Chapter Text
...And death comes for all.
~~~~~
Time passed. The days and months and years seem to blend together, but Amara cherishes every single second. Things are peaceful and calm. Sable moves into the village and she fits in perfectly, and it's rare to see her and Kelpie apart. Kelpie writes letters to everyone; the pokemon in the snow village, her lake guild friends, to those at Xander's guild. Amara and Veles get letters as well from Lucia. She becomes the guild master, and soon after she's made changes to parts of the system that were in place. The guild by the ravine gets built and Silas becomes the guild master there. They learn Diamond was kicked out, not just from the guild but from the village.
Things happen once in a while. Lucia writes about a new group that's come around; some thieves have been appearing but she's onto them very quickly. Xander writes that with Silas' help, crime on that continent and in that forest has gone down drastically. The snow village wants to expand; build a new village further into the snow mountains. Pokemon begin to move into the ravine caves, now finally deemed safe.
Pokemon get older.
~~~~~
The elders are the first ones, naturally. Over the years they became weaker and weaker, and then there's a couple days where they're unable to leave their home. Their time has come. The whole village is quiet, everyone accepting of what's happening. They are still sad of course, but the elders have lived for many decades. Their time was to come eventually.
One night, Amara feels it. The claws of death creeping into the village, reaching out to claim someone. They never felt this sort of thing before. Did Arceus do something to them the last time they spoke? Made them aware? It didn't matter.
The dragalge goes outside and into the elders' home. They find Luna and Sol on their beds, awake but tired. A different sort of tiredness. They float over to the two of them, the lunatone and solrock slowly opening their eyes more to look at them. Bits of their rock bodies are chipped. Pieces have fallen off. It won't be much longer now.
Amara smiles, holding out their fins and gently placing them on the two pokemon. They looked confused.
"You two did a great job," Amara whispers. "You should be very proud of yourselves, you've done well. Thank you for everything."
Luna and Sol stare back at them and then slowly relax in their touch.
"Thank you, Amara," Luna barely manages to speak.
"Watch them for us, please," Sol's voice almost breaks.
"Of course."
The lunatone and solrock close their eyes, sighing. Soon, they're quiet and still. Gone.
Amara stays there for a short while, very slowly moving their fins away and looking over the two of them. Then they leave.
~~~~~
...Veles' time has come. He's tried to fight off his exhaustion, but it only makes him feel worse. He eventually gives in. Allows himself to spend all day and night resting. He gets up when he can, but it's not often.
It's about midday. He's laying in bed and Amara is nearby, looking over their food supplies to make something for him. They hear his body shift and they look over at him. He's looking towards the window, somewhat able to see outside from where he is. There's the sounds of pokemon outside; talking and laughing and playing. It's just another day here.
"Amara." He speaks up, not looking towards them.
"Yes?" The dragalge floats over to hover beside him.
The garchomp is quiet for a while. They let him take his time. Finally he speaks up again. "You mentioned something before, about death. How whenever you died in a previous life, the feeling was the same. Peacefully, painfully, you felt it coming every time."
"Yes."
Veles goes quiet again. "Can you bring Kelpie here? I want to talk to her."
"Of course." Amara nods and leaves their house. They look around and find her and Sable not too far away. They're playing with some children. New families moved into the village and the children have greatly enjoyed Kelpie's company. She's wonderful with them. Her and Sable have evolved, a beautiful rapidash and corviknight.
Amara floats over to them, smiling at some of the children. Kelpie notices them as she's moving one of the children off her back and down to the ground gently with her psychic ability.
"Kelpie. Veles wants to speak with you."
The rapidash stares at them for a moment. Her expression changes. Her legs shudder and she takes a deep breath, looking over at Sable. "Take over for me, ok?"
The corviknight nods, spreading her wings to catch the children's attention. "Alright, everyone, come with me! Let's go down to the beach for a bit, ok?" The children get excited and are quick to follow her down the path.
Kelpie watches and then looks back at Amara. The dragalge simply nods. Kelpie looks towards the home and slowly walks towards it, stepping inside. Amara follows and stays by the door. She walks over to Veles' bed and settles down on the floor next to him.
Veles looks over at her, a small laugh coming out. "Don't look so concerned, kid. It's going to be fine." He pauses and sighs. "You've been evolved for some time now, but I swear you're still the small ponyta I first met. But you've grown up well and you've done well. I'm proud of you."
Kelpie sniffles, unable now to keep her composure and a few tears begin to fall.
"Hey, easy," the garchomp mumbles, reaching over with a claw and placing it gently over her head. "You've got this, I'm sure of it. You can handle yourself."
The rapidash takes a shaky breath, trying to calm herself down but it only works a little bit. "Veles," she mutters, her voice breaking. "I don't want you to go."
"Kelpie." Veles' voice is serious but still gentle. "Do me a favor. Watch them for me."
Kelpie sniffles and nods. "I will."
"Good," the garchomp lowers his arm and sighs. "Thanks for giving me this chance. My life would be very different without the two of you. Take care of yourself and the others."
Kelpie nods again, leaning forward to press herself against him carefully and he wraps an arm around her. "Thank you, Veles," she whispers.
After a few quiet moments, the rapidash leans away and stands up. She looks over the garchomp one more time and then turns to leave. She stops by Amara and is about to say something, but Amara shakes their head. Kelpie stays quiet and steps out.
Later that night, Amara almost flinches when they feel it again. Death is looming just outside the village and closing in. They look up at Veles, having been curled up next to him for a few hours now. Veles is awake, looking towards the window and he looks at them.
"You know what?" The garchomp asks quietly. "It's not so much that I'm scared to die. I'm...I'm scared to leave you alone."
Amara sighs and shakes their head. "You're not leaving me alone."
"But-"
"Listen to me," the dragalge interrupts him, raising a fin to gently touch his face, looking into his eyes. He's tired. But there's fear in there as well. "There's something I've known for a long time now. I used to fear this. Both of you dying and I never see you again. I just get reborn into a new body and start over. But I know that's not going to happen." They smile. "You're not leaving me alone. You're only leaving for a short while."
Veles stares at them, his eyes widening slightly. As he takes in their words, his body relaxes and he chuckles. "I should've known," he mumbles. "You didn't mention everything Arceus told you. Guess it was for a good reason."
The claws are creeping closer.
"I love you with my entire heart and soul, Veles," Amara whispers.
"Your...soul, huh?" Veles mumbles, smiling a little. "A soul as unique as yours. I'm honored. Thank you. I love you too, Amara. See you soon."
His eyes slowly close and the smile stays on his face. Amara leans closer, pressing their foreheads together. After some time, his breathing goes quieter. Amara slowly moves away, looking over him. It looks like he's sleeping peacefully. They don't notice right away, but they're crying.
~~~~~
Years pass by. Life and Death are happening. New children appear and grow up here. The adults grow older and eventually pass. It's just the way things are.
...And eventually, it's Kelpie's time.
She has a hard time walking around, barely able to get far anymore. Sable helps take care of her the best she can, but she also grows weak herself. She has just a bit more energy left in her than Kelpie does, so she tries her best. Everyone knows it will be time soon for the both of them.
One day, Amara is at the ocean. Floating just above the waves coming into the shore. Their tail is lowered to feel the water as it comes and goes. Staring out towards the sunset. It's beautiful, as always. There was something about the sunrises and sunsets here. At this particular spot. They looked the most welcoming. The most serene. Compared to anywhere else in the world. This spot was the best view.
"Amara?"
They turn their head slightly to look back. A young meowstic stands there, a bit nervous. He avoids looking at them at first and then decides to make eye contact. "Sable wants you. Says it's important."
Amara sighs and nods. "Alright, thank you. I'll be right there."
The meowstic hesitates before turning and heading back to the village. Amara looks back towards the sunset. This will be the last one for some time. They take an extra moment to enjoy it before heading back to the village.
They arrive at Kelpie's home, going inside. The rapidash lays on her bed, and she looks weaker than ever. Sable is standing by her, looking worried. She turns and sees Amara, hesitating before walking over. "She...asked for you," the corviknight mumbles.
She's worried about leaving Kelpie's side. But there's still time. Amara looks over at her and nods. "It's ok."
That seemed to be enough for her. Sable slowly leaves the home.
Amara floats over, looking over Kelpie. Even though they did watch her grow up, it was almost hard to believe. This was the same little ponyta that appeared in that cave all those years ago. Young and curious. Caring. Willing to take risks to get the answers she desired.
The rapidash looks up at them, her whole body shuddering. "Amara," she whispers, a couple stray tears going down her face. "I'm scared."
Their heart aches to see her like this. The dragalge floats closer, raising a fin to lightly pet over her head. Like they used to do. The gesture alone seems to calm her down a little. "Kelpie, it's ok," they speak softly. "I know it's scary. But you're going to be fine."
Kelpie sniffles, looking conflicted. "But, Amara...I don't want to leave. I don't want to leave Sable, and I don't want to leave you. I don't want you to be alone. What if..."
Amara shakes their head. "It won't be like that. I promise you. I've changed. You know that better than anyone." They smile. "Thank you, for giving me this second chance. You didn't just break that barrier and set me free. I look at life differently now. I've appreciated each and every second we've spent together. You've been my greatest friend. You always believed in me, no matter what. You stayed by my side. And I will be forever grateful for that."
The rapidash looks over them, a small smile on her face. "I don't regret breaking that barrier at all. You've always done your best for me. I'm very glad that we were friends." She frowns a little. "But, are you really sure? Will you...be ok?"
Amara giggles. "Of course. Because I have a secret. You're not leaving me alone. We won't be apart for too long, I promise."
Kelpie stares at them, her eyes widening as the words sink in. "Really...? How?"
"How else?" The dragalge sighs. "I used to be scared of this day. But things changed. So now this isn't good-bye. We will see each other again soon."
She was quiet, slowly taking it all in. Her fear waned. She takes a deep breath. "Alright, I trust you," she mumbles.
Amara smiles, moving closer and wrapping both fins around her. Kelpie leans against them, returning the hug. "Thank you again," they whisper. "I love you."
"I love you too, Amara," Kelpie whispers back.
They stay there for a bit before slowly lowering their fins and moving away, looking over her and smiling. Kelpie smiles back at them. She's more accepting now. The dragalge heads over to the door and goes out.
Amara goes back down to the beach. The sun slowly sets, the warm light leaving the sky and the stars begin to shine. It gets darker, the stars and moon providing light. The waves sparkle and shine in a way different from when the sun touches them. Some time passes as they stay there. They feel it at some point behind them. The claws of death looming over the village. It closes in and then goes away.
Soon, the sun rises. Light begins to take over everything. A new day begins.
They hear footsteps in the sand behind them. "Amara?"
The dragalge looks back, it's the meowstic again. He's sad, hesitant. "She's gone," he mutters, his little hands fidgeting in front of him.
Amara is quiet, looking back over the water. They can feel it. It's coming back.
"Tell Sable I'm sorry."
"Huh?" The meowstic was clearly confused.
"I'm leaving, and I'm not coming back. This might seem like the worst time, but it's the right time. I'm sorry for doing it so suddenly. But it's something I have to do." Amara takes a deep breath, turning and looking over him. "Tell them. Please."
He's confused, wants to ask questions, but as he stares at them the questions aren't said out loud. The meowstic looks away and then looks back at them. Still confused and unsure. "Ok, I will." He hesitates before turning and heading back to the village.
They feel bad for doing it this way, but they don't have another option. There's no way they could explain such a thing. Amara waits a bit, and then floats over to the cave nearby. It's still here, after all these years. They look back, taking one last look at the ocean and the sunrise.
Amara enters the cave, going to the deepest part of it. Where they had spent years and years trapped in a bubble. They were reborn here. Not in the usual sense, but it was still a rebirth. The dragalge floats over to the same spot and slowly lies down on the cave floor. They look towards the cave entrance, seeing the light of day creeping in.
As they lay there quietly, they feel it once again. The claws of death are closing in, and this time it's coming for them.
They're not scared.
They're not sad.
They smile and close their eyes. Accepting. The claws close over them.
~~~~~
...
.....
.......Drifting. Their soul is drifting.
How long has it been since they felt this? The feeling of their soul drifting through emptiness. It's calming, relaxing. Like a small child being lulled to sleep by their mother. Very faintly, they hear a voice. It's so quiet and so soft, but they're able to pick up on the words.
"Go, my child."
They begin to feel aware. Of a body. Of their surroundings.
They slowly open their eyes. They're laying on a bed and in a house. Their body is different. Looking over themselves, they see they're a skitty now. A male skitty. What a difference. It felt more foreign than usual to be in a new body, they were in that last one for so long.
They hear something, footsteps coming to their room. The door opens and a shiny rockruff appears, looking surprised. "Oh, you're awake, good." He walks over and looks over them curiously. "How are you feeling?"
They stare at him. They know immediately who this is. They sense his soul. Their voice fails them for a moment. "I-" they cough.
"Whoa, easy," the rockruff's ears flatten as his concern grows.
The skitty takes a moment to compose themselves. "Sorry, I'm ok," they sigh and their tail flickers.
"If you say so," he mumbles, clearly unsure. "Hey, are you hungry? I'm sure you are, you've been asleep for a while."
They think. They...do feel hungry. Their body is a normal one now. They must eat and sleep again. How long has it been since they felt hunger? This was kind of exciting honestly. "Yes, I am."
"Ok, I'll grab something for you," the rockruff takes a couple steps back and pauses. "Oh yeah, what's your name? I'm Halvar."
The skitty thinks quietly. Every time they're reborn, they're given a name connected to their new body. The name appears in their mind and they're a little amused. Seems unfitting for a skitty. "I'm Samael."
Halvar looks over them curiously, clearly not expecting such a name, but he nods. "Alright. I'll grab you some food." He turns and leaves the room.
Samael looks around the room. It's small, quaint, and not too old. They don't recognize this type of structure. They smell the air. They don't smell grass or trees, but...dirt. The skitty slowly stands, getting used to legs again. One small and slow step at a time, they walk over to the nearby window, stretching their small body just enough to put their front paws on the edge and look outside. Their eyes widened.
There's a couple other homes they can see and some rock or ground type pokemon outside. There's a large rock wall nearby, with several holes from the very bottom of the wall to the very top. Pokemon are walking and flying about between them.
This is...the ravine. They're in a small village at the bottom of the ravine.
Samael drops down, their mind processing. They didn't really expect to be anywhere in particular when waking up again, but this was still unexpected.
"You put me down here after all of that?" They mumble to themselves. "Either you really do have a sense of humor or you're planning something."
Of course, there's no answer. The skitty sighs and goes back onto their bed, settling down just in time for Halvar to enter the room, carrying a few berries in a bag attached to him. He walks over and carefully removes the bag to put it down in front of them. "Here you go, I didn't know what you liked, so here's some oran berries."
"Thank you," Samael slowly begins eating, getting used to the sensation. Everything is so new and familiar at the same time.
The rockruff was about to speak when a gasp was heard from the doorway. He quickly turns, Samael looking over curiously. A pichu is standing there, staring at them. A big smile appears on her face and she runs over, looking over them excitedly. "You're awake! Hi hello! Who are you? Where did you come from? Did you fall down here?" The questions come quickly and without a breath in between.
The skitty stares at her. They know immediately once again, who this is. They sense her soul.
"Iris!" Halvar steps over, pushing the pichu away. "They just woke up, calm down, don't get in their face!"
The pichu groans, struggling and then immediately giving up, pouting. "Sorry."
"I-It's ok," Samael mutters and they continue eating. Their legs shake a little and their heart is racing. They're here. Both of them are here.
The rockruff sighs, gesturing vaguely with a paw over the young electric pokemon. "Sorry about her. This is Iris, my little sister. My father found her as an egg a few years ago and she's been a part of my family since. She can be a bit much."
Iris scoffs, smacking his paw away with her own. "That's mean of you to say."
"But it's the truth."
"You're annoying too!"
"But you're even more annoying!"
The skitty ate another berry, watching the two pokemon bicker. It was very amusing.
At one point in their argument, Halvar turned to them. "Sorry, I'll-" he stops, his expression changing to that of concern. Iris also looks over and looks worried. "You ok?" He asks.
It takes Samael a few seconds to realize what he means. There were a couple tears going down their face. The skitty quickly rubs at their face to clean themselves up. "S-sorry, I'm fine," they mumble.
The rockruff frowns and then looks at the pichu, stepping over and nudging her with his head. "Come on, how about you go tell mom the new guest is awake?"
Iris looks back at the skitty, looking apologetic and then quietly leaves the room.
Halvar sighs and looks back at them, still frowning. "You sure you're ok?"
The skitty wipes their face more, and takes a deep breath, calming down. "Yes, sorry. Just a little overwhelmed but I'm fine."
The rockruff still looks concerned but accepts their answer. "Fair enough, if you say so."
Samael nods and grabs the last berry, eating it. They smile to themselves.
I'm just...so happy.