Sinners

A/N: Very glad that people liked the last chapter. It was important to show that in this story, the enemies are not the bumbling fools that they seem to be in the anime/games. You won't find any Jessie/James types here, heh.



Well, may as well get on with it. Hope you enjoy!



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Chapter 4: Searching for Answers





Wake up, master...



A strange, fleeting darkness in every direction; pain buzzed sickeningly all around him.



Please, can you hear me? You must pull yourself out of this!



The agony was too great for him to hear the voice clearly; he screamed inside the void of his own mind. It seemed to reverberate throughout his entire body, traveling up through flesh and muscle and bone. The pain was worst at the bone, a terrible silver pain that felt strikingly cold, so cold that it burned, and if Slash had been awake he'd have fallen to his knees and cried out for help.



The doctors could only heal your body; you must bring back your mind! Please, master, you need to try...



Desperate for any way to end this searing cold pain, he tried to cling to the worried yet soothing voice, struggling to make out the words.



You need to focus your mind. Keep focused on my voice, and try to ignore the pain...



Ignore the pain? Blasphemy! This pain was infinite, eternal, didn't this strange voice understand that?



Remember when you told me that I had to try? When I felt that things were hopeless, you encouraged me and gave me strength. Now you have to do the same...borrow my strength, trust my words, use our bond like a rope and pull yourself up...



...Ralts?



Then, things changed.



The darkness began to brighten a bit to a misty gray; the voice disappeared and a soft, repetitive beeping took its place. The pain seemed to wash away like a receding wave, gradually disappearing. Slash sensed that it wasn't completely gone; like a wave, it could eventually come back.



However, this respite from it, however brief it ended up being, was still blessedly welcome.



Slash pried open his eyes, wincing at the bright light of the room. He wasn't in the museum anymore; a soft bed was under him, and the air smelled of medicine and alcohol. With a groan, he pushed himself up to sitting position and looked around for a moment, before Growlithe jumped on the bed and barked happily.



"Hey, buddy," Slash whispered in a strained, sore voice. "Good to see you're okay, too. Where are the others?"



"Growl!"



He looked to the left of his bed and saw Geodude and Corphish looking up at him, cheering at the sight of their trainer regaining consciousness. He gave them a smile, then noticed Ralts wasn't with them.



"Growlithe, where's Ralts?"



Here I am.



The reply was in his mind, but still Slash was able to sense the direction it came from; he looked on the other side of his bed and saw a small figure sitting on the side of the mattress, her red eyes (which looked so much more natural than Kiako's) shining.



But she was very different.



"...Ralts? Is that you?"



She smiled, shaking her head and wiping away a tear. Not anymore, master.



"What happened?"



Laying a slim hand on his shoulder, she gently pushed him back down onto the pillow. Please, master, don't overexert yourself. Lay back and I will tell you everything.



Slash did as she was asked, and she continued.



Well, as you can see, I have evolved. I am Kirlia now.



"I can hear you directly now. I could understand you as a Ralts, but it was in some vague, wordless way. Now it's...in my mind. I hear it clearly."



Yes. My power has increased significantly now, including my mastery over psychic abilities. Our bond has grown stronger as well. We are no longer restricted in our communication.



"Don't take this the wrong way, Ralts...I mean, Kirlia...but you seem more...mature now."



She nodded in understanding. My evolution is part of my life cycle both physically and mentally, just as a human's aging is part of theirs...it's merely more abrupt. Ralts would be what you would consider to be our child form.



Slash smiled, a little sad at the idea that he wouldn't have the young and curious Ralts laughing on his shoulder again. He knew that it was silly, she was still by his side, but he felt like a parent whose child had just learned to ride a bike without help...a small but potent bit of heartache.



So yes, I suppose you want to know what happened. Kiako had his Aggron attack you, and you blacked out. Geodude almost certainly saved your life by grounding the electricity. You should reward his bravery after you are well, master.



"I will." He nodded toward the door and the heads of the doctors passing by in the halls. "Can they hear us?"



No. This communication is over our bond; I cannot speak directly with anyone but you.



Slash felt an odd bit of happiness float through his mind, and realized that, strangely, it was not his own emotion. He felt out with his mind and discovered that, while faint, he could sense its source.



"Kirlia...is that you I'm feeling?"



Yes. While our bond is still not complete, we do have the ability to sense each other's emotions, although not perfectly.



"Why do you feel happy?"



She turned away from him, looking down at the sheets. Her face seemed to slightly flush a very pale green, so dim that it barely showed on her silver skin. I was just pleased that our bond is developing so well. It means that we have become quite close. And that it's kind of...neat, that I can only talk to you.



He smiled. "Yeah, I think so too. Funny that so much has happened in one day, huh?"



...master...



Slash felt some distress from her now, and frowned. "Kirlia? What's wrong?"



While her flushed complexion faded, she still averted her eyes. It has been longer than one day, master. You've been unconscious for five.



"Five days?! Then...damn! Kiako is probably far away from here by now!" He slammed a fist on the bed, and Kirlia put a hand on his shoulder, urging him to calm down by sending a pulse of soothing energy through their bond.



You were very badly injured, although I'm not sure that Kiako intended to kill you. However, it was close enough...you had a heart attack, several broken bones, internal bleeding...and even after the doctors healed you, you stayed in a coma. When you were unconscious, I felt your pain, although not as strongly as you did. I was able to form a connection to your consciousness and communicate with you over our bond. It's a good thing that I did, or you may never have woken up.



"But how did you evolve? Please don't tell me that you tried to fight him..."



Of course not, that would have been suicide for me and the others. But when you blacked out, bleeding and broken...I couldn't take it. I was so small, so weak, unable to protect you... Kirlia gently stroked his hand, shame trickling over their bond. I transformed then, I suppose in an effort to protect you. But I failed...and you were hurt.



A tear rolled down her cheek, and she turned away, unable to speak. Slash felt her shame at being unable to do more to protect him, and carefully wrapped his arms around her. She trembled against his strong frame, the feeling of her small body shaking nearly breaking Slash's heart. She was completely devoted to him, and while that was a source of great happiness for her (and him), it could also be a source of great pain, he discovered.



"Don't feel ashamed. Without you, I'd still be laying in bed, trapped in agony. You did everything you could. I'd say you evolved just in time." He stroked her hair softly, feeling her shame slowly ebb away.



But I was unable to stop you from being hurt in the first place, she whispered.



"I don't expect you to always be able to defeat your opponents, Kirlia, or always be able to protect me. There will be times you will be defeated...there will be times all of us will find ourselves outmatched by a stronger foe...but if we all stick together and try to protect each other...well, that's all we need."



...thank you, master. I will always do my best to protect you.



"And I will always try to protect you." Allowing Kirlia to slip out of his arms, he lay back again, pleased by the warm feeling coming over their bond. He returned the emotion, seeing if she would sense it; judging from her shy smile, she did.



"I was hoping we could catch up to Kiako, or at least tell the authorities so they could pursue him, but he could be anywhere by now. I don't know where we should go from here..."



That reminds me, a man named Dock came by earlier and told the doctors that he wanted to talk to you when you were up and able. He wants to tell you something about the object stolen in the attack.



Slash nodded, and looked at the host of machines he was hooked up to. "When can I get out of here?"



"Anytime you're ready, Mr. Firestorm," a voice said. A white-coated doctor walked in, looking at a clipboard. "You gave us quite a scare, but you pulled through remarkably. Still wasn't easy...emergency surgery, bone repairs, twelve straight hours of Blissey Softboiled Therapy...in any case, we can have you bandaged up and ready to go anytime you're ready."



"After only five days? That might be a long time to be out, but to heal broken bones?"



"The therapy and repairs went well, and it was just a couple of ribs that were broken, nothing major. As long as you travel lightly, you should be able to finish healing up on the road just fine."



Shall we go, master? We might get some answers about what Kiako is up to.



"Sure. Alright, doc, bandage me up. I'm ready to get out of here."



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Miles away, deep in the mountains and under a crescent moon, the Man with Demon Eyes flipped out his communicator.



"About time," the impatient and irritated voice said. "Report."



"Sorry, sir, I had to maintain radio silence until I got far enough from Slateport. My little heist caused quite a stir there."



"And the Pearl?"



Kiako's eyes flashed in the darkness. "I got it, sir."



"Excellent. You've done well, Kiako. I want you to come back to headquarters immediately so the Pearl can be secured, and then you will leave in search of the final one."



"Understood."



The voice sounded as close to happy as Kiako had ever heard it. "Only one more. Do you understand how close we are? Only one more..."



"Yes, sir. However, it will be the most difficult to find...we currently have no information on its location."



"Do not worry. Our agents are gathering as much intel as possible. By the time you return, we will hopefully have narrowed our search. Now, did you see that trainer with the Ralts in Slateport?"



Kiako grinned. "Yes. And it is no longer a Ralts. It evolved...and at level 18."



A pause on the line. "...you're certain?"



"Yes. Two levels before it was supposed to. It appears we have found a very special specimen, indeed. It may serve our purpose."



"Excellent. Continue to keep an eye on the trainer and that Pokemon when you can. We don't need it until it is fully evolved, so there is no reason to attempt to seize it at the moment."



"Yes, sir. And I will be at headquarters as soon as I can. Sensiari, out."



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Limping slightly, Slash walked down the well-lit nighttime streets of Slateport. Kirlia was too big to sit on his shoulder, of course; still, she decided that she'd rather walk alongside him than go back to a Pokeball with the others.



Master, may I ask you something?



"Sure."



What do you intend to do if we meet up with Kiako again?



Slash hesitated, trying to keep his feelings on the matter from flowing over the bond. Luckily their connection was not complete, and restricting his emotions was not overly difficult.



"I intend to stop him. I don't know what he's doing, but he's willing to kill for it...and has already. We can't just let him continue doing this, or get away with what he's already done."



Kirlia shivered as a gust of chilly sea-soaked wind blew through the night. But we are no match for him! Those two Pokemon alone could destroy us, and I sensed that he had others, too.



"Well, he may be too strong for us to defeat now...but we're getting stronger all the time. Someday, we'll catch up to him."



If you say so, master...I just wish I had as much faith as you do in my abilities.



They stopped in front of the shipyard, which was dark with the exception of one lit window. Slash made sure he had easy access to his Pokeballs, and went inside.



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"I'm glad you came, Mr. Firestorm," Dock said. Slash took a seat on the other side of his desk, Kirlia climbing into his lap, keeping her senses open for any danger.



"Well, I'm looking for answers, as I'm sure you are."



Dock nodded. "Yes. And I think we might be able to help each other in our pursuit of them. First, we need to identify the man who stole the artifact."



"I can answer that. He said his name was Kiako Sensiari, and that he was called 'the Man with Demon Eyes'. Which makes sense...his eyes are red. As red as my Kirlia's eyes."



"Red? The man, was he wearing a coat and had long black hair?" Seeing Slash nod, he jumped up, cursed angrily, and slammed a fist on the desktop. "It was him! He came to the shipyard and asked where Stern was...I had a bad feeling about him, but he didn't do anything wrong while he was here, so I didn't follow up on it. Damn!"



He's telling the truth, master. I think you can trust this man, Kirlia sent. Slash nodded almost imperceptibly.



Dock took a deep breath and sat down again. "He stole something very valuable...an artifact that Stern brought back from his last deep-sea expedition. It's called the Sea Pearl, one of the legendary Relics of the King."



Slash frowned. "I've never heard of that legend."



"Not many have. A few years back, a stone tablet was found in the depths of the sea, with a message written upon it. It was at least a thousand years old, made in the days of the Second Hoenn Kingdom, when the land was unified under one ruler." Dock pulled out a carefully-wrapped object from under the desk. "This is the artifact."



Slash unwrapped the cloth and held the small slate. The writing was different from the modern script, but still legible. Kirlia stood on his lap and looked at the artifact with him.



If you seek true strength, then bring to me

The Pearls of Fire, Sky, and Sea;



Then you shall find the sacred seal,

Which Relicanth and Wailord must repeal;



Three great Princes, their might combined,

Shall reveal the King's Tomb at the lowest tide...



She trailed off, she and Slash running their fingers over the jagged bottom of the stone. "It's broken...there should be more to the message."



Dock carefully took the relic back and re-wrapped it. "I know, but it can't be helped. In any case, many of the legends referred to in ancient artifacts like this turned out to be true, such as the existence of Lugia and Unown. It is possible, maybe even likely, that this one is true as well. It could very well be the reason why Kiako stole the Sea Pearl."



"It sounds like the Pearls are only the first part of the legend though," Slash said. "We may have time to stop him from completing his goal, assuming we're right about this."



Dock stood up, looking satisfied. "I will inform the authorities about this. Thank you, Mr. Firestorm. Hopefully the police can find out just who this Kiako is, and apprehend him."



Slash slipped Kirlia back onto the ground and stood as well, shaking Dock's hand. "No problem. But be careful. If Kiako returns...well, you've seen what he can do."



"I doubt he will. If there was anything else here he wanted, he'd likely have taken it as well. But I'll keep an eye out. You be careful, too...you took quite a blow from him."



Fists clenching, Slash nodded, and then headed out back into the night.



Standing alone under a streetlight with Kirlia by his side, Slash looked into the night sky and growled softly. "Kiako..."



The stars seemed to laugh back at him.

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To be continued.