A Same Path

An expected consequence

The blanket I bought was helpful, I knew I could not move all those pokémon on my own without going unnoticed, taking the wagon was the only option, even more so I preferred to use the blanket to cover and hide them before leaving town.

─You try not to make any noise ... I will take you to a safe place ─I didn't even know if they would understand me, but at least talking to them made me feel a little more sane about the risks I was taking at the time; those were the last words I said before I put the backpack with the medicines aside, and covered them all up.

─"All right... time for truth" ─I thought, fearful. The carriage looked in good condition and the wheels stable, but that was the least I expected in the face of the sea of worry after realizing all the weight I was willing to carry, again showing the fate that my impulsive decisions would provoke.

I got into position, took one last look at the unconscious man to confirm his condition, and then pulled out the safety catch on the cart to keep it from moving.

The weight was noticeable, obviously the design of the cart made it much more affordable to transport those amounts of weight, plus my condition was clearly not adequate.

I could only close my eyes abruptly as soon as I made the first pull. Every effort and movement of my spine to help me move that cart, even if it was only a little, was more than enough to cause me the already so much daily pain.

The first steps were the hardest, as soon as I began to get a grip, the pain would subside, but it was still there... throbbing.

Even if I doubted that the Pokémon would have understood me, the fear I had after moving through the last areas of the market in the capital was attenuated over time as I realized that the Pokémon did not make any kind of noise, not even moving, from time to time I felt a slight tremor, but as I turned around and kept an eye to make sure that no one would try to escape, the calm returned after noticing the opposite; but it was clear that this was simply the result of a life of slavery and forced submission.

There was no problem, fortunately I was not the only one transporting a carriage, the former vendors I had accompanied were circulating in that market for almost the whole day and I ran into them from time to time; it served to camouflage me and to go more unnoticed. But as soon as I started to get to the end of the capital, the schedule mixed with my hurry didn't take long to make clear to me the situation I would face. The merchants who traveled from Hotaru to the capital used to go out in the mornings, by that time I remember that the sun was just about to fall...

That trip would be made alone.

I could only sigh with concern at what new I would have to face. The journey would already be long, added to the state of my body, and the loneliness would not provide any greater comfort.

There was no other way out... to stay in the capital was to increase the risk of being discovered and caught, I had to leave; and as soon as I took the first step after the last one delimiting the end of the capital, I did not hesitate again to take the next one.

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About two hours passed. The sunlight was just about to disappear, while its last rays several minutes ago gave me the signal to stop.

As soon as I stopped and uncovered the Pokémon, their decadent gazes continued, while the fear and anger once seen was only replaced by coldness and loss of hope.

I couldn't say anything... while I was just getting discouraged, I just put the blanket aside, before looking in the backpack.

Lighting a fire was not complicated, at the side of the road the forests were not so dense, and the dry wood was not hard to get, however, while I was looking for matches and some toilet paper to use as a help, it didn't take long before my stomach growled.