terrible and beautiful

[makesdestruction]

Something moves, and sound pierces its rest. 

It is much longer before the pieces can be understood.

Metal screams. There is a noise like a panicked heartbeat, thud-thud-thud-thud-thud, and the downward press of sunlight on sleeping skin.

"Discov...!"



"...event...can't believe this is..."



"...did it! Operation successful!"




Something rumbles and hums.

"The draining process has begun."




Scattering, clicking. Chirping noises in the darkness.

"You're going to secure our future. The future of Team Flare! The future of the beauty that's left!"



This shouldn't be, this sensation of weakness. That was when it fell, when it dragged the lives of the creatures that tried to destroy it down with it, and let itself rest. (It cannot remember what those creatures were, or why, but not all of the sounds it hears are unfamiliar.)

And then it all stops.

Sunlight warms almost-skin again, and it stirs.



In the gardens, there's something that looks almost like a giant egg. Going near it leaves your chest heavy, and the shadows around it seem impossibly dark, even when the 'shell' pulses with light.

Feels like...something is listening.

Ｙ

It waits until the weight of sunlight fades.

A sharp crack splits the air.

As it turns out, this thing was not an egg at all. A creature itself moves-twists-shifts into being.



Yveltal's wings unfold, stretching wide, wide, wide, blocking out the sun the moon the stars--

--and then it collapses, drafts of air alone shattering branches and tearing petals from their flowers.

It's so exhausted, it nearly doesn't get up again. The life that was drained from it hasn't returned.

Black protrusions like claws on its wings and tail draw furrows in the earth, sinking in deep. It needs to fix this before it dies again.

The area around every spike darkens in spreading circles, grass and flowers and bushes withering unnaturally fast, flickering light--red lines being drawn beneath its body.

With several more wingbeats, Yveltal rises into the air--it even makes a few lengths of its body away from its 'nest' before slamming down to earth once more. 

Repeat action; repeat results, and it seems these plants aren't enough.

With the jerky and uncertain movements of something that belongs in the air, Yveltal starts dragging itself along the ground. It needs something with more life inside, or it might not even be able to shift back into its cocoon.

It's not going to try to kill anything, but...it's not going to let anyone get away. 

Comments

Dusk

[justletmewin]

The sharp crack causes Asriel to freeze. He thought he saw something like a giant egg in the garden today, but whenever he tried to go near it, a heavy weight seized him by the chest as though it wanted to drag him through the earth. Apparently it hatched? Everything is dark, and next thing he knew, the goat child was standing in a stained patch of earth with nothing but the crunch of dead plants.

All the flowers he worked so hard on... ashes in the blink of an eye. But he's too shocked to register the loss--not when there's a giant midnight-black crimson bird (???) crawling on the ground sucking the vitality of each blade of grass near it. What was that thing? Something like when he absorbed the Six Souls as Flowey? Could it speak? With the odd way it was moving... was it hurt?

"H-Hello?"

SRY ASRIEL ;;

[makesdestruction]

Yveltal's head swivels towards the other living thing. Another [Pokémon], like itself? Something like that. Small, weak--except it does not feel weak. The life emanating from the white-furred [Pokémon] is...something else. A strong little thing.

It deviates from its original path and hopes it doesn't want to fight. With how frozen it is, it might not be able to.

It would be better if it could fly, but that's the entire problem. With a titanic movement, it rears up the best it can--a core of light in its red chest flares a bright white--

--a massive beam of black and crimson shoots towards Asriel, or where Yveltal believes Asriel is. Aiming on the ground is as awkward as moving across it.

[justletmewin]

Asriel's eyes widened as he's caught in the blast--it's like every particle of himself burst into flames. By all means, he should've disintegrated on the spot. Instead, he's standing there petrified, fur singed and body trembling. His clothes remained intact but scorched, grayed and spotted with soot.

Perhaps Boss Monsters were blessed with enough HP to take a blow like this. Whatever this creature's intent, it wasn't a human so there's a chance it couldn't be capable of taking him down in one hit. But the fact is, he's still a child, and he shouldn't be strong enough to take something so destructive and powerful. Right?

A sign something is very, very wrong.

Exactly how much LV did he still have? Had it ever been reset? Or worse, had it been regained while he was Hyperdeath again? In all honesty, the possibilities frightened him more than what Yveltal did.

[makesdestruction]

Yveltal screams victoriously at successful strike--and this tiny [Pokémon] is powerful. Much energy drawn, even without any apparent type advantage, and the tiny white thing hasn't done more than flinch.

It slams back down, rattling the leaves of every tree nearby, disintegrating the husks of plants left on the ground. It's been less than a minute, but it's already apparently forgotten Asriel was ever there--massive blue eyes are laser-focused back on the sky. Was that boost enough? Can Yveltal fly again?

With another shriek, it tries--it tries--

It gets higher this time, higher than the trees, only to twist into a dive and slam into the castle's inner walls. Gravel and stone rain down, and it cries its dismay. How weak is it now?

[justletmewin]

The effect Yveltal had on Asriel's body was immediate--despite being fine earlier, he felt as though he hadn't slept in ages. He staggers and collapses on his knees, dizzy as he attempts to force himself back up. His inner Flowey hisses at him to get the hell out of dodge ("Unless getting incinerated again is what you want."), but his legs drag like iron balls and chains. He looks around for someone, anyone...

He had planned on retreating to the castle, but what with Yveltal plummeting there... so much for that.

[makesdestruction]

Yveltal screams again and slams its claws into the stone once it shoves rocks and gets upright, dragging its body up the stone wall itself, clinging to it like some sort of massive bat in a cave. Now its tail--clawed as well--is hanging over the nearest entrance, sinking in and blocking it as well as leaving huge cracks in an already-unstable door.

It twists its head around, glaring accusingly down at Asriel, like it's his fault it's not strong enough now.