Pokemon Fan Fiction ❯ Before the Journey ❯ Chapter 0.3: One Thing ( Chapter 4 )

Chapter 0.3: One Thing

 

 

 

You would think creating a life form would be easy, hell! Agni created his from the mud that flew up from his feet. THE MUD FROM HIS FEET!! Yet here I am, Bright Brother having slept ­five times since the one called “Father” left us on Sister Earth and I'm no closer to meeting his wishes then when he first left. He's sure to return at any time.

 

All my siblings have long since made their children and are now content to show their children the wonders of Sister Earth while I still struggle to come up with some idea for my children. Under the branches of that which my sister Asiza has dubbed an “Oak,” I gaze out to the horizon, trying to find a solution to my dilemma. From here, I can hear the joyful cries of my sibling's creations from a distance. Bronte had forbidden me from going near the children till I have my own, which also meant I couldn't help with the naming process that they've begun. Everything, plants, rocks, bodies of water, even each other! It was they who dubbed he who made us `Father.' If I didn't create my children soon, there would be nothing left for them to name!

 

“Stupid Bronte, bet some of those lightening bolts are shoved up his-“

 

A soft laugh made my rant stop short as I cast my gaze up into the branches of the Oak. Only one of my siblings would dare to approach me without fear of the others' wrath.

 

“I wouldn't finish that sentence, if I were you.”

 

I finally spotted my sister, her bright sky eyes shining with laughter. She easily untwined herself from the branches she had been hiding in, floating down beside me, her fragile wings fluttering behind her. Her skin was the same paleness as Little Sister who circled the Earth when the sky was sleeping, her hair long and wispy like the finest strands of cream grass, tipped olive at the end. Her thin pair of wings on her back shimmered in a way that reminded me of Bright Brother's rays on the water, clear and majestic but shining silver when the light struck it right. She was as delicate as her wings and I was envious of her. Oh, not bitter jealous or anything, just… I wish…

 

“I came to check up on you.” Had I not known her better I would have assumed, by the breathlessness of her voice, that she had exhorted a great deal of effort to come see me. Typically, that was not the case. Her voice was always quiet, never rising beyond a whisper, forcing those near her to lean a little closer so her words might chance to drift into their ears.

 

“Bronte will get mad, Asiza.” My voice, on the other hand, was coarse like the bark against my back. It came out as a rumble, like when Bronte made lights in the sky flash or Agni made the ground shake, often times sounding deeper than the caverns and crevices of Sister Earth's face. Was it my voice they found to be so—

 

“You're not afraid of Bronte.” There was a pause as she landed, my sister's wings moving up once before hanging against her back, resting as the leaves of the trees do. “So, why should I?”

 

I couldn't stop the half cough-half bitter laugh that forced its way past my peeling lips. “Bronte,” I responded, trying to get her to understand without further alienating myself from my family, “doesn't exactly get along with me.”

 

`He hates me' is what I really wanted to say but that would only lead Asiza protesting and insisting that was not the case, that I was imagining things, and that all I really needed to do was create my children so peace and order and happiness and all the good an' fluffy things would dance along and… well, you can get the picture, right?

 

Of course, that was not the case but Asiza just couldn't see it that way. Perhaps that's the way Father made her, to see the good more than the bad… or to not see the truth when it's there before your face. Maybe that's why she still sought me out while the others shunned me. Who knows?

 

She `hmmed' at my answer and sat down beside me, mimicking my position of having my knees up against my chest and my arms wrapped tightly around them. I was waiting for her to ask, as the others did, if I had any ideas for my children yet or if I was simply ignorant. The fur along my shoulders (another fault! My body is covered with fur!) rose slightly as I tried to think of a response to the question she had not asked. Did I have any ideas? Well, yes. More than anything, I would love for my children to be made from the rays of my Bright Brother. He warms me, fills me, and gives unconditionally to all his little Brother Lights and Sister Orbs. I want to have children who remind others to be thankful for our Bright Brother in the sky… but I have no way of doing so. Brother's rays are elusive and insurmountable, they have little essence for me to work with. I think if I added something else, something more…solid, I might be able to pull it off. Yet, I have found nothing of suitable substance that could be used to capture some of Bright Brother's rays and combine both to form my children.

 

“Don't worry too much, Sister. I'm sure that your children will be wonderful!”

 

Her cheerful remark cut through my thoughts and I had to work hastily to retrieve them. Patiently, reminding myself that she was the only sibling who would speak to me, I bit back a low growl of annoyance.

 

“You should be playing with your children, not sitting here with me.” I pushed off against the ground with a hand, narrowing my eyes when they landed on the black claws I had for nails.

 

“Bronte won't—“

 

“Bronte won't what?” a new voice inquired.

 

The fur along my spine tingled and went on end, nose flaring I wonder how I hadn't caught his scent earlier. Or heard him. (Father knows, with ears as big as mine, I should have.)

 

Standing off to the side was my “Brother.” One of them, anyway. This one had taken the name Hadi and was from the same batch as my Sister Asiza and I. He had shown me no ill will but neither had he protected me from the others.

 

“Nothing.” I flashed my teeth at him, sharp teeth that, once again, fell short when compared to Asiza's beautiful, smooth teeth.

 

His ears flicked forward from atop his head (much like my own, save his fur was pink and mine was transparent to the point of white) as he walked forward, eyes the same blue as Asiza's staring hard at mine. Damned if I looked away first!

 

When his gaze finally wandered, it focused on Asiza. “Come now, Sister. We need to leave her to create her children.”

 

“Yes, Hadi.” Her wings lifted and beat so fast I could only see a blur. Rising, she leaned over to plant a kiss on my cheek before zipping away with a laugh. Hadi remained for a moment longer than necessary (casting me a “look”) before slowly giving a leap and taking to the air in flight. Merciful Father! Why could I not fly?

 

“That is neither here nor there,” I scolded to myself. “Father made me how I am for some purpose, surely.” I paused, trying to ponder on what that reason might be but, since I'd not been enlightened so far, I figured that particular wisdom would not be forth coming. At any rate, I decided to head for quieter grounds. With luck, I could avoid my other siblings, especially Bronte.

 

 

 

=^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^=

 

 

 

“What am I going to do?”

 

My wanderings had led me to a forest with trees that reached their branches toward Brother Sun, worshiping him as I. Touching my hand along the bark of the trees as I went, they pulsed softly with Sister Earth's life and song, adding their own harmonies.

 

But none could offer me advice.

 

Turning my eyes upward, I gazed steadily at my Brother, unblinking. It was something only I could do, though I can't find the reasoning behind it. It might have to do with my siblings' eyes. They were all such light colors while mine were darker than night itself, no pupils visible within my eyes. Why? What purpose did it serve? What purpose did I serve?

 

“Lost in thought, are we?”

 

My hands curled, nails ready. Alert, my ears pricked up and around. There was a sharp “crack!” above me and without looking I dove to the right, a large branch just brushing the tip of my right tail, the left one unscathed from the unexpected attack.

 

“Must you be so destructive, Bronte?” I called back, turning my gaze upward to where my brother perched. Rather than answer me, he pointed a taloned finger at me. Fur bristling, I dodged again, the bolt of lighting he shot crashing into a rock behind me, shattering it on impact.

 

“This one is displeased, sister.” His words were said slowly, his eyes never leaving my form. “You were to have your children done.” He gave a slight glance to the area around me. “This one sees none.” He brought his hand in front of him, small tendrils of lightening playing harmlessly over his skin and feathers, gathering in his palm. “Why might this be?”

 

“Because it's fun pissing you off?” My lip curled, showing off my fangs, making my displeasure at his arrival clear.

 

Lightening spilled from his hand like water, the droplets sparking as they hit anything in their path. Instantly the harmony was interrupted by notes of discord, the lightening burning its way through fragile leaves, smoldering the branches and charring bark.

 

“Stop it!” Pieces of ash floated down. “Bronte! Stop!”

 

He held the lightening still in his hand, the mass wriggling and snapping at the air around it. “Well, sister?”

 

“Brother Sun still burns!”

 

“Brother Sun?” His beak was pursed together, the only sign of his disapproval as he cast his gaze in the general direction of Brother Sun. “Yes… it still burns. What of this?”

 

“You said I had until the end of today, Bronte!”

 

He seemed to contemplate my words, the lightening moving along his body, starting at his feathers (feathers which coated both his wings, shoulders, and bellow the waist) and moving its way along his chest and arms where there was only bronze skin. It hovered over the black markings on his chest, designs that Agni assured me meant that Bronte was to be our leader. The fact that Agni was hurling fireballs at me for my “insolence” was something I liked to forget about.

 

“This one might have said that,” Bronte reluctantly announced, turning his sharp gaze back on me. “Do not disappoint this one.” He crushed his fist, the lightening cracking outward as he pushed off from the branch, his jagged wings cutting through the air, propelling him back to where he'd come from.

 

“Wonderful… This day couldn't possibly get better…”

 

I ran from the forest, not out of fear of Bronte but out of a desire to escape. Did he not think I had tried to create my children? Did he truly think I was out to spite him and the others? Why should he care whether or not my children were created? Wouldn't it just be one more flaw he could report to Father about?

 

“This one is displeased with that one's performance,” I muttered under my breath, mimicking Bronte's tone. “This one thinks that we should zap her with lightening, let this one assist.” A growl rose in my throat as I jumped, taking to the air. Landing on a branch, I used it to spring to the next, my hair whipping in the wind as I went.

 

I might not be able to fly but this was close.

 

 

 

=^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^=

 

 

 

My run did little to improve my situation. I still had no idea on how to create my children and now had wasted precious Brother's light to vent my frustration on Bronte. On the plus side of things, I had now perfected his voice down to the littlest inflection (which was all there was, a little inflection).

 

I'd paused my excursion at a river, the water's peaceful melody soothing as it splashed on its long journey towards the sea. Desperate for a moments reprieve of Bronte and my child-less state, I moved to the bank and closed my eyes, the song suddenly so much deeper.

 

Really, if only my siblings would take the time to listen… I think they could hear…

 

[Maybe they don't want to hear.]

 

The fur on my shoulders bristled and my eyes flew open, fangs baring and claws ready to attack. Yet while I heard a voice, I could see no one.

 

[I can hear] the voice continued on, tones soft in the back of my mind.

 

“Who are you?” I spun on my heels, still ready to attack but finding no one. This voice was unfamiliar, maybe one of the children?

 

No. Something in the air was wrong.

 

[I don't have a name] The voice seemed almost pained to share that information, regretful. [Just as you don't have children]

 

Shoulders trembling, snarling at whatever it was that would taunt me within my skull, I tried to locate the source by smell but nothing came to my nose but water and dirt. There was nothing there…

 

[Let's trade]

 

“Trade?”

 

[If you give me a name, I'll give you advice]

 

“Advice?” My ears swiveled, contemplating the wisdom in taking advice from something I could see… but the alternative was facing Bronte. “What advice?”

 

[I've seen you] This time the voice seemed to hold a smile to it. [You keep trying to make children from the sunlight]

 

“So?!”

 

[The problem is that sunlight has no form, you need to trap the sunlight in something]

 

It definitely had my interest now. “Like what?”

 

A column of water shot up from the river, tossing something up towards me. I didn't even look as I caught it, the object still wet from the river. As it dripped in my hands, I examined it.

 

“A rock?”

 

[Not just a rock] Rather than sound belittling, the voice explained itself. [It's a crystal. Notice how it's much shinier than most rocks? How clear it is? You should harness the light from the sun and re-direct it into the crystal]

 

It seemed too easy. “That'll work?”

 

[It should… I've never created anything before but I think it'll work. What do you have to lose?]

 

I squinted at the gem, biting my lip with my fang. What the voice said was true… I really did have nothing to lose by at least trying, right? So… just take a deep breath and…

 

Holding the gem upward, Brother Sun's rays caused it to gleam blue as the light cascaded off the object. Furrowing my brows, I focused on the rays, willing them to enter the gem. They struggled, protesting the idea of being confined. Slowly, coaxing it, I got the light to enter, the gem suddenly glowing a brighter indigo color before shifting and growing in my hand. I was so shocked I dropped it, the mass wriggling and taking on a shape right before my eyes.

 

The head and arms I took notice of right away, the torso much like mine though lacking in fur. It had two legs and grew to just a few inches taller than myself. The blue glow around it slowly faded but its skin remained a pale blue, like the sky on a clear day. The most puzzling thing I could find was that rather than having fur or hair atop its head it seemed to have tendrils of a serpentine nature. The tendrils rested docile, stretching down to my child's waist as she slowly opened her eyes and took her first breath of air.

 

My heart was tight in my chest, I could feel wetness forming in my eyes as the voice whispered softly inside my head.

 

[So that is what it's like… to create something]

 

 

 

=^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^=

 

 

 

My first child helped me to gather more of the crystals from the river. With each child I created, the easier it became to coax light into the stones. Not all of my children looked the same either. It seemed that different crystals, when infused with light, took on different forms and shapes. Two stones from the river produced tauro type beings similar to Agni, Huyana, and Taima, with their four legs (though my children had “hoofs” rather than paws). Another funny green stone produced a child with leaves for hair and a tail made of spines like the Pine trees of the forest, then there was yet another child who was gifted with wings, though he seemed to prefer the water to the air. In fact, most of my children (save a few born of green stones) seemed more interested in being near the water than exploring the rest of the land.

 

[It's because the water was their home] the voice kindly explained.

 

“And the green children?”

 

[The river cuts through the land and unearths many things]

 

“So if I get different crystals from different places…”

 

[You will have many different children] the voice agreed.

 

“Thank you.” It seemed silly but I felt the urge to express my gratitude to the voice for all it had done. I may have eventually found the crystals myself but it would have taken me longer than today to have done so.

 

[You don't need to give me thanks, just a name]

 

I'd been thinking on its request while making my children. So far, I hadn't had much luck in selecting a name for the voice. This was, of course, made more difficult by the fact that I knew very little about the voice itself.

 

“I'm trying.” There may have been a little whine in my voice. I didn't want the voice to think me ungrateful but how could you name something you couldn't see? Knew nothing of?

 

[Take your time] it soothed. [I'm sure you will find a good one for me]

 

That was the other weird thing I'd found about the voice. It was… nice. Every time I thought it would smack me down or tear at me for being so stupid, it just told me to relax and take my time with things.

 

Turning my attention at my children, the blue stone children splashing in the water and the green playing on the shore, I then looked outward towards a mountain in the far distance.

 

[You'll go there next?]

 

“There might be some crystals there, I'd like to find as many stones as I can.”

 

[I see] The voice fell silent and I felt panicked, worried it had left.

 

“Won't you come with me?”

 

[I can't] There seemed to be a smile in its words but it was laced with a small thread of sadness. [I have to stay here for now]

 

“Oh…” My ears lowered a little.

 

[Go. I will watch over your children till your return. Do not worry]

 

I was reluctant to leave my children with an unseen caretaker but there was nothing on Sister Earth that could hurt them and the voice had helped in creating them.

 

[Go on] The voice gave a little nudge. [The sun will be setting soon.]

 

“I'll be back with your name.” It was the least I could do, after it'd helped me out so much.

 

The voice lightly laughed in my head, making me smile for an unfathomable reason. [I'll be waiting]

 

 

 

=^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^= =^-*-^=

 

 

 

The mountains revealed red crystals and, when infused with light, gave birth to beings most comfortable around fire. One of the red stone children had hair of flames and yet another had webbed hands that it used to swim in the lava, its skin impervious to the heat. Excited by my success, I sent my new children to meet up with the blue and green stone children, hastening to find what other stones I could.

 

While also in the mountain, I came upon some gray crystals. It was harder to force the light into these but my children were marvelous! One's body was completely formed of crystal, able to reshape itself at will! Yet another was composed completely of tiny orbs that would project its shape. They too, were sent to join their siblings as I left the mountain and headed for the forest.

 

Now that I knew what to look for, I could “call” to the stones, listen for their songs. Green crystals were swiftest to answer, their song one I already knew. In my exploration I also found crystals of yellow, the children from those sparking and shimmering with electric, hidden in random spots (in fact, the stone that Bronte had shattered with his lightening had birthed a child with wings too). But the best stones I found, by far, were completely clear ones. Where as the gray stones resisted the light, the clear ones sucked it up faster than I could put it in. These children glowed with Brother Sun's rays, shining even through their skin.

 

My chest was swelling with pride at my beautiful children, children who were all so diverse but sill created from Brother Sun's rays, just as I had intended. I was so joyous I almost missed the quiet song calling out to me, urgently. Ears pricking, I followed the song, it swelling at random intervals, as though worried I would leave. The object I found, the thing that made the song, was strange, to be sure. I'd called out for crystals but this…

 

I turned the object over, examining it, the song having stilled once I touched it, as though it was holding its breath. It almost looked like a scale from one of Sister Bibi's beings… if that was so, how could it hold its own song?

 

“Do you want life too?” I held the object to the air, the sunlight shimmering off of it rather than shining through it as the crystals' light had. I didn't know if I could force light into something like this… I'd never tried but… it seemed to be willing. Why else would it have called?

 

Taking a breath, my eyes closed, drawing my focus in. I felt the rays bouncing off of the reflective surface of the scale, rejecting it, but I kept tightening my focus and my will around the light and soon found a way to do it. Gathering as much light as I could I pushed as hard as I could, shoving the light into the tiny particles that composed the scale.

 

I was flung back, the force sending me crashing into one of the trees. It was only sheer luck that the trunk held instead of breaking under the impact, unlike my spine. I could feel several breaks along my spinal cord as my body slid to the forest floor, unable to move it. I had to remain still for several minutes, the inside of my body working on repairing the worst of it, bones realigning and muscle knitting around the fragments of broken bone, reabsorbing it into my body. You can rest assured that the process was not as pleasant as I'm making it seem and, as it was, I had to fight to keep from screaming.

 

“I beg your forgiveness, Mother.”

 

I lifted my head (mouth clenched so tightly to keep scream in that my teeth ached) to look up at my child, rather surprised to find her kneeling before me, her head bowed in submission.

 

“It was never my intent to harm you, Mother, please forgive me.”

 

I closed my eyes, trying to steady myself as I ground out, “I'm fine. Don't worry about it.” Pressing my hand against the tree, I leaned against the trunk, working my way up, the sharp pain soon fading to a dull throb before almost entirely disappearing.

 

I took a moment to examine this child of mine, born from Brother Sun's rays and unknown origins. Two horns curved round her head, the color matching my pale fur. She, as I, had claws rather than nails and even sported a tail, one with three clawed fingers at the end of it. A pair of wings cloaked her body, her ebony hair shielding her face, her gray skin the same color as the scale I'd used. I moved towards her bending to tilt her face up to mine.

 

She had a crystal imbedded in her forehead.

 

That shocked me. None of my other children bore a stone upon their forehead as I did. Yet this one… her stone was not round, nor red, as mine was. Rather, it was clear and diamond in shape, protruding with harsh angles. I moved a finger to touch it, almost certain it would cut my skin and surprised when it didn't.

 

“Mother?”

 

Her golden eyes, eyes that nervously stared at me, had slit pupils like mine as well.

 

“Sharma,” I whispered the name, uncertain where I drew it from but knowing the name was hers.

 

Just as I knew the name I'd selected for the Unnamed One.