Story Notes:
This story was meant to only be three chapters long, but it was going so well that I made it larger. I hope you all enjoy it.
Generations
Moltres looked around the inky blackness. He was no longer falling, instead hovering in the middle of the inky abyss. How long had he been here? Whenever he tried to think, his mind became fuzzy, stopping him from concentrating.
The darkness around him was strange. It didn't bring with it the feeling of nighttime, or danger, or anything else. In fact, Moltres was having trouble feeling any emotions at all. Everything had left him: Happiness, emotion, despair...All gone. Yet he was still definitely aware of himself. How was that possible?
He weakly tried to flap his wings, but they weren't actually there. He was simply a spirit, floating shapelessly inside the oily darkness. He briefly felt a stab of annoyance, but it too quickly faded.
The lack of a body reminded Moltres of a dream. The dream in which he was watching himself, the rising sun moving over him, the dot in the distance, the sky spotless...
Moltres wasn't sure how or when the shift occured, but suddenly he was inside the very dream he had been thinking about. He was watching through his own eyes again, and his field of vision was absolute, no detail unmissed, regardless of its location, even if it was directly behind him. He looked ahead, eager to once again analyse the mysterious mark he had become acquainted to. He felt a slight jolt of panic when he realised it wasn't there: The sky ahead was completely bare, no marks, no clouds, not even the coloured lights from last time. Moltres tried to look around the sky, wondering if it had moved elsewhere, but his head was unresponsive. His vision was suddenly limited to the empty patch of sky ahead, and he could see nothing else, not even the ground below. Was the ground even still there?
Moltres began to panic, trying with all his strength to shift his unmoving body. It refused to budge at all. Moltres was no longer in control of himself. He felt like a mindless puppet, flying ahead into an empty sky, barren of all existence.
He opened his beak, and began to scream, crying desperately for help.
The endless sky vanished, replaced by the back of his own eyelids. He opened his eyes and blinked slowly, not quite sure what he was seeing. He was lying on his front, inside what appeared to be a huge sphere of pale-yellow light, flying several hundred feet above the ground. Looking up, he could see the underside of a large flying man-made machine, with a device attached to the bottom that appeared to be holding the sphere in place.
He jumped as a male voice suddenly addressed him. Pushing himself awkwardly to his feet, and folding his wings, he turned to face an Articuno, standing calmly inside a yellow globe identical to his own. He could tell immediately that it wasn't the same Articuno he was friends with. In fact, in his opinion, this one looked nothing like the one he knew.
"Good to see you're awake." said the Articuno politely. "I'm Celox. Are you hurt at all?"
"No. I'm Moltres." he replied, in a voice much calmer than he personally felt. "What's going on here? The last thing I remember is being attacked by two humans."
Celox looked up at the machine above them. "Yeah, that sounds about right. They've got us attached to the bottom of a helicopter, and they seem to be taking us somewhere. I don't know where exactly, but I doubt it's good for our personal health. Any ideas how to get out?"
Moltres looked around at the transparent orb, and shook his head. He had been in a situation like this once before, but this time, nobody was showing up to help. "Assuming you've tried blasting the sphere, not really. You?"
Celox sighed, also shaking his head. "I'm afraid not. Attacking these spheres doesn't seem to do anything much, and even if we broke free, Articuno's still not awake."
Moltres suddenly felt sick. His eyes bulged, and he spread his wings automatically, the elbow joints colliding with the wall of the sphere. "Articuno is here!?" he demanded, his voice rasping. "Where is she?!"
Blinking, Celox extended one of his wings, gesturing out ahead of their flight path. Moltres followed his gaze, and he scowled at what he saw, feeling like he was about to throw up. Articuno was suspended under a second machine, lying prone on the bottom of her sphere, just as Moltres had been mere minutes earlier.
Moltres growled, his body-flames flaring high. A red mist slowly descended over his eyes, and he felt dizzy. The world began to sway around him again, his flames searing so high he couldn't see through them anymore. His flame aura was beyond his control, and he tossed his head back. He opened his beak and screamed again, this time his voice filled by an unparalleled fury, anger and hatred warping the very air around him as his flames shot ever higher.
Celox stepped back instinctively as the flames on the Moltres' back grew to over a metre tall. His heart thumping in his chest, Celox covered his face with his wing, just as an enormous jet of flame burst from the fire bird's mouth. The flames barreled into the side of the Moltres' sphere, a bloodcurdling scream filling the air as it connected. Celox winced as a cracking pain darted across his abdomen, vanishing as quickly as it came. He slowly lowered his wing from his face, just in time to see the Moltres shoot another barrage of flames into the globe, the fire on its body still growing higher. The flames scattered across the curved wall of the sphere, turning it a pure red, and Celox stumbled as his entire body was blanketed in a writhing, darting pain, his head swimming. Red dots flew past his vision, leaving black streaks wherever they travelled. He tried to shout to the Moltres to stop, but his voice failed him. He forced himself to look up at the bird again, and was instantly terrified by what he saw.
The Moltres was no longer actively shooting flames, nor was it preparing any more. Instead, its entire body was glowing a bright, dangerous yellow, its body-flames spanning the entire sphere. The pupils of its eyes had vanished, and what remained of its eyes had turned a dark, evil red. The Moltres tossed back its head again, releasing another ear-piercing screech, and then charged forward towards the curved wall, its body beginning to glow pure white just as it contacted. It touched the edge of the sphere, and Celox's vision was suddenly filled with the same pure, unerring whiteness. He heard a series of explosions, the sound vibrating through his body painfully. Just as he thought he could take no more, a loud, painful cracking sound burst through his head, and suddenly the noise was muted.
He felt the sphere disappear beneath his feet, and he fell, tumbling downwards towards the unseen ground, his wings unresponsive. He was falling downwards, towards his death, unable to save himself or even hear his own screams.
Celox turned his head into the rushing air, and cried silently as he waited to hit the ground.
Moltres felt the air rushing past him, drops of blood being swept away from his face, being left behind in the air above him. In his blind rage, he had overheated himself, and now he was weak, and dangerously tired. But he still had Articuno to think of, and that alone was reason enough to not give up. He braced himself against the barrier of air, and flared his wings, decelerating his fall.
He gave a short, painful yell as a great weight fell onto his back, sending him tumbling downwards again, his wings snapping up above him. He looked over his shoulder, and saw Celox lying across his back, crying softly, with his wings spread out at awkward angles. Moltres glanced downwards again, and saw the forest rushing up to meet him. He forced his wings down, catching the air once again, and shifted his wings quickly forward. He levelled out, and skimmed narrowly across the treetops, branches lashing painfully against his underside. He slowly tilted his wings back, using the speed from his fall to gain as much altitude as he could manage. Celox slipped off his back, shrieking briefly before lightly hitting the tops of the trees, fading from sight as he slowly fell through the branches.
Moltres felt his remaining strength slipping away from him. He pumped his wings as hard as he could, gradually rising further into the air. He pushed himself forwards, chasing the distant sphere with Articuno inside, the flying machine attached to it accelerating away from him. He heard a loud crash in the distance behind him, and paid it no mind, focusing all his thoughts on the next painful thrust of his tired wings.
He eventually reached an equal height to the flying machine, and closed in quickly, gliding alongside it. Articuno was awake now, and was looking through the sphere at Moltres with a peculiar mix of horror and excitement.
Moltres looked up and screamed suddenly as the flying machine suddenly swung towards him, the vortex created by the spinning blades sucking him in, closer and closer. He heard a female human voice cackling evilly as he fought against the incredible pull of the deadly blades. He forced his wings to work, resisting the pull with all his might, but realised he was fighting a losing battle. If he were at full strength, he might have managed to escape, but in his current condition, it was amazing that he was even still airborne at all.
Moltres groaned, and decided to depend on the only thing he had left. His throat retched painfully as he readied another blast of searing fire, and he opened his beak, a ball of flames charging into the blades, passing through them. The shifting air currents immediately scattering them all over the rest of the machine. The blades began to jam as the flames melted the machinery that worked them, and a small explosion suddenly rocked the side of the machine, knocking it off balance. Moltres pumped his wings one final time, forcing himself away from the blades' weakened pull, and glided a short distance away, watching as the flames quickly crept to cover the entire machine. He saw a human figure dive from a side door as the machine began to spiral downwards, clutching a pair of backpacks tightly in her hands. Moltres watched her plummet towards the ground below.
Before the human landed, however, he pulled his eyes away. A final large explosion signaled that the machine generating the yellow orb had finally taken too much damage from the flames, and had combusted dramatically. The sphere vanished almost instantly, and Articuno, prepared for the moment, pointed her body downwards, diving away from the spiralling column of debris. She rose quickly, her powerful wings assisting her fast climb, and she gradually drew level with Moltres, smiling to him appreciatively.
"To the mountain!" she called. Moltres was too weak to argue, and so glided through her slipstream as she turned and flew away, back towards the mountain. He felt his strength fading away again slowly, and focused his eyes on Articuno's billowing, waving tail, telling himself to keep it in sight, no matter what. He had to reach that mountain.
The flight to the mountain seemed to take forever. With every tiring pump of his wings, a stabbing pain went through Moltres' chest, like a tiny dagger being continually thrust into his feathers. Eventually, they reached a ridge near the top of the mountain. Articuno landed gracefully on the ledge, and Moltres followed significantly less gracefully, stumbling forward as he struggled to make his feet hold his weight. Articuno gestured warmly to a cave entrance in the side of the wall.
"We're there." she smiled. "Come on inside."
Moltres was too tired to wonder what 'here' was. She walked into the cave, and Moltres followed, his chest burning and his face still smeared with blood. He paused and looked up at the cave as it widened out. It was surprisingly homey. It consisted of a short tunnel that opened up into a much larger cavern. Despite his tiredness, he took a few seconds to admire it.
Articuno smiled at him. "Like it? There's two other caves just like this one around the other side."
Moltres nodded weakly, and tried to reply, but he was too exhausted to complete a sentence. Articuno nuzzled him, smiling.
"Here," she said, wrapping a wing around him lightly and pulling him close. "I have something to make you feel better."
Moltres stepped up to her, and she puffed her chest forward, tiliting her head back and to the side, presenting herself. "Inside my chest feathers. Take a look."
Blinking slowly, but still too tired to question her, Moltres lowered his head, poking his beak slowly through her pure-white chest feathers, careful not to untidy them. After a few seconds of searching, his beak touched something solid. He grabbed onto it softly, and pulled it loose from the plumage.
Articuno smiled as he looked down his beak. The item was a small, colourful berry, covered in a thin layer of sticky sap. It didn't look much like any food he had seen before. Articuno tickled his beak toyfully with her wingtip. "Go on, eat it. It'll heal you up."
He still wasn't completely sure about eating an unfamiliar food, but he trusted Articuno's word, and swallowed the berry whole. His eyes widened immediately. Before it was even all the way down his throat, he began to feel better. His strength returned to him, his eyes were no longer stinging, and his chest and wings felt perfect. He opened his mouth, his voice finally normal again. "Wow." he announced.
Articuno giggled. "It's quite the berry, isn't it? I always carry one with me. I eat it whenever it seems neccessary. Though, you were more deserving of it this time."
Moltres tossed his head, neatening his feathers. He blinked suddenly, looking back at her. "Hang on, what do you mean by that?"
Articuno stepped forward, looking up into his eyes. "You just rescued me from a bunch of violent humans. I owe you my life, and then some."
Moltres blushed, moving his head back from hers. "Oh, um, it was nothing. Anyone in my situation would have done the same, right?"
Articuno stepped forward again, her deep red eyes still locked on his, smiling warmly. "But nobody else would of been in that situation. You chased me hundreds of miles before you found me here.".
Stuttering and blushing through his feathers, Moltres turned his head away. "I guess so. But what does it matter?"
Reaching up, Articuno placed one wing softly on his side, gently wiping the remaining blood off his face with the other. "It matters a lot. You were thinking of me, like I was thinking of you." She moved forward, resting her head against his chest, stirring his feathers affectionately with her beak. "The entire time I've been here, I've been thinking of you. Even when I was with Celox, I've been imagining you, and wondering what you were doing and where you were. And a few other things as well."
Moltres turned his head back, eyes bulging in alarm as he realised what she was about to say. She tilted her head back and smiled, looking back up into his eyes, stroking his chest slowly with her wing.
"Moltres," she whispered. "I love you."
His heart thumping loudly in his chest, Moltres opened and then closed his mouth, unsure what to say. Articuno removed the need to, by speaking again. "Moltres, I love you, and I know you love me as well."
Moltres inhaled sharply, heart beating faster. "What do you mean? How do you know that?"
"It's obvious." she smiled. "You never talked to me for weeks at a time, and then when you finally did, you would always stutter and evade questions. Yet despite how uncomfortable you always seemed, you always came back to talk again. Then, when I left the islands, you followed me, despite not apparently having a reason. You chased me for hundreds of miles, across land and sea. And then, at the risk of your own life, you saved me from a horrible fate in the hands of the humans, even overheating yourself in your desire to save me."
Moltres immediately opened his beak to argue, but could not find any words. As she looked down into her large, glowing eyes, the truth gradually dawned on him. He slowly began to smile as he looked into her eyes, suddenly feeling incredibly at peace. How could he have not realised it sooner? When he finally replied, he knew what he wanted to say, and said them with no hesitation. "You're right. I do love you. And I'm sorry for never telling you."
Articuno giggled, hugging closer to him. "You never told me because you only just worked it out yourself. I know those eyes."
Sighing, Moltres chuckled as well. "Yeah, you saw right through that one."
Articuno nodded, rubbing against his feathers with her head again. "And now, since you've finally come to realise it.." She moved her head away from his chest, and bought the rest of her body forward, pushing her belly gently against his and wrapping her wings around him. "...Maybe you'd like to enjoy me a little more...physically?" she giggled.
Moltres stared down at her in alarm, shifting his wings beneath her grip. "Wh-what do you mean?"
Articuno grinned, her tail creeping between her legs and tickling his underbelly. "I owe you my life and my heart, Moltres. Now I want you to take my body as well."
Moltres moved his head back from hers again, feeling uncertain. "B-but...I haven't ever..."
Stroking her wing softly down his chest again, she rubbed her head affectionately under his beak. "Everything in the world has to have a first time."
Moltres took a tiny step backwards, still nervous. "B-but I..d-don't know how..."
"...How to do it?" Articuno finished with another giggle. She hugged him tighter with her wings, waving her feathers through his, and began to stroke his underbelly with her tailtip again. "There's nothing to it. All you need is a little encouragement."
With that, her tail flicked forward between his legs, tickling and rubbing at his privates. Moltres groaned softly, shuddering as the soft tailtip passed over his slit. The soft feathers continued rubbing at him, darting along it, and Moltres' groan grew in volume as his tip began to poke through his feathers. Articuno bent her knees, slowly, lowering her body down and releasing one of her wings from the hug. She brought the wing around to Moltres' front, placing it flat against his chest and running it slowly down his belly. Moltres gasped pleasurably and spread his wings as the wing stroked at his length, and he lowered his waist down into the wing in response, more of his shaft sliding gradually from his slit. Articuno lowered down even further, looking down hungrily at the huge length as it approached its full stature. She began to lean backwards, pulling Moltres with her, falling lightly backwards to lie face-up underneath him. She slowly wrapped the end of her wing around the shaft as it grew, pumping lightly along it. Molres began to pant, thrusting his hips lightly down into the pumping, the tip of his length poking at Articuno's belly as he stood over her, leaving a tiny drop of pre. His thrusting aroused her deeply, and see spread her legs wide, swaying her tail on the ground behind her. A brilliant scent began to fill Moltres' nostrils, and he groaned, stepping backwards slowly and lying his shaft behind her legs, the tip right next to her slit.
Articuno moaned as the tip touched near her privates, the heat emanating from it filling her with desire. She tilted her head back, staring wantingly up at Moltres, his wings still spread. She stretched herself out comfortably and stroked the tip of her own wing down his chest lightly, causing him to shudder, bucking his hips forward.
The thrust caused his tip to penetrate her slit lightly, and she immediately groaned, filled with pleasure as the tip began to push her apart. Moltres shut his eyes, shifting and bracing his talons against the rocks and lowering his hips into her. His long shaft began to penetrate deep inside her, pushing against her wet, warm insides. Articuno spread her legs even further, singing out purely as the hot length pushed at her walls, her entrance dripping as her scent filled the ear.
Moltres swayed, flapping his wings to keep his balance. He curved his back away, panting loudly and groaning as he suddenly thrust the rest of his length powerfully into her. Articuno cried out pleasurably, her tight walls covering his cock with hot, sticky liquid. He groaned again as he started to pull out, only to push firmly in again, his long length again penetrating the confines of her tight slit. He began to thrust faster, grunting and moaning continuous, waves of heat billowing off him as pleasure overtook him.
Articuno groaned as well, her legs twitching as the huge length penetrated her again and again, spreading her ever further. She sighed lovingly as the waves of heat washed over her, filling every inch of her body with desire for that strong shaft. She began to push her hips up against the length, matching the rhythm of Moltres' thrusts, her slick walls squeezing at the shaft every time it pulled back. She spread her wings out wide, tilting her head back and releasing a loud cry of ecstasy, her slit aching to be filled with Moltres' hot seed.
Moltres continued thrusting strongly into her, burying his length deep within her slit. He groaned even louder as he felt his climax approach, and he began to thrust even harder, pushing his shaft as deep inside her as he could. He continued to thrust as he tried to hold back his orgasm, but was unable to stop himself. Tossing his head back and crying out loudly, he gave one final huge thrust into Articuno as he climaxed, waves of pleasure rocking through him from head to tail, his body swaying back and forth. His cock throbbed heavily, releasing long, hard streams of hot cum into her, her walls squeezing and milking him out as he filled her with his white, ropey seed. Articuno cried out as well moments later, the feeling of the cock throbbing inside her pushing her over the edge as well. Ecstasy began to sweep over her whole body, stretching all the way to her wingtips and along her entire form, her walls squeezing tight at the pulsing length as her whole body shook from pleasure.
The immense sensations slowly began to fade, and Moltres gradually began to lower his head, his eyes still shut. Both of them panting, Moltres shifted his legs slowly, leaning forward and lying down softly on top of Articuno without disturbing the cock from inside her. Articuno sighed contently as he laid down on top of her, the warmth of his body sinking through her, and she laid her tail lightly across his back. Moltres rubbed his beak through her feathers affectionately, panting tiredly. Articuno gently rested her head against his, and they stared directly into each other's eyes, lying there silently. Moltres felt his length gradually start to retreat from within her, and she groaned once more as it slipped out of her slit, moving slowly back into its own. Moltres began to shut his eyes, nuzzling Articuno with his beak, before slowly opening them again, lifting her head up lightly to speak to her, a tiny, satisfied smile covering his face.
"...You wouldn't happen to have another one of those berries, would you?"
In the back of his mind, Celox wondered how long he had been lying on the ground, covered in twigs and leaves and seeing nothing but white. It had easily been at least half an hour by now. He knew that he was been stared at by wild Pokemon, standing around him in a circle. He had occasionally felt them move around, and one of them had been daring enough to touch him a few minutes earlier. Regardless, he didn't care, neither about their staring, or how strange he looked.
What if he really did stay like this forever? Blind and deaf, all but cut off from the world around him? How would he hunt? How would he even get home? The line of thought triggered another round of soft crying, tears wetting grass he couldn't even see. It was a horrible feeling. He had a horrible feeling he would never get used to it.
Celox suddenly gasped as he saw something. Through the field of white, he had seen a tiny shade of darker colour, the colour of his own eyelids. He laid still, panting excitedly, becoming more and more estatic as his vision slowly and steadily began to return. First he saw the dull red of his eyelids, lit by sunlight, then he opened them and started to see the woods before him. He waited until his entire field of vision was back to normal, and then pushed himself to his feet in one stroke, spreading his wings and giving a loud, triumphant shout to the wind. At last, he could see again. He was watching the green of the trees, and the blue and white sky above. Never before had he appreciated the blessing of sight to such a degree.
Looking slowly around him, he saw a circle of tiny forest Pokemon, staring up at him. He suddenly became self-conscious about their presense. He smirked down at them. "I'm better now. Go away. Nothing to see any more." His grin wided even further as he realised that he could now begin to hear again as well.
Apparently, the Pokemon thought Celox was still very interesting, for all but a few of them stayed where they were. The Articuno grinned, and raised his wings, releasing a billowing wave of ice-cold air towards the onlookers, making them shiver and step back from the freezing cold. "There. That's your souvenir. Now get going before I eat all of you."
As soon as he said it, the Pokemon darted away at top speed. The area was bare of the onlookers within seconds. He gave a satisfied nod, and raised his eyes to look up at the sky again. Articuno was probably at the mountain, assuming that the Moltres had managed to rescue her, so that was probably the best place to go. He spread his wings, a newfound love for life settled comfortably in his mind, and sailed into the air.
Moltres and Articuno slowly walked outside the cave onto the ledge, looking out over the lush, green forest.
"I like it here when there's no humans about." smiled Moltres, draping his wing over Articuno. "Do you want to stay here for a couple more days?"
"Absolutely," nodded Articuno, rubbing her head against his feathers.
"..Then it's settled." grinned Moltres. "We'll stay here for a few more days, and enjoy the sunshine." He paused, focusing on something down near the forest. "Changing the subject a little, is that Celox just there?"
Articuno turned her head sharply. Indeed, Celox was flying up the mountain towards them, and approaching fast. By the time she had finished wondering what he wanted, he was hovering in front of them, blinking at the sight of Moltres with his wing over her.
"Um...Hi, Moltres." Celox said awkwardly. "How's things?"
Moltres nuzzled Articuno's chest feathers softly with his long beak. "Pretty good, to say the least. Hello again, by the way"
"I was just wondering, may I talk to Articuno for a minute before leaving?"
Articuno didn't think Celox would take 'no' for an answer anyway. "Let's just move over here. Back in a sec!" she added to Moltres.
Celox landed on the ledge, and hopped a fair distance from Moltres, who was politely moving out of earshot. Articuno followed Celox slowly along the ledge.
"I didn't know you and Moltres were friends." inquired Celox once they were far enough away.
Articuno blushed. "We're more than that now, actually. So what is it you wanted to say?"
Celox looked at the ground. "Nothing, really. I just wanted to say goodbye. And to wish you luck with your new partner." he added with a smile. "No hard feelings or anything?"
Articuno shook her head. "Of course not. You're a nice guy, and I like you."
"Good to hear. By the way, have you told him yet?" he asked, tipping his head towards Moltres.
"About earlier? Not yet, but I will in a little while." She smiled warmly. "Have a safe trip home, okay?"
"I will, thank you. And may we meet again." Celox smiled back.
Articuno nodded in agreement, and Celox spread his wings, flying off the ledge. He gave a casual turn and nod of his head as a final goodbye, and he slowly faded into the distance.
Moltres and Articuno spent three more days at the mountain. They had sex every evening, and Articuno told Moltres the truth about Celox. He didn't mind at all, and took the entire matter light-heartedly. Articuno was glad that he was so understanding.
Eventually, it was time for them to head home, and they bade farewell to the mountain. Articuno mentioned just before they left that they would probably end up visiting again in the future.
The flight home was cheerful and carefree. They took several short detours to view some attractions along the way, including a large city full of humans and Pokemon ("I guess living like that would be kind of exciting" remarked Moltres). As they approached the sea, they momentarily stopped near the shore, and Articuno taught Moltres some good places to find the berries she was fond of carrying. They tried to stick one to his chest with tree sap, but his body-flames kept simply burning them to crisps within seconds. Undeterred, they ate some of the remaining berries as a final meal before they started across the sea, and then set off for the final leg home.
When they arrived back, Zapdos was sitting silently on his crater, as he often did. He gave a small nod to the pair of them as they flew past, a knowing smile creeping slowly onto his face. Neither of them paid any attention to it, and they took off for a flight around the islands, quietly celebrating their return home. Eventually, Zapdos flew from his perch to join them, and the three of them flew in formation about the islands, laughing merrily as they had the most casual and friendly conversation in the history of their lives.
Stolid and Tracey huddled before the gigantic video screen. Even when he wasn't in an enlarged view, Giovanni in an angry mood was a sight to behold..and to be feared.
"It is beyond me how anyone could possibly fail this miserably." he growled. "There's nothing left to go on with at this point. I'm shutting down this entire project."
"What!?" cried Tracey. "But what-"
"Silence." interrupted Giovanni. He hadn't shouted, but Tracey flinched as though he had screamed at the top of his lungs. "You fools lost three force-field generators, two helicopters and a fortune in top-quality surveillance equipment!" Neither Tracey or Stolid dared to speak, and he continued. "I will not tolerate failure under any circumstances, especially these. I'm not only shutting down the project, I'm deporting you two bumblers out of the region!"
"Um...Where to, sir?" asked Stolid quietly.
"I think Kanto should suit you nicely." Giovanni smirked, scratching his Persian's head. "The weather is lovely this time of year, and I'm sure you'll make excellent Pokemon trainers."
"What?! Bu-but sir!" Tracey stuttered. "I'm no good at battling! I'm an agent, not a fighter, sir!"
Giovanni chuckled evilly. "Which is exactly why I'm doing it. Besides, you could hardly be as bad a trainer as you were an agent. Now, get out of my sight. You will be assigned to the Saffron City base, and travel periodically to Viridian and Celadon for training. Do you have that memorized?"
Tracey started to speak out again, but Stolid spoke over her. "Saffron, Viridian, Celadon. Should be easy, sir, they're all named after colours."
"I know." Giovanni frowned. "Now leave."
The video screen deactivated, a white flash quickly fading in the centre of it. A few moments of silence ensued, and then Tracey started to cry.
It was late at night, several weeks later. Moltres was sleeping comfortably inside his favourite cave, the walls and floor completely blackened from his scorching body-flames. He was woken from his peaceful sleep by the noise of fluttering wings outside, and he raised his head.
"Who's there?" he whispered.
Articuno stepped inside the cave, her body illuminated by his flames. "It's me. You've got to come and see something. Hurry."
With that, she turned around again, and flew away. Moltres, having no other real option, stood up and ran out of the cave, lifting off after her.
His keen eyes spotted her easily in the dark as she travelled back to Ice Island. He followed her curiously, landing inside the crater a few seconds after her.
"So what're we-" he began, but Articuno silenced him, and gestured him to step into the cave. He followed her inside, blinking at how much longer it was than his own. They went around a curve, and as his flames lit up the inside, Moltres knew instantly what he was looking at. A large sky-blue Pokemon egg was sitting in a nest of grated ice, and it was wiggling back and forth, ready to hatch. Moltres' beak fell open. "This is mine!?" he whispered urgently.
Articuno nodded, and then shushed him again, staring excitedly at the egg. "It's hatching!" she cried softly, as a tiny crack appeared at the top of the egg.
Moltres watched with bulging eyes as the crack slowly crept down the egg, reaching to split it in two. His heart thumped in his chest as the shell began to fall apart.
"You mean...I'm a father?"
"Yes."
The End
The darkness around him was strange. It didn't bring with it the feeling of nighttime, or danger, or anything else. In fact, Moltres was having trouble feeling any emotions at all. Everything had left him: Happiness, emotion, despair...All gone. Yet he was still definitely aware of himself. How was that possible?
He weakly tried to flap his wings, but they weren't actually there. He was simply a spirit, floating shapelessly inside the oily darkness. He briefly felt a stab of annoyance, but it too quickly faded.
The lack of a body reminded Moltres of a dream. The dream in which he was watching himself, the rising sun moving over him, the dot in the distance, the sky spotless...
Moltres wasn't sure how or when the shift occured, but suddenly he was inside the very dream he had been thinking about. He was watching through his own eyes again, and his field of vision was absolute, no detail unmissed, regardless of its location, even if it was directly behind him. He looked ahead, eager to once again analyse the mysterious mark he had become acquainted to. He felt a slight jolt of panic when he realised it wasn't there: The sky ahead was completely bare, no marks, no clouds, not even the coloured lights from last time. Moltres tried to look around the sky, wondering if it had moved elsewhere, but his head was unresponsive. His vision was suddenly limited to the empty patch of sky ahead, and he could see nothing else, not even the ground below. Was the ground even still there?
Moltres began to panic, trying with all his strength to shift his unmoving body. It refused to budge at all. Moltres was no longer in control of himself. He felt like a mindless puppet, flying ahead into an empty sky, barren of all existence.
He opened his beak, and began to scream, crying desperately for help.
The endless sky vanished, replaced by the back of his own eyelids. He opened his eyes and blinked slowly, not quite sure what he was seeing. He was lying on his front, inside what appeared to be a huge sphere of pale-yellow light, flying several hundred feet above the ground. Looking up, he could see the underside of a large flying man-made machine, with a device attached to the bottom that appeared to be holding the sphere in place.
He jumped as a male voice suddenly addressed him. Pushing himself awkwardly to his feet, and folding his wings, he turned to face an Articuno, standing calmly inside a yellow globe identical to his own. He could tell immediately that it wasn't the same Articuno he was friends with. In fact, in his opinion, this one looked nothing like the one he knew.
"Good to see you're awake." said the Articuno politely. "I'm Celox. Are you hurt at all?"
"No. I'm Moltres." he replied, in a voice much calmer than he personally felt. "What's going on here? The last thing I remember is being attacked by two humans."
Celox looked up at the machine above them. "Yeah, that sounds about right. They've got us attached to the bottom of a helicopter, and they seem to be taking us somewhere. I don't know where exactly, but I doubt it's good for our personal health. Any ideas how to get out?"
Moltres looked around at the transparent orb, and shook his head. He had been in a situation like this once before, but this time, nobody was showing up to help. "Assuming you've tried blasting the sphere, not really. You?"
Celox sighed, also shaking his head. "I'm afraid not. Attacking these spheres doesn't seem to do anything much, and even if we broke free, Articuno's still not awake."
Moltres suddenly felt sick. His eyes bulged, and he spread his wings automatically, the elbow joints colliding with the wall of the sphere. "Articuno is here!?" he demanded, his voice rasping. "Where is she?!"
Blinking, Celox extended one of his wings, gesturing out ahead of their flight path. Moltres followed his gaze, and he scowled at what he saw, feeling like he was about to throw up. Articuno was suspended under a second machine, lying prone on the bottom of her sphere, just as Moltres had been mere minutes earlier.
Moltres growled, his body-flames flaring high. A red mist slowly descended over his eyes, and he felt dizzy. The world began to sway around him again, his flames searing so high he couldn't see through them anymore. His flame aura was beyond his control, and he tossed his head back. He opened his beak and screamed again, this time his voice filled by an unparalleled fury, anger and hatred warping the very air around him as his flames shot ever higher.
Celox stepped back instinctively as the flames on the Moltres' back grew to over a metre tall. His heart thumping in his chest, Celox covered his face with his wing, just as an enormous jet of flame burst from the fire bird's mouth. The flames barreled into the side of the Moltres' sphere, a bloodcurdling scream filling the air as it connected. Celox winced as a cracking pain darted across his abdomen, vanishing as quickly as it came. He slowly lowered his wing from his face, just in time to see the Moltres shoot another barrage of flames into the globe, the fire on its body still growing higher. The flames scattered across the curved wall of the sphere, turning it a pure red, and Celox stumbled as his entire body was blanketed in a writhing, darting pain, his head swimming. Red dots flew past his vision, leaving black streaks wherever they travelled. He tried to shout to the Moltres to stop, but his voice failed him. He forced himself to look up at the bird again, and was instantly terrified by what he saw.
The Moltres was no longer actively shooting flames, nor was it preparing any more. Instead, its entire body was glowing a bright, dangerous yellow, its body-flames spanning the entire sphere. The pupils of its eyes had vanished, and what remained of its eyes had turned a dark, evil red. The Moltres tossed back its head again, releasing another ear-piercing screech, and then charged forward towards the curved wall, its body beginning to glow pure white just as it contacted. It touched the edge of the sphere, and Celox's vision was suddenly filled with the same pure, unerring whiteness. He heard a series of explosions, the sound vibrating through his body painfully. Just as he thought he could take no more, a loud, painful cracking sound burst through his head, and suddenly the noise was muted.
He felt the sphere disappear beneath his feet, and he fell, tumbling downwards towards the unseen ground, his wings unresponsive. He was falling downwards, towards his death, unable to save himself or even hear his own screams.
Celox turned his head into the rushing air, and cried silently as he waited to hit the ground.
Moltres felt the air rushing past him, drops of blood being swept away from his face, being left behind in the air above him. In his blind rage, he had overheated himself, and now he was weak, and dangerously tired. But he still had Articuno to think of, and that alone was reason enough to not give up. He braced himself against the barrier of air, and flared his wings, decelerating his fall.
He gave a short, painful yell as a great weight fell onto his back, sending him tumbling downwards again, his wings snapping up above him. He looked over his shoulder, and saw Celox lying across his back, crying softly, with his wings spread out at awkward angles. Moltres glanced downwards again, and saw the forest rushing up to meet him. He forced his wings down, catching the air once again, and shifted his wings quickly forward. He levelled out, and skimmed narrowly across the treetops, branches lashing painfully against his underside. He slowly tilted his wings back, using the speed from his fall to gain as much altitude as he could manage. Celox slipped off his back, shrieking briefly before lightly hitting the tops of the trees, fading from sight as he slowly fell through the branches.
Moltres felt his remaining strength slipping away from him. He pumped his wings as hard as he could, gradually rising further into the air. He pushed himself forwards, chasing the distant sphere with Articuno inside, the flying machine attached to it accelerating away from him. He heard a loud crash in the distance behind him, and paid it no mind, focusing all his thoughts on the next painful thrust of his tired wings.
He eventually reached an equal height to the flying machine, and closed in quickly, gliding alongside it. Articuno was awake now, and was looking through the sphere at Moltres with a peculiar mix of horror and excitement.
Moltres looked up and screamed suddenly as the flying machine suddenly swung towards him, the vortex created by the spinning blades sucking him in, closer and closer. He heard a female human voice cackling evilly as he fought against the incredible pull of the deadly blades. He forced his wings to work, resisting the pull with all his might, but realised he was fighting a losing battle. If he were at full strength, he might have managed to escape, but in his current condition, it was amazing that he was even still airborne at all.
Moltres groaned, and decided to depend on the only thing he had left. His throat retched painfully as he readied another blast of searing fire, and he opened his beak, a ball of flames charging into the blades, passing through them. The shifting air currents immediately scattering them all over the rest of the machine. The blades began to jam as the flames melted the machinery that worked them, and a small explosion suddenly rocked the side of the machine, knocking it off balance. Moltres pumped his wings one final time, forcing himself away from the blades' weakened pull, and glided a short distance away, watching as the flames quickly crept to cover the entire machine. He saw a human figure dive from a side door as the machine began to spiral downwards, clutching a pair of backpacks tightly in her hands. Moltres watched her plummet towards the ground below.
Before the human landed, however, he pulled his eyes away. A final large explosion signaled that the machine generating the yellow orb had finally taken too much damage from the flames, and had combusted dramatically. The sphere vanished almost instantly, and Articuno, prepared for the moment, pointed her body downwards, diving away from the spiralling column of debris. She rose quickly, her powerful wings assisting her fast climb, and she gradually drew level with Moltres, smiling to him appreciatively.
"To the mountain!" she called. Moltres was too weak to argue, and so glided through her slipstream as she turned and flew away, back towards the mountain. He felt his strength fading away again slowly, and focused his eyes on Articuno's billowing, waving tail, telling himself to keep it in sight, no matter what. He had to reach that mountain.
The flight to the mountain seemed to take forever. With every tiring pump of his wings, a stabbing pain went through Moltres' chest, like a tiny dagger being continually thrust into his feathers. Eventually, they reached a ridge near the top of the mountain. Articuno landed gracefully on the ledge, and Moltres followed significantly less gracefully, stumbling forward as he struggled to make his feet hold his weight. Articuno gestured warmly to a cave entrance in the side of the wall.
"We're there." she smiled. "Come on inside."
Moltres was too tired to wonder what 'here' was. She walked into the cave, and Moltres followed, his chest burning and his face still smeared with blood. He paused and looked up at the cave as it widened out. It was surprisingly homey. It consisted of a short tunnel that opened up into a much larger cavern. Despite his tiredness, he took a few seconds to admire it.
Articuno smiled at him. "Like it? There's two other caves just like this one around the other side."
Moltres nodded weakly, and tried to reply, but he was too exhausted to complete a sentence. Articuno nuzzled him, smiling.
"Here," she said, wrapping a wing around him lightly and pulling him close. "I have something to make you feel better."
Moltres stepped up to her, and she puffed her chest forward, tiliting her head back and to the side, presenting herself. "Inside my chest feathers. Take a look."
Blinking slowly, but still too tired to question her, Moltres lowered his head, poking his beak slowly through her pure-white chest feathers, careful not to untidy them. After a few seconds of searching, his beak touched something solid. He grabbed onto it softly, and pulled it loose from the plumage.
Articuno smiled as he looked down his beak. The item was a small, colourful berry, covered in a thin layer of sticky sap. It didn't look much like any food he had seen before. Articuno tickled his beak toyfully with her wingtip. "Go on, eat it. It'll heal you up."
He still wasn't completely sure about eating an unfamiliar food, but he trusted Articuno's word, and swallowed the berry whole. His eyes widened immediately. Before it was even all the way down his throat, he began to feel better. His strength returned to him, his eyes were no longer stinging, and his chest and wings felt perfect. He opened his mouth, his voice finally normal again. "Wow." he announced.
Articuno giggled. "It's quite the berry, isn't it? I always carry one with me. I eat it whenever it seems neccessary. Though, you were more deserving of it this time."
Moltres tossed his head, neatening his feathers. He blinked suddenly, looking back at her. "Hang on, what do you mean by that?"
Articuno stepped forward, looking up into his eyes. "You just rescued me from a bunch of violent humans. I owe you my life, and then some."
Moltres blushed, moving his head back from hers. "Oh, um, it was nothing. Anyone in my situation would have done the same, right?"
Articuno stepped forward again, her deep red eyes still locked on his, smiling warmly. "But nobody else would of been in that situation. You chased me hundreds of miles before you found me here.".
Stuttering and blushing through his feathers, Moltres turned his head away. "I guess so. But what does it matter?"
Reaching up, Articuno placed one wing softly on his side, gently wiping the remaining blood off his face with the other. "It matters a lot. You were thinking of me, like I was thinking of you." She moved forward, resting her head against his chest, stirring his feathers affectionately with her beak. "The entire time I've been here, I've been thinking of you. Even when I was with Celox, I've been imagining you, and wondering what you were doing and where you were. And a few other things as well."
Moltres turned his head back, eyes bulging in alarm as he realised what she was about to say. She tilted her head back and smiled, looking back up into his eyes, stroking his chest slowly with her wing.
"Moltres," she whispered. "I love you."
His heart thumping loudly in his chest, Moltres opened and then closed his mouth, unsure what to say. Articuno removed the need to, by speaking again. "Moltres, I love you, and I know you love me as well."
Moltres inhaled sharply, heart beating faster. "What do you mean? How do you know that?"
"It's obvious." she smiled. "You never talked to me for weeks at a time, and then when you finally did, you would always stutter and evade questions. Yet despite how uncomfortable you always seemed, you always came back to talk again. Then, when I left the islands, you followed me, despite not apparently having a reason. You chased me for hundreds of miles, across land and sea. And then, at the risk of your own life, you saved me from a horrible fate in the hands of the humans, even overheating yourself in your desire to save me."
Moltres immediately opened his beak to argue, but could not find any words. As she looked down into her large, glowing eyes, the truth gradually dawned on him. He slowly began to smile as he looked into her eyes, suddenly feeling incredibly at peace. How could he have not realised it sooner? When he finally replied, he knew what he wanted to say, and said them with no hesitation. "You're right. I do love you. And I'm sorry for never telling you."
Articuno giggled, hugging closer to him. "You never told me because you only just worked it out yourself. I know those eyes."
Sighing, Moltres chuckled as well. "Yeah, you saw right through that one."
Articuno nodded, rubbing against his feathers with her head again. "And now, since you've finally come to realise it.." She moved her head away from his chest, and bought the rest of her body forward, pushing her belly gently against his and wrapping her wings around him. "...Maybe you'd like to enjoy me a little more...physically?" she giggled.
Moltres stared down at her in alarm, shifting his wings beneath her grip. "Wh-what do you mean?"
Articuno grinned, her tail creeping between her legs and tickling his underbelly. "I owe you my life and my heart, Moltres. Now I want you to take my body as well."
Moltres moved his head back from hers again, feeling uncertain. "B-but...I haven't ever..."
Stroking her wing softly down his chest again, she rubbed her head affectionately under his beak. "Everything in the world has to have a first time."
Moltres took a tiny step backwards, still nervous. "B-but I..d-don't know how..."
"...How to do it?" Articuno finished with another giggle. She hugged him tighter with her wings, waving her feathers through his, and began to stroke his underbelly with her tailtip again. "There's nothing to it. All you need is a little encouragement."
With that, her tail flicked forward between his legs, tickling and rubbing at his privates. Moltres groaned softly, shuddering as the soft tailtip passed over his slit. The soft feathers continued rubbing at him, darting along it, and Moltres' groan grew in volume as his tip began to poke through his feathers. Articuno bent her knees, slowly, lowering her body down and releasing one of her wings from the hug. She brought the wing around to Moltres' front, placing it flat against his chest and running it slowly down his belly. Moltres gasped pleasurably and spread his wings as the wing stroked at his length, and he lowered his waist down into the wing in response, more of his shaft sliding gradually from his slit. Articuno lowered down even further, looking down hungrily at the huge length as it approached its full stature. She began to lean backwards, pulling Moltres with her, falling lightly backwards to lie face-up underneath him. She slowly wrapped the end of her wing around the shaft as it grew, pumping lightly along it. Molres began to pant, thrusting his hips lightly down into the pumping, the tip of his length poking at Articuno's belly as he stood over her, leaving a tiny drop of pre. His thrusting aroused her deeply, and see spread her legs wide, swaying her tail on the ground behind her. A brilliant scent began to fill Moltres' nostrils, and he groaned, stepping backwards slowly and lying his shaft behind her legs, the tip right next to her slit.
Articuno moaned as the tip touched near her privates, the heat emanating from it filling her with desire. She tilted her head back, staring wantingly up at Moltres, his wings still spread. She stretched herself out comfortably and stroked the tip of her own wing down his chest lightly, causing him to shudder, bucking his hips forward.
The thrust caused his tip to penetrate her slit lightly, and she immediately groaned, filled with pleasure as the tip began to push her apart. Moltres shut his eyes, shifting and bracing his talons against the rocks and lowering his hips into her. His long shaft began to penetrate deep inside her, pushing against her wet, warm insides. Articuno spread her legs even further, singing out purely as the hot length pushed at her walls, her entrance dripping as her scent filled the ear.
Moltres swayed, flapping his wings to keep his balance. He curved his back away, panting loudly and groaning as he suddenly thrust the rest of his length powerfully into her. Articuno cried out pleasurably, her tight walls covering his cock with hot, sticky liquid. He groaned again as he started to pull out, only to push firmly in again, his long length again penetrating the confines of her tight slit. He began to thrust faster, grunting and moaning continuous, waves of heat billowing off him as pleasure overtook him.
Articuno groaned as well, her legs twitching as the huge length penetrated her again and again, spreading her ever further. She sighed lovingly as the waves of heat washed over her, filling every inch of her body with desire for that strong shaft. She began to push her hips up against the length, matching the rhythm of Moltres' thrusts, her slick walls squeezing at the shaft every time it pulled back. She spread her wings out wide, tilting her head back and releasing a loud cry of ecstasy, her slit aching to be filled with Moltres' hot seed.
Moltres continued thrusting strongly into her, burying his length deep within her slit. He groaned even louder as he felt his climax approach, and he began to thrust even harder, pushing his shaft as deep inside her as he could. He continued to thrust as he tried to hold back his orgasm, but was unable to stop himself. Tossing his head back and crying out loudly, he gave one final huge thrust into Articuno as he climaxed, waves of pleasure rocking through him from head to tail, his body swaying back and forth. His cock throbbed heavily, releasing long, hard streams of hot cum into her, her walls squeezing and milking him out as he filled her with his white, ropey seed. Articuno cried out as well moments later, the feeling of the cock throbbing inside her pushing her over the edge as well. Ecstasy began to sweep over her whole body, stretching all the way to her wingtips and along her entire form, her walls squeezing tight at the pulsing length as her whole body shook from pleasure.
The immense sensations slowly began to fade, and Moltres gradually began to lower his head, his eyes still shut. Both of them panting, Moltres shifted his legs slowly, leaning forward and lying down softly on top of Articuno without disturbing the cock from inside her. Articuno sighed contently as he laid down on top of her, the warmth of his body sinking through her, and she laid her tail lightly across his back. Moltres rubbed his beak through her feathers affectionately, panting tiredly. Articuno gently rested her head against his, and they stared directly into each other's eyes, lying there silently. Moltres felt his length gradually start to retreat from within her, and she groaned once more as it slipped out of her slit, moving slowly back into its own. Moltres began to shut his eyes, nuzzling Articuno with his beak, before slowly opening them again, lifting her head up lightly to speak to her, a tiny, satisfied smile covering his face.
"...You wouldn't happen to have another one of those berries, would you?"
In the back of his mind, Celox wondered how long he had been lying on the ground, covered in twigs and leaves and seeing nothing but white. It had easily been at least half an hour by now. He knew that he was been stared at by wild Pokemon, standing around him in a circle. He had occasionally felt them move around, and one of them had been daring enough to touch him a few minutes earlier. Regardless, he didn't care, neither about their staring, or how strange he looked.
What if he really did stay like this forever? Blind and deaf, all but cut off from the world around him? How would he hunt? How would he even get home? The line of thought triggered another round of soft crying, tears wetting grass he couldn't even see. It was a horrible feeling. He had a horrible feeling he would never get used to it.
Celox suddenly gasped as he saw something. Through the field of white, he had seen a tiny shade of darker colour, the colour of his own eyelids. He laid still, panting excitedly, becoming more and more estatic as his vision slowly and steadily began to return. First he saw the dull red of his eyelids, lit by sunlight, then he opened them and started to see the woods before him. He waited until his entire field of vision was back to normal, and then pushed himself to his feet in one stroke, spreading his wings and giving a loud, triumphant shout to the wind. At last, he could see again. He was watching the green of the trees, and the blue and white sky above. Never before had he appreciated the blessing of sight to such a degree.
Looking slowly around him, he saw a circle of tiny forest Pokemon, staring up at him. He suddenly became self-conscious about their presense. He smirked down at them. "I'm better now. Go away. Nothing to see any more." His grin wided even further as he realised that he could now begin to hear again as well.
Apparently, the Pokemon thought Celox was still very interesting, for all but a few of them stayed where they were. The Articuno grinned, and raised his wings, releasing a billowing wave of ice-cold air towards the onlookers, making them shiver and step back from the freezing cold. "There. That's your souvenir. Now get going before I eat all of you."
As soon as he said it, the Pokemon darted away at top speed. The area was bare of the onlookers within seconds. He gave a satisfied nod, and raised his eyes to look up at the sky again. Articuno was probably at the mountain, assuming that the Moltres had managed to rescue her, so that was probably the best place to go. He spread his wings, a newfound love for life settled comfortably in his mind, and sailed into the air.
Moltres and Articuno slowly walked outside the cave onto the ledge, looking out over the lush, green forest.
"I like it here when there's no humans about." smiled Moltres, draping his wing over Articuno. "Do you want to stay here for a couple more days?"
"Absolutely," nodded Articuno, rubbing her head against his feathers.
"..Then it's settled." grinned Moltres. "We'll stay here for a few more days, and enjoy the sunshine." He paused, focusing on something down near the forest. "Changing the subject a little, is that Celox just there?"
Articuno turned her head sharply. Indeed, Celox was flying up the mountain towards them, and approaching fast. By the time she had finished wondering what he wanted, he was hovering in front of them, blinking at the sight of Moltres with his wing over her.
"Um...Hi, Moltres." Celox said awkwardly. "How's things?"
Moltres nuzzled Articuno's chest feathers softly with his long beak. "Pretty good, to say the least. Hello again, by the way"
"I was just wondering, may I talk to Articuno for a minute before leaving?"
Articuno didn't think Celox would take 'no' for an answer anyway. "Let's just move over here. Back in a sec!" she added to Moltres.
Celox landed on the ledge, and hopped a fair distance from Moltres, who was politely moving out of earshot. Articuno followed Celox slowly along the ledge.
"I didn't know you and Moltres were friends." inquired Celox once they were far enough away.
Articuno blushed. "We're more than that now, actually. So what is it you wanted to say?"
Celox looked at the ground. "Nothing, really. I just wanted to say goodbye. And to wish you luck with your new partner." he added with a smile. "No hard feelings or anything?"
Articuno shook her head. "Of course not. You're a nice guy, and I like you."
"Good to hear. By the way, have you told him yet?" he asked, tipping his head towards Moltres.
"About earlier? Not yet, but I will in a little while." She smiled warmly. "Have a safe trip home, okay?"
"I will, thank you. And may we meet again." Celox smiled back.
Articuno nodded in agreement, and Celox spread his wings, flying off the ledge. He gave a casual turn and nod of his head as a final goodbye, and he slowly faded into the distance.
Moltres and Articuno spent three more days at the mountain. They had sex every evening, and Articuno told Moltres the truth about Celox. He didn't mind at all, and took the entire matter light-heartedly. Articuno was glad that he was so understanding.
Eventually, it was time for them to head home, and they bade farewell to the mountain. Articuno mentioned just before they left that they would probably end up visiting again in the future.
The flight home was cheerful and carefree. They took several short detours to view some attractions along the way, including a large city full of humans and Pokemon ("I guess living like that would be kind of exciting" remarked Moltres). As they approached the sea, they momentarily stopped near the shore, and Articuno taught Moltres some good places to find the berries she was fond of carrying. They tried to stick one to his chest with tree sap, but his body-flames kept simply burning them to crisps within seconds. Undeterred, they ate some of the remaining berries as a final meal before they started across the sea, and then set off for the final leg home.
When they arrived back, Zapdos was sitting silently on his crater, as he often did. He gave a small nod to the pair of them as they flew past, a knowing smile creeping slowly onto his face. Neither of them paid any attention to it, and they took off for a flight around the islands, quietly celebrating their return home. Eventually, Zapdos flew from his perch to join them, and the three of them flew in formation about the islands, laughing merrily as they had the most casual and friendly conversation in the history of their lives.
Stolid and Tracey huddled before the gigantic video screen. Even when he wasn't in an enlarged view, Giovanni in an angry mood was a sight to behold..and to be feared.
"It is beyond me how anyone could possibly fail this miserably." he growled. "There's nothing left to go on with at this point. I'm shutting down this entire project."
"What!?" cried Tracey. "But what-"
"Silence." interrupted Giovanni. He hadn't shouted, but Tracey flinched as though he had screamed at the top of his lungs. "You fools lost three force-field generators, two helicopters and a fortune in top-quality surveillance equipment!" Neither Tracey or Stolid dared to speak, and he continued. "I will not tolerate failure under any circumstances, especially these. I'm not only shutting down the project, I'm deporting you two bumblers out of the region!"
"Um...Where to, sir?" asked Stolid quietly.
"I think Kanto should suit you nicely." Giovanni smirked, scratching his Persian's head. "The weather is lovely this time of year, and I'm sure you'll make excellent Pokemon trainers."
"What?! Bu-but sir!" Tracey stuttered. "I'm no good at battling! I'm an agent, not a fighter, sir!"
Giovanni chuckled evilly. "Which is exactly why I'm doing it. Besides, you could hardly be as bad a trainer as you were an agent. Now, get out of my sight. You will be assigned to the Saffron City base, and travel periodically to Viridian and Celadon for training. Do you have that memorized?"
Tracey started to speak out again, but Stolid spoke over her. "Saffron, Viridian, Celadon. Should be easy, sir, they're all named after colours."
"I know." Giovanni frowned. "Now leave."
The video screen deactivated, a white flash quickly fading in the centre of it. A few moments of silence ensued, and then Tracey started to cry.
It was late at night, several weeks later. Moltres was sleeping comfortably inside his favourite cave, the walls and floor completely blackened from his scorching body-flames. He was woken from his peaceful sleep by the noise of fluttering wings outside, and he raised his head.
"Who's there?" he whispered.
Articuno stepped inside the cave, her body illuminated by his flames. "It's me. You've got to come and see something. Hurry."
With that, she turned around again, and flew away. Moltres, having no other real option, stood up and ran out of the cave, lifting off after her.
His keen eyes spotted her easily in the dark as she travelled back to Ice Island. He followed her curiously, landing inside the crater a few seconds after her.
"So what're we-" he began, but Articuno silenced him, and gestured him to step into the cave. He followed her inside, blinking at how much longer it was than his own. They went around a curve, and as his flames lit up the inside, Moltres knew instantly what he was looking at. A large sky-blue Pokemon egg was sitting in a nest of grated ice, and it was wiggling back and forth, ready to hatch. Moltres' beak fell open. "This is mine!?" he whispered urgently.
Articuno nodded, and then shushed him again, staring excitedly at the egg. "It's hatching!" she cried softly, as a tiny crack appeared at the top of the egg.
Moltres watched with bulging eyes as the crack slowly crept down the egg, reaching to split it in two. His heart thumped in his chest as the shell began to fall apart.
"You mean...I'm a father?"
"Yes."
The End