Trial By Fire

Chapter 6

"Here's the place, let's get this done. And fast."

After days of searching we finally found where are objective was, a small meadow in the forest. Lexin ran ahead, he was eager to get the job done and obviously had little endurance to do much else. Me on the other hand, I was built for this.

"Now, the Commander wants a specific Pokemon for his collection, but getting it is fairly tricky." Lexin tugged at his belt and pulled out an odd device, in which he promptly stabbed into the ground. "This", Lexin continued, "Is a time stabilizer."

Lexin then preceded to gather more of these "stabilizers" and placed them in the ground forming a circle.

Looking at me Lexin gave a sly smirk. "And your job, is to defeat a specific Pokemon inside THIS circle."

I tilted my head in confusion, Lexin never was good at explaining things and I never did quite understand human plans.

"Oh come on you numskull!" he cried "We're catching a Celebi and if we get it inside this circle the Time Stabilizers will activate, which will prevent it from using its time travelling abilities."

I understood what he said this time, but one thing wasn't clear. How would we even get it here to begin with?!?! I tugged at Lexin's shirt and looked him in the eyes.

He peered at my face and then gave a short chuckle before patting me on the head. "I know you can beat this little fairy thing you dork, and don't you worry about luring it here, I'll explain it later."

Lexin always had some way of understanding me and seemed to know everything I was thinking. Watching Lexin check the devices I grew fascinated with him, I always enjoyed seeing him just being himself. Lexin was so influential that I was content with just being around him. I lowered myself down and rested my head on my paws. I watched Lexin finish screwing a final bolt in as he wiped his sweat away. I rose to a stand as I went to meet him.

He turned around facing me with a grin, "This'll be easy," he said twirling his hammer "And we'll come back on top!" He grabbed my side and pulled me towards him. Pointing at the stars Lexin nudged into me. "Even the sky will know our name, just stick with me and I promise one day we'll be the most influential duo out there." Lexin began to chuckle before he playfully bonked my head with his hammer. "Come on dumbo, we gotta be ready and those stars ain't gonna help us tonight." I pawed at my head and slowly rose. Did Lexin really believe that?

"Flamethrower!" Lexin promptly instructed. As commanded I let a column of fire escape my throat. "Keep it up!" Lexin edged on.

I kept the flame going as I watched the forest catch the flames and spread it about. I didn't want to do this, but I trusted that Lexin knew what he was talking about. "The guardian of the forest doesn't come out very often," he had said "It'll only come out to protect its home and the Pokemon in it"

"Come on! Where's that dumb thing?" Lexin was getting angry, Celebi was nowhere in sight not even in the cameras he set up around the forest.

"That's enough!" he shouted.

Shocked, I shut my mouth and cowered back towards him, I hated when he got mad.

"I don't get it!" he shouted fiercely. "That thing should've been all over us by now!" He threw a punch into a tree and winced as he retracted his hand. "Gah! It's hot here, we gotta get this dumb fairy thing HERE and NOW!"

Now looking at me I could see the anger in his face. His face was red not only from the heat, but from the sheer rage and impatience he was feeling.

He began to yell at me, "You stupid thing!" he edged on "You're obviously just not powerful enough! Maybe if you were halfway decent we'd be- Crack!

Lexin turned around just in time to see a branch break from a nearby tree. He didn't yell or scream, he simply laughed. He was looking down at something that went down with the branch and it obviously gave him some sort of comfort.

"I get it now" he chuckled "Celebi won't come with just forest destruction, we have to do a little more..."

He stepped to the side of the branch, revealing a Pidgey collapsed on the fallen branch. It was breathing slowly as its ash covered chest convulsed in agony. The Pidgey let out a sickly cough as it attempted to lift itself.

"Now your understand," Lexin said in a cynical manner. "Now you understand.. To what degree we must go." Turning his gaze to a bush beside me, he laughed as he yelled out a command. "Flare, there's your target. Take aim and burn those things."

Following his finger I saw to what he was gesturing, it was a bunch of wild Pokemon. Oddish, Rattata, Aipom and so many more stood... In terror, and their terror was rightfully so. I turned to face my master, with an uneasy look.

"Get on with it! If the forest's Pokemon are in peril then Celebi is sure to come out!"

I turned backed around, just another job... I had to do this. I was used to battling Pokemon, but not... attacking them! These guys weren't willing or able to pick a fight and usually my missions would result in capturing Pokemon, not slaughtering them! I was being commanded to commit a massacre! Looking back at my master I quickly repulsed and avoided his stare. My gaze turned to the Pokemon that I was to attack. Cowering down their faces showed deep sorrow, so deep that I could see their inner terror. This wasn't your everyday terror, this was life or death terror. They all stood still, some in fear, others due to their injuries. The injured lay on the ground with burn marks stretching across their entire body. Too weak to move they only let out wheezing breathes as their chests rose up and down slowly. A Zizagoon lay beside the injured nudging them with its head. It gave out a shrill cry as it nudged all the injured. My eyes began to water as I spectated this atrocity, Is this what I'm apart of? I clenched my paw, I had to do it. I took a step back, my heart pounding fiercely and suppressed the tears that clouded my vision into a misty haze. I shot up my flame and cried as it burned wildly. As the flame grew within myself, my tears leaked out. Feeling the fire reaching towards my throat I choked up a sob as I began to open my mouth. This is what I've been raised to do, this is who I am.

"Do it."

With Lexin's command I released the flame from my throat and the tears from my eyes. Falling to the ground I phased out of reality as I tried to ignore what I have just done. Wretched in despair I felt my body growing weak as I began to lose consciousness; But before I drifted off into darkness, my mind was crippled with the haunting cries of the Pokemon, followed by a fiery explosion.