Pokémon: Outcast of Comb Island (Ch4)

[previous: http://pastebin.com/edMNeV3w]


Chapter 4
Warring States


	“You went into the forest, huh?” Vincent said to Weavile and CIS4 as they left the forest and returned to the fields. “That was dangerous to go in there without me. If something bad had happened, I wouldn’t have been able to heal or recall you. Don’t do that again, you two. And Weavile, I know you’re a strong fighter, but please don’t let CIS4 go in there, even if you’re with her. Understand?”

	Weavile nodded, but she mostly just did so to get her trainer to stop nagging her. Vincent assumed that to be so as well, but he accepted her response anyway. He tossed her Poké Ball at her, and recalled her before catching the ball and returning it to his belt, beside the ball that held Scyther.

	“Let’s keep moving,” he said to CIS4. “We should cross these fields and go north to the forest. We can continue training there.”

	CIS4 followed him as he turned and scaled the hill behind him. When they reached the top, she glanced back at the forest and saw an orange-eyed Ledyba with a dozen Combee behind him hovering at the forest’s edge, watching her go. Made anxious by the sight, she quickly turned away from them and followed Vincent down the hill.

	“I got some good data about those Vikavolt,” he said as they descended the grassy slope. “And Scyther didn’t even try to court any of them, so all in all, it was a beneficial detour. Like I said before, Vikavolt aren’t found on the mainland too often, so the data I got should really please the suits back in Bayview City.”

	CIS4 did not pay much attention to him. She was still thinking about what Taranza had said. She wondered: was the human planning to bring her with him when he left the island, or did he just want to use her for research and then forget about her? As she thought, she also pondered just why he had become stricter today. Yesterday, he was encouraging her and helping her whenever possible, even when she beat a weak foe. And when she was incapacitated by the Ariados, he jumped into the fray, putting himself at risk to get her out of danger. But today, he was not encouraging her anymore, and hesitated to heal her when she was hurt. She could not imagine that the change was due to something she did. Was he actually trying to distance himself from her, because he was indeed going to abandon her soon? Though she thought deeply about these questions, she never came to a conclusion.

	Soon, the duo made it to the top of another hill, and looked down into the next valley to see a surprising scene. Gathered in the shallow valley was a small cluster of strange-looking plants, with an abnormally large swarm of buzzing Combee hovering about them. The flowers were each a few feet tall, with a thick brown stem leading up a ring of large pink petals, crowned by another stem that was topped by a small white flower. Vincent and CIS4 looked over the field of flowers, surprised to see such a large gathering of Combee there. They also noted a lone Mothim hovering above a hill on the opposite side of the valley, observing the scene along with them.

	“Those are Pomeg Flowers,” Vincent said. “They aren’t found very often in the wild back on the mainland—or at least, not in the Safobay region, where Bayview is. They’re a lot bigger than I thought they’d be, I can tell you that much. But I wonder what all those Combee are doing. Probably gathering nectar for honey, I’d guess.”

	CIS4 knew that to be the case, as Pomeg Flowers were famed amongst the Combee of the island for providing the ingredients to make especially fine honey. However, the reason for the Combee being here was not her main concern. She was more focused on the size of the swarm. There were scores of Combee flying about, a number several times greater than the population of an average swarm. Such a big group of Combee meant that they probably had a strong warlord, one who managed to win enough fights to retain her honor and keep them all as followers. And there was only one Combee that CIS4 knew who could be strong enough to have such a large swarm: her rival, the Combee with a crimson mark.

	She looked at the swarm intently, but she could not see her old foe and rival anywhere. Most likely, she was somewhere else, and had sent part of her swarm here to gather ingredients from the Pomeg Flowers. As the outcast continued to look for her rival, Vincent took out his notebook and a pen and jotted down some notes.

	“Because Pomeg Flowers aren’t found back on the mainland,” he said to CIS4, “it will be good to make some notes about how the Combee here treat them. In fact, I’m tempted to get closer and try to scan some of those Combee too.”

	CIS4 prepared to warn him against it, as she had a feeling that the Combee would dislike any intruders. But before she could get the human’s attention, they heard a loud buzzing from the direction of the flowers, and the Pokémon and the human looked over just in time to see the Mothim being chased off by a small contingent of angry Combee, who chased it over a nearby hill and out of sight.

	“On second thought, maybe we should stay away,” Vincent said, and CIS4 bobbed up and down in agreement. Vincent made a few more notes and checked his GPS to record the coordinates of the flower field, then started to walk around the valley. He gave the flowers and Combee alike a wide berth, and CIS4 followed him closely, glancing back at the swarm a few times to watch if they were planning to attack them. She noticed several Combee watching them, and some talking amongst themselves, but none attacked. They seemed to believe that Vincent and CIS4 were staying far enough away to be no threat.

	Once they made it around the flowers and resumed their trek north, CIS4 took one last look back at the swarm before she descended the hill with the human. She froze in place when she saw a certain orange-eyed Ledyba hovering amongst the Combee and talking with them. She stopped following the human to watch the scene, wondering what Taranza was doing there. Meanwhile, Vincent heard the hum of her wings quiet down, and knew she had fallen behind. He turned to see what was the matter, and raised his eyebrows at the sight CIS4 had seen.

	“Hey, that’s one brave Ledyba,” he said. “But why aren’t the Combee scaring it off like that Mothim? I wonder if they’re allies or something.”

	Taranza looked over and spotted the two of them, and upon seeing CIS4, he waved at her and gestured for her to approach. CIS4 hesitated, but upon remembering how he had been cut off last time they talked, she decided to approach him and see if he was going to finish what he was saying before.

	“Wait, are you going to try to talk to them?” Vincent asked as CIS4 flew towards the flower field. The Combee stopped and turned to him, then bobbed up and down in reply to his question. But Vincent frowned and shook his head in response. “That’s too dangerous. And I can’t send Weavile or Scyther with you, because their appearance would probably anger those Combee more than the appearance of one of their own kind, like yourself. I just don’t want you to get hurt.”

	CIS4 titled to the side in confusion. What he just said seemed to imply that he really did care about her and her safety, contrary to what Taranza had said before. But she could not tell if he truly meant that out of kindness, or if he was just saying it because he wanted an undamaged test subject. Regardless, she appreciated the sentiment, but bobbed up and down to convey that she was willing to risk going to the Combee anyway.

	“I still think it’s dangerous,” Vincent said after a long pause, “but if you’re confident that you’ll be safe, I’ll let you go. But I’ll be standing by with Weavile and Scyther to get you out of there if things go south. Just be safe, okay?”

	CIS4 bobbed in the air again, then turned and flew towards the gathered Bug-types. As CIS4 approached, Taranza waved his six hands about and ordered the Combee to spread out. They did do, forming a hemisphere behind Taranza before CIS4 arrived.

	“I see you’re still alive,” he said as CIS4 hovered towards him. “And still with that human.”

	“Why did you wave me over?” CIS4 asked, ignoring his mention of the human. “Are you going to finish telling me what you were trying to say in the forest?”

	“That was my plan. If you wish to hear it, I will tell you about it. Listen well.” CIS4 waited as Taranza paused and lowered his head, gathering his thoughts before looking at her and speaking up. “As you guessed back in the forest, I was indeed caught by a human once. It happened about half a year ago. A human came to this island and caught me, along with a certain Combee. One with a crimson mark.”

	CIS4’s six eyes widened as she heard that, and the orange-eyed Ledyba nodded at her. “Yes, the very Combee who would become Her Highness. That is how we got to know each other, actually, and how I became her most trusted ally. You see, that human caught us both, and kept us for a while to study us. He seemed very interested in our variant colorations, and he acted relatively friendly to us, to the point that we started to think that he might actually take us with him off this island. Both of us agreed that would be good, as we both felt like this island was too dangerous to live a happy life on. We hoped that he would take us from the island, to a safer place.”

	“But, obviously that didn’t happen,” CIS4 said.

	Taranza hung his head. “Indeed. In the end, he released us and left the island. We tried to follow him, but he told us that he was not allowed to take any Pokémon away from the island. We did not understand why that was so, but he was adamant in obeying that restriction. Though both of us wanted to assume that the human had a good reason for leaving us behind, we still felt betrayed. He was our only chance for leaving this island, and all the difficulties of living here. And he refused to help us.”

	“But he had a reason, right?” CIS4 asked. “You said that he was not allowed to take Pokémon off the island. Obviously, he didn’t leave you behind because he hated you or anything. It was just the rules.”

	“It doesn’t matter why he did it,” Taranza said. “What matters is the result. He left us, and although we both ended up becoming successful, with Her Highness creating a strong swarm and letting me join as her second-in-command, we still wish that he had brought us with him. That brings me to the point of why I’m telling you this: your human could very well do the same to you. He could abandon you here, and you would fare far worse than I or Her Highness did. I would not trust him if I were you.”

	“Well, thanks for the warning,” CIS4 said with narrowed eyes, “but I think I’m going to stay with him. Without him, I’m just an outcast. Whether or not he cares about me doesn’t matter. And I don’t care if he leaves me in the end. The point is, for now, I’m not alone anymore. And I’m not going to give that up!”

	Taranza was silent as CIS4 glared at him. For a time, only sound was the occasional wind rustling the tall grass, and the constant drone from the buzzing wings of the many insects gathered in the flower field. Then, Taranza spoke again.

	“Your determination is admirable,” he began, “and your reasoning understandable. And yet I repeat, do not trust that human. He might well betray you in the end just like the human who caught me. The companionship you have now will mean nothing, and you will become an outcast again. And if you wait until he leaves before returning to the wild, there will be far fewer opportunities for you to rebuild your swarm, due to the impending evolution of Her Highness. Once she evolves, you will have difficulty finding Combee to follow you that have not joined her swarm already. And without a swarm, you cannot last long.”

	“I already said I’m staying with him,” CIS4 said, undeterred by his words. “The point is, he’s helping me now, and I’d much rather be part of a group over being outcast again, even if it won’t last. And you know, come to think of it, there’s one thing about what you’re saying that doesn’t add up.”

	“What’s that?”

	“The fact that you’re trying to help me. I can’t believe that. You can’t be warning me about the human just for my own benefit.”

	“You’re saying you don’t think I’m being altruistic?” Taranza asked. “I’m insulted.”

	“Oh, come on, Taranza. You know as well as I do that altruism doesn’t exist on this island.”

	Taranza grinned. “You’re right. I was telling you those things in the hope that it could scare you into agreement, but it looks like a true debate is required to turn you. Listen well, outcast. I’ll reveal the true reason I’m telling you to leave the human: humans mean trouble for all Pokémon involved. My time with the human who caught me and Her Highness taught me that.”

	“What do you mean?”

	“Outcast, you have only been with that human for a short time. He caught you yesterday, if I remember what you said earlier correctly. You have not had enough time to learn what humans are truly like, beyond the rumors that drift around the island on occasion. But when I and Her Highness were caught, the human kept us for many days. During that time, he took us around the island, and we interacted with other humans. I heard things from him and the other humans, and that let me learn about their kind.”

	“And what did you learn?”

	“Humans are dangerous. Even in small numbers, they can be threatening. Indeed, even a lone human can overpower the strongest Pokémon so long as that human has the proper tools, and it seems as though the vast majority of them all do.”

	Into the forefront of CIS4’s mind drifted the strange ball that the human had used to capture her and subsequently prevent her from escaping. He used similar items to contain Scyther and Weavile, and prevent them from running free as well. Taranza certainly had a point. Humans did have powerful tools.

	“But they don’t all use their tools to hurt Pokémon,” CIS4 said, trying to find a hole in Tranza’s argument. “Look at the one who caught me. And the one who caught you, too. Even though he left you behind, he never hurt you out of cruelty, right?”

	“These two humans may have done no harm,” said Taranza, “but others may well do so. Besides, humans are a strange group. In traveling with the human who caught me, I heard many things that I could not understand. Humans are very different from us. Alien, even.”

	Again, CIS4 thought back to the human who caught her. She recalled how he had acted so kind to her after catching her, a trait that no leader would have on this island. She had considered it strange then, and she thought the same now. She also remembered the conversation with Weavile, in which Weavile had told her that the human usually acted nice, but his Pokémon still considered him a leader. Her memories corroborated Taranza’s words. Humans truly were different than Pokémon, especially the Combee of the island. Might made right amongst the Combee, while humans, either in their entirety or in part, had a less harsh view of leadership.

	“We cannot understand them, and that is dangerous,” Taranza continued. “Combined with their potential for using tools that can incapacitate even the most powerful Pokémon—and they do use these tools for this purpose, according to what I heard—how can they be trusted? They seek power, and their motives and actions can be alien. They are a threat. Come to think of it, I remember you saying before that the one who caught you is performing research. That makes him especially dangerous.”

	“How so?”

	“Because he is gaining knowledge, and who knows what he will use it for? We cannot understand the motivations of humans. He could use the information to harm us, or other humans could obtain it and do so themselves. It is too great a risk. If you stay with him and help him, he will learn about you, your kind, and this island at large. And the more information that humans know about us, the easier they can use that information against us.”

	“You really think humans are going to use their knowledge to hurt us?” CIS4 asked. She tried to sound bemused, but she found herself partially supporting Taranza’s argument. Humans were strange and powerful, and even if the one who had caught her had not hurt her and seemed to be in no hurry to do so, she would be surprised if all humans were as kind as him. Still, she argued against Taranza, in an effort to defend her own choices up to this point.

	“I don’t see why they would do try to hurt us,” she continued. “After all, the human that caught me hasn’t hurt me yet, and he has two other Pokémon that he doesn’t abuse. His Weavile seems to think highly of him, at least. And I’m sure plenty of other humans act the same way towards Pokémon.”

	“Even so, it is a risk I don’t want to take. My allegiance is to Her Highness and her swarm. She is so close to evolving, and we are so close to finding a place to put our castle. We cannot have humans traveling about our island, studying us, learning about where we are and how we act. And the uses to which they will put that information could very well hurt us all. Their motivations are alien, and what we cannot understand can hurt us so much easier. Therefore, we should not allow humans to learn about us, our castle, or Her Highness. Especially once she evolves.”

	“Why’s that?”

	“She’ll be the only Vespiquen on the island then. She’ll be rare, and therefore valuable to humans and their research. The same human who caught me made mention of this sort of thing, in fact. He once said to Her Highness that when she evolved, people would find her very interesting, as well as a good research subject. And as I have said before, I do not believe that allowing humans to research Pokémon can benefit us as a whole.”

	“I’m still not sure I believe you,” CIS4 said, though she only believed herself partially. “But if you were right, what would you want me to do?”

	“Simple: leave him. Staying with him will aid him in his studies, while fleeing now will cause a setback, as he would lose a very rare kind of Pokémon: a female Combee. Perhaps the setback would be big enough to put him off from researching the island to the point where he finds out about our castle. And the less information that they know about us, the better. So I tell you, outcast, you must leave the human. Do not let him learn about us.”

	Another silence, broken only by the hum of wings and the rustling of windblown grass, fell over the gathered Bug-types as CIS4 and Taranza pondered each other’s words. But before long, the Ledyba spoke again.

	“Look, think of it this way: just like how the Combee of this island divide themselves into rival groups, imagine that all the Pokémon of this island comprise one group, and the humans another. The Combee groups on this island constantly vie for members to increase their odds for survival, and they often clash with one another in their struggle to survive. This same model of competition can apply to these rival states, so to speak, of Pokémon and humans. But only when they interact at all.”

	“What are you talking about?” asked CIS4. “What does this have to do with me and the human?”

	“You see, conflict can only arise when groups come into contact with one another. Warring states only come about if states interact at all. If all the Combee of this island remained separate, they would never fight. This applies in our hypothetical example as well. The less interaction two groups have, the less chance of conflict there is. So, if Pokémon and humans remained separate, we would never have to risk humans using their knowledge against us. That is what I desire.”

	CIS4 stared at him, trying to formulate a reply. He made sense, but it still felt wrong to agree. Two groups, two states, really could only go to war if they ever interacted. If kept separate, they would never fight. Taranza had a point there, but she could not tell if it was the right one.

	“That’s why you want me to leave him?” she asked as she tried to formulate her perspective on the matter. “So that humans and Pokémon remain separate, and humans don’t learn about us and turn against us? But, come to think of it, it seems like there’s an easier way to stop humans from hurting Pokémon. If you’re so scared of the studies and research that the human who caught me is doing, why not just attack him and scare him off the island?”

	“That won’t work,” Taranza said with a shake of his head. “Like I said before, humans are very powerful. They have the advantage. We could potentially run this one human off the island if we fought hard enough, but it would be dangerous, and we can’t fight humans forever. The best choice is to stay away from them.”

	CIS4 glanced back at the human, standing above the valley and taking notes as he watched the gathered Pokémon below. “You’re doing a bad job of that right now,” she said.

	“We’re not making an effort in the first place,” Taranza snapped, “because there’s nothing to lose right now. Once we make our castle, things will change. Then, we need to remain hidden, for the human must not be allowed to locate the castle, which he very well might if he continues his studies.”

	“I still don’t know if—”

	“That’s enough,” said Taranza. “We have talked long enough. It is clear I cannot convince you. But time grows short, and we need to come to an agreement. So I propose this, outcast.”

	Taranza hovered closer to her, and CIS4 fought the urge to fly away. The Ledyba narrowed his orange eyes and growled, “You need to leave that human before we make our castle. If you don’t leave him by then, we might have to get a bit more persuasive with you.”

	“P-persuasive?” CIS4 stammered. Something in Taranza’s voice made her shudder.

	Taranza drifted back and stared at her for a moment. The next instant, he was an inch away from her with a fist flying at her bottom face. The attack was so fast that she could not avoid it, and it connected to send sharp pain surging through her. She screamed as she tumbled out of the air to the ground and landed heavily on her back. Laughter filled the air, and as she looked up at the swarm of Combee above her, and the Ledyba amongst them, she had a sudden flashback to the duel with her crimson-marked rival. This was the same situation—the laughter, the pain, the enemy swarm.

	All intermixed with that same gut-wrenching feeling of defeat.

	“That is a small taste what I mean by ‘persuasive’,” Taranza said. “Though I hate to have to resort to violence such as that, it is clear that diplomacy will not work here. You have left me no other choice. But I will give you time to reconsider and leave the human. If you do that, I will not harm you. But if you stay with him, you know what to expect.”

	He waved at his Combee and said to CIS4, “Now, I have spent too long talking. The swarm and I need to continue the search for a place to build our castle. I will see you later, outcast. Remember my words.”

	Taranza told the Combee to get moving. CIS4 watched them go as they flew north, and as she followed them with her eyes, she also saw the human running down the hill towards her, batting Combee away from him as the swarm flew past him. They passed him quickly, and he soon reached CIS4 and kneeled beside her with a sad expression.

	“Are you alright?” he asked. “I saw that Ledyba Mach Punch you. How do you feel?”

	The Combee buzzed weakly in response.

	“I see,” Vincent said. “Clearly, that attack hurt, and it might leave a mark, but you should be fine. Considering that it’s a rather weak move and you resist it well, I think you’ll be okay.”

	As he spoke, he again silently debated whether or not to heal her. But he had argued this point enough times already that he was starting to lose his determination to keep it up. He decided to refrain from healing her like he had before, as he did not want to keep debating. As such, he waited until CIS4 hovered off the ground, then told her to follow him.

	“You can make it without healing,” he said. “Let’s go.”

	CIS4 watched him go for a bit before slowly following him, disappointed that he was not healing her. As she flew, she thought back to Taranza’s words and wondered if he was right. Did the human really care about her? Would he leave her behind in the end, forcing her to become an outcast once more? And would he use what he learned from her to hurt Pokémon? Would fleeing like Taranza suggested really hinder the human enough to prevent such harm from coming to Pokémon?

	There were so many questions drifting about her mind that the Combee couldn’t come to any conclusions. But one thing stood out above the rest, as it involved a physical pain added to the thoughts it provoked. Namely, Taranza’s attack, and the threat of further violence. She knew that Taranza had no reason not to act on that threat, and yet, she did not feel as scared as she thought she might. As she flew after the human, the reason struck her: the human and his other two Pokémon could protect her. As long as she was with them, she felt safe. They had helped her out of her outcast status and given her companionship and support when she needed it, and even though she had only met them yesterday, she felt like she could trust them to help her in a fight. If she stayed with them, they could help her if the swarm attacked her, and so she did not feel as frightened of Taranza as she might have were she still an outcast.

	And yet, she knew that she was still in danger. The swarm would make good on Taranza’s threat if they got the chance. If she stayed with the human too long, she could very well be ambushed and attacked, and perhaps even killed, as soon as she was separated from him and his protection. Or, even more horrifically, they might not even bother to wait until she was away from him.

	Thoughts of death raced through her head, and she quickly flew to the human and hovered over his head, finding comfort in being within close proximity to him. She knew that despite the chance that he might abandon her, staying with him was her only chance at survival, especially now that Taranza had revealed his truly hostile intentions to her.

	Even if it earned the ire of Taranza, the crimson-marked warlord, and her entire swarm, she could not leave him. She realized now that Taranza’s threat had the opposite effect from what he had planned. He had intended his threat to goad her into leaving the human, but it only made her want to stay with him more. And she could not help but smirk.

	As Vincent crested and began to descend the current hill with CIS4 hovering over his head, a loud and high-pitched yelp suddenly rang out. Vincent jumped back, and both he and the Combee looked around for the source of the sound. After a few moments, Vincent finally looked down and saw a small green and yellow shape amongst the tall grass. It moved slightly, and as it shifted around, he realized it was a Sewaddle. Its coloration had concealed it in the grass, and he had not seen it until he had stepped on it.

	“Sorry about that,” he said. “I didn’t mean to—”

	CIS4 buzzed to get his attention, cutting him off and making him look up at her. She was looking down the hill, and Vincent followed her gaze to see what she was looking at. He stepped back in surprise as he saw Leavanny running up the hill towards him with eyes narrowed and arms aglow as it charged an attack.

	“Crud—that must be one of its parents,” Vincent said. “It probably heard its kid scream, and now it’s angry I stepped on it. Well, there’s only one thing to do.”

	He reached for a Poké Ball at his hip, prepared to send out Weavile or Scyther to fend off the angry wild Pokémon, but hesitated and looked up at CIS4. He knew that making her fight this enemy would surely end in her fainting, but he also knew that would let him complete his data collection that he had been unable to do all day so far. He continued to ponder and waver back and forth, but the approaching Leavanny put a time limit on his hesitation and forced him to act. As much as he regretted it, he decided to put CIS4 into battle.

	“CIS4, use Gust!” he said. The Combee looked down in shock, surprised that he would order her to fight in her current state. Taranza’s attack, though rather weak against her, had hurt her enough that she felt incapable of putting up a fight against anything at the moment, especially not a Pokémon such as Leavanny, which was far stronger than a Combee.

	“I said use Gust!” Vincent repeated. “Now!”

	CIS4 looked over at the running Leavanny. It would reach them in seconds. She had to choose whether or not to fight.

	“The human is counting on me,” she thought. “He’s not sending out another Pokémon. It’s up to me. I have to prove myself. I have to help him!”

	CIS4 drifted down in front of him and stared the Leavanny down. She buzzed her wings to churn up the air into a Gust attack and then launched the attack at the wild Pokémon. But to her terror, the attack did next to nothing to stop the enraged Leavanny. Pushed on by its determination to punish the one who had hurt its child, the Leavanny ignored the harsh wind and unleashed its Slash attack on the unfortunate Combee who stood in its way.

	CIS4 watched helplessly as the Leavanny’s bladelike arm cut her open, slicing her left and lower faces diagonally. In shock, she dropped to the ground as the Leavanny jumped over her and presumably attacked the human that had ordered her to fight, the one she could not defend. But she could not look, or even hear. Her senses were shutting down as hemolymph seeped from the gaping gash across her faces. With wide eyes, she stared into the slightly cloudy skies above and watched as the blue color bled out of the sky just as fast as she bled out on the ground. She should have been in agony, but to her surprise, she felt nothing at all.

	“That’s weird,” she thought as everything went dark.

	“I always thought death would be more painful.”


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