Warning: This chapter will involve scenes of torture and graphic digestion. If this is not your thing then stop reading now. You have been warned!

Disclaimer: I do not own Pokemon. Pokemon is the property of Nintendo and Game Freak.

Guardians of Alicrest: Chapter 5: Captured!

Things were finally looking up for Ava. Her recent evolution into a Glaceon had increased her power considerably and her rare ice typing seemed to put her in high demand. She was finally able to stop hiding behind others and actually contribute to the rebellion.

Which is why she had been chosen for her current mission. The previous squad that had been sent to the swamp had never returned, so she was part of a second squad sent to see if they could find any clues as to what had happened to them. Unfortunately Ming and Cedric were needed elsewhere so they could not accompany her on this mission. She had to admit, it was both frightening and empowering to be on a mission without them. Instead she had been teamed up with Luxio and a Simisage. They both had a bit of a trickster streak in them, but were quite capable when things got serious.

Again Ava was confronted with a new environment as they entered the swamp lands. The ground grew soft with moisture and the air became pungent with the smells of the swamp. They quickly took to the trees and began to survey the area for any remnants of the other squad, but after an hour of searching, they had come up empty handed. They decided to take a quick break before continuing their search and managed to find a solid peace of land they could rest on.

"Hey are you two hunger?" the Simisage asked.

"You know it!" the Luxio responded with enthusiasm.

The Simisage pulled some berries from a pouch he carried and gave some to the Luxio and Ava. Ava placed some of the berries in her mouth and began to chew. She yipped in surprise as her mouth was assaulted by the spicy flavor of the berries. Her face turned red and she began to pant, flapping her paws wildly to blow cool air into her mouth. The Luxio and Simisage burst out laughing and gave each other a high-paw at their well executed prank. When Ava's mouth finally cooled down, she glared at them.

"That wasn't funny!" she shot at them.

"Whoa, lighten up." the Simisage said "You spend too much time with Ming and Cedric."

"Yeah, you need to learn to laugh at the little things or the despair of this world will consume you in no time." the Luxio agreed.

"Well it still wasn't very nice." Ava replied.

"Okay, okay, we're sorry." the Simisage apologized.

"Yeah, no more pranks on you. Scout's honor." the Luxio added.

Suddenly a melodious voice filled the air around them.

"Do you guys here that?" Ava asked, looking around for the source of the music. When she turned her head back she saw that the other two were already heading off into the swamp "Hey, I though you just said no more pranks!" she shouted before chasing after them.

The two continued forward, paying no heed to Ava's calls. After a short distance they arrived in a small clearing and in the middle of the clearing was a loan Mawile, who seemed to be the source of the bewitching tune. The two slowly advanced towards her as if in a trance. Ava finally caught up to them and noticed the two approaching the Mawile.

"Come on guys, this isn't funny." she said.

No, something wasn't right. Even they wouldn't take a joke this far. The Mawile stopped singing and regarded the Pokemon in front of her.

"Well, it seems I've been discovered by some handsome young men." she said seductively "My name is Vorlord Morganna."

Ava's hair stood on end when she heard the term "Vorlord". This was bad. This was very bad.

"Get away from her!" Ava yelled, attracting the Vorlord's attention.

"Oh my, a Glaceon! How exotic." Morganna said with interest "Would you gentlemen mind restraining her for me?"

The Luxio and Simisage were on Ava in a second. She was not prepared for the sudden betrayal and even if she had been she wasn't sure if she would have been willing to attack her former allies.

"Hey! Snap out of it, you two!" she shouted in vain as the Mawile approached her.

"It's rare to see an ice type this far from the northern mountains. Your name wouldn't happen to be Ava, would it?" Morganna asked.

Ava didn't want to tell the Vorlord anything, but her silence was all the answer Morganna needed.

"Aw, that truly is a pity." Morganna said in disappointment.

Ava felt all the air pushed from her lungs as the Mawile drove a punch into her chest. Her pupils narrowed to pin pricks as her mind tried to process what had just happened. Darkness encroached from the edges of her vision as unconsciousness took her.

******

Ava's eyes slowly opened as she regained consciousness. She tried to get to her feet only to hear a clanking sound and find that she could hardly move her paws. As her vision began to focus, she looked at her paws and found that they were shackled and chained to four corners, forcing her to sprawl out in an 'X' shape. She struggled against her bindings, but they didn't give an inch. Her next impulse was to call for help, but when she tried to open her mouth she found that it was bound shut by some kind of muzzle. This not only prevented her from speaking; it also disabled her ability to use her Ice Beam.

Fear began to creep into her mind, but she warded it off. Panicking would do her no good. Instead she inspected her surrounding to gain as much knowledge about her situation as possible. She was inside a spacious room and appeared to be laying on a stone slab that was raised off the main floor. The edges of the slab were raised slightly, making it seem like a very shallow tub. If she turned her head to the left, she could just make out some kind of cabinet against the wall. It appeared to be stocked with various beakers and vials. Unfortunately this caused Ava's fear to surface again. Just where had that Vorlord taken her? She began to struggle against her bonds again, but to no avail.

"Well, well, look who's finally away. Morganna never was good at holding back." A chill ran down Ava's spine and her entire body stiffened as she heard the voice that had haunted her nightmares. The voice of the one who had eaten her parents, Vorlord Nefarious. "Hello Ava. My, just look at how much you've grown since we last met. I'm actually glad I didn't get to eat you. You'll make a much more fitting meal now. Ah, but work before pleasure. Or in my case, pleasure before pleasure." he said with an evil chuckle.

Ava could hear him circling around her. She tried her best to look defiant, but her previous encounter with the Vorlord had instilled her with an instinctual fear of the Grumpig and she couldn't help but let a shiver from running down her body as she saw his face.

"What do you say we remove that nasty little muzzle, but first, a precaution." Nefarious said before his eyes started to glow red.

He looked Ava straight in the eyes, causing her eyes to turn the same shade of red as his own. Ava felt strange and light headed for a moment, but otherwise unharmed. A moment later, a psychic glow surrounded the muzzle around her mouth. There was a click and the muzzle floated away from her. She immediately opened her mouth and aimed it at Nefarious... and nothing happened.

"You look surprised." Nefarious teased her "Let me guess, you thought you were going to put me on ice and escape your little predicament. Well you can forget it. You're mine now, and I have no intention of letting you go."

"W...What are you going to do with me?" Ava couldn't hide the quiver in her voice as she asked the question she feared the answer to.

"I'm glad you asked. It seems someone managed to take out our little spy. Without him, I've had to resort to other method to get the information that I need. Sure I could just probe your mind, but where's the fun in that? Especially when there are other, more entertaining options available." He grinned wickedly at Ava before walking over to the cabinet against the wall. He levitated one of the vials and floated it towards Ava. "You know, my only regret about eating my victims is that I don't get to see the looks on their faces as they are slowly reduced to mush. Do you know what this is?" He asked, indicating the floating vial.

Ava shook her head, dreading the answer.

"It's concentrated stomach acid from a Swalot. This stuff can dissolve almost anything. Just imagine what it will do to raw flesh. Of course you won't have to imagine for much longer. That is unless you'd like to tell me where your resistance's little base is hiding."

Despite her overwhelming fear, Ava summoned all the courage she could muster. She wouldn't betray her friend, no matter what the cost. "I won't tell you anything." she said sternly.

"Oh I was hoping you would say that!" Nefarious said gleefully "I've so been looking forward to this."

Nefarious tilted the vial a little, allowing some of the liquid to drip down onto Ava's left shoulder. The acid hissed and bubbled the instant it touched Ava's skin. Ava inhaled sharply through her teeth as her shoulder was instantly taken by a burning sensation. She struggled against her bond in an attempt to escape the caustic fluid, but it was futile. After a few moments, the hissing stopped, the small bit of acid having done its work. The fur where the acid had touched had already dissolved away, leaving behind blistering flesh.

"My, that looks painful." Nefarious taunted her, clearly taking pleasure in her suffering.

He hovered the bottle over her back, spilling some of the acid here and there. Ava let out small yelps of pain as her back began to burn. She continued to writhe uselessly in her bonds, every fiber of her being trying to escape the source of pain. When the burning finally died down, Ava was left panting heavily, tears forming in the corners of her eyes. Nefarious hovered the vial in front of her face for a moment. She cringed instinctively, expecting to be dowsed in the corrosive liquid, but it didn't come.

"Don't worry, I'll take extra care not to get any on your pretty little face. After all, I want a perfect view of every grimace and cry of agony you make as I slowly destroy your body." Nefarious said with his trademark evil grin.

He positioned the vial back over her left shoulder and let another stream of acid ooze down onto it. Ava's pain receptors went into overdrive as her already irritated skin protested the continued assault. She cried out in pain as her skin was eaten away, exposing sensitive muscle tissue and allowing blood to ooze down her shoulder. Even after the acid stopped, her left shoulder was now in constant pain. Nefarious continued to dot her back and flank with splotches of acid. He loved how her muscles tensed with drop that touched her, her body pulling desperately against the shackles that kept her bound.

Tears flowed freely now down Ava's face as she sobbed from unimaginable pain. Nefarious brought the vial back to her left shoulder, delivering a hefty dose of acid to here exposed muscles. Ava shrieked at the top of her lungs as her pain reached new heights. Her left leg spasmed occasionally as the acid tore apart her muscle tissue.

"Please stop!" Ava begged "I'll tell you what you want to know! Just stop!" Nothing else mattered anymore. She would do anything just to make him stop. Even if it meant betraying her friends.

"Aw and we were just getting to the good part." Nefarious said in disappointment "Okay let's hear it. And remember I'm psychic; I can tell if you're lying."

"In the western part of the forest... There's a tree... much larger than the rest... and a clearing... just north... berry thicket... to the south... The base... surrounds that tree." Ava explained through pained breaths.

"Oh, I'm sure Draco will be very interested in this information. I suppose you've earned a break... for now." Nefarious said.

"What?!" Ava exclaimed.

"You didn't really think that was the only piece of information I wanted from you, did you?" Nefarious asked rhetorically "Oh no, I'm going to torture every last bit of information from you that I can, and once you've become no use to me, then I'll savor your anguished cries from my stomach."

Ava's eyes went wide with terror at the prospect of further torture. "No! Please no!" she begged.

Nefarious stopped levitating the vial, allowing it to shatter on the slab next to Ava. "Oops, I'm such a butter fingers." He feigned "Anyway, I have important information to relay. I'll be back later. Don't go anywhere while I'm gone." He cackled maniacally as he exited the room, his evil laugh echoing down the hallway.

"No! Please! PLEASE!" Ava yelled, abandoning all dignity for any chance at salvation.

Ava was left to languish on the stone slab. She didn't even have the strength to struggle anymore. She could only lie there and endure the terrible agony that had been inflicted upon her. Her breaths were ragged and labored and she could no longer mover her left leg. Blood oozed from her abused body, forming a small pool around stomach. She prayed for the pain to stop, but even that would not be granted to her as she began to feel a burning sensation on the right side of her stomach. The remaining acid from the vial Nefarious had dropped was beginning to pool around her body along with her blood.

Why?! Why was this happening to her?! What had she done to deserve this?! She had just wanted to help people; Was that so wrong?! She began to sob and wail uncontrollably as she cursed her fate. Her only wish now was to die; To leave this life of pain and misery behind her. Her pitiful wails and moan could be heard for several minutes until darkness clouded her vision as she finally passed out from the pain.