Painted Ghouls

Chapter 13

WARNING: violence

Waking up to a large clap of thunder, Athena would puff out her feathers, inching closer to the wall of the cave as her vision darted to the entrance of the cave. The rain from the previous night appeared to be relentless. Rain poured from the heavens, striking the dirty earth with ferocity. Tiny pieces of hail could be heard from above, pounding against the wall of the cave.

Feeling her trainer's cap brush against her, she would heave a soft chirp, fixating her attention towards Lucas' direction. His head was resting against the cold, stone floor, and his eyes were shut tight. He was asleep. Blinking, the tiny chick Pokémon would drag her gaze back towards the cave entrance. It was probably still nighttime, due to how dark it was. Resting her orange cranium, she would close her eyes, hoping to go back to sleep.

She did eventually fall asleep, and soon was awoken by the rather harsh prodding of claws. "Get up," a masculine voice growled. Releasing a groan, Athena opened her eyes halfway, her mind groggy. "Get up!" With that, sharp claws pushed the female onto her back.

Now fully awake, she would let out a small squeak, before quickly rolling herself onto her feet. Gazing up at Lucas, she would hesitate at the stern and angered expression he bore on his features. "You slept until noon," he growled, narrowing his eyes in disapproval. The female slouched back. "Thus, you wasted some of your training time."

Before the chick Pokémon could question what he was referring to, he flapped his mighty blue wings and rocketed out of the cave, leaving her alone. Assuming she was supposed to follow, she would take a few steps forward, before realizing Brendan's cap was not on top of her head. It must've fallen off when she was asleep. Looking back, she would inch her way towards the hat, before scooping it up on top of her head. After that, she scurried her way to the cave entrance.

Stopping at the entrance, she would take a few moments to grab a gander of the surrounding premises. The rain had stopped some time ago, for the sun was peeking through a few white clouds. The trees that towered over both her and the Latios were still a little drenched, but not too much. Reaching out with one foot, Athena would tentatively touch the grass, shuddering at the silky and moist texture. It didn't take long before she began making her way towards the eon Pokémon, who was impatiently waiting for her.

"You took too long," he groaned, glaring daggers at the tiny chick Pokémon. Gulping, she would nod her head, a little hesitant if she should respond or not. Before she could decide, however, the dragon-and-psychic type flew off towards a nearby tree stump.

Following Lucas, the fire type would gaze at the tree stump, picking at the grass with her feet anxiously as she noticed a Wurmple slithering across the grass. "Okay," Lucas began, picking up a small happy tone as he glanced at the Torchic. "Battle time. I want you to fight this Wurmple with all of your strength. It should be an easy opponent."

Athena blinked, feeling shock ripple through her. "B-Battle?" she asked, shaking her head. "But I-" Lucas immediately cut Athena off, tossing her towards the unsuspecting Wurmple. With a squeak, she managed to catch herself before she fell, her widened eyes fixated onto the bug type. It was near the same size as her, and she couldn't help but feel fear course through her, despite having a type advantage over it.

Quickly did the disgusting creature rise to its defense, firing a string shot at the frightened Torchic. Jumping backwards, she would feel the crystal clear webs whirl around her feet, almost trapping her in a way. Fluffing up her bright orange feathers, the fire type would attempt to scurry forward, but instead fell down on her face.

Fear engulfed her entire stature as the Wurmple made its way onto the back of her cranium, stabbing a strange substance into her back. Immediately, her energy began to drop at a rapid pace, and her already darkened vision began to fade into black. That is, until the sound of Lucas slicing the creature off of her echoed in her ear slits.