Chapter 2 - Justified Destruction

Quote of the day: The destruction of a species is a path for the creation of another. However, the cost is far too great to bear.

Meaning: In order to survive, you may need to get rid of someone, but sometimes, the consequences of destroying another for your own interests will weigh a burden too heavy for you to carry.

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Edited (9/8/18)

The red Absol casted his burning gaze around the village he had just attacked. Seemingly dissatisfied at the destruction he had caused, he continued his onslaught of damage at the village.

Not yet.

It isn't enough.

More.

More.

More!

His bloodstained claws glimmered menacingly as he chased the villagers. His intention was not to kill, but to scare the villagers and warn them to stay away from all Absol. Foolishly courageous humans had tried to bring him down, but he had fought back with a fierce vengeance.

A flash of his mother's soft features frowning upon him halted his movements temporarily. His mother's voice rang clearly in his head. This is not the way, Crimson.

"I know... I know! But I can't stand to see more Absol ridiculed and killed because the foolish humans think we're threats!" Crimson growled lowly, grimacing in pain.

He closed his eyes solemnly, imagining the faces of his parents' murderers. "I have to find those poachers... I just have to!"

Along the way, Crimson encountered numerous Absol killed before his eyes and their beautiful white pelts waiting to be distributed. The constant awful and untrue rumours he heard about his kind steeled his will to protect all Absol. He was also certain that he saw the same figures that claimed his parents' lives roaming in the village.

"I won't be forgiven for my deeds, but I will make up for it by protecting them..." Crimson whispered, stopping for a moment to study his work.

He had succeeded in starting a small fire in an abandoned hut near the village, which eventually spreaded to the other huts in the village, causing a huge panic to occur and flushing the villagers out of their homes.

Despite his intense hatred for the humans, he promised himself that he would not murder humans in cold blood - at least not the ones who didn't kill his parents. He took it upon himself to protect the Absol by spreading the fear of his name through destroying villages that hunt down Absol.

One of the villagers laid her eyes on Crimson and stuttered in fear. "I-It's the harbinger of d-destruction! The red Absol! Run!"

Crimson's chilling green eyes bore into the villager, making her scramble desperately away from him. "This is what you get for killing my kind."

He dipped his head sorrowfully as he laid his eyes on the mangled bodies of fellow Absol. Rest well, my brothers and sisters. I will make sure the same thing doesn't happen to others.

When he left the previous village and entered this one, he saw a few Absol trapped in a large metal cage, yowling in pain. At first, Crimson could not tell what the cause of pain was, and had wanted to rush towards the cage to free them. One of the Absol had spotted him approaching and yelled at him to leave with pleading eyes.

It was then that Crimson noticed the humans gathering around the cage, throwing firewood below the cage. A flicker of vermilion orange appeared at the sides of the cage made him realise what was happening.

The humans had been burning the trapped Absol alive.

"Killing them with weapons wouldn't do. Blood on their pelts would ruin the quality and how much we'll be able to sell them for," a skinny human had snickered, clapping his hands together.

"Burning them alive is the best way; heat makes their pelts sleeker and no blood will be shed!" Another human had commented, nodding in approval. "We'll be able to get more money for our village this way."

Crimson had stood still, watching his kind yowling in pain until they eventually died. Their piercing screams still rang in his ears as he looked away from their bodies. Their pelts were mangled from ramming against the bars of the cage, trying to desperately escape.

After the humans were sure that the Absol were dead, they put out the fire and dragged their bodies out of the cage. While they were busy, Crimson had found an abandoned hut and managed to create a small fire.

You killed them with fire, so fire will ravage your homes, Crimson thought, examining the damage he had caused. The humans stumbled out of their homes and most of them are already far from the fire. A few humans had already started to fetch water from the river nearby to put out the fire. He saw their determination to stop the fire from spreading and grimanced.

Worthless efforts. This fire won't be put out by determination alone, he thought bitterly. Just like how my goal won't be stopped here.

"Get another bucket! We need more water here!" Someone shouted.

"All right! We got more water here!" Another person passed a bucket to someone else swiftly, and reached out to grab another.

The red absol observed their actions, growling in displeasure. "Why are they trying to put out the fire when it's obvious it can't be stopped that easily? They don't even have water Pokémon to help them."

Just where are those filthy poachers? I could've sworn I saw them earlier. He shifted his attention to a small human - possibly a child - talking to an older human female. "Mother, how will we survive after this? I thought our village was recovering. The village chief said so! So why is there a fire now? Will we really get enough money to recover from this?"

The older human shook her head and smiled sadly. "No one expected the fire, but the best we could do is do what we can and hope for the best. Let's trust each other, all right?"

"All right!" The boy replied, looking satisfied by her words.

Crimson looked away, frowning. His conscience was coming back to haunt him. I shouldn't be doing this, should I?

"Just when we thought we could earn some profit from the Absol pelts. Damn it! Why did this have to happen now? What will happen to our village? We may never recover from this," a young woman cried. "We'll never survive..."

A young man approached her and hugged her tightly. "Maybe we got what we deserved... We should've never killed those Absol, even if they do bring us bad luck. It's our retribution for harming our neighbours."

Seeing the humans worry over their situation, but accepted it made Crimson feel a sharp pang of guilt. Their determination made him waver slightly, but he forced himself to focus.

He steeled his resolve and walked through the fire, towards the humans. His eyes eyes burned with a chilling intensity that even the fire lost to. The fire gave his white fur a reddish tint, and highlighted his red parts with a domineering ferocity. With a threatening stance, he growled at humans.

Startled, they backed off, intense fear in their eyes. Someone gasped out and pointed at Crimson with shaking fingers. "It's h-him! It's t-the Scarlet Havoc!"