Chapter Five: Flower

A year passing by seemed insignificant, now that I was looking back on it.

I'd gained a nickname—Once-Berserk—but that was all I could really remember in detail. I'd risen up the ranks, making sure my personal emotions were well out of the way during a battle, and that I did nothing that stepped out of the rules. I may have once been berserk, but I tried my very best to be kind from that point on.

Life was going fine. Despite my initial hiccup and suspicion, I was now considered a veteran after a year; I was stronger than I ever thought I would be and I was ranked near the top of the hierarchy.

Still, the relative constants in my life was like the calm before the storm. That unsettled me—I would be plagued by the same question every day: what was I supposed to do with the dream I had gotten a whole year ago?

Once I had put some thought into the vision's symbolism, I had got what the heavens were trying to tell me. They were trying to say that I had the radiance needed to save the world from all this terror; the radiance needed to become the sun that the world had lost.

But is this worth it? While the prospect that I had the world's fate in my metaphorical arms was thrilling, I couldn't say that I was sure if this would restore the earth back to its previous glory. As my comrade had once said, this was a selfish time. Everyone fought just to stay alive, and I didn't want to leave my partner.

Not only was I doubtful of this realm's redemption; whether one human was enough to give me the courage and reason needed, but I was also much more scared of saying goodbye.

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"Alder, pay attention to the matter at hand. Your rambling isn't going to get us anywhere; rather, you'll only give our location away."

The boy glared at his superior—not by much, we had been selected as vice-captain for this mission—and he crossed his arms as he snapped back a reply. "Why are we still doing this?" he probed. "The government's so obsessed with their fantasies about magic. Couldn't it be due to the freezing winters or recent volcanic eruptions?"

"At any rate, this will help us get closer to the truth," our leader responded, pausing as his Volcarona nudged him with one of her wings. "We must focus now. The cult is coming, and according to your father's instructions, this cult is dangerous."

Assembling, the soldiers pursed their lips, ready to issue commands—and when the hooded group of our opponents approached, the world moved from its once timeless standstill and sprung into a plethora of horrible colours.

We paused for just a moment as we got a closer look at their minions, and our army was immobilised, the expression of shock nearly identical on all our faces.

How did they get two Legendaries to join their side?

In those short, few seconds, I knew then that this battle was not going to be easy or safe. The feral expressions—yet, ones that held looks of deranged wisdom far beyond my years—on the Darkrai's and Thundurus' faces had all of us petrified, and we could only move when our leader shouted a harried command.

"Keep a safe distance from them," Alder shouted at me. I could see his hands move in a gesture, telling me to go ahead an attack, and turned back to our group. "The captain and I will hold off the Legendaries first," he ordered. "Take care of the weaker ones before joining us!"

A collective murmur of agreement rose, and we were plunged into battle.

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It was an idiotic decision to make two Volcarona go head-to-head with Legendaries who far surpassed our power, but it was the only way that we could cope.

I waited for my comrade—she was most certainly more experienced in battling, with fading scars on her wings that told me so—to duck from a Flamethrower that she had fired, then following up with a Giga Drain on the menacing Darkrai that opposed me.

I wanted to look to Alder for support, but he was busy fighting off the masterminds of the cult with only a lone sword to aid him. His captain was at his side, and the duo didn't seem to be faltering, but I still worried for my friend.

"Now is not the time to get distracted," my elder grunted as she released another Flamethrower to fend off the Lugia tailing her. "You can't worry about them now. Just fight your own battle."

Nodding—I was far too tired and out of breath to even speak—I flapped my aching wings, a Bug Buzz forming a sound wave to counter the Darkrai's repeated Dark Pulses. Despite the supposed type advantage, I felt a burning pain in my side as the painful realisation that Legendaries would always be stronger hit me.

Something wet and sticky clung to my wing like how blood would cling to a knife, and I knew that I was bleeding. It wasn't fatal, however, and I was ready to continue despite the injury when—

I was distracted by panicked shouting, and when I looked back, I saw a figure on the ground, unmoving. My partner Volcarona moved wordlessly in front of me, catching a glimpse of just who the figure was before telling me to go and calling another of her comrades to cover me.

Alder was on the ground, face scrunched up in agony as he curled up on the ground, trembling hands folded into weak fists as he refused to move. Our team's medic was checking him over, using what little resources he had to bandage the gruesome wound, but it wasn't enough.

My best friend was bleeding to death and I could do nothing. It was just as how I had seen Mother; still, lifeless, and I had felt so useless at that time. I had already lost my family—I couldn't stand to lose the one human who had understood me.

"It's no use. His body temperature is too low, and he's going to die no matter what I do." The man looked up with wide eyes, his gloves stained with blood and shame, and I went still.

I can't let Alder die. I can't let Alder die. I can't let Alder—

This was all because of the loss of the sun. I could care less about the reason why it had disappeared; I cared more for the consequences it had brought. I cared for the fury it had caused, the tragedies that had swept many lives away; I cared for the fact that someone I love was dying because of it.

Could this be due to my selfishness? I had the solution in my hand, and my mind screamed at me to hurry up before it was too late and I let someone else die. All this suffering would never end; countless innocent people would continue to be hurt if the sun wasn't brought back.

I couldn't afford to hesitate any longer because of these reasons—they were too insufficient to have stood in my way in the first place.

If I could do this one thing; if I could properly thank my saviour who had rescued me from a life of loneliness and weakness and led me to strength, I would give my life and more for it.

How stupid. Life was only full of goodbyes, anyway. If we had met, we would have an eventual separation for sure, and I was determined to give my friend the opportunity to live on just as he'd given me a chance to be alive.

I wished that Alder could see my smile then; all he could see was the tears pooling in my cyan eyes, and I hoped that the happiness in them was enough for him to know that I wanted to do this. Becoming the sun didn't mean that I would leave him alone and bitter—it just meant that I could watch over him for the rest of his days and protect him.

I would become his guardian angel, and I would make sure he never got hurt again.

"Thank you for everything," I choked, praying that Arceus would grant me this wish to replace the sun's glorious radiance. "Thank you for noticing such a plain, feeble seed, and thank you for making me bloom into an unforgettable flower."

I'd never forget everything he'd done for me, after all. These memories were enough; they were more than enough to last me for eternity, and all I could do now was pray that this world would be enough of a thank-you.

The last thing I saw was the beautiful grey of my friend's shocked irises before an inexplainable warmth consumed me, and everything after that was only a pitch black.

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I swear. I love writing short stories because that's where you can dump all your nice, poetic shizz.

Anyway, this is the last chapter before the very short epilogue!! I can't believe I binge-wrote everything in five days; I'll say more when I actually do write the epilogue (if I try, I should be able to binge it before I sleep)

Thanks to everyone who liked this story~ and thank you guys for 156 reads and 36 votes! Votes, comments and critiques are very welcome : D

OKAY time to go write this epilogue