirt?” Alex asked with disgust. “Number two, it’s voicemail!” she corrected with frustration. “Now go away, we have a friend to find!”
And a Buizel too. We haven’t seen him since he fell down the hole, Ryder stated on a random note.
“I am Heath, not Keith! Hah! How you like that?” the man taunted.
“Yes, we’ve established that you’re not-- hey, wait a minute! How do you know Keith?!” Alex demanded angrily.
Alex, that explains the strange voicemails! Ryder said in shock. The voicemail always started with ‘It’s me, Hea…Keith!’
“‘Hea…Keith’?” Alex asked in astonishment. She faced Heath angrily. “Okay, what did you do with Keith?!”
“I try to get Yellow Gem, but guardian cause problems, yes?” Heath began. “A Ranger come by, I thought I be lucky; let him get guardian and I take gem after. But Ranger fail.”
“His styler broke…?” Alex asked herself in shock.
“But I hear of tough Ranger named Alexa,” Heath continued. “I figure use her to get gem.”
“What?!” Alex gasped in horror. Ryder snarled angrily at Heath.
“But I don’t take gem without giving something in return,” Heath smirked. “I get gem, Alexa gets friend back.”
“No, Alex, don’t! Don’t give it to him!” Keith cried to Alex as he was pulled into view by one of the Dim Sun admins. Keith had been trussed up at the upper body.
“Keith!!” Alex cried in devastation.
That smarmy dumb-talking wiseacre!! Ryder fumed. He’s had Keith held hostage all this time!

“Keith is not so smart,” Heath teased. “If Alexa want Keith back, Lucario give me gem. Deal?”
Like hell I’ll give it to you, you Anti-Barlow! Ryder snarled. Do you believe this guy, Alex?! He faced Alex, but was soon confused. Alex?
Alex failed to respond; her head was lowered. However, she was not saddened; she was enraged, as she was grinding her teeth together, resisting the urge to lose her temper. She was also clenching her fists tightly.
“Alex?” Keith looked upon his angry friend with concern; from his point of view, he couldn’t tell whether Alex was saddened or angry.
“It simple, yes? I take gem, you get friend back,” Heath repeated. “You do care for friend, yes?”

“Yes…I care about Keith…more than any of the friends I thought I had,” Alex hissed. A tear could be seen falling down her cheek. “And you used him against me…and against his will, no less…!”
Alex? Are you okay? Ryder asked nervously, taking a few steps back. Ryder’s stepping backwards confused both Keith and Heath. Alex looked directly at Heath with an intimidating look on her face.
“I won’t let you get away with that!!” she bellowed loudly.
Alex, please! Calm down! Ryder pleaded, looking somewhat scared. Keith was horrified; he’d never seen Alex this angry before. Even Heath was somewhat intimidated.
“I don’t care about how you mess with me,” Alex continued wrathfully. “But when my friends are involved, that’s when I take the personal approach!!” Heath smirked and closed his eyes.
“You bluff,” he stated. “You know not of things like this.” Heath’s naïve statements were all Alex needed to instantly race towards him with her right arm drawn back.

SMACK!!

Ryder and Keith flinched as Alex’s right fist made critical contact with Heath’s left eye. The force of the blow knocked Heath to the ground, and Alex looked down at him with rage and an injured knuckle.
“Don’t you dare tell me what I can and can’t fathom!!” she snapped. “You may have heard of me through the other two of the Sinis Trio, but you don’t know any more about me than that! Who are you to tell me what I have and haven’t experienced! That’s for me to decide!!”
Alex, please! For the love of Arceus, get a hold of yourself! Ryder pleaded.
“You make big mistake,” Heath began, getting back onto his feet. He faced Alex angrily. “Hit me, I hit harder!” he exclaimed as he tried to throw a punch at her.
“Look out!” Keith warned. Alex, however, was all too aware that Heath was attempting to fight back. She performed a back flip, dodging the attack. She returned to where she was originally standing – next to Ryder – and took off her styler.
Alex, what the hell are you doing?! You can’t fight this guy! Ryder exclaimed fearfully.
“I can try,” Alex said plainly, giving Ryder her styler. “Can you hold this for me please?” Ryder took her styler and she ran towards Heath again.
“You fool to try hit me again,” Heath laughed, thrusting out his right fist. However, instead of landing a punch…

SMACK!!!

Alex swung her left foot across her and kicked Heath across his neck. Heath staggered, but regained his footing as he attempted to punch Alex again. Alex hopped backwards and grabbed Heath’s arm; using his arm as support, Alex threw her body around her and performed a double kick, which hit the back of Heath’s neck. The force knocked Heath down, and Alex spun in the air after the blow. She landed on her feet, with her legs bent; one in front of her, the other to the side. Heath struggled to get back onto his feet.
“You’re the one who was the fool today,” Alex began. “There’s more to me than what meets the eye! Perhaps you can remember that if I don’t give you amnesia!” she shouted furiously. Heath stood up and faced Alex.
“You good fighter,” he complimented sarcastically. Alex ran over to him, ready to land another attack.

SMACK!!

“Aaaaagh!!” Heath’s punch landed right on Alex’s cheek. She was pushed towards Heath’s right hand side, but this soon changed when Heath turned around to face her directly.
“Alex!!”
“But you weak from sand balls, yes?” Heath guessed mockingly. Alex struggled to stand up; her lip was bleeding, which was a result of Heath’s punch. “That why your Lucario so keen to stop you, yes?”
“What do you know about it?” Alex hissed. She swung her left foot across her.

GRAB!

Heath grabbed Alex’s left ankle with both of his hands and held onto her leg. Alex looked up at him in both shock and frustration.
“You idiot. You give me gem and I spare you from pain,” Heath negotiated. “Win-win, yes?”
“I’d rather go for the option that benefits both Keith and the Union,” Alex clearly stated. Heath pulled Alex’s leg, thus pulling Alex closer to him. He grabbed a hold of her waist and held her upside down. He then slammed her down on the ground.
“AAAAAAH!!” To prevent her head from hitting the ground, Alex lifted herself up enough for her left elbow to take the pain instead.
“Alex!!”

CLANG!

“Ow.” Something hit Heath’s shoulder pad; Ryder threw the Yellow Gem at him. Alex – although weak from Heath’s abuse – faced Ryder, both with concern and mild frustration.
Stop it! Ryder cried tearfully. Please! Just leave them alone!!
“Ryder…!” Alex sighed.
“Lucario is smart,” Heath taunted. He looked down at the weakened girl. “You learn something from him now, yes?” Alex attempted to stand back up again, and did so with difficulty. Her left elbow was bleeding, as a result of it scraping the ground beneath her during Heath’s last attack. She faced Heath; she was experiencing too many negative emotions to depict a clear demeanour.
Alex, I’m so sorry! I just want you and Keith back safely! Ryder apologised sincerely. Heath got back into the helicopter.
“Like I promise, I give friend back. Catch!” Heath pushed Keith out of the helicopter. Keith landed on his feet, and Ryder – still with Alex’s styler in his paw – ran over to him and Alex.
“Alex! Are you alright?!” Keith asked worriedly. Ryder helped Alex stand up properly, being careful not to hurt her. Alex failed to say anything; she was too conflicted.
“Here’s something else from me!” Heath shouted, with a Miniremo in front of him. A Magnezone hovered down in front of Alex, Keith and Ryder as the helicopter took off.
Alex, snap out of it!! Ryder shouted. Alex looked ahead of her and found the hypnotised Magnezone. She snatched her styler from Ryder and stepped in front of him and Keith; she was still trying to protect her best friend.
“Capture…on!” Alex struggled to fire her capture disc from her styler, given her weakness. She controlled her capture disc as best she could, but her weakness made it difficult for her to even see where her capture disc was spinning to.
Alex, don’t go through with that! Let me battle it! Ryder strongly advised towards Alex.
“No! I don’t want anybody else to get hurt because of me!” Alex rejected. “I can handle this on my own, and I will if I have to!”
It wasn’t long before Alex’s capture was a success. The Magnezone was freed and it left the temple.

Ryder managed to untie Keith quickly and easily. Once freed, Keith didn’t waste a second and immediately stopped Alex from collapsing.
“Alex! Please tell me you’ll be okay!” he pleaded worriedly.
“Don’t worry about me,” Alex began. “I can manage.”
“I’m so sorry this happened to you!” Keith apologised. “If I succeeded in befriending Cresselia before my styler ran out of energy, then--”
“Keith. Don’t blame yourself. Please,” Alex interrupted. “It’s my fault all this happened.”
That’s not true, Ryder said softly. Please don’t believe that.
“Bui!” Buizel jumped out of the water and ran over to Keith happily. “Bui, bui!”
“Buizel…I’m sorry I worried you so much,” Keith truthfully apologised.
“It’s because of him,” Alex smiled. “That Ryder and I made it this far. Thanks, Buizel.”
“Bui, bui!” Buizel said happily. Keith helped Alex stand back onto her feet, but her left ankle gave way and she toppled over again. Keith caught her in an instant, however.
“Hey, I’ve got an idea,” Keith began. He bent down and looked back at Alex. “Get onto my back. I’ll carry you.”
“Are you sure?” Alex asked; she was surprised at Keith’s gesture. Keith smiled and nodded.
“I’m not letting you walk out of here alone, not after what Heath did to you,” he explained. “I’ll carry you back to the Union.” Accepting his offer, Alex placed her hands on Keith’s shoulders. He stood up, ensuring Alex was secure on his back. He – with Alex now riding on his back – Buizel and Ryder left the temple.

Later, at the Union…

“And that’s what happened,” Keith concluded. He, Ryder, Buizel and Alex – who is still on Keith’s back – are facing Professor Hastings and Chairperson Erma in the Operations Room.
“I see. So Team Dim Sun has the Yellow Gem now,” Hastings stated bluntly.
“And it’s because of me,” Alex sighed. “I tried to get Keith back safely without giving up the gem, but…”
“You clearly messed it up,” Hastings said rudely. Ryder snarled at him angrily.
“Professor, please don’t be so mean,” Erma began. “She tried her hardest, despite how she got hurt beforehand.”
I know; whose idea was it to put large cannons that shoot out large sand balls in a room where there is very little walking space?! Ryder fumed.
“He’s right, though; I screwed up,” Alex said sadly. “I knew I was already hurt from the sand balls, but all I could think about was getting Keith back…”
“But no matter which way succeeded, Keith is safe,” Erma continued. “That is what matters here, dear.”
“Still, Alex, you should not have put yourself at risk,” Hastings reprimand. “Having one Ranger in danger was bad enough, the last thing we need is a second one in trouble.”
“Take it easy on her!” Keith exclaimed defensively. “She fought very hard for me, and I’m grateful for her efforts!”
“I’m sure. However, they have gone to waste, since the Yellow Gem has fallen into Dim Sun’s hands,” Hastings lectured.
“Screw that stupid gem, we can get it back later!” Keith scolded furiously. Erma, Hastings, Alex, Buizel, Ryder, Rhythmi, Linda and Marcus all faced him in shock. “If you say that me being safe is what matters, then Alex being safe should matter too! Don’t patronise her because of something she hadn’t anticipated!”
“You’re right, I’m sorry,” Hastings sighed. “No worries; we’ll create a new plan of action accordingly.”
“In the meantime, Keith, I want you to look after Alexa,” Erma requested. “Of course, I don’t believe I need to tell you that.”

To be continued…