The Pain

Summer sighed as she sat on the Latolato Trail near the bridge, overlooking the sea. Lark stood nearby, silent as she looked over the girl. Brown eyes misted over as she looked down, the faint crashing over the waves barely audible to her. Her throat caught and she wiped away some tears, her heart clenching in her chest as she shook her head. Nothing would ever make it right. She closed the knife and tucked it into her vest pocket before standing up. She looked to Lark and waved the Suicune off. The Pokemon hesitated for a moment before nodding and walking off, giving one last glance over her shoulder before disappearing down the hill and leaving Summer alone. The Ranger sighed and folded her arms, continuing to stare down at the sea. She shouldn't have even considered that; it would do no good. People would only worry about her and when she had to face Ben next, it would be hard to explain. Plus, Chairperson Erma might make her go on medical leave and get therapy. That was the last thing she wanted, to be forced to spill her guts to some person she didn't know or trust. Normally, she would confide in Ben, but he wasn't there for her anymore; Chairperson Erma had told her to stay in Oblivia indefinitely and he'd been taken back to Almia. She had a decent amount of power as a Top Ranger, but she couldn't argue with the founder of the Rangers. If it weren't for the elderly lady, she'd likely be dead now without a job to keep her going. Summer hesitated for a moment before shifting her weight and aiming her Capture Disk at the ground, then drew a Ranger Sign. Nothing seemed to happen, but she knew that he'd be waiting for her. She walked a ways back before jumping head first off the cliff. She adjusted her goggles and pulled her arms in close to her body, watching as the sea drew closer and the wind whistled around her. Adrenaline rushed through her body and made her gasp a bit, smiling as the feeling replaced the numbness that had haunted her the past several hours. The sea quickly approached her and she shifted, taking the Mini Aqualung out of her pocket, putting it in her mouth just moments before she hit the surface hard. It took the wind out of her for a moment but she recovered quickly and started to swim down, bubbles springing up around her as she breathed, looking around. Pokemon gathered around her, curious. She waved to them all as she swam further down, a dark shadow soon appearing at her side. Summer just smiled and swam over to the shadow and he nodded to her, his blue eyes shining in the clear water. She grabbed hold of Lugia's neck and the Pokemon continued to swim, glancing back at his friend and she waved to him, signaling that she was fine. He nodded tentatively as he continued, going deeper until no light reached them. She soon patted his neck and he headed up, breaking the surface just in time. She gulped the air and looked around, climbing onto his back. They were quite a ways out from Renbow Island, Mount Latolato and the Wireless Tower barely visible. She tucked her sopping wet hair behind her ear and laid back on Lugia's back, closing her eyes and sighing as the memories drifted back, not held at bay long enough for her liking. If only she could go back to being a kid... None of it would have happened then and she'd just be happy... Her mama and papa would still be alive along with the twins... She just let out another sigh before slowly drifting off, the heat from the sun and rocking of the waves lulling her to sleep.