Story Notes:
The chapters in this story are in no way connected to each other, except for the fact that they are all inspired by song lyrics from "There's a river in the valley made of melting snow", by Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La Band, formerly The Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra and Tra-La-La Band, formerly A Silver Mt. Zion (ASMZ) and, at one point, The Silver Mountain Reveries. There will be 36 chapters, with none of them having more than 2000 words. Each will have its own topic, according to the individual titles. Each will have different characters and a different setting, in order to show just how many topics this song deals with. Speaking of which, in case you'd like to listen to it, you can find it on YouTube. I recommend this song; I've been listening to it for about three years now, and it just never gets old. There are so many things that come to my mind when listening to it, so now I'm trying to write them all down. Since the chapters are going to be really short, I think I'll be able to put a new one online every two days or so, depending on how much time I have. I know there are other projects I should be working on, but now I suddenly had this idea and I'd really like to see how it turns out. It's a bit hard to write stories that are so very short and still meaningful, but luckily they don't have to stand on their own, as they are mostly ways to interprete the song they are based on. Well, I hope I'll be able to update as often and as quickly as I am planning to, and I hope you'll enjoy reading and listening to "There's a river in the valley made of melting snow".
...to be beat back by dark clouds and a harsh, reeking wind...
PLEASE NOTE: I do not own Pokémon, and I have to say that I'm kind of proud of it, because the idea of capturing animal-like creatures to make them fight each other is pretty sick, actually. Be this as it may, every species of Pokémon referred to in the following text and everything else that is a part of the Pokémon franchise is the property of their rightful owner, however, the actual story belongs to me. The title belongs to Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra & Tra-La-La Band/ The Silver Mountain Reveries. No copyright infringement is intended.
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Have you never heard that there's a river in the valley made of melting snow...?
...to be beat back by dark clouds and a harsh, reeking wind...
The Nidoking could hardly even see what he was doing. The night had come. Not only had it brought its usual darkness, but also a very thick fog that seemed to be completely impenetrable, so all he was able to recognize were vague shapes. Since he was in a hurry, he did not have the time to take a closer look, so he simply ripped all kinds of branches from the trees and bushes in front of him, hoping that he would find something useful on at least one of them.
When he noticed that he simply could not carry any more, he turned around and blinked, trying his best to see something other than thick darkness. He was tightly pressing the branches to his chest, since he wanted to make sure not to lose even a single one as he began walking at a quick pace. He did not care about how dangerous it was to be rushing when he could not even see anything, as there were more important things his mind had to deal with. Fortunately, the Nidoking more or less remembered the direction that his den lay in, and before he had left, he had lit up a small fire at the entrance. He was lucky; it had not burnt down yet. A faint, warm glimmer became visible through the veil of the night, and before he knew it, the Nidoking had reached the cave.
"Sister?" he asked lowly. "How are you feeling?" There was no answer. The Nidoking shook his head and then entered the den, letting the small flame light his way. The cave was not very big. After a few steps he could see his sister, a big, strong Nidoqueen, lying on her back on the bed of hundreds of soft leaves that he had made for her.
"Sister?" he spoke again. Her eyes were closed, and she was taking deep, regular breaths. The Nidoking simply let all the branches fall to the ground and then kneeled down next to the blue female Pokémon. In the very dim light it was not possible to clearly recognize her facial expression, but from what the Nidoking could see, his sister seemed to be in a lot of pain. Very carefully, he stretched out one of his front paws and touched her shoulder. It felt like she was on fire, so he quickly retracted his paw again. His sister had caught a fever; neither he nor she knew how it happened or how it could be cured.
The Nidoking's gaze came to rest on the pile of branches he had collected. Some of them carried berries, and he hoped they would help his sister. However, before he had any chance to examine them closely, the small flame suddenly went out, and darkness filled the cave. He sighed deeply and sat down, leaning against one of the walls. It would certainly not help his sister if he woke her up now, so he just decided to go to sleep as well.
It was a soft, painful groan that made him wake up the next morning. He opened his eyes and saw his sister, who had turned her head to look at him. He instantly became worried.
"How are you feeling?" he asked. The Nidoqueen blinked slowly. She swallowed, then spoke:
"...worse..." Her voice sounded rough and hoarse, and the Nidoking did not doubt that it was painful for her to talk. He quickly stood up and picked up the branches he had collected the night before. Right now, the light of the morning sun illuminated the inside of the cave, so everything was clearly visible.
"Here, I have gathered some more berries, maybe they will help you..." He held some of the branches that carried berries right above his sister's head. "Do you remember how our parents used to tell us that there are berries that can cure just about any disease?" Even though she was obviously suffering, it looked like there appeared a small smile on the Nidoqueen's face. Very slowly, she raised one of her front paws and motioned her brother to come a bit closer. She waited until he had kneeled down at her side, then she opened her mouth to speak:
"These are the... same berries we usually eat... There is nothing... special about them." She had to take a deep breath after every few words. What she had said apparently made her brother become even more worried.
"Maybe... Maybe they just look the same..." he stuttered. "Wait just a moment, I will prepare them for you... You will see, I am sure they will help you..." Even though her neck hurt, the Nidoqueen raised her head a little and watched her brother quickly pick the berries from the branches. He then picked up a wooden bowl, which was one of the many things in this cave that he had carved by himself, and placed the berries inside. The Nidoking grasped a large stick and mashed them for some time, before reaching for a larger bowl, which was filled with water, to pour some of it onto the red and violet pulp. Once again he used the stick, now stirring the mixture. Directly afterwards he ignited a fire, apparently just by rubbing two wooden sticks together; the Nidoqueen had never learned how to do this, and was, as usual, amazed at what her little brother could do. Paying attention not to let it catch fire, the Nidoking held the wooden bowl above the flame for a few moments, before turning towards his sister.
"Here, you should drink this while it is still hot," he said. He let the bowl come in touch with his sister's bottom lip. She opened her mouth and quickly drank down the medicine, of which she knew that it would have absolutely no effect. It did not bother her very much that it was hot, as her entire body felt like it was burning up anyway.
"Thank you..." she mumbled. Her brother sat down at her side.
"Is there anything else I can do for you?" he inquired. The Nidoqueen closed her eyes.
"...no..." Breathing felt like a chore. Now that she had closed her eyes, she did not want to open them again. "I am so very tired..." she mumbled. She felt her brother's paw touch her chest for a moment, but he quickly pulled it away again.
"You should have some more rest, then," she heard his warm, caring voice. "Do not worry, once you wake up again, you will certainly feel a lot better." The Nidoqueen lacked the strength to reply, and simply drifted off to sleep.
It was evening when she awoke again. She opened her eyes and blinked, until she saw her brother standing at the cave entrance.
"Brother...?" she groaned lowly. He quickly turned around and smiled at her in a slightly uncertain way.
"Oh, you are awake again..." He walked over to her and sat down. "I am a little concerned about the weather. The sky has become very cloudy, you see..." The Nidoking shook his head. "Anyway, how are you feeling?"
"Brother..." A grunt of pain escaped the Nidoqueen's lips as she raised her right front paw. "Please... hold..." It was difficult to speak. She had just woken up, but she was still feeling tired. Her vision was cloudy, and she had trouble focusing her gaze on anything. Still, she was able to recognize her brother's worried face. He reached out with his front paw and held hers; for a moment she could hear him clench his teeth, as it was apparently painful for him to come in touch with her hot paw.
"What is it?" he asked, trying his best not to let his sister notice his uncertainty. She breathed deeply, ignoring the pain that came with it, and spoke:
"I am dying, brother..."
The Nidoking remained silent for a moment. He then shook his head.
"No, you... you are going to be fine..." His voice was shivering. Before he could say anything else, his sister continued:
"I am tired... As soon as I fall asleep, I will never wake up again..." The Nidoking kept shaking his head.
"No, you are going to be fine, I am sure..."
"I will not be fine," the Nidoqueen spoke hoarsely, her voice now getting louder. "I am going to die. I... I am sorry, but... I cannot give you my strength anymore..." There were tears visible in her brother's eyes. He was holding on to her paw more tightly.
"Do not leave me alone, please... I have no idea what I should do without you..." It was so hard to keep her eyes from closing. It was so hard to keep talking. It was so hard to focus on anything...
"I... am sorry..." she murmured. "I... cannot... I am so tired..." The Nidoqueen closed her eyes. "I love you, brother..." she whispered, "but I cannot help it... I will fall asleep..." The Nidoking clasped her front paw with both of his.
"No!" he cried out. "Stay with me, sister, stay with me... please..."
She did not reply. Her eyes were closed, and the Nidoking kept holding on to his sister's paw like it was the only thing keeping him alive. He stared at her chest and waited, hoping that it would move, not even noticing his face being flooded with his tears.
His sister did not breathe. He was alone.
(1626 words)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------Chapter End Notes:This ends the second chapter. You might be wondering why the characters didn't have names; I simply thought names were unnecessary. I don't know how I'll be doing it in the next chapters; if I can think of a good name, I'll probably use it, and if I can't, the characters just won't have names. In any way, this is all a bit of an experiment for me, but so far I like the way it's going. The next chapter will be called "...and that battle staggered through three awful months there..."; I hope I'll be able to upload it tomorrow
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...to be beat back by dark clouds and a harsh, reeking wind...
The Nidoking could hardly even see what he was doing. The night had come. Not only had it brought its usual darkness, but also a very thick fog that seemed to be completely impenetrable, so all he was able to recognize were vague shapes. Since he was in a hurry, he did not have the time to take a closer look, so he simply ripped all kinds of branches from the trees and bushes in front of him, hoping that he would find something useful on at least one of them.
When he noticed that he simply could not carry any more, he turned around and blinked, trying his best to see something other than thick darkness. He was tightly pressing the branches to his chest, since he wanted to make sure not to lose even a single one as he began walking at a quick pace. He did not care about how dangerous it was to be rushing when he could not even see anything, as there were more important things his mind had to deal with. Fortunately, the Nidoking more or less remembered the direction that his den lay in, and before he had left, he had lit up a small fire at the entrance. He was lucky; it had not burnt down yet. A faint, warm glimmer became visible through the veil of the night, and before he knew it, the Nidoking had reached the cave.
"Sister?" he asked lowly. "How are you feeling?" There was no answer. The Nidoking shook his head and then entered the den, letting the small flame light his way. The cave was not very big. After a few steps he could see his sister, a big, strong Nidoqueen, lying on her back on the bed of hundreds of soft leaves that he had made for her.
"Sister?" he spoke again. Her eyes were closed, and she was taking deep, regular breaths. The Nidoking simply let all the branches fall to the ground and then kneeled down next to the blue female Pokémon. In the very dim light it was not possible to clearly recognize her facial expression, but from what the Nidoking could see, his sister seemed to be in a lot of pain. Very carefully, he stretched out one of his front paws and touched her shoulder. It felt like she was on fire, so he quickly retracted his paw again. His sister had caught a fever; neither he nor she knew how it happened or how it could be cured.
The Nidoking's gaze came to rest on the pile of branches he had collected. Some of them carried berries, and he hoped they would help his sister. However, before he had any chance to examine them closely, the small flame suddenly went out, and darkness filled the cave. He sighed deeply and sat down, leaning against one of the walls. It would certainly not help his sister if he woke her up now, so he just decided to go to sleep as well.
It was a soft, painful groan that made him wake up the next morning. He opened his eyes and saw his sister, who had turned her head to look at him. He instantly became worried.
"How are you feeling?" he asked. The Nidoqueen blinked slowly. She swallowed, then spoke:
"...worse..." Her voice sounded rough and hoarse, and the Nidoking did not doubt that it was painful for her to talk. He quickly stood up and picked up the branches he had collected the night before. Right now, the light of the morning sun illuminated the inside of the cave, so everything was clearly visible.
"Here, I have gathered some more berries, maybe they will help you..." He held some of the branches that carried berries right above his sister's head. "Do you remember how our parents used to tell us that there are berries that can cure just about any disease?" Even though she was obviously suffering, it looked like there appeared a small smile on the Nidoqueen's face. Very slowly, she raised one of her front paws and motioned her brother to come a bit closer. She waited until he had kneeled down at her side, then she opened her mouth to speak:
"These are the... same berries we usually eat... There is nothing... special about them." She had to take a deep breath after every few words. What she had said apparently made her brother become even more worried.
"Maybe... Maybe they just look the same..." he stuttered. "Wait just a moment, I will prepare them for you... You will see, I am sure they will help you..." Even though her neck hurt, the Nidoqueen raised her head a little and watched her brother quickly pick the berries from the branches. He then picked up a wooden bowl, which was one of the many things in this cave that he had carved by himself, and placed the berries inside. The Nidoking grasped a large stick and mashed them for some time, before reaching for a larger bowl, which was filled with water, to pour some of it onto the red and violet pulp. Once again he used the stick, now stirring the mixture. Directly afterwards he ignited a fire, apparently just by rubbing two wooden sticks together; the Nidoqueen had never learned how to do this, and was, as usual, amazed at what her little brother could do. Paying attention not to let it catch fire, the Nidoking held the wooden bowl above the flame for a few moments, before turning towards his sister.
"Here, you should drink this while it is still hot," he said. He let the bowl come in touch with his sister's bottom lip. She opened her mouth and quickly drank down the medicine, of which she knew that it would have absolutely no effect. It did not bother her very much that it was hot, as her entire body felt like it was burning up anyway.
"Thank you..." she mumbled. Her brother sat down at her side.
"Is there anything else I can do for you?" he inquired. The Nidoqueen closed her eyes.
"...no..." Breathing felt like a chore. Now that she had closed her eyes, she did not want to open them again. "I am so very tired..." she mumbled. She felt her brother's paw touch her chest for a moment, but he quickly pulled it away again.
"You should have some more rest, then," she heard his warm, caring voice. "Do not worry, once you wake up again, you will certainly feel a lot better." The Nidoqueen lacked the strength to reply, and simply drifted off to sleep.
It was evening when she awoke again. She opened her eyes and blinked, until she saw her brother standing at the cave entrance.
"Brother...?" she groaned lowly. He quickly turned around and smiled at her in a slightly uncertain way.
"Oh, you are awake again..." He walked over to her and sat down. "I am a little concerned about the weather. The sky has become very cloudy, you see..." The Nidoking shook his head. "Anyway, how are you feeling?"
"Brother..." A grunt of pain escaped the Nidoqueen's lips as she raised her right front paw. "Please... hold..." It was difficult to speak. She had just woken up, but she was still feeling tired. Her vision was cloudy, and she had trouble focusing her gaze on anything. Still, she was able to recognize her brother's worried face. He reached out with his front paw and held hers; for a moment she could hear him clench his teeth, as it was apparently painful for him to come in touch with her hot paw.
"What is it?" he asked, trying his best not to let his sister notice his uncertainty. She breathed deeply, ignoring the pain that came with it, and spoke:
"I am dying, brother..."
The Nidoking remained silent for a moment. He then shook his head.
"No, you... you are going to be fine..." His voice was shivering. Before he could say anything else, his sister continued:
"I am tired... As soon as I fall asleep, I will never wake up again..." The Nidoking kept shaking his head.
"No, you are going to be fine, I am sure..."
"I will not be fine," the Nidoqueen spoke hoarsely, her voice now getting louder. "I am going to die. I... I am sorry, but... I cannot give you my strength anymore..." There were tears visible in her brother's eyes. He was holding on to her paw more tightly.
"Do not leave me alone, please... I have no idea what I should do without you..." It was so hard to keep her eyes from closing. It was so hard to keep talking. It was so hard to focus on anything...
"I... am sorry..." she murmured. "I... cannot... I am so tired..." The Nidoqueen closed her eyes. "I love you, brother..." she whispered, "but I cannot help it... I will fall asleep..." The Nidoking clasped her front paw with both of his.
"No!" he cried out. "Stay with me, sister, stay with me... please..."
She did not reply. Her eyes were closed, and the Nidoking kept holding on to his sister's paw like it was the only thing keeping him alive. He stared at her chest and waited, hoping that it would move, not even noticing his face being flooded with his tears.
His sister did not breathe. He was alone.
(1626 words)
-------------------------------------------------------------------------Chapter End Notes:This ends the second chapter. You might be wondering why the characters didn't have names; I simply thought names were unnecessary. I don't know how I'll be doing it in the next chapters; if I can think of a good name, I'll probably use it, and if I can't, the characters just won't have names. In any way, this is all a bit of an experiment for me, but so far I like the way it's going. The next chapter will be called "...and that battle staggered through three awful months there..."; I hope I'll be able to upload it tomorrow