Chapter 4 - Possession

" YEEHAH!!" Ash cried with delight as he felt the wind rip under his coat. Tired of waiting, the majority of them (everyone but team rocket) had decided to mount the water Pokemon they had and take off across the lake. Ash had a running leap off the (not too) high cliff, enjoying the momentary feeling of weightlessness before Shadowcat’s strong talons raked foreword and grasped him under the arms. He and Ember were the only ones not getting wet. Misty and Brock cheered too, clinging to Staryu and Starmie and they fell towards the water. Tidal carried Inferno and a screaming Meouth, while Squirtle had Pikachu, and Goldeen ferried Jessie and James. Aya was the only one going solo, which surprised Ash because he knew that Riachu were electric. But he guessed it was different for crystal Pokemon. She bolted through the water like a dolphin, sometimes leaping up and diving down deep. From the air, Ash could see the looks of delight on his friends faces as they raced through the glass-clear water, Misty in the lead on Starmie with Brock not far behind.

"Tell me when it’s over!!!" James howled, shutting his eyes and clinging to Goldeen.

" Are you kidding? This is great!" Brock said, riding Staryu like a surfboard over a large wave.

" Look!!" Misty pointed, starry-eyed. From the hill of water all could see the large, lush island getting closer. Suddenly, something sprayed a curtain of water onto her.

" Hey!!"

Looking down, she saw Tidal streaming through the water as fast as she, with Inferno taunting her and Meouth hanging on for dear life.

" You don’t think you’re the only water expert around here, do you?"

Tidal said, " Watch this!"

Picking up great speed he shot through the current, leaving them in his dust. At the top of another bend,

" Everyone, jump as high as you can!!!" Aya commanded.

Squirtle, Staryu, Starmie, and Goldeen obeyed, leaping into the air. As they came back down, they collided without warning flat-faced with level ground. The light fog that was blocking their view before dissipated as Misty looked into the snickering faces of Tidal and Inferno.

" Brilliant three-point landing." Inferno joked.

" Hey! That’s my line!" Meouth complained.

" Shut up, the both of you." Aya interjected, brushing off her coat and shaking her head dry.

" Thanks for breaking my fall." Brock said to Staryu, having taken the full force of the collision face-first.

Staryu just made noises.

Jessie and James got up and brushed themselves off.

" So, where are we now?" Jessie queried with her hands on her hips.

" And how come there’s no beach?" James intellectually put, looking off the five-foot ledge holding them above the water.

" This is the mainland. This is where everyone lives and crystal Pokemon thrive." Came Ember’s voice from above as Shadowcat carried her and Ash down to the earth.

" This island used to float above the water, so there was never a natural beach." She continued.

Everyone stared for a moment before there was a group " Oooh.." of realization. Shadowcat looked to Aya, who shrugged.

***

Meanwhile, in the main village, there was a rather exotic looking Pokemon center, that looked more to be a two-story house than an actual pokecenter. On the large front porch, which was constructed almost entirely of bamboo, there was a hammock that swung slowly in the gentle spring breeze. There sat a beautiful young woman, around the age of fourteen, with long brown hair that cascaded down her back. She had shining hazel eyes that spoke of kindness and the joy of being alive. In her lap was a cute monkey-like Crystal Pokemon, which strongly resembled a Golden Lion Tamerin. It sat quietly purring as she stroked its head, enjoying one of their many undisturbed afternoons together. It scurried up onto her shoulders, which were bare from the shirt she was wearing, and nuzzled her gently. She laughed softly.

" Why thank you Lucifer, I love you too."

" Luuuucifer" It cooed.

Suddenly, the world she saw began to flash, and the terrible feeling of something gripping her conscious mind struck her. Moaning, she keeled over and clutched her head, the pain fearfully familiar.

" No! Not again, get out of my head!!! NO!!" She cried.

" Cifer?" The monkey asked with concern it its voice. She looked up at him, strands of hair falling into her face.

" Run Lucifer, run!! He’s coming again!!!" She yelled. Lucifer’s eyes grew wide in understanding and he ran up a bamboo pole and onto the roof.

She heard the heart-stopping hiss in her mind.

" Feliicciaaa…. Come to me..."

" NO!! Please!! Leave me alone!!"

" Come…"

As the voice commanded her again, her pain increased to an unbearable level. Still holding her head she stumbled into the door of the building, then collapsed onto the floor. The door shut, the blinds drew, and the lights dimmed all on their own as an explosion of flame erupted in her living room.

Felicia managed to raise her head enough to see where she was going as she backed into a corner. She knew it was coming for her, and she was going to have to kill again. The dozens of people she had slaughtered while under his control was almost unbearable to her sanity, yet she managed to live what little free life she had. Shutting her eyes, she wrapped her arms around herself as she heard the clack of the beast’s claws on the wood of the floor. She heard the husky breathing and devilish laughter of it as it approached her, and touched its talon to her cheek. She jumped at its touch.

" Aww, what’s the matter Felicia? You’re not in any pain are you? You still feel me inside your mind after all these years?"

She looked up into the fake concerned face of the red Himalya Pokemon she hated so dearly. His eyes wreathed with flame and the hot saliva from his teeth dripped onto her shoulders. The tears began rolling down her cheeks.

"P…please...just go…don’t make have to…have to hurt anyone!!"

She stammered through her sobs. He smiled at her condition and wrapped his tail around her ankle. With a small tug he had her hanging upside down in front of him.

" You mean you don’t like running errands for me? It’s quite a privilege for a girl your age…yes…a stunning girl like you…"

Her eyes grew wide as she saw him look at her vulnerable young body and lick his chops with his long black tongue.

" Please…for God’s sake…can’t you find someone else? I’ve done your dirty work for seven years! Please just leave me alone…"

Her tears ran out of the corners of her eyes.

" Sorry Felicia...It’s a lifetime position. You’ll be doing what you were doing three years ago when you’re thirty!"

Three years. That had been when the worst of it had started, when he began to see the small eleven year old orphan as his plaything…his toy. When he had started to…to…the very thought of it tore her apart. How he had ruined her life.

" Now…" He continued, eyeing her with eyes full of cruel possibility.

" You’re a smart girl…so you can have a choice. You can allow me to turn you into the faithful servant you are every time I call upon you…or I can properly motivate you."

She decided it would be better to be possessed than tortured.

" Alright…I’ll do what you say..." She said softly.

"Good." He said, throwing her violently to the ground. She raised herself to her hands and knees and looked at the creature she was to call her master through a curtain of hair. He reached out a talon.

" On the other hand…you don’t seem too have the same spunk as you did…I think you need a reminder…"

Felicia shut her eyes as the dragon laid his claws upon her…

***

" So… where are we going?" Misty asked as the group followed Aya and Shadowcat into the square of the small village.

Aya looked around, frustrated, with her hands on her hips.

" Great. You leave town for a decade and they change everything."

Inferno snickered.

" Well, what about this?" Ash asked, pointing to a sign. It read, ‘ Tangent Pass. Route 1, north to Opal Island Bridge. Route two, west to Indigo Village and Pokemon Center. Route three….’

" Looks like we go west." Jessie deciphered. Tidal, still wrapped in Misty’s arms, crossed his eyes and remarked, "Duh..."

Ember and Misty giggled.

(Later…)

It took about an hour, but soon they stood defiantly on a hill overlooking a beautiful exotic village. There were several large buildings of different shapes and sizes, a large two-story Pokemon center with a veranda, a large covered porch and balconies, and a separate street lined with stores. All surrounded an open center square.

" Wow! What a town!" Brock exclaimed.

" Who knew such a bustling little place exited in the middle of nowhere." Ash commented.

There was a rustling in the grass.

" What was that?" James said.

Something large and black leapt from the grass and shouted… "KanKRReeee!!!!"

"AAHH!! Wild crystal Pokemon!!" Misty cried.

" Everybody run for it!" Inferno shouted.

And they all took off down the hill. But on the dark porch of the Pokecenter, two figures stood.

" There they are. You know what to do." One said.

" Yes…" The other laughed. " This will be fun…"

To be continued….