UselessBytes
Plays too much Yu-Gi-Oh!
- Joined
- Dec 6, 2015
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Chapter 1
Cameron Hills had always dreamed of discovering a new Pokémon. He’d spent hours and hours of his childhood sketching out crude drawings of imaginary Pokémon. He’d sit in the woods, just waiting and watching, hoping for something new to come crawling across his sneaker. Yes, he’d always dreamed of discovering a new Pokémon, but he never imagined it wouldn’t be as friendly as all the other creatures he’d come to know and love.
He ran and ran as his breath clouded before him, not daring to look back until he was as far away from that… that thing as possible. He couldn’t call for help- His spelunking buddy had his cellphone, and he was in another tunnel. Besides, it wasn’t like there was going to be any signal half a mile under the ground.
He could still hear the booming, rhythmic footfalls of the beast behind him. He wasn’t far enough. He kept running, his breathing ragged and irregular. He wouldn’t be able to keep this up much longer. Tears started to form in his eyes. If only he hadn’t been so quick to sprint off, maybe he would’ve been able to find the path to the surface. If only he hadn’t ditched his backpack, which held his Pokéballs, to get away faster, maybe he would’ve been able to fight back. If only…
All of a sudden, Cameron stopped running. He leaned up against the wall and stared at the pile of rock in front of him. He’d come to a dead end.
He fell to the ground, tears flowing freely. He considered scratching a message into the stone with his knife, describing what happened and making sure they went back and retrieved his Golem’s Pokéball. Yet, as he reached for the small knife on his belt, he let out a sad, sobbing laugh. It wasn’t as if anyone would see it. He curled up into a ball, laying on the cold ground and sobbing like a child, waiting for the monster to come end his life as the footfalls grew louder and louder.
And then suddenly, they were gone. The footfalls no longer echoed throughout the tunnel. Cameron choked back his sobs for a moment, looking back into the tunnel. The tunnel stayed silent, aside from the muffled sniffs coming from Cameron. He tentatively pulled himself off of the ground, squinting into the dim tunnel from which he had just came.
He waited for several minutes, expecting the deafening footsteps to resume at any moment, but they never did. He warily started back down the tunnel, hoping to make it back to his bag before the Pokémon returned. He wiped the slowly drying tears from his cheeks as he crept back down the tunnel, ready to take off in the other direction at the slightest sign of danger.
Surprisingly enough, the danger never came. Cameron made it all the way back to where he had dropped his backpack without hearing so much as a pebble dropping off of the walls. He reach down to the backpack to pick it up, but his hand froze as he heard the faintest hint of something very, very large exhaling.
Various thoughts and feelings raced through Cameron’s mind. Maybe he could start running again. Maybe he could get to his Pokéball in time to fight back. Maybe he could-
He let out a strangled scream as a large pincer-like claw snapped close over his midsection. He looked down, staring at the blood flowing over the edges of the pitch black claw. His mouth opened and closed as he attempted to form words, but only twisted gasps came out as the claw squeezed tighter, splattering blood on the ground around it.
Cameron let out a final, weak gasp as his vision started to dim. The deep red blood that painted the floor around him faded to black as consciousness finally abandoned him.
Looker stared at the body that had been recovered from the caves. The risk of death wasn’t uncommon this deep into the wilds of Poni Island, but he’d never seen a body this… decimated. Massive, jagged gashes cut through the man’s body in two places, nearly severing his body completely. His previously black hair was now stained reddish brown with his own dried blood, as was most of the rest of him.
He’d been told that the man had died no later than four hours ago. Whatever had so brutally slain him was probably still somewhere in the cave system, so Looker had the caves roped off until further notice. It was imperative that no one else get hurt before they figured out what had killed the man in front of him and contained it.
“I’m done, go ahead and zip it up.” Looker said, giving the medical examiner permission to close the body bag the body lay in.
The medical examiner turned to Looker, wiping the drying blood on his hands onto his sterile blue outfit. “Whatever did this was incredibly strong. The way his bones broke, it as if they weren’t even solid to begin with. In some places, the bones were little more than powder.” He looked down at the Pokédex in his hand. “In fact, the cave system he was found in is only inhabited by Golbat and Dugtrio. Whatever killed him wasn’t native.”
Looker shoved his hands into the deep pockets of his trenchcoat. “And what of the Pokémon native to Poni Island?”
The examiner shook his head. “Not likely. Bewear and Primeape both certainly have the strength to crush bone like that, but there isn’t a plausible explanation for the lacerations. A Gigalith could potentially make similar cuts, but they’re a predominantly peaceful species. All signs point to a non-native Pokémon, if it’s even a Pokémon that did this.”
“Well, what else could’ve done it?”
“There are several possibilities, but they all have some pretty big holes. Victreebel leaves similar gashes on any victims it bites down on, but the lack of any acid erosion rules it out for the most part. Crabominable certainly has the strength to crush bone with relative ease, but, like Gigalith, they’re a peaceful, reclusive species.”
Looker nodded. “Any others? How about Pinsir?”
“I thought of Pinsir, too, but there’s no sign of the toxin secreted from the thorns on a Pinsir’s pincers. I’m honestly at a loss for words. I’ve no idea what could’ve done this.” The medical examiner said, shaking his head.
“Did the attacker leave behind anything to identify it with? Something that might contain DNA?” Looker questioned.
“No idea. I sent his clothes off to the lab just in case, but it’ll be at least a couple days before we get the results.”
Looker scowled. “This is more frustrating than I anticipated. I had hoped such a brutal killing would make the attacker easier to identify.” Looker turned and opened the door to the hall outside of the examination room. “I’ll be taking a team into the caves to check out the scene of the attack. I want you on it.”
“Of course. When are we leaving?”
Looker paused. “Let’s say four hours. That’ll give me enough time to get permission to go in.” He took a step into the hallway, pausing once again. “What’s your name, kid?”
“Quenton Dallas, sir.” The medical examiner answered.
“Very well. I’ll see you in four hours, Quenton. And there’s no need to call me sir.” The door swung shut behind Looker, and the medical examiner turned back to his work.
“Well, you’re quite the mystery, aren’t you?” He said, addressing the body bag in front of him. “We’ll figure it out, though. Looker always does.”
Cameron Hills had always dreamed of discovering a new Pokémon. He’d spent hours and hours of his childhood sketching out crude drawings of imaginary Pokémon. He’d sit in the woods, just waiting and watching, hoping for something new to come crawling across his sneaker. Yes, he’d always dreamed of discovering a new Pokémon, but he never imagined it wouldn’t be as friendly as all the other creatures he’d come to know and love.
He ran and ran as his breath clouded before him, not daring to look back until he was as far away from that… that thing as possible. He couldn’t call for help- His spelunking buddy had his cellphone, and he was in another tunnel. Besides, it wasn’t like there was going to be any signal half a mile under the ground.
He could still hear the booming, rhythmic footfalls of the beast behind him. He wasn’t far enough. He kept running, his breathing ragged and irregular. He wouldn’t be able to keep this up much longer. Tears started to form in his eyes. If only he hadn’t been so quick to sprint off, maybe he would’ve been able to find the path to the surface. If only he hadn’t ditched his backpack, which held his Pokéballs, to get away faster, maybe he would’ve been able to fight back. If only…
All of a sudden, Cameron stopped running. He leaned up against the wall and stared at the pile of rock in front of him. He’d come to a dead end.
He fell to the ground, tears flowing freely. He considered scratching a message into the stone with his knife, describing what happened and making sure they went back and retrieved his Golem’s Pokéball. Yet, as he reached for the small knife on his belt, he let out a sad, sobbing laugh. It wasn’t as if anyone would see it. He curled up into a ball, laying on the cold ground and sobbing like a child, waiting for the monster to come end his life as the footfalls grew louder and louder.
And then suddenly, they were gone. The footfalls no longer echoed throughout the tunnel. Cameron choked back his sobs for a moment, looking back into the tunnel. The tunnel stayed silent, aside from the muffled sniffs coming from Cameron. He tentatively pulled himself off of the ground, squinting into the dim tunnel from which he had just came.
He waited for several minutes, expecting the deafening footsteps to resume at any moment, but they never did. He warily started back down the tunnel, hoping to make it back to his bag before the Pokémon returned. He wiped the slowly drying tears from his cheeks as he crept back down the tunnel, ready to take off in the other direction at the slightest sign of danger.
Surprisingly enough, the danger never came. Cameron made it all the way back to where he had dropped his backpack without hearing so much as a pebble dropping off of the walls. He reach down to the backpack to pick it up, but his hand froze as he heard the faintest hint of something very, very large exhaling.
Various thoughts and feelings raced through Cameron’s mind. Maybe he could start running again. Maybe he could get to his Pokéball in time to fight back. Maybe he could-
He let out a strangled scream as a large pincer-like claw snapped close over his midsection. He looked down, staring at the blood flowing over the edges of the pitch black claw. His mouth opened and closed as he attempted to form words, but only twisted gasps came out as the claw squeezed tighter, splattering blood on the ground around it.
Cameron let out a final, weak gasp as his vision started to dim. The deep red blood that painted the floor around him faded to black as consciousness finally abandoned him.
XXX
Looker stared at the body that had been recovered from the caves. The risk of death wasn’t uncommon this deep into the wilds of Poni Island, but he’d never seen a body this… decimated. Massive, jagged gashes cut through the man’s body in two places, nearly severing his body completely. His previously black hair was now stained reddish brown with his own dried blood, as was most of the rest of him.
He’d been told that the man had died no later than four hours ago. Whatever had so brutally slain him was probably still somewhere in the cave system, so Looker had the caves roped off until further notice. It was imperative that no one else get hurt before they figured out what had killed the man in front of him and contained it.
“I’m done, go ahead and zip it up.” Looker said, giving the medical examiner permission to close the body bag the body lay in.
The medical examiner turned to Looker, wiping the drying blood on his hands onto his sterile blue outfit. “Whatever did this was incredibly strong. The way his bones broke, it as if they weren’t even solid to begin with. In some places, the bones were little more than powder.” He looked down at the Pokédex in his hand. “In fact, the cave system he was found in is only inhabited by Golbat and Dugtrio. Whatever killed him wasn’t native.”
Looker shoved his hands into the deep pockets of his trenchcoat. “And what of the Pokémon native to Poni Island?”
The examiner shook his head. “Not likely. Bewear and Primeape both certainly have the strength to crush bone like that, but there isn’t a plausible explanation for the lacerations. A Gigalith could potentially make similar cuts, but they’re a predominantly peaceful species. All signs point to a non-native Pokémon, if it’s even a Pokémon that did this.”
“Well, what else could’ve done it?”
“There are several possibilities, but they all have some pretty big holes. Victreebel leaves similar gashes on any victims it bites down on, but the lack of any acid erosion rules it out for the most part. Crabominable certainly has the strength to crush bone with relative ease, but, like Gigalith, they’re a peaceful, reclusive species.”
Looker nodded. “Any others? How about Pinsir?”
“I thought of Pinsir, too, but there’s no sign of the toxin secreted from the thorns on a Pinsir’s pincers. I’m honestly at a loss for words. I’ve no idea what could’ve done this.” The medical examiner said, shaking his head.
“Did the attacker leave behind anything to identify it with? Something that might contain DNA?” Looker questioned.
“No idea. I sent his clothes off to the lab just in case, but it’ll be at least a couple days before we get the results.”
Looker scowled. “This is more frustrating than I anticipated. I had hoped such a brutal killing would make the attacker easier to identify.” Looker turned and opened the door to the hall outside of the examination room. “I’ll be taking a team into the caves to check out the scene of the attack. I want you on it.”
“Of course. When are we leaving?”
Looker paused. “Let’s say four hours. That’ll give me enough time to get permission to go in.” He took a step into the hallway, pausing once again. “What’s your name, kid?”
“Quenton Dallas, sir.” The medical examiner answered.
“Very well. I’ll see you in four hours, Quenton. And there’s no need to call me sir.” The door swung shut behind Looker, and the medical examiner turned back to his work.
“Well, you’re quite the mystery, aren’t you?” He said, addressing the body bag in front of him. “We’ll figure it out, though. Looker always does.”
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