HOME | DD

Description
The Path of Destiny

Chapter Nine - Trapped

Wildflame was confused. She had tracked Snowcrystal’s scent to the base of one of the large cliffs, and the trail led to a rocky path to her right which in turn led to a combee hive. Stepping back, Wildflame walked away from the cliff’s base, muttering, “Blazefang can yell at me all he wants, but I’m not going in there.”

Unsure of what to do, she decided to wait a while, not wanting to face the wrath of Blazefang and the rest of the pack just yet. If the growlithe and her friends didn’t come out of the hive after a while, she decided, she could just assume they were dead…

-ooo-

Snowcrystal knew they wouldn’t have much time. They needed to get out before the combee blocked off all of the tunnel’s exits. “This way,” she whispered, heading off into another tunnel leading to their left. Rosie followed quickly, sure that she could hear the combee coming closer. The two of them vanished into the tunnel, not realizing that Thunder wasn’t following.

“Where are we supposed to be going?” Rosie growled as they moved further through the passage, giving Snowcrystal a glare. “You don’t have a clue, do you? We could be heading back to that big room where all those combee are and you wouldn’t even know!”

“I’m trying, all right?” Snowcrystal replied, resisting the urge to point out that Rosie didn’t have a clue as to where they were headed either.

Suddenly Rosie gave a shriek and halted, causing Snowcrystal to stop as well. Up ahead, about a dozen combee had entered the tunnel and were now facing them. “Back the other way…” Rosie whispered, turning around.

“Come on, Rosie!” Snowcrystal shouted. “They aren’t strong in small numbers.” Not bothering to even check if Rosie had heard, Snowcrystal leaped at the nearest of the combee, knocking it out of the air and sending it crashing to the cave floor before sinking her teeth into its wing. Feeling a strong blast of air shoot by her, Snowcrystal jumped out of the way and fired an ember at the remaining combee before darting past them and through the tunnel. The sound of Rosie’s pawsteps behind her told her that the vulpix had managed to make it past the combee group too. However, the angry pokémon were still following them.

Snowcrystal cast a fleeting glance behind her, only to run straight into Spark, who was fleeing from a different tunnel. Rosie, unable to stop in time, crashed into Snowcrystal. The three of them fell to the ground in a tangle of paws and tails. It took Snowcrystal a moment to realize who she had run into.

“Spark!” she gasped. “We’ve got to go now, there’s a group of combee coming straight for us!”

“Well there’s about fifty of them coming here from that way,” Spark replied, pointing his muzzle toward the tunnel he had been running from. “I’d say your way’s better, let’s go!”

The combee that had been chasing Rosie and Snowcrystal were surprised to see the two pokémon running back that way with yet another intruder, but a thunderbolt from Spark stunned them long enough for the three to get past. “Which way now?” Spark asked.

“I don’t know! Any way! Uh…let’s try this way!” Snowcrystal cried, darting into yet another of the labyrinth-like tunnels.

-ooo-

Thunder was now making her way through the tunnels on her own. The fact that Rosie and Snowcrystal had left her behind barely registered to her. She wanted to get out of the hive, and her traveling companions were of little, if any, concern to her.

The scyther’s feet made a loud splash as she entered into a wider tunnel half-flooded with water. The water was trickling down the walls of the cave and from the ceiling, making every rocky surface slippery. There was a deeper pool up ahead and Thunder paused next to it to take a much-needed drink of water.

A lone combee flying toward the hive on its own happened to come by, staring in shock at the dark form of the scyther lapping at the water from the pool in the middle of the tunnel. The news of intruders had not yet reached this combee, and for a moment he only stared in surprise. But that moment didn’t last long. “What are you doing here?” the combee cried, and Thunder turned her head in his direction.

To the lone combee’s shock, the scyther didn’t reply, didn’t even look surprised to see him there. The smaller bug pokémon had no time to react as the scyther leaped toward him, slashing her blades across the small pokémon’s body. The combee fell to the ground, unconscious, and Thunder ignored it, simply walking through the water and into the next cavern.

-ooo-

Snowcrystal, Rosie and Spark could hear more combee coming their way. Ultimately, they realized, there would be no escaping them, as there were simply too many, and the exits were blocked. Spark peered through a small hole in the cave wall next to him and sighed. “They’re everywhere…” he whispered. “And I can’t run much longer…” Looking toward the others, he could see that Rosie was exhausted as well, though Snowcrystal didn’t look as tired.

“We must keep going,” the growlithe whispered. “I’m used to running long distances and I know you aren’t, but we have to-”

“Stop!” a voice called from behind, and Snowcrystal reluctantly turned to see a huge group of combee hovering directly behind them. Another equally large group arrived immediately after from up ahead, and the combee formed a wide circle around the group, surrounding them completely.

Spark growled, his fur sharpening into spines as he readied an electric attack. The jolteon lowered himself into a crouching position, his eyes on the nearest wall of combee.

“Don’t…” Snowcrystal whispered. “We could never fight this many. If they attack back we’re done for!”

At her words, Spark reluctantly nodded, but his fur didn’t lie down flat. Rosie shuffled closer to him, her eyes wide.

The group of combee knew they had caught most of the intruders at last. One of them, obviously the one in charge of the first large group, glared down at the three travelers and called, “You must come with us. Attack, and you’ll regret it.”

The three friends were soon led by the combee toward what Snowcrystal was certain was the big cavern, knowing that if they fought back, they could easily end up dead.

-ooo-

Stormblade had to admit that this was just about the oddest situation he’d ever been in, and likely one of the most dangerous. The combee surrounding the vespiquen looked a lot more angry than the ones he’d seen before. Stormblade stood frozen to the spot as the vespiquen came closer, the eyes of the combee around her glowing slightly. He leapt away from the pool of honey as all at once, the combee fired some bizarre-looking white beam of light at him. Stormblade landed near the wall of the cavern, unscathed, only to have the combee surround him again. The attack they’d just used, he supposed, was probably something the vespiquen had made them do, not an attack they could use normally.

Almost as soon as he landed, the combee fired the attack once again, and he quickly darted out of the way and headed toward the cavern’s exit. However, before he’d gotten far, several of the combee’s attacks hit him at once, sending him crashing into the ground.

-ooo-

Thunder had found her way blocked by a swarm of the angry combee. However, rather than running from the pokémon, she charged straight towards them, instantly taking out quite a few with her dangerous scythes. The combee, realizing the danger, swerved out of the way to avoid the whirlwind of slashing blades as Thunder darted by. Seconds later the swarm regrouped and headed toward the scyther, who leaped back and slashed viciously at any who happened to come too close.

The combee seemed momentarily taken aback by Thunder’s ferocity, and they weren’t sure of what to do. It didn’t take them long to decide, and soon Thunder was faced by attacks from all sides. Ignoring the odd beams of white light flying toward her from all directions, Thunder focused on causing as much damage as possible to individuals of the swarm.

Suddenly a shout from a nearby cavern interrupted the battle. Thunder noted with interest that the shout had come from Stormblade. More out of curiosity than anything, Thunder ran toward the tunnel where the shout had come from, ignoring the confused and angry group of combee behind her. A moment later, the scyther had emerged into the vespiquen’s wrecked chamber.

One of the combee looked up from where Stormblade lay and toward Thunder, muttering in a shocked voice, “There’s another scyther?”

Thunder stared at the large group of combee who seemed to have forgotten about Stormblade for a moment. Stormblade, seizing his chance, got and up and flew out of the cavern’s entrance, glancing back toward Thunder as if to try and tell her to follow. However, Thunder stood completely still, her gaze fully concentrated on the vespiquen that stood at the other end of the cavern. Without giving any warning she charged toward the larger bug pokémon, scythes raised. The combee didn’t matter to her anymore; this was their leader.

-ooo-

Stormblade realized all too late that he had accidentally flown into the main cavern. Stopping for a moment, he tried to figure out what path was least likely to get him killed. The combee working in the hive all looked up, and the moment they spotted another, quite different flying bug pokémon within their hive, they abandoned their tasks and flew after the scyther.

Stormblade tried to head toward the nearest exit while attempting to dodge multiple attacks, but the combee far outnumbered him, and several attacks at once finally brought him down.

-ooo-

Thunder ignored the combee swarm as she sprinted toward the vespiquen at the far end of the chamber, leaping up when she was near enough and preparing to strike. However, just as her scythe was but a few inches from the hive’s leader, several attacks from a group of combee shot toward her simultaneously and struck, knocking her down to land sprawling at the vespiquen’s feet. The vespiquen then looked down at Thunder, not seeming surprised in the least. The use of Attack Order had seemed to surprise the scyther, but she was quickly recovering.

Thunder herself was mildly shocked, especially at the way the vespiquen hadn’t even moved when she’d tried to attack her. Leaping to her feet, Thunder attempted to land another blow, but was yet again blasted back at the last moment by the Attack Order from the combee.

Thunder hissed as her head collided with the cavern wall. Lashing with her blades, she leaped up with a newfound rage. Then she charged, but this time, the combee not only fired their attacks at her, but also formed a wall in front of Vespiquen. Thunder was once again hurled against the ground, gazing in fury at the combee who surrounded their leader.

After the scyther managed to stagger to her feet, the combee fluttered away from Vespiquen, as if daring Thunder to attack again. She didn’t disappoint them. The combee watched with what was almost amusement as Thunder tried to attack the nearest of the combee, but they darted away too quickly for the injured scyther to attack. However, it was enough to keep them away from Vespiquen long enough for Thunder to aim another strike.

Thunder slashed her scythe at Vespiquen, who moved neatly to the side in the last instant. As the blade swung past her, Vespiquen gripped Thunder’s chain in her claws, stopping the motion of the blade. Keeping a tight grip on the chain, she swung it in a downward arc, bringing Thunder to the ground. Thunder shook specks of blood from her wounds as she got up and lashed at Vespiquen with both blades, but the leader had already anticipated this and flew swiftly out of the way. Thunder turned and flew after her opponent, attempting to attack yet again.

Once again, Vespiquen was too fast, and swerved behind Thunder, this time grabbing her metal collar and hurling her against a nearby stalagmite. Her eyes glinting dangerously, Vespiquen launched a power gem attack at the furious scyther, watching impassively as the attack found its mark, causing Thunder to shriek with rage.

The combees’ leader was mildly surprised when Thunder stood up yet again. The scyther’s breathing sounded rough and hoarse, and she was bleeding in the places where she had been wounded by her trainer, but Thunder seemed focused only on winning the fight, however hopeless it was. Raising her scythes, she prepared to continue the battle.

“Fool…” Vespiquen hissed. “You just don’t know when to give up…”

-ooo-

Snowcrystal, Rosie, and Spark sat at the base of a massive stone column, guarded by dozens of combee. They could only watch helplessly as Stormblade was led to the same place and made to sit at the base of the column. One of the combee flew up close to Snowcrystal, giving her a stern and angry glare. “You have stolen honey from our hive,” she began, “and you have destroyed one of our chambers and a supply of honey.” Spark and Snowcrystal glanced at each other in confusion, and Stormblade looked away, pretending to be closely studying the stalagmite column he was positioned next to. The combee continued, “Of course, it will need to be repaired. You will work in the tunnels for us for as long as it takes to repair it, and longer still, for your thievery. That, or you will be killed. Our leader will make the final decision.”

Spark gave a small snarl. “They want us to work as…slaves?” He whispered angrily to Snowcrystal.

“Let’s just hope they don’t decide to kill us,” Snowcrystal whispered back, before a strange noise from a cavern nearby interrupted her thoughts. It sounded almost like…a battle. “What…what was that?” she whispered, glancing in the direction of the sound.

-ooo-

Vespiquen slashed her claws dangerously close to Thunder’s eyes and face, narrowly avoiding the blow from a scythe that could have severed her wing. Thunder gave a cry of fury before slicing her blades at Vespiquen again, pure rage giving her strength despite her injuries. The combee were still staying out of the fight, though Thunder knew that if the battle happened to go her way, that would quickly change, and she would be outnumbered.

Dodging another power gem attack, Thunder tried to land a hit on her enemy with wing attack, and this time, Vespiquen couldn’t dodge fast enough. Thunder struck her across the face, pushing the other bug pokémon toward the tunnel that opened up to the main chamber. Thunder leaped toward Vespiquen for another wing attack, but her momentum caused both combatants to stumble out of Vespiquen’s chamber and onto a rock ledge in the large room.

Thunder managed to make several deep gashes in the vespiquen’s side and back before she was knocked backward toward the cliff of the ledge by another power gem attack. Leaping up as if nothing had happened, Thunder sprinted toward the wounded vespiquen again, before the combee had a chance to come to their leader’s aid.

-ooo-

Unintentionally, Thunder had created a distraction. Sensing that their leader was in danger, the combee guarding Snowcrystal, Stormblade, Rosie and Spark flew off, their captives momentarily forgotten.

“Let’s get out of here!” Rosie cried, running toward a nearby tunnel.

“No!” cried Stormblade. “We have to help Thunder! Those combee could kill her if we don’t do something!”

Snowcrystal glanced at the massive swarms of combee flying toward the ledge where Thunder and the vespiquen had appeared. She knew in an instant that Stormblade was right. With those numbers, they could likely bring Thunder down and kill her…and there didn’t seem to be anything they could do. Snowcrystal watched the combee with wide eyes. The largest group was almost to the ledge…

Then suddenly, all activity stopped. The combee had halted and were now simply hovering in midair. Wondering what was going on, Snowcrystal crept forward for a closer look. The combee didn’t even seem to notice her. She walked across a rock ledge near where the swarm was clustered and glanced up at the ledge by Vespiquen’s chamber, expecting to see Thunder already killed in the battle.

Instead, she saw something quite different. The combee’s leader was lying helplessly on the stone floor, and as Snowcrystal edged closer along her rock ledge, she could see that Thunder had her blade pressed against the vespiquen’s throat. The hive’s ruler kept completely still, knowing that if either she or the combee tried to attack, the scyther would kill her. “Thunder…” Snowcrystal whispered as quietly as she could, and though several combee turned to look at her, none of them moved. “Tell them to let us go free!”

Thunder didn’t reply, and simply turned to the defeated vespiquen. “Make the combee leave!” she growled.

Having no choice, Vespiquen called to the group of combee and ordered them to leave the chamber. Reluctantly they flew away, and though a few very loyal ones stayed put, unwilling to leave their beloved leader, they posed no threat to the five friends in such small numbers.

“Now can we leave this place in peace?” Thunder asked, and the vespiquen slowly nodded.

Snowcrystal wasn’t certain about Vespiquen’s reply. What if she ordered all the combee to attack once Thunder let her go? Most of the combee had left, but that did not mean the few that had stayed behind couldn’t go and retrieve them. Just as she was about to suggest to Thunder that she force the vespiquen to come with them until they left the hive, just to make sure, she noticed that the scyther had raised her other blade over the vespiquen’s neck, obviously preparing to strike.

“Wait!” Snowcrystal cried, not understanding why Thunder was acting this way. “Stop!”

However, her shout seemed to go unheard. Thunder’s scythe flashed downwards and though the combee flew towards Vespiquen, Snowcrystal knew they would be too late. The growlithe turned away, expecting to hear the awful sound of flesh being severed. However, the sound that met her ears an instant later was quite different, and sounded like a metallic clang. She looked up, surprised, but no one was more startled than Thunder when, instead of her scythe reaching the vespiquen’s throat, it was stopped by another.

Thunder glanced upward, finding herself staring straight into Stormblade’s eyes. “Stop,” he told her, pushing both her blades away from Vespiquen. “You can’t kill her.”

“Why not?” Thunder replied, staring back at him.

“She was going to let us go,” Stormblade replied, and pushed Thunder away, quickly standing between her and Vespiquen. “And after all, this was our fault to begin with. We were the ones who entered the hive and tried to steal honey. Besides, you won the fight. There was no reason to kill her.” Thunder glanced back at Vespiquen, who was now flying upright, but making no move to attack. “We can leave now,” Stormblade continued. “There’s no need for any more fighting.”

Thunder looked back at Stormblade, though this time not with anger. She seemed far more confused by his actions than angry.

Stormblade gently pushed Thunder toward the others, careful not to injure her further with his blades, whispering, “Go…Vespiquen will let us leave safely.” Thunder did not reply, nor did she try to argue or resist as the five travelers swiftly exited the cavern through a large tunnel.

Once their leader was surely out of danger, the remaining combee quickly flew to aid Vespiquen, no longer paying any attention to the travelers. Now that she wasn’t being chased by combee, Snowcrystal took a bit more time to find the right tunnel by scent, and followed her own scent back through the caves. They encountered no resistance. However, Snowcrystal knew that the brief ‘peace’ was only shock, and the combee would soon be over that, and then the bug pokémon swarm could very well just decide on getting revenge after all.

Upon reaching the cave entrance, the group quickly made their way down the rocky slope and into the fresh air. Once on safe ground, they raced away from the cliffs, stopping only when they were sure they weren’t close enough to be seen directly from the cave. They were unsure whether or not the combee would still want their payment for the stolen honey and the wrecked chamber. After a brief rest, they carried on, knowing they should be moving as far away as possible, just to be safe.

No one had spoken about the events that had taken place in the hive, namely Thunder’s battle with the vespiquen, and how close she had come to killing her. Stormblade knew there had to be a reason for Thunder’s behavior, but uncertain about it all, he said nothing.

They hadn’t gone much further when Thunder collapsed. Snowcrystal knew that her exhaustion had taken a great toll, and that Thunder probably wasn’t used to traveling so far in one day, then fighting. Concerned, she ran to the scyther’s side. By the time she reached her, Thunder had already stood back up. “What?” Thunder asked. “I’m just fine…” Striding past Snowcrystal, she walked forward a few paces, only to collapse again, this time in a faint.

Rosie turned and looked at the unconscious pokémon, rolling her eyes. “Right…” she muttered. “Just fine…”

-ooo-

Wildflame had watched Snowcrystal and the others leave the hive from a distance. Standing up, the houndoom flicked her arrow-tipped tail in annoyance. “Why does Blazefang want me to befriend those idiots?” she muttered irritably to herself. “They might not even know where Articuno went…”

Narrowing her eyes, the houndoom sulkily began to follow the growlithe’s scent, not too happy about the plan now that she’d had more time to think about it. She could only hope the growlithe knew something about where Articuno had gone. Growling under her breath, the houndoom hissed, “Blazefang better be right about them…”

To be continued…

Description
The Path of Destiny

Chapter Nine - Trapped

Wildflame was confused. She had tracked Snowcrystal’s scent to the base of one of the large cliffs, and the trail led to a rocky path to her right which in turn led to a combee hive. Stepping back, Wildflame walked away from the cliff’s base, muttering, “Blazefang can yell at me all he wants, but I’m not going in there.”

Unsure of what to do, she decided to wait a while, not wanting to face the wrath of Blazefang and the rest of the pack just yet. If the growlithe and her friends didn’t come out of the hive after a while, she decided, she could just assume they were dead…

-ooo-

Snowcrystal knew they wouldn’t have much time. They needed to get out before the combee blocked off all of the tunnel’s exits. “This way,” she whispered, heading off into another tunnel leading to their left. Rosie followed quickly, sure that she could hear the combee coming closer. The two of them vanished into the tunnel, not realizing that Thunder wasn’t following.

“Where are we supposed to be going?” Rosie growled as they moved further through the passage, giving Snowcrystal a glare. “You don’t have a clue, do you? We could be heading back to that big room where all those combee are and you wouldn’t even know!”

“I’m trying, all right?” Snowcrystal replied, resisting the urge to point out that Rosie didn’t have a clue as to where they were headed either.

Suddenly Rosie gave a shriek and halted, causing Snowcrystal to stop as well. Up ahead, about a dozen combee had entered the tunnel and were now facing them. “Back the other way…” Rosie whispered, turning around.

“Come on, Rosie!” Snowcrystal shouted. “They aren’t strong in small numbers.” Not bothering to even check if Rosie had heard, Snowcrystal leaped at the nearest of the combee, knocking it out of the air and sending it crashing to the cave floor before sinking her teeth into its wing. Feeling a strong blast of air shoot by her, Snowcrystal jumped out of the way and fired an ember at the remaining combee before darting past them and through the tunnel. The sound of Rosie’s pawsteps behind her told her that the vulpix had managed to make it past the combee group too. However, the angry pokémon were still following them.

Snowcrystal cast a fleeting glance behind her, only to run straight into Spark, who was fleeing from a different tunnel. Rosie, unable to stop in time, crashed into Snowcrystal. The three of them fell to the ground in a tangle of paws and tails. It took Snowcrystal a moment to realize who she had run into.

“Spark!” she gasped. “We’ve got to go now, there’s a group of combee coming straight for us!”

“Well there’s about fifty of them coming here from that way,” Spark replied, pointing his muzzle toward the tunnel he had been running from. “I’d say your way’s better, let’s go!”

The combee that had been chasing Rosie and Snowcrystal were surprised to see the two pokémon running back that way with yet another intruder, but a thunderbolt from Spark stunned them long enough for the three to get past. “Which way now?” Spark asked.

“I don’t know! Any way! Uh…let’s try this way!” Snowcrystal cried, darting into yet another of the labyrinth-like tunnels.

-ooo-

Thunder was now making her way through the tunnels on her own. The fact that Rosie and Snowcrystal had left her behind barely registered to her. She wanted to get out of the hive, and her traveling companions were of little, if any, concern to her.

The scyther’s feet made a loud splash as she entered into a wider tunnel half-flooded with water. The water was trickling down the walls of the cave and from the ceiling, making every rocky surface slippery. There was a deeper pool up ahead and Thunder paused next to it to take a much-needed drink of water.

A lone combee flying toward the hive on its own happened to come by, staring in shock at the dark form of the scyther lapping at the water from the pool in the middle of the tunnel. The news of intruders had not yet reached this combee, and for a moment he only stared in surprise. But that moment didn’t last long. “What are you doing here?” the combee cried, and Thunder turned her head in his direction.

To the lone combee’s shock, the scyther didn’t reply, didn’t even look surprised to see him there. The smaller bug pokémon had no time to react as the scyther leaped toward him, slashing her blades across the small pokémon’s body. The combee fell to the ground, unconscious, and Thunder ignored it, simply walking through the water and into the next cavern.

-ooo-

Snowcrystal, Rosie and Spark could hear more combee coming their way. Ultimately, they realized, there would be no escaping them, as there were simply too many, and the exits were blocked. Spark peered through a small hole in the cave wall next to him and sighed. “They’re everywhere…” he whispered. “And I can’t run much longer…” Looking toward the others, he could see that Rosie was exhausted as well, though Snowcrystal didn’t look as tired.

“We must keep going,” the growlithe whispered. “I’m used to running long distances and I know you aren’t, but we have to-”

“Stop!” a voice called from behind, and Snowcrystal reluctantly turned to see a huge group of combee hovering directly behind them. Another equally large group arrived immediately after from up ahead, and the combee formed a wide circle around the group, surrounding them completely.

Spark growled, his fur sharpening into spines as he readied an electric attack. The jolteon lowered himself into a crouching position, his eyes on the nearest wall of combee.

“Don’t…” Snowcrystal whispered. “We could never fight this many. If they attack back we’re done for!”

At her words, Spark reluctantly nodded, but his fur didn’t lie down flat. Rosie shuffled closer to him, her eyes wide.

The group of combee knew they had caught most of the intruders at last. One of them, obviously the one in charge of the first large group, glared down at the three travelers and called, “You must come with us. Attack, and you’ll regret it.”

The three friends were soon led by the combee toward what Snowcrystal was certain was the big cavern, knowing that if they fought back, they could easily end up dead.

-ooo-

Stormblade had to admit that this was just about the oddest situation he’d ever been in, and likely one of the most dangerous. The combee surrounding the vespiquen looked a lot more angry than the ones he’d seen before. Stormblade stood frozen to the spot as the vespiquen came closer, the eyes of the combee around her glowing slightly. He leapt away from the pool of honey as all at once, the combee fired some bizarre-looking white beam of light at him. Stormblade landed near the wall of the cavern, unscathed, only to have the combee surround him again. The attack they’d just used, he supposed, was probably something the vespiquen had made them do, not an attack they could use normally.

Almost as soon as he landed, the combee fired the attack once again, and he quickly darted out of the way and headed toward the cavern’s exit. However, before he’d gotten far, several of the combee’s attacks hit him at once, sending him crashing into the ground.

-ooo-

Thunder had found her way blocked by a swarm of the angry combee. However, rather than running from the pokémon, she charged straight towards them, instantly taking out quite a few with her dangerous scythes. The combee, realizing the danger, swerved out of the way to avoid the whirlwind of slashing blades as Thunder darted by. Seconds later the swarm regrouped and headed toward the scyther, who leaped back and slashed viciously at any who happened to come too close.

The combee seemed momentarily taken aback by Thunder’s ferocity, and they weren’t sure of what to do. It didn’t take them long to decide, and soon Thunder was faced by attacks from all sides. Ignoring the odd beams of white light flying toward her from all directions, Thunder focused on causing as much damage as possible to individuals of the swarm.

Suddenly a shout from a nearby cavern interrupted the battle. Thunder noted with interest that the shout had come from Stormblade. More out of curiosity than anything, Thunder ran toward the tunnel where the shout had come from, ignoring the confused and angry group of combee behind her. A moment later, the scyther had emerged into the vespiquen’s wrecked chamber.

One of the combee looked up from where Stormblade lay and toward Thunder, muttering in a shocked voice, “There’s another scyther?”

Thunder stared at the large group of combee who seemed to have forgotten about Stormblade for a moment. Stormblade, seizing his chance, got and up and flew out of the cavern’s entrance, glancing back toward Thunder as if to try and tell her to follow. However, Thunder stood completely still, her gaze fully concentrated on the vespiquen that stood at the other end of the cavern. Without giving any warning she charged toward the larger bug pokémon, scythes raised. The combee didn’t matter to her anymore; this was their leader.

-ooo-

Stormblade realized all too late that he had accidentally flown into the main cavern. Stopping for a moment, he tried to figure out what path was least likely to get him killed. The combee working in the hive all looked up, and the moment they spotted another, quite different flying bug pokémon within their hive, they abandoned their tasks and flew after the scyther.

Stormblade tried to head toward the nearest exit while attempting to dodge multiple attacks, but the combee far outnumbered him, and several attacks at once finally brought him down.

-ooo-

Thunder ignored the combee swarm as she sprinted toward the vespiquen at the far end of the chamber, leaping up when she was near enough and preparing to strike. However, just as her scythe was but a few inches from the hive’s leader, several attacks from a group of combee shot toward her simultaneously and struck, knocking her down to land sprawling at the vespiquen’s feet. The vespiquen then looked down at Thunder, not seeming surprised in the least. The use of Attack Order had seemed to surprise the scyther, but she was quickly recovering.

Thunder herself was mildly shocked, especially at the way the vespiquen hadn’t even moved when she’d tried to attack her. Leaping to her feet, Thunder attempted to land another blow, but was yet again blasted back at the last moment by the Attack Order from the combee.

Thunder hissed as her head collided with the cavern wall. Lashing with her blades, she leaped up with a newfound rage. Then she charged, but this time, the combee not only fired their attacks at her, but also formed a wall in front of Vespiquen. Thunder was once again hurled against the ground, gazing in fury at the combee who surrounded their leader.

After the scyther managed to stagger to her feet, the combee fluttered away from Vespiquen, as if daring Thunder to attack again. She didn’t disappoint them. The combee watched with what was almost amusement as Thunder tried to attack the nearest of the combee, but they darted away too quickly for the injured scyther to attack. However, it was enough to keep them away from Vespiquen long enough for Thunder to aim another strike.

Thunder slashed her scythe at Vespiquen, who moved neatly to the side in the last instant. As the blade swung past her, Vespiquen gripped Thunder’s chain in her claws, stopping the motion of the blade. Keeping a tight grip on the chain, she swung it in a downward arc, bringing Thunder to the ground. Thunder shook specks of blood from her wounds as she got up and lashed at Vespiquen with both blades, but the leader had already anticipated this and flew swiftly out of the way. Thunder turned and flew after her opponent, attempting to attack yet again.

Once again, Vespiquen was too fast, and swerved behind Thunder, this time grabbing her metal collar and hurling her against a nearby stalagmite. Her eyes glinting dangerously, Vespiquen launched a power gem attack at the furious scyther, watching impassively as the attack found its mark, causing Thunder to shriek with rage.

The combees’ leader was mildly surprised when Thunder stood up yet again. The scyther’s breathing sounded rough and hoarse, and she was bleeding in the places where she had been wounded by her trainer, but Thunder seemed focused only on winning the fight, however hopeless it was. Raising her scythes, she prepared to continue the battle.

“Fool…” Vespiquen hissed. “You just don’t know when to give up…”

-ooo-

Snowcrystal, Rosie, and Spark sat at the base of a massive stone column, guarded by dozens of combee. They could only watch helplessly as Stormblade was led to the same place and made to sit at the base of the column. One of the combee flew up close to Snowcrystal, giving her a stern and angry glare. “You have stolen honey from our hive,” she began, “and you have destroyed one of our chambers and a supply of honey.” Spark and Snowcrystal glanced at each other in confusion, and Stormblade looked away, pretending to be closely studying the stalagmite column he was positioned next to. The combee continued, “Of course, it will need to be repaired. You will work in the tunnels for us for as long as it takes to repair it, and longer still, for your thievery. That, or you will be killed. Our leader will make the final decision.”

Spark gave a small snarl. “They want us to work as…slaves?” He whispered angrily to Snowcrystal.

“Let’s just hope they don’t decide to kill us,” Snowcrystal whispered back, before a strange noise from a cavern nearby interrupted her thoughts. It sounded almost like…a battle. “What…what was that?” she whispered, glancing in the direction of the sound.

-ooo-

Vespiquen slashed her claws dangerously close to Thunder’s eyes and face, narrowly avoiding the blow from a scythe that could have severed her wing. Thunder gave a cry of fury before slicing her blades at Vespiquen again, pure rage giving her strength despite her injuries. The combee were still staying out of the fight, though Thunder knew that if the battle happened to go her way, that would quickly change, and she would be outnumbered.

Dodging another power gem attack, Thunder tried to land a hit on her enemy with wing attack, and this time, Vespiquen couldn’t dodge fast enough. Thunder struck her across the face, pushing the other bug pokémon toward the tunnel that opened up to the main chamber. Thunder leaped toward Vespiquen for another wing attack, but her momentum caused both combatants to stumble out of Vespiquen’s chamber and onto a rock ledge in the large room.

Thunder managed to make several deep gashes in the vespiquen’s side and back before she was knocked backward toward the cliff of the ledge by another power gem attack. Leaping up as if nothing had happened, Thunder sprinted toward the wounded vespiquen again, before the combee had a chance to come to their leader’s aid.

-ooo-

Unintentionally, Thunder had created a distraction. Sensing that their leader was in danger, the combee guarding Snowcrystal, Stormblade, Rosie and Spark flew off, their captives momentarily forgotten.

“Let’s get out of here!” Rosie cried, running toward a nearby tunnel.

“No!” cried Stormblade. “We have to help Thunder! Those combee could kill her if we don’t do something!”

Snowcrystal glanced at the massive swarms of combee flying toward the ledge where Thunder and the vespiquen had appeared. She knew in an instant that Stormblade was right. With those numbers, they could likely bring Thunder down and kill her…and there didn’t seem to be anything they could do. Snowcrystal watched the combee with wide eyes. The largest group was almost to the ledge…

Then suddenly, all activity stopped. The combee had halted and were now simply hovering in midair. Wondering what was going on, Snowcrystal crept forward for a closer look. The combee didn’t even seem to notice her. She walked across a rock ledge near where the swarm was clustered and glanced up at the ledge by Vespiquen’s chamber, expecting to see Thunder already killed in the battle.

Instead, she saw something quite different. The combee’s leader was lying helplessly on the stone floor, and as Snowcrystal edged closer along her rock ledge, she could see that Thunder had her blade pressed against the vespiquen’s throat. The hive’s ruler kept completely still, knowing that if either she or the combee tried to attack, the scyther would kill her. “Thunder…” Snowcrystal whispered as quietly as she could, and though several combee turned to look at her, none of them moved. “Tell them to let us go free!”

Thunder didn’t reply, and simply turned to the defeated vespiquen. “Make the combee leave!” she growled.

Having no choice, Vespiquen called to the group of combee and ordered them to leave the chamber. Reluctantly they flew away, and though a few very loyal ones stayed put, unwilling to leave their beloved leader, they posed no threat to the five friends in such small numbers.

“Now can we leave this place in peace?” Thunder asked, and the vespiquen slowly nodded.

Snowcrystal wasn’t certain about Vespiquen’s reply. What if she ordered all the combee to attack once Thunder let her go? Most of the combee had left, but that did not mean the few that had stayed behind couldn’t go and retrieve them. Just as she was about to suggest to Thunder that she force the vespiquen to come with them until they left the hive, just to make sure, she noticed that the scyther had raised her other blade over the vespiquen’s neck, obviously preparing to strike.

“Wait!” Snowcrystal cried, not understanding why Thunder was acting this way. “Stop!”

However, her shout seemed to go unheard. Thunder’s scythe flashed downwards and though the combee flew towards Vespiquen, Snowcrystal knew they would be too late. The growlithe turned away, expecting to hear the awful sound of flesh being severed. However, the sound that met her ears an instant later was quite different, and sounded like a metallic clang. She looked up, surprised, but no one was more startled than Thunder when, instead of her scythe reaching the vespiquen’s throat, it was stopped by another.

Thunder glanced upward, finding herself staring straight into Stormblade’s eyes. “Stop,” he told her, pushing both her blades away from Vespiquen. “You can’t kill her.”

“Why not?” Thunder replied, staring back at him.

“She was going to let us go,” Stormblade replied, and pushed Thunder away, quickly standing between her and Vespiquen. “And after all, this was our fault to begin with. We were the ones who entered the hive and tried to steal honey. Besides, you won the fight. There was no reason to kill her.” Thunder glanced back at Vespiquen, who was now flying upright, but making no move to attack. “We can leave now,” Stormblade continued. “There’s no need for any more fighting.”

Thunder looked back at Stormblade, though this time not with anger. She seemed far more confused by his actions than angry.

Stormblade gently pushed Thunder toward the others, careful not to injure her further with his blades, whispering, “Go…Vespiquen will let us leave safely.” Thunder did not reply, nor did she try to argue or resist as the five travelers swiftly exited the cavern through a large tunnel.

Once their leader was surely out of danger, the remaining combee quickly flew to aid Vespiquen, no longer paying any attention to the travelers. Now that she wasn’t being chased by combee, Snowcrystal took a bit more time to find the right tunnel by scent, and followed her own scent back through the caves. They encountered no resistance. However, Snowcrystal knew that the brief ‘peace’ was only shock, and the combee would soon be over that, and then the bug pokémon swarm could very well just decide on getting revenge after all.

Upon reaching the cave entrance, the group quickly made their way down the rocky slope and into the fresh air. Once on safe ground, they raced away from the cliffs, stopping only when they were sure they weren’t close enough to be seen directly from the cave. They were unsure whether or not the combee would still want their payment for the stolen honey and the wrecked chamber. After a brief rest, they carried on, knowing they should be moving as far away as possible, just to be safe.

No one had spoken about the events that had taken place in the hive, namely Thunder’s battle with the vespiquen, and how close she had come to killing her. Stormblade knew there had to be a reason for Thunder’s behavior, but uncertain about it all, he said nothing.

They hadn’t gone much further when Thunder collapsed. Snowcrystal knew that her exhaustion had taken a great toll, and that Thunder probably wasn’t used to traveling so far in one day, then fighting. Concerned, she ran to the scyther’s side. By the time she reached her, Thunder had already stood back up. “What?” Thunder asked. “I’m just fine…” Striding past Snowcrystal, she walked forward a few paces, only to collapse again, this time in a faint.

Rosie turned and looked at the unconscious pokémon, rolling her eyes. “Right…” she muttered. “Just fine…”

-ooo-

Wildflame had watched Snowcrystal and the others leave the hive from a distance. Standing up, the houndoom flicked her arrow-tipped tail in annoyance. “Why does Blazefang want me to befriend those idiots?” she muttered irritably to herself. “They might not even know where Articuno went…”

Narrowing her eyes, the houndoom sulkily began to follow the growlithe’s scent, not too happy about the plan now that she’d had more time to think about it. She could only hope the growlithe knew something about where Articuno had gone. Growling under her breath, the houndoom hissed, “Blazefang better be right about them…”

To be continued…