The Viterals

Chapter 8: The Midnight Raid

The monkey-like Pokémon back flipped upon leaving its ball. Bambi saw its face, belly, inner ears, tip of its tail—all white, contrasted by its purple body, which looked darker under the shadows in the room. It stood on its three-fingered tail and balanced there, waiting for Makua's command.

Bambi took off toward the common room door that led to the corridor, Hower at her heels. When she stepped out, she noticed the silence behind an inevitable roar that was sure to come. She could feel it in her bones, in her need and will to battle that very second.

"Bambi, what are you doing?"

"Hower, give me some more light!"

Hower stepped forward. From somewhere inside its belly, the beast glowed brighter, louder, as though it had swallowed coals from the furnace.

"The lights are out here too," Makua noted. "We should stay in our rooms until someone tells us what to do."

"No way!" Bambi snapped. "What if there's a fire somewhere? That was an impressive explosion."

Bambi grabbed Makua's shivering hand, led the way to the elevator toward the end of the hallway.

"Where do you suppose we're going?" Makua tried shimmying out of Bambi's grip, but she wrapped her wiry fingers around his bony wrist even tighter.

"Stop being such a wuss, Makua!" Bambi pressed the elevator button and whipped him inside. "Aipom and Hower boarded.

Bambi pressed the button to go to the 7th floor.

"Why are we going to the Pokémon Center? Our Pokémon aren't hurt."

Bambi breathed in, tried to be patient. As the lights in the elevator flickered on and off, she saw the fear on her friend's face. He really was terrified. Then again, something strange was definitely going on. Were they safe?

"The break room is up here. If no one flipped the switches we should do it."

"Why? Shouldn't we leave it to the adults?"

"Makua! You're never going to be top student acting like that! You think Chelsea and Ximen back down from a challenge like this? No! And that's exactly why they're still ahead of you."

Bambi caught her breath, tried to reel in her anger. For a moment she felt bad, and then relieved. She knew Makua needed to hear it.

He buried his head as low as it would go, and said nothing.

At that moment, the elevator door opened to the Pokémon Center. Hower's ears shot back, sensed danger inside. He shot forward into the darkness, barking.

A powerful vacuum sounded, as though it had come from space.

"What is that?" Makua stepped forward. His Aipom snaked up his body, rested on his shoulder.

In the abyss before them, Bambi heard the clash of steel, two trainers commanding their Pokémon against each other.

The elevator doors closed behind them, returned to another floor to pick up more passengers.

Suddenly, the lights flashed on, brought everything into sharp focus. Bambi's heart jumped as she took in the scene. It looked misplaced, distorted. What had happened in such a short amount of time?

Two Pokémon Center nurses, dressed in their long blue night shift attire stood next to each other, or rather, one leaned against the other for support. Blood gushed from her knee, down her milky white legs. Her arm was wrapped around the other nurse's shoulder.