by K J Harlow
“Starry…” I can’t believe I’m putting my girlfriends through this. “Use Gaze.”
“Patricia, Shock Lock!”
Starlotte staggered to her feet, her hand clutching the Grand Stone Shard even tighter than ever. Her lips were moving soundlessly.
Starry used Gaze!
Enemy Patricia’s Defense fell!
Patricia used Shock Lock!
This time, the blow was across her face and sent her sprawling to the side. HP down to 22/53. This time she didn’t get to her feet. She sat on her haunches, head down, clutching the Grand Stone Shard between her hands.
Patricia took a run up, throwing a charged uppercut.
She flew limply through the air, long, blue hair covering her face. She landed heavily on her back, the Grand Stone Shard bouncing once, twice then clattering to a stop several feet away.
Starry fainted!
38
Interstellar Prayer
“Game over,” Ivan sneered. “Now the last thing is…” He strode over to his bag on the side. Bending down, he pulled out the broken Team Boom gun – except now it had been fixed.
I’ve… lost.
Numb, Yoshi bent down and picked up the Grand Stone Shard. Did it always feel this warm?
Without any warning, Ivan pointed the weapon at Starry and pulled the trigger. The beam struck her and she lifted a couple inches off the ground. A few seconds later, the beam dissipated and she thumped back onto the ground.
Ivan frowned, looking at the gun. “What the hell?”
“It’s because she’s my girlfriend, you idiot. It won’t work on caught girlfriends.” Yoshi wasn’t really sure about this, but the bluff seemed to have gotten under Ivan’s skin.
He flung it towards his bag and it clattered against the wall. “Whatever. Doesn’t change the fact that you’ve lost.” He looked towards the camera above and behind him, fixed to the exit, giving a thumbs up. “It’s done Mr. Sanchez. You can send the van n–”
PSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHH
Ivan swung around, rearranging the glasses on his head. “What?”
The Grand Stone shard exploded in an orb of light in Yoshi’s hands. It was unlike anything either of them had seen before. It was brighter – much brighter – than the light Felicity could emit. Yet, he was able to look straight at it without having to avert his gaze. There was something else: this light somehow plunged the vicinity into darkness.
The Grand Stone Shard floated higher and higher into the air until it hovered six feet above him. He raised his hand in front of his face, shielding himself from the energy that emitted from the orb of light. At least he thought he did. He could sense his hand was there, but he couldn’t see it. It was as if he had been reduced to a pair of eyeballs – no, just his consciousness – and was witnessing something transcendental.
Something else began to appear in the darkness: Starry silhouette. Poor, innocent Starry. Even fainted, she was beautiful. Despite her weakness, she never gave up until the very end. Yoshi breathed a shuddering breath, blinking back the defeat spilling from his eyes. It’s not your fault, Starry. I’m not a good enough trainer. I–
PSSSSSSSSSHHHHHHHH
The light pulsed then started floating towards Starry. It came to a stop hovering an inch above her forehead. Streamers of light leaped out of the Grand Stone Shard, arcing through the air and striking different parts of her body. Seconds later, the Grand Stone Shard was no more. Starry’s body glowed with its light.
She opened her eyes.
Starlotte is now Level 19!
Starlotte is now Level 20!
Starlotte is now Level 21!
What? Starry is evolving?
Starlotte – or what was going to be Starlotte for only a while longer – sat up. She looked at her trainer, unblinking. Through midnight-blue eyes, she regarded him from amongst her form consumed by brilliant light. The light expanded, enclosing her in an impenetrable dome. Slowly, it began to recede, shrinking and taking away the light it had brought.
Congratulations! Starlotte has evolved into Serenette!
Serenette learned Siren Song!
NAME: Serenette (Starry)
LEVEL: 21
NATURE: Reserved
TYPE: Interstellar
ACC.: Cat Eyes Tee
HP: 72/72
- ATTACK: 21
- DEFENSE: 17
- SPCL ATTACK: 23
- SPCL DEFENSE: 23
- SPEED: 19
MOVESET:
Gaze - Type: Normal - 30/30 PP (Lower defense by staring into opponent’s eyes, stun effect for 3 seconds.)
Siren Song - Type: Interstellar - 30/30 PP (Devastates foes with a hope-dashing song, 40% chance of confusion.)
Yoshi waved the status screen away. Serenette had her back to Yoshi. She had gained a few inches in height and her hair, while still dark blue, now reached the middle of her back.
“Yoshi…” Her voice had lost its soft breathiness. It was now firm and sure. “Command me.”
Yoshi looked past his evolved girlfriend. Ivan hadn’t withdrawn the Patricia yet. The electric-type didn’t seem the least bit awestruck by what just happened. She cracked her knuckles, also waiting for her master to direct her.
“So the damn rock revived and levelled her up. Big whoop. It’s still six against one. This doesn’t change anything.” Ivan sneered. Yoshi still hadn’t taken his eyes off Serenette.
“Starry… can I still call you Starry?”
Serenette paused and looked over her shoulder at Yoshi. The single, black star on her cheek had disappeared. In its place was now a gold star right on the peak of her cheekbone. It was replicated on the other side as well.
She smiled sweetly at Yoshi and for that moment in time, Yoshi could see Starlotte again. “Sure. Do you want to hear me sing?”
Yoshi nodded dumbly and Starry turned back to the front.
“Patricia, Shock Lock!” The Patricia sprang forward, her arm trailing her body and crackling with electricity.
Serenette used Siren Song!
Starry folded her fingers gently over her chest, closed her eyes and bowed her head – then she began to sing.
From beyond the stars you hear my voice,
It beckons you to run.
When the song is done, you can rejoice,
Because your time has come.
The song filled the head, ensnaring the listener with a steady rhythm. The melody, supported by a minor chord, lifted, danced with and kissed the soul, like a newborn.
But it was fleeting. The final cadence dashed all hope and happiness on jagged rocks of anguish, leaving scavengers to pick apart the cold corpse of reality left behind. It was like being delivered an emotional body slam by a 200-pound wrestler.
The Patricia had stopped in her tracks and gone completely pale. There was no physical manifestation of pain but inside… the song was shredding her apart. She flinched, as if slapped across the face and her legs gave out. Her HP dropped to 55%.
Patricia is confused!
“Patricia, get over it! Shock Lock!” Ivan hollered.
The Patricia stayed on the ground a little longer before she unsteadily got to her feet. Eyes despondent and downcast, she couldn’t even meet her opponent’s gaze. She raised her hand, let it charge then punched herself in the gut, bringing her HP down to 44%.
Patricia hurt herself in confusion!
“Noooo! Why are you doing that?” Ivan groaned.
Time to go in for the kill. “Starry, use Siren Song!”
Serenette took a deep breath and began singing once more. The Patricia had already been floored by her own attack. She writhed and moaned on the ground, her movements becoming jerky until stopping completely.
Enemy Patricia fainted!
“Get back,” Ivan said, voice wooden. He jammed her ring back into its socket, paused for a moment then unlocked a new ring.
“Don’t think you’ve got the upper hand just because you have an interstellar-type. You are going to los
e this battle. Go Crystal!”
His rock-type girlfriend appeared and immediately took guard.
Yoshi knew what Ivan was saying was the truth. Just because Starry had been revived, evolved and finally learned a new move, didn’t mean that she would be able to defeat six trained girlfriends in a row. Whatever happened, he still felt like he owed it to her to let her enjoy her newfound power – perhaps for the first and only time.
“Starry, use Siren Song!”
“Crystal, Charge!”
Yoshi looked up and met Ivan’s leer across the battle ring. Three turns to defeat her. That was doable, right?
The rock-type closed her eyes and adopted a half squat stance, bringing her hands together just below her ribcage. Tendrils of wispy energy licked off her body.
Crystal is biding her energy!
Serenette began to sing, her voice even surer and stronger than in the battle with the Patricia. The Crystal furrowed her eyebrows, beads of sweat forming on her forehead. Her knees buckled, but she stayed upright. Her HP bar shrunk by 32%.
Damn it. This wasn’t looking good. He needed a critical hit with any chance to finish her off before the end of the third turn.
There was something he could do, but like a lot of this battle with Ivan, it hinged on luck falling his way. Serenette turned around, eyes tranquil and trusting. Fuck it – no guts, no glory.
“Starry, use Gaze!”
Serenette nodded, turned back and glided towards her foe, her long skirt floating across the ground. Sensing that her foe was near, Crystal opened her eyes. Serenette was a foot away from the rock-type, eyes soft yet penetrating.
Crystal’s Defense fell!
Crystal grimaced, a bead of sweat trickling down the side of her face.
Crystal is biding her energy!
Here goes nothing.
“Serenette, use Siren Song!”
She took a step back and began her song anew. The Crystal was really starting to struggle now. One knee was buckling more than the other. It eventually gave and she ended up kneeling on it for support.
“Come on… come on…” Yoshi whispered through gritted teeth. The sinking feeling hit when the Crystal’s HP bar stopped at 36%.
Crystal’s energy is full!
Crystal unleashes her raw power!
From her kneeling position the Crystal lunged forward. It was like the force of the Tina’s Rapid Spin had been compacted and expelled through her fists.
Serenette flew hard and flat out of the battle ring. She would have landed back towards the gates that Clive manned if it wasn’t for Yoshi. Unable to get out of the way in time, he absorbed her momentum and together they crashed into the ground.
Ivan chortled. “Did you think Gaze was going to increase the damage Siren Song was going to do to Crystal? It’s an interstellar-type attack. That makes it a Special Attack. You have to decrease her Special Defense, not her Defense!”
“Starry.” Yoshi brushed her hair out of her pained face.
Name: Serenette (Starry)
Level: 21
HP: 32/72
She slowly got up, wincing and clutching her ribs.
“I’m OK.” She got back to her feet. “I’m strong enough.” She walked back towards her opponent. Once in the ring, she turned back and looked at her trainer.
She didn’t care that she was probably going to be knocked out eventually. All that mattered to her was that she defeated the enemy standing in front of her right now. Power blazed from her eyes, beacons of hope in a hopeless situation.
“Serenette, Siren Song!”
This time, the song didn’t seem as loud. That didn’t make the impact on the Crystal any less intense. She pressed her hands to her ears, her eyes squeezed shut. The song wouldn’t relent though and soon, she too had curled up on the ground like Patricia had earlier, body relaxing into blissful unconsciousness.
Enemy Crystal fainted!
“All good,” Ivan said, withdrawing his girlfriend. “Plenty more where that came from.” He already had the next ring ready. “Go Bubb–”
A female demon hound emanating vantablack miasma pounced out of the darkness beyond the Caverns. She slammed Ivan down onto his back, clutching his collar.
“What–what are–?” He whimpered.
Name: Chernoire
Level: 61
“Don’t move!” The demon hound snarled, snapping her jaws inches away from Ivan’s face. She shoved a badge into his face. “You are under arrest on suspicion of being an accomplice to numerous crimes. You have the right to remain silent. Anything that you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.”
Alarms started blaring and warbling further inside as dozens more of what could only be described as the apocalypse manifesting in canine form padded silently towards the Grand Stone. One of them stopped and regarded him. She cocked her head slightly to one side, her blood-red antlers branching out from the top of her head. “Are you Yoshi Soysauce?” She barked. He nodded dumbly. She snapped a hand onto his wrist and in one smooth movement had him in handcuffs.
“Hey, what–?”
“You are under arrest on suspicion of being an accomplice to numerous crimes. You have the right to remain silent. Anything that you say can and will be used against you in a court of law.”
“Don’t hurt him!” Starry said, running over.
“Don’t hurt her!” Yoshi shouted, noticing the antlered canine approaching her. Before he knew it, he had the chain of his cuffs looped around the hellhound’s neck. In response, she stomped on his foot, elbowed him in the stomach, and gripping his head, flipped backwards. Now, she had him in a choke hold.
Starry…
Her horrified face was the last thing he saw before darkness consumed him.
39
Ivan’s Confession
“They’re going to come and help me.”
Ivan’s voice was cold and distant from the dark side of the interrogation room. The bald man sitting across from him drummed his fingers on the table: thumb, forefinger, middle, ring and pinkie then back the other way. It had been 90 minutes.
The door open and closed behind Yoshi. Chernoire was still in her raid gear: heavy-duty lace-up boots, black khaki pants and attack-proof vest.
“He still hasn’t talked.”
Chernoire crossed her arms. “He will.”
For half a minute, the only movement on either side of the one-way mirror was the interrogator’s fingers. Tap, tap, tap, tap, tap.
“Sorry again about the choking with the handcuffs in the Caverns.”
The antlered demon-dog inclined her head ever-so slightly. What that meant, Yoshi had no clue. She pressed a thumb to the square scanner by his hand. Grid lines flashed and the cuffs clicked open with a satisfying hiss.
“Your alibis checked out; you’re free to go.”
Yoshi rubbed his wrists absent-mindedly. Starry’s – Serenette’s – Siren Song played on an endless loop in his head. She was allowed to sit in the van with him as long as the soundproof partition was raised between them. Yoshi made it very clear that she was to be delivered straight to Mr. Pampers and escorted back by the Federal Elite Strike Squad in the morning to the Sapphire Police Station where he was waiting.
01:34.
The glass reflected the red, square numbers floating above the door.
“Here are your possessions.” Chernoire handed him back his bag, phone and GF-wiki that had been destroyed by Novaria. He glanced at his phone’s scratched screen.
24 unread messages. 17 missed calls.
He slipped the phone back into his pocket. At least half of those would have been from Poke. They were best left unseen. That way, reality could be kept at bay at least until the sun rose.
“Gonzales escaped.” The voice that slipped out the bald man’s mouth was rumbled, like earth slabs sliding against one another. He stopped playing wooden scales and leaned toward Ivan. “The other members of Team Boom we captured have turned against you.”
&nbs
p; “No.” Ivan shook his head, pushing his glasses back up. “No. They have the best legal team in all of Ohno. They’re going to come back and…”
His voice trailed off; Chernoire smiled.
The interrogator leaned back. “Tell us everything you know about Team Boom and we’ll ensure that by the time you get out, you won’t need a walking frame.”
“I’m not going to jail!” Ivan shouted, gripping the corners of the table. “I’m going to be the best trainer in all of Ohno! I’m going to win the Meredith–Vancejoy Award! I’m going to catch the legendaries! I…” His voice faded, replaced by tapping of fingers on wood.
02:17.
“I was on another routine data recovery session in the Celeste Caverns.” Ivan’s voice was dead, gray and defeated.
“What sort of data were you collecting?” Kolevski – the bald man – asked.
“I was recording girlfriend cries for Professor Poke. He’s putting together a paper on variances in girlfriend language across caves in Ohno.”
Kolevski kept his arm crossed and didn’t say anything.
“Team Boom approached me, saying they needed someone who knew the Caverns well. They told me about their plans to mine the Grand Stone and turn it into Agent N. They needed someone who knew the movements of the star-kin.”
“Why?”
“Because they wanted unimpeded access to the Grand Stone but the Starlottes, Serenettes and Novarias would cause problems for them.”
Kolevski made a quick note. “What did you get out of this?”
Ivan Tozuck laughed and shook his head. “What does it matter? Doesn’t look like I’ll be getting any of it anyway.” He stared through the one-way mirror at Yoshi. Yoshi stared back, not blinking. “They promised me access to… they called them ‘resources’ that would allow me to raise my girlfriends faster.”
“What sort of ‘resources’?”
“Fucked if I know,” Ivan said, sniffing. “Some Agent N, at least?” With everything he revealed, the disgraced lab assistant became more brazen. He was even smiling, as if he was proud of the double life he led before it came crashing about his ears.
