Pokémon Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Path of Valor

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Heya, coming back to this to try and close the distance with this story's current events a bit more with…

Chapter 90

Spoiler: Line-by-Line

"Seriously?"

Tessa looked at the paper that Nickie nudged across the floor to her. It had crude doodles of spiked rings.

"Yeah!" Nickie's tails wagged asynchronously. "Look, this bandanna you leant me is nice. But it's not my style." She nudged at the blue cloth with her snout.

Well, that would explain a thing or two about Nikki's current fashion sensibilities. Though I wonder if this means that we'll ever see her get to rock a choker at some point.

"Not your... style?" Tessa picked up the paper. "So you'd rather wear—"

"Spiked collars and anklets!" Nickie's tails wagged faster. "I had spiked wristbands back home. They were great. I'd love something like that here." Her eyes sparkled. "And then maybe I can grow out my hair so it covers up one of my eyes a bit. Gimme that 'heartthrob' look." She swished her tails to the side and stuck a foreleg out in a pose accentuated by the sparkling of her icy pelt.

Oh, so even back in the human world, Nickie was going through a punk phase.

Tessa blinked. "Huh."

The vulpix frowned. "Something wrong?"

"I guess I... thought you'd go for softer accessories."

"Oh." Nickie's ears folded. "Well, I—" She brushed her forelegs together. "Now that you know the truth I thought... I could be more of my, y'know, authentic self around you."

I distinctly remember that Nikki had a similar character arc earlier in the story, I wonder just how much of each characters' overbroad life events were repeated/echoed in their AU!GL incarnations' experiences.

"Hmm?" The realization set in a moment later for the riolu. "Ah!"

She lightly hit her head a few times. "Stupid, stupid!" Tessa folded up the paper. "Of course you should do that."

Can't tell if this is an allusion to Tessa remembering how Nickie wasn't able to be herself back in the human world or else if there's another story here that we'll see sometime down the road.

"Then you'll help me find a place that sells these?" Nickie regained her earlier enthusiasm.

"Totally."

"And maybe some fur dye?" Nickie looked back at her right flank. "I was thinking some pinks and purples..."

Tessa walked over and slung an arm around Nickie. "I'm sure we've got the funds for it."

Oh no, she's becoming an OC-

Nickie: "Hey, if there can be out-and-out fusions in this story that people take seriously, I can have a dye job, okay?!"

As the name implied, Herbrides' Hilltop Mall sat on a decently sized hill toward the center of the city. The entrance offered a view of grain and wheat fields beyond city limits, along with the rows of tan-colored buildings fanning out in all directions.

That BGM is reminding me that I have this game rotting in my backlog right now and I should really get around to it once writing, reviewing, and XB3FR stop making me make glub glub noises.

Inside, however, the white floor was so pristine that Yuna could see an outline of her reflection. Though the dragapult had to admit she liked how the floor sparkled under the sunlight spilling in through the mall's glass roof.

"So, what d'ya think, Princess?"

Nikki clapped Yuna on the back as she passed her by. The toxtricity ran a hand along the top of a neat, rectangular bush planted in a pot in the middle of the floor.

Yuna: "I... uh, never really saw you as the mall type, really."

"It's, um, something?" Yuna waited until Igneous walked past before continuing forward. She glanced over her shoulder. Scarlett had on some sort of cloak to hide her face, while Shimmer was disguised as a fire-type ponyta.

Also, is this literally based off the Alive Mall, just not overgrown, or is this just a generic mall whipped up here?

Truthfully, she still wasn't sure why Nikki insisted on dragging her here. The whole reason part of the resistance was in Herbrides was to sweep the city itself. Cid mentioned something about the distortion that swallowed up Tulpise spreading south, and that was all Seifer needed to demand they move out.

I mean, on the positive side, that probably helps with booking cheap hotel rooms right now, since I imagine that if that news is public that the Herbrides have likely cleared out considerably.

"You don't really think the empire's going to spawn in this mall, do you?" Yuna wondered, keeping her voice down. Plenty of folks were heading in both directions. A fact that Shimmer and Scarlett both seemed spooked by.

"Of course not." Nikki adjusted her leather jacket. "But we needed a change of scenery." She walked backward. "C'mon. A week of nothing but artificial light and Cyril's dumb outpost is so boring."

"I guess." Yuna did find the natural sunlight refreshing after another week of mind-numbing training exercises. "Though we could get sunlight outside, too."

"Sure, sure." Nikki dismissed her with a wave. "But then we wouldn't get to take you to your first mall!"

Nikki: "Which I'm honestly kinda shocked that you've managed this all this time, since foreign royalty going on spending sprees isn't exactly a rare thing."

This was about Yuna? The dragapult's head swiveled left and right. There were glass windows with two and four-legged mannequins draped in cloaks and jackets. One store displayed wooden shelves lined with trays of assorted baked goods. The store next to it had big glass containers full of wrapped candies and chocolates.

It was kind of like the market in Saint Zygardesberg. Except the shops were stacked into multiple floors instead of lining a single street.

Oh, so their markets haven't yet reached the stage of "multi-story arcade" yet. Honestly a little surprising given how many dragonmons can casually fly, but I suppose that's decently on-brand for pre-industrial life.

"Wait a tic," Reshiram piped up. "How are you supposed to buy anything? You don't have any radians on you."

Yuna passed that concern along to Nikki. The toxtricity snickered. She flicked her right hand out. A tiny plastic rectangle popped up between her fingers.

"Since when do you have a credit card?" Scarlett slithered past Nikki, stopping by a fountain and eyeing the marble primarina statue spitting up water. The brionne scattered along the fountain's rim also spat water. And were those coins glistening on the floor?

Cue the theme song:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d8ZZjObnOt4

It was weird, yet Yuna found all the sparkling coins and rippling water relaxing. She could've stared at the bottom of the fountain all day, but Nikki's voice caught her attention.

Oh, she has a treasure hoard back in Aeon, doesn't she? Since I can see that mesmerized look at those coins there. :V

"Since I swiped it outta lover boy's hair." Nikki stuck her hands up by her mohawk and wiggled her fingers while making a kissy face.

Arms crossed, Igneous rested against one of the stone brionne. "And what happens when Cyril realizes he has a bunch of new charges on his credit card?"

"Nothing." Nikki tucked the card back into a small, zippered pocket on her jacket. In a hushed voice, she added, "Dude illegally mints his own radians. He won't care."

Wait, radians are a cryptocurrency in this setting? Or does Cyril literally have a mint pressing counterfeit bills in the basement of his burger joint?

Igneous' brows twitched in irritation while Nikki continued past the fountain. Gulping, Yuna followed.

"At least it's better than outright shoplifting?" she offered with a nervous smile.

I'm going to die of laughter if you actually wind up doing a reference to that one Proud Family sequence.

"Niiice. Looking at the bright side." Shaymin nodded his tiny head in her subconscious. "I dig it. Say, they got any good eats around here?"

What does it matter? You're a spirit! Groaning, Yuna shoved the Sages out of her head. "So, what exactly are we going to do here? I'm not, like, looking to buy food or clothes."

"No duh." Nikki picked up the pace. "C'mon. Map said it's back here on the third floor." The toxtricity pointed toward a moving staircase in the far distance. She pushed her way past an older simipour and simisage. "Stand aside, geezers!"

So... arcade or movie theater?

Yuna muttered an apology as she floated after Nikki. She swerved past an inteleon, whose sobble child on their shoulder promptly began crying and turned invisible. She weaved under the large frames of a couple of garganacle, nearly crashing into a painting canvas with a smeargle sitting beside it. Yuna floated ahead, flashing Smeargle a nervous grin. They shook their head and returned to... painting a portrait of a plusle and minun couple sitting on a stool next to the canvas and holding hands.

Wait, Sobble can do that canonically? .-.

Why is this so... nostalgic?

"Because of thine market trips back home?" Rayquaza wondered.

Maybe? The market did bustle, yes. But the ash choking the skies over Saint Zygardesberg made it tough to appreciate her time there.

"Perhaps it's Giratina's memories, then."

... Wait, implying that Tessa managed to go back with Nickie to her world at least on one occasion? Since that would certainly be one way for a mall like this to be nostalgic to her.

Reshiram's thought sent a chill down Yuna's ectoplasm. She barely avoided an elderly espathra moving much slower than surrounding foot traffic. For a moment, the pristine white floors turned to a dirt road. Instead of a toxtricity shoving people aside, a familiar black-haired girl waved Yuna over before jogging down the dirt road toward a small wooden building with some sort of toolbox outside it.

"Let's craft some smoke balls together! They'll totally help us look for the pokémon causing those storms!"

Huh, guess she really is seeing Giratina's memories there, since that's straight outta PLA.

"Keep up, Yuna!"

Scarlett's voice snapped the dragapult to attention. Nikki was already heading up the escalator, with Igneous and the dragonair about to get on.

"Sorry!" Yuna squeaked. She decided to fly higher up, over everyone else, to keep pace with the others.

"I'm right, aren't I?" Reshiram cut in.

Yuna: "... No comment." >_>;

Yeah, sure. But Nikki said we're here to have fun. Yuna reached Igneous and Scarlett. So drop it, okay?

Sighing, Reshiram retreated from her mind. Yuna hovered up the escalator. The others got off at the third floor. Nikki walked a few meters away, toward a flashing neon "GAME BUSTERS ARCADE" sign above open glass doors. She stood with her hands proudly on her hips.

Yeah, I had a feeling that they were going to something like this. That's definitely something you don't see in many malls anymore.

"Seriously?!" Igneous' head leaf and tails simmered. "You dragged us here for a damn arcade? We're not a pack of kids, you know."

"Oh, step off your high rapidash." Not turning around, Nikki waved the grovlazzle off. "You're never too old to let your inner child out for a spell. Think of it like a team-building exercise."

And it'll be time to see the groaner bland name counterparts you came up with for different games inside.

She finally looked over her shoulder. "Speaking of high rapidash, where's Pillow Prince?"

Yuna's eyes widened. Right, Shimmer. He was with them before. What happened?

"Tch." Igneous crossed his arms. "Right when you ran off, he said Demerzel contacted him. So, he left."

Yuna: "Oh for crying out-!" >.<
Nikki: "Wait, but isn't that a good thing? Since with all due respect, but Pillow Prince didn't strike me as the type to handle games well unless he won all the time."

Scarlett frowned. "I thought Gene had gotten rid of that whole connection."

"He kept a part of it." Igneous pinched his brow in annoyance. "He still wants to keep tabs on his mothers, apparently. Tried to tell him it was a bad idea, but he wouldn't listen."

Well, I suppose that's a sign that this casual day out at the mall isn't going to stay a casual day out at the mall for long.

So, the ponytales was off to meet with Demerzel, then? That was... not going to bite them, was it? The look in Igneous' eyes suggested it wouldn't, but it made Yuna nervous anyway.

Narrator: "It will absolutely come to bite them."

"Well, forget him." Nikki stepped toward the others, rubbing her hands together. "This evens things out perfectly."

"For what?" Scarlett wondered, looking between Nikki and the arcade. Though the door was open, it was quite dark on the other side.

"For a little two-on-two air hockey action." Nikki punched the air while her mohawk flared up with excitement. "Since Princess has to learn the ropes, I'll take her. And you two can be together." A wry grin spread over her face. "Y'know, since you've been spending soooo much time together~"

Yeah, I figured that Nikki would take Shimmer's absence in stride, though no group game of Mario Kart Arcade GP?

Igneous' head leaf caught fire, which he immediately snuffed out. "Why should you get decide?"

"Aww, what's the matter?" Nikki was at Igneous side in an instant. She noogied his head. "Afraid of getting your ass kicked in a friendly competition?"

Nikki has a lot of experience with pressing buttons to get her way in life, doesn't she?

"Knock it off!" Igneous shoved her away. "The teams are—"

Scarlett's tail wrapped around the grovlazzle's leg. "You don't have a problem with me not having limbs, do you?"

The simmering returned to his head leaf. "N-Not at all." Igneous clenched his fist. "We can... kick their asses just fine."

Well, that's going to be a sight to behold from Team Igneous' end.

Nikki's grin widened. "Now that's the spirit! C'mon!"

Before Yuna could say anything, Nikki had her by the arm and was running for the arcade entrance.

Ah yes, time to find out if "no limbs" or "no experience" is the bigger handicap in air hockey.

Herbrides. Why did it have to spread toward Herbrides? was all Seifer could think to himself as he walked along a side street. Cyril was beside him, in the guise of a dark-type zoroark. He held a small rectangular radar.

Oh huh, that's definitely different from how I remembered Poshley Heights' music sounding, but it's not a bad remix.

"Still nothing." Cyril tapped the screen with an illusory red claw. He shifted his weight mid-step. "All clear on the ground to the west. We'll keep going clockwise."

"Understood," Widget said through the X-transceiver line. "We're good, too."

Seifer quickened his pace. The tan roads and tan buildings could practically melt together.

Whelp, I'm just going to take this as a confirmation that fun and games at the mall is going to come to a screeching end shortly.

"Y'know, never did get why so many houses on the outskirts are circular," Cyril said, taking his eyes off his radar and casually moving ahead. "Makes 'em look a bit like bunkers."

"Simulates the hills," Artemis responded. He was slithering a few paces back of them, sticking his head up. Enjoy the cool breeze, perhaps? The air was rather stuffy in the outpost. "At least, I think it does," the milotic mumbled.

"And people actually pay decent money for these?" Cyril walked past a couple of the domed houses, eyeing them skeptically. A dolliv tending to a small petunia garden in front of their house shot the zoroark a nasty look.

"Ah-ha, whoops." Cyril rubbed his fake red hair. "Might've gotten a bit too loud."

Snerk. This fic's sense of humor never ceases to entertain.

Seifer locked eyes with Dolliv. Their eyes instantly widened. Seifer started walking faster.

"Oh, Commander Seifer! Lovely to see you again!" Dolliv waved.

"Move," Seifer hissed to Cyril in a whisper. Putting on the fakest smile he could muster, he turned and waved a forehoof to Dolliv. "Good morning, Tunie. Your garden's still as radiant as ever. Apologies I can't chat. I'm on the clock."

... Oh right, Arboliva has a midevo. I honestly completely forgot since Smoliv and its evos are just kinda forgettable to begin with. ^^;

Ignoring Artemis' bewildered expression, the keldeo hoofed it forward. A granbull and an alcremie with two milcery children playing together in a fenced yard looked over and waved. Seifer nodded respectfully, continuing forward.

"What's the rush, Seif?" Cyril said, breaking into a jog to keep pace with Seifer's trot. "Where's the fire?"

"We have to find somewhere hidden." Seifer's eyes darted around. These people weren't supposed to be home! They should've been out and about on a nice morning like this!

Can't tell if these are all people from the Radiant Guard or if Seifer grew up here once upon a time.

"Heeeeey!" Artemis sounded annoyed. "C'mon, you're both faster than me on the ground!"

Seifer turned left toward a dustier road. A minute of trotting would reach city limits. The homes here were spaced apart, but there was a grass wall dividing them. It was good enough cover.

"I need an illusion," the keldeo said.

Okay, yeah, this feels like Seifer's hometown right now, since I'm guessing the implication is that these bunker-homes aren't exactly cheap since those sure sound like hedges there.

Cyril caught up with him. "Ser... iously?" He hunched over, taking deep breaths. "Thought we had this discussion earlier."

"That was before I realized where in this city Gene sent us." Seifer shrank back nervously. "My family's got a vacation home in this neighborhood. People aren't recognizing me because of my old position. They're neighbors."

Well, I was in the right neighborhood (har har) with my guess, at least.

Eyes widening, Cyril stood up. "Ohhhh." Then his shock turned to annoyance. "Well, why didn't you mention that before? I could've told Boss Kitty not to send us here."

"We were in a bit of a hurry and it's a big city," Seifer mumbled.

"Then forget it." Cyril put his hands on his hips. "Boss Kitty, you there? Change of plans. You've gotta cover the ground here."

Wait, it is? I was under the assumption that Herbrides was basically a backwater from its first appearance in the story.

"It might be too late for that."

Seifer jumped at Artemis' voice. The milotic pointed a ribbon back. "There's a cobalion and terrakion heading this way." His eyebrows drooped. "Your uncle and father, if I'm remembering right."

... That actually makes me wonder just how close Seifer is to the royal line of succession, since Justine is also a Muskedeer and this family relation can't but help but make me

a bit.

The keldeo's blood ran cold. He shot Cyril a pleading look. Sighing, the zoroark snapped his fake red claws. Blue light surrounded Seifer. It faded to reveal a fairy rapidash guise.

"Okay," Seifer whispered. "Now we continue on like nothing—"

"Oi, you three! What's going on over there?"

Oh, they are related to Justine, aren't they? Since this music just screams "work in the legal system" right now.

Terrakion's sharp voice drew the trio's gazes. Seifer's heart leaped into his chest as Terrakion and Cobalion marched toward them. Deep breaths. He had Cyril's illusion. And the zoroark had proven himself a capable liar on many occasions.

"Just out for a stroll." Cyril stretched his arms up. "My friend here wanted to grab a photo by this grass wall." He slung an arm over a startled Artemis' horn. "He's from Venish. Never left the place before that whole insanity." Cyril lazily traced a circle with an index claw.

Watch as these two just casually see through this lie in like 5 seconds.

"Quiet, you!" Terrakion stomped a forehoof down. The dirt shifted under everyone's feet. "This ain't some touristy loitering spot, Zoroark. Whatever you're up to, better fess up."

Seifer's breaths came in short gasps. His uncle never was the patient type. Had he really seen through Cyril's lie?

I mean, if my guess as to his background is right... er, yeah, he really did.

For his part, the zoroark rested his hands behind his mane. "It's also not some restricted area, bud."

"Bud? Do I look like your cellmate?" Terrakion's eyes narrowed. "It's Greyson. Commander Greyson."

Do these two have a history with each other, or...?

Wait, what? Oh, if only Seifer had real psychic power. He could reach out to Cyril telepathically. Because something was wrong. Greyson was a retired Stoutland Yard chief. He never worked for the Radiant Guard.

Oh, so my guess as to the guy's background was right after all.

"That so? My bad." Cyril raised his hands innocently. The small smile on his face betrayed the tense look in his eyes. "Don't keep up much with the news. Wasn't aware Her Eminence had named a new commander."

"Two new commanders." Greyson jerked his head in Cobalion's direction. "Or, one new and one returning. Picking up the pieces from that useless waste of space that got the boot."

Seifer: "(... Either they're stringing us along, or a lot has changed back home since we were last here.)"

The fake rapidash did his best not to flinch. Seifer's father and uncle were his replacements? Of course. Why look for new blood when Isola could just turn to Seifer's family? If she truly was some nefarious body snatcher, it would even let her keep a close eye on them just in case.

I mean, if my guess about Justine being in your family is right, Seifer...

What was Seifer supposed to do here? He had to say something before this got out of hand. "A-Apologies. We actually got a bit, um, turned around." Seifer stepped to Cyril's side. "And my friend's too proud to ask for directions."

"Fat chance," Greyson scoffed.

Cobalion wrinkled his nose. "Agreed. Something reeks about this. No sane fairy would pal around with some lying, low-life zoroark."

Cyril: "Oi, bub! Chill it with the stereotypes there!"

Cobalion: "It's not a stereotype if it reflects basic expectations of our society."

Seifer suppressed a wince. Memories of his father cursing out assorted species at the dinner table flickered through his head.

So does Radiance just suck to live in if you're any non-Fighting-type species that takes an L to fairies or something? Since I certainly didn't see the hate-on for Zoroark coming here.

"Excuse me?" Cyril growled. He kept his expression as neutral as possible. "I'm not looking for trouble, dude."

"That's Commander Tobias, you ruffian." Cobalion stood up straight, as if to emphasize the half meter of height he had over Cyril.

"Uh-huh." Cyril's tone somehow stayed even. "Well, I hate to disappoint, but this 'lying low-life' is nothing but a humble mechanic."

Lol. Lmao.

Artemis: "(Would this be a bad time to bring up his counterfeiting operation-?)"
Seifer: "(Yes!)" >_>;

"Then what's a grease mankey doing out in the nice part of Herbrides, huh?" Greyson said. Red energy sparked around the terrakion's forehead. "I say we take 'em all in for questioning."

"I wanted to make a day trip here with my boyfriend." Cyril put his hand on Seifer's back. The fake rapidash almost lost his composure. What was the zoroark thinking outing their relationship? If anything broke Seifer's illusion...

He's not and he's getting hot and bothered. Since knowing that one of these two is ex-Stoutland Yard gives me vibes that they're going through an impromptu interrogation at the moment.

"And I've been living with him since the attack on Venish." Artemis tapped the ground by Cyril's feet with his tailfins. "So, I'm third-wheeling."

Greyson eyed the milotic with a look of disgust. "I ain't buying it. You?"

Tobias shook his head. "As I said, no decent milotic or rapidash would slum it with a zoroark." The cobalion's eyes narrowed. "Much less court one."

Cyril:

Seifer: "(... Yeah, in retrospect, I should've brought Cyril up to speed about Radiant class mores, huh?)"

Artie: "(I mean, I kinda forgot all about them by virtue of being a janitor for like a decade.)"

For a moment, Seifer thought there was genuine hurt in Cyril's eyes. But he quickly masked it with his stoic expression. "So, what, you're bringing me to a station because I'm a zoroark?"

"No." Tobias rolled his eyes. "Because you're a zoroark looking and acting suspicious. And these two are clearly accomplices. Now, quiet down and start walking. Or do I have to slap a muzzle on you, runt?"

Aaand I see that these two are pulling out all the stops to murder their sympathy with the audience. Which probably doesn't bode well for their mortality in this story.

However, before anyone had the chance to respond, Seifer caught a streak of orange out of the corner of his eye. "Down!" he screamed, shoving Cyril to the ground. A giant fireball struck the dome-shaped house to their right, blowing the roof open. Rubble struck a blue Protect shield that spilled out from Seifer's horn in the nick of time.

These two must have quite a bit of money to burn, since those repairs aren't going to be cheap.

... His black, ridged prosthetic horn.

Seifer's eyes slowly widened.

Seifer:

"S-Seifer?!" Tobias gasped. The keldeo glanced back to see Artemis coiled around a dazed Cyril. His illusions had failed, leaving his cosmic fur on full display.

"What is the meaning of this, boy?" Greyson said.

Seifer: "Oh boy, this day just had to go and get more awkward right now. Well... uh..."

"More fire!" Artemis shouted. Though he spat streams of water, they couldn't stand up against the fireballs. They struck other domed houses. Screams rang out. Two gogoat and several skiddo ran out of one building, while a tropius and fidough sprinted out of another.

"What did you do?" Tobias bellowed, leveling his glowing Sacred Sword at the trio.

Bells rang out from the sky. Multiple birds appeared out of seemingly nowhere, with wartortle and raichu perched on their backs.

Wait, the space pirates are actually back to do something again in this story? Since I can hear that BGM right now.

"Avast! Ahoy! Yo ho! Yo ho! Our time tis finally here!" a kilowattrel sang.

"We'll plunder like mad!" a pidgeot added.

"There's booty to be had!" sang a swellow with sparking wings.

"Fer the Blackskull Buccaneers!" the wartortle and raichu all sang in unison, before leaping from their fliers back and raining Hydro Pumps and Thunderbolts on the group from above.

Well, that was unexpected. Though I'll heavily take the under on those guys not being smeared across the ground the next time we check up on Seifer's end of things.

"Do you ever think about the day you were born?"

From their position atop the roof of the shuttered Herbrides Crowne Minister's office building, Widget glanced at Gene. The shadowy mewtwo's tail crinkled.

"Seriously?" His Malice Crystal dimmed. "Who leads with a question like that?"

"I do, apparently," Widget responded. He looked down at his golden talons, curling and uncurling them. "I was... curious. Since you were built. Like me."

Gene: "Look, I already had a 14k word special going into this at length a couple years ago, so I'd rather not have to repeat it all right here and now." >_>;

Pinching his brow, Gene walked over and leaned against the yellow brick chimney. "No. I don't."

Oh, so he's literally

-ing right now, huh? o<o

"Oh." Widget's cheek bolts turned once. "Okay." The cosmic silvally curled his fish tail slightly. "Sorry, I shouldn't have—"

"Don't guilt trip me, Squirt." Gene crossed one leg over another. His eyes remained shut. "I don't think about it because there isn't much to it. Doing a bunch of stupid tests for stupider human scientists." He clenched his fist. "Then Giovanni captured me when I was supposed to be fully released from stasis. Everything after that's a huge blur until Nova took me in."

Widget: "Wait, but I thought you said that you had at 14k word special that was all about-" .^. Gene: "Which we're not going to get into right now, thanks." >_>;

"Right." Widget nodded slowly. "Do you suppress those memories?"

Gene shook his head. Widget watched his Malice Crystal darken. "I don't have to. Nova suppressed them for me."

I feel as if I should be more worried about how casually Gene is lying right now. Unless if by his standards, the things that we saw in the special are a blur to him since they're a handful of moments he recalls over heaven-knows-how-long time-wise.

The silvally's starcloud swirled around slowly. "All the Eterna energy treatments?"

"In a sense." Gene repeatedly ran a finger up and down the Malice Crystal. "Giovanni... did something to me. He made me so... empty inside. To better function as his 'weapon.'"

Related, or unrelated to him being Dark Matter back in the GL AU?

At the mention of 'empty,' Widget swore he saw some sort of black crystal sphere looming behind Gene. And it... tugged on a part of him. His scaly hide was itching.

That doesn't bode well at all for how well Gene's got that all under control at the moment.

"Nova and Miraidon... sealed that part of me off," Gene continued. He held his hand out and strange black shadows swirled around his fingers.

The itchiness in Widget's scales got worse. He wasn't sure whether to say anything about that sphere. Surely it was an illusion, right?

Narrator: "It was absolutely not an illusion."

"It's something called 'shadowing.'" Gene dispelled the energy. "Nova never told me why he and Miraidon knew how to do this. Though I'm betting the latter being one of those Overseers has something to do with it."

"Shadowing?" Widget's scales thankfully weren't crawling anymore.

Huh. I wonder if that's where Gene got his Dark Matter part of him from

"It's when you seal away a pokémon's spirit," Gene explained. "Normally, doing so turns pokémon into vicious beasts driven by their most negative emotions."

Except Widget wouldn't classify Gene as vicious. If anything, that applied to Necrozma. "You don't seem that way," he mumbled.

"Because Miraidon and Nova had a loophole." Gene placed his hand over his heart. "They sealed off that... thing Giovanni put into me to make me empty. Since he'd done that not long after I was 'born,' I never got to develop my real spirit. But sealing that thing was enough to turn me shadow.

Wait, wait, wait. Did you just casually imply that Giovanni had access to Dark Matter? In a mainline universe (which, granted, was built off the ruins of a PMD universe built off the ruins of another mainline universe)?

"It's why I look like this." Gene pushed off the chimney. Lazily walked toward Widget with his hands resting behind his head. "And how my real heart or soul or whatever you want to call it was able to safely grow on its own."

Widget shifted uncomfortably. The explanation didn't sit right with him. "If that part of you is sealed, why do you remember stuff you did for Team Rocket?"

"Sometimes that thing tries to force its way out," Gene admitted. He looked at his hands. It was subtle, but they were shaking. "To convince me to give into despair and emptiness... and become a weapon again."

So... the solution is to constantly keep a stash of MDMA handy for Gene to dive into and push those negative thoughts away?

"Wait." The cosmic silvally's crest fanned out. "Doesn't that sound a bit like the reincarnated soul stuff?"

Shrugging, Gene lowered his arms. "I don't try to read into it."

Widget's gut squirmed. "So, um, is the reason you don't act all that serious—"

"That's me trying to keep it at bay." Gene pointed at his glowing Malice Crystal. "And it worked... until last week. I was too desperate in Wyndon... and drew on some of that thing's power."

Oh, so there's actually a reason beyond emotions for Gene to put up that joker front that he has, though I suppose it makes sense given what you established is lurking inside him just last chapter.

His shoulders sagged. "It's been tugging on the back of my mind ever since. Whispering the same tired things about emptiness and hatred."

The mewtwo shook his head. "Why are you grilling me on this, anyway?" He sized Widget up. "Is this about the other week? Are you still stuck on that?"

There wasn't any point hiding it from Gene. "Yes!" Widget squawked. His starcloud and cheek bolts dimmed. "I just— I don't understand." He shook his head. "I can't understand."

It might have made sense to have Gene refer to what's going on here a bit more explicitly, since I'll admit that I drew blanks on what he was referring to there.

Gene: "... Run it by me again as to why you're still hung up on this again?"

Grimacing, Widget's talons dug into the stone roof. "The day the emperor turned me on... he was so happy. I thought... he was proud of me." His head crest drooped. "I did everything he told me to. Because he said it would make me a hero. That it would make everyone proud of me."

"Uh-huh. Cuz we know the emperor's such an honest guy." Gene tilted his head. "I thought you talked to a bunch of birddogfish in one of the mystery dungeons and it put you at ease. Why the backsliding?"

"That was before Yuna went and just... just dropped a mental Draco Meteor!" Widget responded. His starcloud flickered erratically. He squeezed his eyes shut. "I thought— no, I believed the emperor had tricked me, yet I still chose to listen. But what if that's not true?"

Oh, it's this theme from Chrono Trigger. Interesting usage here.

Gene: "Then it'd mean that you made some bad life choices, changed your mind, and then made better ones? It's not super uncommon in stories, so what's the hangup there?"

He took a step toward the shadowy mewtwo. "You said it yourself last week." Widget was sure Gene thought him pathetic, but pressed on anyway. "There was nothing biological about me before Leo intervened. What if... what if everything I did wasn't my choice? Simply lines of code instead?!"

Oh hey, this is basically Robo's dilemma from Chrono Trigger. Dunno if that influenced the song choice at all, but it's a cute parallel.

A pained grimace spread over his feet. "The moment I woke up on Chakran, Leo had already shared his power with me." Widget shook his head repeatedly, like he was bucking off a small feral who'd latched onto his neck. "Everything that's happened since... how can I be sure?"

Gene remained still. "Sure of what?"

"That these are really my choices?!" Widget's voice cracked. His gold talons scraped the stone beneath them. Blurry blue and purple light melted together. White fur painted over his cosmic form. Forelegs gave way to reshiram wings. "That I want to fight these battles? That Leo didn't just... rewrite the emperor's code? Or... or stuff some old, dormant soul into my body?

"Even the stuff you were saying about some force of emptiness felt... familiar for some reason."

I hadn't considered that angle at all, but now that Widget mentions it...

Widget glimpsed at his new wings. So white and fluffy. Was this... another one of his transformations? Why was it showing up now?

So he used to be

once upon a time? Or is this one of the perks of being a bootleg llama god?

Pushing those specific thoughts aside, the reshivally sank to his belly. "How can I know?" He folded his new wings over his head. "How can I trust myself... when I don't even know if I've always had a soul?"

Gene: "... You'll have others to give you a stiff smack and set you straight if the worst comes to pass? (At least it'll be a hell of a lot easier with you than with me...)" ^^;

Silence followed. Widget slowly slid his wings off his head. White fur brushed against rough, dirty stone.

"There more to your rant or you done?"

Widget looked up. Gene had pivoted away from him. His yellow-tipped tail curled and uncurled in irritation.

I... am not convinced that that was the best choice of words in response, Gene.

"I thought... you understood," the reshivally whimpered. "Or maybe you remembered something about Nova you could tell me."

"Well, sorry to disappoint." Gene shrugged. "Yeah, Nova was better at this stuff than I was. That's what made him an effective leader, I guess. While yours truly just wings it."

Nothing about that reassured Widget. Then again, it sounded like Gene didn't care.

Widget, remember that Gene literally just went through an entire spiel about how he has to put up fake indifference and devil-may-care-ness in order to suppress the influence of Dark Matter or whatever that is that's sharing his body. Are you sure that he doesn't care right now? Or just that he doesn't think he can indulge this safely?

"It's funny." Gene stopped curling and uncurling his tail. "I'm plain trash at the whole 'leader' thing, yet thanks to Princess I've ended up with a resistance that's at leastten times as big as Nova's."

There was an obvious question to ask: why didn't Gene try and better his leadership skills? Yet Widget kept his beak shut. He'd poured his heart out to Gene. Selfish as it sounded, Widget didn't want to make this about the shadow mewtwo.

Something something imposter syndrome. Something something lying to everyone about multiple things that could cause an existential crisis of morale.

Surprisingly, Gene floated to Widget's side and sat down beside him. "Guess there's one thing I can offer." He put a hand on Widget's right wing. "Nova always told me that it's just as easy to worry about the future as it is to get caught up in the past."

Widget picked his head up. Where was Gene going with this? "If you're going to tell me to live for the present—"

A finger to Widget's beak shushed him. Gene shook his head. "Should you live in the present? Yeah. I do." He pulled his hand back. "Still gotta look to the future, though. One step at a time."

Widget: "B-But what good does it do if someone can just swoop in at any moment and permanently make me someone else?"

Gene: "(... Yeah, I dunno if I have a good answer to that. Though let's just not say that out loud to him right now...)" ._.;

Gene tapped his right temple. "If we let the fear of an unknown future bury us, then we're not living."

He pointed at Widget. "In your case, if you let this paralyze you, then it doesn't matter how you were made or if you have a soul." His Malice Crystal flickered. "At that point, you're letting everyone and everything around you control you. And how's that any different from what you're worried about?"

The reshivally blinked once. Twice.

It... made sense. In a twisted sort of way.

Widget: "... Isn't this just deliberately living in denial?" .^.
Gene: "I prefer to think of it as acknowledging that the future's always uncertain and that it doesn't make sense to worry about it until it's a bit more tangible."

He exhaled loudly, blowing a couple of pebbles by his beak toward Gene's foot. "I suppose." Widget pushed himself to a sitting position. "Might need to work on your pep talks, though."

"That was recycled material." Gene waved Widget off dismissively.

Gene, why would you just go and say that? Though does that mean that he told Nova a version of this once?

"Then your recycling skills need work," Widget deadpanned.

"Like your stand up skills?" Gene countered, a smirk forming.

Widget couldn't help but smirk back. "Touché."

There we go, that's probably a bit more effective as a mood-lifter.

Then a flash of orange caught his attention. "What the heck?" Widget pushed Gene away. "H-Hey! Someone's shooting fireballs at the street!"

Oh, so that raid's affecting all of Herbrides right now, huh?

"The hell?" Gene whirled around. Fireballs appeared out of seemingly nowhere, striking building rooftops. Laughter filled the skies. The shadowy mewtwo's tail crinkled. "You can't be serious."

"What is it?" Widget tried to sense what was shooting the fireballs, but came up empty.

"It's the pirates." Gene hovered into the air. "They must be cloaking their ships."

"With what?" Widget's new tail turbine whirred to life, sending him up next to Gene. "I can't even sense them!"

... They struck a deal with Paradox and are taking part in whatever it was that he wanted Xander to get up to, huh?

Gene tapped his right antennae. "Attention resistance, we—"

"Well, well, well, if it isn't mon least favorite kitty cat!"

Widget squawked. Embers crackled around his tail turbine. "Was that Gilbert on our comm line?!"

Yeah, in retrospect, letting them casually hang around your base in the Qliphoth was probably a bad idea, huh?

"Damn it, are they stealing our signal? How?!" Gene's yellow-tipped tail lashed at the air. "Where the hell's Cyril?"

More building rooftops caught fire. People flooded the streets. "What do we do?" Widget said.

"Start blasting, of course!" Gene blindly slung a Shadow Ball in the direction of where the fireballs were forming.

Widget swallowed hard. He had no idea why the pirates were here. Or how they were here, for that matter. But Widget knew the resistance had to get rid of them quickly, before the whole city got swept up in chaos.

I think you're a bit late on avoiding the whole 'whole city got swept up in the chaos' part there, but I suppose that'll be a story for another day.

Alright, made it to the end. That one definitely slammed the door shut on the lull that we've been in for the past couple chapters in this story. I certainly wasn't expecting it to be Gilbert and the gang to be the ones who did it either, even if I remain wholly unconvinced that they're not raising their hell without someone helping them out here. Also, Seifer's family sucks hard, but you did a good job at making a memorable (and

-worthy) first impression of them. I suppose that it's only to be expected given that early on in the story, Seifer wasn't all that different.

I honestly had trouble spotting any real flaws in this chapter aside from a couple parts where I thought that references to past events might have merited spelling out a bit more clearly (especially the one that Gene refers to in his exchange with Widget) since this story's getting a bit up there in length and is usually fairly event-dense, so some more reminders for people jumping in after a while would be welcome.

But all-in-all, I thought that this was a good kickoff to a new arc. We'll see where things go in the next few chapters, but thus far things look promising @Ambyssin , and I'll be looking forward to getting a better look of Herbrides and its current minor problems with massive property damage sometime soon.

 

[Ambyssin]

Chapter 99: Soulful Lament​

"Do you ever think about him at all?"

Tessa dabbed her muzzle with a cloth napkin, then set it next to her empty plate. Next to her, Nickie's left ear flattened.

"Think about who, Nero? Just because I complimented his thighs doesn't mean—"

"No, silly." The riolu chuckled. "That friend of yours back home." Her aura feelers twitched. "Or, uh... maybe he wasn't your friend anymore by the end?"

"Oh." Nickie looked down at her remaining tart. The icepix's snout wrinkled. "Yeah. A few times." She looked at the ceiling. "If he was here, he'd be bouncing off the freaking walls. The guy'd be so jazzed. He was, like, unhealthily obsessed with pokémon."

Tessa raised a brow. "So there are pokémon in the human world?"

Nickie's tails puffed up. "Uh, well, yeah. It's, y'know, kinda complicated." She laughed nervously, then scarfed down the rest of her tart. Crumbs littered her white snout.

"Sometimes I wonder what would've happened if he was here instead of me." Nickie looked at Tessa. "And then I tell myself it'd be a disaster. He'd treat everyone around him like dirt and think himself the most important guy in the room."

She turned up her nose. "Before I disappeared, I told a couple of buddies that Shane outed me to my dad. I hope that spread through the school like wildfire. Maybe it'd be the wakeup call he needs."

Tessa's aura feelers throbbed. Despite Nickie's even tone, there was a lot of emotion behind her words. "I see." The riolu rubbed her shoulder. "That bad, huh?"

Nickie saw Tessa's expression and her ears folded. "Shit." Her tails curled up. "I, uh..." She bit her lip. "That wasn't supposed to sound so harsh."

She scooted next to Tessa, who squeaked with the icepix's tails brushed against her waist. "It's not all bad," Nickie said. "I got to meet you, didn't I?"

"Me?" Tessa's aura feelers stuck up. "It's only been a couple of months."

"Yeah." Nickie leaned over. "Still enough time to think you've been one of the best things that's happened to me."

Blood rushed to Tessa's cheeks.

XxX​

With newfound hindsight, Reshiram's revelation seemed so obvious. Vegna had Bahamut's journal memorized. He commanded multiple Sages. His focus had been squarely on Necrozma since he showed up at the outpost. Hell, the fact that he got to the outpost meant he had to have formed a rift between the regular and reverse worlds. And the thing he told her a couple of weeks ago...

"Continuing down this path will lead you to discover several horrible truths. And without that tenacity... the weight of those truths will crush you."

Maybe one of these could've been a coincidence. But taken together, there was only one logical explanation.

Yuna wanted to be mad. What did Vegna have to gain by sitting on this secret?

The dragapult scooched toward the edge of the bed. "Why?"

Vegna's look practically screamed "elaborate."

"Why hide it like this? Especially after coming to us for help?"

The dusknoir's eye glowed blue. "Yes, why hide being the soul of a large dragon of light worshiped by half the world and scorned by the other half?"

If he was trying to spin this back on Yuna, she'd have none of it. She curled her golden claws around her blanket. "This isn't some courtroom debate. I want answers."

"Me too." Reshiram looked more hurt the longer the conversation went on. "You told my wife you hated her big mouth."

"And you went behind my back and eloped," Vegna growled. He tilted his head right and shook it, sighing. "Which is... irrelevant. You want answers? I told you, it all goes back to selfish vengeance."

"Revenge." Yuna curled and uncurled the tip of her tail. "On Eternatus?"

"On Isola." Vegna held his right hand up. Blue Will-O-Wisp embers crackled around his fingers.

"What?" Reshiram's tail turbine matched Vegna's embers with some of its own. "If you want revenge on her, why work for her? And wouldn't that, y'know, give you a motive to do Grim Reaper killings?"

"The body snatcher is the one who killed Chiron and Leo," Vegna said, locking eyes with Yuna. "My memory of that day is... spotty, but I'm sure of it. I have evidence."

The Will-O-Wisp embers congealed into Bahamut's journal, which Vegna held in his hand. It flipped open to show the word TRAITOR scrawled in red ink, along with jagged scribbles and puncture marks suggesting the writer had stabbed the pages with a pen repeatedly.

A gush of hot air from Reshiram's tail turbine rippled the part of the blanket dangling off the side of the bed. "Traitor? You don't think—"

"That one of the Sages is related?" Vegna's eye dimmed. "Clearly I do."

"But how?" Reshiram squeaked.

"They never sealed themselves away in a Needle." Vegna shut the journal, which dissolved into gold light his hand absorbed. "For a time, I thought perhaps it was the former Sage of Justice. After all, there was no logical reason for a keldeo to be around Radiance."

"Couldn't you say the same thing about an articuno, moltres, and zapdos?" Reshiram pointed out. "None of them were Sages, yet they're in the Radiant Guard."

"Which is why my focus shifted to Isola," Vegna said, tapping his right index finger against his left arm. "I suspect she's the reason. Just as I suspect she unsealed Keldeo and allowed her to procreate. If Isola does have a Red Chain fragment as the clown prince suggests, it would all make sense."

"Well, we've pulled a lot of Needles," Yuna mumbled. "I know Necrozma got Suicune and Zygarde. Scarlett seems to have Latias. And you have three. So that leaves—"

Vegna held up two fingers. "Two. There should be two Needles remaining. Diancie, Sage of Heart. And Enamorus, Sage of Beauty."

"What about Latios and Zeraora?" Reshiram asked. "And Victini, too?"

"Already with Necrozma. And Victini most likely had their needle corrupted and broken already."

Yuna gulped. Then... there wasn't much left keeping Eternatus tethered to the reverse world. "Okay. Two potential Needles. But one of them might be the body snatcher. Then we'll just end up learning who it is by process of elimination after pulling the next Needle, won't we?"

"By then, I fear something terrible might happen," Vegna growled. "Considering there are multiple people trying to expose Isola."

He looked down, eye dimming. "Not to mention that if one of them is the body snatcher, then there's really only one Needle remaining."

Vegna lifted a shaky hand and examined all the gold cracks in it. There were more there than the other week. "One Needle... keeping this fragile body together."

Yuna pinched her brow. This was a problem. One that also came with the extra uncertainty of Yuna not knowing whether getting to the bottom of this was her desire... or Yaldabaoth exerting their influence.

"So you... intend to recombine with Necrozma?"

Vegna was silent.

Yuna crossed her arms. She needed a slightly different angle. "Eternatus can't be destroyed. Necrozma wants to destroy it. Do you still feel that way?"

"I do not."

The dragapult wished she found that reassuring. "If you recombine, then will Bahamut lay off?"

"I cannot say," Vegna responded. He turned his head toward the door again. "I'm unsure whether or not Necrozma's single-minded obsession with destroying Eternatus will win out over me. My body is... far stronger than my spirit."

"But it's the only way to stop Bahamut, right?" Reshiram poked his wing-claws together nervously.

"I was trying to work with Gene to find alternatives," Vegna explained, flicking his right hand. "If we destroy Necrozma as it is now, my spirit will fade when the final Needle is pulled. I had suggested he take a blessing from Leo, but he is... unwilling."

Leo. Yuna thought of the cosmic arceus as she also stared at the door.

Another thought tickled the back of her head. "Did you sense Chiron? Is that why you put me in your class?"

Vegna sighed. It lingered for several seconds. "Do recall that I never even met you until you came to the academy. But I did sense... familiar traces from meeting your parents on their prior trips. So, yes, I admit I arranged to get you into my class so I could see you for myself.

"And when I did, I thought that parts of your aura brought Chiron to mind. But other parts... reminded me of myself."

That was probably Yuna's distortion powers. Giratina did say Bahamut stole them somehow.

"It's not the same. Neither you nor Leo." The dusknoir shook his head. "Perhaps you both reincarnated. I'm unsure. Either way... I don't consider either of you family, if that's what you're worried about."

There was plenty Yuna was worried about. Enough to not find any solace in Vegna's words. The end of her tail twitched with irritation. "How did this all happen?"

"It's complicated," Vegna whispered.

She rubbed the brim of her triangular head. "Then make it make sense."

Another sigh. Vegna folded his hands over his closed stomach mouth. "As I said... my memories of the day I lost Chiron and Leo are fuzzy. But I think... that was when I learned many of the same things you heard from Giratina."

Before Yuna could make a remark, Vegna held up his right hand. "I don't remember specifics of my past life like you claim to." He lowered his hand. "There are... vague recollections. Of struggling to understand the world around me. And the world, in turn, not understanding me."

His hands balled into fists. "Frustrations giving way to isolation giving way to yet more frustrations. A vicious cycle feeding into itself."

The dusknoir tucked his head down. It was... shameful? Yuna couldn't quite peg his body language.

"And then I woke up alone. A giant dragon of light." Golden embers drifted off the exposed cracks in Vegna's arms. "I wandered the universe — or, as it turns out, the distortion world — seeking an end to my loneliness. But the same pitfalls that befell my past self happened here.

"I did not understand the places I visited." Vegna shook his head. "And I did not communicate well. But this time I had power." He held up a clenched fist. "I could make my frustrations known... through force."

Yuna's tail slowly curled throughout Vegna's explanation. "Just how many places did you attack in your travels?"

"Too many. It felt good. It felt right." The dusknoir bowed his head shamefully again. "I could blame Giratina's powers, but in the end it was still my choice. And, perhaps, I might've continued down that path... had I not met the Overseers."

Reshiram's tail turbine crackled like the engines in Cyril's workshop. "You were on Chakran when they were around?"

Vegna nodded. "And when they abandoned our world." He folded his hands over his stomach mouth again. "But I met someone there. And it was like... looking into a cracked mirror. I couldn't shake the feeling that this person... was a happier me. Similar struggles, yet he found friends and family to support him.

"Something about that made me snap." The dusknoir squeezed his hands together. "I lashed out at him. He defended himself... with a power that split my soul from my body."

"Wait, what?" Yuna leaned forward and almost fell off her bed. "But then—"

"He pulled me back together," Vegna said. "But, yes, I ended up learning that power from him. And using it on myself." He shook his head. "After Chakran, I thought that... the only way I could be like that Overseer was to make my home. I didn't create the life that would inhabit your home, but I brought about conditions to allow life to evolve."

"Then put yourself in charge of what resulted," Reshiram said, shifting around uncomfortably. "And I was part of that."

"You guys described Bahamut as a bit of a control freak." Yuna tapped a gold claw against her core. "Do you think that was because of Giratina's powers?"

"I think it was both of us," Vegna responded. He waved Yuna off. "Regardless, all my controlling tendencies couldn't stop Eternatus from showing up. Along with everything else that followed."

Yuna tried to recall what Igneous had told her about that final entry in Bahamut's journal. "You were... tired of emotions weighing you down. So, you split your soul from your body."

Vegna pinched his brow. "I had once believed... that I was meant to pass away, like any other person. That being struck by Eternatus had 'cursed' me with immortality."

"But you don't believe that anymore." Reshiram sounded sure of himself. Must've been that truth sense. "Because of Giratina?"

The dusknoir nodded slowly. "Yes. But at the time, I viewed my spirit as a burden. So, I sought to cast it off. Except when I emerged as a soul... fear took hold. I didn't want to disappear."

"Then is some of the other stuff true?" Yuna wondered.

"I did find and pull Zekrom's Needle," Vegna admitted. A blue glow took over his eye, but quickly faded. "The necromancy stuff is true as well. However, that was because this body proved fragile from the beginning. Not after pulling Zekrom's Needle."

He held his hand up to expose the gold cracks along it. "All the necromancy acts were attempts to preserve my body and keep it from crumbling. It's why I became an executioner for Radiance. To use those spirits to preserve my body." Vegna lowered his hand. "I only transferred to the Ministry of Justice after suspecting Isola had a connection to the one who took Chiron and Leo away from me."

With a grunt, Vegna pushed himself off the floor. "That is, to the best of my knowledge, the whole truth."

"I see." Yuna sat up straight, then immediately asked a question that sprang to mind. "Do you regret what you've done?"

Vegna braced his left hand against the wall. "If this were a court of law... I'd have argued that Giratina's influence drove my actions. That I never intended to cause so many problems." He looked down. "And so much harm."

"That doesn't answer my question," Yuna growled, trying to stop her tail from lashing at the dangling edge of Leo's covers.

"I regret it," Vegna said. "I wish I'd never had such terrible power. Perhaps if I could go back to that distant life... I'd do things differently."

Reshiram flew up to Yuna's left on the bed, between her and Leo's plate. "Well that's, y'know, good. It's a start." He looked between the two ghosts, tittering. "Maybe if you hold onto that mindset, when you become whole that'll—"

"You should try to destroy Necrozma as it is right now," Vegna said. He floated closer toward the door. "I— we've done too much harm. If you and your allies do possess great power from the distant past, then it should be possible. It is... the most pragmatic option."

"No."

She didn't think she could make one word sound so forceful. But given Reshiram's dumbfounded expression, that's exactly what Yuna had done.

The dusknoir looked over his shoulder. "What?"

Yuna dug her claws into the fibers of Leo's wool blanket. "I'm so tired... of people telling me what I should do. What's 'best' or 'most pragmatic.'"

Reshiram curled up his wings. "It did sound like something Bahamut would say."

She pointed at Vegna. "This is your fault, too. You don't... get to take the coward's way out here. You're helping us fix this." The dragapult tapped her right index claw into the palm of her left hand. "Whether that's as Vegna or Bahamut or something else entirely doesn't matter to me. I won't let you just disappear.

"So, yeah, I guess you were right. I don't forgive you or respect your decisions or whatever."

"Yuna."

"Don't." Yuna held her left hand over Reshiram like she was ready to squish him. He abruptly shrank back toward Leo's plate. "If that's everything, you can go." The dragapult flicked her right hand lazily toward the door. "I'm going to wait for my son to get back. And I don't need you around for that."

At first, Vegna held his ground. Then his eye dimmed and he turned back toward the door.

"Perhaps there's... more of her in you than I thought."

The dusknoir opened the door and floated out. He didn't bother shutting it.

"Well that, uh..." Reshiram twirled a lock of fur with a wing claw. "I guess that could've gone worse?"

"Save it." Yuna glared at him.

"I wasn't, um, looking to criticize or anything." Reshiram shifted his weight uneasily. "I know this stuff's upsetting, but it feels like it's making you more upset than before."

"You think I don't see that?" Yuna plucked Reshiram off the bed.

"Whoa! H-Hey, easy now!" The tiny dragon flailed between Yuna's claws.

"How do I know this anger is mine and not Giratina's?" Yuna held Reshiram up in front of her face. "What if they're trying to isolate me from everyone so I'll give up and let them take over, huh? How can I trust my thoughts and wishes here are really mine?"

"... Yeesh," a new voice interjected. "Maybe I should've looked for some whiskey or vodka to bring."

Squealing, Yuna let go of Reshiram. "N-Nikki! H-Hi!"

Reshiram hit the bed and bounced off it with a nasally yelp. He faceplanted onto the carpeted floor then hastily got to his feet, shaking out his messy fur.

"I'm okay!" he declared.

Yuna recalled Reshiram into her core and shimmied backward so she could prop her triangular head against the wall. "How, um, long have you been standing there?"

The toxtricity walked inside, pausing to kick the door shut with her right leg. "When you told Crotch Fuzz to 'save it,'" Nikki replied, shrugging. "Guess you're drifting into existential shit again, huh?"

"O-Only toward the end." Yuna's long tail crinkled. "I was talking. With Vegna."

"About?"

"Abouthowhe'skindasortamaybeactuallyBahamut."

It came out so fast it sounded like one word, but Nikki must've parsed it out because her mohawk shrank. "Oh. Ohhhhh shit." She looked back at the closed door. "Is that, uh, good or bad?"

"Dunno."

"Should we be upset?"

"Yeah."

Nikki threw the door open, leaned into the hallway and stuck her middle finger up. "How's that?"

Nickie reared up on her hind legs. She tried to lift a foreleg but tumbled backward with a yip.

"W-What was that?" Tessa was trying not to laugh.

"I wanted to flip that fopdoodle off!" Nickie kicked at the air with her legs. "God, I miss having hands."

"It works." Yuna chuckled into her right elbow.

"Good." Nikki shut the door again while rummaging through her right jacket pocket. She pulled out two small glass vials. "Was gonna keep both of these for myself, but I think you need the other more than I do."

She tossed it to Yuna, who barely managed to catch it after bobbling it between her hands. The dragapult held it up and squinted at the pink gas inside. "Wait. This is—"

"Salazzle vapors. From Twiggy's sister." Nikki strutted toward the bed, tossing her vial to herself.

Yuna kept staring at the pink gas swirling around inside. "Why though?"

"To take the edge off."

The bed fwumped when Nikki flopped down on the edge of it. A meeping Yuna shuffled closer to Leo's plate. Her tail shot into her torso.

"Heh. Never gettin' tired of that." The toxtricity pointed to where Yuna's tail had been seconds ago.

Yuna kneaded her tail out of her torso, pouting. "Is this what you meant when you said you needed air or whatever?"

Sighing, Nikki pushed herself back until her waist spikes plinked against the metal wall. "Yeah. It's the Seifer stuff."

The dragapult straightened up when Nikki actually used Seifer's name. This really was serious.

"I know I don't... get memories like the rest of you," Nikki said, turning her vial back and forth in her fingers. "Still, hearing about Seifer made me think for a bit. You said I fought against Zodiark in the past. But I clearly lost."

She closed her eyes. "So, they must've killed me, right?"

The icepix lay unmoving on the gray and blue, stone ground. Blood stained her fur.

"I... don't know."

"Your face says otherwise."

Yuna jolted. Nikki was leaning over and looking at her.

"I saw you," the dragapult admitted, brushing her right hand over her core.

"Figured." Nikki pulled away, mohawk shrinking. "I don't gotta know the details or anything. Just that... it's gotta go different this time, right?"

"Right. Yeah. Sorry."

"For what?"

"Trying to hide it." Yuna fidgeted.

"Eh, it's whatever." Nikki waved her off. "You were looking out for me. And I pressed you on it."

They both shared a look. The toxtricity's mohawk went pink again for an instant before she looked away and coughed into her hand. "So, uh—"

"C-Can I, um, just ask you one thing?" Yuna blurted out. She was leaning forward, hands pressed down on Leo's blanket.

Nikki opened her mouth, then shut it, then opened it again. Maybe she'd planned on giving a smartass response and abruptly reconsidered. "Yeah."

"What would you do if, y'know, Giratina ends up taking me over?"

Yuna expected the silence that followed. Nikki leaned over. Still clasping her vial, she rested her head on the backs of her hands. A soft, rhythmic thumped filled the room from Nikki tapping her foot against the carpet. She had to be thinking it over, then.

"I guess... I'd fight to get you back."

"And if it's not possible?"

"Screw that."

Yuna's ectoplasm constricted. "Huh?"

Nikki sat up. "After all the shit's that happened to us, you're really going to say something's not possible?"

"I, uh— it's a hypothetical?" Yuna's voice cracked.

"Doesn't change my answer." Nikki swung her legs onto the bed, facing the dragapult in the process. "I'd fight to get you back. Even if it means pissing those Overseers off."

She looked down and mumbled, "Hell, that might get 'em to come to me faster."

Yuna imagined Nikki charging toward some angelic light... only to get vaporized by a giant white laser. She cringed. "I thiiiink I get the picture."

Hell, maybe Nikki really was onto something. Vegna mentioned an Overseer who split his soul from his body the first time. Perhaps he could split her off from Giratina.

Maybe it wasn't a complete lost cause, then. Yuna had a fighting chance. And someone willing to fight for her.

Nikki stuck her vial in front of Yuna's face and waved it. "So, how 'bout it? Dunno about you, but I've had enough existential shit for one day. Hell, for the whole month."

Yuna lifted the vial in her hand. "I, uh, guess so?" She closely examined the pink gas inside. "What exactly should I do here?"

"Pfffbt. That's easy." Nikki brought her vial over by her face. "Y'just do this." She popped the cork off and heavily inhaled. The pink gas flowed into Nikki's face. There were probably nostrils there Yuna couldn't see between the toxtricity's scales.

At first, nothing seemed to happen. Then Nikki reclined. A shiver ran from her head town to her legs. By the time Nikki was slumped against the wall — her waist spikes wedged in a crack between said wall and Leo's bed — her feet were twitching and her mohawk frazzling erratically.

"N-Nikki?" Yuna waved a hand in front of her face. She squealed when Nikki grabbed it and squeezed her palm repeatedly.

"Squiiiiishy," Nikki said.

"H-Hey now," the dragapult squeaked.

"I'm fiiiiiine." Nikki let go. Her arms flopped by her side. "Just enjoying the colors."

Yuna wanted to ask what Nikki meant, but paused when she saw pink spreading over Nikki's sclera. She looked down at her own capped vial.

"Hey, so, as the guy who used to date a salazzle, maybe we ought to consider not using th—"

Yuna booted Reshiram from the back of her mind and popped the cap off her vial. She didn't have nostrils, so she simply leaned over and let the vapors splash onto her facial ectoplasm.

For a moment, she wondered if there wouldn't be any effect. Then the gas seeped into her ectoplasm.

The vial slipped from Yuna's grasp and dropped onto the bed. All around Yuna, the gray metal walls rippled and wiggled. Bright reds, greens, and blues danced around one another, twisting into yellows, oranges, and purples. So many colors swirling around and around and around...

"Feels good, doesn't it?"

A hand on Yuna's leg made her ectoplasm tighten and quiver in a way she'd never experienced before. She looked at the arm and saw streams of purple and yellow trailing off it. They molded into icepix that ran around the arm. Around Yuna's leg.

Ten. Twenty. Thirty. So many icepix. Spinning. Circling.

The arm turned to something heavier. Scales that smothered her jiggling ectoplasm.

Yuna fell onto her back. A thunk suggested something hit the ground, but she was long past caring.

XxX​

"It's not usually this quiet here, is it?"

Vince's question disrupted the soft echo of Leo's golden hooves against the metal floor. The cosmic arceus made his way down the hall. "It's late. Everyone must've hit the hay."

"Where are we going?"

"Quiet." Grishi shushed Vince. A whimper followed from the purple koraidon.

"Still dunno why you're here, B-T-dubs." Leo looked over his shoulder. The zorotwo was levitating Vince alongside him. "We made it back. Shouldn't you go home?"

"Grishi could go home." He rolled his eyes. "Sit and twiddle claws. But Grishi knows that dumb thing to do when everything in danger."

He held two claws up to his eyes, then pointed them at Leo. "So, Grishi do responsible thing and keep eye on Leo and friends. Grishi be adult in the room."

"We are adults," Leo said, continuing forward.

"Then Grishi be mature adult."

"Whatevs." Leo reached his door and abruptly stopped. His chest tightened. His starcloud mane and tail pulsated. "H-Huh?"

"Oh no. What's wrong?" Vince sounded like he was trying to worm out of Grishi's psychic grasp. "Are there Whispers here?"

"No." Leo lifted a foreleg and placed it on the door. "I sense... my power. But that doesn't make sense. What—"

The moment he opened the door he saw one of his plates lying on the carpet next to the bed.

A bed with a dragapult and a toxtricity practically tangled together like a pretzel. Their limbs twitching and torsos shuddering.

Leo blinked once. Twice. He cleared his throat.

... Nothing. Did they even hear him?

The cosmic arceus waved a foreleg. A hand made of dirt popped out of the carpet, grabbed the plate, and chucked it toward Leo, who caught it in his starcloud mane.

He silently stepped out of the room and shut the door.

"Change of plans," Leo declared. The plate melted into his mane. A fiery orange dribbled down his wheel like someone spilled paint on it.

Grishi and Vince exchanged looks. "What's wrong? I thought we were going to your room," the purple koraidon said. "And did you just get another plate?"

"Leo taller now." Grishi held two claws close together. "By smidge."

"My mom's in there. With Nikki." Leo wasn't sure how he was keeping a straight face. "Who I might need to start calling my other mom."

Vince stared back blankly. "What."

"I dunno. They're stoned out of their minds." Leo repeatedly moved his head in a circle. "Maybe they won't remember any of it. Either way, I'm out."

He pushed past Grishi and Vince. "H-Hey, wait! Where are we supposed to go, then?!" Vince said.

"Find the orbeetle in the hangar. He'll set you up with a room."

"What hangar?!" Vince finally got out of Grishi's grip. The purple koraidon started after Leo. "And where are you going?"

Leo quickened his pace. "To take a long, cold shower."

"Why?"

"Why do you think?" And the cosmic arceus stomped into a rift of his own making.

XxX​

Widget did not like lying in a "loaf" position. Even switching to miraivally mode didn't help him out. And the carpet was itchy. Why did they even have to sit on the floor like this anyway?

"So, that's the situation." Gene set a handless cup of tea down on the table at their feet. "Unstable world. Threat to the universe. We could some extra muscle, especially if things keep going south on this side. What do you say?"

The shadowy mewtwo extended his right hand. The two urshifu sitting across the table exchanged looks.

"You said there are a bunch of strong pokémon with this 'resistance' of yours?" Lin asked, a brow raised.

"They're Aeon troops." Gene kept his hand extended. "Mostly dragons and other reptiles."

The other urshifu leaned forward. "So, that include any of them big muscular dragons with the circular plates?" He traced his paws in circles.

"I think he means kommo-o," Widget offered, though he wasn't sure why the urshifu considered that important.

"More than a few," Gene said.

"Any of 'em ladies?"

"Xiao." Lin smacked his brother's shoulder.

Gene shrugged. "I'm sure there are—"

"Ya got a deal!" Xiao grabbed the shadowy mewtwo's hand and enthusiastically shook it. His yellow tail crinkled up in pain.

When the handshake ended, Gene pulled his throbbing hand back and nursed against his stomach. "Great. Welcome aboard." He got to his feet. "We'll give you time to get whatever affairs you need in order, then come back to bring you to our base."

Lin crossed his arms. "What about the dojo, Xiao? And the village?"

"We bring the students, of course!" Xiao got to his feet. "You saw the news on PV. Things are going sideways. Looking out for our people means getting 'em somewhere safer than this nutty kingdom."

"That's... true." Lin stood up, arms still crossed.

"Heh." Xiao rubbed his nose. "You just don't wanna admit I'm right."

"Perhaps keep your thoughts about kommo-o to yourself next time." Sighing, Lin shook his head. "When should we expect you back?"

"Hopefully in a day or two." Gene gestured for Widget to stand. "We're heading over to Blightsmuth next."

"That's on the other side of the kingdom," Lin said. "It'd take at least two days by rail."

"Well, guess it's a good thing we'll be flying." Gene pet Widget's back.

The miraivally's thrusters coughed out smoke. "I beg your pardon?"

"You heard me." Gene stretched his arms up. "And weeeee should probably get going. C'mon, bud."

"Seriously?" Widget watched Gene float over the bamboo floor toward a wooden double door. "Isn't this a bit fast?"

"We're on a tight schedule." Gene snapped his fingers.

Widget bowed his head apologetically at the two urshifu. He shifted back to his cosmic form and trotted after Gene. They stepped through the double doors and descended wooden stairs to a wooden bridge over a small pond with lily pads and bamboo fronds scattered around.

"We have to go back to the base," Widget said.

"Not without new recruits." Gene floated across the bridge, nonchalantly resting his hands behind his head.

"This isn't about getting us numbers." Widget marched after him. His starcloud neck ruff rippled with every step. "You're avoiding Cyril."

"I'm not."

"Puh-lease."

Widget caught up to Gene, who was leaning against a sign reading "Unseen Fist Dojo." He jabbed a gold talon into the shadowy mewtwo's thigh.

"You're trying to recruit new people not long after telling your friend to his face that his boyfriend was as good as dead," Widget said. "It comes off as trying to replace Seifer. It's insensitive. You should know better."

Gene raised a brow. "Really? You're going to lecture me on this?"

The cosmic silvally's crest drooped. "He's been with you for ages. He needs you right now."

"Nah." Gene pushed off the sign. He walked across the dirt road. "I'm the last person he wants to see right now. So, better to do something productive. Better to find us some new recruits." He punched one hand with another. "Nikki lived with Shredder and she's plenty tough. So, the guy must know a thing or two."

Widget squinted. "Which is why you want to go to Blightsmuth?"

Gene turned back, smirking. "Exactly."

"Great." The cosmic silvally sat down. "Then have fun."

"Oh, for pity's sake." Gene pinched his brow. "You're digging your heels in? Really?"

"Yes." Widget held his head up. "Send me back to the base. I won't enable your bad decisions."

They silently stared each other down for several seconds. Eventually, Gene relented. With a lazy flick of his wrist, he spawned a rift. Widget spotted the hangar on the other side.

"Be my guest." Gene gestured toward the rift. "Don't come crying to me when it doesn't go how you're hoping."

Chuffing, Widget marched toward the rift. He paused with one foreleg on the other end to look at Gene.

"I hope you'll reconsider."

He waited for a few seconds. When Gene didn't respond, Widget finished stepping through the rift. He found a few skorps staring at him.

"Oh, uh, hi." Widget awkwardly waved a foreleg. "Anyone seen Cyril around?"

"Medical bay," one skorp said.

"Thanks." Widget trotted toward the hangar door.

Maybe Cyril already had other people with him. Regardless, Widget wouldn't rest until he knew the zoroark was okay.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Heya, originally I was hoping to come back to this over the weekend, but that didn't quite pan out for me. Well, now's the next best time to get another chapter under my belt, so let's jump right back in with…

Chapter 91

Spoiler

Well, shit.

That's another world they're gonna tell me to stay away from. But what was I supposed to do? You hear all this yapping about bonds between humans and pokémon. So I can't stand by and watch some kid harass an ogerpon cuz he thinks he's entitled to be her trainer cuz he likes her so much.

This was Tama doing Tama things, wasn't it? Since it definitely feels like Bahamut in outlook, but a bit less unhinged.

The worst part was it was like an awful look back at the distant past. Cuz I'm not sure I'd have acted much different back when I was human.

Sometimes this omniverse stuff's a bitch.

Nevermind then, this is

speaking here.

Leo ran into the hanger not long after Noctum and Valkyrie. It was a mess of skorps darting about between computer consoles, several pointing and waving their mutant incineroar hands.

Tune's reminding me that I really ought to get around to grabbing a copy of Rift Apart. Especially since I have a PS5 now.

"What's the matter?" Noctum wondered, looking between the skorps and Cid. The orbeetle's spots flashed asynchronously with the funny sensors attached to them.

"What isn't the matter?!" Cid responded, staring at Cyril's "big board" of computer screens. "This is a nightmare! I can't get a hold of anyone who's over in Tulpise. I just keep hearing that annoying chatot pirate."

Told you that letting him hang around Cyril's burger joint was a bad idea.

The cosmic arceus trotted up to the dragons' sides. Both of them flinched. "Isn't this thing supposed to be a secure magical line?!" the garchomp hissed. "What gives?"

"M-Maybe Gilbert stole an X-transceiver the last time he was here?" Noctum tapped his index claws together. Valkyrie gently smacked the back of his head with her right elbow fin. "Hey, it was a suggestion!"

On the one hand, that would be fitting and not exactly hard to imagine, but the fact that it's explicitly brought up and shot down like this seems to be pointing at a far more ominous answer.

"Tough. There isn't a Gene or Cyril around for me to slap." Valkyrie crossed her arms. "Why the hell do they even let that pipsqueak and his crew show up here if they're against us?"

Valkyrie: "And if this turns out to be because of some sort of 'keep your enemies closer' tripe, so help me..." >_>;

"Technically it's not Gilbert's—" Noctum saw Valkyrie's death glare and shrank back. "Never mind."

Well, at least he read the room. Eventually.

Rolling his eyes, Leo approached the small computer array. "So, like, what's really the sitch? Cuz why would you complain about pirates if you weren't trying to reach the teams in Herbrides?"

Cid wobbled as his levitation momentarily faltered. "Right. Quite perceptive." The orbeetle pointed at a skorp. One of the larger monitors brought up footage of some kind of heavy machinery embedded in a craggy brown environment.

Leo's eyes widened. That rippling static in the center...

Wait, is that another one of Paradox's Paradox 'mons?

"We got us an anomaly, eh!" the skorp who pulled the footage up exclaimed.

"Where are we looking at?" Valkyrie said. Heavy metal thuds followed from her running up behind Leo.

"Iron Island," Skorp said. "Think it's part of that there Sinnoh region."

Sinnoh, huh? I wonder if this means we're about to crash Riley giving away that Riolu egg to Dawn/Lucas.

Sinnoh. Sinnoh. Why was that name familiar? "Wait." Leo stood up straight. "Isn't that on the same planet we found the last anomaly on? The one with that Indigo Plateau place?"

"It's not just that." Cid motioned at skorp. "Next recording."

What came up was blurry. A rush of purple and navy blue slammed into a large, upright sandaconda that was practically a living brown twister. Sandaconda slammed into a rock wall. Boulders and scraps of machinery crashed down on it from above.

Noctum: "I... take it that that's not supposed to be there?" .-.
Cid: "Not at all since Sandaconda apparently are not native to anywhere close to that region."

The footage flickered a few times. When it steadied, purple, armored legs and fiery blades vanished into the static. Instead of a sandaconda, there was a tiny orange pixie at the base of the rubble. Leo's starcloud tail curled up. Had he seen those big V-shaped ears before? Why did they make him think of wheels?

Ah yes, just getting in a

appearance and Gates reference in there.

"That big ol' sandaconda matches one of Cyril's descripterinos for a Paradigm lieutenant!" Skorp boxed the air in front of him. "But looks like some ceruledge gave her the ol' one-two and made off with her power!"

Wait, what.

No, it couldn't be just "some ceruledge." It was a Whisper. It had to be. And if they couldn't reach his mom and her friends...

Ahh, yeah, okay, that makes a bit more sense. Even if that's some convenient timing there... unless if that clash is what caused the anomaly.

Leo stepped toward Cid. "Are those empire dweebs at the island already?"

Three of Cid's spots glowed. "I don't think so. Why do you—"

"Don't wait up for me." Leo turned around.

"Whoa, hey!" Noctum reached for the cosmic arceus. "What are you doing?"

"Going there."

"Hang on." The cosmic charizard frowned. "We have to come up with a plan. You can't go rushing in looking like that."

I mean, he could, but it'd be an absolutely terrible idea and draw a ton of aggro, so... yeah. Let's see what Leo rolls as a disguise.

"Then I won't." Leo concentrated on two of the plates nestled deep in his spirit. His body squashed and stretched, molded by the energy he drew out of the plates. Bright light filled his vision.

"A heracross?" Valkyrie gasped. "Since when can the kid transform?!"

I mean, if llamagod can canonically mess with a phone to turn it into a custom PokéNav, going around in different guises feels like it should be plenty doable, even if IIRC Arceus can't canonically do anything involving Transform.

Leo's opened his chitinous elytron. Wings buzzing, he hovered into the air. "If we make a plan, the empire's going to storm the island. We don't have time. I'm out."

He wouldn't wait for anyone's protests. Leo slashed the air with his pronged horn. Warm sunlight spilled out from the rift. Leo shot through it, though he didn't immediately close it behind him. Might as well let the others have a shot at it.

I am not convinced that this isn't going to end terribly in short order. Especially since I can't remember the last time we actually saw Leo actually fight in this story.

The anomaly rift sat a couple of dozen meters away, amidst the wreckage of a bunch of machinery. Black bands and plating from conveyer belts to his left. Broken remains of lifts and platforms to his right. There were even a few hard hats and worker vests poking out from piles of dirt littered around the rift.

Well, that got morbid and dark quickly. .-.

Leo beelined for the pulsating static sphere. It grew a bit with every pulsation, chewing away at steel beams, pistons, and other wreckage. He glimpsed the orange pixie from earlier. Those two dragons would totes take care of her. No way they didn't follow him.

Leo, you know what they say about assuming...

The heracross flew into the static without a second thought. It brought him into a tunnel of bright lights and swirling, distorted colors. Leo saw jagged, island-shaped crystals in the distance. Sparkling lines crisscrossed far in the distance, too blurry to get any other features from.

He was in that Ginnungagap place again. Like with the first anomaly they'd flown through. That's fine. All Leo had to do was fly through this tunnel, and he'd reach the dimensional mystery dungeon on the other side. Easy pe—

"Ohhhh shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!"

I mean, not that Leo wasn't obviously tempting fate there, but things sure blew up a lot faster than I expected. Time to see what the damage is:

Was that... a flailing toxtricity ahead of him?

It was! It was Nikki! And judging by the big, spectral wing reaching out to grab her...

"Mom!" Leo shouted, surging toward her without a second thought.

Leo: "What on earth are you doing here?!" O_O;

Air hockey truly was a strange game. Yuna was often transfixed on all the tiny holes in the white table shooting constant air streams. Large enough to lift the red plastic puck millimeters off the table, but small enough not to do anything else.

"Ten to nine," Nikki declared. "Game point, baby!"

I take it that we've gone chronologically back in time for this scene. For whatever reason, I don't recall too many such moments in this story in spite of it now being almost half a million words long.

Igneous was leaning so far forward he was practically climbing onto the table. He struck the puck with his green handle. It banked off the gray wall, but Nikki intercepted with a quick swipe. The puck zigzagged back to Igneous' side. Holding her handle in her mouth, Scarlett slid it forward, but only clipped the side of the puck. Igneous missed his ensuing swipe, but course corrected to pin the puck in the corner.

Every click and clack of the puck satisfied Yuna in a way she couldn't put to words. She'd have to see about coming up with some sort of similar game for the taverns in Aeon when this was all over.

Nikki: "You could just... you know, import an air hockey table."

Yuna: "That'd be kinda hard since we don't exactly have a functioning power grid." -_-;

"C'mon, Twiggy." Nikki's mohawk sparked. She ran her handle back and forth rapidly at the center of the table. "No camping on the puck! Only pussies camp!"

Igneous gently tapped the puck, then slammed his handle into it. The puck beelined by Nikki's handle. "Shit!"

Well, he stopped camping the puck, at least. >:V

"Eep!" Yuna swiped right with both arms. She got the side of the puck. It banked backwards. Her ectoplasm shriveled. She quickly relaxed when the puck struck the corner of the goal and bounced back. Yuna gave it a hearty smack with her handle. It banked off the wall just past midfield.

"Gow eeh!" At its middling speed, Scarlett easily intercepted the puck. Nikki blocked her shot. Scarlett missed the counter, but Igneous swiped his handle all the way to his right, practically knocking the dragonair over in the process.

Boy, you really got into this sequence. Though did you play a game with friends or something to get this choreography down? Since something about the order of events feels surprisingly taut.

When the puck clacked off a wall, a distant rumble followed. Scarlett's neck bauble flickered. She looked up, as did Yuna.

"Did you guys hear that?" she said.

Oh, so we're going back a full chapter in time chronologically for this scene. I guess that's a sign that things went really pear-shaped at the mall while Seifer was having his family and space pirate problems.

A couple of more clacks. Nikki lightly shoved Yuna, who watched the lights rattle in the ceiling.

"Um, guys?" Yuna's tail crinkled. "I think we have a prob—" "Don't interrupt!" Nikki growled. More clacking followed. "Yeah!" Igneous said. "This is important!"

Priorities™️, though I find it hilarious that Igneous is also getting sucked up into this. Guess he's not as above it all as he thinks.

The next rumble was louder. The pachirisu twins who were watching the group from the next-door ping pong table exchanged panicked expressions, then leaped off and headed for the exit.

Scarlett spat out her handle. "We have a problem!" She grabbed Igneous with her tail and pulled his head up. "The whole pace is shaking!"

One last clack sounded, followed by a crunchy "What a goal!" from the speakers overhead. Igneous and Scarlett's goal flashed with blue light.

Yuna: "Oh my god, Nikki, are you kidding me right now?!"

Nikki: "What? Not my problem Twiggy left the goal open."

"Winner! Winner!" the same crunchy announcer voice declared. A small spotlight shined on Yuna and Nikki from the box-shaped scoreboard above the table.

"Ha!" Nikki pumped her fist. "Suck it, Twiggy! Loo-hoo-seeeer!" She made an L with her hand and pressed it against her forehead.

This girl's really into her air hockey for her to just blow off all those ominous tremors. Though what's the over/under of the arcade literally having to blow up to snap her out of this?

"Like hell you won!" The grovlazzle's head leaf caught fire. He stomped over to the toxtricity. "You saw that. Scarlett grabbed me! The goal doesn't count! Redo!"

I see that Team Bastion has their priorities in order right now.

"Guys, seriously?!" Scarlett cried.

"Aww, boo hoo." Nikki rubbed her cheeks as if she was crying. "Cry me a river. Scarlett was being gentle with y—"

Yuna heard the crash seconds before a part of the ceiling collapsed. She thrust her hands forward. Two gray, shadowy legs shielded her friends from the rubble. Screams erupted all around her as the arcade patrons and staff made a beeline for the exit.

Yuna: "I can't believe you two!"

Nikki: "Look, you could've spoken up about the whole freak earthquake in the background earlier."

"What the hell?!" Mohawk frazzled, Nikki hopped back onto the ping pong table.

The dust settled and showed a giant metal... claw? It had multiple colorful arcade cabinets ensnared in its grasp. And there was an electabuzz with a magmortar-esque cannon in place of their left arm riding on it.

"We got the cabinets! Hoist me up, mateys!" Electabuzz shouted.

Ah yes, so the space pirates also took the occasion to hit up the mall themselves. Though I'm surprised they're prioritizing the arcade over stuff like jewelry stores.

As fast as the claw appeared, it shot up through the hole in the ceiling.

"Wait, mateys?" Igneous sprinted toward the hole. "I don't see anything!" He tapped the side of his head. "Gene, someone just made off with arcade cabinets from the mall! What's going on?"

Yuna heard distant crashes and rumbles that mirrored those that preceded the giant claw. She also flipped on her X-transceiver.

"—need to explain anything to vous, kitty cat! Why wouldn't we take ze advantage for a fresh place to plunder?"

Igneous: "Please tell me we're not seriously having to deal with featherface causing us problems over being salty over a cage match. That was like 50 chapters ago!"

"No way," Yuna whispered. She flipped her X-transceiver off. "It's the pirates! And they're in our X-transceiver line!"

"No fooling?" Nikki leaped off the ping pong table. "Then we've gotta regroup with the others."

Yuna: "Seriously, why on earth do they keep getting in our way? They're literally nuisance antagonists!" >.<
Scarlett: "That... makes me feel as if we should be worried more about if anyone else is using them as a smokescreen right now." .-.

"How?" Igneous volcarona wings burst out of his back in swathes of fire. "Gene's not responding. It's like he can't even hear me!"

More crashes sounded in the distance. "Ahh, forget that!" Scarlett's white wings unfurled. She flew toward the hole. "It's not safe inside! Let's go!"

Igneous and Scarlett were first through the broken ceiling. Yuna hovered in place while Nikki ran up the wall and along the ceiling, her feet surrounded by blue electricity. When the toxtricity was through the hole, Yuna darted after her.

The back part of the mall was concrete. Which was a good thing, since most of its glass ceiling wasn't there anymore.

Yuna: "Boy am I glad that I don't need to use my feet to get around, since all those glass shards look like a recipe for some nasty cuts." 😬

"The hell is this?!" Nikki's mohawk undulated wildly. "Giant claws shooting out from nowhere?!"

Flashes of gray metal peppered the air in front of them. Assorted large electronic appliances vanishing alongside the metal claws gripping them.

"They're hiding their ships." Igneous looked around. He gripped his red honedge in his hands. "That has to be it."

IMO, Nikki's line would work a little better if it was punctuated to sound more agitated. Though I can already tell that Iggy's brilliant plan is going to be to hitch a ride on one of the claws up to Gilbert's ships, huh?

"With what? A freaking zoroark armada?" Nikki strummed her gills. "I say we shoot straight over where the roof was and see what happens."

Igneous held the honedge up. "Or we have Starlene sense them." He glanced at the dragonair.

Boring, but practical. Assuming that it works.

"R-Right!" Scarlett's neck bauble glowed pink. Starlene appeared. Her electronic wings glowed in time with Scarlett's bauble.

"Uhh..." The latias frowned. "I'm not getting anything." She wrinkled her snout. "No way they can block psychics. These are pirates, not the empire!"

That... feels like a sign that they cut a deal with said Empire, just saying. Like maybe I'm biased since one of my own stories has a plot beat that's not all that dissimilar, but...

Swirling blue ice emerged right in front of them. "Move!" Yuna yelped.

The quartet all broke off in different directions. When the Blizzard buffeted the stone part of the roof, everything slowed to a crawl around Yuna. It was like someone painted the whole world around her in a purple crystal glaze. And an unseen clock loudly ticked in her head.

She'd seen this before. When she dodged Leo's attacks while training with him. Why could she move normally? Is this... from Yaldabaoth?

First paragraph IMO works better as two smaller ones. Though I hadn't even considered the possibility of that being the party that the space pirates teamed up with.

Yuna couldn't call out to her friends. They were barely moving. But what she could do was fly away from the Blizzard. After a couple of seconds, the crystal tinge vanished. Everything moved normally again.

"H-Hey! Princess, what are you doing?!"

The dragapult turned. Scarlett struggled to juggle her own flight with Starlene levitating Nikki. She glanced up and saw another Blizzard forming from nothing.

"Malpirg!" Yuna shouted. Shadows twisted in her hands, and then Reshiram appeared in gouts of blue fire. He gathered a giant orange fireball and spat it into the Blizzard, blowing it apart in a torrent of steam.

Huh, I wonder if the 'Malpirg' there means anything, or if that's just something like Bayonetta-speak lifted from the game.

"Watch over them!" Yuna ordered, then returned to focusing on the destroyed roof.

Blue flickered in the corner of her vision. Yuna rolled away from an Ice Beam in the nick of time. Like before, everything took on a crystal tinge and slowed to a crawl. Yuna seized her opportunity, flying toward the shattered glass roof. She glanced at the mall. Her shadows tugged on her long tail.

"Yes, I see it." Yuna gulped as the time crystal thingy stopped. She'd have to come up with a better name later. Because there was an anomaly in the mall! The pirates couldn't have made it... could they?

Yuna, if you have to ask yourself that question, they totally made it.

No, she didn't have time to consider the why. Yuna tapped the right side of her head.

"— a fool's errand to interfere. Zese snobby so-and-sos could use ze excitement!"

Yuna's tail lashed the air. The line was still down. How was she supposed to get a hold of Leo like this?!

"Ice Beam from above!"

Igneous' shout alerted Yuna. She rolled right. The crystal time stasis took over again. Curiously, Yuna noted Reshiram moving at full speed. "Fire! There!" The dragapult pointed toward the empty space where the Ice Beam formed.

Oh, so this time dilation effect doesn't work on spirits. Interesting, though I wonder if it's pointing towards anything.

Reshiram immediately spewed a Blue Flare. When the time stasis faded, a blue barrier flickered in and out of existence. The flames barely poked through it. Startled shouts came from the other side.

"It's their ship!" Reshiram said, tail turbine crackling. "Or, uh, a ship. I dunno. This is conf— eep!" He frantically darted left and right as Ice Beams and a massive Blizzard rained down from above.

Well, that would explain why everyone was having such trouble getting a psychic read on the space pirates earlier.

"Help! I'm allergic to grog-scented ice!"

Just how drunk was the 'mon that spewed that one out?

Yuna reached her right arm out. Reshiram returned in a stream of light. "Nikki!" she shouted.

"A bit busy!" The toxtricity batted Ice Shards away with her lightning guitar before they could strike Scarlett. Yuna shot toward her.

"Whoa, hey!" Nikki gasped when Yuna wrapped her up in her large tail. "What's the big idea? At least buy me dinner first!"

"Cut the jokes! Anomaly in the mall," Yuna said. She took off away from a flummoxing Scarlett. "I can't reach Leo."

Yeah, being in an entirely different dimension has a way of doing that. ^^;

"Then rift us back to the outpost!" Nikki squirmed in Yuna's grasp. The dragapult wasn't bothered, speeding past Ice Beams before they could even prove a problem. She flew through the empty space between the hallways on the third and second floors.

"It's growing... and fast!" Yuna realized. "We have to see what we're dealing with."

"What about Twiggy and Scarlett?" Nikki tried to look up.

They're going to wind up leaving them behind, aren't they?

Yuna paused and looked back. Flames swept overhead, striking against the same blue barrier as Reshiram's attack earlier.

"Someone has to try and help people out here," Yuna mumbled. "We're already disjointed."

Yeah, I knew it.

Nikki didn't offer a counterargument, so Yuna took that as her cue to fly into the static. Bright, multicolored lights flooded her vision. Her ectoplasm was tugged in six different directions. Grunting, Yuna lost her grip on Nikki. Arms flailing, the toxtricity fell through the open air.

"Ohhhh shiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiit!"

Oh, so this is the part where they run into Leo.

Instinct took hold. Yuna stretched her right arm out. A spectral wing appeared to catch Nikki. It wrapped protectively around her like some grotesque, oversized scarf.

"Mom!"

Yuuuup, here we go.

The dragapult's head whipped around. A heracross sped toward her. But that voice...

"Leo?!" Yuna rubbed her eyes. A familiar cosmic arceus replaced the heracross. "What are you doing here? Did you come through Tulpise?"

"No!" Leo galloped toward her, despite the lack of ground. In a flash of blue and white light, he shifted to a large altaria and snagged Nikki out of the spectral wing.

"Whoa, hey!" Nikki almost fell off his back in surprise. "The kid's carrying me now?!"

Yuna: "Nikki, are you seriously complaining right now?!" >_>;

Yuna flew after him. Unexpected arrival or not, she still had to find the mystery dungeon on the other side. And this bright, flashing tunnel had to be pointing them in the right direction. "How did you get here then, Leo?"

"Anomaly showed up in Eternatus' Earth!" Leo said. "And it spat me out here."

This was bad. If it sent him into the same Ginnungagap tunnel as the Tulpise anomaly, then they were connected! "Was yours growing quickly, too?"

Oh, so Mystery Dungeons do have the potential to connect to multiple locations in this setting.

"Yeah!" Leo flapped his wings, moving right. "Head's up! There's big— agh!"

The altaria banked left. Yuna followed his flight path. The bright lights made it hard to discern what he was dodging until she got close and saw big blue circles for herself.

"Right! No, left!" Nikki yelped. "Wait— gaaah!"

There was a loud pop followed by an explosion... of blue juice?

I take it that they just splatted a giant Oran Berry.

Yuna slowed up. The juice splattered against the light of the tunnel and dissolved into blue smoke. The dragapult sped forward. Her facial ectoplasm rippled.

"Blueberries?" Yuna cringed. More giant blueberries floated haphazardly inside of the tunnel. Leo, covered in blueberry juice, struggled to maneuver around them. "Watch out!" She surged forward. "Rayquaza, go!"

Huh, not quite what I was expecting, but still a blue berry, I suppose.

An emerald arrow torpedoed through the tunnel, passing Leo by and ramming through blueberry clusters. Rayquaza stopped his Dragon Ascent charge and looked back at the blue mist. "Tis not the manner of treachery I expected when I awoke this morning, Princess! Why art these oversized fruits attacking us?"

"I dunno!" Yuna pressed onward. With a bit of concentration, dragon energy sparked in her horns. To her delight, dreepy-shaped blue blasts shot out of her horns, popping a couple of blueberries and letting the juice-stained Leo and Nikki fly past.

"It's gotta be cuz of the mystery dungeon." Leo flapped his damp wings, flicking blueberry juice all along the tunnel.

Yuna: "I'm sorry, but since when do Mystery Dungeons ever do stuff like this?!"

Nikki: "Clearly there's a first time for everything!"

"Ugh, seriously?!" Nikki was still desperately trying to wring juice out of her jacket. "The hell's on the other side, Dieticianopolis? I got my antioxidants already, damn it!"

"We shall find out soon enough!" Rayquaza declared. After a brief recharge, he Dragon Ascented ahead. Blueberry juice filled the air, then evaporated against the harsh light of the Ginnungagap tunnel. "I see a distorted rift up ahead! Tis the dungeon for sure! Tally ho!"

I think that you have a small verb tense error in Nikki's line there. Though are we about to see them head out into a macro universe or something like that?

The path ahead was clear of any giant blueberries. Which was enough for Yuna to recall Rayquaza in streams of black and emerald light. Leo flew toward the dungeon. Yuna was ready to head after him when a ripple in the bright tunnel wall caught her attention.

"Hmm?" The dragapult looked to the tunnel wall on her right. Everything outside remained a swirl of blues, purples, and smudgy gray shapes in the distance. But there was one blur darting quickly around the tunnel wall.

A purple, white, and black blur.

"No, no, no! C'mon, shrink! Shrink!"

That voice... it's Vince!

Wait, what has he been up to all this time anyways?

Even though the rift was still a few hundred meters away, the tunnel was pulling her toward it. Yuna fought against it, her tail undulating rapidly as if she were a fish swimming upstream. It had to be the real Vince out there. Not just one of his projections. And that meant real answers! If she could just reach him...

God, this tug was strong. Yuna was getting tired. The lights were getting brighter. "C'mon, I just—"

"Stupid anomaly! Cut it out!"

Wait, are we about to see Yuna and the gang barge out into Overseerland or something like that?

No, she couldn't let this chance slip through her fingers! Focus!

Roaring, the dragapult's arms stretched out into Giratina's large, black wings. She slammed the red spikes into the tunnel wall. Light filaments exploded all around her. A burning pain shot through her wings.

"Rrrrgggh... you won't... get away!"

I'm not convinced that this isn't a wildly terrible idea, but if nothing else, you can't say that Yuna isn't a determined one.

Keeping her left wing buried in the light wall to stop her descent, Yuna forced her right wing deeper into it. The pain was awful. But she had to endure. Fight it for that chance at grabbing the Overseer.

Bit by bit, the wall parted, until Yuna's wing finally burst through. Rough scales grazed the black ectoplasm. Gotcha!

A surprisingly high-pitched scream rang out as Yuna coiled her wing around the rough scales and yanked the wing back through the wall and into the tunnel.

So Vince screams like a little girl. Duly noted.

And there was the purple and white koraidon, eyes wide with terror. His legs kicked at the air.

"No, wait, stop! What do you think you're doing?!"

"Getting us... some backup!" With one last snarl, Yuna ripped herself off the light wall and hurled Vince through the remaining Ginnungagap tunnel beneath her as hard as she could. He tumbled away from her, screaming pleas for Yuna to send him back. Instead, the dragapult watched the fuzzy rift a hundred meters below her swallow Vince up.

Well, that's one way to get help with everyone's mall problems... unless he wound up going to Iron Island instead, in which case

She fell through the rift not long after. Sky blue light spilled over her. It faded quickly to a bright blue sky and yellow sun reflecting off a giant white and blue dome.

Yuna threw her arms over her face. Talk about one heck of a glare! "Guys?" she called out, still blinking rapidly to adjust to the light.

"Down here, Princess!"

Your video link is dead in this section. What exactly did this link to originally?

After several more seconds, Yuna spotted Nikki waving to him atop the white dome. She stood under an impromptu shower supplied by a pelipper. Leo, judging by the golden glint in his eyes. Vince was next to them... however, he was now on all-fours for some reason. His dewlap had deflated, his feathery crest looked far less impressive, and his tail was curled up to resemble a wheel. He refused to meet anyone's gaze.

Oh, so Yuna meant backup for the anomaly. I didn't catch that one at first. Though it looks like she's gotten Vince stuck in Limited Build so... yeah, probably not going to accomplish much other than just carry the gang around.

Yuna quickly confirmed there was a fuzzy rift above her, though it blended in quite well with the bright sunshine. Then she flew down to join her teammates. "Good to see you're both okay."

"And juice free," Leo said. He stopped spitting up water. Nikki stepped away to take off her leather jacket and wring it out over the dome. "That was hella disgusting. Remind me to stay away from berries for a while."

I can already see everyone getting weirded out when Leo just

s at the next bowl of berries he sees at the mess hall.

"Uh... sure." Yuna rubbed the back of her neck. Oversized fruit was weird, but far from the worst thing they had to contend with.

"So, uh, what's with the plus one?" Leo pointed a wing at Vince. "That's Vince, right? Why does he look like he'd be featured in an ad for low testosterone?"

Wait, meaning that he was already stuck in Limited Build before Yuna dragged him along kicking and screaming?

Yuna did not want to acknowledge that comparison. She knew Leo was watching EV programs during their down time. But what channels?

"This is a nightmare," Vince mumbled. "I'm hallucinating." The purple and white koraidon squeezed his eyes shut. "I just gotta wake up. Wake up and— eyowch!"

Nikki had whipped his right flank with her soggy jacket. Vince stumbled forward. His feathery horns curled up.

Vince: "Okay, nevermind, this isn't a dream!"

Nikki: "I'm gonna need to whip him a few more times to snap him out of it, aren't it?"

"Yup, not dreaming." The toxtricity resumed wringing water from her jacket. "How'd you find him?"

"He was outside the tunnel in Ginnungagap," Yuna explained. "Figured this was a good chance to finally be face to face with someone who knows what's going on."

Vince shrank back. He shook his head rapidly. "You idiots! Do you have any idea how bad this is?!"

Yuna: "No, but you're here, so start talking."

"Tch. Yeah." Nikki waved her right arm dismissively. She put her right index finger against her head. "We've already had it drilled into our skulls a dozen times. 'Dimensional cataclysm.' 'The end of life as we know it.' Blah, blah, blah. Frankly, it's about time at least one of your weirdo secret society decided to pull their weight around here."

"You don't get it!" Vince's dewlap puffed out. He stepped toward Nikki. "I was keeping the anomaly in check! Because this one was growing out of control! And there's a real chance it does some serious damage and ruins me helping you guys behind the scenes!"

This moment is brought to you by:

Since... yeah, "heroes inadvertently making things even worse" is one of the most "Squaresoft plot" things imaginable.

He looked toward the rift. "I have to go back. I—"

"No." Yuna hovered higher in the air. "If this anomaly's really growing that fast, then we need you here."

Vince shrank back again. "It won't work." His horns curled up further. "You dragged me in here. I don't have most of my powers. I'm—" He looked down at his webbed feet. "I'm just a koraidon here."

So Overseers get depowered inside of Anomalies. Not fully sure what would cause that, but duly noted.

"The hell's that supposed to mean?" Nikki's mohawk sparked. "Are you an Overseer or aren't you?"

"There's a protocol!" Vince said. "Higher-ranking Overseers can keep some of their powers when they enter worlds on their own. But most of the time, if we want to be at our best, we have to coordinate with the gods to gain access."

He walked away from them, looking out at the sprawling blue surrounding the dome. "But that didn't happen. And I'm a very junior overseer."

I'm assuming that's a "gods of a given universe", unless if there's definitive Legendaries even amongst Overseers. Though I take it that this is basically the equivalent of negotiating with an author to allow for a crossover chapter.

"What about Leo?" Yuna gestured to the pelipper. "He can still change his form and everything."

"Because some of his power is in this realm by accident," Vince exclaimed.

Right, his plates. Yuna looked out over the water. This dome was practically in the middle of the ocean. Where were they?

... I'm super slow after the whole "giant blueberry" thing earlier, but between that and the mention of them being in a dome in the middle of an ocean, I know exactly where these guys are right now:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7EG1MPGfGbU

Having put her jacket back on, Nikki crossed her arms. "So, you're saying you're useless, then?" She rolled her eyes. "Puh-leeze. If I can find ways to make a difference, then you can."

Yuna was tempted to say something to Nikki, but her ectoplasm rippled. Her tail tugged on her lower half. The dragapult spun around. Leo was already looking in that direction, flapping his wings slowly.

"It's... some sort of small battlefield?" Yuna floated over to Leo. It wasn't a large arena, but it was just as white and sparkling as the dome. There were some humans scattered around. One standing at the edge of the battlefield had hair that practically looked like an onion.

Ohai, Kieran. Though I suppose that explains the teaser for this chapter, and that I should update the background music, since we're technically in a different part of Blueberry Academy than I initially assumed:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eGcvhrbCoLE

Her ectoplasm rippled again.

"It's them," Leo said.

"Huh?" Yuna followed the pelipper's gaze until she found a ceruledge standing on the opposite side of the battlefield. Sunlight glinted off the two crystals jutting out of his head. One resembled a ghostly blob and the other was just a jagged black box with a smirking face.

Wait, isn't this literally just a Ghost Tera Hat?

"That's the Whisper." Leo pointed a wing at Ceruledge. "I saw them go through the rift in Eternatus after defeating a Paradigm member."

A Whisper with two of Leo's plates in its possession. And one that had defeated a Paradigm member, to boot?

As Ceruledge raised his blades and let out a triumphant laugh, Yuna looked back at Vince and Nikki. They stared at her with perplexed expressions.

What do I do? We're not prepared for this!

Yuna: "... Okay, in retrospect, not bringing Igneous and Scarlett along with us was a terrible idea."

Alright, made it to the end. I definitely wasn't expecting things to wind up going to Blueberry Academy at the end, though I take it that you had some fun with Indigo Disk around the time when you were piecing this chapter together, and it's definitely a memorable change of pace. I feel as if there were a couple moments that went a little over my head, but if nothing else, peaceful days are over, and now it's back to our regularly scheduled programming of stuff blowing up, and I'm all for it.

I honestly did not find a whole lot of things to complain about in this chapter beyond a couple nitpicks here and there. Like maybe it'd have been nice to see a bit more of the space pirate end of things this chapter, but I take it that the focus on Leo and Yuna was very deliberate, so I can't really begrudge you for going that route.

Feels good reviewing this story again, @Ambyssin . It'll probably take me a while to catch up, especially with NaNoWriMo rounding the corner, but I've been having fun with things, and I'm looking forward to seeing where things go from here.

 

[Ambyssin]

Chapter 100: Positively Adamant​

While Spacial Rend was relatively easy for me to describe in manuscript form, Dialga's Roar of Time is much more... esoteric. Hisuian records suggest a large beam of energy, but that sounds no different from your average Dragon Pulse. Even descriptions from the second Hisuian hero suggest Roar of Time was less impressive a sight than Palkia's Spacial Rend.

I suppose part of it is in the name itself. What does roaring time even equate to? Is Dialga bombarding an opponent with an array of different possibilities? Are they warping time in the area of the attack?

Perhaps the Space Globe can shed some light on this for me. I'll ask Zodiark.

XxX​

The restaurant had been open while the group waited for news about Seifer. And it stayed open even after Cyril's outburst, though Guzzie and Guzmelda tried their best to hastily get the remaining patrons fed and out the door.

Throughout the constant scurrying of the black and pink guzzlord couple, Artemis remained coiled next to a corner table. He stared blankly at a flickering neon record hanging above the jukebox. Artemis had no idea how much time had passed. He didn't care, either.

It was Artemis' fault. Seifer was gone because of him. If the milotic had just understood his place... that he'd been sitting on the sidelines for a reason. Artemis had been out of his depth with the toxic swamp that took over the skorps' home planet. Gene knew that. That was why the mewtwo had Artemis work that stupid drone when they went to Eterna City.

But Artemis complained anyway. Let that dumb samurott talk him into going back out in the field.

And now Siefer was dead.

Why hadn't Artemis just stayed behind?

His scales tingled— no, itched.

He hunched over, putting his hands on his thighs to catch his breath. Akari was climbing off Ursaluna to gather the balms scattered at A̸͈͠r̴̛̠e̷̩͌z̸̳̉ȕ̶̖'̴͚̽s̷̼̓ feet.

"What were you thinking, doing all this yourself?" Artemis said. He managed to catch his breath. "Did you think I couldn't help you?"

Both girls shared a glance.

"Right." Artemis' shoulders sagged. "No one would blame you for thinking so. Not much of a leader, am I? I've never even seen almighty Sinnoh with my own eyes."

"Y'square, mate?"

Artemis jolted. His horn grazed the metal wall behind him. Ribbons curling, the milotic hissed in pain.

Wait, ribbons? He looked at them, blinking repeatedly.

"Oi. Artemis, innit?"

He looked up to see that lycanroc mutt standing in front of him, paws on a sleeping Sigurd's wheelchair. Given the direction Sigurd was facing, they were probably heading to the residential quarters.

"I'm fine." Artemis waved Jaeger off with his right ribbon.

"Ain't a good liar, mate," Jaeger said. He lifted his paws off the wheelchair. "Heard about what happened to Seifer. Damn shame."

Artemis looked down guiltily. "It's my fault. He died taking a blow for me." His ribbons curled up as he suppressed a shudder. "All because I... really thought I could make a difference out there. Me, some... some random nobody milotic."

Jaeger scratched his chin. "Easy to blame yourself right now. But it sounds like Seifer chose to run in and take that blow."

"Only because I was careless," Artemis countered. His brows drooped. "I'd been... icy toward him, because of what happened in the past. Never got to a point where I could forgive him." He shook his head. "Then this happened."

"That's the grief talking," Jaeger said. "Sounds like y'need time to sort through it." The lycanroc mutt rubbed his rocky mane. "Wish I could help, mate, but it ain't exactly my forte."

Artemis' eyes narrowed. "And just what is your forte? You're supposed to be one of these Overseers, aren't you?"

"Intern."

"Whatever!" Artemis flicked a ribbon in Jaeger's direction. "Doesn't that make you strong? Why aren't you out there fighting these guys?!"

He slithered up to Jaeger and jabbed a ribbon into his chest. "If you'd gone out there, then... then maybe I wouldn't have! And Seifer would still be—"

Jaeger grabbed the milotic's shout and shushed him. He tilted his head in Sigurd's direction as a warning not to wake the guy up.

"'Fraid it don't work like that, mate." Jaeger let go of Artemis' snout and stepped back. "Overseers get power from entering a world with the help of the local gods. Didn't happen to me, so I don't have that power. 'M like a normal lycanroc."

"Seriously?" Artemis slouched to the point where his ribbons dragged on the floor. "But what about that emerald sheen your fur sometimes has?"

"Yeh, 's just a glow." Jaeger held his paw up. It flashed emerald for a bit. "Cuz 'm usually a zygarde when I visit a world."

What? The milotic struggled to imagine how one jumped from serpent dragon to rock dog.

Jaeger scratched his ear. "Zygarde got a canid form, mate."

"Oh." Still, Artemis didn't buy it. He straightened up. "Well, we literally have the local god here: Leo. Why can't you borrow some of his power so you can fight? He already shared his power with Cyril and Widget, so..."

His voice trailed off. "He shared... his power with Cyril and Widget..."

Jaeger raised a brow, only to grunt as Artemis shoved him into the back of Sigurd's chair while slithering around him.

"What's the hurry, mate?"

"Leo! I need Leo!" Artemis slithered toward the door. He'd been in such a stupor for so long that it hadn't occurred to him that the cosmic arceus should have been home by now. Which meant that he was somewhere in the outpost.

"What for?" Jaeger said.

"There might still be a way to save Seifer," Artemis said.

Jaeger muttered something, but it was too quiet for Artemis to hear. The metal doors slid open for the milotic. He headed into the glass tunnel.

Yes, Leo was the key. The key to saving Seifer... and to his power woes. Leo was God. He had to have some sort of control over life and death. Now that he had several plates, surely Leo could tap into those powers. And also give Artemis a boost, too.

Blessings for both of them. That was the solution. A way for Artemis to undo his terrible mistake... and to make sure no one would ever get hurt covering for his stupidity again.

It was a solid plan. It was going to work— no, it had to work.

XxX​

Widget had initially checked the "main" infirmary area — several repurposed rooms whose walls Gene had broken down — but found no sign of Cyril or Seifer. He asked one of the cyclizar monks carrying around some towels. She told the cosmic silvally they'd taken Seifer into an empty room at the end of the hall.

The first room he tried had Ifrit and Shiva, who were still asleep. The second had Yiazmat beside a slumbering Calcifer. It was the room at the very end, by a glass wall looking out at the asteroid belt and brilliant aurora, that Widget found an ajar metal door.

He lightly tapped the door with his talons. "Hey. Anyone in here?"

No response. Widget leaned over. His head crest nudged the door open. He recoiled upon seeing a charred, vaguely equine body lying on a blue tarp covering the bed. There were scented candles and lilac flowers around the bed. Widget wondered if those were trying to mask the smell of a burnt corpse.

"What do you want?"

Cyril's voice was hoarse, but he still managed to sound harsh. Widget shrank back, his head crest drooping.

The door opened fully. Cyril walked back toward a metal folding chair beside Seifer's body and slumped down into it.

"I, uh—" Widget couldn't take his eyes off the tarp. He wouldn't have even known that was Seifer had he not seen the lightning fry the keldeo. "I just wanted to check in."

"I'm not up for talking." Cyril let his starcloud mane drape over his face. It was more disheveled than usual. And his ectoplasmic pelt was knotted up, too.

"I know he meant a lot to you," Widget whispered.

Cyril's black fur flickered red. Widget's claws scraped against the floor. Had he said something wrong?

The cosmic zoroark stayed silent, still facing Seifer. Though Widget had no idea if he could see the keldeo's corpse through all that fur.

Eventually, Cyril muttered, "This mean Gene's back?"

"No." Widget stepped into the room. Lilac and lavender scents practically assaulted his beak. It was almost suffocating. But better than the alternative, I guess.

"No?" Cyril's fur flickered red again.

Widget tensed. Was honesty the best policy right now? Then again, he wasn't a great liar and lying could just make Cyril angrier.

"He didn't want to come back." The silvally's starcloud neck ruff deflated. "He thought you didn't want him around. So, he's trying to recruit ousted Crowne Ministers over in Radiance. I think he's heading for Blightsmuth."

At first, Cyril didn't respond. Then he smacked his right leg with his right hand. "Oooof course he is. Gotta find some way to salvage this, right?" He flicked his left wrist toward Seifer's body.

"I think he's afraid," Widget mumbled.

"Of what?" Cyril whirled on Widget. His mane still obscured his face but locks of hair rippled like stormy waters. "Me chewing him out for not dropping everything to get Seifer to safety?"

Widget's crest drooped. "That's, uh... a pretty good guess?" He looked down at his gold talons. This idea was turning worse by the second.

Raspy laughter followed. "No reason to worry." Cyril slapped his right leg again. "Because he was right. As usual."

"Huh?"

"There was no reason to rush him back." Cyril's laughter continued. The gems in his limbs flickered erratically. "That lightning fried him. He was... he was..."

His laughter faded to choked back sobs as Cyril slumped off his chair and onto his knees.

"C-Cyril..." Widget took a step toward the cosmic zoroark... only to jump back when Cyril punched the tarp.

"Why?" He punched again. "Why, damn it?" And again. "Why did this have to happen?" And again.

Widget had to say something, right? "He was trying to save Artemis. Trying... to be the hero he always saw himself as."

"I get that!" Cyril snapped. Widget caught a quick glimpse of the zoroark's puffy eyes before his hair obscured them again. "But the last thing that happened before that was his asshole father disowning him because I let him rile me up!"

He turned and punched the tarp again. Cyril's right arm rippled with static. "I screwed up! I loved him and I... I'll never..."

The cosmic silvally's neck ruff deflated further. Those static ripples meant Cyril would erode into a Whisper if Widget didn't do something.

"It's not your fault." He quickly went to Cyril's side and sat down next to him. "Between the pirates and Xeromus, everything was out of control. I'm sure if Seifer were here, he wouldn't blame you for losing your cool."

"But he did blame me!" Static briefly replaced Cyril's mane and torso. "He scolded me. And I never got the chance to apologize..."

Crap! Widget was making it worse!

"W-Well, um..." He had to think. Think. Think. "If he was, y'know, really mad at you, would he have gone with you and Artemis?"

Widget flinched when Cyril turned to him. His hair was still covering his face, but at least the static wasn't showing up this time.

"I dunno," Cyril whispered. He slumped to his right so his head and upper torso were lying on the chair. "But he's gone now. I'll never get to make a proper apology."

"There might still be a way!"

Widget turned to find Artemis in the doorway. The milotic leaned against the door, trying to catch his breath while also shoving Leo's side with a ribbon.

"Hey! C'mon, dude, my fur's not even dry!"

The cosmic arceus hesitantly entered the room. Water dribbled off his blue-purple, starry pelt. The towel draped over his torso dropped onto the floor.

"You pulled Leo out of the shower?" Widget asked.

"Of course not." Artemis finished catching his breath, slithered inside, and shut the door. "I pulled him out of the shower area while he was drying off." He pointed a ribbon across the room. "Because this is important! Leo can save Seifer!"

Cyril's head snapped in Leo's direction. Leo turned to Artemis. "What?"

"A blessing should totally work!" Artemis sounded awfully sure of himself for what sounded like a complete wild guess. "Look at what it did for Cyril and Widget." He gestured to both with his ribbons. "And you have a ghost-type plate, right? So, you should totally be able to revive a soul. If you're the creator of the universe, nothing's impossible for you."

Widget looked down at the floor. All those concerns he brought up to Gene about Leo's blessing rushed back to the surface. Could Leo really bring Seifer back? Or would he end up putting an entirely different spirit into Seifer's body? Did the cosmic arceus even understand how his blessings worked?

"Wait." Cyril held his hands up. "No, something about that ain't right. Seifer was killed back in Radiance. His soul shouldn't be here anymore. It'd be... claimed by Eternatus, wouldn't it?"

"Maybe?" Leo shrugged. "TBH, I'm not really sure."

"TBH?" Cyril pulled his starcloud hair aside to squint at Leo. "Seriously, dude?"

The two cosmic fuzzballs' ensuing bickering barely registered to Widget, who was repeating Cyril's claims over and over in his head.

Souls claimed by Eternatus. Claimed by... Eternatus...

"I might be able to help with that."

Widget hadn't realized what he said until he saw three sets of eyes on him. Artemis wrapped his tail around one of the cosmic silvally's hind legs. "Don't just stand there. Explain!"

"I, uh—" Widget blinked several times. "Well, y'know, the emperor built me to interface with Eternatus. So, um, I might be able to locate Seifer's spirit. If it's, like, adrift and stuff."

"You don't sound too sure of yourself." Cyril crossed his arms and tapped a foot on the floor.

"But he can try." Artemis let go of Widget's hind leg. The milotic pet the leg with his tail. "For everyone's sake, right?"

"Does that mean I can go back to drying off?" Leo reached a foreleg toward the towel he dropped.

"No, we still need you," Artemis said. Leo brought his foreleg back, an unamused look on his face.

"Uh, right." Widget stepped toward Seifer's body. His form shifted back into his original, Eternatus-esque look. His glassy, red-pink torso was... strange after not experiencing it for so long.

"Here goes." The eternavally shut his eyes and concentrated. What was it the emperor had told him to do?

His fur bristled. No, forget him. Do what feels natural.

Widget took one deep breath. Then another. And another.

Even though his eyes were closed, a dully, hazy outline of the room painted itself in front of him. There were two bright, white-blue flames to his right. A gold flame sat between them. It was so intense, it almost broke Widget's concentration. It had to be Leo's spirit.

Focus. Deep breaths. Widget had to think beyond the—

"What?"

Widget's eyes opened. He stumbled toward the bed, shaking his head and blinked stars from his vision. "That doesn't—" Widget looked at the bed where Seifer's body lay.

"Did you see something?" There was a spark of hope in Cyril's voice.

"A crystal," the eternavally whispered. "A gray and blue crystal... right on the bed. Which I don't understand. Cuz you guys looked like ethereal flames to me when I was concentrating."

Cyril hummed in thought. Artemis slithered between him and Widget. "That's a good thing!" the milotic chirped. "That's gotta mean his spirit's here. Which means Leo can help!" He turned to the cosmic arceus. "I bet all you gotta do is 'break' that crystal and you'll free Seifer's soul!"

Leo's damp starcloud mane dimmed. "Gray crystal? I dunno..."

"Please, Leo, you have to try!" Artemis beckoned him with his tailfins.

"Uhh..."

Artemis nudged Cyril with his left ribbon. "You agree with me, right? You really want Seifer back!"

The cosmic zoroark's mane dimmed. "Yeah. I do."

"Then what do we have to lose?" Artemis looked between Cyril and Leo.

After a few seconds of silence, Leo stepped forward. "Fine. I'll try." He approached the bed. "Maybe it is that simple. And I have a lot of plates now, so that's bound to help."

Widget shuffled back. His fur stood on end. Something about the crystal bothered him. He wasn't sure why, so he kept his beak shut. Widget silently watched golden filaments unravel from Leo's wheel. They gently touched Seifer's corpse. Leo's wheel and starcloud mane sparkled with a blue-purple aurora. The dampness from his shower turned to small bits of steam above his head.

Though tempted to tap into that spirit sensing power again, Widget feared he'd break Leo's concentration. He stood as still as a statue.

... And then the filaments twitched.

Leo's eyes opened. They were full of panic.

The filaments twitched again. Artemis and Cyril didn't seem to notice, gazes locked on Seifer's body. Its hooves were... glistening?

This time the filaments jerked. Was Leo trying to pull them away?

Something's wrong.

Widget had to speak up. "Leo?"

"I can't, nnngh, get them back," he said. The filaments jerked again, but remained attached to Seifer. The glistening had spread over the keldeo's charred body.

"Wait, what?" Cyril stepped up to Leo. "If there's a problem then stop."

Leo's wheel and starcloud mane flickered. "I can't! It won't— why isn't this working? Stop! Stop!" He kept jerking the filaments.

Widget's head crest glowed. He shifted back to his cosmic form. "Do you want me to slice them? I'm sure I can—"

"No! Get back!" Leo stuck his left foreleg out.

Artemis finally seemed to register the problem. He was reaching toward Leo when the cosmic arceus suddenly tensed.

The filaments were ripped from Seifer's body. They flailed about like rapidly deflating balloons. Leo staggered back, eyes wide. Cyril dove onto the floor, narrowly avoiding one.

Widget jumped over one of the filaments just as another smacked Artemis across the face. Despite being thin, the filament's slap slammed the milotic into the wall. His golden scales darkened to black and his ribbons turned into starry nebulas that matched Cyril and Leo's hair.

(Art by Inku.)

Artemis slumped down onto the floor and lay still.

"Artemis!" the cosmic silvally cried. "Leo, you have to make it stop!"

The filaments — no, they were more like tendrils now — continued lashing at the air. Leo staggered back, his wheel dimming and brightening erratically. "I can't! Nothing's working!"

"Then try something els— auugh!"

A tendril slapped Widget's right cheek bolt. Like Artemis, he was flung into the corner of the room. A resounding clang echoed in the room, but Widget didn't hear it. His ears hadn't stopped ringing.

Widget collapsed. The room spun and spun and spun. The gray walls and ceiling melted away into a swirl of reds, purples, and violets.

"Wha?" He blinked rapidly, but the sea of colors wouldn't disappear. "Leo? Cyril?!" Widget tried to lift his head, but found he couldn't move it.

The sea of red and purple rippled. One by one, silhouettes drifted toward him. He spotted a charizard, then a decidueye beside it, then a xatu floating behind them both.

Silhouettes kept popping up. Soon there were ten— no, twenty? Widget had quickly lost count. He tried to move away from them, but he couldn't.

Widget couldn't open his beak, either. Only stare at the silhouettes.

Some larger ones stood behind the others. A reshiram loomed over them all. A miraidon floated beside it. And behind them both... a familiar silhouette resembling a giant hand.

The cosmic silvally tensed up. Those three... were parts of the transformations he used. Widget never thought about why he could transform like that. He figured the emperor had built him that way.

All the silhouettes' lifted their heads. Hollow blue eyes stared Widget down from all directions.

Again, he tried to get his beak open. Nothing happened.

Widget trembled. Why was this happening? Was this because of Leo's power? But it had already helped him before... hadn't it?

One of the silhouettes was right in front of Widget's face. Three heads. Three sets of hollow blue eyes.

Hydreigon stared Widget down. Its main head looked over its shoulder at the silhouettes. Then it turned back to Widget.

Finally, Widget's beak moved. "What do you want from me?" he squealed.

Silence. Hydreigon continued staring.

(Art by Yereren.)

"Puh-please." Widget was able to look around. Everyone was staring. Boring through him with their hollow blue eyes. "I don't... understand..."

Voice.

Widget tensed. His claws dug into... the purple and red swirling beneath him. "Who said that?!" He looked around in a panic. "Was it you?" Widget eyed Hydreigon.

Voice.

It was louder this time. And coming from all around Widget. "Voice what?! I'm talking! You can hear me!"

Hydreigon inched closer. So did the other silhouettes.

Voice. Together. Voice. Together.

"Stop it! You're not making any sense!" Widget pleaded. He tried conjuring an attack to ward off the silhouettes, but the energy fizzled out the moment it reached his beak.

"Stop! Get away!" Widget rapidly shook his head, as if that could somehow force the silhouettes back. "Get away from me!"

Hydreigon placed one of its smaller heads on Widget's crest.

We carry the wills of slumbering lives. We are their Voice.

Melding together, the silhouettes funneled into Widget's chest. His starcloud ruff swelled up.

Widget screamed. A wall of blue light swept away the red and purple ocean, but his screams didn't stop. Not for an unconscious Artemis. Not for Cyril, who was slumped on his knees beside a keldeo-shaped blue and gray crystal.

When Widget's screams died down, his gaze fell on Leo. The tendrils were gone, but the cosmic arceus looked around the room with increasing horror on his face. Rapidly shaking his head, Leo slammed the door open and bolted from the room.

The metallic thumps of Leo's galloping echoed in Widget's head even as they grew steadily farther.

Widget shakily took one step toward the door. Then another. Then a third. He tried to will himself to go after Leo, but that one piercing word kept echoing in his head.

Voice. Voice. Voice.

He managed one last step, before falling over on his side and blacking out.

XxX​

Shane lifted his head off the glowing root of the crystal tree surrounding him. Its prismatic branches and leaves turned the small cavern's walls into a rainbow mosaic. It was practically a sky shifting from the soft blues of morning to the orange and reds of sunset. It was a sight Shane had taken in so many times it had practically lost all meaning to him.

Besides, it wasn't important. He had a visitor. The icetales got up, stretching out a hind leg... only to sharp in a suck breath when the leg cramped.

"Ow! Ow! Charlie— gah!"

He fell over on his side, disheveling his chest ruff and exposing the rainbow crystal underneath.

A crystal the summer form deerling that stood at the opposite end of the cavern eyed intently.

"Angel! Hi!" Shane blurted out her name a bit too loudly as he scrambled to his feet. He winced from his own echo. "Uhh... I wasn't expecting you here. Right now. At this very moment." He awkwardly punctuated his wording while he dusted himself off with four of his tails.

"Well, spontaneity can be one of life's many joys," Angel said, slowly walking further into the cavern. "How's the Tree of Light?"

Shane glanced over his shoulder. "Same as it was the last time you asked. You know we don't have to do the small talk stuff, right?"

When he turned back around, gone was the simple summer deerling. In her place stood a xerneas with a golden pelt, gold antlers, gold crystals on her chest and legs that brought Shane's true form to mind. Her vibrant glow melded with the Tree of Light's aurora to spread a golden tinge around the cavern.

(Art by Digivolvar.)

"True." Angel's gaze drifted toward the Tree of Light's branches. "But I was concerned." She continued forward. Her crystal hooves plinked softly on the cavern floor with every step. "I poked around Ginnungagap. By 2020."

Shane's tails puffed out. "I, uh... I know I'd suggested it, but you didn't have to go do that right away."

"You were distressed," Angel said." She stopped by the icetales and leaned over. Her golden antlers dimmed along with her rainbow eyes. "Still are distressed." She sounded quite sure of herself.

They looked at each other in silence for a few seconds before Shane turned back to the tree. "Maybe a bit," he conceded, pawing at the ground.

Sighing, Angel shrank back down to a summer deerling. She brushed against Shane's side and sat next to the edge of a nearby tree root.

"Something happen?"

"You remember that world that got me in trouble over the whole 'protecting ogerpon' thing?" Shane asked. Angel nodded as he sat down next to her. "One of Zodiark's mystery dungeons targeted that place. 2020's new arceus managed to settle things down, but he... did something surprising."

"What kind of surprise?" Angel wondered. "Not a pleasant one, from the sound of things..."

"He took Vince."

Angel leaned into Shane's line of sight, flabbergasted. "You're kidding."

"Wish I was." Shane sighed. A tired smile spread over his muzzle. "Besides, weren't you the one who said I only know how to be unintentionally funny?"

That flummoxed the summer deerling. Enough for her golden antlers to flicker in and out of existence. "Well that's—" Angel shook her head. "I'm sure I've told you that friendly ribbing — whether from friend, family, or partner — is a small way for two souls to share in the joy of life."

"Maybe." Shane playfully poked Angel's side with a tail. "But I'm not exactly known for being a good listener."

They shared a look and then a quick laugh. Then Shane's ears folded down. "Anyway, it turns out that the Reverse World guardian for that dimension was helping 2020's new arceus."

Angel tilted her head. "And that was?"

"The fuzzy mewtwo-zoroark mishmash." Shane curled two of his tails together. "He, uh, remembers me from when I helped with his ascension."

"I see." Angel put her left forehoof over Shane's right forepaw. "That must have been awkward."

"Well, it did make me feel like I was a dolt," the icetales conceded. "And I betrayed Vince's trust." The gem in his chest flickered. "Not exactly a great quality in an Overseer."

"True." Angel took her forehoof off Shane's forepaw and instead placed it on the rainbow root to her right. She still wore a calm expression. "Still, mistakes are as much a part of life as love and lust. Whether you let them define you or rise above them will determine the sort of person you are. That goes for gods or mortals. Overseers or interns." She conjured a small mote of light that she placed on the tree root. A tiny blue flower sprouted from the root.

"I know." Shane had heard that from Angel before. "This one's... different. Because of all the 2020 stuff." He winced. "And how I contributed to it." He sucked in a sharp breath. "It's... hard not to let it all get to me. Especially when I can only try and help indirectly."

Angel grew back into a golden xerneas. She leaned over and gently licked Shane's back.

"H-Hey!" His tails puffed out.

"You poor thing~" she said. "You've been talking with one of the Dark Matters again, haven't you?"

Shane shook himself until Angel pulled away. "Tama, actually," he said.

"Well, he does still lean cynical on these things," Angel said, shrinking back to deerling. She climbed onto the tree root and playfully nudged the flower she'd grown.

"I know... and he is trusting me on this." Shane got up and stretched in a downward dog pose, fanning out his snowy tails. "But he does have a point about how thin a tightrope I'm walking."

"In what way?"

"It's... dangerous for me to get close to 2020's divine energy," Shane said. As he finished his stretch, he slowly expanded into his necrozma form. He stretched his upper half toward the Tree of Light's trunk. Shane rested an upper wing against it. "There was a reaction when the new arceus showed up. I'm not sure he realized it... maybe because he doesn't have a full grip on all his powers."

He lifted his lower wings. They darkened and staticky red energy pulsated through them. "If we'd stayed together a bit longer, we'd have caused another mystery dungeon to form up. Right after he'd sealed Zodiark's." Shane lowered his wings and the energy dissipated. "And I tried to track down some of his missing plates after leaving 4940, but every time I thought I sensed one... I lost it."

Angel tilted her head, but then her eyes slowly widened. Her golden antlers flickered in and out of existence. "Wait, you don't mean..."

"That divine energy I banished from home must be baked into 2020's." Shane squished his eight-pointed head against the tree trunk. "It still, like, remembers me. And so my presence repels it." His face slid down the tree trunk until he was lying face down on the ground. "I guess it wasn't a problem back when I visited the old outpost because all that energy was sealed up. But now that it's free and spreading around—"

"You can't get close to it without risking a reaction," Angel cut in. Hoofbeats suggested she was walking on her tree root toward Shane's head. "And not the fun kind, either."

Shane half-grunted, half-laughed at that last comment. He turned his head left and saw gold, crystalline forehooves dangling off a tree root.

"Pretty much," he said. "It's like my wings are tied." A pause, and then he added, "And that's not the fun kind, either."

"Oh, you." Angel nudged his left upper wing with her forehoof.

"You started it."

"God of life perks."

Shane turned his head further to find Angel winking and sticking out her golden tongue. "Fine." He rolled over on his back, folding his four wings across his crystalline chest. "At least there's an upside to this. If I could feel that strong a reaction to the new arceus... then it's possible that shadowed soul I mentioned to you might finally be able to let go."

Several seconds of silence followed. Shane was going to elaborate when Angel said, "That silvally?"

He nodded slowly. His head tendrils shriveled slightly. "He's been drowning in shadows for so long. All because I've told him he needs to hold out for the right moment." Shane's tendrils extended. "And I think that moment's here. If I'm right... he may be able to help the new arceus stop Zodiark."

"And if you're wrong?"

Shane's whole body dimmed. "That's... what this backup plan's for."

More silence followed. Enough for Shane to believe Angel decided against pressing him further on that subject.

But where did that leave them? Heck, they'd gone off on such a long tangent that Shane had forgotten why Angel had even dropped by. "So, uh, what were we talking about before?"

"My little 2020 drive by." Angel got off the root. Her golden antlers glowed brighter. "I think its Voice has awakened to their true nature."

"What?!" Shane sat up so quickly his head tendrils whipped back and forth. "Hang on. Shouldn't there be multiple—"

"It was only one energy spike I sensed," Angel said. A shudder ran down her golden body. "But it was... an intense spike. Almost too much to handle." There was a bit of... excitement in her voice. Shane's rainbow eyes swirled around as he tried to come up with an explanation.

Eventually, something sprang to mind. "You don't think..."

Angel nodded. "I do. Mashed together into one entity. A Super Voice, if you would."

"I see." The necrozma traced his wing claws around his chest spikes. "That's... hmm. Not really sure what we can do with that right now. If anything."

"I take it you don't want me telling the higher-ups?" Angel leaned forward, practically resting her head on Shane's top chest spike. His rainbow eyes turned shades of red.

"Uh, well... they'll probably figure out I had something to do with it." Shane laughed nervously. "So, um, maybe we keep it our little secret? I'm sure they'll sense it soon enough."

"Oh my~" Angel fluttered her eyelids. "How scandalous. And yet it's quite exciting. I heard you had a wild streak about you."

"H-Hey now." Shane nudged Angel's golden snout with an upper wing. "Do I need to toss you in a cold shower?"

"Are you threatening me with a good time?"

Shane's head went from gold to bright red. He opened and closed his crystal beak several times.

Angel smiled sweetly. "You've got nothing."

"I've got nothing."

The golden xerneas pulled her head off Shane's spike and stood up. "Well, as much as I'd like to celebrate life with you right now, I should probably get home before I lose track of time." She glanced back at Shane. "If anything else pops up or you'd like any more of my help, you know where to find me."

She sauntered across the cavern for a few seconds before breaking into a gallop. Once her hoofbeats had faded away, Shane slumped back onto the ground, groaning loudly.

He really wished Nero was still around. The old fella would have been perfect for a situation like this. But alas, that wasn't the case. Shane had a feeling he'd need folks like Angel and Tama to get through this crazy situation.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Alright, running a bit late, but back for another hit of Path of Valor to knock out that Review Tag and peck away at that backlog of chapters I've built up with…

Chapter 92

Spoiler

OS Incident Report #9467
SUBJECT: Necrozma Shane
LOCATION: Mossui Town, Kitakami (Dimension POV-4940)

Oh, so that last teaser was by

. Time to see just how much of a mess he left behind there.

VIOLATIONS: Unauthorized use of loaned divine power, unauthorized interference with mortal affairs
DESCRIPTION: The subject is found to have intervened with a human child's attempt at earning the partnership of an ogerpon. According to the local zygarde, observations via cell reveal the subject jumped in to stop the boy from catching Ogerpon. Subject claims that the boy didn't consider Ogerpon's feelings and was going to catch her without her approval. When the boy sent his own pokémon out to battle the subject and became increasingly agitated, the subject utilized Photon Geysers to knock out his pokémon, then fled with Ogerpon. The cell reports the boy returning home distraught. He was muttering comments about getting strong enough to capture both the subject and Ogerpon.

Good going, Shane. Since you just sent Kieran on his obsessive spiral without anyone there to pull him out from it.

Though "observation by cell" is kinda lulzy since it's similar in terminology to snooping by monitoring a mobile phone. It does feel very on-brand for a Zygarde to refer to it as such, though.

As a preliminary measure, the subject is now on probation. He is henceforth banned from POV-4940. We will assign a new Overseer to observe that Earth. Further disciplinary action is pending based on follow up reports from the local zygarde.

Who isn't

based off his freakout last chapter. Makes me wonder if we're going to see our mystery Overseer in the course of this chapter.

Despite the initial volley and a few potshots from the kilowattrel and pidgeot circling high above them, the real problem was that the pirates on the ground weren't even trying to go for Seifer or the others. Instead, they'd booked it in the direction of assorted houses, blowing the walls and dome-shaped roofs open with clusters of blast seeds wrapped in strange wiring.

Hrm, can't say the BGM isn't fitting for a pirate raid, even if IMO, the original mix of Crump’s battle theme sounded a lot cleaner than the remake's take:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QImV3SdZZ9c

Seifer tried to shoot a girafarig with a metallic tail while it ran out of a house levitating a dishwasher. But they easily dodged his Aura Sphere and retaliated with a Psybeam. While Seifer dodged the pink laser, a chain wrapped Girafarig up and hoisted them into the air along with the dishwasher.

This feels wildly inefficient as a raiding strategy versus just targeting the distribution center for whatever Polaris' equivalent to Amazon Prime is, but I suppose pirates gonna pirate and that their average level of strategic thinking is on the lower end of the scale.

... To say nothing of the other commotion in the area.

"Completely and utterly disgraceful!" Tobias snarled from across the road. The cobalion swung his Sacred Sword at a wartortle, who tumbled back into a cloud of ectoplasm from Cyril's mane. With a holler, the wartortle vanished in a blue flash.

Wait, Cyril can just casually Phantom Warp others like that?

"The hell?" Cyril hopped back, then rolled away to dodge a Thunderbolt from above. "It's like the emperor's troops. They have some sort of failsafe teleporter?"

Yeah, I knew that they were working with Paradox for how well set-up those pirates were.

"Quiet, you mangy peasant!" Tobias snarled, deftly sidestepping a Thunderbolt and Air Slash crescents coming from above. He glared at Seifer, which the keldeo quickly looked away from.

"First you sully our family name by failing to uphold your sworn oaths and getting canned!" Tobias continued. Seifer's face scrunched up. He met an incoming Hydro Pump from behind several bushes with an Aura Sphere. Then he galloped forward and coated the bushes in frosty air. The damp foliage froze instantly from the Icy Wind, and the floatzel responsible for the Hydro Pumps slipped and fell on his rear.

"Then you run away from the kingdom like a dirty coward!"

Ah yes, someone has their Priorities™️ in order right now.

Seifer leveled his prosthetic horn at Floatzel. "W-Wait, matey! At least let me hear the rest." He held up his paws. "It be getting to the good part!"

A point-blank Aura Sphere sent Floatzel tumbling back into thorny rose bushes. His hollers stopped when he vanished in a flash of blue light.

That's at once a lol and an ouch moment there. A 'lolouch', then?

"Above you!"

The keldeo slid along the icy ground at Artemis' call. He spun around and shot Hydro Pumps skyward with his forehooves. But the kilowattrel that tried to zap him flew way too high for them to reach.

"And now you show up out of the blue with this tacky-furred loser calling himself your boyfriend?" Tobias hadn't left his spot half a block over, slicing through a Dark Pulse from an unseen foe with his Sacred Sword. Grayson covered him, summoning rocky spires that sent wartortle and sneasel with flaming head feathers running scared. "That better have been a joke, rapscallion!"

Seifer: "Oh great, like I didn't have enough problems in life right now."

Kilowattrel: "Yer whinin' be fer me or fer Cloppers there?"

"Okay, seriously?" Cyril ducked a swipe of a fire-feathered sneasel's flaming claws. "You don't gotta flex your thesaurus on me, jackass!"

"Stuff it, Father," Seifer growled. He stayed on the move, skidding across the ice he made while looking for nearby pirates to attack. A blast from behind made him spin around. Two espurr with metallic ears appeared from a hole in the roof, levitating a PV set.

"Metallic ears", huh? Meaning that they've been using Mewgenics?

"Drop it!" The keldeo raised his forehooves and shot dual Hydro Pumps. One espurr panicked and stepped in front to erect a barrier. The other couldn't keep the PV set up and it plummeted through the hole in the roof. Seifer shot again as the crashing of glass and metal rang out from the house.

"Fall back!" the barrier-wielding espurr squeaked. Both disappeared in blue flashes. Seifer's brow furrowed. Maybe Cyril was right, and they did have teleporters at their disposal. But where were they taking the pirates to?

Cyril: "I mean, the logical candidate would be back to their ships, but..."

"Rrrghgh... out of my sight!"

Heavy metallic hooves slammed against the ground following Tobias' cry. Seifer turned and, whinnying in fright, hit the deck. A hollering fire-feathered sneasel careened past Seifer. They hit a swing set, which spun them rapidly around the wooden crossbar, then flung them skyward where they crashed into a kilowattrel taking aim at Seifer. Both vanished in flashes of white and blue.

Yeeeeah, trying to solo a Muskedeer was kinda a bad idea™️ there even before counting for the likely quantum leap in level equivalents.

Tobias stopped at Seifer's side. "We are not dropping this." The cobalion's venomous tone made Seifer's neck fur stand on end.

Ah yes, just deleting all the audience sympathy for this guy that somehow survived his introduction a couple chapters ago.

But he spotted Air Slash crescents peppering Artemis and Cyril. "We are!" Seifer shot past Tobias with Hydro Pump jets. "Get away from them!" He slung an Aura Sphere skyward. The pidgeot above his teammates couldn't dodge in time, instead vanishing like the others.

Seifer skidded to a halt on the street. "You okay?"

"I've had worse." Cyril shook himself out. "And I'm hearing worse."

Seifer: "Wait, 'hearing worse'? Cyril, what are you-?"

"Hmph! A filthy liar and an incompetent fighter!" Behind the trio, Grayson shielded himself from Dark Pulses with Stone Edge spires. "Why am I not surprised? And after blowing off all your father's arrangements!" The terrakion struck the rocks, knocking them toward some panicking sneasel.

"Are you serious right now?!" Seifer's prosthetic horn sparked. "We should be focusing on repelling these pirates!"

"Maybe we ought to shift focus to getting people to safety, instead?" Artemis proposed. The milotic barely managed to slither away from a Thunderbolt. He fired a retaliatory Ice Beam. A loud squawk told him he hit his mark. "There are screams and explosions in the distance!"

A house several meters ahead had its door blown off its hinges. Two wartortle ran out with an air fryer and multiple blenders. Metal wires grabbed them and hoisted them into the sky before anyone could get an attack off.

Tobias: "... I'm sorry, but since when were Wartortle ever that nimble?"

Seifer: "Since when you decided to stop and berate me for my love life in the middle of an ongoing raid!" >.<

"You're right." Seifer kept his gaze skyward in case anyone tried to strike from above. "It's a lost cause staying here."

"What a farce!" Tobias bucked a croconaw with his Sacred Sword. "Is abandoning your duty all you can think about now?"

Rolling his eyes, Seifer gestured down the street with his forehoof. "Let's move. I hear voices coming from that direction."

I'm just going to go ahead and assume that Seifer's family is going to not be particularly helpful from here on out, since... yeah, they sure seem content to moan while whaling on background randoms.

Before the keldeo could break into a trot, however, Grayson cut him off. "Where do you think you're going?" The terrakion narrowed his eyes. "You've got some nerve defying your father like that. And after everything he did for you before you threw your life away."

Seifer hadn't felt this small since Isola had sacked him. He wanted nothing more than to get the hell out of dodge. Seifer shot Cyril a pleading look.

"Oh-ho-kay. No. I've had enough of this shit."

Your video link's busted here. What song was originally meant to accompany this moment?

His tail scrunched up. "Cyril..."

"Don't, Seif." The cosmic zoroark stepped to Seifer's side, his gaze still trained on Tobias. "I don't care what you think of me or how much you prattle on about honor and duty." He put his hands on his hips. "Because even though we've only been around each other about three months, I bet I know Seifer better than you do. And you freaking raised him!"

Conflicted over whether to interject, Seifer opened his closed his mouth repeatedly. The few remaining pirates in the area had stopped what they were doing. Even the lone kilowattrel left in the air idly flapped their wings, not sniping at anyone from above.

Well, that's one way to shut down a fight there.

Kilowattrel: "... Should we be raiding right now, or...?"
Sneasel: "No, no, they be getting to the good part here!"

"How dare you." The cobalion stomped a forehoof on the pavement. "I'm not about to let some street trash zoroark lecture me about my son!"

"It ain't a lecture, it's the truth!" Cyril leaned forward, starcloud mane rippling. "This whole time, Seif's been helping us fight against Eternatus. He hasn't abandoned anything! You're the ones who've been sitting on your asses until now!" The cosmic zoroark shook his head. "You don't give a damn about Seif! You just want him to be your vision of perfect!"

I mean, he's not wrong there. Even if IMO, the tail end of Cyril's dialogue vibes better as being more 'shouty' to show off that he's had things up to here and is done with the Muskedeer trash-talking.

Seifer looked down at the pavement. His stomach twisted into a knot. All the earlier jabs and nasty comments he'd made toward Yuna and Noctum ran through his head. He recalled dinnertime conversations about "Aeon scum" and "hick dragons." Silhouettes of assorted Radiant Guardsmon making similar comments flickered around him. Comments he always ignored... because they'd always surrounded him.

His ears swiveled left toward some crunching. Seifer spotted a crocalor tossing handfuls of potato chips into his large mouth. His prosthetic horn flickered.

"What?" Crocalor shrugged innocently. "This be better than me soaps!"

I mean, at least it's not popcorn?

Though I see that Gilbert needs to drill his boss' underlings in line for staying focused on the job given how effective this distraction has been. :p

A Shadow Ball whizzed past Seifer, rippling his tail and mane. It hit Crocalor and the chip bag. Crocalor disappeared in a flash of blue light while the bag's contents spilled out across the grass and scorched rose bushes.

I mean, yeah, he kinda brought that one down on himself.

"Maybe things won't work out between us," Cyril continued, walking in a circle along the pavement. He raised his hands up. "Or maybe there are wedding bells in the future."

Though Seifer again opened his mouth, words failed him. Cyril... really felt that strongly about him?

"Doesn't change the fact that I love Seifer." Cyril gestured at the keldeo. "And no amount of your petty name-calling will change that."

Seifer: "As touching as this is, Cyril, I'm pretty sure that my family's just going to stomp all over it in about five seconds." >_>;

And to punctuate it, the cosmic zoroark spat a wad of saliva at Tobias' face.

The cobalion's eyes twitched as the spit trickled onto his red and pink Radiant Guard uniform. Tobias turned to Grayson. "You saw that, right?"

"Indeed." The terrakion nodded. "He's threatening us."

Cyril relaxed his aggressive stance. "Excuse me?"

Oh right, they're Radiant Guard now. Uh... yeah, nice job pissing off the fuzz, Cyril. Even if this is kinda the absolute worst time for them to be choosing to act on slighted pride right now.

"Exactly." Tobias' Sacred Sword materialized. "So, I've got full reason to do this!"

"Father, stop!" Seifer finally found his voice seconds before Tobias lunged for Cyril, aiming to ram him through with his Sacred Sword. The glowing horn dissipated, however, the moment it touched Cyril's cosmic chest fluff.

Cyril: "You guys are the world's worst cops, you know that?"

"What in blazes?!" Tobias stumbled and fell onto the pavement.

"Never seen a ghost-type zoroark, have ya?" Cyril rubbed his nose with a yellow claw. He turned away from Tobias. "I'm going to go out on a limb and say the last time you showed your wife any affection was when you guys made Seifer. Cuz this right here?" He gestured to Tobias and Grayson. "Absolute maidenless behavior."

Shame that that Crocalor isn't around anymore, since this really is better than some soap operas.

"You cur!" Tobias got to his feet. "Grayson, help me o—"

"ENOUGH!"

I'm going to go ahead and guess that Seifer's losing his cool in live-time right now.

Dual Hydro Pumps struck both Seifer's father and uncle, drenching them and their uniforms. Seifer dropped back to all fours, shaking his head. "This... this childish idiocy has run its course!" He stomped over to Cyril. "You want to know why I didn't go home after getting fired? This right here! I wasn't about to let myself be humiliated!"

Cyril smiled at Seifer, but the keldeo turned his glare on him. "Don't act like you're innocent in all of this! You riled them up! We could've already been helping other people by now!" Seifer paused. All the screams and cries from earlier had stopped. The few pirates still in the area were quiet, undoubtedly watching this for their own amusement.

Yeeeeah, Gilbert really needs to train the gang to be less easily distracted in the field, since this feels like a recipe for Darwin Awards against more serious opponents. ^^;

He brushed his flank against Cyril's side. "I'm... glad you stood up for me. But there's a time and place for this." Seifer turned away from everyone. "We have work to do. So, forget about them."

"Forget about us?!" Grayson's hooves thumped against the pavement.

Seifer: "Oh trust me, I wish I could forget about you right now."

Seifer started forward. Thankfully, Cyril and Artemis got the message and followed him.

"What do you think you're doing?" Tobias roared. "I am your father, Seifer! You get back here right this second!"

Seifer: "You were literally completely absent from my life until two chapters ago!"

Tobias: "That's an artifact of how our author wrote this story! And don't back-sass me, boy!"

The keldeo responded by veering slightly until he was right beside Cyril. His tail swished against the cosmic zoroark's leg.

"You're dead to us, you ungrateful runt!" Tobias shouted. His voice grew more distant. So, they really weren't coming along. "Do you hear me? You'll never set foot in our estate again after this stunt!"

I'm just going to go ahead and take that as a sign that those two are going to get shuffled off the mortal coil at some point- wait.

>Paradox has been consistently making Future Paradox Pokémon in this story
>we have candidates for Iron Boulder and Iron Crown right here

... We'll see if things wind up going where I think they're going, since it would explain a couple things about why we're conveniently getting the rest of Etherium's Muskedeer Trio introduced in the story right now.

"Good," Seifer said, too quiet for his father to hear. "Because I never want to go back as long as you're around."

He pressed onward, trying to shift his attention away from his family and toward protecting the city.

Yeah, I'm just going to go ahead and call it that this isn't the last time Seifer's going to be seeing them. If not necessarily in the same form.

"You call those your strongest warriors?! Pathetic!"

And there's another dead link here. What was the music track that used to be in this section?

Ceruledge slashed at the air in front of him. It rippled with distortion. The people standing across from him took cautious steps back, save for Onion Hair who remained on his hands and knees, staring at the ground.

"I want a real fight!" Ceruledge paced back and forth. "A true warrior who can provide a duel worthy of the mighty Gilgamesh, who is me!"

U wot m8.

As in the Gilgamesh from Final Fantasy since I remember what you said your terms would be if you ever rolled a character with this name for this story. Though I see he's considerably less cowardly than his FF9 incarnation.

The crystals atop his head crackled with energy. "I can scarcely believe it. An entire world where the creatures are the weapons themselves! And you're telling me they're frail? Flimsy?! Feeble?! Other insults beginning with F?!" Gilgamesh repeatedly swiped at the air with every cry.

Leo: "Fweak?"
Gilgamesh: "Pretty sure that's a Persona joke, but I'll take it. 'Fweak' indeed!"

"Tis a tragedy of the highest caliber! How could there be nothing here worthy of my collection?"

Boy it sure is a good thing that this guy is rolling up canonically 10 years after the lazor flower of doom was destroyed, since... uh... that would definitely give ol' Gil there a run for his money.

Yuna tensed at a hand on her shoulder. Nikki leaned over beside the dragapult's head. "Talk about a full course of ham," she said. "So, time to crash this sorry-looking party?"

Before she had the chance to respond, an unseen force grabbed both Yuna and Nikki from behind and dragged them across the gray, metallic roof. "What the hell?!" The toxtricity flailed about. "Oi, Lizard Breath, let go!"

Ah yes, Vince just casually nope, nope, nope-ing the gang out of this one. Even if I'm sure that things won't be that easy.

One final thrust brought Yuna to the ground with a grunt. She quickly pushed herself up to find Vince looking to his left. "Don't look at me! It's this guy's fault!"

Yuna's core flickered. "Gene?!" Had the shadowy mewtwo ended up following them after all? But wouldn't Vince know Gene right off the bat?

Well, never mind, then. Though this one is certainly surprising. If well timed, since... uh... yeah, the gang's going to need the help considering who they're up against.

... No, something was wrong. Gene's Malice Crystal was in his right shoulder, not his left.

"Dumb-dumbs not from here. Grishi sense it." The unfamiliar mewtwo's eyes flickered pink. "Dumb-dumbs with Ceru down there?" Dark energy swirled around his hand. "Grishi will blow to smithereens. Then blow smithereens to super smithereens."

Oh, well then. I wonder if this guy's also a FF reference, but if he is, he's going over my head right now.

Okay, this definitely wasn't Gene. "No, we're not with, uh, Ceru?"

"I think he means the Whisper," Leo said. Still in his pelipper guise, he flew in place a fair distance away. But he honked in surprise when Grishi blipped over to him.

Yuna was so used to Gene's Phantom Warping, it took her a moment to realize Grishi teleported. "Look, we don't have time for this," the dragapult said. "We're here to stop Ceruledge. Because he's putting our world in danger. So, leave us alone. This doesn't concern you."

Not fully convinced that's going to be enough to get you out of this one, Yuna, but we'll see.

Grishi crossed his arms. "Pultpult waltzes into Grishi's home and thinks can tell Grishi what to do?" He shook his head. "Bad comedian. Nothing for Grishi to laugh at."

Okay, what's with this guy and the Ayla-speak anyways? Since I'll admit that was definitely unexpected coming from a Mewtwo.

"I'm not—" Yuna cut herself with a groan as she squeezed her temples with her hands. She was at a loss what to do about this... bizarre mewtwo. And the others seemed just as confused. Leo continued to drift further away from Grishi.

"Hrrrm." Grishi landed on the metallic roof, crossing his arms. "This all it takes to put Pultpult and friends at loss for words." He shook his head. "Sad sight. Dumb-dumbs indeed."

There's going to be a fascinating story behind this guy, I can already tell.

That last jab was enough to get Nikki back to her feet. "Oi!" The toxtricity's mohawk flared. "If you wanna help, then say it. If not, then stay outta our way." She stared Grishi down. The shadowy mewtwo's look remained one of indifference.

... Until he held his hands up. And a ripple of blue light turned Grishi... considerably fluffier than before.

"Fine. Grishi play along."

"Huh? A zoroark?" Vince's dewlap puffed out. Then the purple and white koraidon tilted his head. "Wait, no... zoroark mane. And chest fur. But still mewtwo?" His feathery horns drooped. "I'm so confused here."

Oh, hello Zoroark/Mewtwo fusion. That one's definitely unexpected.

"Then Seerseer butt out." Grishi flicked his fuzzy tail dismissively. "Clearly biggest dumb-dumb here."

Yuna's core flashed. Was Grishi implying he knew Vince was an Overseer?

Grishi: "Did Grishi stutter?"
Yuna: "I have so many questions right now."

"What's your deal, then?" Nikki eyed the... zoroark-mewtwo mishmash. Zorotwo. "You clearly know more than you let on."

"And dumb-dumbs don't?" Orange claws appeared from Grishi's fuzzy fingers. "Land Grishi's home, not building. Blueberry Academy in Unova region." Grishi knelt down and tapped the metal with his claws. "Stupid humans build fancy pants school in middle of ocean, off coast of Castelia City."

Wait, wait, wait, is that actually canonical? Like I know that Blueberry Academy is definitely in Unova and linked to the Battle Subway, but I didn't remember the game ever explicitly mentioning what it was close to in the region.

"This thing's a school?" Nikki walked carefully across the roof. "It's not even that big."

"School very big." Grishi stood up, a serious look in his eyes. "Mostly underwater."

"Underwater?" Yuna swallowed hard. Memories of her unpleasant dip into Wyndon River flooded back. The harsh currents and frigid water sent chills through her ectoplasm.

Makes me wonder if Yuna's going to have some lingering PTSD over that near-drowning later on in the story, but I can see how this would be uncomfortable for her, yes.

"Talking waste time." Grishi floated into the air. The zorotwo's eyes glowed bright blue and his claws retracted into his fingers. "Grishi show instead."

Nikki's mohawk grew. "Wait, what are you—"

An intense psychic force took hold of Yuna before Nikki could finish her statement. Everything was a swirl of bright colors. Up was down. Left was right. God, why was everything spinning? Good thing dragapult didn't have stomachs.

It all came to an abrupt stop when Yuna fell onto crisp green grass. "Oww..." She rubbed her triangular head, then slowly sat up. "Did you just teleport us?"

Oh, so they didn't go to the Terrarium last time. Well, I suppose that they're there now. Though wait, are Teleports always this disorienting in this setting, or is Grishi just clumsy with his?

"Grishi did. Slower with group, but still saves time."

Well, I suppose that explains why it was an unpleasant experience for them.

The zorotwo was somewhere behind Yuna. However, any desire to give him the stink eye faded when she saw the sprawling grasslands stretched out in front of her. Small trees and bushes were haphazardly interspersed between misshapen, round and jagged rocks. It was also... disturbingly flat. Unnaturally flat, in fact.

I'm going to guess that the link there was meant to pothole to one of the Terrarium Biome themes. Not sure which one, since it's kinda dead now.

Hoofbeats accompanied swishing grass to Yuna's right. Deerling scampered away, with a trio of sawsbuck eyeing the group suspiciously. When their gazes fell on Grishi, however, their expressions softened. With respectful nods, they turned to trot after the deerling.

"The hell is this?!" Nikki's cry snapped Yuna to attention. The toxtricity stood on a nearby flat rock, cupping her hands around her eyes. "Are those... canyons over there? And there's freaking miniature snowy mountains next to them!"

Grishi: "Dumb-dumbs in Terrarium right now. Is main attraction of Blueberry Academy."

"Indeed. Is Blueberry Terarium." Grishi blipped in front of them. Curiously, he was disguised as a reuniclus. "Biggest part of school. With giant dome to protect people from crushing pressure of ocean depths."

Yuna tensed. They really were underwater, then. And quite deep, judging by how Grishi described it.

"A dome?" Leo, still in pelipper form, flew around. "It looks like the same bright, sunny sky from earlier."

Now that you mention it, the sky did look shockingly natural minus the lack of any obvious sun in the games, huh?

Grishi wagged a gelatinous finger. "That humans' trick. Panels simulating daytime and nighttime for pokémon living here." He turned pointed skyward. "Core unmasks trick. Powers Terarium. But now is powering big problem."

The quartet followed Grishi's gaze high into the sky. Yuna feared she'd look right into sunlight — artificial or not — but instead there was... something spherical dangling from a ceiling that wasn't really there. A ball of static pulsated like a heart. Every ripple swallowed motes of gold and silver light trying to escape.

I'm going to go ahead and guess that that's the Anomaly that everyone's been looking for.

"Grishi not know how humans set up auxiliary power," he continued. "Do know that static ick growing. Grishi was watching it until sensing your arrival."

"The dungeon core!" Leo landed. In a flash of blue, he went from pelipper to scyther. "We gotta scope out that Gilgamesh guy so I can seal this."

Yeah, I knew it.

"Oh?" Grishi turned. The fake reuniclus looked Leo over. "Form shifted. Aura's scythery. Mew?" He waved his gelatinous arms. "Grishi gave info. Now time for outsiders to do same, like promised."

Wait, implying that Gilgamesh has Bug Tera-typing? Or...?

Everyone's gazes fell on Yuna. She looked back at Vince. He was the Overseer. If anyone should do the explaining, it was him. But the purple and white koraidon stayed silent and Grishi's scrutinizing gaze fixed on her.

Seriously? Yuna wasn't going to let this slide. "Ask him." She pointed a claw at Vince. "He's the one who knows the most about all of this dimensional instability stuff."

Vince:

To her surprise, Grishi shook his head. "Grishi said it before: Seerseer biggest dumb-dumb. Grishi won't listen to Seerseer."

Yuna flinched. Maybe Leo could— nope, he'd turned away and was slicing and jabbing at the air, as if training to fight.

"I wonder if this Grishi guy's worked with Overseers before," Reshiram said. In Yuna's mind, he tapped his chin with a wing claw. "Would certainly explain why he seems to know about them."

- Peeks up at intro teaser -

Um... yeah, he totally has. I can already tell.

"Sounds like they harshed his mellow in the past," Shaymin added, perched atop Reshiram's head. "Think this is one of those times you gotta be the bigger 'mon and go with the flow here."

But Yuna was tired of being the bigger 'mon. Sighing, the dragapult straightened herself up. "We're from another dimension. Our world's... unstable. And it's causing some sort of... breakdown in space-time."

She gestured to Leo, who had moved on to slicing the grass. Trimmed grass clippings fell by the scyther's feet. "Leo is... the arceus of our world. But the plates he needs to stabilize everything have been scattered to different worlds. Like this one."

Grishi: "Grishi doesn't even want to know, does Grishi?"

Yuna: "... Probably not, no. And I'm not sure if we have time to give a proper explanation right now." .-.

The small head inside Grishi's gelatinous body bowed in thought.

Leo finally stopped trimming the grass. "And there's this whack ass dude called Zodiark who's also after the plates. And making these anomalies. Maybe." He shrugged. "Not sure, tbh. But he keeps conjuring these nasty pokémon — we call 'em Whispers — to get in the way."

Wait, Leo is actually saying chat acronyms out loud while speaking? I'll admit, I did a double-take there.

Yuna nodded her approval. Then a yawn in the back of her head made her tail jiggle. Can I help you?

"Was just thinking," Cresselia mumbled. "Aaaaaaawmbout this Whisper. Gilgaaaawmesh talked all normal and stuff."

"Verily! Like Chernabog," Rayquaza added. "T'was a Paradigm member, yes? I believe Gilgamesh might be, too."

But Leo mentioned seeing Gilgamesh take a Paradigm member's power and run off into the anomaly, Yuna pointed out. The scyther was saying something else while pacing in front of Grishi, blades at the ready. Wouldn't that make him a Whisper first?

Technically, if Word of God is to be believed, Gil likely can't be classified as a Whisper, either. We'll see, I suppose.

"Does it even matter?" Shaymin wondered. "He's bad, so we gotta take him out. Them's the breaks."

Especially if Gil fits the original idea bandied around way back in the day on your Discord server, since... uh... yeah. Pretty sure that just flatly importing characters from non-Pokémon universes is bad for the health of the broader omniverse here.

A simple conclusion, but what Yuna ultimately agreed with. She tuned the Sages out to focus on the others again.

"... Will allow you to dive into static ick and make it go away?" Grishi said. Leo stopped pacing and nodded.

"It's the core of this mystery dungeon. Once I seal it, everything's dope," Leo declared.

Okay, yeah, you're starting to get me worried, Leo, since this smells an awful lot like a jinx here.

"But we haven't faced one Whisper with multiple plates," Vince said, pawing at the grass with a foreleg.

"What's this 'we' business?!" Nikki stomped toward the purple and white koraidon, cracking her neck. "We've done all the heavy lifting while you've sat on your scaly ass and left vague hints about Red Chains and Overseers blowing up our home if we don't do good enough!" She jabbed an accusatory finger into his left flank.

Harsh, but not exactly inaccurate there. Especially with the way that Vince blips in and out of screentime once every 20 chapters at a time.

"I, well—" Vince shrank onto his belly. Then Grishi appeared between Vince and Nikki, holding up his hands.

"Blame game not helpful," the fake reuniclus declared. "Anger go to Whisper. Think he retreated down here in time we've been talking." He turned away from them both. Grass tickled his gelatinous body as he bobbed through the air. "Very strange that plate corruption resembles Terastalization."

Terawhatnow? Yuna tilted her head. "I'm not sure I follow."

Ah yes, time for Yuna to find out about how there's a world where you go around with giant doofy hats for extra power.

Grishi stopped. "Hmm? Terastalization not exist in Pultpult's world?" He looked to Leo for confirmation.

"I've never heard of anyone sprouting crystals from their head." Nikki shrugged.

"Our records didn't indicate anything of the sort," Vince added, only to flinch when Grishi looked ready to shush him.

"Is strange process where magic crystal energy changes pokémon's typing," Grishi explained. "Core uses this energy to power Terarium. Grishi senses it." He shook his head. "But only can change to one type. Not two. Whisper very strange."

... Huh. I wonder if that implies that Gil can outright change forms in battle or not.

"This core itself is strange," Yuna said. She floated over to Grishi's side. "The mystery dungeon portal is growing quicker than any other back in our world."

"And it's in multiple places," Leo reminded her. He traced a circle in the air with each scythe.

Sure smells like a convenient way to go dimension-hopping in a few chapters, just saying.

Grishi hummed in thought. "Perhaps core growing around big source of Tera energy what making it so unstable." He drifted forward. "Then time of essence. Come! We go find Whisper."

Sparks of blue and black energy erupted in the distance. "Think we know where it is." Nikki hiked up her jacket. "We teleporting over there or not? Could give us the jump on him."

"W-Wait!" Vince stepped away cautiously. "Maybe we should strike from a safe distance instead? It's not like Gilgamesh is psychic."

Nikki: "Seriously?! Of all the times to be a giant weasel and slink away, you're going to do this now?!"

Vince: "Look, I literally can't fight in this form, okay?!" O_O;

"Seriously?" Nikki's mohawk frazzled as she whirled on the koraidon. "The hell's your problem? I thought you Overseers were supposed to be uber strong and shit!"

Yeah, I figured that Nikki wouldn't be impressed here. Even if the nuance is a bit different than what I reflexively assumed.

"I'm still new to this," Vince whimpered. His feathery horns curled up. "That strength comes from ages of training... which I haven't exactly gotten."

"So, what, you're just a wimp, then?"

Vince: "Again, I can't fight like this!"

Nikki: "Gee, what next? Are you going to conveniently come down with a stomachache?"

"I literally can't battle in this form!" Vince said, shifting uneasily. "Us koraidon need to be in our battle forms."

Man, when I call 'em, I call 'em.

Nikki shook her head in disbelief. "What about standing on two legs gets you fighting fit? Is your species a giant dick joke or something?"

No, that would be Miraidon. Sorry roboderg fans, but we all know it's true.

"Nikki..." Yuna reached toward the toxtricity. Nikki held her hands up.

"All right, all right. I'll lay off." She started forward, hands still raised. "If he's that insistent he can't do diddly squat, then let him stay here. The kid'll have to remember to warp him back with us." She cracked her knuckles. "Then we can actually drill him for information."

"Please don't," Vince whispered.

Leo: "To the 'interrogating' part or the 'leave alone' part?" ^^;
Vince: "... Yes."

Yuna could only shrug at Vince. Nikki was being a bit too harsh, sure, but Vince wasn't exactly the most helpful. And they were on a time crunch. "Let's get going. I think we should keep our distance and see what we're up against."

"Then Grishi warp group part of way." The reuniclus held his hand up, pausing to glance at Vince. "Except Seerseer."

Yuna braced herself for the world to spin once again. What she wasn't counting on, however, was Leo suddenly buzzing off to the left. She tried to call out to him, but Grishi activated the teleport. After a few dizzying seconds, she found herself up against a rock face. Grishi had put them in a patch of dirt surrounded by large rocks.

"Leo? Leo, where'd you go?" The dragapult looked around. He hadn't flown far, so surely the teleport must've—

"Leo run out of Grishi's range." He floated up toward the top of one of the rocks and stopped. "What Leo thinking? If Leo saw something, should've told others."

Well, that was certainly fast. Time to see how long it takes before this train fully goes off the tracks.

"What do we do, then?" Nikki looked around for anything she could use a footstool to get closer to where Grishi was floating. "Go back for him, right?"

However, Yuna's core rapidly flashed. "I... I don't think we can," she whispered.

"The hell's that supposed to mean?"

The core's flickering only got faster. Yuna's ectoplasm quivered. It had to be her powers reacting to something nearby.

Yuna: "Oh that can't possibly be good."

"The Whisper." Yuna tensed up, like she was waiting for a surprise attack. "It's getting close. We have to be ready for—"

Except, instead of any ghost or dark attacks, the ground beneath Nikki's feet trembled. "An Earthquake?! Since when the hell do ceruledge get that?!"

That's from one of the Arceus Plates that was stolen, huh?

Yuna grabbed the toxtricity and flew toward Grishi. "It no ceruledge," the fake reuniclus declared. A faint pink glow surrounded his body.

"Then what—"

Grishi silenced Nikki with his telekinesis. His gelatinous form rippled.

"Different Tera energy nearby. Ground-type." His words were grim. "Grishi think... there third plate here, in different Whisper."

Well, nevermind then. Though I see that we're getting all the MacGuffins this time around. Though I suppose it makes sense if the omniverse is progressively spiraling as the story goes on.

GL Exploration Log: Castelia City, Unova (Dimension POV-4940)
Hustle and bustle. Just like the Big Apple when I'd go to visit it way back in my human life. The people are generally more polite than New Yorkers. Though I wonder if that's because I'm a fluffy ice fox and not some guy meandering around while people are trying to speed walk to their jobs.

I'll heavily take the under on

being impressed with the local subway system. Even if a part of me wonders how this will land with readers that don't have the benefit of context of having read Guiding Light in the past.

There was a lot of hubbub around the harbor, though. Apparently, there's an aquatic construction project beginning. Something about building a school on the water? With some kind of underwater biodome that can withstand the ocean's crushing pressure? Not sure, but I'm going to have to revisit this place to check on the progress.

I'm just going to assume that this entry was written before the Kieran Incident™️ since... yeah, good luck making good on that anytime soon.

Alright, made it to the end. This felt like a bit of a transitional chapter since Seifer's chewout of his family and comedy with pirates and Yuna meeting the local superpowered fusion aside, the bulk of the action seemed to be just moving the characters in place for where they needed to be for the future. For what it's worth, the journey along the way was decently entertaining, and I'm certainly keeping a close eye on Gilgamesh. Since I remember what you said you'd do with a character named that in this story, and it'll be interesting to see if you stuck to your guns there or went another route.

I don't have a whole lot to complain about beyond a couple of small nitpicks about punctuation and the like. I do wonder if teeing up 3 MacGuffins to be snagged all at once is accelerating things a bit much in terms of plot pacing, but eh. I understand the meta behind when you want to get this story done, and you more or less had a baked-in excuse in-story to justify such an acceleration, so I won't judge too harshly.

Glad to be back in this story @Ambyssin , and I'll be looking forward to seeing where things go next sometime soon. ^^

 

[Ambyssin]

Chapter 101: Personal Space​

Noctum floated on his back in the sparkling water. Emotion kept the lake — the humans called it Verity — around their home as pristine as anything Noctum had seen. The sun's reflection glistened all around him. Even the shabby magikarp keeping their distance glimmered from the sunlight.

He lazily turned his arms in circles, drifting across the water. The surface was warm while the water underneath was cool.

It was so interesting! A fine example of the power of space at work. He hummed softly, floating closer to the small grassy island in the middle of the lake.

Akari sat on the edge, dangling her legs in the water. Emotion drifted between the trees behind her, running their nubby hands across bare branches.

"... Don't know what I'm going to do, Irida." Akari shook her head. "There's still some friction between Diamond and Pearl."

Noctum stopped swimming and tilted his head.

Oh, right. The one who gave blessings to him was here, too.

"Diamond and Pearl?" Irida glanced at Noctum. "Do you mean..."

"Dialga and Palkia." Akari lazily lifted her right leg. Water dribbled off it. "I thought they'd be appropriate nicknames."

"Right." Irida looked at reflection in the water. "You do call your pokémon something other than their species."

Akari raised a brow. "Do you not?"

Irida looked left. Underneath the slim shade of one of the bare trees, a glaceon poked at a napping espeon's side. After a few more nudges, Espeon's closed eyes twitched. His forehead gem glowed. A burst of telekinesis unceremoniously tossed a mewling Glaceon into the lake.

Noctum picked his head up, worried Glaceon couldn't swim. Still on his back, he swam in her direction.

"I never considered it," Irida admitted, watching the water. Fortunately, Glaceon surfaced, but she was quite miffed. Noctum reached her. He dipped his head underwater and positioned it under Glaceon. Then he extended his long neck, creating a makeshift bridge for Glaceon to climb back onto the island.

She immediately barked and hissed at Espeon. Ice crystals formed on her damp fur.

Still curled up in a ball, Espeon poked one eye open. Then he closed it and simply purred.

Glaceon screeched. An Ice Beam formed in her mouth.

"Stop it, Glaceon!" Irida smacked the ground with her left hand. "You shouldn't have been bothering Espeon while he was napping and you know it."

The Ice Beam faded into frosty air. Glaceon looked down guiltily.

"And Espeon." Irida was on her knees. Her arms were crossed. "You don't fling people into the lake because they're bothering you."

Espeon didn't appear to acknowledge Irida. Noctum thought a little persuasion was in order, so he lifted his head and spat a tiny stream of water at Espeon. The moment it doused him, Espeon jumped to his feet, back arched. He loudly hissed at Noctum, who simply nudged his head in Irida's direction. Espeon's ears folded and he muttered what seemed like an apology to Glaceon and Irida.

"Ah, uh, thank you, Palkia." Irida bowed her head respectfully.

Noctum smiled and lowered his head back against the water's surface.

"That might be it," Akari whispered.

"What do you mean?"

"I think I know a way to mend the rift between Diamond and Pearl." Akari got to her feet. "It's like two siblings bickering. A parent can help stop the arguing."

"A parent?" Irida tilted her head.

"I've just gotta finish seeking out all the pokémon here in Hisui," Akari declared.

"A-All the pokémon?!"

Noctum caught the meaning. She was talking about the Creator. The thought of their disapproving look drove Noctum to dive underwater...

XxX​

The cosmic charizard sat up, sucking in a sharp breath.

He wasn't underwater. He was just in one of the drab, gray rooms at Cyril's outpost. An infirmary room, judging by the jars with berry pastes and glowing fluids sitting on the shelf opposite his bed. There were two other beds to his right. Widget lay in one and the other had... some black-scaled serpent with starcloud ribbons. A... cosmic milotic? The resistance didn't have one of those...

"Finally up, are we?"

Noctum squeezed the covers in his hands.

"V-Valkyrie," he squeaked. The garchomp sat on a chair beside the door, idly flipping through some sort of magazine. "H-Hi." He hastily threw his covers off and scooted to the edge of his bed. "What, uh, are ya reading there?"

"Lingerie holowear magazine." Valkyrie nonchalantly turned the page. She looked up at the cosmic charizard. "You want it? Maybe you'll find something fitting."

Noctum blinked a few times. "I don't... know what that is."

"Tch." Valkyrie crumpled up the magazine and tossed it into the trash bin on the other side of the door. "It was a joke, you dweeb. That was just some trashy Qliphoth celebrity gossip magazine." The garchomp crossed one leg over the other. "Needed something to pass the time since you've been zonked out since yesterday afternoon."

"Since yesterday afternoon?" Noctum's starry tail flame shrank. He tried to remember what happened. They had gotten back from stopping Vortex's rampage and then...

"There was this pressure." Noctum put his right hand over his chest. "Crushing."

"A bit young for a heart attack," Valkyrie scoffed. She switched crossed legs. "You dropped to the floor and kept muttering something about 'time's gone,' then you passed out."

"I see." The cosmic charizard tapped his claws together nervously. "What else did I miss?" He glanced at the beds next to his.

"Seifer didn't make it," Valkyrie flatly said. "Or, more accurately, he was already dead when we got him." She pointed at the cosmic milotic. "Apparently Artemis thought Leo could bring Seifer back from the dead." She turned her claw on Widget. "And brought him along for the ride. But something went wrong. "

The garchomp snorted pink-purple embers. "You've already seen Artemis' makeover for yourself. That's not everything, though." Valkyrie kicked the side of the empty bed to her left with her leg.

"Seifer's body's crystallized, Cyril's catatonic, Leo's locked himself in a broom closet, and Gene's faffing about in Radiance instead of being here to rally the troops."

She leaned her chair back on its hind legs. "Any questions?"

Noctum blinked once. Twice. He went over Valkyrie's recap again, but struggled through the full sequence of events. Why would any of this alter Artemis' appearance? Or hurt Widget? And if Leo was back from the mystery dungeon, what about Yuna and the others who went with her.

All of those questions wrestled for his attention, leading him to dumbly mutter, "Uh, what's catatonic?"

Valkyrie's death glare told him that was the wrong question.

"Err, I meant... how's Yuna?" Noctum laughed nervously.

"Could be worse." Still propping up her chair, Valkyrie shrugged. "She brought that koraidon Overseer here somehow. And some weird zoroark and mewtwo mishmash from the latest mystery dungeon.

"Oh, and itsoundslikeshetooksalazzlepheromonesandhadherselfaniceacidtriplastnight."

"Wait, she did what?!"

"She's fine." Valkyrie waved dismissively. "Embarrassed, but fine. Nikki's the same way. They must've tripped balls together."

Noctum had no idea what to make of that.

"Besides, there are more important things going on." Valkyrie let the chair drop back to all fours. She got up and her usual stoic expression returned. "Your appearances changes again, then you just so happen to become unresponsive, muttering 'time's gone,' right before we learn Seifer was declared dead? I refuse to believe that's a coincidence.

"You know something. What aren't you telling me?"

The cosmic charizard gripped the side of his bed. A part of him knew this had to come up eventually, but why did it have to be right now? Especially when she'd finally started to trust him.

"This is a 'reincarnated souls' thing, isn't it?" Valkyrie squinted at Noctum.

His tail flame shrank.

"Knew it." The garchomp paced by the foot of Noctum's bed. "I have my theories." She stopped and crossed her arms. "But I want to hear the truth from you."

Noctum tightened his grip on the bed. Was that meant to be a gesture of trust?

"You promise not to get mad?" Noctum brought his legs together and hunched over. "Or knee me in any sensitive places?"

Valkyrie kept her arms crossed. "As long as you tell me the truth."

"Okay." Noctum took a shaky breath. He really hoped this wouldn't cause any problems. "That strike from Halvus I absorbed reminded me of my past life." His wings unfolded. "I was this... big dragon who controlled the flow of space. Palkia."

"Control the flow of space?" Valkyrie's arms fell by her sides. "That sounds like... like..."

"Like a god? Yeah." Noctum grabbed his tail and brought it around. He stared into the starcloud flame. "I think Arceus created me, which means I'm connected to Giratina. And I had a counterpart who controlled time, Dialga. Kinda like this big blue-gray dragon-horse thingy. They were haughty and talked like they were better than me instead of an equal."

"Wait, horse-dragon?" Biting her lip, Valkyrie glanced at the door. "Are you implying what I think you are?"

The cosmic charizard nodded. "Seifer was Dialga." He squeezed his tail. "Which makes me wonder how much of his early attitude — y'know, before he got fired — was Radiance's culture and how much was his true self leaking through."

Noctum held a claw by the end of the tail flame. It wasn't warm. It hadn't been warm since it changed.

"It could apply to me, too," he mumbled. "The stuff you got on my case for — wanting to please everyone, following others' directions, hell being a servant — was what I was like as Palkia." Noctum ran a claw through the starry flames. "I wanted to do the job Arceus gave me right. So people could live happy lives. I figured if they were happy, then I was happy."

Valkyrie was still looking at the door. After a few seconds, she asked, "Where do I fit into this picture?"

"Y'know that crisis?" Noctum squeezed his tail again. "The one Zodiark manipulated Giratina into causing? It made Dialga and I fight... and, if I'm honest, they had the upper hand. But then a few humans sought me out to help stop it. One of them... was Yiazmat." He looked over his shoulder at Artemis. "Another led a group that worshiped Dialga."

Sighing, Noctum looked at Valkyrie. "And the third... led a group that worshiped me. She was a very gentle human, from what I remember."

More silence. This was one tenser, with Valkyrie's expression shifting between disbelief and anger. She raised a claw, then lowered it.

When she finally spoke, all she managed was a single, "Damn it." Valkyrie walked over to the wall on Noctum's left and leaned her right arm and head on it.

"I'm sor—" Noctum caught himself, knowing an apology would only further irritate the garchomp. "I wasn't sure whether to tell you. Because, y'know, we're friends. I thought if this came out... it'd make everything awkward." He swallowed hard. "But you asked me for the truth. So, I gave it to you."

He squeezed his tail, ready for Valkyrie to yell at him. Instead, the bed shifted and creaked as the garchomp sat on the edge of it.

"Thank you," Valkyrie whispered. "For being honest."

Noctum's tail flame grew a little. He scooched closer to her. "You're not upset?"

"Dunno." Valkyrie shrugged. "It does... explain one thing for me." She sighed. "Part of why I chose to work as an assassin was to get stronger, you know. But I second-guessed that choice for a while. I was already a garchomp. I had Tesla's dumb experiments. I was strong. Why did I think I needed to be stronger?"

She glanced at Noctum. "Was that something this human worried about?"

After thinking on it for a minute, Noctum nodded. "You did express those fears to Yiazmat, I think?"

"Figures." Valkyrie snorted blue-purple embers. She leaned forward, resting her arms on her knees.

"Do you miss her?"

"Hmm?"

"The old me."

"Oh." Noctum lazily swung his left leg out, then back in. "Maybe?" He slowly, repeatedly kicked the air. "I'm friends with you, though, Val."

"You're just saying that."

"Am I?" the cosmic charizard wondered. "I was partnered with Yiazmat. I'm not really sure how much I actually saw you back then."

Valkyrie clicked her tongue. "S'pose that's fair. Must've been a real lonely ass god, then. To think I make for good friendship material."

Noctum frowned, then grunted when Valkyrie thwaped his backside with her tail. "It was a joke."

"You put yourself down, though," Noctum mumbled.

The garchomp thwaped Noctum's backside again. "I know you know about self-deprecation. C'mon."

"Okay, okay." Noctum pivoted left to protect his flank from Valkyrie's rough, scaly tail. "In any case, you wanted the truth. I gave you the truth." He slouched and leaned back, bracing his arms on the bed. "If I had to guess... that deep part of my soul must've, like, realized the connection with Seifer and felt it fizzle out. Which made me black out."

"Can't say I get the spirit mumbo-jumbo behind it." Valkyrie also slouched backward, mimicking Noctum's posture. But she had to be more careful not to puncture the mattress with her claws. "Had you seen death before?"

"O-Of course." Noctum's tail flame sparked, both from the questions and how fast he answered it. "I mean, other servants died of old age. Calcifer's parents, too." He glanced at the beds to his right. Artemis and Widget were just as out of it as he'd been. "And, y'know, there were dragons who fell to Whispers in dungeons."

Valkyrie shook her head. "No, I mean. Have you ever seen a death like Seifer's before?"

Noctum tensed. He bowed his head, then slowly shook it.

"Think that's the real problem," Valkyrie said. "Not some deep soul bond or whatever."

The cosmic charizard grunted. Of course the assassin would think that. "Well, I wasn't, y'know, trained to be desensitized to this stuff."

He saw Valkyrie's tail moving this time and pressed it into the mattress before it could smack his left leg.

"Yeah, I'm used to it now," Valkyrie said, eyeing Noctum's hand. Rolling her eyes, she moved her tail away. "Wasn't always the case. Some of the early deaths... they've stuck with me."

"Like your early jobs?"

The garchomp shook her head. "Before that. Citadark."

Noctum swallowed hard. "L-Like people getting executed by Vegna?"

She shook her head again. "Prisoners killing each other."

"Oh." Noctum's voice was tiny. He went back to kicking the air with his legs. "I guess, uh, you put too many criminals on an island..."

"Tesla had these weird collars that could suppress pokémon's powers," Valkyrie explained. When Noctum glanced at her, she was kicking the air with her legs, too. "It didn't stop the nastiest ones." She sighed. "Saw my first death when some heliolisk had managed to sharpen a cafeteria tray. He used it to—"

Valkyrie stopped herself. "Nah, forget it. The details don't matter."

Silence followed. Both dragons knew they were mimicking each other. Valkyrie stared Noctum down. Was she trying to will him to stop?

Noctum decided to indulge her... by scooching next to her. "You gonna be okay?" he said.

The garchomp stopped kicking the air. She raised a brow. "Are you?"

Dang. He wasn't prepared for that one. His tail flame shrank.

"I'm not sure."

He tensed when Valkyrie raised her right arm, only to relax when she patted his left shoulder.

"Guess that makes two of us." She laughed bitterly. "But at least we get to be screwed up together, right?"

Noctum's mouth hung open. Valkyrie scraped his shoulder blade.

"Ow!" The cosmic charizard's wings tensed. "L-Look, it's hard to know when you're joking!"

"Sounds like a you problem." Valkyrie yawned. "Well, those two lugs are still out of it." She stretched her arms up. "And I can't imagine Vortex waking up any time soon. So, I'm feeling lazy."

The garchomp flopped down on the bed, splaying out on her side. "Lemme know if they wake up, I guess."

Noctum grabbed his tail. "H-Hey, y'know there are other beds here, right? Why do you have to use mine?"

"Lazy." Valkyrie yawned again. "You don't like it? Make me move, Palkia."

Noctum opened his mouth, then closed it. He held a hand up, then lowered it when Valkyrie smirked at him. Sighing, Noctum got to his feet and shuffled over to the bed across from the one he'd been using.

Valkyrie snorted. "Dork."

"I heard that." Noctum frowned.

"I wanted you to."

Despite the sassy tone, there was a grin on Valkyrie's face. Noctum took that as a win.

XxX​

Yuna's day couldn't have started off more awkwardly. She woke up curled around Nikki, with her tail draped over the toxtricity's lower half like a blanket. With a yelp, the dragapult darted out of bed.

Leo's bed. Where they slept together. And where... something else happened the other night. But Yuna's head was so foggy. It was all a blur.

Nikki slowly sat up, rubbing her eyes. "Maaan, why'd you have to get up? I was comfy." She felt around the bed, probably looking for her leather jacket. Yuna couldn't remember her taking it off.

"It's on the floor." Yuna pointed to the foot of the bed with her tail. Nikki crawled forward, then lay on her stomach. She barely had enough reach to grab the jacket and toss it up onto the bed beside her.

"Bluuugh." Nikki's mohawk slowly came to life. "Twiggy's sister doesn't screw around. That shit hit hard."

Yuna fidgeted nervously. "Um, Nikki? Do you... remember last night?"

"Yeah." Nikki stretched her legs out. "Haven't had a night like that in a while. I feel like a new tox." She rolled over on her right and propped her head up with her arm. "Why?"

"I, um—" The dragapult's tail crinkled. "It's all kinda fuzzy for me, but I, um, think something happened?"

Nikki snorted. "More than something. Mostly for me, though. Pretty sure you told me things don't work that way for dragapult."

Then Yuna's blurry memories were right. "Ah." She drifted toward the ground. "What, um, should we do now?"

"Strip the bed." Nikki glanced over her shoulder. "Then, uh, I guess if we're trying to be responsible we find out if there's, y'know, world-saving business to do. If not, lazy day, babyyyy."

Yuna blinked a few times. "You mean go back to bed?"

"Pfbt. Nah." The toxtricity rolled off the bed. She put her jacket on, then grabbed the covers and yanked them off in one smooth motion. "Means not doing anything productive. Everyone needs a good lazy day now and again."

"Oh." Yuna got off the floor and helped Nikki by grabbing the other end of the fitted sheet to get it off Leo's bed. "You're, um, really nonchalant about this."

"Do you want me to make a big deal of it?" Nikki balled up the covers and sheet. She had to wrap both arms around them to stop them from spilling onto the floor. "I'm not Pillow Prince. Don't need fanfare saying I had a fun night with someone I like."

"But you'd tease someone if you knew, wouldn't you?"

"Hell yeah I would. Cuz it's funny."

The dragapult's ectoplasm quivered. Yuna's torso tightened. "I, um—" She tried to keep her form stable, but her tail also twisted around until it was as thin as a straw. "I've, um, never really... thought about that kind of stuff before?"

She looked down at her core.

"I doubt this is a Yaldumbass thing," Nikki scoffed.

Yuna's thinned tail shriveled up. "Y-Yaldumbass?"

Smirking, Nikki marched toward the door. "Seemed appropriate." She glanced at Yuna. "Look, I'll leave it up to you. We can forget about it if you want."

"N-No." Yuna took several deep breaths. Her torso and tail slowly expanded. "I think it was... nice. B-But maybe we don't do anything that crazy again?"

"Fair enough." Nikki nodded. "I'd shake on it but, well..." She lifted the ball of linens in her arms. "Can you get the door?"

Yuna floated over and opened the door. They headed for the laundry room and gave the linens to two of the skorps manning the washing machines. Then they headed for the hangar. Yuna was startled to learn that Grishi was in the outpost, having come back with Leo and Vince. Cid wasn't around to offer a report, nor was Gene. But Alder told them that things were quiet on the anomaly front.

Nikki took that as her cue to declare a lazy day. Which led them up to the restaurant where they sat at one of the tables by the glass wall offering a view of Guzzie Jr.'s arena. Sparks and fireballs flickered in the corner of Yuna's vision as the two sat quietly waiting on the "surprise" Nikki ordered.

Guzzie's loud stomps heralded his arrival. Yuna watched the guzzlord set down a tray with two large glasses and a big plate of fries.

"Here you are." Guzzie took the dishes off the tray. "Two chocoholic milkshakes and a plate of fries. If you want anything else, let Guzzie know." He turned and headed back toward the kitchen.

"Excellent." Nikki rubbed her hands together eagerly. She pulled one of the milkshakes toward her. "I can't believe you've been here two months and haven't gotten a single shake. Wild."

Yuna reached for the other glass. "I guess I don't see what the big deal is? What does shaking the milk do to it?" She looked at the thick, creamy chocolate in the glass. "Other than make it look a little like that ice cream stuff people enjoy?"

Nikki gave Yuna the most dumbfounded look she'd ever seen. "You're shitting me, right?"

"No?"

"Good grief." Nikki took a fry and tossed it into her mouth. "It's not called a milkshake because you're shaking the milk. You blend ice cream, milk, and other shit together." She scooped whipped cream off the top of her shake with two fingers, then licked it off.

"Then why call it a milkshake?" Yuna whined.

"Hell if I know. Your confusion's cute, though." Nikki grabbed two more fries and scarfed them down. "Next you're going to tell me you think root beer is booze made from plant roots."

Yuna's ectoplasm shriveled. "I-It isn't?!"

Nikki stared at her in disbelief. After a few seconds, she slapped the table, howling with laughter. This quickly faded to a stoic expression. "You're a freaking riot, Princess," she deadpanned.

Frowning, Yuna licked the whipped cream from the top of her shake. "Why'd you order these things together, anyway?"

"To show you one of the best combos in the realm of foodstuffs," Nikki declared. She grabbed a large fry and held it up for Yuna to see. "Fry." She pulled it toward her milkshake. "Dipped in shake."

Nikki ate the large fry in a single bite. "Yeah, that's the good shit right there."

Yuna looked between her milkshake and the fries. Shrugging, the dragapult took a few fries. She dipped one into the chocolate shake, then pulled it out and ate half of it.

Her ectoplasm jiggled. "Mmmm." Yuna finished the fry, then dipped the other two and scarfed them down. "Yeah, I think I see your point." She licked her golden claws. "It's good! I like the mix of sweet and salty." It reminded her of the kettle corn she'd had the other week.

Smirking, Nikki grabbed some more fries. The toxtricity dipped one into her milkshake. "You can admit I have good tastes~"

"I guess you do." Yuna chuckled.

The awkwardness of the morning had melted away. Part of Yuna felt guilty that she was having fun doing something so... silly and insignificant. But that was quickly snuffed out by the part of her that just didn't care.

"Fries and milkshakes for lunch?"

Metallic hoofbeats drew Yuna's attention left. Shimmer walked toward them, with Igneous and Scarlett not far behind. The dragonair spotted the fries and shook her head.

"A Nikki classic, I see."

The toxtricity wiggled a shake-covered fry at Scarlett. "You know it. If y'all want shakes, you gotta order them."

"I'm good." Shimmer stopped by the table. "That stuff would go straight to my hips."

"Pssh. You have nine tails." Nikki ate the fry in her hand. "More than enough to cover your ass no matter how doughy."

Yuna snorted. Luckily she hadn't eaten the fry in her hand. "N-Nikki."

Nikki tossed a fry into her mouth. "I calls 'em as I sees 'em."

"Har, har." Shimmer rolled his eyes.

"We figured we'd check in," Igneous said. The grovlazzle put a chair down at the corner of the table opposite the glass wall and sat down. "You guys hear about what happened last night?"

Yuna and Nikki exchanged a look, then shook their heads. She had a bad feeling Igneous was about to ruin her good mood.

Igneous passed along a recap Valkyrie gave him of what happened with Artemis, Widget, and Seifer. He crossed his arms and shook his head. "Not sure what we should do with this. It's concerning, though. Especially because of what happened in Herbrides yesterday."

Nikki rested her left arm on the table and used it to prop up her head. She sipped at her chocolate shake. "More Xeromus shit? You already killed the vibe, Twiggy, so just spit it out."

Sighing, Igneous recounted a claim Xeromus made about Leo not being the true arceus of their universe. Instead, the crazed silvally believed that title belonged to the cloud monster that killed Seifer.

"Then he's obviously lying," Nikki said. She set her shake down and pinched her brow. "Nnngh. Brain freeze."

"Is he?" Igneous tapped his chin. "Leo's blessing went haywire."

Yuna frowned. "It didn't for Cyril or Widget." She decided she'd had enough fries and switched to slowly sipping her milkshake.

"What if that was because Leo didn't have any plates at the time?" Igneous wondered.

"Sheesh, Twiggy." Nikki rested her head against the table. "You put the 'kill' in 'buzzkill.' That's the kind of shit I'd expect out of, like, the Reaper."

Hearing Vegna's title made Yuna suck up a bit too much of the milkshake. A dreadful chill condensed her ectoplasm. "Aggggggh." She covered her torso with her arms and squeezed tightly.

"Oh, right, dragons hate ice." Nikki's mohawk flickered. "Guess brain freeze is even worse for you."

The dragapult kept rubbing her arms and chest until her ectoplasm settled. Then she rested her hands on the table like she was going to push herself up from her chair. "I should go talk to him."

"Why, so you can tell him what Twiggy said?" Nikki wondered.

"N-No." Yuna frowned. "To, y'know, assure him this wasn't his fault and stuff."

Scarlett paused with her tail hovering by the half-eaten plate of fries. "Uhhh, do you actually know what you want to tell him? Cuz if you just put your foot in your mouth, it might make things worse."

"Of course I do."

She didn't. And she could practically feel Reshiram's disapproving look.

"Well, still. I'm his mom." Yuna rose from her seat. "I should be there for him. Besides, it's not like a locked broom closet can stop me if I use my rifts."

The sucking of air came from Nikki's direction. She set her empty glass down and fiddled with the straw. "Don't you need to have been somewhere to rift to it?"

"Yeah."

"Have you gone into that broom closet?" The toxtricity raised a brow.

Yuna opened her mouth, then shut it and sat back down, slumping over on the table.

"What about Gene?" Shimmer asked. The ponytales tapped an icy forehoof on the floor. "He could get you there."

"He's not here."

Everyone's heads turned to find Jade waddling toward them. The salugia had what looked like one of Cyril's laptops under her left wing.

"Right. Cid mentioned that," Yuna said, picking her head up. "Where is he?"

"Heading to Blightsmuth, apparently," Jade said. "He wants to meet with that shredding guy."

"Shredder?" Nikki and Scarlett said in unison. They exchanged a surprised look.

Jade slapped her knee with her free wing. "That's the one!"

Yuna tilted her head. What did the shadowy mewtwo want with an ex-Crowne Minister?

"Tis not like thou can ask him," Rayquaza said.

"Huh." Nikki leaned her chair back, balancing it against the metal column behind her. "That means he could rift us over there when he comes back."

"You thinking of going home?" Scarlett said. The dragonair pulled the plate over to her, leaned over, and began scarfing down some of the fries at the edge of the plate.

Nikki stretched her arms up and cracked her knuckles. "It'd be nice to see the ol' joint while we've got some time to breathe."

Yuna nodded in agreement. It'd be something different. Plus, she'd brought Nikki home. It only seemed fair that she visited Blightsmuth.

"Well, I dunno how long he'll be." Jade reached the table and set the laptop down. "In the meantime, Cid said I oughta show you this." She grabbed the laptop and opened it up to a page of that weird Chatter thing Yuna heard mentioned before. Judging by the large play button taking up most of the screen, this was some sort of video.

"Okay, trackpad. Trackpad." Jade examined the laptop. "Which one's the— aha!"

She pressed a square on the base of the laptop and obnoxious music with some sort of guitar blared from the speakers as a... vaguely familiar sylveon in a skintight blouse studded with sequins hopped into the feed.

"Whassup #XanFam?! It's your lovely star-studded sylveon!" He winked at the camera and tons of pixelated hearts appeared on the screen. "And it's time for today's #ThreeCheersThreeJeers!"

"The he— ack!" Nikki fell out of her chair, which toppled to the floor with a clang.

Whinnying, Shimmer's tails puffed out. "Xander?!"

Xander hopped backward, sparkles trailing behind him. "Our first #Cheer goes to DJ Spiri2mb." A bunch of pixelated thumbs-ups appeared on the screen behind the sylveon. They rapidly gave way to a blue and purple spiritomb wearing sunglasses with flame decals on the frames. It also showed his name, which had a number two in it for some unfathomable reason. "His latest single 'Afterlive' just dropped and it is #flames."

The group could only stare in disbelief as pixelated fire icons and clapping hands appeared all over the screen.

"What is this?" Scarlett's wings fluttered nervously. "It's like he's... hosting some sort of show?"

"And now the first #Jeer... to the police department for Canalave City!" Xander continued. This time a bunch of thumbs-downs appeared on the screen, giving way to footage of a bunch of doodles of human cops lounging about in office chairs and hammocks. "They just sat by and twiddled their thumbs while the rebels swooped in and wrecked Iron Island!"

Xander's screen transitioned to show some kind of construction site with a bunch of broken machines and pieces of metal.

"Hey!" Jade squawked, tail flaps curling. "It was like that when we got there! The Whisper did that!"

"Forget it." Shimmer couldn't take his gaze off the laptop as more pixelated thumbs-ups surrounded a dancing Xander. "Why is he there? Don't tell me the emperor brainwashed him like he did the volcarona twins!"

Yuna's legs retracted into her torso. "Err..."

The ponytales tensed. "Don't 'err' me." He glanced at the others. "What am I missing here?"

No one wanted to break the news to Shimmer, leaving Xander's recording to continue.

"... Move on to our final #Cheer. As always, it goes to our beloved Grand Emperor Paradox for his stellar work getting rid of the Iron Island rift the rebels created!"

"Shut that off!" Shimmer hissed. His horn glowed pink. A similar glow surrounded the laptop, which slammed shut.

"H-Hey, careful. That isn't mine." Jade picked up the laptop and inspected it.

Sighing, Igneous leaned over and put a hand on Shimmer's right shoulder. "I hate to break it to you, but Xander joined Paradox willingly."

"What?!"

"We managed to spy on Paradox capturing our classmates," Yuna admitted, massaging her legs out of her torso to mixed success. "Xander practically threw himself at Paradox's feet."

"I thought he'd get turned into an Eternatus Trooper," Nikki scoffed, getting back up and dusting off her leather jacket. "Or one of those robots."

The ponytales wasn't impressed. Shimmer's horn was still glowing. "And when was anyone going to tell me this?!"

"When the need arose." Igneous squinted at Jade. "Evidently, this is that need."

"Um, is it really that surprising?" Scarlett asked, brushing her left wing against her neck bauble. "I thought you realized your guys' relationship was built on basically nothing."

Yuna frowned at that. Xander was part of Radiant nobility, right? Why else was he at Horizon? "What is his background, anyway?"

"He's—" Shimmer stopped himself. His eyes slowly widened, then the ponytales hung his head. "Oh no..."

Everyone looked at Shimmer expectantly. "Well?" Nikki said. "Don't keep us waiting!"

"Polarisvision!" Shimmer blurted out. His shoulders sagged. "His father's the head of one of the biggest media companies in the kingdom... which he sold to Polaris, like, five years ago!" He tensed up. "Xander was the one who would get me onto the sets of movies or PV shows and that's how we ended up dating..."

"Then of course he'd make dumb videos for Paradox." Nikki threw her arms up. "Guy's clearly an attention whore!"

"How much attention could he really get?" Scarlett wondered. She slowly ate a couple more fries. "This Qliphoth place is ridiculously b—"

"He has fifteen million followers on Chatter. His account was made two weeks ago." Jade got the laptop screen on again, showing the numbers alongside a picture of the sylveon lying in a very... lascivious pose.

Eyes widening, the dragonair swallowed hard and descended into a coughing fit.

Shimmer scooted away from the salugia, whinnying. "F-Fifteen million?!"

"Well, shit." Nikki leaned over and rubbed Scarlett's back. "That's obnoxious. But does it really matter?"

"It would if the guy's a Paradigm lieutenant." Jade paused for a few seconds, smiling dumbly. Then she pointed at the small paragraph on screen, below a gold banner reading "Chatter Premium EX Plus Plus Member."

"His bio says he's one."

Nikki threw her arms up again. "Well screw me for asking, I guess! So, what, do we humiliate him online by using one of Boss Kitty's drones to catch him doing something stupid? Turn his fans into an angry mob? I bet Scarlett and I could write a killer diss track if we want a more musical option."

Yuna drummed her claws against the table. "No, I'm pretty sure we have to beat the Paradigm out of him."

"But getting to him's going to be a problem if he's really that big," Scarlett squeaked, leaning over to nervously nibble on a fry. "Starlene needed security and stuff to keep the public away from her and that fanbase was a fraction of a fraction of what Xander's got."

"I have a proposal, then." Nikki's right arm shot up. "We don't worry about it today." She picked her chair up, spun around it, and sat on it so her arms were draped over its back. "Think about it, guys. We don't know where he is, who's with him, or what sorts of powers he has. We're not the intel gatherers and Boss Kitty's off paying Shredder a house call for some stupid reason.

"Besides, these Paradigm dweebs keep showing up whenever new rifts pop up." The toxtricity smirked. "So, if we wait for the next mystery dungeon, then there's a chance he just shows up and we kick his ass."

Sighing, Yuna leaned back. Her ectoplasmic body practically draped over the back of her chair like it was a towel rack. Nikki did have a point. It didn't make sense to go after Xander without a plan. And a solid plan needed solid information.

"I just feel guilty sitting here when something's wrong," the dragapult mumbled.

"Don't think of it as sitting around then." Nikki drummed her fingers against the back of her chair. "Think of it as resting up before whatever our next battle is."

"I guess." Yuna traced a claw around her core. "But what do we even do to relax?"

"I'd suggest a spa day, but we don't have one of those," Shimmer said.

"Don't look at me." Jade raised her large wings. "These silly things aren't good for mixing up herbal remedies like I did in the ol' apothecary days." She looked over her shoulder. "Plus, I don't even have any supplies."

"But the monks do," Scarlett pointed out. The dragonair straightened up and looked at the salugia. "What if you were giving instructions to us?"

"Teaching? Moi?" Jade pointed at her face. "I never considered it."

"Seriously? Herbal remedies?" Nikki squinted at Scarlett.

"Do you have a better idea?" Scarlett countered.

The toxtricity went back to drumming her fingers against the back of her chair.

"It can be pretty therapeutic grinding up herbs and ingredients with a mortar and pestle." Jade pressed a wing digit against the laptop. "But it's up to you guys."

Scarlett looked around at the group. Yuna pulled herself upright and shrugged at the dragonair.

"I'll give it a shot. It's something different." She glanced at Nikki and Igneous.

"Yeah, sure," the grovalzzle said.

"Oh, what the hell. If even Twiggy's doing it, then I'm in."

Jade's tail flaps wiggled in excitement. "Great! Then, uh, I'll go find some supplies and a quiet room!"

She turned on a dime and quickly waddled toward the door to the residential quarters. Yuna glanced at the now empty plate of fries.

This wasn't how she imagined today going. But all things considered, she'd take it over any mystery dungeon chaos.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Heya, been kinda slammed with real life lately, but I figured that it was time to start catching up a bit more with this story, picking right up where I left off with:

Chapter 93

Spoiler: Line-by-Line

I have another finding to report on the space core. In addition to Dreamweaver, the vast reservoir of energy within it, I've found something else. Something that almost feels... alive?

'Dreamweaver', huh? Wonder if that'll be Terapagos there.

I'm not sure if that's the right phrase to describe this. What it is is some sort of... nigh encyclopedic array of knowledge. Of this world. Of seemingly countless worlds beyond ours. Information on every pokémon, even those consigned to myths and legends. Details about realms where pokémon don't exist. Worlds where pokémon are instead creatures beyond comprehension dubbed Ultra Beasts. There are even records of pokémon forming civilizations similar to our own.

Oh, so they're the omniversal equivalent of the Akashic Records.

The rational side of me wants to dismiss this as some sort of fantasy wrought by the space core's power. But the knowledge can be relayed to me as if I was conversing with another human. If I ask the space core questions, this encyclopedic entity provides me with logical, factual answers.

Is there truly a living soul within the space core? Or is this... some sort of artificial construct beyond even my wildest comprehension?

UPDATE: I asked the construct if I could name it and it said I could! It just gets stranger. I've gone with "Zodiark" for now, in reference to the zodiac. It fits well against Dreamweaver, in my opinion.

Well then

Still holding Nikki, Yuna flew to Grishi's side. The toxtricity managed to swing herself out of Yuna's grasp and grab hold of the edge of the large rock. She pulled herself up but stayed on her stomach.

Oh hey, Aether Foundation music. I suppose it fits with a megastructure at sea having dodgy stuff happening on it.

"I don't see anything," Nikki whispered. "Where's this ground-type beast, huh?"

The rock trembled, as did the ground beneath. Grishi's gelatinous body flickered blue. "There!" He pointed to the right. Then he levitated Nikki beside him.

Boy, I sure hope that the Terarium's built to be quake-resistant, otherwise a lot of people and Pokémon are about to get swimming lessons in short order.

"Gah! Hey!" Nikki's hands and feet twitched. "Why's everyone yanking me around? I'm not a ragdoll, damn it!"

"Quiet!" Grishi hissed. His gaze stayed focused to the right, where a herd of bouffalant ran away from... something vaguely sawsbuck-esque. If the sawsbuck looked like it was made of pottery and had a giant bowl on its head. A bowl filled with brown crystals that looked like a clump of dirt covered in grass.

Oh, hello Ting-Lu.

"That's gotta be it," Yuna mumbled. "But I've never seen a pokémon like that before." Her tail crinkled. "What is it?"

"Ting-Lu," Grishi replied. "Strange pokémon. Brought to life from bowl on head." He shook his head. "Colors not right, though. That because Whisper?"

"Yeah." Some of the other Whispers had strange color schemes. Not that Yuna had a normal frame of reference here. She'd have to take Grishi's word for it. Ting-Lu continued to stomp across the ground a few hundred meters away. Cracks and fissures ran through the dirt. A couple of small trees splintered and fell to their sides.

Waaaaaait, isn't this just Ting-Lu's shiny color scheme?

"It's not paying us any attention," Nikki whispered. "Let's try and take a shot at it from afar."

"Ground-type," Yuna whispered. She glanced at Nikki, recalling the whole kerfuffle with fighting Chernabog. "Nikki, do you think you should let us take the lead here?"

The toxtricity frowned. "I said shoot from afar," she muttered.

Yeeeeeah, that's not going to end well for Yuna given what Ting-Lu's secondary type is.

"Right. But as long as we're together..." Yuna flinched when the ground rumbled yet again. Unfezant and tranquil flew away from Ting-Lu, squawking their alarm.

She didn't want to keep Nikki out of things, but it wasn't safe. Yuna fidgeted nervously. She was being polite, unlike Gene.

Ah yes, such a high bar to cross there.

"Maybe have her search for Leo?"Reshiram offered. But Yuna knew that would just upset her.

"Okay." Nikki scooched back across the rock. "I'll wait. See if I can find an opening to Boomburst him."

Cue things going sideways in 3... 2…

Like not that Nikki wouldn't be crazy disadvantaged right now, but splitting up in the face of an opponent this strong just sounds like a terrible idea.

Yuna stayed silent. Did Nikki really have the range to pull that off? Maybe if she or Grishi could knock Ting-Lu into the air. But did Yuna even have anything to strike the Whisper effectively?

"Think that's my cue." Shaymin hopped off Reshiram's head in the back of Yuna's mind. "Time for a mini adventure. Shoot me out of a horn like I'm a dreepy."

Well, that music escalated quickly. Time to see what our legendary Wanderer can do in battle.

What? Did he have any idea how fast dragpult horns could fire?

"Relax." Shaymin hopped in place. His mossy fur fluttered with excitement "Rayquaza's taken me skydiving before. I know fast."

Shaymin: "Technically, I am, so..." ^^;

The mental image was too much for Yuna to bother verifying with Rayquaza if it was true. "Okay," Yuna said to the others. "I'm going to shoot Shaymin. When you see some grass move, uhh I guess we attack?"

Grishi said nothing. Yuna assumed he had no objections. Her core sent green light up her right shoulder into one of her right horns. The sudden weight change told Yuna Shaymin was in position.

Ting-Lu had its back toward them, spreading cracks through the dirt with every step. It was time to act. Yuna concentrated on her right horns. After tensing a moment, a green streak soared forward.

Shaymin: "LEEROOOOOYYY!! JEEEENKIIINS!!"
Yuna: "This was a mistake, I can already tell."

"Go!" Yuna raced after Shaymin. Green rings encircled the miniature green comet careening toward Ting-Lu. The rings descended on Ting-Lu, showering it in green light that quickly faded to mist. The smell of grass clippings quickly filled the air. Now in sky form, Shaymin flew out of the mist, brimming with green light.

"Keep striking from a distance!" Rayquaza said. "Seed Flare doth lower the fiend's defenses to your ranged strikes, Princess!"

Clever plant there. Let's see how good his evasion is at these quarters, though.

That was simple enough now that Yuna had Dragon Darts. She prepared to fire when a sudden heaviness dragged her down from the air. She hit the grass with a startled squeak. And a grunt further ahead suggested the same thing happened to Shaymin.

"Is this, nrrrgh, Gravity?" Shaymin's voice was strained. Yuna struggled to pick her head up out of the grass... which tickled her ectoplasm while the ground shook.

Up! Up! She had to get back into the air somehow.

Wow, that was certainly fast for things going sideways.

A sudden spark of inspiration led to two spectral wings emerging and pushing against the ground. It launched Yuna just high enough to dodge the Earthquake before she landed in a dirt patch. Shaymin, on the other hand, grunted in pain several meters away.

Well, that answers the question about how good Shaymin's close-quarters evasion is. Even if he's dealing with a deck stacked against him at the moment.

Ting-Lu fixed its attention on Yuna. Purple static fanned out of the crystal dirt mound on its head and formed Zodiark's masked face.

"So, you finally pulled back the curtain." Their voice was as distorted as ever. "Even in a dragapult shell, I know it's you, Yaldabaoth. Back to your usual pattern of hostility."

Yuna: "... You're kidding me right now." >.<
Butterfree Effect: "What is there to kid about, really?"

Ting-Lu reared up again, but green Seed Flare rings flew in from behind and struck it. It stumbled. Zodiark's facial projection flickered. Ting-Lu spun around. Yuna decided to follow Shaymin's lead. Even stuck in the grass, she could still attack. If she angled her head right...

"You are the one bringing chaos and suffering to this world," Zodiark continued. "Just as your past interference led to a world filled with suffering."

I mean, he's not wrong. Especially considering what Yaldabaoth does in Gnosticism. Even if Butterfree Effect's desired alternative isn't exactly a step up.

Yuna fired dreepy-shaped blue energy spears. Ting-Lu stomped a fore and hind hoof against the ground. Mounds of dirt sprouted up in front and behind it, stopping both Yuna's Dragon Darts and another Seed Flare that Shaymin had fired from the opposite side of the field.

"How predictable." The silhouette of Zodiark's head phased through a dirt wall. "Like refusing to acknowledge your own failures."

Time for confidence-murdering mindgames? Since this sure sounds like it's time for confidence-murdering mindgames.

Suddenly the dirt mound was flying forward. It was going to crush Yuna! The dragapult tried to go airborne but couldn't. She did the next best thing and rolled right. Despite her triangular head slowing her movement, Yuna got out of the way. And when the dirt mound passed her by, the world crystalized and everything slowed to a crawl.

Just like before. The pressing weight wasn't there. Yuna quickly shot Dragon Darts from her horns. When the time stop wore off, Yuna was forced to the ground once again. But the Darts caught Ting-Lu by surprise. Then Seed Flares struck it from behind.

Wait, is that supposed to be bland-name Witch Time? Or is that something else there from the 'crystalized' appearance things take in Yuna's vision?

"Why press this attack? What do you think you'll accomplish?" Zodiark's face flickered in and out from around Ting-Lu. "The more you force this Whisper to strain, the greater the risk you place on this facility."

"I don't, nnrrgh, believe you." Yuna pushed against the ground. Why was this infernal Gravity lasting so long? And where the hell was Grishi?!

Well, looks like we might get to see how well the folks in the Terarium can swim after all.

"You should." Zodiark's wheel-shaped mask turned into a hexagonal panel. "The core helps with the dome's integrity."

Ting-Lu turned... and ran away from Yuna.

Can't tell if Whispers have enough sentience to decide that they really don't want to make glub glub noises, or if this is a feint here.

"He's bailing!" Shaymin cried. Grass shuffled several meters ahead of Yuna as Shaymin came to regroup.

"What do you think will happen to all the people here if a part of the dome breaks, Yaldabaoth?" Zodiark asked. "It seems this Whisper wants to break it. What will you do? If you keep fighting it, you may be the one to break the dome instead."

This sounds like an answer for "Pokéball, go!" ad nauseum until one works. Not that Yuna would know about that.

The silhouette faded away. Gravity's intense weight subsided. But Ting-Lu was already bounding south, kicking up grass and dirt. There was a rock wall stretching out along what had to be the edge of the Terarium. And Ting-Lu had its head lowered like it was going to try and ram it.

"Shaymin!" Yuna called. A stream of green light shot into her core. Then Shaymin reappeared on Yuna's head while she flew after him.

Yuna: "I... don't suppose that just shoving the Whisper into a Phantom Warp is an option, is it?"

Shaymin: "Couldn't tell ya (even if I doubt the story will let us get away with that that easily), but we kinda need to get a bit closer to even try." ^^;

Leo flew as fast as his scyther wings could carry him. Which was pretty quick, all things considered. Fast enough to zip past grass, shrubbery, and trees toward a downward slope that led to weird stations made of glowing white cubes.

I should be a lot less surprised that Leo can effortlessly shift form like this since "something something creator god", but I still did a double-take here.

He dropped to the ground the moment his suspicions were confirmed: Onion Hair had come down here. The scyther's eyes weren't playing tricks on him.

But how did he spot Onion Hair so easily? The sky plate, maybe? A literal bird's eye view...

Oh, so those plates are doing things other than just progressing Leo through puberty.

Leo walked forward. Onion Hair had put six poké balls into a red and white cylinder. Soft light bathed them.

A healing machine.

Like what Pokémon Centers used. The scyther blinked. Those terms had popped into his head. It was almost instinctual.

Must have heard it from Alder.

-peeks up at the chapter teaser-

Yeeeeah, I'm not sure that was Alder you heard things from, just saying.

Leo kept moving forward. Something about the way Onion Hair watched the healing machine didn't sit right with him.

"... Change tactics." Onion Hair was talking to himself. "Ceruledge's aggressive. Lot of offense. Need to find a way to slow him down. Incineroar's Intimidate. Then pivot with Parting Shot out to Grimmsnarl. If I can Trick a Ring Target onto him..."

I see Kieran is taking losing about as well™️ as he canonically does.

Ceruledge? Leo's eyes widened. Onion Hair was going to go after Gilgamesh again? He lost last time! And this guy had no idea Gilgamesh was a Whisper. That was too dangerous!

The healing machine turned off. "Finally!" Onion Hair gathered up the poké balls.

Wait, is it even healthy to go straight back into battle immediately after using a healing machine like that?

Leo had to act fast. But what could he do? If he tried actually talking to Onion Hair, he might freak the kid out.

... Except Onion Hair already heard Gilgamesh talking.

"Ah, screw it." The scyther sped down the slope. He jumped into the air.

"WAIT!" Leo cried, flying over a metal arch and landing beside Onion Hair on the edge of the white cube platform. "You can't go after Ceruledge again! He'll hand you a giant L for sure!" He held up his scythe arms.

Cue the screaming in 3... 2...

Onion Hair jumped, dropping the two poké balls he held. As he bent down to pick them up, he kept his eyes trained on Leo. The scyther noticed the heavy bags under his eyes... and an increasingly empty look the longer Onion Hair made eye contact.

"Talking... pokémon..." Onion Hair stood up. He was practically looking past Leo. An indifferent expression settled across his face. "This doesn't involve you. Stand aside. I'm the strongest trainer in this place. That means you've gotta listen to me."

Well this sounds totally healthy and not completely unhinged at all. /s

Definitely feels on-brand for the character, though.

Seriously? Leo raised a brow. This guy had to be at least a little bit younger than him.

... Or younger than he felt with four of his plates, anyway.

"Can't do that." Leo widened his stance. "Ceruledge has something that belongs to me. I'm gonna take it back."

Um, Leo? You probably don't want to just stand and explain this in front of Mr. 'You've gotta listen to me' right now.

"Then you can have it when I'm finished beating him." Onion Hair started forward. "I don't care if you can talk. I'm in charge here."

Leo sidestepped right, holding up his arms. "You can't battle him."

"I can and I will." The empty look in Onion Hair's eyes turned to scorn. "What are you going to do? You're one scyther. Do you even have a trainer?"

I can see why

felt an uncomfortable resemblance between his old self and this guy.

"I don't." Leo's wings buzzed nervously. "But I'm totes strong. And I think... sending your pokémon at Ceruledge again so quickly after losing to him is a major fail."

"Don't you dare speak for my pokémon!" Onion Hair snarled. There was a hint of... frenzy in his eyes. "I understand them plenty! Just like I understood the ogre!"

He tapped a clenched fist against his thigh repeatedly. "Strong trainers make strong pokémon. My pokémon are strong. Because I'm strong."

He wasn't looking at Leo, though. It was almost like Onion Hair was talking to someone else. But who?

That would be the S/V protagonist of this universe.

"I'm the strongest person here." Onion Hair's fist tapped against his thigh faster and faster. "I'm beating Ceruledge. You can't stop me. Ninetales can't stop me..."

Leo frowned. Ninetales?

Oh right,

did the honors of smashing Kieran's dream to pieces in this universe. And... uh... yeah, I'm not counting on a friendship arc to make things all hunky-dory again.

He sidestepped Leo and ran onto the grassy field. "I know what I'm doing!"

The kid was surprisingly nimble. But Leo was faster. He flew past Onion Hair and hovered in his path. "Then use me as your pokémon instead!" the scyther begged.

Onion Hair skidded to a halt. "You can't be serious." He tapped his heel against the ground repeatedly, kicking up a small divot in the grass. "Even Terastalized, Ceruledge still has fire-type attacks. You'll get torched."

"Nah, I'd win!" Leo insisted. Sure, he hadn't directly fought a Whisper before. But he had four plates. His powers were growing. Why else could he change into other pokémon?

Cute meme drop there. Wonder if that's where you got the idea for that birthday gift from.

"Typing's still important." Onion Hair shook his head. "You don't have a trainer. So, you haven't had real training. You're not strong enough."

"I've trained plenty." This was going nowhere. And every second wasted talking was time for Gilgamesh to do... something. Or the other Whisper that he left Yuna and Nikki to deal with. "I'll prove it to you! One-vee-one me!"

I'll frankly be more surprised if this doesn't wind up turning into a disaster somehow. Since I remember how Kieran was about catching Terapagos and just going and dangling a

in front of him...? Especially if he has that Master Ball...

There was a flicker of that earlier madness in Onion Hair's eyes. Then an eerie smile crept onto his face. "Okay, yeah." He was tapping his fist against his leg again. "Fine. I'll show you how out of your depth you are by knocking you out. Then you can't get in my way."

Onion Hair had already pulled a poké ball out of his hoodie pocket and tossed it to the side. A dragonite emerged, stretching his arms out. He looked at Onion Hair, then Leo.

"Battle time," Onion Hair said. He hunched over, resting his right arm on his right knee. "Get set."

Kieran: "♫ I’m going to win this time
I’m going to win this time
I’m going to win this time
I’m going to win this time ♫"
Leo: "Um... could you stop that? You're kinda creeping me out right now (also, I'm pretty sure you're supposed to be doing that in another story)..." ._.;

Dragonite nodded. His expression sharpened. The beating of his wings intensified.

"Strike first! Extreme Speed to the chest!"

Leo's eyes widened. He has—

A scaly shoulder slammed into the scyther's torso. Leo barely had the time to fold in his wings before hitting the grass and rolling to a stop, bracing himself with his arms.

"Follow up. Breaking Swipes. Down, then side."

Wew. Kid's not messing around there. That definitely feels on brand with Kieran circa ID.

With a roar, blue energy shrouded Dragonite's arms. A few flaps of his wings closed the gap with Leo. He rolled right, dodging a downward swipe of Dragonite's right arm. But Dragonite followed up swinging his left arm sideways.

Leo pooled energy into his arms and raised them up. His X-scissor clashed with the Breaking Swipe.

"Regroup," Onion Hair said, still hunched over. The order came with a flash of that frenzy in his eyes.

Leo:

(Right! Back!) Dragonite broke away, flying back to Kieran's side.

Sighing in relief, Leo righted himself. His arms felt... weaker than earlier. It must have been the Breaking Swipe. Gah, there were so many moves to keep track of! And only ones with types matching his plates were clear in his mind.

... Wait, who is saying the paren-text there? Kieran's Dragonite? Or Leo's inner voice?

"Give up." Onion Hair had his eyes locked on Leo. "You're already looking shaky."

Leo held his arms at his sides. "I'm just getting started."

Much as Leo dreaded showing any of his serious power, he was at a disadvantage as a scyther. He had to change tactics.

Yeeeeeah, I sure hope that Kieran doesn't already have that Master Ball right now, since I'm not convinced that Leo would know how to resist it at the moment.

"Extreme Speed! Grab him!"

Not again! Leo shot higher into the air. Dragonite passed underneath.

"Thunder straight above!"

He has Thunder?!

(Okay! Up!) Lightning crackled in Dragonite's arms. He hurled a large bolt skyward. Leo barely managed to spin out of the way.

Well, I guess that answers the question about what the paren-text is, even if I kinda wonder if it should've been made a little more obvious initially.

Finally, an opening! Leo rained Air Slash blades down from the air, just like he'd seen Noctum do time after time.

"Take it! Then retaliate with Thunder!"

Wait, what?!

Leo: "In retrospect, maybe it wasn't a good idea to challenge Onion Hair to a battle when I've mostly been performing support actions in fights so far."

Dragonite crossed his arms over his face. The Air Slash blades forced him to land, but he stood tough and hurled another lightning bolt. Leo couldn't end his own attack in time. The scyther plummeted from the air in a burst of sparks, crashing into the ground.

Nothing had hurt Leo like this before. He shakily propped himself up.

Can't tell if that's a sign that Leo carries the typings of the Pokémon whose forms he adopts or if Dragonite is just hitting that hard right now.

"See? I told you." Onion Hair hadn't broken his stance the entire time. That frenzy returned to his eyes. "You're not strong enough. Stand aside."

... We're not about to see Leo go through an unhinged quest to get stronger for a while, are we?

"N... no..." Leo couldn't give in here. He finally had enough power to do something. He couldn't stumble at the first hurdle like this!

I mean... if you don't know how to wield your power effectively, that's kinda expected, just saying.

His wings buzzed slowly. A soft, sky-blue light surrounded him. The lingering pain from Dragonite's Thunder faded.

"He's Roosting!" Onion Hair cried. "Extreme Speed now!"

Leo was a bit further from Dragonite compared to the start of the battle. Which gave him enough time to run left and dodge Dragonite's shoulder.

"Follow up! Breaking Swipes, double right!"

(No move!) Dragonite growled, blue energy returning to his arms. Leo kept running across the grass, however. This wasn't the time to stand around. He had to stay on the move— no, Leo had to change forms.

I can already tell that this is a terrible idea that will end terribly.

Stop thinking about types. Leo's scyther feet swished through the grass. Dragonite was gaining on him in the air.

"Redirect! Extreme Speed when you're close enough!" Onion Hair shouted.

If Dragonite was expecting him to keep running, then Leo had to act now. He skidded to a halt, focusing on the plates swirling around inside him.

Water... water... WATER!

Ah yes, the other type that would have a bad time with orange Barney's Thunder there. Kid's panicking something fierce right about now.

Thin wings and bladed arms gave way to a shell and shoulder-mounted cannons. Cannons that Leo aimed at a startled Dragonite.

They fired dual water bursts large enough for the recoil to send Leo onto his back. A startled holler told him the Water Spout hit its mark. Leo rocked himself back and forth to get to his feet. He found Dragonite lying in a rapidly muddying puddle closer to Onion Hair than earlier.

The boy's stance had broken. That frenzy had given way to shock, followed by a panic. "Get up!" Onion Hair shouted, pointing at Leo. "Getupgetupgetup! Thunder! Blastoise are way slower!"

Leo: "In retrospect, I should've drawn off some other Plate back there, huh?"

Leo couldn't let that attack get off. He bent over slightly to account for the recoil, then Water Spouts gushed from his cannons. Dragonite was too busy gathering lightning and could only widen his eyes before getting drenched. He slid across damp, muddy grass, flailing his arms and legs around. His roar of protest grew steadily weaker until his arms and legs flopped by his sides.

Dragonite: "Wh-What the-?! I call hax! Even if you can shapeshift like that, I had a type resistance!"

The blastoise shambled forward a bit, keeping his cannons trained on Dragonite. He only relaxed when, after several seconds, Onion Hair dropped to his knees.

"No..." Onion Hair stared down at the grass. There was a vacant look in his eyes. The same one Leo thought he saw when Gilgamesh was gloating after his win outside the school.

"Not fair," the kid mumbled. "It's not fair... not fair... not fair!" Onion Hair smacked the grass with his fist repeatedly. "Why? Why do you keep getting in my way like this?!"

Leo: "Um... I think that I just broke Onion Hair there." .-.

Leo frowned. "What are you talking about?"

"It's you..." Still on all fours, Onion Hair looked up. His eyes were still empty. "That ninetales who humiliated back home. You're doing all this to me!" Onion Hair's right eye twitched. "I bet you're the one controlling Ceruledge, too!"

Leo: "What? No! I'm an Ar- er... very special Blastoise?"
Kieran: "You were a Scyther 30 seconds ago!"

Dragonite managed to stumble his way back to Onion Hair's side. (Kieran?) Wincing, he leaned over to try and pick his trainer back up.

"Huh?" Kieran blinked at Dragonite. "Oh, right. You should rest for now." He took out Dragonite's poké ball and returned him. "Guess I've got to heal him again." Kieran's grip on the ball tightened.

Oh, and there's our explicit namedrop for Leo and the audience there.

"I don't know any ninetales," Leo insisted. How much did he really want to tell Kieran? The kid wasn't in a good frame of mind.

"I don't believe you." Kieran got back to his feet. "You can talk. Ninetales and Ceruledge can talk. You're all related."

Leo:

Kieran:

Leo: "... I can explain myself if you calm down a bit? Maybe?" ^^;

The blastoise looked down. "Well, Ceruledge is someone I'm trying to stop. Because he has things that belong to me. And they're powering him up." He shuffled back from Kieran and turned to look out over the grassy fields. "I'm from a different world. Ceruledge has helped make a mystery dungeon linking my world to your school. And I have to seal it off before it's too late."

Kieran looked confused. But Leo would take that over the earlier emptiness. "I don't want you fighting Ceruledge because you could get seriously hurt. Same for your pokémon."

Oh yeah, Kieran's going to take this well™️, I can already tell.

"But he didn't do that when we battled outside of school." Kieran fiddled with the lock of hair dangling from his forehead. "All he said was he wanted someone to give him a real challenge. And kept talking about weapons to collect..."

Now that was strange. A Whisper who only wanted to have a good battle? Weren't they all vicious daemons who went on rampages?

That's how you know that he's not really a Whisper, Leo.

... But the only person Leo had seen Gilgamesh attack was that Paradigm Lieutenant back in his world's Iron Island. And even then, he left the victini that emerged alone and went into the rift.

Leo lazily kicked his leg back and forth along the grass. "Okay, maybe Ceruledge isn't harmful. It's still not your fight. I won our battle."

"Yeah. Yeah, you did."

The blastoise winced. Kieran was trying to guilt-trip him. Why else would that have sounded so depressing?

Because you've crushed his hopes and aspirations and he doesn't know what to do right now?

Then again, Leo's performance against Kieran was far from flawless. And Gilgamesh had both dark and ghost-type, on top of the fire-type stuff that a ceruledge could usually do. Leo didn't have fairy-type at his disposal. He'd have to rely on water and flying. And it was a lot to keep track of.

Maybe a trainer could help me out here?

Well, it's not quite the journey I was expecting to get here, but yeah. This will end well™️, I'm sure.

Sighing, Leo turned around. "I guess... we could work together?"

Kieran started fiddling with that dangling lock of hair again. "Like, you want to be my pokémon?"

"Well, you can't catch me." Leo shook his head. "And... you'd have to keep this a secret."

"I can do that." Kieran kicked his heel against the dirt repeatedly. He looked over Leo's shoulder, toward the middle of the Terarium. "What kind of secret?"

Perhaps this wasn't the best idea. But screw it. Leo was already taking big risks separating from the others. What was one more?

He shifted back into his cosmic arceus form. "This is what I really look like. I can use pretty much any move that's bug, fighting, flying, or water-type. But against that ceruledge, only two types make sense. And that's where I need you to help me out."

"Any move?" Kieran's eyes widened. He looked down, rapping his fist against his thigh. "Wowzers..."

Dragonite: "... Boy do I suddenly feel really small and inadequate right now."

"I don't know what happened to you with Ninetales," Leo continued. "You don't seem like a bad guy. Maybe a little crazy with all that strength stuff." But hopefully this could snap Kieran out of that. "I'll look past it. So, you in?"

I'll believe it when I see it, Leo. Since giving him more strength to throw around feels like almost exactly the opposite of what Kieran needed at this point in time canonically.

He extended a foreleg to Kieran, who blinked at it.

"Are you... asking me to shake on it?"

"Was thinking more fist bump, but if you want the boring option—"

Kieran tapped Leo's raised hoof with an open palm. "C'mon. I think Ceruledge is hanging out in the center of the Terarium. We'd better hurry."

Leo bucked a startled Kieran onto his back. "Four legs are faster than two," he said, then galloped off across the field.

Whelp, I suppose that the story of this inevitably going pear-shaped will have to wait for another chapter. ^^;

It wasn't hard for Igneous and Scarlett to find Gene and Widget. The shadowy mewtwo and miraivally were floating over streets full of people fleeing away from the mall. Widget kept shooting Thunderbolts that would suddenly come to a stop against open air, then Gene would punch through Shadow Balls.

I take it that mall security in Etherium is as laughably equipped as the real deal is IRL. Though this sure is a good time for the Radiant Guard to be totally useless right now.

"What about the people down there?" Scarlett flapped her wings. "Shouldn't we be helping them?"

"Dunno. Don't you guys think it's weird that the pirates aren't actually attacking anyone?" Starlene countered.

No, not really, since they've been heavily prioritizing running off with loot since we saw them like five chapters ago.

Igneous was at a loss. It was too much happening at one time and every time he tried turning on his X-transceiver he was met with Gene bickering with Gilbert.

"We'll get answers the direct way," the grovlazzle said. With several flaps of his volcarona wings he sped through the air to catch up.

Just like Starlene said, however, no one was firing on him. Even the initial volley he and Scarlett weaved through to distract the pirates had died down. Just what was going on?

He reluctantly turned the X-transceiver back on.

"... Still be here!" Gilbert scoffed. "You could whisk zese stupid so-and-sos away in seconds."

... Or they could be up to something. Wonder if that's Gilbert arguing with their benefactor right now.

"And incite a mass panic in the process!" Gene growled, tail lashing at the air. "Just tell me what you're up to and I won't blow up your command ship."

"Ah, mon petit kitty cat." Gilbert tsked through the radio. "Always lacking in ze genteelmonly ways. Perhaps you should try asking nicely. Or sending ze flowers."

Gene: "Okay, screw that, I'm blowing his ship now."

Another Thunderbolt crackled through the air. Igneous finally saw a hint of a barrier, which parted long enough for Gene to sling a Shadow Ball through. But it quickly vanished. If it had hit anyone, Igneous couldn't tell. And there were no screams, either.

"Hey!" Igneous stopped a couple of meters behind Gene. "What are we doing just floating around here for?"

"Trying to get through these obnoxious barriers," Gene said. "Your timing's impeccable. Summon that crazy sword of yours. Maybe your freako powers can get rid of the shield."

Igneous: "... Have you tried using Taunt?"

Gene: "They're obviously not cast by Pokémon, okay?!"

"Okay, but why?" Igneous said.

Sighing, Gene pinched a brow. "Because cloaking and disrupting our comms wasn't part of the deal."

Widget sputtered. His thrusters stalled for a moment and he dropped from the air with a squawk before hastily recovering. "I'm sorry, what?

Embers crackled around Igneous' leafy tails. "The hell do you mean? You're saying you planned this?!"

I'm sorry, what.

"Oh, this wasn't my idea. It was Boy Wonder's." Gene flicked his right arm dismissively.

"Who?" Scarlett fluttered in place. Though her nervous tone of voice told Igneous she already had a hunch.

"Shimmer." Gene's tail lazily swished back and forth. "To make his mom look bad, he wanted the pirates cause some property damage without actually attacking anyone." He rubbed his snout. "Except us. Which is what I negotiated." His expression soured. "Where'd the dweeb run off to, anyway?"

Well, he certainly picked up some Machiavellian tendencies from his parents to think of this.

There were so many things wrong with Gene's claims that the grovlazzle didn't know where to begin. "We came here to investigate spreading distortion! You were going to put us in the line of fire for... for..."

"It was you who fired ze first shots at us!" Gilbert countered through their disrupted comm line. "We were all set for ze simple smash et grab but zen you made with ze shooting of our faces. Plus, ze anomaly wasn't part of ze deal."

"But you had the cloaks up first!" Widget said, still glaring at Gene. Igneous was miffed with the shadowy mewtwo, but also found Shimmer's convenient disappearing act incredibly suspicious.

... I actually hadn't thought about it, but Shimmer's setup right now sure would be convenient if Dermezel needed a mole in the Resistance...

"Oui, because mon capitaine detected ze anomaly before we set out for ze raid!" Gilbert replied.

Igneous wings buzzed in surprise. Blackskull had known about the anomaly the whole time? Before Team Bastion found it? Just what the hell were these pirates?!

Opportunistic and untrustworthy allies, clearly. Though you should've seen this coming given that the saw 'no honor among thieves' has more than a hint of truth to it.

"As soon as mon mateys have ze last of ze electronics mon capitaine needs, we make with ze leaving!"

Will those things even work in the QN? Like Polaris wouldn't have gone so far to just rip off voltage and amperage standards, would it?

"Then we stop fighting!" Scarlett said, fluttering her small wings nervously. "If we shoot ships out of the sky, they could crash down on the city and anyone who's below us!" The dragonair pointed her tail down. There was a park with assorted corviknight, pidgeot, braviary, staraptor, and groups of squawkabilly carrying large flying carriages. People were shoving their ways into them.

That feels like a bit of a bad idea for an emergency situation with stuff flying around in the air, but y'all do you there.

"And besides, the anomaly's back in the middle of the mall." Igneous looked over his shoulder. The static wasn't visible, so it thankfully hadn't gone past the destroyed roof. "Looked to be growing quickly. We ought to find the others and figure out how to deal with it."

"Oui! Zat is a vonderful idea!" Gilbert exclaimed. "In fact, ze last of ze crew has reported back. So, allow me to make with ze sweetening of ze pot!"

"The hell does that mean?!" Igneous said, but the connection to Gilbert went dead. Before the grovlazzle could ask Gene what the next steps were, bright blue flashes lit up the midday sky. Four large space pirate ships appeared, each surrounded by a glistening blue barrier.

Can't tell if they're actually going to be helpful here or just turn on the Resistance now that they have the upper hand.

"Gene, what did you do?" Widget said, eyes darting around.

A large projection appeared above the ship closest to the quartet. A black-scaled tyrantrum head gazed down at them. The gemstone in place of their right eye glistened.

"A fair morrow, Herbrides scallywags!" Tyrantrum's projection bellowed. "This be Cap'n Blackskull, scourge of the galaxy! And five-time reigning runner-up in Hoenn Digest's semi-annual homemade butterscotch pudding competition!"

Ah yes, another Tyrantrum pirate joins the fold. Even if this one's a bit more stereotypical in aesthetic and vibe than my own.

At first, there was silence. Then, one or two screams from down on the ground turned to ten. Then twenty. Then hundreds. People redoubled their efforts to get into the flying taxis, or sprinted through the park to get as far away from the mall and the nearby town square as possible.

Wow. The Pokémon in this town really hate butterscotch, apparently.

"On behalf of me crew, I'd like to personally thank ye fer contributing yer machines to the Blackskull Buccaneers!" Blackskull continued, his gemstone eye crackling with amber energy. "We'll be sure to take good care of 'em, won't we lads?"

Raucous cheers filled the air from the flying ships.

Igneous hovered closer to Gene. "Was this part of your plan?" He leveled his claws at the shadowy mewtwo.

Gene held up an index finger. "Give it a sec."

Igneous: "That's not a 'no'!"

Gene: "Again, wait for it..."

"I'd say to take the losses up with yer insurance, but I don't think ye landlubbers cover space pirate raids!" Blackskull said, before his holographic head roared with laughter. "If I were ye, I'd go banging on the palace doors of yer lackadaisical queen and useless Radiant Guard! Where even are they, hmm?"

Okay, that certainly sounded like something they'd script to make Isola sound bad. Maybe the pirates had gone back to the original deal?

... Igneous was still going to ream Shimmer a new asshole when he got hold of the ponytales.

As you should, since I'm not convinced that this isn't going to go sideways really fast.

"Now then, as fer ye resistance blokes." Blackskull gazed down at Igneous and the others. "I think ye oughta be hustling yer bustles. That there rift be looking a touch unstable, if ye catch me drift."

As if on cue, a circular wall of purple light raced out from the mall. Igneous' scales burned against his back when the light rushed past him.

Smaller purple rifts burst open between the ships and the ground. Fresh screams rose up as rows of trees in the park suddenly sprouted berries large enough to snap said trees at their trunks and send them crashing into the ground.

Well, that was more than a little bit of an understatement, there. Though small typo for "Igneous' scales" there

Blackskull looked around at the other ships "Fall back, me hearties! We be late fer our monthly team-building yoga class at Sandygast Saul's Meditation Station!"

"You're leaving?" Gene's shoulder crystal sparked. "What about no hurt civilians?"

"Bah, fine!" Blackskull's crystal eye glowed. "Ye want some help? I'll give ye ol' Iron Beak Barbarossa!"

As the flying ships vanished one by one, a blue, circular portal opened over a street where a crowd of pokémon were attempting to flee from the rifts opening in the sky. A large, robotic cramorant flew out, beak wide open, and swallowed everyone up.

Gene: "How is that helping?!"

Blackskull: "It be a robot. They'll live."

Scarlett flew in front of the others and was about to protest, when she saw Barbarossa flying away from the rifts. Her bauble flashed pink. "Starlene says they're okay." She paused. "I think."

"Great." Widget's voice cracked. He nervously rubbed his forelegs together. "But what do we do? Go after Yuna?"

"No." Gene held his hand up. "Find Cyril and the others. I can get a bunch of these folks evacuated." He cracked his knuckles. "It'll be a piece of cake."

Aaaaand he jinxed it.

Igneous was still mad at Gene. But that could wait for later. And with the pirates gone, their communications should have been back online.

"Cyril, you there?" the grovlazzle asked. "Where are you?"

"... out... but... thing..."

Static garbled the cosmic zoroark's response. Igneous' breath caught in his throat.

"No..."

Scarlett: "... Iggy, why are you reacting like that?" ._.

"What's wrong?" Widget's cheek bolts turned slowly in their sockets. "You don't think it's the anomaly messing with our X-transceivers, do you?"

Igneous shook his head. They were supposed to be on the periphery of the city. If they were far from the anomaly portal, then...

"The last time my line went dead, it was because Xeromus showed up! And that means they're in trouble!"

Well, then. See, I knew that he jinxed things talking about how easy they were.

The grovlazzle's wings ignited. "We have to try and find them now!"

"Iggy, wait!" Scarlett called, but Igneous shot off to the west, leaving a trail of embers behind him.

Ah yes, our protagonists are making all the rash decisions that totally won't come back to bite them later this chapter.

Alright, made it to the end. I'll admit, I didn't quite see the space pirate raid plot thread going where it did, but I suppose that this story's always been on the unpredictable side. Ditto for where things wound up going with Kieran and Leo's encounter, even if all three threads we checked up on gave me "won't end well" vibes. It was also nice to finally see Blackskull in person in the story, and I hope he'll come around again in the future, since he was a riot.

I don't have a whole lot to complain about for this chapter, mostly some typos. I do think that the speech of Kieran's Dragonite should've been set up a little more explicitly, since it took me a little while to catch on to that not being from Leo's thoughts, but that's ultimately a minor quibble.

Glad to finally be back in this story, @Ambyssin . I'll be aiming to catch up a bit before Review Blitz rolls around to try and make getting current again a bit more plausible. Dunno what that journey's going to look like, but thus far things have been looking promising, and I'll be looking forward to seeing where they shake out. ^^

 

[Ambyssin]

Chapter 102: Blightsmuth or Bust​

"Okay, be honest. What do you think?"

After a solid two weeks of some very strange changes — getting her tails shaved and dyed with her hair to resemble a fire vulpix, stitching together weird tubes for her hind legs, and gathering thorns from nearby mystery dungeons to put on leather bands — Nickie had finished her makeover. She stood between Tessa and their room's mirror, admiring her torn-up leg tube thingies.

(Art by Pledge.)

Tessa still didn't understand what the point of wearing them was if they were torn. Torn scarves were useless for dungeon crawls. What good would these "thigh-highs" be?

Nickie's ears folded and her earlier enthusiasm melted away. "You hate it."

"Huh?" Tessa's aura feelers shot up. "N-No! O-Of course not! Whatever would give you that idea?"

"That dumbstruck look on your face." Nickie's gaze fell to her paws. "And your voice cracked."

Wincing, the riolu rubbed the back of her neck. "Sorry. I, uh— it's not something I really understand."

She had to save face. Tessa quickly stepped to Nickie's side. "But you're happy with it, right?"

Nickie slowly nodded.

"Well, if you're happy, then I'm happy." Tessa's tail wagged.

Some of Nickie's earlier energy returned. Her tails wagged asynchronously.

"Yeah," she said. "Yeah, I love this!" Nickie stared at her reflection. "It's the most... me I've felt in a long time."

The icepix nuzzled Tessa's side. "Thanks for helping out."

Tessa's aura feelers shot up. Her tail wagged faster. "W-What are friends for?"

XxX​

Sticky hated everything about Xander's studio. From the cameras wrapped in pink felt and covered in glitter to the sequined hearts on the outline of the greenscreen to the shelves on the other side of the room haphazardly stuffed full of props and other things the sylveon could use for his clips.

[The concentration of sparkles in this room is fifty percent over legal thresholds,] Iron Enforcer declared. The robotic type: full scanned the room. [Shall I destroy the building?]

"No." Sticky sighed. "Paradigm-owned facilities are exempt from sparkle regulations." The naganadel looked down at his tablet. "Which is a sentence I totally thought I'd say in my career when I graduated business school..."

Iron Enforcer's eyes turned blue and displayed loading icons. They soon faded back to their default red. [Understood. Sparkle threshold parameters updated.]

"Hey, hey. If it isn't my favorite #secretary!"

Sticky fought to hide the disgust in his expression. "Executive assistant," he growled, glancing toward the opposite corner of the room to find Xander strutting toward him. The sylveon swished a fur boa out of his face and lifted star-framed sunglasses off his eyes.

"To what do I owe the pleasure?" Xander asked. "Something from our #GoatedGrandEmperor?"

He pranced over to the naganadel's side and produced a uPhone from his pink coat pocket. He swiped onto Chatter. "Check it. I got that shit #trending this morning!" Xander scrolled down a page full of chats about Paradox, including assorted pieces of fan art.

[Those portraits are highly inaccurate.] Iron Enforcer's red parts glowed. [Grand Emperor Paradox does not have muscles. Shall I hunt down the ones responsible?]

"No." Sticky waved the robotic type: full off. "I'm here with a new assignment for you."

"Oh?" Xander stepped back, still clutching the uPhone in a ribbon. Another ribbon pulled off the sunglasses. "I thought I'm defending the #Needle over by my bedroom."

"Change of plans." Sticky tapped at his tablet. "Guile Hideout will take over temporarily. You're taking your act on a little road trip to old stomping grounds."

Xander's brow furrowed in thought. "You mean the Kingdom of Radiance?"

Sticky nodded.

Sighing, the sylveon tapped on his phone. A loud "OOF" reverberated through the room. Sticky tensed.

"Enjoying our soundboard, are we?" Sticky deadpanned.

"How else should I react to a #buzzkill?" Xander winked and stuck his tongue out at Sticky.

Iron Enforcer's head crest sparked with red energy. [Uncooperative attitude detected. Permission to muzzle him?]

I wish. Sticky put a hand on Iron Enforcer's glowing crest. "Your orders are to take Iron Enforcer and escort Lieutenant Turian and her important package to Lieutenant Cassius in Khelifet."

Xander clutched his boa with his ribbons. "Ugh, seriously? That #hotbox? Do you have any idea what the heat'll do to my fur? Not to mention my makeup! I've got #sponsors to think about!"

[Your duty is to Grand Emperor Paradox.] Iron Enforcer stepped toward Xander, eyes glowing. [Dereliction is cause for termination.]

"You're getting riled up for no reason," Sticky scoffed. He swiped across his tablet. "It's not much actual traversal. A handful of teleports will take care of things. Plus, you're meeting Lieutenant Cassius underground."

The sylveon's eyes slowly widened. "Is this that #BloodMoon thing?"

Sticky pinched his brow. "Yes, it's 'that #BloodMoon thing.' Are you not reading your briefings?"

"I #speedread 'em!" Xander put his sunglasses back on. A holographic "DEAL WITH IT" flashed underneath his smug face. "The #brainwaves are already hitting. I can cook some good #StreamValue outta this."

He turned away from Sticky and pulled his uPhone in front of his face. "Lemme just chat the #XanFam the deets."

[Denied.]

Iron Enforcer darted to Xander's side, holding its open maw around a startled Xander's uPhone.

[Mission parameters dictate no location disclosure until we are at our destination,] it stated.

"Okay. Sheesh." Xander put the uPhone back in his coat. "Anything else?"

"You have sixty minutes to prepare." Sticky flicked his wrist toward the door Xander entered through. "I suggest you put that to good use."

"Copy that, Captain Killjoy." Xander sauntered toward the door, lazily saluting Sticky with a ribbon while keeping his back turned.

The naganadel sighed. He really hoped Paradox knew what he was doing with this plan. Three Paradigm lieutenants in one spot when they'd already lost several of them sounded like a terrible idea.

But Paradox must've known something Sticky didn't. After all, the emperor had never been wrong before. Sticky couldn't lose faith. Even if every encounter with Xander made him want to throw up.

XxX​

Awkwardly sitting on a metal stool with her tail curled around its legs, Yuna banged magazine stacks on the coffee table in front of her with the wooden sticks in her hands. The thwapping carried a steady enough beat. One, two, three... one, two, three...

"Nice, Princess. You're keeping decent pace."

Nikki stopped strumming her guitar and sat up on the couch behind the coffee table. She placed the guitar beside her, propping it upright.

"Thanks?" Yuna dropped the sticks on the coffee table and wrung her hands out. "Tiring, though."

"Why?" The toxtricity tilted her head. "Dragapult don't have muscles."

"Uhhh..." Yuna looked at her shriveled hands. "Forget it."

"How do you feel otherwise?" Nikki leaned back, draping her right arm over her guitar.

Yuna shrugged. "I... guess my head's a bit clearer than yesterday?"

"Then it's working!" Nikki snapped her left fingers.

The suggestion Yuna give drumming a try came after two days of balm making sessions with Jade. Yuna thought smacking magazines like they were drums was rather silly, but after several minutes she'd settled into it.

Besides, the Sages weren't bothering her. And she hadn't had any intrusive Tessa or Yaldabaoth-related thoughts the entire day. So, Nikki's silly idea did something.

"We ought to take a break, though," Yuna suggested. "Maybe lunch."

Nikki nodded approvingly. "Any thoughts?"

Yuna smirked at the toxtricity. "Well, I figured you'd have a new suggestion."

"Hmm." Nikki leaned forward, tapping her chin in thought. "What about grilled cheese?"

"That's a thing?" Yuna raised a brow. "What's the point of grilling cheese without any meat or veggies?"

Chuckling, Nikki got to her feet. "It's a sandwich." She stretched her arms up. "You get tomato soup with it. Dip the grilled cheese in the soup." Nikki kissed her fingers like those chefs on the cooking shows some of the monks watched. "C'mon, we'll try it."

Yuna floated off her steel. "Okay, but a cheese sandwich sounds silly."

"Oh ye of little faith." Nikki stepped out from the couch and turned left. In the corner of the room, Scarlett shut a notebook and uncoiled.

"Lunch sounds good to me." The dragonair turned to Igneous and Shimmer, who were hunched on either side of a chair playing some sort of card game. "You two hungry?"

Shimmer blinked a few times, then placed his cards face down on the chair. "Absolutely."

Before Igneous could respond, however, a jagged purple rift appeared in the door. Gene stepped through, much to Yuna's annoyance. It seemed like lunch was about to get put on hold.

"Your guy Shredder's a stubborn dude," Gene declared, yellow-tipped tail lazily swaying back and forth. "Wouldn't commit to the resistance. And has some kinda intel he's sitting on."

Igneous stood up. He shook one leg out at a time. That kneeling must have hurt. "Why didn't you just read his mind to get the intel? I know you can get around dark-types."

"Goes against team spirit." Gene tapped his right temple with a finger.

In the back of Yuna's mind, Reshiram's fur puffed out like he'd gotten electrocuted.

Something wrong?

"He's lying about the team spirit reasoning," Reshiram said. "But I don't think I want to know the truth."

And judging from Nikki's scrutinizing look, Reshiram wasn't the only one questioning the mewtwo.

"So, what, you want me to convince him?" Nikki wondered. She had mentioned wanting to go home the other day.

"Nah." Gene pointed to Shimmer. "I'm here for Twinkie."

Shimmer's tails puffed out. "M-Me?"

Gene held up an index finger. "Shredder agreed to cooperate if our weakest link spars with him."

The ponytales' ears folded.

"I don't think he's weaker than a skorp," Igneous muttered.

"Not like that." Gene waved a hand dismissively. Then, in a pale imitation of a gruff voice, he said, "A band can't jam if everyone's hearts aren't in it. So, I wanna see that weakest heart in action."

The shadowy mewtwo tapped his right temple. "Even if the monks or the skorps aren't that strong, they're committed to this." Gene pointed to Shimmer. "I've yet to see that kind of energy out of Twinkie, here."

"But I helped set up the thing with the pirates!"

Everyone squinted at Shimmer, who promptly shrank down to his belly.

"W-When do we leave?" he squeaked.

"Right now." Gene snapped his fingers. His tail pointed to the rift behind him, which had stayed open for their entire conversation.

XxX​

"What a... unique aroma your guys' home carries."

It hadn't taken long for Shimmer to go from lagging behind the group to walking the fastest of everyone down the uneven cobblestone road. The ponytales' snout was wrinkled and his tails were constricted like deflated balloons.

Nikki likewise held the collar of her leather jacket over her face. "Man. I was used to it. Guess I've been away too long."

"It's not as bad up here," Scarlett said, flying with Yuna and Gene over the others. The dragapult's gaze was fixed on the black and brown wooden roofs. Many of them had holes covered by haphazardly hammered in wooden planks or discolored tarps. One she passed on her right had some strange green fuzz clinging to it.

"People actually live here?" Shaymin popped up in Yuna's mind, wrinkling his tiny snout in much the same way as Shimmer. "The kingdom doesn't show this place any gratitude."

Which lined up with what Yuna heard from Nikki. Still, she couldn't have imagined anything this bad. The dragapult passed more wooden buildings. Two on her left didn't have proper doors or windows and just had bedsheets clinging desperately to the empty frames. Similar green fuzz was on the sheets.

Buzzing up beside Scarlett, Igneous hovered over a broken stone chimney. "How many people are supposed to live here, again?"

"Not a lot." Nikki lazily flicked her right arm, passing by broken streetlights with strange pink moss growing on their poles. "Before I left for another year at Horizon, those who were left were living around the central plaza."

Scarlett dipped down slightly. "What do you mean 'those who were left?' Did something happen?"

"Just the usual yakuza 'recruitments,'" Nikki scoffed. "Luring folks away with the promise of better shit than this." She gestured to a one-story house whose front half had collapsed on itself. "I know you said you were secretly sending Shredder money, but that can only do so much when the people he'd have to hire to fix this shit won't come to the city."

Yuna winced. Aeon's skies might've been choked with ash, but at least their towns weren't dead and decaying like Blightsmuth.

"Can you even call this place a city anymore?" Reshiram wondered.

Does it matter? Yuna countered.

Ahead of her, Gene whistled and pointed in front of him. Shimmer looked up, then broke into a trot. Nikki jogged after the ponytales.

"What's the rush?" Yuna flew faster, catching up to Igneous and Scarlett.

"Central plaza's a few blocks away," the dragonair replied. Her feathery wings flapped to carry her ahead.

"Ah." Yuna followed her. The buildings up ahead had shifted from decaying wood to a mixture of stones and rocks. And they were actually in one piece. Although there was a large stone wall in the cobblestone road where the wooden houses stopped. Shimmer skidded to a halt by it. And a sigilyph had stopped Gene up ahead.

"Yo, Gruber!" Nikki's mohawk brightened and she waved at the wall. "Blights out, my guy!"

The rock wall shifted. There was a hidden door at the bottom! Nikki rested her hands behind her head and strolled on through. Shimmer followed her, looking a bit less certain.

Sigilyph floated to the side.

"Blights out." Sigilyph's eye glowed blue. He must have been Gruber. "Shredder's waiting up ahead for ya."

Gene nodded and continued forward. The others followed him.

"Surprised to see you back here, Scarlett," Gruber said. "Thought you were too good for us now."

The dragonair winced. Her feathery wings shrank a bit. Igneous was quick to flutter over to Gruber. "Are we going to have a problem? She's been helping us out, y'know. The same way we're trying to get Shredder to help us."

Gruber looked Igneous over. "No problem here." The sigilyph's eye dimmed. "You can call off your, uh, girlfriend?"

"I'm a guy," Igneous growled, then flew off. Yuna followed him, shooting Gruber a look. He quickly drifted toward the top of the wall, likely pretending he hadn't noticed Yuna.

Yuna continued onward, trying to forget that brief awkward spat. The rundown houses and buildings had given way to an open square of uneven cobblestone. There was some sort of caged off battle ring in the middle of the square. A handful of pokémon were off to the sides of it, attention focused on a raised wooden platform. An obstagoon sat atop a large speaker, nodding in time with the beats of a rillaboom drummer. An electabuzz and low key toxtricity were playing on electric guitars, though Yuna had no idea what was powering them.

"I brought your twink, Shredder."

Gene had managed to parade Shimmer past the small group of pokémon to the front of the makeshift stage. The music abruptly stopped. The three musicians glanced at the obstagoon, who swung his legs around and hopped off the speaker.

"Well, ain't this a cute little present." Shredder strutted across the stage. "Your weakest link is the crown prince? And here I thought he was running around with that egghead, Demerzel."

"Th... things changed." God, Shimmer sounded so tiny. Even in the air, Yuna saw his legs shaking. But Shredder was just one obstagoon. How did he compare to, say, a giant, rampaging Vortex?

"You wanted the guy with the least heart." Gene pat the ponytales' back. "And I delivered. I even threw in a couple of your buds... as a little treat." The shadowy mewtwo blew a kiss at Shredder.

Reshiram sighed in Yuna's head. "I knew it."

Knew what?

"Oh, for pity's sake." Nikki walked over to them, pinching her brow. "The one time I wish my gaydar steered me wrong." She looked between Gene and Shredder, frowning. "World's on freaking fire! We don't have time for this shit!"

"Ah, ah." Shredder wagged an index finger at Nikki. "World ain't crumbling this second, Sparkplug."

Nikki's mohawk turned pink. Was Shredder where the toxtricity picked up her mocking nickname habit?

"See, we got us a problem of our own." Shredder gestured out to the small group of pokémon. An espeon and floragato with shabby fur mewled in acknowledgement. "And that problem might funnel its way right into your even bigger problem!"

The obstagoon smushed his hands together. "Maybe we should work together. But I gotta know I can trust you." He glanced at Shimmer. "All of you."

Shimmer's ears folded. "You know I don't agree with what my mothers are doing, right? That's why I—"

"You were grandstanding for the news with that egghead veggie." Shredder pointed accusingly at the ponytales. A couple of dark linoone booed, along with Espeon and Floragato.

Shredder returned his attention to the others. "It's all about trust. Top to bottom." He snapped his claws and pointed at Gene. "And, yeah, that was a double entendre."

Yuna rubbed her eyes, wondering if maybe she'd been better off staying in bed.

"This guy was a Crowne Minister?" Reshiram said. "It's like if Nikki tried going into politics..."

"You want this settled quickly?" Shredder gestured to the caged ring Yuna was floating over. "Battle's the simplest language us pokémon speak. I'll get everything I need with a li'l one-on-one." He leaned over, resting his right arm on his right knee. "Or ya gonna wuss out?"

Everyone's gazes fell on Shimmer, who swallowed hard. "W-Well I'm here, aren't I?"

"Then we got us a rumble!" The obstagoon leaped off the stage, landing beside Shimmer with a hearty thud. "Open the door and let us in!" Shredder barked.

Floragato shot her grassy yo-yo toward the fence. It twirled around a handle and opened a door Yuna didn't even realize was there. The dragapult drifted toward Nikki while Espeon and two linoone ushered Shimmer and Shredder into the ring.

"So, um, just how troublesome is Shredder?" Yuna whispered. "Cuz, like, Igneous and Noctum said Shimmer was there for the whole Iron Jugulis thing."

"Oi, Sparkplug! I know you ain't 'boutta just stand there gawking with Blockhead! Get your ass onstage!"

Igneous looked between Nikki and Shredder. "For what?"

"It ain't a rumble without some backing music!" Shredder played air guitar. "C'mon, Sparkplug. I know you've got it down pat." He jerked his head toward the stage, where the low key toxtricity from earlier was holding out an electric guitar.

"Yeah, yeah, I'm going." Nikki strutted over, nodding and waving at some of the locals. Scarlett glided down atop the speaker where Shredder had been sitting. Nikki swiped the guitar out of the other toxtricity's hands. She ran her left fingers along the cords and looked out toward the ring.

"So, um..." Shimmer looked around in confusion. "How exactly do we start th—"

Rillaboom raised his drumsticks and smacked them together.

"A-one! A-two! A-one, two, three!"

Nikki rifled off a quick chord progression and the cage door slammed shut. Shredder rushed Shimmer down, leaving the whinnying ponytales galloping left. He was fast enough to dodge swipes of Shredder's blackened claws.

Shimmer skidded across the uneven stone, slinging Ice Shards from his glowing horn. Two plinked off Shredder's gray back before the obstagoon whirled around and swatted the other two aside.

"Ha! You makin' things drafty?" Shredder then turned around and shouted at Espeon, who was manning the door with Floragato.

"Shred! Shred! Shred! Shred!" the locals chanted.

Yuna frowned. What was Shredder doing?

She quickly got her answer. A faint blue light appeared around Espeon. And when it did, Shredder's chest and arms beefed up a bit. Yuna spotted a panicked look in Shimmer's eyes. He shot an Ice Beam from the tip of his horn, but Shredder spun around and held up his crossed arms.

An X-shaped shield absorbed Shimmer's attack. "Too slow!" Shredder sneered, then he turned and barked at Espeon again. The same faint light appeared... and Shredder's muscles grew even larger.

"All right, now that's what I'm talking about!"

Yuna looked to Nikki, who was too busy with her guitar part. Rillaboom and the other toxtricity backed her up on drums and bass.

"Oh shit." Igneous gasped as Shredder ripped stones out of the ground and flung them at Shimmer.

"What? What did I miss?" Yuna drifted over to the grovlazzle's side, watching Shimmer deflect one stone with a shield, only for the second to strike him square in the snout. The ponytales staggered back, snout bloodied, while the locals whooped and hollered.

"Shred! Shred! Shred! Shred!"

The obstagoon charged Shimmer down, though his steps were slower and lumbering than before.

And then it hit Yuna. Those weird roars from before...

"He used Scary Face on Espeon." Igneous looked over at her. She was reared up, shaking the cage door in excitement. "If Espeon's got Magic Bounce... and Shredder has Defiant..."

"He slowed himself down to raise his own strength?" Rayquaza burst into the back of Yuna's mind. "Forsooth! Tis quite the bit of strategery!"

"Shimmer, look out!" Igneous cried. But the ponytales was too dazed from the earlier blow. Shredder's Night Slash swept Shimmer off his feet and flung him all the way right where he smacked against the metal grating and crumpled to the ground.

"That's garbage!" the grovlazzle grabbed the cage in front of him and shook it. "Using Scary Face on the crowd like that?"

"Street rules, bitch!" Shredder countered. "Anything goes!"

"Damn." Gene walked over to Yuna's side, shaking his head. "Maybe I should've lied and picked that dumb purple and white koraidon your kid brought home with him."

Yuna resisted the urge to snap at Gene, instead watching Shimmer fire enough ice from his hooves to freeze Shredder's legs mid-charge. The obstagoon effortlessly shattered the ice, but it still gave Shimmer enough time to fire a Dazzling Gleam from close range. The burst of pink light forced Shredder back, hissing and crossing his arms over his face.

Another X-shaped shield formed up, but Shimmer surprisingly didn't press his attack. Yuna expected him to fall for the bait, but the ponytales instead ran away from Shredder.

"Oi, where do you think you're going?"

"Shred! Shred! Shred! Shred!"

Shredder ripped a couple more stones out of the ground, but Shimmer fired an Ice Beam right when Shredder was reaching down for the second. It froze his left hand and the stone. Eyes widening, Shredder hurled the stone in his right hand toward Shimmer.

"What are you doing?!" Igneous called as Shimmer skirted the stone and reached the steel cage. The ponytales jumped up, spraying icy mist from his hooves. They stuck to the metal grating. The steel cage wobbled as Shimmer ran along the side of it.

"Nice try, Happy Feet!" Shredder grabbed hold of the opposite end of the steel cage and throttled it. The loose metal grating rippled like it was a set of linens Aeons were trying to air dry.

Horn sparking, Shimmer struggled to maintain his footing.

"Get off, Shimmer!" Igneous begged. He was worryingly into this. Yuna held her tongue, though, because Shimmer's whole body glowed white. The ponytales unleashed a wave of chilly air.

Hissing, Yuna shrank back toward the stage. The cold stung the dragapult's ectoplasm and she wanted no part of that. When she lowered her arms, she found the whole steel cage iced over, with Shredder's hands stuck to the grating.

Before the obstagoon could break the ice around his hands, Shimmer lunged from his position near the top of the steel cage. Fairy dust gathered around his horn. Shredder yanked his now-glowing hands free and swung at the diving Shimmer.

Dazzling Gleam's brilliant pink light collided with Shredder's jet black Night Slashes. A blinding flash forced Yuna to shut her eyes and turn away. Gasps and shouts from the crowd suggested they fared similarly, though somehow Nikki and the other musicians were still playing.

At Rayquaza's urging, Yuna lowered her arms and found Shredder clutching Shimmer by his horn. His black and white face was scuffed up and covered in a layer of pink fairy dust while Shimmer's mane was completely disheveled.

"Cut the music!" Shredder ordered, letting go of Shimmer. "I've seen enough."

The ponytales dropped to his rear with a grunt. "Damn it." He shot an apologetic look toward Yuna and her teammates. Gene had turned away, pinching his brow and shaking his head. Igneous looked ready to try and melt the cage and head inside. The small crowd was about to cheer for Shredder claiming victory.

Instead, everyone gasped when Shredder suddenly hoisted a startled Shimmer back up.

"He's got guts!" Shredder bellowed. At first, no one responded to the declaration. After Shredder repeated himself, however, various onlookers raised paws and wings in a delighted cheer. Espeon went to rattle the cage again, only to back off with a hiss upon touching the cold steel. Floragato twirled her yo-yo.

Shimmer stared blankly. "I don't get it."

Yuna thought much the same. "Are we missing something?" she asked Igneous, who could only shrug.

"I never said you had to win, Snowflake." Shredder laughed and thumped a squealing Shimmer's flank. "I wanted to see if you had heart." The obstagoon placed his fist against his chest. "And I saw heart. Freezing the damn cage and lunging for me like a crazed feral after I've buffed up?" He flexed his bulging biceps. "Yeah, that takes real grit! You've changed."

Shredder pointed to Gene. "We're in, Kitten."

The shadowy mewtwo whistled. "Well, damn. Didn't see that coming." He Phantom Warped through the icy cage and floated over to Shredder. Presumably to talk some manner of specifics that Yuna wasn't interested in. She watched Igneous help Shimmer out of the ring. A couple of the linoone patted the ponytales as he went past.

"That was ridiculous," Igneous said, looking Shimmer over. "Are you okay? What were you thinking? You could've—"

Shimmer flinched. "I was, uh, thinking of you?"

The grovlazzle's head leaf caught fire. "I-I'm sorry?"

"J-Just, y'know, some of the crazier things you've done." Shimmer brushed his forelegs together nervously.

"Well that's— I, uh—"

"Pfffffffbt, your leaves are gonna burn off at this rate, Twiggy!"

Nikki and Scarlett's approach was enough to get Igneous' head leaf to simmer down.

"Something you want to tell us?" The toxtricity fluttered her eyelids at Igneous and Shimmer.

"No." Scowling, the grovlazzle crossed his arms.

"They're feeling things out," Scarlett said.

Igneous's scowl turned to a glare. "Seriously?"

"I'm pretty sure she already knew," the dragonair said.

"Two for two today, baby." Nikki fist-pumped. Scarlett chuckled while Yuna looked between the two in confusion.

Before she could ask what Nikki meant, Gene landed behind Scarlett.

"All right, pack it in. We're taking this conversation back to the base."

"Already?" Nikki raised a brow, then shrugged. "Eh, it ain't like we've got much around here to worry about. Guess we can call it a day early."

Gene shook his head. "Far from it. Shredder's gonna tell us about that problem he mentioned earlier. It sounds like we'll have work to do."

The toxtricity slouched. "Grrrrreeeeeat."

Yuna looked past her teammates, where Shredder was organizing the 'mon who'd watched his fight with Shimmer. This was a... strange acquisition for the resistance. And the dragapult figured she wouldn't know what to make of it until she learned exactly what Shredder wanted their help with.

XxX​

A day lying in bed staring at the wall was long enough for Widget. Valkyrie knew he'd woken up, but the garchomp let him be. She even stopped checking on him, leaving the cosmic silvally to lay around and stew in his thoughts until he reached a firm conclusion.

Those silhouettes were him.

Widget finally understood what the emperor meant when he said he'd "drawn from Eternatus itself" to create him. And what being built to "interface directly with the Benefactor" stood for.

The Eterna energy that forged him... was nothing but slumbering souls. Powerful slumbering souls. And Widget was sure they were connected to Leo. The arceus must've "woken" them up.

All of Widget's fears were true, then. He wasn't his own person. He was never meant to be his own person. Just a machine running off spiritual energy. One that would follow Paradox's will.

As Widget forced himself out of bed, he wondered what this meant for the Eterna Empire as a whole. Paradox had drilled into him — heck, into everyone, really — the horrors of the Kingdom of Radiance. How their source of electricity, ether, came from the people trying to live their lives within the Empire.

... But at the same time, a lot of stuff inside Eternatus ran on Eterna energy. Paradox had taught him it was a wondrous and limitless power source with no real drawbacks.

It had to be the same as ether, then. Energy drained from spirits. Were they spirits that tried to stop Zodiark, only to end up in stasis instead of reborn like Yuna and the others?

Widget didn't know. And his head pounded from thinking about it. He glanced at the occupied bed next to him. Artemis lay there. The milotic had gotten hit by Leo, too. And now had a similar cosmic makeover for his troubles.

"Hey." Widget nudged the side of the bed. "You okay?"

Silence. Artemis' eyes were shut, but Widget didn't think he was sleeping. Ignoring him, then. When this whole thing was Artemis' idea in the first place.

The cosmic silvally nudged Artemis' black-scaled body. "Get up." His tone was firm.

"Why?"

Widget stared blankly. "We have work to do."

Artemis slowly turned and poked an eye open at Widget.

"Why... am I here?"

It wasn't surprising Artemis was taking it all even worse than before. Valkyrie muttered about how shaken up he was over Seifer's death. Widget wasn't sure what he could offer the cosmic milotic.

"Because you're trying to help the resistance." It was the best Widget had.

"Not that." Artemis lazily swatted the air with a starcloud ribbon. "Why am... I in this world?"

Widget's neck ruff dimmed. "Excuse me?"

Artemis shakily pushed his head up. "Xeromus was right. Leo's not the arceus I remember."

Wait, was Artemis saying he was a reincarnated soul, too?

The milotic's ribbons shriveled. "I recognized things. Noctum, Valkyrie, Seifer, and Yiazmat." Artemis' breathing was shaky. "We all... we have to be from that first world Yuna mentioned. The one Zodiark fled from, and Giratina pursued." He shook his head. "But Leo's not from there."

He coiled up on the edge of the bed. "Noctum is Palkia. Seifer is Dialga." His eyes darted around nervously. "I let Dialga—"

"Breathe."

Widget stepped to Artemis' side without even thinking. He offered his left shoulder for Artemis to lean against. Artemis stared silently at the cosmic silvally.

"Why are we here?" Artemis whispered. "How could I... let Mighty Dialga—"

"You can't think like that." Widget nudged Artemis' starcloud ribbon. "We can't think like that."

Artemis raised a brow.

Widget's neck ruff swirled around. "Whatever Leo did... messed with my head, too." He sighed. "It seems like souls from two different universes are reincarnated. I wish I had answers for you, but I don't.

"What I do know, is that Leo's frightened." The cosmic silvally looked Artemis in the eye. "He couldn't have expected that to happen. We have to... tell him it's okay."

That was the right thing to do. Widget hoped that between his words and pleading expression, he'd convince Artemis to come with him. Artemis did have his head bowed in thought, but he said nothing.

After a minute, Widget was ready to leave the infirmary when Artemis slithered off the bed.

"I guess you're right." The milotic held his head up. "I've made some serious mistakes. If I don't try to make things right, then I'd be humiliating my past self."

Widget nodded, offering Artemis a smile. The two exited the infirmary. Widget found Jade waddling down the hall and she confirmed that Leo was still holed up in the third floor broom closet. They headed over to it and Widget knocked on the door.

"Leo?"

No response. Widget tried again.

"C'mon, Leo. I know you're in there."

Still nothing. Artemis slithered up to Widget's side and jiggled the handle. "Leo, it's Artemis. Look, I'm sorry I pushed you like that. It was wrong of me."

The lock clicked open and the door swung inward, revealing Leo awkwardly seated between shelves stocked with laundry and dishwashing detergent. At least a dozen brightly-colored, empty, crumpled ice cream pints were strewn about the floor. Some had strings of melted ice cream trickling out of them.

Widget stared blankly at the floor. "Um, does Guzzie know you've been taking this ice cream?"

"No." The cosmic arceus set a half-full pint down beside a bottle of laundry detergent. Minty green melted ice cream stained his facial fur.

"Oh," Widget whispered. Well, this was off to a fantastic start. The cosmic silvally had to save face quickly. "Listen, Leo—"

"We've worked together before, haven't we?"

Widget stepped back. His starcloud ruff condensed. "Huh?"

"I saw it." Leo leaned over and smushed his face into the ice cream container. When he lifted his head up, his face was greener than before. "When I lost control. You were a hydreigon. Begging me to let you summon a human because there was something wrong with this thing called a Worldcore."

Hydreigon's silhouette flickered in front of Widget. It faced Leo, all the heads at attention.

"Leo, I'm really sorry." Artemis slithered between Widget and the arceus. "It was wrong of me to force you to try and save Seifer. I was... blaming myself for his death, and so I stupidly thought I could use you to fix my mistake."

Leo eyed the milotic. "Yeah, well, I should've tried harder to put my foot down. Lesson learned." He leaned over and sloppily gobbled more ice cream from the pint. When Leo pulled his head up, he squished the now-empty container with his forehead and lazily tipped it over so it fell on the floor beside the others.

Well, this wasn't a disaster. But it wasn't going great, either. Widget tucked his head under one of Artemis' starcloud ribbons. "Are you going to be okay? Is there anything we can do for you?"

"More ice cream'd be swell," Leo said.

Artemis and Widget exchanged incredulous looks. Leo glanced at the pile of ice cream pints by his hooves.

"Oh." He blinked slowly. "Guess I overdid it."

Leo grabbed a raggedy towel from a metal shelf on his left and wiped his face. He tossed the rag onto the pile of empty pints. "It didn't work... because of Seifer's soul. He's not from the past I know." Leo looked at Widget. "But you and Cyril are."

He stepped over the pile of pints. "How am I supposed to fix things if I don't understand my powers? If I don't understand what's going on?"

His concerns weren't that different from Artemis'. Or Widget's, for that matter. The cosmic silvally looked down guiltily.

"I don't know. For now... I think we have to take it one step at a time." Widget pulled his head back from under Artemis' starcloud ribbon. "And that first step is, y'know, getting out of the broom closet."

With a nervous laugh, he hastily added, "And not eating your weight in ice cream."

Leo's starcloud mane and tail dimmed. "Yeah. At this rate I'll be thicker than Cyril." He shook his head, sighing. "One of those steps isn't going to have to be talking with Mom, is it?"

"I don't follow." Widget tilted his head.

"Mom and Nikki got stoned in my bed and made out with each other," Leo flatly said.

Silence followed, with Artemis shooting Widget a flabbergasted expression.

"Iiiiiiiii probably shouldn't have said that out loud." Leo tapped a gold forehoof on the floor. "Welp. I guess it be like that."

That was... more of that strange lingo Widget didn't understand. Yet the silvally felt compelled to say something.

"It's up to you how you want to handle Yuna."

"Then I'm-a ignore it."

Leo stepped through a rift and appeared beside Widget. "If it happens again, I'll just douse 'em with my splash plate." His wheel shifted from gold to blue.

Widget doubted that was a healthy approach, but he wasn't going to criticize. He'd actually gotten the arceus out of the broom closet.

"So, what now?" Leo looked around. "Seems kinda dead around here."

"About that..." Artemis slithered out of the broom closet, a ribbon pressed against his head. "It sounds like Gene's back. And calling for a team meeting in the hangar."

Widget raised a brow. "What's it about?"

"Blightsmuth's old Crowne Minister is here," Artemis said. "Apparently, he has some information that might be connected to the Empire."

Leo and Widget exchanged confused looks. Blightsmuth was where Nikki was from, right? This didn't sound good.

"I guess we're going to the hanger, then," Widget said.

He didn't know what to expect. But as Leo opened up a rift to bring them to the hanger, he hoped it didn't mean they'd have to jump right back into the fray.

 

[Kiba Makuro]

Hello Amby, I’m here for V-Wheel covering Path of Valor, Prologue Darkest Before Dawn, and Chapter 1- Uh, It’s My First Day

Well this was a surprising bit of chapters. As you mentioned on Discord, and what I immediately understood based on talks the prologue starts with some different characters, primarily legendaries who vaguely know of the protagonist. The three Kanto birds, and Douglas talk about stuff regarding the Needles that'll definitely be relevant later, but unfortunately get jumped by Shadows. Pretty cool how you just straight up transformed them into the Galarian birds (rip Douglas), II enjoyed that concept, and I wonder when/if it'll get used again.

I like the way the majority of the prose flows, not too overwhelming, or basic (though I’m one to talk at times). There were some phrasing quirks that bothered me a little in the beginning of the prologue but I managed to pull through.

To avoid treading too much on what the previous p + ch1 reviews say I will talk about something different.

I find it kinda funny that Path of Valor takes a different approach to world building, in the way that you just kinda dump some background and quite a few funny words around in the Prologue and Chapter 1. Most folks recommend against that but it seems like you can get away with that. Just an observation, unfortunately I'm too early to tell how it's handled for myself but I've heard that it is well.

Very interesting how we have slightly similar ideas. Not the whole kingdom thing, or the open corruption of legendaries, but more of Pokemon after a certain something. Non-Pokemon foes taking out Legendaries isn’t new to the mainline pmd series, but happening right off the bat is a fun choice. The way you write moves during fights is kinda similar to what I do, which was surprising, I didn't expect anyone else to always want to state the move, and then also not force ‘used’ into the sentence. Not alone in that!

I will say I feel like the plot of Chapter 1 was a tad bit much to digest. I suppose that’s to get us into Yuna’s head, there’s so much going on when you move to a new place, much less a new kingdom and school. Though without reference from her old life, besides the hints that she isn’t used to fairy-types stares, and only she knew a shiny Charizard.

But with so many named characters, brief but stacking introductions things got hard to follow along. Now it may just be me, but the way you wrote Baraz, and Noctum alongside Yuna made it feel like the audience was supposed to “know” them. I suppose you did say in the summary that this is a sequel to Guiding Light, but I feel like that's more so for the plot (perhaps).

And here is where I will just drop things I think are references, despite knowing/ remembering barely anything about the series: Looks like Yuna wants to be a hero, hey wait a minute… Yuki Yuna no Yussha reference? (Probably wrong, given her full name is something else) And Xeromus and the Shadows feel like Kingdom Hearts inspired (pretty certain on this)

Regardless of all that, these two chapters were a fun read. Keep up the good work.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Heya, coming right back to this to continue chipping away at things to make my RB6 experience with this story a bit more manageable with…

Chapter 94

Spoiler: Line-by-Line

Yuna's 'pot-shots from a distance' strategy wasn't working. Ting-Lu wasn't exactly speeding toward the giant rock wall surrounding the Terarium, but it was raising dirt mounds out of the ground and leaping between them to dodge Shaymin's Seed Flares. Every leap served to launch Ting-Lu's platforms at Yuna. The dragapult struggled to balance dodging them while giving Shaymin good aim and keeping enough distance to avoid falling victim to Ting-Lu's Gravity.

Huh. FF16 has a sailing sequence? Might need to look into the game a bit more.

And that weird crystalline time stop — she was calling it "reverse time" since it had to come from her giratina side — was hurting, not helping.

So, since 'Witch Time' is obviously off the board, what are we going to call this anyways? 'Giratina Time'? :V

Ting-Lu was about two-thirds of the way to the edge of the Terarium. It raised a clay mound from the ground, uprooting trees and shredding bushes apart so nothing but twigs and crumpled leaves remained.

"There!" Shaymin fired a Seed Flare. Ting-Lu leaped from the mound, kicking clay chunks at Yuna and landing on a lower dirt platform. The green rings harmlessly flew past while Yuna rolled left to avoid the clay.

Wait, wait, wait. Just what sort of move was that? .-.

"Such a feeble demonstration." Zodiark's voice carried from where Ting-Lu was. A staticky projection of their face swirled around the large dirt crystal in Ting-Lu's head bowl. "It's nothing if not emblematic of your one-sided, futile struggle."

"Shut up!" Yuna focused on her core. It rippled with distortion. Heat pooled in her horns, drawing a yelp from Shaymin. To her surprise, sun-shaped white arrows streaked through the air and exploded around Ting-Lu. The Whisper tumbled from its platform. Zodiark's silhouette vanished.

Wew, someone's getting feisty right now. I actually don't think I've ever seen her react like this in past fights, so it makes me wonder if that's Yaldabaoth's influence in action.

Though 'sun-shaped', huh? Wasn't expecting that one. Wonder if that's a sign that Yuna has another preincarnation that we don't know about yet.

The dragapult blinked. "Um... that wasn't a normal Dragon Darts."

"Who cares?" Shaymin scooted forward on her triangular head. Seed Flare rings streamed down toward Ting-Lu. However, a giant dirt hand emerged behind Ting-Lu. It grabbed the Seed Flare and squeezed. Dirt exploded outward, forcing Yuna and Shaymin back.

I... don't think that you should be blowing things off so quickly, Shaymin, just saying. Since I can already tell that those sun arrow things are a sign of something important that we're going to find out.

"Harsh." Shaymin whistled. "It's molding the ground as it sees fit. Not grateful at all!" Yuna tried shooting the sun arrows through the lingering dusty cloud. Ting-Lu emerged from the cloud atop another clay platform. A dark, dreadful aura gathered around it. Whatever that attack was, Yuna didn't intend to take it.

Oh, so Dark-type moves just genuinely feel unpleasant to even be around in this setting. Duly noted.
[*][1:54 AM]

She expected a beam or blast. So, the dragapult was caught off guard when a black and red dome emerged around Ting-Lu, spreading out rapidly. "Ah!"

Yuna opened a rift to flee when a white flash blinded her. "Sorry Grishi late! Had to make pitstop!"

Shaymin: "Uh... he did take care of whatever that weird dome thing was, right?" ^^;

Yuna opened her eyes to find the zorotwo floating there, holding up a black barrier with one hand and some sort of metal ring with another.

"Where have you— ugh, never mind!" Yuna's tail undulated rapidly. "Did you stop that attack?"

He shook his head. "Grishi shield Yuna from Ruination. Bad time if hit."

Ruination? Grishi knew what that attack was?

Whelp, we have our answer, even if I'm a bit mystified myself as to how Grishi would know this about a Ting-Lu.

It didn't matter. Ting-Lu was charging it again while leaping toward a taller clay platform. "Well, you're here now. So start helping!" Yuna flew around the zorotwo.

"Y'know, you could show him some gratitude," Shaymin mused. "Since he came back."

Yuna's response was to tilt her head, sending Shaymin tumbling into one of her horns. She fired him straight toward Ting-Lu.

Wow. Rude.

"It was a joooooooooooooooooooooooke!" Tiny limbs flailing, Shaymin unleashed a close-ranged Seed Flare. Ting-Lu was too busy readying its Ruination to dodge. The green rings peppered its right flank. Its clay platform crumbled, sending it straight to the ground.

A little surprised he didn't get in the "Sooooooorrrrrrry!" joke from The Emperor's New Groove, but I suppose this is basically a different flavor of that.

"Yuna stay back!" Grishi ordered before the dragapult could go pick up Shaymin. Instead, he shifted to his sky form and flew back. Girshi teleported over Ting-Lu. He held up the metal ring, then it vanished inside an illusory plastic cup. Just like the type she saw stacked on some of the water coolers in the outpost hanger.

The cup appeared by Ting-Lu's side in a flash. As soon as it righted itself, the metal ring was stuck around its ankle. Ting-Lu noticed this. The ominous Ruination aura crackled around its body once again.

Wait, wait, wait. Is that a Hoopa ring there?

Grishi vanished once again, only to reappear seconds later—

"Hey Ting-LOSER! Look up!"

Yuna's jaw dropped as a freefalling Nikki swung her lightning guitar around. It struck Ting-Lu's vaguely equine face. Cracks spiderwebbed their way along its body. When it tried to retaliate, its limbs locked up and it fell over on its side. Grishi yanked the toxtricity away with his ESP.

"Oh-ho, shit, it actually worked!" Nikki laughed nervously.

I can already hear everyone's frustrated ranting in 3... 2...

"What just happened?" Yuna wanted to glare at Nikki and Grishi, but the bigger focus was on taking out this Whisper. She ordered Shaymin to fire more Seed Flares.

"Ring Target." The zorotwo traced a claw in a circle. "Grishi steal from school store. It remove Ting-Lu electric immunity. So Nikki can paralyze."

Oh, well that answers what on earth that ring was that Grishi used. I clearly need to brush up on my held items, since I actually didn't realize that that was a thing.

Another dirt hand erupted from the ground to deflect Shaymin's Seed Flares. Ting-Lu's garbled roar filled the air. A furious chorus of wing flaps behind Yuna suggested more birds were fleeing north.

"Hey, bastard's getting away!" Nikki said, pointing east. Ting-Lu surfed a wave of dirt across the grassy plains, uprooting trees and knocking boulders over. "Where the hell's this thing going? The dome's that way?"

Well, that music certainly took an ominous turn there. I suppose that's a sign this battle is about to significantly heat up.

"Who cares! After it!" Yuna flew ahead. Though Ting-Lu's limbs twitched with paralysis, the dirt wave carried it much faster than it was going before.

"With all the cracks along its body, it must be on its last legs!" Rayquaza said. "Tally ho!"

You know what they say about assuming, Gallian...

Yuna was catching up, but she wasn't expecting the dirt wave to fling Ting-Lu through the air. The Whisper sailed over the remaining plains and some wall made of brightly glowing cubes. It landed in the middle of a sandy beach.

"What's it doing? It's a ground-type, isn't it?"

"Sand's kinda ground," Shaymin said. "Think palossand."

Yuna: "I... uh... really don't like where this is going right now."

Ting-Lu roared again. The sand around it swirled and rippled. A giant sandcastle erupted from the beach. Sandy cannons aimed at the approaching dragapult and fired Mud Bombs at her.

I'm going to go ahead and guess that that's some Whisper powers in action, since... uh... that's very different from any Pokémon move I can reflexively think of.

"Gah!" Yuna retaliated with a Dragon Darts volley, destroying one Mud Bomb. Shaymin's Seed Flare took care of the other.

"Princess! There art more cannons firing on the dome! The fiend is trying to destroy it from a distance!"

Yuna: "... Wonderful. Seriously, why on earth is a Ground-type even capable of doing this?" >.<

Massive Mud Bombs sailed over the sparkling water beneath them. Yuna couldn't stop those, even if she did open a rift!

"On your left!" Shaymin cried. Seed Flare rings lit up the sky. Then wet sand showered Yuna from above.

Hissing, she threw her arms over her head. "I need some help here!"

"What do you think we're doing?!" Nikki growled from somewhere to the dragapult's left. "We're taking too much fire!"

Well, this is either going to work or everyone's going to be making glub glub noises really quickly, so let's see where this goes.

A loud ding reverberated through the Terarium. Yuna saw mud splattered against a hexagonal tile. It was a gap in the dome's artificial sky. And more Mud Bombs were heading toward that spot!

Yuna flew toward them, shooting sun-shaped arrows alongside Shaymin's Seed Flares.

That... feels like quite the design flaw there given that there's some fairly strong Pokémon going around the Terarium in the game.

"Behind Yuna!" Grishi shouted. She turned to see the black dome of Ruination energy racing toward her.

"Eep!" Yuna flew away from it as fast as she could manage. The attack fizzled out without reaching her, but now she was too far from the giant sandcastle to get an attack on Ting-Lu.

How were they supposed to topple this thing under a constant Mud Bomb barrage?

... By finding a way to stop said barrage? One of you's gotta know Torment, right?

... Wait.

She remembered Gene dealing with something like this before. What was it that Noctum called it?

No, that's not important! Yuna shook her head. "Shaymin! Go to Grishi and Nikki. Shoot a Seed Flare at Grishi and have Nikki shoot a Boomburst your attack. Tell Grishi to catch it!"

I am not convinced at all that that was a wise decision, Yuna. Even if I understand the need to buy time to stop Ting-Lu from blowing a hole into the Terarium.

"Huh?"

"No questions! Go!" She jerked her head, transferring Shaymin into a horn, then blasted him back toward Ting-Lu and the giant sandcastle.

"Nooooot cooooooooooooooool!" Shaymin hollered. Fortunately, he shifted to sky form and weaved between Mud Bombs from the sandcastle's cannons.

This is going to wind up becoming a running gag, isn't it? :p

Yuna focused on shooting down Mud Bombs heading for the dome with Dragon Darts. It filled the air with brown clouds. Clumps of wet sand splattered against her triangular head. They stung a bit, but she'd bear with the pain if it meant taking out Ting-Lu.

She shot down two more Mud Bombs. The cannons in the distance fired another three. Her horns were hurting. Yuna couldn't give up, though. Shaymin was flying quickly around Grishi and Nikki. That was a good thing, right?

Again, Yuna. Life would be a lot easier right now if someone used Torment.

Three Dragon Darts blew apart the Mud Bombs, filling the air with a sandy cloud once again. It quickly vanished, however, as a large green explosion swept the cloud away. A rush of wind smelling of freshly-trimmed grass almost swept Yuna up, but she maintained her position in midair.

When the green light faded, the giant sandcastle was collapsing upon itself. Ting-Lu desperately pawed at the air to try not to get sucked into the mound of sand, but it was a losing effort. Yuna sped forward and added insult to injury with a couple more sun-shaped arrows.

Ting-Lu's wedge-shaped earth crystal shattered seconds before the sinking mount of sand swallowed it up.

Yuna: "Phew. That means it's down for the count right now, right?"

"Good idea."

Yuna's tail crinkled at Grishi blipping over to her side. "Hmm?"

The zorotwo sheathed and unsheathed his claws repeatedly. "Trapping exploding Seed Flares in psychic bubble to build pressure for bigger explosion. Good idea." He nodded approvingly. "Not bad for novice reverser. Grishi impressed."

Oh, that's the thing that she was trying to remember that Gene did in the past. Cute callback there.

"Um, thanks?" Yuna was sorely tempted to ask what "novice reverser" meant. But before she could, static burst out of the sand. It streamed toward the Terarium's core dangling from that tiny metal panel that looked like it floated in midair.

Just like back in Wyndon, Zodiark's masked face appeared in the lines of static.

"This changes nothing, Yaldabaoth," they said. "You will not drag these worlds into stagnation. Your pointless resistance will meet its inevitable end. That is your fate."

Zodiark:

Yuna: "... Was the song and dance number really necessary?" >_>;

Yuna refused to give Zodiark the pleasure of a rebuttal, watching silently as the projection dissolved away with the remaining static.

Sighing in relief, she recalled Shaymin back into her core. Things had gotten hairy for a bit, but they managed. And she held her own for once.

"Heeeeeey!"

Yuna: "Oh for crying out loud. Is it too much to ask to have a moment of satisfaction here?" >.<

Down on the beach, Nikki hopped up and down and waved her arms around. "Not to kill the mood, but don't we still have Gilgamesh to deal with? And you need to find your kid!" ]

Yuna winced. Right, Leo had run off on them.

"Dost thou think he wouldst challenge Gilgamesh on his own?"

Yuna:

Well now the possibility certainly occurred to her! Swallowing hard, the dragapult turned to Grishi. "I think we're still gonna need a bit of help. I've gotta find my son... and make sure he doesn't do anything stupid!"

Yeeeeeah, you're a bit late for that. Time to see just how well™️ that ends for him.

The center of the Terarium was a raised platform made from the same glowing cubes fanning out in the cardinal directions. Gilgamesh paced across the middle of it. The ghost and dark crystals atop his head glistened under the dome's artificial light.

Oh hey, we're going way back in FF as a series for this fight music. Wasn't expecting that one.

Leo galloped through the air. A tiny voice told him this was beyond boneheaded, but he didn't care. He'd already broken off from the group and gotten involved with Kieran. It was full Luxray Jenkins or bust!

>dat name

I snerked. Even if it makes me wonder what 'Luxray Jenkins' is in their setting as a figure.

So what if that never worked out for Igneous? Leo was an arceus!

Okay, yeah, I think I need a gif for this moment:

"—not believe how ridiculous this is!" The ceruledge raised his arms. "My arms are fire swords! How can this world not have a warrior to give me a proper challenge?" He looked up, toward the corrupted core dangling from the top of the dome. "Stupid interdimensional rift! Why spit me out here? It's a waste, I tell you!"

That makes me wonder just how utterly broken Gil's stats are right now, since he originates from a setting that is non-Pokémon entirely.

Gilgamesh spotted what appeared to be a cylindrical recycling bin. "Yes, this kind of waste!" He raised his arms to slice the bin into ribbons.

Well, if he was rambling about a challenge, it was as good a time as any for Leo to make his presence known. "You ready?" he asked Kieran.

"I was ready before," Kieran said. Then hastily added, "I mean, uh, sure."

Yeeeeeeah, they're totally not ready right now.

"I've got your challenge right here!" Leo cried, leaping through the air and landing atop a set of pristine white stairs. He stuck his right foreleg and left hind leg out. That was a cool enough pose, right?

Gilgamesh:

Leo: "... Is that a 'maybe'?" ^^;

Gilgamesh looked past Leo at first. "The boy from before!" He pointed a fiery sword arm at Kieran. "You've summoned another to battle with?"

"Yeah." Kieran slid off Leo's back. "And we're going to beat you this time."

Gilgamesh:

Static energy rippled around Gilgamesh's head crystals. Leo glanced upward. Was the dungeon core trying to contact him?

If it was, Gilgamesh didn't seem to care. "Only one summon this time?" He scrutinized Leo. "What makes you think you're a worthy challenger? You cannot even free yourself from the confines of that fence you're stuck in!"

Boy it's going to be quite something if Leo just casually outs that he's a creator god in front of this guy. ^^;

Of course this guy had to bring up Leo's wheel. Absolute cringe right there. It was part of the cosmic arceus. "It's a conduit for my power, dumba—"

He cut himself off the moment he met Kieran's gaze. Right, schoolkid. Leo had to watch his language.

I'm not convinced that Leo's going to manage to keep his proverbial swear filter on for the rest of this chapter, just saying.

"A source of power?" Gilgamesh's eyes surprisingly lit up with interest. "Oh ho ho! In that case... I accept your challenge! Perhaps your fence shall prove itself a weapon worthy of the rift's mightiest warrior, Gilgamesh!" The ceruledge raised his sword arms over his head. "Who is me!"

Oh. Oh dear.

Okay, yep. This guy was absolute cringe. It was like someone took Rayquaza and dialed the ham meter up past eleven. At least that meant Gilgamesh wasn't under Zodiark's control. No Whisper would treat this like some RP session.

... And Leo could take advantage of that.

Famous last words.

"One request." He held up a foreleg. "We take this fight outside. To that big, empty bridge."

"Huh?" Kieran tensed. "Why there?"

"There are too many wild pokémon down here," Leo said. "I don't want any of them getting hurt if things get crazy."

Ah yes, thus the title of the chapter, I see. Though is this a reference to one of the fights with Gilgamesh in FF? Since this feels like a really particular choice for a battlefield.

"Fine!" The ceruledge shrugged. "But there will be no other accommodations or delays!"

He pivoted and slashed at the air with his bladed arms. Sunshine— real sunshine spilled in through a jagged rift.

Leo: "How on earth does that even-?" o_o;

"Oh, wowzers..." Kieran shifted closer to Leo. "This really is a big deal, huh?"

Leo hoisted Kieran onto his back and followed Gilgamesh through the rift. They emerged on a long, white bridge. Wide enough for vehicles to pass, but there was no one in sight. And they were far enough from the school building that Leo could barely make it out.

"Now then, the time for pleasantries and-slash-or banter is behind us!" Gilgamesh declared. The crystals on his head twinkled. "Now is the time where we fight like honorable men!"

Well, that answers my question regarding the choice of a bridge as a battlefield. Fun beat, too.

He stopped and looked at his fiery sword arms. "Or an honorable man with swords for hands and a possibly honorable steed-stuck-in-fence thing! Mwahahaha!" Gilgamesh brought his arms by his sides. "Engarde!"

Leo scarcely had time to let Kieran slide off him when Gilgamesh charged right at him. The cosmic arceus leaped over swipes from the ceruledge's fiery blades.

"Stick to the air!" Kieran said. The initial shock must have worn off because his earlier stoic expression was back. "You've got greater mobility!"

Boy, Kieran snaps out of things fast there.

Leo galloped away from Gilgamesh's attempts at swatting him from the sky. "Why you!" He stomped the ground angrily. "How dare you use gravity against me like that! Here's what the Bladesman of Legend thinks of your aerodynamics!"

>that dialogue

I knew that that popcorn gif was a good call.

His head crystals brimmed with energy. Gilgamesh furiously slashed at the air. Purple and black crescents soared toward Leo. The cosmic arceus galloped through the air along the bridge, but the crescents gave chase.

"They're homing in," Kieran called. "Try blasting them apart with something big!"

Oh. Duh. Leo turned around. Something big could be another Water Spout, so Leo pointed his head at the oncoming energy crescents. Water gushed from a blue gleam over his forehead. The crescents melted away like dirt carried down to sewers in a rainstorm.

Wow, that worked better than I thought it would there.

"He's charging you down!" Kieran cried. "Below you!"

"Huh?"

Gilgamesh was right underneath him! How'd he close the gap that quickly?!

Because he's literally a bodyswap isekai'd Bonus Boss, so he's almost certainly completely broken by normal Pokémon standards?

The ceruledge spun around into a fiery tornado. Leo only had time to cross his legs over his sensitive underbelly before Gilgamesh knocked him further in the air. Leo shook out his legs. They stung from lingering embers.

"Mwahahaha!" Gilgamesh landed on the ground and pointed his right sword arm upward. "Only a truly mighty warrior can defy your defiance of gravity! Are you not astonished? Do your knees not quake with fear?!"

Leo: "More like I'm starting to feel like agreeing to take on a giant windbag like you was a big mistake." >_>;

"Strike now!" Kieran had his hands cupped over his mouth. "Hydro Pump!"

Leo drew on the splash plate. Another blue shimmer rippled in front of his head. But instead of a scattershot of water, he sent one high-pressure stream toward Gilgamesh. The ceruledge stood his ground, swiping at the air as if he was rapidly throwing punches. His furious slashes protected him from the Hydro Pump, until Leo was forced to break it off.

Did... he just punch out water there? .-.

"Is that the best you've got? Ha!" Gilgamesh's head crystals glowed. "No, I shall laugh a second time! Ha ha!" Black energy gathered in his blades, making them big enough to reach Leo!

"Run left!" Kieran said. Leo galloped through the air toward him, narrowly dodging Gilgamesh's giant sword arms. He saw a bit of panic in Kieran's eyes.

Ah yes, this battle's going well™️ already, I see.

"Now counter like before!"

Leo shot another Hydro Pump from his forehead. Enlarging his blades made Gilgamesh's movements slower, so the water struck his right side. He tumbled along the white ground, sword arms shrinking back to their normal size.

The cosmic arceus' wheel shimmered. Okay, he got a proper hit in. This wasn't so bad! Yeah, he totally had this!

Aaaaaand Leo just jinxed himself, I can already tell.

But why did Kieran look so concerned?

"What's wrong?" Leo said, keeping his eyes on Gilgamesh. He slung small water globules toward the ceruledge to keep him away.

"He wasn't doing this stuff when he battled my team." Kieran rapped his right fist against his right thigh. "Was he really holding back the whole time?"

That... doesn't feel like a good sign for where things are going to go here.

Leo couldn't say. But something must've told him to take Leo seriously. Was Zodiark actually talking to Gilgamesh?

"Well, I still need your help," Leo insisted. Gilgamesh was back on his feet, weaving past the small water globs. The cosmic arceus galloped left, crossing along the bridge. He swapped to Air Slash crescents. The faster wind spears caught Gilgamesh off guard, with one striking his leg. He buckled dropping to one knee.

"I know! I'm trying! I just—" Kieran squeezed the dangling lock of his hair. "C'mon... c'mon... be strong! Be strong!" He tapped his head repeatedly with his fist.

I... actually can't tell whether or not this is a deliberate mindgame by Gil or not. But either way, I can already tell that this is going to impact battle effectiveness in short order.

"Don't think you can keep me away forever!" Gilgamesh stood back up, then ran toward the opposite end of the bridge as Leo. He jumped toward the glass wall and kicked off it. Purple energy sheathed his sword arms. Gilgamesh slashed the air, sending purple bursts shaped like his ghost crystal toward Leo.

Leo froze, unsure which direction to go.

"Dr... drop down!"

"But I'm high up!"

"Just trust me!"

Leo: "Uh... well... here goes nothing."

The cosmic arceus obliged Leo, plummeting from the air while Gilgamesh's miniature ghosts flew overhead.

"Wide open!" The ceruledge dropped to the ground after Leo and slammed his swords down. Fiery shockwaves rushed toward Leo.

He tried to jump over, but the first one proved taller than Leo expected. It scorched his hooves enough to where it was too painful to gallop higher in the air. Leo fell into the second shockwave, which sent him tumbling toward the glass wall behind him.

The flames hurt. And the embers lingered on his body. Tiny spurs of burning pain peppered his pelt at random every second.

How could this be happening? He had four plates... and was much bigger. Leo should've been holding his own. The monks told him arceus were so powerful.

A: You don't have all your powers right now.
B: You're inexperienced wielding it.

Though I guess I really should start worrying about Leo going down the "gotta get stronger" rabbit hole, huh?

What was Leo thinking? Training with Yuna and Alder wasn't nearly the same thing as charging into battle like this. He was screwing the pooch big time! The universe was depending on him and he was totally failing!

"Gah! Sorry!" Kieran was thumping the side of his head again. "Should've told you to blast through that. Stupid, stupid!"

Yeeeeeah, I suppose this is the part where we should start hoping for Yuna and the gang stepping in to intervene, huh?

"Mwahahaha!" Flames gathered around Gilgamesh's blades. "You can't expect some impromptu partnership to stand up to me! And here I thought you'd give me a challenge!"

The ceruledge charged Leo down. Eyes wide, the cosmic arceus pointed his forehooves at Gilgamesh and shot dual Hydro Pump streams at him. Gilgamesh ducked one, but couldn't avoid the other.

"Agh!" He tumbled back, giving Leo the time he needed to scramble back to Kieran's side.

Leo: "So, um... you have a plan for turning things around right now, right?"

Kieran: "I... was actually kinda hoping that you had one, really."

A lightbulb went off. Leo' shook himself out, flinging embers off his starry purple pelt. "He's right. We don't know each other well. And I've never had a trainer." His expression sharpened. "But isn't battling like this supposed to be about having fun?"

Kieran looked like Leo had slapped him across the face.

"I'm making the same mistake too." Leo stood protectively in front of Kieran while Gilgamesh rolled to his feet. "We gotta stop thinking this is about showing how strong we are. And have fun with this instead."

This would be really endearing if it weren't for the fact that Gil's almost certainly going to kidnap you if you lose, Leo. ^^;

Because Gilgamesh wasn't going for the kill or anything. He was showboating like there was an audience here.

"Have... fun?" Kieran looked at his sneakers.

"I said no pleasantries!" Gilgamesh bellowed, sending more dark crescents toward Leo.

Whelp, talking's not a free action in this fight, I see.

"It wasn't pleasantries!" Leo said. Though his legs still burned, he managed to jump up and gallop over the strikes. "We were just talking about how funny it is you're getting hit by water." Another blue shimmer rippled in front of his head. "I guess you could say... you're all washed up!"

The Hydro Pump streamed toward Gilgamesh while he was trying to grow the size of his sword arms again. It swept the ceruledge up. He slid along the bridge, coming to a stop in a puddle.

"Y-You..." Gilgamesh's eye twitched. "Using me, the mighty Gilgamesh, for a cheesy one-liner and striking successfully?!" He held his sword arms at his side. "Ha ha... mwahahahaha! Yes, yes! This is precisely what I wanted! A worthy challenger at last! My blood is pumping!"

Ah yes, priorities™️

Leo didn't like his excitement, but he had to play along, right? That was how the cosmic arceus made it fun. "And I'll do it again!" He shot another Hydro Pump from his forehead, but Gilgamesh was far enough away to dodge, moving to Leo's right.

"It's time! The ultimate technique of the ultimate swordsman!" Gilgamesh raised his bladed arms up. The crystals funneled energy into them. "Behold my power! And my beautiful collection!"

He's going to pull an Infinite Sword Works-esque thing, isn't he? Since I can see that last line there.

"Attack him while he's charging!" Kieran called.

Nodding, Leo closed the gap a bit to shoot Air Slash blades. But a wall of dark and ghost energy swallowed up his Air Slashes. The energy coalesced over Gilgamesh into four ectoplasmic hands, each one clutching a different sword forged of pitch black energy. One was absurdly blocky and rectangular. Another was a thin blade longer than Leo and Kieran put together. The third was a crystal scimitar and the last was a sword with a sun-shaped hilt.

"What the..." Kieran stepped back. "What sort of attack is that?"

Ah yes, I see we're doing all the Final Fantasy references with this fight here.

Leo had no idea. And the blades looked terrifying. But moments like these were when he had to trust in the "heart of the cards" or whatever. Gilgamesh wasn't trying to kill him. Just knock him out with a really flashy attack.

Kieran: "The 'heart of the'-?"

Leo: "Look, it's an internet meme, okay?!" >.<

"Now, taste the might of Gilgamesh!" The ceruledge's head crystals flashed. And the swords pointed at Leo.

"I'm, uh, all full, thanks!" Leo said, his starcloud tail drooping between his legs.

Gilgamesh: "No running away from this fight, just saying."

Leo:

"Go!" Gilgamesh pointed his right sword arm forward. The blocky sword headed for Leo, slashing furiously at the air in a wild, zigzagging pattern.

"Don't give up! Move back toward me!"

Leo acknowledged Kieran's words with a quick nod, then galloped away. He sounded a bit more enthusiastic than before. Was he taking Leo's suggestion to heart?

Maaaaaybe? I mean, I suppose that Kieran canonically does shift into "fighting for fun" pretty quickly, even if this is still a bit sooner than I'd have expected.

"There's no escape from me!"

"The long sword's shooting something at you!" Kieran said, pointing up. Leo looked over his shoulder and saw what looked like black Draco Meteors streaming toward him. The blocky sword was still advancing, too.

"I can't deflect those!" Leo galloped higher into the air. To the point where was struggling to make out Kieran on the ground.

"A fool's errand!" Gilgamesh declared. The scimitar careened toward Leo like a bone club hurled by a marowak. Leo tried blasting it out of the air with a Hydro Pump, but the blade cleaved right through it.

Leo:

"Eep!" Leo dropped from the air, only for his eyes to widen as the sword with the sun hilt went straight for him.

There was no time to dodge! He had to brace himself and—

The sword struck his head. A squeak reverberated through the open air. Leo stared blankly at the sword. The other three abruptly stopped attacking.

"What?" Gilgamesh was in disbelief. "He shrugged off an attack from the legendary Excalibur?!"

Oh, Gil's collection got nerfed after coming to this world, didn't it?

"Wait, like the sword from the Galarian fairy tale about the Darkest Day?" Kieran sounded confused.

Leo looked at the blade's sun hilt and squinted. "Um, this says Excalipoor. Are you sure you're talking about the right sword?"

I'm assuming this is something you can also do to him in Final Fantasy, since that just feels like a really specific detail there.

After several seconds of silence, the ghostly sword vanished in a plume of shadowfire.

"Curses, curses, curses!" Gilgamesh stomped around angrily. "I won't let anyone make a fool out of me! Including myself! Tis no matter! Three swords is still enough to slice you into fence-based confetti!"

inb4 they're all similarly knockoff swords like the first one

The ceruledge pointed at Leo. Gilgamesh's remaining dark swords prepared to go on the offensive again. Leo shot a Hydro Pump at Gilgamesh, who jumped back to dodge it. Then the air around Leo filled up with dark meteors once again.

"There's too many of them!" Leo cried. He galloped right, barely leaping over the scimitar, and stopped over the ocean. He glanced at Kieran, who looked deep in thought.

Then he saw the cosmic arceus over the water and his eyes lit up. "That's it! The answer's been in front of us the whole time! Surf! Flood the bridge!"

Whelp, sure hope that Gil isn't able to just casually jump over this...

Leo's eyes widened, but Kieran was already running back toward the school. The message was clear. He trusted Leo to make this happen.

Can't tell whether this is actually going to pan out and be endearing or just get brutally crushed into the ground.

The cosmic arceus ducked the scimitar, then leaped over the blocky sword. He sprinted through the air over the bridge. When he reached the ocean on the bridge's other side, he drew on the splash plate's energy.

Ocean water that lapped against the pillars suspending the bridge rose higher and higher. The swords had turned around and were shooting across the bridge. But Leo had to hold. Just a bit longer. A biiiiit longer...

"NOW!" Kieran shouted from a distance.

Leo sent the giant wall of water crashing over the bridge's glass wall.

"What the— gaaaaaaaaaaah!"

His improvised Surf swept Gilgamesh up in a wave, flinging the ceruledge around between the two glass walls like a pinball in a machine. The dark swords and their ghostly hands disappeared in bursts of purple and black fire. Leo held his ground, swirling water around between the sides of the bridge until he saw flurries of sparkles and a playing card evaporate into thin air. Then two static streams shot toward the school like arrows.

Wow. That actually worked. Though I suppose that's a sign that Gil's now back in Final Fantasy to cause the protagonists problems there.

Leo sent the water racing up the glass walls and crashing back down into the ocean. Gilgamesh spun to a stop in the middle of the ground. Even from his position in the air, Leo could tell Gilgamesh was out cold.

The cosmic arceus drifted back toward the bridge before his flight gave out. He hit the ground hard and staggered forward. "Haah... haaah... certified gameeeeeeer."

I had no idea that SMRPG had a FF victory jingle in it. I suppose that's a sign that I should make time for playing it sometime soon.

"Leo!"

He tensed. That wasn't Kieran's voice. It was Yuna's! And by the time he was able to turn around, the dragapult was right in front of him.

"What did you—" Yuna stopped herself, looking past Leo. "Did you fight that Whisper on your own? What were you thinking?! You could've gotten seriously hurt!" She wrinkled her snout. "You look exhausted and your fur's—"

Leo: "Er... I won? Surprise?" ^^;

"Re-hee-lax." Leo took several deep breaths. "I was cooking." He tilted his head right. Kieran was cautiously approaching, gaze mostly focused on Yuna. Leo pointed at him with a forehoof.

"Besides, I wasn't on my own. I had some help."

Kieran stopped his approach. He looked like a deerling in the headlights when Yuna turned to stare him down.

"Me?" Kieran fiddled with his dangling lock of hair. "Well, uh—"

Ah yes, straight back to 'shy wallflower' mode we go.

"We were... having fun," Leo said. "That goes for the Whisper, too. He just wanted... a fun battle. And we gave it to him." He glanced at Kieran again. "Right?"

That blank look returned to Kieran's face. "Right. Fun..."

"Oooooogh."

Leo's starry pelt flickered. Gilgamesh was awake already? He turned around to find the ceruledge staggering back to his feet.

Leo: "... Wait, you're still here right now?" .-.

"Unbelievable." He approached the glass wall on Leo's right and leaned against it. "To think you bested me, the bladesman of legend!" This time his laugh was much weaker. "Such fiery passion. It's been far too long... since I've had a truly spirited fight." Gilgamesh raised a shaky sword arm. "You must... let me fight you again."

Yuna flew in front of Leo protectively. "No can do. We have important work to do. To stop the dimensions from collapsing on themselves."

"W-What?" Kieran recoiled. "Wowzers, I really am out of my depth, aren't I?"

Gilgamesh stared intently at Yuna. "Enkidu, is that you?"

Wait, wait, wait. FF!Gilgamesh has an 'Enkidu' that he gets put up against?

Leo looked between his mother and Gilgamesh. The dragapult was ready to light him up with Dragon Darts.

"I don't have time to entertain whatever fantasies are floating around your head," Yuna scoffed. She turned to Leo. "We have to seal the dungeon core now. The rifts were unstable on our side, remember?"

Leo winced. Right, he'd nearly forgotten.

Gilgamesh: "Is that a 'maybe'-?"
Yuna: "No!"

"So, let's get a move on. We'll leave that weirdo to Grishi." Yuna opened a rift behind her. She looked at Kieran. "Sorry we can't stick around. But we're on a tight time crunch." She flew into the rift, beckoning Leo along.

He slowly walked toward it, then paused to look at Kieran again. "Thanks." Leo bobbed his head. "For what it's worth, I think you're a good trainer. I hope you can have fun battles again after we leave."

Oh, so Kieran did get a way to resolve his insecurities in this universe after all.

Kieran was mostly focused on the rift. "Right." He nodded slowly. "Fun battles."

Leo wasn't sure he'd get much more out of the kid. He stepped through the rift. As he did, though, he heard one last thing from Kieran.

"Good luck with... whatever your quest is. I'm sure you can succeed!"

D'aww... what a wholesome ending. (Which IIRC is like 1-2 chapters away from a major character death, but let's focus on the positives here!)

~Vessel of Ruin: Ting-Lu~
The Affirmer sought to recreate the Red Chain. Its power would let Him wield the Original One as an extension of His being. However, such a legend is only strongest within its domain. The Affirmer recognized this. So, He tried to capture legends across different worlds. And when the Renegade interfered, He aimed to forge a Red Chain spanning multiple universes, then bind legends from an unrelated world. For this clash of energies would shatter the domains, unlocking the power over fate itself: Phenomenal Affirmation.

... Wait, implying that the other three are also bound like this? Or is this basically a plot out to grab Schrodinger's Legendaries as needed for the plot?

~Il Paradigma, No. X: Gilgamesh, the Wheel of Fortune~
A mysterious weapons collector and self-proclaimed bladesman of legend. He was drawn to the dungeon core from an interdimensional rift. His fiery passion helped him seize parts of the core's power for himself, which he used to travel through the anomaly into Eternatus and take the Wheel of Fortune from its previous holder.

It seems he's not truly malevolent. Instead, he seeks a worthy challenger to satisfy his thirst for battle.

I was going to ask how on earth he was a Paradigm member, but I suppose usurping the prior holder's job would explain a few things.

Path of Valor Almanac
The Wheel of Fortune is the tenth tarot card in the major arcana, symbolizing destiny, fortune, success, and luck in its upright position.

Huh. I suppose that's not all that bad as a pairing with FF!Gilgamesh from what I know about him.

Gilgamesh is a recurring joke character and superboss in the Final Fantasy series. In his debut game, he falls into an interdimensional rift toward the end of the story. He has since proceeded to show up in multiple games in the franchise, usually referencing the interdimensional rift.

A frequent technique of his involves wielding weapons from other Final Fantasy games. For this chapter, he summons Cloud's Buster Sword, Sephiroth's Masamune, Odin's Zantetsuken, and Excalipoor. The latter is a running gag weapon associated with Gilgamesh. As a forgery of Excalibur, it deals one damage.

This is the most blatant of this fic's unashamed references. I promise nothing else will be as bad as this one.

In your defense, this is probably going over the heads of a lot more readers than if you did this reference ten years ago. Also, it was hilarious, so good enough. 🥳

Alright, so I kinda take it that the main purpose of this chapter was to have some dumb fun with Gilgamesh before moving on to the next anomaly and set of MacGuffins for Yuna and Leo. Since while there were two bosses that were dealt with almost back-to-back, the overall atmosphere was a lot more lighthearted and zany than I'd remembered in a decent while for a "boss fight" chapter. I'm not really opposed to it, though. Like I know that you sometimes waver a bit on whether or not it was a good idea to go full "all the references" with Path of Valor, but this was definitely one of the more fun and memorable usages of it I've read so far.

I don't really have a whole lot to complain about for this chapter. Maybe it would've been nice to see a bit more of the Ting-Lu fight, but honestly, the whole battle with Gilgamesh and helping Kieran sort out his issues (still can't believe that I'm seriously writing those three in the same sentence) more than made up for it.

Assuming no life surprises, you can look forward to hearing back from me a bit more later this week @Ambyssin . I honestly feel a little bad for falling behind on this story, since I've clearly been missing out on some fun content in the past few months. ^^;

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Heya, had a little bit of time and energy tonight and a little bird told me that this was the chapter where things hit the fan in spectacular fashion. So let's go ahead and see just how sideways things go in:

Chapter 95

Spoiler: Line-by-Line

Something's wrong.

I've been detecting this... increasing resonance between Dreamweaver and Zodiark. I thought at first it was merely the interplay between the former's power and the latter's knowledge. But a more recent analysis suggests this resonance is far more... antagonistic. My previous hypothesis was that Dreamweaver was simply a well of power. However, it seems like Dreamweaver might actually be some sort of entity like Zodiark.

Huh, we're hearing that 'Dreamweaver' name again. I wonder if that's someone we've already seen before in the story, or someone that'll be new.

These two entities feel like they're trying to undermine one another. It's producing... concerning readouts. I must find a way to counter this resonance. Otherwise, I fear the Space Globe may begin to destabilize.

Fortunately, I have an idea. If I can tap into aspects of both Dreamweaver and Zodiark, I may be able to devise a program that can counter their virtual quarreling.

Noctum sat on a steel beam, lazily swinging his dangling legs. He looked across the rocky crags and interwoven machinery of Iron Island. Much of the equipment warped and contorted as the anomaly inched forward. It had already grown to encompass half of the island.

Ominous music is ominous. Even if I'm a little surprised that he's able to do that with his leg structure.

And yet, no Eternatus Troopers had shown up. Valkyrie and Jade even found the unconscious victini from the video feed, taken them back to the outpost, and returned to join him without any issue.

Naturally, that meant the garchomp was on guard, pacing back and forth along a rock face and gazing out at the ocean. "Tell me you're at least a bit on edge," Valkyrie growled.

I mean, I would imagine that sitting right next to a cute dragon girl is helping a bit with those anxieties right now. :V

"I am." The cosmic charizard rubbed the back of his head. "Because of the rift. Leo just... dove into it. And our communications are still down, too." Noctum leaned forward slightly. "At least the ocean breeze is nice, though. We don't have that back home."

I still am not sure what the story is behind how Aeon is such a craphole in every respect short of it being a place where Etherium's dragons were ethnically (species-ly) cleansed into way back when.

"Why are we sticking around here, anyway?" Jade sat on the opposite side of the metal beam. She dangled a hard hat from the tip of her tail. "If Leo seals the mystery dungeon, he'll go back to the outpost. Maybe we ought to try and go to Herbrides? That's where the others were supposed to be, right?"

Noctum sat up straight. It wasn't a bad idea...

"Someone has to keep an eye on this this place," Valkyrie huffed. "You're just worried because Yuna's there and she's got your mate in her chest crystal."

Shots fired by Val there. Even if I'm sure that she's not exactly wrong there.

She looked down, squinting. "Which is a sentence of all time."

Jade sighed. "Why couldn't he be in my chest instead?"

Noctum tilted his head. "Wouldn't you rather he not be stuck as a spirit?"

Valkyrie rolled her eyes. "She was joking, you dork."

I didn't realize that that was meant to be sarcastic/joking from Jade there.

"Yeah." Jade brushed a wing along her belly. "This scale-feather mix isn't comfy, anyway. But Cece's floofy chest is soooo dreamyyyyyyy~"

Valkyrie: "Ah yes, priorities right now."

Jade: "Look, it's not like we're doing anything other than sitting and waiting at the moment!" >v>;

The cosmic charziard looked over his shoulder, hoping for any excuse to stop the conversation before it went further. And he immediately found one when he realized all the metal scaffolding and equipment was back to normal.

"Wait." Noctum's starry tail flame rippled. He flapped his wings once to rise off the steel beam. "The rift is gone!"

Noctum flew forward, scanning the area. There was no static or anything. "Did Leo seal it?"

Huh. No view from Team Yuna's end of the sealing sequence, huh? Either that, or we're going to see that in a little bit.

Valkyrie ran across the steel beam. "Cid, you read us?"

"Ah, I do! Thank goodness!" The orbeetle laughed nervously. "And I'm picking you up with my Dynascan. What happened?"

"Rift disappeared," Valkyrie said, tapping her right foot against the beam. "What's happening in Herbrides? Is your signal back there?"

"I'm afraid not." Cid tittered. "There are plenty of folks here on standby who could go there. I think."

I feel as if meta-wise it might make sense to be a bit more specific about what signal Val's referring to here, since I admittedly was drawing a few blanks.

The garchomp frowned. "Have any of them actually been to Herbrides? As far as I know, Leo's the only one who's made rifts to places he doesn't know!"

Noctum's tail flame grew. "I've gone to the Herbrides Lines!" He spun around in midair. "It's not exactly in the city itself, though."

Val: "Again. Priorities."

"Good enough!" Valkyrie clapped her claws together. "Let's get some reinforcements at the outpost then head over ASAP."

"Can we get some snacks, too?" Jade flew over to them. "I'm hungry."

Valkyrie glared at her.

"N-Never mind. Quick outpost stop it is."

Might've jumped the gun a little bit with that last cutaway gag.

Perhaps Yuna should've expected the dungeon core to take the form of an ethereal graveyard. What else could mix ground, ghost, and dark-types together so effectively? The dragapult floated past rows of black tombstones shaped to resemble everything from gengar to absol to sandaconda.

Oh, well then. Looks like we're dipping back in time after all. Though the number of types mixing in these anomalies keeps going up and up. Makes me wonder if the next one will somehow have four in one place.

However, she was too focused on the cosmic arceus trotting ahead of her to care what form the core took. "I asked you a question, Leo. Why did you run off without telling anyone?"

"You were already heading through the rift." Leo shook his head and kept walking. "I thought I sensed that kid in the Terarium. Got a bad vibe." He swished his cosmic mane. "That was right, B-T-dubs."

Oh lordy, the Zoomerspeak is back. Though that makes me wonder if after this next batch of plates, if Leo will act like some manner of adult.

There was that slang again. Had Leo acted like that the entire time he fought Gilgamesh? "You still could've said you'd catch up with us," Yuna said. "I was worried sick!"

Liar. She'd gotten so preoccupied with Ting-Lu that Leo had practically sipped her mind while fighting it. But he didn't need to hear that.

Proooobably a sign that Yuna needs a bit of a break from the mission grind sometime soon, since that certainly doesn't sound healthy.

"Well, like I said. I gamed." Leo's hooves crunched against brown soil. Brown and dark gray glows shimmered a few hundred meters ahead of the cosmic arceus. There was a black void between them. Yuna sure hoped that was the dark-type plate.

"Whisper was friendly, anyway," Leo continued. "Friendly enough, at least. Never in any real danger."

Just saying, I saw that second phase of the battle there.

"And you think that excuses it?" Yuna's tail rippled. "Maybe nothing bad happened this time. But what about the next time you pull a stunt like that? We both know how much is at stake he—"

Leo whirled on her, his starry fur flickering. "That's exactly why I had to do this!"

Yuna froze beside a morgrem-shaped tombstone. "What?"

"I'm Arceus." Leo's wheel dimmed. "At the end of the day, I have to fix our world. How can I possibly think I'm capable of doing that if I'm always sitting on the sidelines while you guys do all the fighting?"

Oh, so Leo is going to have a "gotta grow stronger" phase / arc in this story.

"Well, that's—" Yuna stopped. Could she even call Leo a child anymore?

Depends on if you would classify "hormonal teenager" as a child, but potentially, yes.

Certainly not based on the way he acted. And what Alder had told her he'd read in his archives, to boot.

"Okay." The dragapult held her hands up. "You've got a point. I guess I hadn't stopped to consider your, uh, changes because of how fast this anomaly popped up and how quickly it was growing. And I treated you like you were still a kid as a result."

Leo stood a bit taller. He had no mouth, but Yuna felt like he was somehow smirking. She sternly crossed her arms.

"With that said, though, you still shouldn't dive into the fray on your own." Yuna floated up to the cosmic arceus and put a hand on his shoulder. "We're a team. Maybe you're the one who has to fix our world. But this," she gestured toward the plates floating ahead of them, "is something you have backup for. You've got to use it."

Ah yes, Yuna having to navigate the "unruly teen progeny" phase of motherhood, even if that was surprisingly thoughtful of her. Makes me wonder just how far her stint at motherhood as Chiron went in the past.

She straightened up. Was there a comparison that could help Yuna get the message across?

Well, given some of his new behavior...

"Even Gene can't do this stuff on his own. He at least had Cyril before the rest of us came into the picture."

Leo shifted his weight uneasily. "But I had Kieran acting as my trainer..."

Leo: "... Who I left behind back in his universe, but that still counted for something, right?" ^^;

He looked down silently. Slowly but surely, guilt bubbled up in the cosmic arceus' eyes. His starry pelt and golden wheel dimmed.

"Aww, man. I almost threw big time, huh?"

[ ] Yuna didn't want to ask Leo what that meant. "Let's just agree to learn from this mistake, okay?"

He nodded. "Can I get my plates now?"

"Yeah."

I kinda wonder if there should've been a bit more emphasis on Leo and Yuna's mutual reactions before the topic moved along. e.x. to see how Yuna's reacting to things sinking in for Leo, but that's just me.

They continued down the graveyard. The pokémon-shaped tombstones shifted to mixtures of dark gray and black. After another minute, they found the three plates floating in midair. A triangle of brown light, dark gray light, and black shadows swirled around them.

"Let's see what they say."

Yuna leaned forward. Her core burned in her chest, as usual. She resisted in order to read the engravings on the three plates.

I take it that Giratina wasn't on great terms with this universe's Arceus back in the day, since all of these interactions with the plates have always been uncomfortable to outright painful for Yuna.

When the universe was created, its shards became this Plate.

The other side of this world was given by the Original One to its raging third.

Two make matter, and three make spirit, shaping the world.

I see that these are all exact matches with the relevant plates you rolled here. I actually wonder if you chose the ones to show off here based off being able to make this sequence here or not.

Yuna backed away. She gave Leo a go-ahead signal with her tail. Leo walked up toward them. The plates' glow reflected off his golden wheel.

One of the engravings was quite clear. And it lined up with Yaldabaoth's claims about being the reverse world's guardian. Of course a giratina would guard a realm that was created for it.

Yuna: "Which... would probably explain a thing about how our universe is in danger of blowing up considering how said Giratina had its job usurped by someone who was never meant to do it." .-.

Yuna drew blanks on the other two, though. The shards of what became the ground-type plate? Arceus? Was that why Leo grew with every plate he absorbed?

And that last one... her memories of that Temporal Tower place showed five pokémon wrapped in the Red Chain besides Arceus. What were the odds those were the five that plate referred to?

Pretty close to 💯, but it's probably better to let the story get there on its own timing.

She threw her up to block flashes of brown and gray light. When Yuna lowered her arm, Leo was now taller than her. Black vapor and gray ectoplasm swirled around his legs while his mane was now made of sand.

"Neat, huh?" Will-O-Wisps spun around Leo's neck.

Wew. He's really shooting up there fast at this rate.

"Yeah." Yuna tilted her head. "I think you should seal the core, though. It's growing fast, remember?"

"Right." Leo turned around. He traced that familiar pattern of circles, squares, and triangles in the air. "Oh, uh, Mom? About before..."

"Something wrong?"

"I'm staying back this time," Leo said.

Leo, what on earth are you doing here?

Yuna's tail crinkled. "Excuse me?"

"It won't be for long!" Leo said. "I just... I need to try something. It involves that purple koraidon."

"Leo..."

"I'll be quick, I promise." Leo's wheel lit up.

Yuna felt an invisible force grabbing hold of her. "Wait! At least tell me what you're planning!"

"I'm trying to find the guy Vince works for," Leo said as Yuna grew further away from him. "If it doesn't work, I'll bring Vince back with me."

Oh, so we're finally going to see

cross paths with the main cast, huh?

"But how do you know you can get back?"

It was too late, though. Leo became a tiny speck in a matter of seconds, then white light swallowed Yuna up.

Yuna: "... Damn it, Leo are you kidding me right now?!"

Seifer's heart pounded in his chest as he passed by familiar buildings, warped and distorted by purple cracks and fissures in the air. To his right, purple light spilled over one of his favorite bakeries, draining the green and white awning over the entrance of its color. The windows shattered and black berries tumbled out onto the street.

Your music link in this section is dead. You might want to consider updating it.

"You guys are seeing this too, right?" Artemis used a small plume of water to carry himself past Seifer. "Everything's turning into fruit!"

Static engulfed a cafe a block ahead of the keldeo. The outdoor furniture morphed into asparagus that fell apart while dark gray nanab berries replaced the door handles.

Ah yes, that's totally a good sign for what Hebrides is going to look like after the dust settles here.

"Yeah." Cyril was ahead of them, his starcloud mane even wilder than usual. "I don't think this is the distortion we were tracking. It's gotta be an anomaly."

Then there must have been a portal somewhere, right? Seifer galloped after Cyril, wincing from berry juice staining his hooves. Screams and footsteps echoed around him. People who were no doubt trying to flee.

"We have to try and direct these people out of the city!" Seifer insisted. Another small rift opened overhead. "Look out!" He slung an Aura Sphere from his horn, blowing apart... more berries.

So what is the designation of this weird fruit dimension anyways? If it even has one.

"Augh!" Juice rained on Cyril. The zoroark's starry mane deflated. "Okay, it's annoying, but not deadly." He tried to shake himself dry, but the juice was too sticky. "I don't know this place well and Cid's not an option."

Artemis dropped to the ground by the fruit and juice-covered cafe. "Isn't there an exit a few blocks north of here?" He gestured forward with a ribbon. Seifer nodded. "Yes. There's a large road that connects to the byway leading to Tulpise." He galloped past the cafe, scanning the surrounding buildings.

Seifer needed higher ground... and a way to project his voice. "I don't suppose you brought any, like, megaphones in your gear, did you?"

Artemis: "... Wait, but didn't Tulpise get eaten by an ano-"
Seifer: "Again, byway leading to it. Nobody said anyone had to go there!"

Cyril lifted his sticky mane to show his dumbfounded expression. "No? Who brings a megaphone to a scouting mission?"

Fair. Seifer would have to improvise, then. He headed left for a two-story square building relatively untouched save for giant lettuce leaves in place of its windows. Hydro Pumps from Seifer's hooves carried him onto the roof. It was still sturdy.

Honestly a bit surprised that that held, but I suppose reality in general is being kinda wonky at the moment.

Most people were moving north already. But there was a lot of confusion. A tauros bucked a marshtomp and quilladin couple out of his way and was about to trample over a family of dedenne. People kept shoving a mandibuzz, stopping her from taking off with her vullaby chick in tow.

Ah yes, mob mentality in action. I see that Radiance doesn't exactly do civil defense drills.

This was bad. Even if the rifts were just making fruit, people were getting hurt.

Seifer took a deep breath.

"EVERYONE NEEDS TO REMAIN CALM!"

The shout's intensity surprised Seifer. For a moment, he found himself looking not at the crowded street but at a black void that lit up blue with energy from a furious roar.

... Wait, did he just use Roar of Time there? I mean, it wouldn't have crossed my mind normally, but between the chapter title, the intro, and the past reveal that Noctum is strongly implied to have been Palkia before the big reset... .-.

"It's Commander Seifer!"

"Is the Radiant Guard here?"

"I thought he got sacked!"

"Ow, you're stepping on my tail, you bitch!"

"Then don't shove it in my face!"

Seifer snapped to attention. Focus.

The format didn't exactly translate well for this quote, but I thought that this was a neat text translation of how the games handle text bubbles popping up at various spots on the screen for crowd scenes. Kudos there.

"I need everyone to head north in an orderly fashion!" The keldeo pointed his right forehoof down the street. "Those of you closest to me, move to Granger Street." He jerked his head back. "Those furthest from me, cross to Bartlett Street." Seifer moved his right forehoof so it pointed at the street behind the buildings opposite him.

Huh. Wonder if those names were chosen for any reason in particular, or just because.

"Keep your pace uniform!" Seifer continued. "Larger 'mon have to carry smaller 'mon!" He stomped his forehoof on the street. "Let's go, let's go! No chit chat or dawdling!"

People began to fan out from the street by the office building. Another wall of purple light raced across the area. Seifer suppressed a wince. "Remain calm! We have this under control!" He looked over his shoulder. Cyril and Artemis had managed to climb up a nearby three-story brick building's emergency stairwell. They were on the roof, scanning the sky for signs of trouble.

Since yeah, I remember how you summarized what this chapter would be about last time.

Seifer nodded to them, then jetted over to the next building north of him with Hydro Pumps. "Keep it up!" he said. The keldeo narrowed his eyes at a skittish ursaring about to barrel into a quagsire. "Hey, Ursaring! No shoving! Carry Quagsire if you have to!"

Another purple wall rippled through the air. This time a rift opened behind Seifer. He saw a large orange roll out onto the street. It would bowl the civilians over if Seifer didn't do something!

Sounds like it's time for some Metal Gear Rising-style slicing and dicing.

The keldeo leaped from the building roof, using Hydro Pumps from his hooves to safely land behind the group of people. He stared down the giant orange. Oh, if only he could still use Secret Sword!

Or not. Let's see where he goes from here in that case.

Aura Sphere will have to do! Seifer shot the blue energy ball from his horn. It hit dead center, dimpling the peel and slowing the orange. Seifer shot another one, leaving another dimple.

It was getting closer. Seifer backed away. He shot a third Aura Sphere.

That one did the trick! The peel tore open and large orange slices toppled over.

I'm honestly surprised that it didn't explode into a mess of juice and pulp there.

The Spacial Rend crescents broke apart, warping the void around him.

"Pathetic!" Seifer sneered. "But I'm not surprised. You can't match up to me!"

Oh, so Seifer really was

back in the day, huh? Since this style of prose is definitely familiar from moments in the past.

Loud crashes jolted Seifer. Two orange slices struck the side of the house on Seifer's right, breaking the outer walls and window. The house's foundations surprisingly held, but Seifer didn't want to stick around.

Hydro Pump jets carried him back to the top of the same building he'd jumped off of. Things were quiet. The streets were totally empty! Where were the people?

Cyril was waving him down from the same building as before.

"What happened?" Seifer asked.

"The lot of 'em got levitated away." The cosmic zoroark pointed skyward. "I think Boss Kitty's aware of the situation."

Well, that one was certainly well timed.

Cyril: "Though what on earth was going on there? You were just spacing out in the street!" .-.

Seifer looked around but saw no signs of a shadowy mewtwo in the area. "He grabbed them from... somewhere else in the city entirely?" That was an impressive and concerning amount of range.

Maybe Starlene is here and powered him up?

Raspy laughter filled the air before Seifer could suggest they head back into the city to find Gene. His blood ran cold. And judging from the flash of panic in Artemis' eyes, the milotic must've realized the same thing.

Oh. Oh dear...

"We have to go!" Artemis' eyes darted around, trying to find the source.

"Agreed." Seifer galloped toward the edge of the building roof, only to skid to a halt before a small dome of black shadows.

"Seif!" Cyril shouted from the other roof. He and Artemis scrambled for the emergency stairwell.

Chained, chitinous forelegs emerged from the shadows, followed by the rest of Xeromus' cloaked body. His beady gray eyes were unreadable beneath his stone mask.

So wait, are we ever going to have a sequence in the future where Xeromus has his namesake's battle music playing in the background? (Even if it obviously isn't happening here since this is hardly 'final clash' territory.)

"The veil is lifting," the helmeted silvally said. He let out a few raucous coughs. "Your shoulders are heavy with the burden of truth. Keh heh." Xeromus sucked in a sharp breath. "An incomplete truth, perhaps. But enough for you to realize just how special you all are. The great potential dwelling within!"

Xeromus is the AI referred to in the preamble, isn't he?

Seifer remained tense. Ready to blast this freak with Hydro Pumps at a moment's notice. Yet Xeromus sounded different this time. He wasn't spouting his usual nonsense about futility.

"We got some folks out of here, but there's trouble!" Cyril shouted, but it didn't sound like he was talking to Seifer. Were the X-transceivers back up? "Something's really wrong here!"

"You clawed your way out toward rebirth to right an egregious wrong," Xeromus continued, eyeing Seifer with interest. Chains scraped the brick rooftop as he slowly paced to the keldeo's right. "You can condemn chaos. You can walk a path of valor toward a bright, eternal future! Guided by the Affirmer!"

Aaaaand cue the credits roll.

- Meanwhile in the background -

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbTf3moH72s


Artemis: "I'm sorry, but didn't we already have one ominous music track playing in the background right now?" ._.;
Xeromus: "Nobody said there wasn't room for another, since you have quite the crossroads ahead of you. (Also, I'm pretty sure the script calls for one of you to die horribly in about a minute, so this would also be an on-brand song for the moment.)"

That sounded a bit more like his earlier crazy talk. Which was more than enough for Seifer. He shot water jets from his forehooves. Xeromus' cloak bristled and some sort of shadowy canine emerged to swallow the attacks up like they were nothing.

Seifer tensed. Igneous had mentioned a spectral beast. Now that Seifer saw it for himself, though, it looked... a bit similar to Queen Calliope. Except for the almost shield-shaped head.

Hello, Zamazenta. So that's what became of you from that vision like 60 chapters ago.

"Ha ha..." Xeromus shook his head. "I get it. Why trust the word of a lowly omen acting as a stepping stone for everyone to become part of something greater?"

"I don't think you get anything," Seifer countered. "If you did, you'd be fighting whatever forces are doing this to you!" He stomped a forehoof down. "It's Zodiark, isn't it? Just like how they control Whispers! But you're better than that! I know you're capable of doing good, Nova."

"̷̢̳Ḭ̸͑̒ ̶̛̺a̴̗̔m̸̖̏ ̷̹̦d̷̜͈ỏ̷͙̝i̶̘̒n̴̫͂g̸͙͂ ̶̩͑g̴ơŏd.̄ ̵͋Yoùr old șo̲u̸̙̟l̶̥͊ ̶͓̀s̶̛implỷ si̴̭̒ṃ̶̒́p̷̌ly ṟȇfuş̷̀e̵ş tȯ ċhḁ̶̟̀n̸͛ͅg̸͕͘e̵̞̍.̷̰͇"̶̻

Well, that's not creepy and concerning at all there.

"You're supposed to be better than this!"

Seifer reared up onto his hind legs. His blue-gray body rippled with a metallic sheen. "Yet time and time again you cause nothing but problems and headaches? Why can you not be still in your pocket and focus on your duty?"

Across from him, Space's pink shoulder gems bristled with energy. "I didn't do anything wrong! You always assume! Rush to conclusions! You're the embodiment of time! Where's your patience?!"

Yeah, I had a feeling with that prediction earlier. Even if this is kinda bad timing to be having visions like those right now.

"Seifer, look out!"

Cyril's scream brought the keldeo to attention. Yellow crystals emerged from a larger specter behind Xeromus. Seifer dove to his right. The crystals struck the brick roof and shattered. Seifer scrambled to the edge of the roof, barely dodging yellow sparks.

Electricity? He looked at Xeromus, who had stepped to the side to reveal the familiar four-legged cloud monster from Tulpise. Its legs were now completely covered in those strange crystals. Were they responsible for the lightning?

Jenova music, huh? Didn't see that one coming. I wonder if that's related at all to the nature of whatever is going on with Xeromus / Nova there.

"Tum sachmuch badle nahi ho."

And the hovertext makes its return. I presume that ExplosiveTurkey helped out with this one here if you didn't just hit up a Hindi phrasebook.

The cloud daemon's body rippled. A larger version of Leo briefly appeared in its place, with pristine white fur instead of Leo's starry, blue-purple pelt. Then it melted away, revealing the cloud daemon now had a crystal wheel around its torso. Just like Leo's.

The Creator stared down at Seifer in disapproval. Golden light poured down from the heavens.

"It's not my fault!" Seifer cried. "It's Palkia! It's always Palkia!"

I can already tell that Past!Arceus had some truly legendary headaches dealing with this world's Creation Trio if they had personalities like this.

Seifer caught a yellow flash out of the corner of his eye. He fired Hydro Pumps and blasted the yellow crystals away.

"Get away from him!" Cyril growled. He and Artemis had gotten up on the same roof. The cosmic zoroark tossed a Shadow Ball toward the cloud daemon. Xeromus' cloak bristled, however. The spectral wolf reappeared and swallowed the shadow ball in its wispy maw.

"Your mind is struggling," Xeromus said. His gaze was firmly fixed on Seifer. As was the cloud daemon. "But there is not as much to reconcile between past and present as you think. Your vanity. Your arrogance. Your sins. They are the same now as they were before."

So wait, if Hindi is used as the transparent stand-in for Sanskrit in this story by virtue of it having an advantage of about 600 million extra people that speak it in some capacity who can be leaned on as translation references, does that mean that we're getting a Bollywood dance sequence scene at some point in this story?

"Don't listen to him," Cyril scoffed. Ghostly energy swirled around his mane. "They're just trying to distract us. Because it's all they can do."

No, I think that he's being earnest there, Cyril. Even if I don't exactly have a lot of trust in whatever Xeromus is up to here.

"Right!" Seifer reared up, pointing one foreleg toward Xeromus and the other toward the cloud daemon. No way Xeromus could block both the Hydro Pumps that followed at once, right?

Aaaaaand he's doomed to fail. Since I know how stories work when you tempt fate that transparently, Seifer.

Sure enough, the wolf appeared to protect the cloud daemon, leaving Xeromus to get doused. He stood tall, however, shaking his helmeted head.

A colorless crystal sprouted from the rooftop, stopping scalding hot water from hitting the cloud daemon's left side. Artemis shrank back, curling up his ribbons.

"Damn it," he muttered.

"It's so tragic." Xeromus took ragged breaths. "All this time apart. You'd think you'd recognize your creator. The rightful arceus of this world."

Wait, wait, what? Then does that mean that Leo is similarly a Legendary being shoehorned into a position he was never meant to fill in this universe?

The gems on the cloud daemon's legs turned yellow. Stormy clouds formed over the roof.

"Move!" Seifer barked, waiting until he saw yellow flashes overhead to dash left. He barely skirted the lightning bolts that followed. Cyril had managed to yank Artemis out of the way, too.

Seifer stepped out of the rift, eyeing the small contingent of humans standing in their temple dedicated to the Creator.

Seifer: "Oh for crying out loud, does this really need to happen right now?!"

He eyed the small sphere in the black-haired girl's hand. Palkia was inside the thing. He was sure of it.

Foolishness. Utter foolishness. Palkia let a human capture them?

Then Seifer was right. He was the better of the two. And now he would prove it!

He roared. Multicolored light poured out in a dome around the temple.

Well, that certainly recontextualizes the pre-credits boss battle in PLA quite a bit.

"Down, Seif!"

The keldeo dropped to his belly. Yellow gemstones whizzed over him. Static ran down the tip of his horn. His mane puffed out a bit.

"The truth is right in front of you!" Xeromus spat. "And yet you're happy to blindly follow the status quo! To let chaos reign and follow Giratina's lead!" There was a flicker of... something in Xeromus' beady gray eyes, but Seifer wasn't sure what.

I swear, if Yaldabaoth turns out to be Airy from Bravely Default all over again...

"Why else would you feed Arceus' power to some pretender?"

Whelp, that confirms that Leo is a Legendary being foisted into a role he wasn't intended to fill there.

Seifer fired an Aura Sphere from his horn. Cyril and Artemis followed his lead, adding a Shadow Ball and Scald stream.

Another large colorless crystal emerged from the ground to deflect the attacks, then quickly disappeared.

"Tumhara ghamandh tumhara ant hoga."

I'm... just going to go ahead and hazard a guess that it's Seifer who's the one who doesn't make it out of this chapter alive, huh?

Palkia emerged from the ball and guarded the humans against Seifer's Roar of Time. The roof and pillars of the temple exploded. Marble debris tumbled down the mountain.

The humans looked to Palkia with admiration. Even the one with blue hair — who had offered Seifer prayers so many times before — looked aghast at his actions.

He wouldn't stand for this! Seifer absorbed the lingering energy around him. His body morphed and twisted, gradually resembling the Creator's form.

Seifer was better. He would show these humans that Time was superior to Space!

I can already see why this setting's universe imploded and got rearranged into a patchwork PMDverse in the past with a Creation Trio like that...

"It's tragic." Xeromus' raspy laughter carried across the rooftop. "In the end, you still haven't learned to swallow your pride and put others before yourself. Time truly is a flat circle."

... He's been working on it, at least?

The cloud da— no, Arceus' leg crystals were turning yellow again.

"You're wrong, Nova!"

Seifer's neck prickled at Cyril's harsh interjection. The zoroark's starcloud mane rippled.

"He's not selfish! Far from it!" Cyril had a Shadow Ball in each hand. He tossed one toward Arceus and the other toward Xeromus. "He's here, isn't he? Putting his life on the line to try and save this world!"

Xeromus: "Hah. 'Saving this world'. Is that what you're calling it now?"

Crystals and the spectral wolf easily stopped Cyril's attacks before they could hurt their targets.

"Hell, he was working to get the people here to safety!" Cyril continued. "And that's after this kingdom treated him like dirt and his shitty dad and uncle all but disowned him! If that's not selfless, I don't know what is!"

While Cyril spoke, Seifer saw Artemis slithering along the side of the roof. The milotic managed to sneak in a small Scald that splashed against Arceus' left foreleg crystal. It staggered back. A distorted hiss filled the air.

Seifer winced. Artemis flickered in and out with the silhouette of a blue-haired human.

Oh, well that answers who the PLA protag used to be. Guess that's a sign we'll be seeing more of him from this point on.

The keldeo's breath caught in his throat.

"Akari's right." The blue-haired man looked at Seifer, arms crossed. "You have to bury the hatchet with Palkia." He scratched the back of his head. "Much like we ought to do with the Pearl Clan."

"You can lead them by example," the black-haired girl said, patting Seifer's metallic foreleg.

Well, that wasn't quite who I was expecting Artie to be, but duly noted there.

Arceus roared once again. A harsh wind whipped up across the rooftop. Seifer dug his hooves in to stay rooted to the ground as best he could, but he was unprepared for Xeromus' chains unraveling from his legs and slashing at him repeatedly.

Seifer: "... Ow." @.@

"Aggggh!" Seifer's legs buckled. The winds pushed him back. He tried to call out to Cyril and Artemis. The cosmic zoroark was on all fours, digging his claws into the brick and gritting his teeth.

"Heeeelp! Heeeeeeeeelp!"

Artemis was pinned against the far corner of the roof. Arceus had turned to the milotic, lightning crackling around its crystals.

Well, this fight is going well™️ at the moment.

"Arte— nngh!"

Xeromus' chains sliced at Seifer's torso. Blue fur dropped to the ground, followed by red splotches.

"Seif!"

Small punctuation error. And you see, I knew that casting 'The Decision' for this moment would wind up being fitting.

The wind was howling. Cyril's mane muffled his cries. Thunderclouds gathered over Arceus and Artemis. The milotic's eyes were full of dread.

Full of dread... like the day he failed to stand up for Artemis. The day Vortex kicked him out of Horizon Academy. The day Artemis lost his future.

Seifer: "Yeeeeah, I've kinda been a selfish prick for a huge chunk of my life, huh? Even if I really didn't need to remember that right now."

The blue-haired man looked at his transformation with eyes full of dread.

Seifer galloped forward. Through the pain and the wind. He saw the yellow light forming overhead.

"Tum kismat se ladh nahi sakte!"

Yeah, Seifer's totally not making it out of this chapter alive.

"SEIFER, NO!"

The keldeo summoned a Protect shield and leaped into the air. At first, it held against the massive lightning surge. Artemis had managed to slip out from underneath Seifer.

Then the shield shattered.

>dat art

I guess "Aim for the horn!" works in this setting, too."

Seifer: "... Ow." X_X

Yellow flooded Seifer's vision. His prosthetic horn was a veritable lightning rod funneling the electricity through him. Pure agony drew the briefest of screams.

Giratina's Earth Power toppled Seifer, taking the last of his strength with him. As his vision blurred, he saw the other human — the one whose hair resembled the Creator's — smirking at him. Practically laughing at his failure.

Purple shadows spread across him. A mask of the creator's wheel covered his face.

"Defeated again, Dialga. Because that is your fate."

Well, that's certainly a brutal sendoff there.

The horrifying pain stopped. Seifer managed one final, ragged breath, before the last of his consciousness was plunged into an endless black abyss.

Seifer:

Cyril: "S-Seifer? SEIFER!"

~Resurgent Creator: Dreamweaver Risen~
Red Chain in hand, the Affirmer believed a world without humans would provide refuge from the Renegade. Yet still, they tailed Him. He remained in hiding, biding His time until the Renegade took pity on a dying riolu. While they were preoccupied, He unleashed the Red Chain on that world's creators.

Salvation was within reach, only to be denied at the last second when the Renegade lashed out.

Oh so Volo basically hijacked the plot climax to an AU of Guiding Light that was tracking towards a bad end. Or at least I think that's the implication there.

Path of Valor Almanac
- "Samay khatam" is Hindi for "out of time."
- "Tum sachmuch badle nahi ho" is Hindi for "you haven't really changed."
- "Tumhara ghamandh tumhara ant hoga" is Hindi for "your pride will be your end."
- "Tum kismat se ladh nahi sakte" is Hindi for "you cannot fight fate."

Thanks to ExplosiveTurkey for his help with the Hindi translations. And lastly, a handy chart to show those of you who made it this far where things stand.

Oh, so there's the official Word of God confirmation that Turkey did the Hindi dialogue. I would recommend putting in some sort of bullet format to make the individual lines and their explanations stand out a bit more, though Not sure how I feel about the straight image embed of who is the reincarnation of who from GL/PLA, since it's potentially major spoilers for people scrolling through the story. You might want to consider using a spoiler block for that.

Alright, time for the Cliff's Notes for the end:

That was certainly the bleakest chapter ending that I've seen in this story so far. You weren't kidding about things hitting the fan here, even if a part of me wonders if this is truly the last we've seen of Seifer in this story since we've already seen at least one character reincarnate multiple times. The buildup to the fateful moment was done quite well, even if I suppose I should be a lot more worried about the other characters that formed a triad with Seifer back in the day. Something to keep in mind for future chapters, I suppose.

I don't really have too much to complain about beyond some punctuation or bits that felt like they would've benefitted from an extra sentence or two here and there. I do wonder if this moment would've hurt a bit more if Seifer's past had gotten a chance to be explicitly shown off a bit more beforehand since while it was used to good effect here, it did feel a little rushed since everything had to come out before Seifer bit it.

Though that was... uh... something. I'm honestly not sure where things are going to go for the cast or the story here, but I suppose that that's a story for another time in the not-too-distant future since I hope to get a few more of these chapters under my belt before RB6.

Kudos @Ambyssin , and until next time.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Heya, gonna be doing something different tonight and shoot for something that I haven't done for a while, namely a double-feature review. So let’s get this started and jump straight into…

Chapter 96

Spoiler: Line-by-Line

Though for reference, if you wanted to say "red wolf" in straight Latin, that'd be Lupus Rufus.

Simple code alone isn't going to be enough to mediate Dreamweaver and Zodiark. I thought a program could work against them, but they both seemed to adapt to my first few builds. What manner of construct are they? Could they be artificial intelligences?

That feels like a really bold assumption there given all the paranormal stuff that's been going down in this story.

AI is mostly speculative right now. But given how much power the Space Globe has, I think the solution is to effectively counterbalance their ever-evolving states with one of my own. An AI that will mediate these two.

Trying to make something of that magnitude from scratch would prove difficult, however. And I don't believe I have the luxury of taking my time with it. So, I'll use myself as the basis for this AI. It should be doable with the Space Globe's power.

This time I'll succeed. I have to succeed.

I'm sorry, what? Though I'm guessing that this is the origin of Matriarch.

For once, Igneous listened to someone else's cries not to rush ahead. He stayed with Gene and the others rather than flying off in desperate search of Cyril, Seifer, and Artemis. True to his word from earlier, Gene went about levitating large swathes of people outside the city. At least, the ones that hadn't already been taken by the robot cramorant the pirates left behind to help.

Well, that music's certainly ominous there. Just as well, since we didn't exactly end on a happy note last time, and I'm guessing Iggy's going to discover that in really short order.

Some wattrel and kilowattrel Whispers emerged from rifts toward the northern side of the city, which Igneous and Widget focused on. They used dual Flamethrowers to shatter the birds before they could pepper Gene with lightning. Even Scarlett helped. Starlene put Light Screens up and deflected stray Thunderbolts from a couple of extra kilowattrel that spawned higher in the sky, leaving Widget to snipe them down with Flamethrowers.

"I think that's the brunt of it," Gene declared between shaky breaths. Pink mist evaporated off his hands and glowing eyes.

I can already tell that that coming from Gene is going to age like milk.

Igneous glanced down. A rainbow of fruit juice was splattered across buildings. And oversized berries littered some of the streets. There wasn't anyone in sight, though. Barbarossa was flying along Herbrides' outskirts south of the group. It had that part of the city handled, in Igneous' opinion.

"We should get going." The grovlazzle's wings buzzed. "They were covering the north, right?"

Igneous: "Which in retrospect, might have been a bad idea since there were only... what was it, four of them? But still." .-.

Before Gene could answer, yellow flashes erupted in the distance.

"Northwest!" Widget's head crest crackled with static. "Are those thunderclouds? They're so concentrated."

"That's gotta be them," Igneous said. "Come on!"

Oh, so they're just straight-up going to walk in on The Zappening, aren't they?

"On it." Gene shot toward the sparking clouds. Igneous flew after the shadowy mewtwo, ducking and weaving around a couple of rifts that opened and shot glowing iapapa berries to his left and right.

More lightning erupted in the same spot as before. This time, though, Igneous heard screams.

Whelp, make that "just missing it".

"Shit!" Gene's tail lashed at the air. "Cyril? Cyril!" He shot forward in a blaze of blue and pink energy.

"H-Hey, wait up!" Widget's thrusters erupted in flames, carrying him after Gene. Igneous followed behind them.

Gene suddenly dove out of the air.

"What did you do, Nova? What did you do?!"

I'd suggest hitting the comms, but... yeah, everyone on Cyril's end of things is likely either busy trying not to die or being dead already.

A deafening crack filled the air, followed by an intense burst of wind. Igneous struggled to stay upright. A yelp behind him suggested Scarlett fared similarly.

Igneous steadied himself and continued forward, only for his eyes to widen.

Gene floated upside down over Xeromus, spoon stalemated against a black barrier. And the cloud daemon — it had a crystal wheel just like Leo's now — loomed over a scorched, smoldering body.

... A body with the broken remnants of a metal horn next to it.

"Me? A worthless omen like me only has one role to play in your lives," Xeromus said. His cloaked shoulders tensed and Gene was forced to back off. "He's the one who martyred himself! He let his past swallow him up, just as the Affirmer predicted!"

Can't tell if we're about to see:

or:

from Gene right now.

... Maybe both at the same time, really.

Electricity crackled in the cloud daemon's leg gems. Cyril was running toward the body. He was going to get shocked if Igneous didn't do something.

"Get back!" the grovlazzle shouted. Though he couldn't tear his eyes from the burnt body, he thrust his right arm forward. Igneous' honedge husk flew toward the cloud daemon's right hind leg. It turned its head. Lightning vaporized Honedge, but Igneous rolled right and spewed flames from his mouth at the daemon. And a Thunderbolt came flying in from his left, courtesy of Widget.

Igneous: "Oh that one's going to haunt my nightmares for a while..."

"Seifer! Seifer, hang on!" Cyril practically draped himself over the scorched keldeo. Tears blurred his yellow eyes. There was no way Seifer was still alive, right?

There wasn't a single patch of untouched fur on his pelt.

Xeromus:

Igneous: "Wow, that was rude and uncalled for." >_>;

The grovlazzle landed beside them while Widget headed for the cloud daemon. What could Igneous do here? What was the team player move?

It was getting Cyril and Seifer away from here, right?

But Igneous couldn't carry them both. And what about Artemis? The milotic was coiled up on the opposite corner of the roof, staring at Seifer in abject horror.

Igneous: "Um. So... there's a possibility that Seifer might still be-?"
Artemis: "For crying out loud, Igneous! He looks like a bloody charcoal briquette right now! He's very obviously dead!"

"Damn it, Nova! It's not supposed to be like this!" Gene snarled. Psystrike orbs surrounded the helmeted silvally. But Xeromus' chains unfurled and slashed away at the orbs before they could strike him.

Igneous winced. Considering how aggressive he'd been toward Xeromus in the past, he could scarcely imagine what was going through Gene's head.

But this wasn't the time for offense. For once... they had to hold back.

I'm not convinced at all that that's the right play here since I'll heavily take the under on you talking Xeromus down here, but I suppose it's worth a shot?

"Gene! Gene!" Igneous waved the shadowy mewtwo down. The cloud daemon tried to shoot lightning at him, but Widget barreled into it. Somehow, despite the gaseous form, Widget forced the cloud daemon off the roof and across the street onto the wrecked house a block north of him.

"You're dealing with me!" Widget declared. In a flash of white light, miraivally turned to reshivally. Blue flames erupted on that house rooftop.

Oh, so we are getting that Shulk gif after all. I just didn't correctly anticipate who'd do the honors.

"What?" Gene snapped at Igneous, slashing furiously against another black shield Xeromus conjured.

"We have to go!" Igneous gestured at the sobbing zoroark. "Seifer needs medical attention! You're the only one who can levitate them and open rifts!"

"He's dead!"

I'm taking that as Iggy basically having been in denial the entire time up to this point since... yeah, even if Seifer wasn't already dead, those wounds in all likelihood would've left him a dead 'mon walking.

Gene's Malice Crystal sparked with purple energy. What was up with his voice just then?!

"Look at him! No one survives an injury like that!" He summoned his spoon once again. "I have to do this! I made a promise!"

IMO, your emphasis there works better in this sentence ending on "survives", since attempting to read both words aloud with emphasis felt a little strange to me in its surrounding context.

The shadowy mewtwo dove down. Xeromus' gray eyes flickered with interest.

"Gene, please!" Igneous charged forward. Xeromus couldn't stop two strikes from opposing sides, right? Another black shield formed to deflect a swing of Gene's blackened spoon. Igneous readied his Leaf Blades, only to yelp when the red wolf emerged behind Xeromus. He barely had enough time to conjure Honedge and deflect swipes of the wolf's spectral claws.

Narrator: "Your Gene is currently beside himself with rage, please take a number-"
Igneous: "That's not helping right now!"

"No. I can't— I won't—" Gene tried to force the spoon forward, but Xeromus' barrier held firm. Igneous' wings carried him back to Cyril's side. The wolf didn't give chase.

Something was clearly wrong here. Gene's attacks looked like that weird beam Nikki mentioned seeing Gene fire in Wyndon. But why were Xeromus' barriers giving off the same dark smoke?

Wait, implying that they're both connected to Dark Matter or Void or whatever it is that's souping up Gene's power?

"Then let me stay back!" Igneous said. He glanced right and saw Scarlett was still hovering a couple of blocks away. "Widget and I can hold the line with a little help. At least until you get them somewhere safe!"

Famous last words.

Fire and lightning swirled around the house on Igneous' left. The reshivally was racing around, dodging yellow crystals that burst into explosive lightning.

"What will you do, Gene?" Xeromus' raspy laughter filled the air. "Tend to that old failure... or keep your promise?" He raked his claws across the brick roof. "Come on! Let me drive you to even greater heights! You and the rest of this tragic world!"

Oh, so Xeromus did this on purpose. TBD how much of that was of his own free will or as an agent of Butterfree Effect, but that's certainly an ominous angle.

"Don't listen to him!" Igneous said. He darted forward again, knees crouched as he expected the wolf to pop up again. When he saw the red flashes, the grovlazzle sprang up and spewed flames from his mouth. They washed across the top of the wolf's head and its growls filled the air. Igneous hovered higher to keep his distance.

"Nova's still in there! I'm sure he's fighting!" Igneous looked between Gene and Cyril. The cosmic zoroark hadn't budged from lying over Seifer's burnt body. "But every second we waste here won't help Seifer! Cyril's your friend, too! Don't you know what he's feeling right now?"

Gene: "Igneous, I literally can't sense thoughts from him right now! He's very obviously dead!"

Igneous: "... We can find a way to make him better? I mean, Yuna's reincarnated multiple times, so..."

Gene Phantom Warped right past Xeromus and Igneous. "Fine! You better keep them both here!"

That speech pattern isn't a good sign coming from Gene, I can already tell.

"Wh— hey!"

ESP yanked a startled Artemis into the air. Gene dragged him away along with Cyril and Seifer.

Igneous summoned Honedge again. "Starlene, we need your singing!"

"You got it!" the latias chirped from several meters behind the grovlazzle.

Starlene's music filled the air for all of a second, before a playing card materialized over Xeromus' helmeted head. Igneous saw an "XV" on it for a moment before the red wolf completely engulfed Xeromus. A distorted howl filled the air.

>XV

Oh, so Xeromus' or else Zamazenta's Arcana is The Devil. I feel as if that should be a worrisome sign right about now.

"Agggggh!" Igneous' wings fizzled out, sending him falling toward the roof.

His fur and chitin burst apart. Igneous' volcarona body fell from the air. What had happened to him? Why did he feel so weightless?

Ah yes, more preincarnation visions here. Though that certainly sounds painful.

"Go now." Zodiark walked beside his fallen body. "You know exactly what to do: find a strong soul. And have the battles you so desperately want."

I'm sorry. What? .-.

Igneous hit the corner of the roof. He sucked in a sharp breath from the pain. Igneous fell to the ground with a heavy thud and rolled across the dirt.

"Nnngh. Oww..." The grovlazzle grabbed his right shoulder in pain.

"Ha ha ha... haaahaaahaaahaaa!"

Oh, so that's why this chapter's called 'Red Lupus'. Duly noted, then.

The dusty ground trembled. Xeromus landed on the opposite side of the street. The red wolf still surrounded him. Xeromus' gray eyes shimmered from within the silhouette.

"He... lp. Scar... let..." Igneous tried to get to his feet but God his arm and legs hurt.

"Something's wrong!" The dragonair was flying panicked circles overhead. "I... I can't summon Starlene!"

Igneous' eyes widened.

Wait, Xeromus can just suppress everyone's sage-related abilities like that?

"I won't let you perpetuate this world's stagnation!" Xeromus' voice was much deeper than before. And the wolf's spectral mouth moved in time with his words. The wolf slammed its forepaws into the ground. Shards of stained glass erupted like Stone Edge spires.

Yeeeeah, it kinda feels like there really isn't a resolution to the problems that POV-2020 is causing other than to grenade the universe and be the one in control of reshaping whatever remains. Even if I have to wonder what the "winning" route even looks like at this point given that there's reason to distrust all the higher powers that have a stake in the universe's fate.

Move, move, MOVE! Igneous told himself. The grovlazzle fought through the pain and managed to scramble left, even avoiding the wolf charging through the stained glass spires with a red, shield-shaped aura.

Igneous' breath caught in his throat. A shield-shaped canine. He'd heard about that from one of the others, hadn't he? Think, Igneous, think!

Xeromus:

Igneous: "You know, this would be a lot easier if you gave me a name to work with!" >.<

It wasn't coming to him in the heat of battle, though. If he could just get Xeromus talking. The guy never shut up anyway.

"That card... so you are with the empire!" Igneous accused. He spewed a Flamethrower at Xeromus, but it was swallowed up by the same black shield as Gene's previous attacks.

For a moment, Xeromus froze. "No, I—"

Oh, so Nova used to be in Paradigm before defecting to Gene. Since that's the only explanation for how Xeromus can still have an Arcana from them while still being nonaligned.

That softer voice was cut off. Xeromus jerked his head right. "Of course you'd make that conclusion," he said.

Igneous tensed. That brief hesitation... and the loss of that strange, guttural backing to his voice. Then Nova really was in there. And something had a hold of him. A power similar to what Gene had just used. But the mewtwo could control it, while the opposite was true for Nova. Still, there had to be a way to free him. If Gene could do it, why couldn't Nova?

Gene: "Uh, yeah. About that..."

Xeromus' chains rattled on his forelegs. The red wolf returned to cover him. Xeromus slowly walked into the middle of the street. Igneous matched his movements, keeping a dozen meters between them. Sparks and flames crackled in the air northeast of him as Widget flew circles around the cloud daemon.

"Anything to fit that stale narrative. Justify repeating your past mistakes." Xeromus' gray eyes flickered. The spectral wolf lunged for Igneous, slashing with shadowy claws. Igneous jumped back to avoid the first swipes, then parried the next two with Honedge. He drove the blade into the red wolf's wispy chest as it readied for a third strike.

I'm just going to go ahead and assume that POV-2020 has been through multiple reincarnation cycles at this point. Since I can see Xeromus' wording there, and it sure sounds like what he wants the most of POV-2020 is finality for it. Much in the sense of giving a story a definitive end.

It broke into red mist that swirled back toward Xeromus. Igneous glanced up. Scarlett wasn't flying around anymore. She must've landed on a roof. "Keep trying to get Starlene back!" Igneous begged.

He kept Honedge at his side. "I don't know what mistakes you're talking about, Nova."

"You can lie to yourself all you want. We both know the truth!" Xeromus said. He and Igneous continued to circle around one another in the intersection. "That emperor is a nobody. A bit player. His choices are meaningless. Unlike yours."

I'm sure that Paradox would be having an aneurysm right about now. Though I suppose that that's a sign that not everyone gets reincarnated in POV-2020, but rather a select portion of the cast that the universe's fate hinges around. Can't say that I'm unfamiliar with that setup in other media.

"What are you talking about?" Igneous spewed Bullet Seeds at Xeromus' mask. Then he dove right and switched to a Flamethrower. Xeromus opted to block the second strike. Bullet Seeds peppered his mask. Tiny thunks rang out in the air.

"How disappointing." Xeromus shook his head. "To be one of the privileged few blessed with a second life... only to waste it defending this backwards world."

Wow, that was a fast confirmation there.

"The past is the past!" Igneous shot a single fireball. He dashed left and shot a second, then banked right and went for a full Flamethrower.

"Guardian!" Xeromus hunched over and the red wolf emerged before with another guttural snarl. Stained glass Stone Edges erupted all around Xeromus to deflect Igneous' flames. Then the wolf smashed the glass shards, filling the air with them.

Oh, so Zamazenta has a name. Duly noted.

"Shit!" Igneous charged forward, slashing wildly with Honedge. Plinks and dings littered the air. His head leaf burned. Red, spectral paws were swinging at him. Rather than parrying, however, Igneous slid along the dusty ground. The swipes went over his head. Igneous swung Honedge wildly. It collided against one of Xeromus' chained forelegs. He toppled onto his side.

"Please help..."

The grovlazzle heard the voice for all of a second before the spectral wolf howled. It lunged for the grovlazzle from behind, slamming into him and knocking him down a side street. By the time Igneous managed to get back to his feet, so had Xeromus.

I'm not really convinced that Nova can truly be helped at the moment. Like as satisfying as it'd be to see, it just feels like there's been too many cruel Hope Spots in this story for things to break that way.

"You've let the past deceive you into thinking you're doing the right thing when you're only continuing this cycle of stagnation! Xeromus declared. "You know better. The universe is fundamentally flawed. The reverse and normal worlds twisted and broken."

Xeromus jerked his head left. "Don't... listen..."

He jerked his head right again. Igneous' eyes widened. Was this fight making a difference? Did Igneous need to keep pressuring Xeromus' corrupted state in order to free Nova?

"You can't save this world!" Xeromus hissed. "To 'save' it is to damn it to a protracted demise!"

Yeah, I'm going ahead and calling that this story is ultimately heading down the path of "delete and reboot the universe" as its plot resolution. Since nothing Xeromus has said there is wrong from what we know of how POV-2020 works up to this point.

"That's not true!" Igneous glanced up. Still no signs of Starlene, but plenty of fire and lightning from far to his left. At least that meant Widget was still standing. "We're going to fix everything!"

"By feeding the Creator's power to a false idol?" Xeromus descended into hysterical, wheezing laughter. "The true Creator is with me! Arceus Dreamweaver defends themselves from that toy you call your friend."

Oh, well. That answers the question of who the 'Dreamweaver' that's been referenced on-and-off in more recent chapters is.

He thrust his helmeted head upward. His guardian mirrored the gesture. The cloud daemon raced overhead, outrunning a Blue Flare that exploded behind it. Widget emerged from the smoke, then turned left to trail after the thing that Xeromus was calling Dreamweaver.

Igneous seized his opening, charging forward with a burst of speed from his fiery wings. He closed the gap in seconds and struck Xeromus' right side with his Leaf Blades.

"Liar! You're the one screwing everything up!" the grovlazzle growled. He jumped away from the spectral wolf's retaliatory swipes, landing on a corner of the intersection. "Keep fighting, Nova! I can hear you!"

"Dreamweaver exists for the Affirmer to wield!" Xeromus said. "To forge the Eternaverse!"

Though I'll just take that as a sign that the Affirmer is Volo/Butterfree Effect.

He locked eyes with Igneous. "Giratina drives you to repeat the past. Continue an endless cycle of chaos that ensnares all worlds in suffering and uncertainty. Dangles the sword of oblivion over their heads. So that no matter how good life may seem now, there is a guarantee of future agony!"

Oh hey, I'm getting flashbacks of that one fight with Alternis Din from Bravely Default right about now. Since armored figure ranting about how we're making everything worse sure feels very on-brand with that moment.

I suppose I should prep the

towards Yaldabaoth from here on out.

Stained glass Stone Edges again erupted from the ground. With his wings back, Igneous could safely fly over them. The red wolf leaped skyward this time. Igneous barely managed to roll left of the shield-shaped red blur as it streaked past.

His head leaf and tails caught fire. A lightbulb went off in his head. And maybe it could reach Nova...

"Zamazenta!" Igneous blurted out. "Your guardian... is your old resistance teammate!"

I mean, that would explain his presence in the Special Episode way back when.

Xeromus' gray eyes brightened a bit. The red wolf returned to surround him in an instant. Igneous hastily landed back on the ground, fearing that distorted howl that took away his wings earlier.

"This is... all because of Zodiark, isn't it?" Igneous said. He summoned Honedge again to be on the safe side. "But you don't really believe them, do you? Why else would you leave Gene that recording telling him to take up your mantle?"

There was a brief flicker of sadness— no, longing in Xeromus' eyes. But he quickly jerked his head left, then right.

"That was when I was still in denial!" Xeromus countered. Zamazenta's specter lunged for Igneous once again, but the grovlazzle rolled forward to dodge. He threw Honedge, then scrambled left toward the opposite corner of the intersection.

So close and yet so far...

A crunch filled his ear frills. Igneous skidded to a halt just as his honedge husk hit the ground and dissolved away. Xeromus continued staring at the intersection corner where Igneous had been.

"I'm sorry." The softer voice was louder than before. "I can't... control it. You have to... stop me..."

Yeah, I knew that things wouldn't be as easy as just talking Xeromus back into sense.

Then he slowly turned toward the grovlazzle... revealing a crack in the center of his mask.

"Nova! Listen to me, please!" Igneous begged. Some of the mask was broken. He was hearing Nova. He was getting through whatever Zodiark did to him. Maybe Nova didn't need to control this corruption like Gene could. Not if Igneous could free him! With just a little bit more effort—

Xeromus' cloak rippled and shadows swarmed his body.

"Keh heh... haaah..." Xeromus hunched over. Zamazenta reemerged again with another distorted howl. Igneous dropped to his knees and threw his hands over his ear frills.

Xeromus:

Nova and Zamazenta roared in pain as the Red Chain dragged them together. Brown stone grew over the former's face while the latter dissolved into red mist. The mist draped itself over Nova's cape, shredding apart the fabric and darkening it from turquoise to a deep blue.

"I don't care who you are!" an unfamiliar female voice shouted. "Such beautiful power... belongs to me!"

Wait, wait, wait. How on earth is Igneous seeing that vision? Is that implying that he used to be Zamazenta as well?

"Ahaahaa!" Xeromus sucked in a sharp breath. "Haahaahaahaahaaa!" He smacked the ground with a foreleg. "There's nobody for you to 'save!' Just like there's nothing in this world to save! The only salvation lies with the Affirmer!"

And no, Xeromus, getting the equivalent of the White Ending from SMT4 doesn't count as 'salvation'.

Before Igneous could get back to his feet, however, a black and purple blur rushed in from above and slammed into Xeromus. A burst of wind and dust blew Igneous down the road. When the dust settled, a shadowy mega mewtwo stood with his back to the grovlazzle. Black sparks danced around the crystals in each of his shoulders.

"So that's what happened," Gene said, fists raised. "Zodiark made you a shadow pokémon, didn't he?!"

I didn't pick up on that angle at all up until this point. Though that makes me wonder if calling Nova's name repeatedly would crack the effects of his shadowification.

Shadow pokémon? Igneous struggled to get back up. It sounded like Gene knew exactly what the problem was. But that was good! That meant he was bound to know a solution, right?

Well, yes. But that involves not dying horribly while getting in a position to try and enact said solution, so... ^^;

A red blur leaped onto the roof of a building to Gene's left. Xeromus emerged from the blur, staggering across the roof and coughing loudly.

"We can fix it, Nova!" Gene shot into the air. "Please, you have to let me—"

Zamazenta's specter lunged for Gene, knocking him out of the air. Gene landed upright on the ground, skidding back toward Igneous.

"There are... no loopholes here..." Xeromus sucked in sharp breaths. Igneous lost sight of him, so he sprinted to Gene's side. "There's only one end for someone like me."

Xeromus, you're scaring me right now...

The helmeted silvally looked around, thrashing his head back and forth. "Nnnnnnrrgghhh. But it's not time. It can't happen yet."

Eyes widening, Igneous took to the skies. "He's gonna flee!"

Gene rocketed past the grovlazzle, but he was too late. His psychic waves grabbed nothing but black wisps. Xeromus was gone.

A squawk rang out behind Igneous. He turned to see Widget stumble on a slanted brick roof two blocks north. The reshivally took to the air before he would have tumbled off the building. He looked around in confusion.

"Where'd it go?!" Widget caught Igneous' gaze. "Don't tell me..."

Igneous bowed his head. "They got away."

Yeah, see above, really.

"And what about the others?" Widget looked past Igneous.

Gene stared silently at the spot on the roof where Xeromus had been. "Ran into Zardy and Chompy and passed them off. They should be back at the outpost." He slowly landed on that building roof. Gene's mega evolution vanished in swirls of black and purple.

"What were you talking about at the end, there?" Igneous asked, swooping down to land next to Gene. "Shadow pokémon? The hell's that mean?"

"Not now."

"Excuse me?"

Gene held up his glowing right hand. "Not. Now."

Igneous: "What the hell do you mean 'not now'-?!"

Gene: "Look, can we do this sometime when Cyril isn't sobbing over Seifer's dead body?!"

He walked a few paces away from Igneous and tapped the side of his head. "Can anyone read me? Are comms back?"

Igneous tapped the side of his head in time to hear Cid say, "... Got your signal! And not a moment too soon!"

"What?" Widget landed to Igneous' left. He shifted back to his cosmic form, panting heavily. "What's that supposed to mean, more trouble?"

"Unfortunately." Cid tittered. "Something's happened in Dazzels. Vegna was able to help us open a rift there, but I have no idea what we're looking at. Some sort of giant charizard with wings of fire!"

Oh, well. I was wondering when we were going to hear from Vortex again, since it'd been a while since we last saw Dermezel souping him up with an Arceus Plate.

"We can't..."

That was Scarlett. Good, she sounded okay. Igneous looked right to find the dragonair gliding down to the roof. She folded up her wings and landed between him and Gene.

"My head hurts." Scarlett coiled up, tiny wings folding over her neck bauble. "I'm—"

"These guys with me aren't in any state to keep fighting," Gene said. "We'll regroup with you back at the outpost first." He looked at the others. "That sound good?"

I mean. Yeah, even if they aren't badly injured at the moment, they're going to need a lot of counseling over everything they just experienced.

Igneous nodded. His head was positively spinning from all of this. There was no way he'd be able to help.

But if it was Dazzels, did that mean this had something to do with Shimmer? Was this why the ponyta had ditched them back in the mall?

Probably? Even if I'll take the under on him fully anticipating what the consequences of his actions will be.

The different thoughts swirled around in Igneous' head as he stumbled toward the rift that Gene had opened in the middle of the roof.

Igneous: "Oh boy, just what else could go wrong toda-?"

Gene: "Don't you dare finish that sentence, weed lizard." >.<

Leo reappeared by the Terarium's core. With the static gone, he got a full course of brilliant gold and silver light. The cosmic arceus galloped through the air, blinking stars out of his vision. He wondered how anyone could perform maintenance on the core with it shining so bright.

Eh, not important.

They must wear some absolutely amazing eyepro for the occasion.

He was totes winging this. Which meant he'd have to tread carefully here, especially after he told Yuna to trust him.

Leo's gut check was good, though. This was going to work.

... Okay, it had a fifty-fifty shot of working. But Leo was still going to try and do everything he could to bolster those odds.

I feel you ought to be a bit more worried about how swiftly you're downgrading those odds, Leo.

First step was locating Vince. Leo stayed close to the Terarium dome. The artificial sky was actually no brighter up close than it was on the ground. Some sort of weird human trickery, no doubt.

Now, where had that purple koraidon gotten off to? The team had left him somewhere in the savannah biome, if Leo recalled. Had he stayed there?

Leo, if you have to ask the question, the answer's almost certainly 'no'.

Leo trotted toward the southern part of the dome, only to stop when a familiar zoroark-mewtwo mishmash popped in front of him in a blue flash.

"What Leo still doing here?" Grishi rested his right cheek against his right wrist. He sheathed and unsheathed his glowing orange claws. "Leo think Grishi blind? Core is gone. Leo should be gone."

Crud! Leo wasn't counting on Grishi actually sticking around. He figured Grishi had better things to do with his time.

You know what they say about assuming, Leo...

"I, uh—" The cosmic arceus brushed his forelegs together nervously. He had to think of something before this opportunity slipped through his hooves. And Vince along with it.

Wait, didn't Grishi know Vince was an Overseer?

At least, some of his early comments sounded that way. Then that was Leo's way in.

Considering how Grishi very, very obviously did not like Overseers, I'm not sure that's really a workable opening there, Leo. ^^;

"Okay, look." Leo walked through the air to Grishi's side. "That koraidon Overseer guy? I think he's hiding stuff that we need to know to help our world." He looked down. A flock of vullaby and mandibuzz were flying below the duo. "And my vibe check says since we pulled him into this world, his boss is going to come and find him. Then we can really get some answers."

Grishi raised a brow. Did he not believe Leo, even though he was telling the truth?

"So, seerseer fish you want to use to catch bigger fish." Grishi nodded slowly. His fuzzy tail lazily swished back and forth. "Fine."

Wow, I'm surprised that that worked.

"Fine?" Leo tilted his head.

"Grishi will help."

Leo's starcloud mane and tail sparkled. "Really?"

"Yes. Because Leo has precious little time."

Leo: "Wait, I... do?" ._.;

"E-Excuse me?" The hell was that supposed to mean? Leo wasn't dying. And his plates were keeping him anchored to this world for now.

Grishi put his right paw on Leo's right shoulder. "Bigger fish here already. With human from before. Come."

Can't tell if that's Vince or

that he's referring to there.

And before Leo could get another word in, his world twisted around. The spiral of colors was... actually not as disorienting as last time. Maybe it was the extra power from more plates? Or perhaps Grishi was just better at teleporting others when there were fewer people involved?

Either way, Leo's golden hooves landed on freshly cut green grass.

"... As I don't want to admit it, I get it." That was Kieran! Leo looked up to find the kid a few dozen meters away, twirling his dangling lock of black and purple hair and repeatedly tapping his foot.

"I guess... I thought loving Ogerpon meant I was entitled to have her as a partner." Kieran's shoulders sagged. "But that's not how it works. A good trainer's... gotta consider their pokémon's feelings."

Okay, yeah, it's

, I can already tell.

He fixed his gaze on ninetales with snowy, blue-white fur. Gilgamesh was there, too, but appeared to be fast asleep.

And the ice ninetales... stood beside Vince! That had to be Vince's boss, then!

Yuuuuuuuuuppppp.

Leo turned to Grishi, but the zorotwo was nowhere to be found. Instead, Vince met his gaze and the purple koraidon's eyes widened. He tugged on Ninetales' leftmost tails.

Suddenly a heavy pressure weighed Leo down. He couldn't even manage to cry out, because Leo fell right over on his face.

"Huh? Wait, I thought you hated me!" Kieran continued. Leo tried to pull himself upright, but the pressure was too intense. Was it ESP?

Wait, is that Grishi or

's doing there?

Oh, he had the dread plate now! He just had to focus on its power and... nothing. Leo still couldn't get up. What the hell kind of power was this? No way that was just a simple ice ninetales!

Oh, well. That answers that question there. Even if I wonder if the earlier part should've been a little clearer.

"A Z-Crystal?" Kieran sounded confused, but Leo couldn't see what was happening. "I've read about them, but— hmm?"

Leo squirmed on the ground. It did no good. Damn it, Grishi! I thought you wanted to help!

"Just press it to my head when the time's right?" Kieran asked. "Uhh, I guess I can manage that. But how will I know when that time is?"

Oh, I see someone's using telepathic communication there given that Leo can't overhear anything.

The cosmic arceus reached out to as many of his plates as he could and he still couldn't fight against the intense force pinning him down. His legs were locked. Leo kept tasting dirt with every attempt at moving.

"Okay. Then I'll—"

Kieran was suddenly cut off. The pressure on Leo faded in an instant. He scrambled to his feet to find Grishi floating where Kieran had once stood.

Cue the awkward reunion between Grishi and

in 3... 2...

"Long time no see, seerseer," the zorotwo said. His tail curled and uncurled. "Think you have something that belongs to Grishi and friend." He jerked his head at Vince, then at Leo.

Ninetales' tails puffed out. His eyes shimmered gold for a brief instant, only for a purple aura to crackle around Grishi.

Not sure what to make of the change in music, but somebody is very obviously not happy at the moment.

"Ah, ah." Grishi wagged his left index digit at Ninetales. "This Grishi's domain, too. Seerseer helped with that, remember? No using borrowed power to run."

Leo's wheel flickered. Was Grishi implying he was a god for this world? That'd certainly explain why he knew about Overseers.

Grishi:

Though I assume that the Overseers have some work to do with building out their network of serviced worlds given that Grishi is clearly not going along with their program at the moment.

He didn't care about the previous history, though. It was time to act. Even if that action was just blurting stuff out.

"Who are you?!" Leo galloped toward Ninetales and Vince. "What are you and Vince doing to my world? Why won't he tell us what's really going on?!"

Ninetales finally acknowledged Leo with a bewildered look. His tails frazzled even after he managed to put on a straight face.

"It's not something you need to know," Ninetales said.

Leo: "Like hell it isn't! Everyone keeps treating it like there's something wrong with it, and you know it!"

"Then why did you give Kieran something?" Leo countered. He took another step toward them. If Grishi was keeping them in place somehow, Leo could definitely get answers.

"It's a contingency," Ninetales responded. He spoke concerningly fast. Had he said that without thinking? "You're doing a good job, so I don't think we'll even need it. You just have to keep sealing up the mystery dungeons."

Yeah, no. They're totally going to need it later on.

Leo's eyes narrowed. "Why would you have come here if you knew I was sealing this dungeon?" He made his wheel glow with orange fighting energy.

"Grishi thinks seerseer should answer," the zorotwo mused. A wry grin crept across his face.

[ ]

"Look, I can't, okay?" Ninetales barked, huffing out frosty air.

IMO, this would be a moment where it likely makes sense to show off some combination of

/

's reactions right now, since I assume that they're both a bit taken aback.

Vince stepped away, biting his lower lip. "Boss..."

"Don't." Ninetales held two tails up in Vince's direction. The purple koraidon shrank down. Ninetales shook his head. His tails kept twitching. Some sort of nervous tick? "I'd love to tell you what's going on. Really. But I just... can't. Because if I do, it could screw up all the hard work you're doing."

Leo's mane and tail dimmed. What was that supposed to mean? The truth could help the resistance, right?

"Please," Ninetales whispered. "You have to trust me."

I feel as if this is some sort of meta-commentary about spoiling a story's plot for its characters.

"That tall order for complete stranger," Grishi scoffed. He clapped his hands together. "Grishi propose deal instead. Seerseer leave sad, sorry korkor with Leo. Then can go back to being troublemaker like before."

"What?!" Vince's antennae unfurled into feathery wings, then wrapped themselves back up. "No deal! You can't possibly—"

Ninetales hung his head. "Okay."

Vince:

Shane: "Oi, we already used that macro once in this review."

"Seriously, dude?!" Vince whirled on Ninetales, looking like someone had stolen his lunch. "You can't leave me with them. I'm not in battle mode. I'm useless like this!"

Sighing, Ninetales put a foreleg on Vince's right shoulder. "If you were strong enough to go poking around in Ginnungagap behind my back, then you're strong enough to get your battle mode working again."

I mean, he's got a point there...

Vince shrank back, whimpering.

"Seerseer shake on deal?" Grishi said.

Ninetales turned and extended a foreleg to Grishi, who shook his head. "Shake with Leo." He pointed at the cosmic arceus.

Leo stiffened. This wasn't some sort of trap, was it? Ninetales' aura... was something Leo couldn't even get a solid read on. It was practically blinding!

Leo: "Radiant, even." .-.
Shane: "Yeah, yeah, I get that a lot."

"Uh... okay." He hesitantly shuffled across the grass. Leo extended his forehoof so that its tip just barely touched Ninetales' forepaw. They awkwardly shook forelegs for all of a second before they simultaneously pulled their forelegs back. Leo's golden hoof was practically on fire. He wanted to sprint over to the beach biome and plunge it into the water.

That actually makes me wonder if Leo really is meant to be Solgaleo, since it would both line up name-wise and it'd explain that reaction to touching someone who's really a Necrozma.

"Then deal is deal." Grishi dusted off his hands. "We'll be on way to Leo's world. Seerseer stay so no funny business, then take Ceruledge and leave."

Leo's tail shot up. "Hang on. 'We?'"

Smirking, Grishi jerked his head in Vince's direction. "Someone has to make sure this dumb-dumb doesn't run off."

Vince: "Are you kidding me right now?!"

Grishi: "No, and dumbdumb should stop getting on Grishi's nerves if dumbdumb know what good for him."

Vince shrank down to his belly, whimpering.

"I guess... that's okay?" Leo doubted he could stop Grishi if he tried. He glanced between the zorotwo and the Overseers.

Leo opened a rift back into Ginnungagap. This wasn't exactly the result he was hoping for, but at the very least he wasn't coming back empty handed. Leo had info and a bargaining chip of sorts in the form of a purple koraidon. Surely the resistance would be able to do something with this.

... I just realized, but Dermezel has a giant hate-on for the Overseers and just put his plans for getting at Isola's portion of the Red Chain in action. If he intends to bait them into trying to intervene with POV-2020...

~Il Paradigma, No. XV: Xeromus, the Devil~
The Matriarch's enforcer turned against her. He laid the seeds for her eventual destruction, throwing the Qliphoth into a tumultuous period that would only stabilize when another of her creations seized power for himself. Most records of him were expunged from the public. The brunt of the treasonous allegations shifted to the most recent wielder of the Moon.

But as the years passed, people whispered rumors of a mad beast wandering the realm, declaring an impending end to the Qliphoth. That it would mark the beginning of salvation for everyone.

Yeah, I knew it, re: Xeromus. Though that makes me wonder if the underlined has something to do with those light arrows we saw Yuna wielding in the last chapter, since it very strongly implies that she as Chiron is also ex-Paradigm.

Path of Valor Almanac
The Devil is the fifteenth Major Arcana. In the upright position it symbolizes ravage, violence, extraordinary efforts, force, and things that are predestined but not necessarily evil. In the reversed state it represents evil fatality, weakness, and pettiness.

Yeah, I figured from the moment I saw that 'XV' appear with Xeromus. Though that makes me wonder if there's any particular rhyme or reason to the order of appearance of the Arcana in this story. It's certainly not The Fool's Journey if so, but I'm not exactly super versed in how tarot works.

This chapter is named for the music track that serves as the main boss theme for Strider, a recurring fae wolf beast enemy, in Bayonetta 3.

Yeah, I figured that this chapter was named after the song, though that's certainly some fitting background meta there.

And continuing this on in a fresh post since I don't feel like undoing a third of my image embeds:

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Chapter 97

Spoiler: Line-by-Line

I'm just going to go ahead and take that chapter title as confirmation that Vortex does indeed make his long-awaited reappearance here.

I want to leave a record of this somewhere. Yes, POV-2020 is under quarantine, and no one's supposed to be interacting with it. But every time I pass it by I sense something distinctly off. I've probed that universe as best as I could without disturbing the seal. And I continue to find a specific blighted soul. A shadow pokémon, if I had to guess. Their heart is closed off so tightly.

Oh, hello

again. Since I can tell you wrote this entry. And I'm pretty sure that this is about Nova/Xeromus. Makes me wonder if he's supposed to be this setting's analogue to

.

Well, I finally made a bit of progress last time. The soul responded. He's a silvally, but a helmet was forced onto him. I think the person that shadowed him is responsible. His memories are... a bit jumbled. I'm not really sure what to do.

But the strange thing... something about him was familiar. It was the same... irritation of my light Bahamut gave me before he attacked me.

Not sure what to make of that last bit there, but I'm feeling decently confident about that last prediction so far.

Demerzel's message came through Shimmer's gemcom. The ponytales cursed his luck. After going out of his way to bug Gene and get a bunch of pirates to agree to cause problems in Herbrides to make his mother look bad, now was when Demerzel decided to call out for him? He hadn't heard anything from Demerzel since Tulpise.

Well, maybe Shimmer didn't have anything to do with the problems in Dazzels after all.

But Shimmer knew that Demerzel also had an interest in getting rid of the parasite that was, apparently, Queen Isola. Even if his interest lay in the Red Chain fragment that everyone was confident Isola had. It was partly why Demerzel was trying to use Shimmer.

... Well, that and the fact that Paradox was apparently holding some partner of his as a captive and blackmailing him into working against Isola. Though Shimmer imagined the Red Chain fragment was a far stronger motivator. Since, presumably, he could rescue his partner with it.

Yeah, excuse me for not trusting a character with 'Immoral Melody' as their leitmotif further than I can throw them. I don't know fully have a read on what his angle is with Paradox, but my baseline assumption is that Shimmer's getting played right now and that Dermezel isn’t planning anything good for Radiance.

Still, if Demerzel was calling, then perhaps that meant he knew Shimmer's mother was up to something. And Shimmer couldn't bear not knowing what that was. So, he snuck out of the mall and slinked off to the outskirts of Herbrides, where he waited for the calyrex to appear. And waited. And waited.

Even when some sort of invisible enemy appeared within Herbrides' skies and began blasting some of the buildings and spawning pokémon, Shimmer stayed put. The pirates hadn't mentioned cloaking technology, which made him nervous. But as much as Shimmer wanted to run back into the city, he didn't want Demerzel getting involved in any of this. Shimmer had to trust what the resistance was doing. And hope they didn't hold this against him.

I'm... just going to take this as a sign that Shimmer deliberately left the rest of the Resistance out of the loop as to his dealings with Dermezel.

Demerzel eventually showed up to teleport Shimmer to the same warehouse where he'd activated the genesect several weeks ago. They were even lined up in neat rows like before.

There were fewer genesect than last time, with many scrapped fighting against the empire. And Arianna was walking through them, eyes glowing blue. Was she doing some psychic scan on them? Did that stuff even matter when they were machines?

They're closer to insectoid Evangelions, really.

"You've certainly been busy." Demerzel sat atop a metal railing. He crossed one long leg over another. If that was meant to be an accusation, Demerzel kept his tone worryingly soft. "I've been trying to reach you since last night."

"Sorry." Shimmer pawed at the metal ground with an icy forehoof. He'd already rehearsed an excuse for this very occasion. "I've been keeping tabs on this so-called resistance Aeon's royals are working with. They're fighting the Eterna Empire from within."

Oh, so Shimmer is functioning as a mole for Dermezel. Lovely.

"Oh?" Demerzel rested a paw under his chin. "Is that a fact?" He looked right, where the breaker circuit that turned the genesect on was bolted to the wall. "Perhaps that's why the emperor has been so antsy as of late."

Given Shimmer had eavesdropped on one of Paradox's goons blackmailing Demerzel, he could hazard a guess what the calyrex meant. "I take it Minister Charles paid you a visit recently?" Shimmer said.

Demerzel nodded. "Said that I need to do something to move things along right away. Strike at the heart of the kingdom since Dazzels is too far from any distortion pockets the empire can access."

Arianna froze with her right arm hovering over one of the genesect. "They're telling you to attack Dazzels?"

I take it that this happened in the past already since... yeah. Dazzels was already having problems in the outro of the last chapter.

"Indeed." Demerzel pushed himself off the railing. "But I had already planted the seeds for such an occasion long before Charles' threat."

[ ]

"What?!" Arianna's glasses went askew. She glanced at Shimmer.

"I'm with her." Shimmer nodded at the gardevoir. "Of course you should—"

Might have been worth showing off those two's mutually shocked reactions in a bit more detail than what you presently have going on.

"It can't be stopped," Demerzel cut in, expression stern.

Whinnying, Shimmer's tails frazzled. "The heck's that supposed to mean?!"

"A very important prisoner got hold of a very unstable power and is about to make a break for it," Demerzel said. He glanced up at the black ceiling. "Well, if my calculations are correct, anyway."

Okay, yeah, he is absolutely playing those two right now. Since we explicitly saw how Vortex got that power there, and this is a very incomplete telling of events, to say the least.

Shimmer did his best to avoid his shocked expression changing to one of suspicion. They'd paid a visit to someone fitting that description the other month: Vortex. Shimmer had been escorting Vegna out of the prison and ended up leaving Demerzel alone with the charizard. Between that and Demerzel's tone, he was clearly implying he'd given out the unstable power.

Oh, so Shimmer isn't totally credulous. Good to know.

"That's illogical." Arianna resumed walking between genesect units. She tapped each one she passed on its head and her eyes flickered blue. "One prisoner cannot possibly cause problems for the whole capital city."

"Be that as it may, this is a golden opportunity for you, Your Grace." Demerzel turned to Shimmer. Was he smirking? This was nothing to smirk about! "The chance to sway the public's favor over to you and away from your mothers. Put them in a bind, so to speak."

Yeeeeeeah, this is a sign to get out while you can, Shimmer.

He hovered toward the breaker switch in the corner of the room. "Public opinion is already on shaky ground with your mothers. First they didn't step in with Venish. Then they went and assigned Seifer's relatives to lead the Radiant Guard." The calyrex shook his head. "Relatives who've been seen vacationing in Herbrides for most of their tenure."

Shimmer's tails nearly puffed out. Did that mean the Radiant Guard's new leaders were in Herbrides? ... No, no. He couldn't think about that. Focus!

No, no, that's a sign that you should think about that, Shimmer. And yeah, I think that any chance of Dermezel not being an out-and-out villain (since you had some fakeout bait when the topic of his steed came up in the past) has more or less been squashed by this exchange and its implications.

Instead, Shimmer went with, "And? I completely botched things in Tulpise." The memories of Melmetal breaking apart and that awful robot silvally staring him down rushed back into Shimmer's mind.

"You got people evacuated safely," Demerzel countered, pointing a nubby paw at Shimmer. "And now you have a chance to save Dazzels from a threat while your mothers sit on their rumps, ignoring the plights of the people."

Shimmer looked between Demerzel and all the rows of genesect. "Using them?" He pointed his horn left.

"Indeed." Demerzel clapped his hands.

Shimmer, don't make me break out Bubsy right now.

Nothing happened at first. The calyrex cleared his throat. "Arianna?"

"Right." The gardevoir nudged her glasses up. Shimmer watched the strange, spiral-shaped pairing device he used for Melmetal float toward him. Arianna fixed it around his horn with her telekinesis. "There we are."

"Good." Demerzel opened the breaker panel and flipped the switches. Row by row, the genesect's red eyes lit up. They all stood at attention.

"Of course, you'll have backup," Demerzel continued, shutting the breaker panel.

inb4 Dermezel has an override for them

"You and Arianna again?" Shimmer kept his gaze on the genesect. Should he test that the control device worked on them?

"More than that." The calyrex's neck beads glowed pink, along with his eyes. "Go on. His Grace can hear you."

"Shimmer's there?"

The ponytales' tails poofed out in surprise. "That voice... Reno?!"

"You bet. And I've got Rufus and Vincent here, too." Reno laughed. "Not really sure why D-man's roping us into this. Guess he watched our crowning good performance in last year's Crowne Cup and thought we could help fight off whatever bad stuff's about to go down."

Wait, those two didn't get abducted with the rest of Horizon Gardens' student body into the QN, or...?

Shimmer took a steady breath. He hadn't seen the cinderace in a couple of months. Not since his mother ended the academic year and shuttered all the schools in the kingdom. He glanced at Demerzel. "Why them?"

"You need people you can trust helping you out." Demerzel shrugged. "It's clear to me you have... reservations about my conduct and character."

That sounds like a roundabout way of saying that they're either in league with Dermezel or else he's coerced them into working for him.

He was right. But still... Team Striker were athletes. "You guys are okay with this?" Shimmer asked. "I know your training to join the pro baccer circuit's pretty hard, but it's kind of apples and oranges, don't you think?"

"I expressed those concerns to Mr. Demerzel," Vincent said. Shimmer recognized the inteleon's "I'm three steps ahead of you" tone. "We're to assist with any Phantoms that may appear and direct people toward city exits in case they have to evacuate."

Okay. Shimmer supposed evacuation assistance was more reasonable.

Those two have a history with Dermezel, don't they?

"You've gotta be agile for stuff like that," Rufus added. "Right up our all— holy shit!"

"What?" Panicking, Shimmer looked at Demerzel. "What is it?"

"Dudes, did you see that giant flaming pillar?!" Rufus said.

Oh, well. Hello, Vortex.

"Yeah! Looks like it was coming from over by the prison." Reno's voice trembled a bit.

"... Just like Mr. Demerzel predicted," Vincent muttered.

Shimmer's heart thundered in his chest. What had Demerzel pulled him into? What was this power he'd given Vortex?!

Dermezel:

"Well, then. I believe that you had a city to save, Shimmer."

"It's time." Demerzel folded his hands behind his back. "Mobilize your genesect. I'll get you to an attacking point."

"A-All of us?" Shimmer pivoted left. The genesect still stood at attention. How was one calyrex possibly going to teleport all of—

Wait, what was Shimmer thinking? It was Demerzel that got all the civilians out of Tulpise. He clearly had immense psychic power. Was that normal for calyrex... or was something helping him out?

Dermezel: "Less thinking, more acting, Shimmer."

"Okay, yeah! People are panicking!" Reno said. His voice was shaky. Demerzel must not have given Team Striker all the details. "W-We got this, guys! It's the fourth quarter and we're down by three..."

"Your Grace." Demerzel blipped over to Shimmer's side. "We have to go. Activate the genesect."

Can't tell whether or not this is going to be the inevitable moment of open betrayal by Dermezel or if we still have a couple rounds of this song and dance left to get through with him.

Shimmer concentrated on his horn. Like with Melmetal back in Tulpise, the ponytales projected a thought.

Standby for battle.

The genesect's cannons whirred to life. Demerzel nodded. Then the room disappeared in a blinding blue flash.

Ah yes, I suppose that it's about time to tee up the theme music of a big, burny dragon causing problems in your kingdom's capital, huh?

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1T_pfGXKNBA

Demerzel dropped Shimmer and his genesect off on a stretch of tarmac a few hundred meters from the razor wire-topped metal walls surrounding the Dazzels Penitentiary.

... Walls that the building-sized charizard walking away from Shimmer had melted into liquid metal.

"Where is she?"

Shimmer: "Oooookay, yeah. I think this one's a bit much for me to handle on my- u-um, Dermezel, those Genesect are fire-resistant, right?"

This was the power Demerzel had given Vortex? But this was... this was like some of the Paradigm members or Whispers that Yuna and her friends talked about! Why could Demerzel do this?

Because he has ulterior motives that in all likelihood involve Radiance becoming a smoking crater to accomplish? I mean, it would be the most on-brand thing imaginable for a Kuja stand-in.

Shimmer could scarcely stop his legs from trembling. Oh, why hadn't he stayed with Igneous in Herbrides?

"Your Grace, what are you doing?" Demerzel forced a small radio communicator on Shimmer's ear. "You have to stop him!"

The ground shook again. Shimmer couldn't stand there quivering in fright. Vortex was heading toward the city!

"Right." Shimmer pointed his horn at the genesect flanking him.

Yeeeeeah, this is going to be an epic fail, I can already tell. Though I assume that that might have been the entire point from Dermezel's end of the equation.

Their electronic eyes flashed and their cannons hummed on their backs. The genesect rocketed into the air in groups of two or three.

"Where's Isola?" Vortex snarled. He flapped his wings, which failed to lift him into the air. Shimmer wasn't sure his wings even functioned anymore because they were literally made of fire.

So, wait, did Vortex happen to get made Shiny during all of this, by any chance? Since that'd be about the only way to make the parallels to Bahamut's raid on Alexandria in FF9 any more direct right now.

The ponytales cautiously galloped after the genesect. Fire wouldn't mix well with the icy powers Demerzel had given him. But the genesect had ways to change the type of blasts they shot from their cannons, didn't they?

Use water! Shimmer projected the order through his horn. He caught flashes of blue in the air. The genesect circled Vortex. Large water globs peppered the gigantic charizard. Vortex threw his arms up, hissing. Steam filled the air.

Cue the robobug barbecue in 3... 2...

Shimmer stopped running. Keep it up! Make sure you stay in flight! He hoped that would be enough for the genesect.

Snarling, Vortex swatted at the air. "No. I won't... be pushed around. I won't... let little insects stop me!" He inhaled, then spewed a huge wave of fire. It bathed the dusty ground far ahead of Shimmer in red and orange. A few genesect were caught up in the blast and burnt to ashes.

Shimmer: "U-Um, Dermezel?! We have a bit of a problem here!"

And the fire kept going and going. Flames carried off into the distance. Toward the city!

It was too far for Shimmer to hear anything, but he could see flames buffeting some of the buildings. The air in the distance became thick and hazy with smoke.

"Guys, talk to me!" Shimmer said. He really hoped the radio worked with Team Striker.

"I think some warehouses on the outskirts of the city just got hit with fire!" Reno said. "What's going on, Your Grace?!"

Oh nothing, just doing everyone's best impression of the early parts of FF9 Disc 3 in live-time. I'm half-expecting there to be an Alexander analogue that sprouts out of the castle at this rate.

Vortex continued forward, spinning his massive body around. His flaming wings and outstretched arms clipped some of the genesect, knocking them from the air.

"A giant charizard!" Shimmer galloped forward again. He'd left the tarmac behind for the dusty ground Vortex was walking along. Though the ponytales took care to keep away from the molten, bubbling spots Vortex had walked on.

"Giant... wait, is that Vortex?" Vincent caught on quick. "PNN's been giving almost daily updates on him. They said he'd fallen ill! Is he a Phantom now?"

How on earth were they not shut down given what became of Polaris when Vortex got arrested? .-.

Shimmer was about to answer when he caught a flaming, scrapped genesect careening toward him. The ponytales flung it behind him with a telekinetic burst, stumbling and whinnying when the ensuing explosion's hot air grazed his tails.

"Something like that!" He sent another order to keep firing to the genesect. More steam filled the air to his left. Vortex hadn't stopped walking, though. His quaking steps forced Shimmer to stop running.

"Do you know who I am?" Vortex snarled at the genesect circling around him. "I'm the one who deserves to run this kingdom. Not Isola. Me! Me, me, me, me!"

Ah yes, I see that Vortex's ego didn't exactly shrink with G-Maxing.

Vortex's roar jolted Shimmer, who stumbled and faceplanted in the dirt. Fierce winds disheveled his tails and icy mane. When Shimmer scrambled back to his feet, he saw several genesect lying in shattered remains in the scorched, almost glassy dirt to his left. The buildings in the distance crumbled, waves of dirt spilled out toward the desert.

I'll just go and collect my winnings for predicting that Dermezel intended for this to be an epic fail for Shimmer from the start since... yeah, there's exactly no way he's turning this around short of the Resistance blipping in in about 5 seconds.

All the while, the titanic charizard continued forward. The remaining genesect kept shooting water globs, but they were evaporating into steam before they could even hit Vortex.

Shimmer stood there, heart pounding in his chest. Images of Melmetal's crumbling form superimposed themselves over Vortex.

He couldn't do anything. Shimmer was failing. Just like in Tulpise. Just like always.

See above, really. Though what's the over/under that I should tee up 'You're Not Alone!' to play in about a minute?

"Out of my way!" Vortex uselessly flapped his flaming wings, then took another lumbering step forward, leaving blazing dust in his wake. "Where's Isola? I'll kill her! Burn her to ashes! Then the kingdom will see me for the savior I really am!"

I'd post the Kyubey macro again, but... well... I suppose Vortex has never been little in this story. And especially not now.

Shimmer shrank away from the bubbling footprints in the sand. "I can't..." His tails curled up against his legs. Most of the genesect were gone. Smoldering metallic scraps littered the sandy ground. "It's not working. He's too—"

Blue lightning filled the air around Vortex. Then a bright blue ball slammed into his snout. Shimmer watched it scrunch up from the impact. Molten saliva melted the remaining genesect and splattered on the ground around the giant charizard. Shimmer's ears folded from the awful sizzling that rang in them.

"Good grief! I always knew this guy was full of hot hair, but this is ridiculous! Ain't that right, V?"

Is that deliberate, or was that meant to be 'air'?

Griffon: "Also, cue the theme music:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ha6iWPqrJeE

"

Shimmer's eyes widened. He recognized that stupid voice! The ponytales scanned the air— yep, Griffon was circling around a dusknoir who floated in place directly in Vortex's path.

But Shimmer had no idea what was up with the giant black dragon hovering between Vegna and Vortex. It had to be the source of the blue lightning, though. Its tail was a freaking turbine!

Zekrom: "'Sup?"
Shimmer: "I have so many questions right now." ._.

... And come to think of it, wasn't there a lingering static charge when Vegna saved Shimmer back in Venish? Was Vegna the source of this dragon? What the hell was going on here?!

"You!" More fiery slobber dribbled from Vortex's broken muzzle. He shuffled forward, kicking up ashen plumes. "Isola lapdog!"

I mean, I suppose I should've seen it coming from the mention that it scrunched up, but still.

Vegna lazily shook his head. "They stripped him to his little shirt and bound him in an iron chain. And burned him in a holy place where many had been burned before."

Vortex's response was to spew a giant Flamethrower. Vegna thrust his right arm forward. The black dragon discharged tremendous bolts of blue lightning. And they actually kept Vortex's flames from advancing on Dazzels' outskirts like before!

"Always the fool rushing to conclusions." Vegna kept his right arm extended. "When did I ever say I was on Isola's side? If anyone's the puppet in this little theater production, it's you."

I mean, he's not exactly wrong there...

Griffon: "Psst! Dimmer! Were you going to help out while the inspirational music's playing the background, or...?"
Shimmer: "Wh-What on earth do you expect me to do?! I can't do anything!"

Shimmer's tails curled up. What was Vegna implying? Did he know about the corrupted power Demerzel had given Vortex? No, surely he would've told the resistance about that. Maybe he was theorizing on the spot?

Well, we did see in the past that he was keeping secrets from them, so...

The massive charizard growled and snapped at the air with his maw. "I'm no one's puppet! I own this kingdom! It's all me!"

I take it that this was a massive insecurity of Vortex's back when he was normal, huh?

Shimmer had stood around long enough. Swallowing hard, he galloped closer to the battle. Though the ponytales hesitated when he spotted blurs in the air out of the corner of his eye. Were those... other flying-types? They were keeping their distance, unlike Vegna.

Don't tell me... the press is here?

Another collision of fire and lightning sent Shimmer scrambling to his right with a frightened whinny.

You have a dangling quote mark on your TR version of this chapter.

"Yo, V! Peep the ground! It's Dimmer!" Griffon cawed. The corviknight still circled around Vegna, but kept his gaze trained on Shimmer.

Even if the press was here, Shimmer had to say something. Especially now that Vortex was following Griffon's gaze.

"I know you're upset!" Shimmer shouted, flinching when his voice cracked. "But we know there's something wrong with my mother! It's— she's some sort of parasite!"

Yeeeeah, I think you'd have more luck with that if there weren't a G-Max Charizard stomping around and causing massive property damage, Shimmer.

From up in the air, Vegna's eye crackled with red energy. He thrust his right arm to the side. Blue lightning gathered around the blue dragon, who charged toward Vortex. The giant charizard spewed titanic flames from his mouth, pushing the dragon back until Vegna forced them to retreat.

"What?" Vortex again looked at Shimmer. The ponytales backed away. Vortex was going to burn him alive!

Shimmer:

Griffon: "Yeah, I'll take that as a sign that you won't be actually growing a spine while the music's playing. Shame, since it'd have almost been cool of you." >v>

"You were right!" Shimmer said. He didn't have time to stop and consider his words. "I looked into the things you said and you were right! There's a... terrible pattern of behavior in my family! And it only makes sense... if there's a parasite who's moving from generation to generation!

"A parasite... who'll come for me next!"

Vegna gave another signal. The black dragon charged forward. Vortex was too slow to react this time. The dragon slammed into the left side of Vortex's head. It whipped left. Roaring in pain, Vortex wobbled. His giant legs made it hard to regain his balance.

That was when Shimmer saw an orange gleam in the distance. "Behind you, Vegna!" he cried.

Griffon: "Wait, huh? What is he even going on-?"

The dusknoir drifted away from Shimmer seconds before an orange beam swept across the ground, kicking up huge plumes of dust and debris. An unexpected shockwave upended Shimmer and sent him skidding through the dirt. Even once the ponytales had rolled to a stop, his world wouldn't stop spinning. He couldn't get back to his feet without falling over and nearly throwing up.

But that was fine. Even if he'd gone and screwed things up, backup had arrived. The other resistance members could take over. They were stronger. They'd actually beaten Whispers. All Shimmer would do is get in their way.

He remained on the ground, head meekly buried under his forelegs. If the others could bail him out of this, then Shimmer was done with Demerzel. No more sticking his neck out and screwing anything up for everyone else.

Whelp, Zidane this horse is not. Though I suppose he really wasn't alone after all.

The moment Noctum handed Seifer off to the healers, he learned about the threat in Dazzels. It was a place he hadn't been before, so the cosmic charizard couldn't just open a rift and go there.

>dat BGM

Was expecting something more FF9, but I'm not really complaining. So, does Vortex also get a cheap move to half a timer down to an insta-lose condition for this fight?

Fortunately, Vegna was around and had, through considerable strain, forced open a golden portal. Noctum went through the rift with Jade and Valkyrie in tow. Vegna was nowhere to be found on the other side, but there were people flooding the streets, fleeing from burning buildings. The flames were spreading rapidly.

They had to try something to contain the fires.

Form firebreaks by destroying parts of the city around said fires? I mean, sure it won't make you popular, but you're not exactly swimming with water right now.

"Jade, can you help put these out?" Noctum wondered. His own attacks wouldn't help whatsoever.

"Huh? You know air just spreads fire around, right?" Jade flapped her wings in place, looking around nervously.

"Not wind, dumbass." Valkyrie jabbed Jade's back with her elbow. "Water! Lugia have water, right?"

I mean, they do learn Rain Dance by levelup, so...

"Ow! Hey! That's a sensitive spot!" Jade's tail flaps curled. Pink gas drifted behind her. "And I dunno! I haven't used water moves since I woke up."

"No time like the present then." The garchomp climbed up Jade's back and forcefully pointed her head down. A building of mostly glass shattered as its foundations ignited. "Do it!"

Jade: "Gee, no pressure there."

The salugia's eyes twitched. Valkyrie's jerking of her neck made her stiffen. "Agh, no, wait! Not like that! Not liiiiiiaaaaayyiii—"

Orange energy was building up in Jade's mouth. That wasn't any water attack, though. It was Jade's Aeroblast! She couldn't fire that into the city!

"Valkyrie, turn her head right!" Noctum pointed ahead of him, toward the dusty plains and the giant charizard in the distance.

Oh, so that's the beam that we saw a few paragraphs earlier.

Grunting, Valkyrie dug her arms into Jade's neck. Jade twisted right, then fired the Aeroblast. It swept along the ground, leveling a warehouse that the flames had spared. Then it continued outside the city.

Jade: "Does that count as making a firebreak?"

Valkyrie: "No. Now get to work on that Rain Dance."

"Stay here and deal with the flames," Noctum said, flying after the Aeroblast and ignoring Valkyrie's protests. He flew through a wall of dust. The air got thicker and warmer. It blurred and warped all around him. Just how intense was this heat? Was this all the giant charizard's doing?

Once again:

Well, whoever this charizard was, they needed to be—

A sudden gust of hot wind dispelled the dirt in the air. Noctum got a good look at the giant charizard's white belly... and the candelabra-shaped crystal wedged into his chest.

It was just like how Yuna described Whispers who were using the power of Leo's plates!

Like when fighting Halvus, Noctum's gut burned. The plate didn't belong to this charizard. It belonged to Leo!

I mean, he's not wrong there...

Noctum: "I have so many questions right now..."

Noctum flew right. The big charizard was occupied with Vegna and Zekrom. Blue-violet light swirled around Noctum's arms. He didn't know why he could do this. But he was following his gut.

The cosmic charizard swiped the air in front of him. Crescents of brilliant blue energy raced forward. They hit the giant charizard's left shoulder, warping everything around them. Cracks and lines filled the air as Charizard roared.

Noctum stiffened. The energy dissolved from his arms. His tail flame shrank.

That voice... Vortex?!

Ah yes, time for an exercise in catharsis over all the crap that Vortex put Noctum through all the way back around like the third chapter and onward. Or at least I'm pretty sure that that's where this is going.

Red and black static rippled out from the crystal in Vortex's belly. Almost like the corrupted plate was reacting to Noctum's presence.

Wait, was a mystery dungeon about to form?

Those Plates can do that? o_o;

"It's not fair!" Vortex snarled.

Yelping, Noctum flew up. A dragon-shaped torrent of fire passed underneath him.

"Why do you get to have it? That power... and dragon typing!" There was a wild look in Vortex's eyes. Flames swirled around his giant nostrils. "You're a hick! A troglodyte!"

Noctum: "Is that seriously what you're concerned about right now?! (Also, so what if I lived in a cave for much of my life?!)"

A fiery twister erupted all around Vortex. Noctum flew further back. Vegna and Zekrom also had to put some distance in the opposite direction.

"You know what I had? Nothing!" The flames wouldn't dissipate. It was hard to even see the giant charizard behind his wall of fire. Was the ground turning to glass around Vortex? "Parents in dead end, blue collar jobs. A disease that left me without fire. Without any moves!

Boy, it sure is a good thing that you let that all go to your head and act as license to act like a dick to others, huh? Since I'd have felt a bit bad for you otherwise.

"And you know what I did? I clawed my way up from the bottom!" Vortex's fiery dome spewed flaming pillars in all directions. Noctum dove down to dodge one, then strafed left to avoid another. "I didn't grovel or kowtow to any royals! I earned my keep and my respect! I'm a self-made 'mon! I'm everything you're not, you worthless, lowly servant!"

Yeah, Vortex isn't living past this chapter, huh? Since this feels like we're very aggressively being primed to not have sympathy for him before something takes him off the board.

Noctum's head rang.

Time floating opposite him. Shouting about how much better they were.

Gasping, Noctum corkscrewed right, avoiding another flaming pillar. The cosmic flames in his mouth grew larger alongside his tail flame. Blue-violet light swirled around his claws.

No more.

Oh, hello Xenoblade music. So does that mean that we can also expect the XB2 and XB3 analogues to this theme to make appearances later on in the story?

"Shut the hell up!" Noctum swiped his arms forward. Blue-violet crescents swarmed Vortex's fiery dome. The flames rippled and flickered. Glowing lines crisscrossed the dome. They shattered, breaking the dome apart entirely.

That was when the cosmic charizard swooped in. The energy around his arms grew even brighter. It spread into his wings. Down his belly. Across his tail.

Wait, is Noctum also G-Maxing here?

"You don't get to talk to me like that!" Noctum dodged a large gout of fire and slammed his glowing arm into Vortex's right shoulder. "I owe my life to that family! They took me off the street!"

He backed away from a swipe of Vortex's left arm, then unleashed a flurry of Air Slash crescents. They sliced through Vortex's arm. Over the giant charizard's roars, magma dripped onto the ground and sizzled by Vortex's feet.

Wait, did Vortex just bleed magma there? I suppose that's one way to tell that this isn't normal G-Maxing.

"I don't care what you did to reach the top!" Noctum rolled left to dodge a giant fireball, then right. He flung more blue-violet blasts at Vortex's face. Vortex screamed in pain. "I care about doing what's right! I care about helping my family! I care..."

Vortex tried to gather more flames, but Noctum shot toward the crystal chandelier in his stomach and drove a spear of spacial energy directly into that.

"... About getting Leo his plate back! So hand it over!"

Yeah, I'm feeling pretty good about my prediction that we're not going to be seeing Vortex again after this chapter.

Static energy exploded out in all directions. Noctum felt something warm and smooth within the crystal and pulled. He glimpsed an orange rectangle and brought it close to his glowing blue belly. Noctum opened a rift and fell back into it.

He landed on the ground a hundred meters away from a rapidly-shrinking Vortex. Static dissolved away, leaving nothing but an unconscious charizard lying in the middle of a glassy circle.

... Or not. I suppose I should've seen this coming with how the G-Max Snorlax fight early in the story was handled, but I'm legitimately surprised that Vortex didn't just get summarily killed off there.

The plate tingled against his chest. Noctum held it at arm's length. The blue was much brighter than before. Blue auroras and stars swirled around his belly, like waves rolling across water.

It wasn't just his belly, either. His wings were full of glowing blue auroras. So was the underside of his tail. He ran a claw over his belly. Blue light glistened around his claws, coalescing into a pink sphere he was able to hold with his claws.

Oh, hello, Lustrous Orb. Though neat accompanying artwork there.

I guess... more of Palkia's power is coming out.

I'll just take that as a confirmation there.

Noctum glanced upward. Vegna pointed to Noctum's left. Griffon flew in that direction while Zekrom disappeared in a stream of golden light.

What was with these other birds, though? There were pidgeot and unfezant and swellow carrying cameras. Were people recording this?

Reporters:

Noctum: "Uh... wait, is it really a good idea to let you all-?"

"Fear not, good citizens! Thanks to Prince Shimmer's quick thinking in conjunction with supportive allies in Aeon... Charizard Vortex's rampage was stopped!"

The cosmic charizard stiffened. That was Demerzel's voice!

And moments later, Demerzel appeared in front of all the birds, gesturing wildly. Whatever he was saying to them, Noctum couldn't hear. He was too far away.

Huh. Dermezel is apparently really good at improv, since I sincerely doubt that he anticipated that things would go this way.

"Yo. V says to rift back to your buds. We gotta vamoose."

"Gah!" Noctum's tail flame shrank. He turned to find Griffon and Vegna beside him. The former had Shimmer draped over his back. The ponytales looked incredibly guilty.

"He's spinning it," Shimmer muttered. "Demerzel's trying to make himself and me into the heroes here."

Noctum: "Gee, tell me something I don't know here."

"Huh?" Noctum's now yellow eyes dimmed. Putting aside the question of why Shimmer was even here when Noctum knew he had gone to the Herbrides Hilltop Mall with Yuna, the cosmic charizard was still lost. "What do you mean spinning? Who's he talking to?"

"We can discuss it in full later," Vegna said. "Leave now. I'll grab Vortex while Demerzel's grandstanding for the press."

Noctum's eyes widened. Those birds were reporters?!

Noctum:

"Why—"

Red energy crackled around Vegna's eye.

"Because we all played into Demerzel's hand. And I suspect things may soon turn volatile here."

Once again, nice art there.

Noctum: "... Isn't that all the more reason to stay?" .-.

"... Yourselves why Shimmer was the one trying to stop this from happening?"

Justine watched the footage of Demerzel, mouth agape. It took every ounce of willpower not to trash the PV set with her Sacred Sword.

Oh yeah, that music's totally a positive omen there. Not.

"Where is Her Eminence? Where is the Radiant Guard?" Demerzel gestured around him. The cameras panned to shots of smoking craters and dirt melted into glass by Vortex's assault. "What if I told you the acting commanders — both relatives of Keldeo Seifer — were in fact vacationing in Herbrides. A city that, by the way, simultaneously came under fire from denizens of World Ender!"

He pointed at the cameras. "Call up your news stations if you don't believe me. But there was a mass evacuation from the city just as Prince Shimmer arranged for Tulpise before it fell into distortion."

Whelp, time for open conflict. Since there's exactly zero way that Isola's going to be taking that one lying down. Even if I'm not betting on her coming out on top of things.

Justine couldn't take this anymore. "Mute, damn it!" the virizion hissed. The PV went silent. Fuming, she turned around. "Say the word, Izzy! I'll haul his ass to Citadark!"

But rather than glaring at the PV like Justine, Isola sat facing a large, heart-shaped vanity mirror, running a heart-shaped brush through her luscious pink mane.

"Are you for real?" Justine stomped up to Isola. "Weren't you listening? That... that literal egghead is committing high treason! And freaking Vegna was there fighting Vortex! We should arrest them both! Stage public executions! I—"

"Peace, darling."

Justine: "Is... ola?" ._.

Isola's brush booped Justine's snout. The virizion crossed her eyes and found tiny sparkles around her nostrils. "How can you be so calm?" She blinked rapidly until her vision was back to normal. "At this rate, people are going to take the streets!"

"They won't." Isola set the brush down on a pink, heart-shaped table beside the mirror. The rapidash got to her feet. Her armored breastplate glowed gold under the sunlight drifting in through the windows.

Justine shifted her weight nervously. "Well, what about the servants in the palace?"

"They will be fine." Isola smiled serenely at her mate.

Justine: "B-But they won't be! You heard what Dermezel was saying on the PV! How on earth could they possibly just ignore that?!"

The virizon's cheeks flushed. "You'll have to forgive me if I'm skeptical, Izzy." She glanced at the PV screen. Demerzel was still talking and gesticulating wildly. "He's playing us for saps."

"Let him think that."

Oh, well. I can already tell that this is going to take an ominous turn really, really fast.

Justine stiffened as Isola's voice got closer. The rapidash sauntered up to her. Something about the way light glinted off that breastplate made Justine weak in the knees.

"But we... we have to do something," Justine whispered. "There's a fire in northeast Dazzels. It could—"

"It'll be fine." Isola was right in front of Justine. She nuzzled the virizion's right cheek. "I'll take care of everything, sweetie. I always have~"

Isola, you're scaring me right now.

"Y-Yeah." Justine's hind legs shook from Isola's warm breath on her neck. "But how?"

"Like this."

Justine's spine-tingling pleasure gave way to a sharp, intense pain in her chest. The air rushed out of her lungs. Justine tried to take a breath, but something heavy weighed on her chest.

She looked down... and found a dagger of crimson energy piercing her chest. It came from the red gem in the center of Isola's breastplate.

Well, then.

"Iz... zy... why?"

Justine coughed up a small amount of blood. A psychic force caught the droplets before they could splatter on Isola's shoulder. She levitated them into the trashcan by the door of her bedroom.

"Shhh." Isola pressed her muzzle to Justine's... and forced the blade in further. The sharp pain turned to an intense burning. Justine tried to scream— to breathe.

Oh, so we are going to have a character death this chapter. I just didn't anticipate correctly who it would be.

Her legs felt so heavy— no, they were heavy. Why were they turning to metal?

"It's okay, sweetie," Isola whispered, kissing Justine's cheek as she forced the blade in deeper. "I forgive you for doubting me. Even if it was such an ugly thing for you to do."

Oh, so this is how we're getting Iron Leaves in this story, huh?

She needed to scream. Fight back. Do something. But as the metal raced up Justine's legs, all she could do was stare blankly.

"Admittedly, I haven't tested this yet," Isola continued. That sickeningly sweet smile hadn't left her face. "But if that pitiful deoxys can turn 'mon to machine with the Red Chain, why can't I? I wield it far more beautifully than he ever could."

Yeah, I knew it. Though that gives us our answer of how Paradox forms his Paradox 'mons in this story. And confirms that we're not done with him yet since he has a part of the Red Chain that needs to be wrestled away.

The rapidash forced Justine to look her in the eyes. "Besides, there can be beauty in a machine who will never doubt. Never question. Always follow orders."

Justine couldn't even get her mouth open. Her legs were fully metallic. And the metal was spreading down her torso. From the dagger— no, from the gem in Isola's breastplate.

"Don't worry, sweetie." Isola nuzzled her side again. "I'm doing this for both of us."

Brrr…

She kissed Justine's snout... and the same green metal started to inch across her face. "Once we're through here..."

For a brief instant, Justine swore she saw a pink serpent replace Isola's head.

"... Everyone will see just how beautiful we truly are."

Wait, 'pink serpent'? Is that supposed to be Enamorus, or...?

~Flames of Ruin: Vortex~
There are those who would claim the Affirmer is evil. Heartless. Soulless. But the Affirmer acts because His heart aches for the suffering that plagues reality. That is why He kept His pokémon partners with Him. Why He continued to care for them throughout His mission.

Wait, wait, wait. Are you implying that Isola is one of those Pokémon alluded to here?

Alright, that was a bit of a meatier chunk of this story than I normally go through in one setting, but there was a lot that just happened in the span of two chapters and I'm still trying to process everything that went down. In no particular order: we had the aftermath of Seifer's death, Shane actually meeting a part of the core cast, Dermezel pulling Kuja antics again, Noctum getting a step closer to wielding his true power as Palkia's reincarnation, and Isola going full mask-off and birthing a new Paradox 'mon. I see you didn't waste any time at all smashing the old equilibrium into pieces, and it definitely was gripping reading.

For complaints, there were a couple parts of the story where I felt like you could've afforded to spend a bit more time showing off characters' reactions and found a stray typo or two. Other than that, the only real complaint that I have is that a part of me wonders if there might be a bit too much happening too fast. Like as satisfying as it was to watch Noctum go to town on G-Max Vortex, it was a little thematically jarring coming right off the heels of Seifer's death two chapters ago where most of the Resistance isn't even aware of what happened, much less having had a chance to process and come to terms with it. I'll withhold some judgement about it pending how the next few chapters handle things, but it was something that felt like it'd have benefitted from things slowing down a bit there.

Other than that, I had a good time with these chapters @Ambyssin , and I'll be looking forward to dusting off another batch of two before Review Blitz starts in earnest this year. Good work as always, and I'm looking forward to seeing where things wind up. ^^

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Heya, jumping back in with another double-feature tonight, which will probably be my last fill of PoV until Week 2 of Review Blitz. But the past two chapters have had, uh... a lot happen, so let's see where the dust starts settling in these next two:

Chapter 98

Spoiler: Line-by-Line

The first few weeks after Tessa passed were... not all that different, honestly. Making her a spirit gave her back some of the energy that had waned the last few years. And, well, we knew this was coming. We'd prepared for it. In some ways, things haven't changed. She's just... not always around. Sometimes I need to use my light to conjure her.

Oh, so

really is the last member of GL still alive right now. To be expected considering what he is, but a bit sad to think about.

This arrangement won't last forever. We agreed on that. Even if my powers can distort her sense of time, she doesn't want to be summoned as a spirit forever. She'll want to rest for good eventually.

I'm not sure when that time will come, but I'll be ready. After all... I have support.

Children? Or...?

Yuna put her now empty glass of water down on the metal table. She glanced right, but the door from the restaurant to the living quarters was still shut. Just like it was a minute ago. And a minute before that. And a minute before that.

Yet everyone else's eyes were locked on it. Even as bowls of meat and vegetable stew Guzzie had given the team had long gone cold. The lone exception was Artemis, who was coiled up against the wall on the other side of the table and staring at a gray pillar. Yuna didn't think milotic could get such empty looks in their eyes. Though, given what she'd heard, she didn't blame him.

Oh, so this is the part where everyone gets to hear about what happened to Seifer, huh?

Having to leave Leo behind and trust he could handle himself was bad enough. Coming back to find Seifer in critical condition and Vortex rampaging toward Radiance's capital almost made Yuna want to ask Guzzie what the strongest thing he had to drink in his bar was.

"This is a good thing, right?" The dragapult stole glances at the door. Still closed. "They wouldn't be taking so long if they hadn't found a way to save Seifer."

"Maybe." Nikki leaned forward in her chair. "Or they're trying to figure out how to break the bad news to us."

"Don't say that!"

I mean, considering the title of the chapter...

Cyril slammed his hands down on the table. Red soup splattered out of everyone's bowls. The cosmic zoroark's fur shifted between red and black.

"There's no way I'm the only one thinking it," Nikki retorted, glancing around the table. "Right?"

Igneous stared down at his soup. Scarlett avoided Cyril's gaze. "I'm not," the dragonair mumbled.

"Heeee's a goneeeeer for suuuuure!"

Yuna: "Cresselia. Go back to sleep. Now." >.<

Scarlett's eyes widened in horror. She covered her neck bauble with her wings when Cyril glared daggers at her. "I, uh, will have to have a talk. With myself."

Oh. Well. Looks like I misblamed the culprit based on that speech pattern.

She shrank down toward the floor as Cyril leaned toward her. Igneous shot his arm out. "Berating her won't accomplish anything."

Cyril eyed the grovlazzle's arm like he was about to tear it off. Cid hastily sat up and cleared his throat. "Ah, if I might interject?" The orbeetle's spots glowed pink. "Vegna and Team Bureau are back." He pressed his right hand to his temple. "With Shimmer, apparently. And Vortex?"

Igneous jumped out of his seat surprisingly fast. "Shimmer's with them? How is he?"

Wait, wait, wait. They brought Vortex along with them? How on earth is that not a recipe for disaster? .-.

"Aww, worried about your new boytoy?"

"No!" Igneous' head leaf caught fire. Nikki laughed harder when the grovlazzle brandished a Leaf Blade at her. "I want to know he's okay so I can kick his ass guilt-free."

"Suuuuuuuuuure you do." Nikki waved him off dismissively. "And I'm a holowear supermodel."

Shots fired.

"Pipe down, all of you."

Cyril lunged over the table, nearly knocking a startled Yuna off her chair in the process. He scrambled to his feet and dashed toward the now-open door, where Koraidon stood.

"No..." Cyril staggered to a halt. "No, no. Wipe that look off your face." He waved his arms in front of his head. His starcloud mane rippled like violent waves crashing on the shore. "You're not here with news. You're... you're..."

Koraidon bowed his head. "I'm sorry."

Oh hey, music for me to look forward to when I get far enough in XB3FR. Though did Koraidon just imply that Seifer is...?

"Don't you dare!"

"The healers did everything they could." Koraidon clasped his hands together.

"NO!" Cyril dropped to his knees. "You're lying, damn it!"

Wow. This is somehow even more of a knife twist knowing that Seifer didn't die until now from three chapters ago.

"I wish I was," Koraidon said. "But Seifer was already gone by the time the healers got him." His feathered horns drooped. "He never had a chance."

Yuna's chest ectoplasm tightened. Her core flickered erratically.

Cyril's fur was a fiery red. He shoved Koraidon aside and ran through the door.

"Ah, Cyril! Wait!" Koraidon turned and ran after him.

Yeeeeeeah, you should probably give him some space there, Koraidon.

"Should we... follow him?" Yuna wondered, somewhat amazed she even managed to get that sentence out. Her head was practically spinning.

No one responded, though. Scarlett stared at her blurry reflection in her untouched soup. A tense Igneous was braced against the wall, clutching his right arm. Nikki was looking at the floor and Artemis hadn't budged from the last time Yuna checked him. He could've fooled her into thinking he was a statue if Yuna didn't know better.

I'm honestly a little surprised that we haven't had a death in the team up to this point now that I think about it. I mean, we had Igneous get paralyzed and forced into his arrangement, but their plot armor has held up remarkably well all things considered thus far.

"I should... go check on Team Bureau." Cid hovered into the air, spots flickering erratically. The orbeetle headed for the door to the residential quarters before Yuna could react.

She looked at the others. "Guys?"

Nothing.

"Someone say something." The dragapult fidgeted nervously. "I don't— I'm not sure what to do here."

Tee up:

View: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-sqsBi3-mk


and take some time to grieve a bit?

"And you think we are?" Scarlett whispered, worriedly rubbing her neck bauble with a wing. "Why'd you have to say that, Starlene? I look like an absolute tool now."

Nikki's chair creaked against the floor. Yuna waited for the toxtricity to offer something. She'd even settle for something crass. But Nikki shoved her hands in her jacket pockets and quietly headed for the restaurant's other exit leading toward the outpost.

"Wait, Nikki!" Yuna flew after her. Nikki held her right hand up to stop the dragapult.

"Don't."

Nikki: "In case you haven't noticed, but I don't think any of us are really in a state to say anything helpful, Princess." >_>;

Yuna's tail shriveled.

"Need some air." Nikki's mohawk dimmed. "I'm fine. Don't worry about me." She continued toward the door, which slid open to let her through.

When Yuna turned back around, she found the other door opening to let Igneous and Scarlett through. "Wait, guys!"

Though she sped toward them, they didn't acknowledge her. And they were already halfway through the glass tunnel leading to the residential quarters by the time Yuna reached the door.

Yuna: "Well, this could certainly be going a lot better right now."

Her shoulders sagged. Yuna couldn't be alone. Not now. She needed something to do or people to be around. Or else she'd... she'd...

A whimpering Tessa lay in the dirt. Ears ringing. Snout broken. Tears blurring her vision.

Oh, so that's how

was just before merging with Yaldabaoth, huh?

Yuna shook her head. She forced a rift open into the hanger and darted into it. Noctum and the others were there. The cosmic charizard... clutched an orange rectangle that looked a lot like one of Leo's plates. But he was lying on the floor, staring at the ceiling with a faraway look in his eyes.

"Noctum!" She flew across the hanger, passing Valkyrie and Vegna talking to Cid. The garchomp had Vortex slung over her shoulder while the dusknoir loomed over Shimmer. Yuna didn't care, though. Why wasn't anyone helping Noctum? He looked ill!

"Are you okay?" Yuna waved her arms around. When she got no response, she put her hands on his shoulders. "Noctum, say something? Are you hurt? Did you get sick?"

"Time... time..."

Well, that's certainly quite the mood swing from what we saw of him last chapter. Though I suppose it makes sense that his inner Palkia wouldn't handle the death of Dialga's reincarnation well.

"Huh?" Yuna nudged the cosmic charizard, but he kept mumbling the same thing. "Hey, guys? I think something's wrong with Noctum!"

"We know." Valkyrie glanced at her. "Soon as we got back, he said Seifer's dead and he's been like that ever since."

Yuna glared at her. "So you thought it'd be okay to leave him like this? He needs help!"

Valkyrie: "In case you haven't noticed, but just about everyone's been having problems from the Zappening, so it's been kinda hard to deal with them all." >_>;

"I was going to get him a healer," the garchomp growled. "But I have to handle this charizard first." She adjusted her tenuous grip on Vortex, not caring that her claws dug into his thighs.

Oh, so they did bring Vortex back to their base. Not fully sure how that's going to work since I'm not convinced that he's going to willingly join them, but...

"Then I'll go get one," Yuna said. "Most of them are over by... by..."

Her tail partially retracted into her torso. Valkyrie snorted blue purple embers.

"I figured." She turned away from Yuna and stomped across the hangar with her passenger in tow.

Valkyrie: "If Zardy's state bugs you so much, you're welcome to try your claw at helping him out. As it stands, everyone's got their claws full at the moment."

Swallowing hard, Yuna turned back to Noctum. The cosmic charizard continued to stare blankly at the ceiling.

"Valkyrie's going to get some healers," Yuna assured him. She hovered to Noctum's side. "It's going to be okay." Except her voice was shaky. Yuna couldn't come up with anything more substantial than that. And Noctum still wasn't acknowledging her.

"As cold as this sounds, you won't get through to him."

Maxie walked over from the large computer terminal setup on the other side of the hanger. There were fewer skorps at the consoles than usual.

The ghostly typhlosion nudged his goggles. "He's in shock."

Yuna: "S-So what, I'm just supposed to leave him like this?!"
Maxie: "Honestly, yes. There's nothing else that can really be done at the moment."

Yuna figured that was the case. "But why?"

"Hard to say." Maxie shrugged. "Something to do with his makeover, perhaps. I see it changed again."

"His makeover..." Yuna eyed the blue auroras in his belly and wings.

He crossed his stubby arms. "Did you ever ask him about what happened during the fight against Halvus?"

The dragapult winced. "No." She figured they could talk about it when Noctum was ready. That was a reasonable thing to do, right?

Yuna: "Er... in retrospect, I probably should've pressed him about that before all of this happened, huh?" ._.;

"Well, hindsight's twenty-twenty and all." Maxie pinched the bridge of his goggles. "You can stay by his side. But it appears he's holding a plate. You ought to take that to Leo." The ghostly typhlosion looked around the hangar. "Where is he, anyway?"

Yuna stiffened. "He, um, had one last thing to take care of on the other side of the anomaly."

"I thought you sealed it," Maxie said, narrowing his eyes. "What's going on here?"

"I, um—" Yuna's head pounded again. She wanted to leave. No, she had to leave.

Maxie: "Is there something you want to tell us, Yuna?"
Yuna:

Without even thinking, she bent over and pulled the plate out of Noctum's grasp. The cosmic charizard resumed mumbling to himself. Yuna backed away, guilt and panic squirming around her insides.

"Wait, where are you going?" Maxie's fiery collar churned. "I asked you a question."

Yuna turned and opened a small rift. The dragapult shot through it, landing on a cot with a blue blanket. The cleffa and eevee dolls on the bed bounced up and landed next to her.

Oh, Yuna still sleeps with plushes? I actually hadn't realized that up to this point... unless those are Leo or Noctum's.

Groaning, Yuna set the plate down next to them. She flopped down on her back, even though that meant her triangular head was slightly propped up.

"Why are we in Leo's room?"

Oh, well. That answers that question.

Yuna didn't bother pushing Reshiram away. She traced her right hand over her core and tossed two motes of light next to the plate. Reshiram and Rayquaza appeared in splashes of blue light.

"Mayhaps we're waiting to bestow this plate upon him whence he returns," Rayquaza said, coiling up beside it.

"Guys, please." Yuna squished her temples. "I really... can't do this with you right now."

Well, it was a nice run of mental stability for the last 20-ish chapters, but back to "crack up"-land we go.

Broken face in the dirt. The taste of blood and soil. Every breath a struggle.

She kneaded her hands against the blue blanket, trying to will away those images.

"It's, um, okay to be upset," Reshiram whispered, walked up to Yuna's face. "Even if he wasn't exactly your friend, he was your teammate."

Yuna tensed. She squeezed her eyes shut and tried to fill her head with something else. Something like... like the bed of hot coals behind her parents castle! Yuna envisioned the rhythmically pulsating orange glow the coals gave off under the ash-choked skies. The clusters of embers drifting through the air.

Cecil: "... You do realize that this is the definition of an unhealthy response, right-?"

Yuna: "I don't want healthy, I want this gone!"

Soft fur tickled Tessa's belly. She woke up to a faceful of two icepix tails tickling her snout. Oh God, she was going to sneeze. Roll away, roll away!

"No sneezing," Yuna mumbled.

"Wait, sneeze?" Reshiram shot into the air, flapping his tiny wings. "I'm not looking to get blown away like a dust mite!"

Crap, she'd said that out loud. Yuna opened her eyes and rubbed her face. "It's fine, Reshiram. I was..."

"Old memories?" Rayquaza wondered, still coiled up next to the plate. Yuna nodded.

Yuna: "... Yes." -_-;

Reshiram hesitantly landed next to Rayquaza. He looked ready to book it into the air at a moment's notice.

"If thou art that troubled by Sir Seifer's demise—"

"It's stupid," Yuna blurted out, only to throw her hands over her mouth and look down shamefully. "I mean, well, in the back of my head I've always known we've been at risk of dying. It's been that way since the Noatun mystery dungeon." She sighed. "But, well..."

As she trailed off, Reshiram scratched his tiny chin with a tiny wing claw. "We've always avoided it until now, so you started to take your safety for granted. That fear faded." He folded his wings at his sides. "So, it's a shock to the system."

I'm... just going to take that as a sign that Seifer isn't going to be the last protagonist character that will die in the events of this story.

Yuna stared at Reshiram, blinking slowly. He was the Sage of Truth... and had a glimpse into her headspace. And nothing she'd thought about since she heard the news had anything to do with Seifer himself. Or even Cyril, who'd just lost his boyfriend.

"It's me," the dragapult whispered.

"Hmm?"

She tilted her head down. Small shadowy ripples lapped at the edges of her core. "I'm upset... because of me," Yuna mumbled. "Because it reminds me... of Tessa dying." She folded her hands over the core, hoping the two Sages couldn't see the shadows. "If I die here... will it go the same way? Will Giratina take over?"

I'll take the under on the second one since we know Yuna has had a third life in the past. Even if the state of affairs in the present is such that there wouldn't be time to wait for her to be reborn again.

The chaos energy was like tiny needles poking her hands. "Could Giratina just 'kill' me at any moment? We have an agreement, but what's stopping them from breaking it?"

God, Yuna had really taken that for granted, hadn't she? Talking about the past life stuff with the others last week never changed her situation. It simply... made it easier for her to ignore it.

I mean, considering how there were a ton of red flags regarding Yaldabaoth that were aired in the past couple chapters... that might be pretty pertinent for Yuna to worry about, there.

Rayquaza and Reshiram were silent. Yuna didn't blame them. What could they say to reassure her? That she had a strong enough will to resist it? Well, that wouldn't matter if something killed her.

It's only a matter of time before you yield to the inevitable.

... Or maybe they were simply biding their time. Maybe Giratina expected Yuna to lose heart and let them take her over.

So, should I set up a betting pool for if there's a Dickson somewhere among the protagonist cast at the moment to help this process along, or...?

Loud knocks at the door jolted Yuna upright. "C-Come in?" she squeaked. The tiny Sages returned to her core as the door opened. Yuna's fleeting hope Nikki had gone looking for her was dashed when a familiar dusknoir floated in.

"What do you want?" Yuna somewhat sank into Leo's bed.

"And now his eternal life like a dream was obliterated." Vegna flicked his right hand and the door shut behind him. The dusknoir drifted forward... and placed a biscuit on a napkin by Yuna's feet.

She eyed it like it was poisoned. "Uhh..."

Yuna: "... Vegna, what are you doing?" o_ó;

"Eat. You need your strength." Vegna pushed the biscuit closer to her. "The specter of death casts a harsh, chilling weight. It takes considerable endurance to rise against it."

Frowning, Yuna took the biscuit. "Sounds like you're telling me to get over it."

Vegna's eye dimmed. He backed away from Leo's bed, crossing his arms. "Perhaps I... could've phrased it better. This is not something one simply 'gets over.'"

Yuna: "This would be a lot more reassuring if it was coming from literally anyone but you right now, just saying." >_>;
Vegna: "Are you going to let me finish?"

"Then what did you mean?" Yuna hesitantly bit into the biscuit. It was surprisingly good. And warm, too.

"Death is a difficult burden to bear," Vegna said. "It's easy to let it paralyze you. Especially when it's something you've experienced for yourself."

Right. Vegna's technically part of Bahamut cast off from the process of his Daemoning. So he would have a fair amount of personal experience here.

Yuna's ectoplasm shriveled. It made her missaim her bite. Biscuit fragments dropped onto the blue blanket. Sighing, Yuna picked them up and stuffed them in her mouth.

"You're worried about this conflict, aren't you?" Vegna put his right hand on his chest. "About what it could do to your present self."

"Why do you care?" Yuna shot back. Of course the inquisitor would see through her quickly. The dragapult didn't want Vegna to have the satisfaction.

So she was surprised when the dusknoir backed further away and slouched against the wall. His arms were still crossed and his head was bowed in thought. "You have the power... to shape the future. For the better."

Yuna: "I find that hard to believe when I leave for not even an hour and one of my teammates is dead the moment I return." >_>;
Vegna: "I never said that you were capable with that power just yet, but let me continue..."

Squinting at Vegna, Yuna finished the biscuit. "Because of Giratina?"

Vegna shook his head. "Their power might play a role, sure. But I'm talking about what's up here." He tapped the side of his head with his index finger. "Your will."

Yuna had a hard time believing that. She lay on her side, still eyeing Vegna skeptically. "Where is this all coming from?"

The dusknoir silently stared at the ceiling. Then he whispered, "A place of regret, perhaps. I'm not proud of the things I've done."

That actually makes me wonder if Bahamut ever had a conversation like this with Chiron, since I can already tell that Vegna is drawing off latent memories as part of this consolation speech.

That was too vague for Yuna. Perhaps if she put it together with his earlier comments about death, she could hazard a guess what Vegna meant.

"Are the rumors true, then?" she asked.

"Which ones?"

"The Grim Reaper stuff," Yuna said. "That you kill people who are found innocent in cases you prosecute."

"No." Vegna's response was instantaneous. He squeezed his crossed arms with his hands.

"Then why haven't you ever said anything about it publicly?"

"Selfishness."

Yuna: "Wait, but I saw you with that Slurpuff, and-"

Yuna raised a brow. Wouldn't the selfish thing be to call out such a nasty reputation? She pushed herself up to a seated position. "I don't follow."

"Part of me believed it to be my penance for lifetimes of caustic decisions made out of selfishness." Vegna held his right hand up and looked at the golden cracks running through his ectoplasm. "Vengeance simmered beneath every action I've done in service of the Kingdom of Radiance."

God, she wished Vegna would turn down the flowery language. Stupid poetry obsession.

I take it that that's a pasttime that Shane-2020 wound up picking up over the years since becoming a giant dragon-y nightlight, since that definitely wasn't a part of the way his GL counterpart was.

Before Yuna could force him to elaborate, however, a stream of blue light spilled out of her core. A tiny Reshiram materialized in front of Vegna.

"It's you," Reshiram whispered. He pointed his right wing at Vegna.

"Huh?" Yuna frowned.

Reshiram looked back at her apologetically. "When he explained the situation with Necrozma to us... and he talked about Bahamut's journal... something didn't sit right with me."

Vegna looked away from Reshiram.

Yuna: "Reshiram, what on earth are you talking about?" .-.

"Wait, like your truth sense?" Yuna said. It wasn't like Reshiram had brought it up with her lately. The dragapult figured her chaos powers had made him lose it. Or at least weakened it to the point of uselessness.

"I thought maybe I was mistaken," Reshiram continued. "I mean, lawyers seem like the types who can twist the truth around in ways that could fool even me." He shook his head. "But how you're talking right now is eerily familiar."

"Wait, familiar?" Yuna's eyes widened. "As in—"

Oh, so now it's time for Yuna and the gang to find out about Vegna's backstory

Reshiram pointed his wing at Vegna again. "You're not some random person who stumbled on Bahamut and took his journal. You're the soul that was severed from his body. You're Bahamut."

Silence, save for the humming of the lights in the ceiling. Reshiram held his wing out. Vegna stared at the door. Yuna looked between the two, unsure whether to say anything.

Finally, Vegna bowed his head.

"There's a reason I told your predecessor to scout you in spite of your shortcomings. I never could get anything past you, Cecil."

Aaaaand there it is. I'll just take it as confirmation that Vegna's old memories of being Yuna's hubby were influencing his decision to come here.

Igneous ended up going to the room he shared with Scarlett and Shimmer instead of looking for Valkyrie and the ponytales. His ear frills hadn't stopped ringing. The dragonair hadn't said anything to him, either. She slithered onto her bed and coiled up tight around her pink pillow. Igneous opted to lie on his back with his right knee bent and his left leg straight. Outside of switching his legs' positions, he hadn't moved.

The volcarona lay on the ground. His body burned. And not in the usual way his inner fire or Flame Body did. This was painful. Like hooks digging into his wings and chitin, trying to yank something out of him.

And the downer playlist continues on. So, should I start a betting pool for 'Living with Determination' or 'Walking with You/Desolation' making an appearance, too?

Igneous: "... I really did not need to remember that, thanks."

"I'm sorry." The man with the arceus hairdo loomed over Igneous. "A few of us must bear this awful burden. But the end result will be a world free of suffering. "

Igneous could only cry out in pain. The spiritomb by his lower half swirled around faster and faster. And the tugging got worse and worse.

"You're seeing it too, aren't you?"

"Huh?" The volcarona looked around in a panic, trying to find where that female voice was coming from.

"Yooooooo, Igggggyyyyy! Snap out of it!"

Igneous: "Ugh. Freaking visions..." >_<;

A psychic tug on Igneous' head leaf jolted him upright. "The hell?!" He sprang off his bed, Leaf Blades at the ready... only for them to fizzle out when he found Starlene floating in front of him. She turned and disappeared into Scarlett's neck bauble.

"What— why—" Igneous rubbed his head. "The leaf's sensitive," he mumbled.

"Sorry." Scarlett poked her bed with the tip of her tail. "You were, um, shaking?" The dragonair shook her head. "No, more like trembling. I was trying to snap you out of it."

Scarlett: "You seem really shaken up right now, Iggy." ._.;
Igneous: "Oh trust me, you don't know the half of it."

"Oh." Igneous slumped onto the floor, curling his arms around his bent knees. "I think I was... remembering something from that past life."

"Your death?"

His leafy tails nearly caught fire but Igneous managed to control himself. "W-Whatever would give you that idea?"

Shuddering, Scarlett tucked her head down so her coiled body hid her neck bauble. "It's what I saw."

Oh, so

was there when Volcarona bit it back in the day, huh?

Now it was Igneous' turn to shudder. How could he respond to something like that? "I'm sorry," the grovlazzle mumbled, though he didn't sound that sure of himself. "Do you want to talk about it?"

"There's not much to say." Scarlett's wings drooped. "I think I was fighting that Zodiark person. Or his pokémon. They were too strong. I got overwhelmed." She suppressed a wince.

Voice cracking, she said, "It hurt a lot."

That actually makes me wonder if Volo's Pokémon alluded to in the last outro note are his PLA team, or if the burden somehow passed onto these two.

Igneous scooted toward her bed. He was about to reach an arm out to her when his X-transceiver buzzed. Seriously?

He got to his feet and plucked the X-transceiver off the bed. "Sorry, now's not a good ti—"

"I'm running the story."

His blood went cold. That was Sakaki. Brow furrowing, Igneous held the X-transceiver up toward Scarlett and flipped the speakerphone mode on. "What's going on here?" he growled.

"I thought you already knew about the attack in Dazzels," Sakaki said. "Valkyrie was there, wasn't she?"

Oh right, that was a thing. I suppose that's a sign that Dermezel and Isola will both be going mask-off very, very soon from now.

"Haven't gotten all the details," Igneous said. God, he sounded exhausted. "I was in the thick of Herbrides. And we... lost someone in the fight there."

"I see."

Silence came from the other end, but Sakaki hadn't hung up. Igneous was going to do it for him when the nidoking continued, "Are you okay? You're not thinking about your mother, are you?"

The audino nurse and oranguru doctor finished pulling out the breathing tube. A wheeze escaped the withered sceptile's lips. More like a deflating balloon than a proper breath.

Yeeeeeeeah, the main cast really should go see a therapist sometime with all this trauma across multiple lifetimes piling up on them.

"Well, I am now," the grovlazzle seethed. Scarlett shot him a worried look. "Whatever you need to say, say it."

Another pause followed, then, "News outlets were broadcasting the attack. Demerzel showed up and made the same wild claims about the body snatcher on live Polarisvision. Now they're circling the wagons. Calling him an insurgent. Some are implying he's actually a Ryujin plant."

Yeah, I'm feeling pretty good about that earlier prediction right about now.

Igneous stomach churned. He really didn't need this right now. The grovlazzle hadn't even had the strength to find Shimmer and get answers from him.

"I'm running a full exposé in a special edition of the Radiant Beacon," Sakaki announced. "It's all hands on deck. We're printing extra copies to give to our people embedded in the refugee camps for those who fled Tulpise and Venish."

"Okay." Igneous pinched his brow. "Anything else?"

"Once it's out there, I'm pulling everyone but our hidden scouts back to Scale City. Things are going to get volatile."

Sakaki: "Honestly, you and your friends should put some thought into whether or not you really need to be anywhere close to Radiance afterwards."

"That's just a guess, though."

"Call it a gut feeling," Sakaki said. "That's all I have. Give my regards to your dragonair friend."

Igneous glared at the X-transceiver. "She's been listening in."

And he hung up before Sakaki could respond. Igneous tossed the X-transceiver onto his bed where it bounced onto his pillow. He plopped down on the edge of the bed, putting his head in his hands.

"Great. Just great. Can this day get any worse?"

Scarlett: "Iggy, don't just go and say that! Now it really is going to get worse!"

The door handle jiggled, then opened with a loud creak. Igneous and Scarlett looked across the room in unison.

Shimmer stood in the doorway. His tails puffed out.

"Ah. You're, uh, already here." He shrank down. "I don't suppose I can lead with an 'I'm sorry,' huh?"

Scarlett: "Well, that was fast."

As much as Igneous wanted to march right up to Shimmer and sock the ponytales in the snout, he couldn't muster up the energy. The grovlazzle only managed to scooch to the edge of his cot, hunch over, and rest his head on his hands.

Fortunately, a certain latias had Igneous' wish covered. Starlene zipped to Shimmer's side and immediately chomped on his ear.

"You totaw dumbash!"

Well, Starlene bites when angy. TIL.

"Ow, oww! Leggo!" Shimmer shook his head and his horn sparked. Starlene backed off, only to jab him in the side with her left wing.

"Not until you explain yourself, buster!" Starlene hovered away when Shimmer glared at her. She punched the air with her tiny hands for a few seconds. Then she vanished back into Scarlett's neck bauble.

"S-Sorry." The dragonair coiled tightly around her pillow and squeezed it. "It's, um, been quite a day."

Shimmer: "... You too? Do I even want to know what happened?" ._.

"Her heart's in the right place." Igneous lifted his head off his hands. "What the hell were you thinking plotting some backroom deal with pirates and then gallivanting off right before they showed up?!"

The ponytales' ears folded. "I wasn't planning on that last part. And I honestly thought Gene would loop you guys in."

"Oh, so you assumed!"

Well, this day really is getting worse right now.

Starlene popped out of meeping Scarlett pointing an accusatory claw at Shimmer. "And you know what they say about assuming." She twirled around and pointed at her conical rear.

"He gets it!" Scarlett hissed. The dragonair managed to get Starlene back into her neck bauble. She repositioned herself on the bed so she was lying atop her pillow. She covered her bauble with her wings.

Sighing, Igneous sat up straighter. "Gene does whatever he feels like. You can't leave shit like that for him." The grovlazzle crossed his right leg over his left. "But I wanna know why you went ahead with such an asinine idea."

Because he draws strong influence from Sebastian Debeste/Eustace Winner from AAI2 and is similarly an idiot with an overinflated estimation of his own competence?

"W-Well, in hindsight... I prob— no, definitely shouldn't have." Shimmer shrank back toward the closed door, looking at his frosty hooves.

"That doesn't answer my question."

"Technically you didn't phrase it as a question?"

Igneous:

Shimmer: "Right. Uh... w-well..."

Igneous' head leaf simmered. Shimmer dropped to his belly and covered his head with his forelegs. "I was afraid, okay! Afraid Mom's been up to something in the background!" Shudders racked the ponytales' body. "I thought she'd be able to track me here. And you guys have been so busy running around doing stuff I didn't think I had any other options!"

He poked his head out from his forelegs. Even with one eye open, Shimmer's expression was rather pathetic. But a part of Igneous wouldn't buy it. He clasped his hands together and tapped his chin.

"So, even though I took you in and offered to help, you still felt it better to get Gene to set you up with complete strangers?" the grovlazzle growled.

Shimmer: "... Err, well, when you say it like that, that really was stupid of me, huh?"

Shimmer squeaked and ducked back under his foreleg. "Well, when you put it like that it really does sound pathetic, huh?"

"Yes."

Man, when I call 'em, I call 'em.

"Dayum. Twink on twink violence. He's gonna need a rawst berry for that one."

Igneous side-eyed Scarlett, who was rubbing her head so vigorously against her pillow he wondered if the dragonair was trying to phase into it out of embarrassment.

Also, she's providing comic relief for an otherwise very crushing situation, so...

"We've got a right to be angry," the grovlazzle said. His posture slouched a bit. He tapped his claws against his blanket. "Because it wasn't just the pirates. They gave way to a new anomaly and then Xeromus showed up."

He looked at the door. "You could argue Seifer would still be here if you'd told us what was going on."

That one seemed to get to Shimmer, who shuddered again. "I'm sorry!" he blurted out repeatedly. "I'd never— I didn't want this to happen. I was trying to, y'know, make something happen. Like you guys."

Now probably isn't a good time to bring up how Shimmer spent the entire moment of truth with Vortex curled up in a ball and cowering, huh?

"Yeah. That's why I'm mad." Igneous crossed his arms and shook his head. "I've been there. When my mom died. I tried to be the one to make things happen. Didn't tell anyone." His left claws tightened around his right elbow to try and stop the tingling. "Lost an arm for it."

Shimmer winced.

"But it wasn't just that." Igneous squeezed his elbow tighter. Why wouldn't the damn pins and needles go away? "I lost the respect of everyone around me."

"At your... dad's newspaper?" Shimmer uncovered his head and slowly raised it.

Igneous sighed. He wasn't entirely sure if this was a good idea. But given the day's events, he decided to rip the bandage off.

Iggy, what are you doing?

"No. In the Ryujin." The grovlazzle tucked his head down. "Mom was the leader. Dad had an inkling, but never pressed the matter."

He was, of course, twisting the truth. Even though part of Igneous wanted to out Sakaki, his instincts drove him to protect his father. "I was supposed to take over. But after I tried to go after her killers on my own, the clan had doubts. They think I'm reckless. Dead weight.

"Sound familiar?" Igneous eyed Shimmer as the ponytales lifted his head up more. There was confusion sprawled across his face. Igneous quickly added, "I wasn't sure if you'd try to run off to your mothers if I told you the truth. But since you were willing to talk pirates into raiding one of your kingdom's cities, clearly it doesn't matter anymore."

Oh, so they really are foils to each other. I vaguely remember saying something about that back in the sequence where Shimmer was guzzling wine after faceplanting in Tulpise, but now the story's all but openly saying it.

That undercut whatever Shimmer was planning to say, since he poked dejectedly at the floor with an icy forehoof. "I see," he whispered.

"I'm not entirely clean either," Scarlett piped up. "I willingly let Vortex and his scientists do all sorts of weird stuff to me so I could get famous." The dragonair rolled her head onto its side. "There was, like, an entire page of side effects this stuff was going to do. Like draining the color from my scales, giving me cataracts, turning me sterile and—"

Igneous accidentally sucked in a sharp breath and descended into a coughing fit. He and Shimmer traded bewildered looks.

"Ah, sorry. TMI?"

Igneous + Shimmer: "Yes!" >.<
Scarlett: "Er... right. My bad there." ._.;

"Yeaaaaah." Igneous thumped his chest until the last of the coughing faded. "But, well, do you get the point, Shimmer? We've been where you are. We don't want to see you make the same dumb decisions." He glanced at Scarlett. "Right?"

Scarlett nodded. "It sounds like you... know you weren't that good of a person back at the academy. The way to fix it isn't by running off on your own to, I dunno, prove something." Her right wing slowly flapped in place.

"Good point." Igneous jabbed the air with a claw. "Like it or not, your mom's one piece of a larger puzzle here. We're juggling a lot. So, if you really want to apologize, then you have to get with the program. Cooperate."

What, no moment kicking him while he's down like you can with Edgeworth to Sebastian/Eustace in AAI2's final case? :V

He slid off the side of the bed and onto the floor. "I'm still learning that part myself, so I guess saying that makes me an asshole. But whatever. There's too much at stake."

Igneous stretched his arms up so his claws grabbed at the bed covers. "That's my spiel. I'm not out to hate you or anything, Shimmer. Especially since I... see myself in you. Which has been... confusing."

inb4 that's not all metaphorical, since just saying, we've seen other characters in this story that are aspects of an originating one.

An awkward silence followed. Shimmer rested his head on the carpet. "You see it too, huh?" He sighed, coating the carpet by his nostrils in a thin layer of frost.

Embers crackled on Igneous' head leaf. The way Shimmer spoke, it was almost like—

Wait, so then Shimmer is actually-?

"Oh, brother."

Starlene materialized. Scarlett picked her head up, ready to recall her, when the latias held up her hands.

"I'll be gentle," she promised. "We're both thinking it."

"Thinking what?" Igneous frowned.

"That while you're crushing on us, Shimmer's crushing on you." Starlene made a little triangle with her claws. "And I think, deep down, you're a bit torn."

Ah yes, time for polyamory to the rescue /s

Shimmer's horn flickered and Igneous tensed up to avoid his head leaf catching fire.

"C'mon, don't deny it." Starlene drifted toward the floor, looking between the two guys. "He's stuck close to you, Iggy. And you haven't pushed him away."

"Cuz I'm not trying to alienate him." Igneous waved Starlene off dismissively.

"It's true for me," Shimmer admitted, pulling some of his frosty mane over his face in shame. "But I figured, I dunno, this was just another Xander situation. That you'd been nice to me and, with time, I'd realize there wasn't any connection." He laughed nervously. "I mean, y'know, I never thought I'd even find a reptile attractive."

He's had those yearnings for a while now but been putting up a performative facade, huh? Since it wouldn't be the first time that the very vocal opposition to an object of romance was a complex smokescreening actual desires.

If that was meant to be a compliment, it missed the mark. Igneous shut his eyes and gently massaged his brow. Try as he might, the grovlazzle couldn't muster up a response.

Sighing, Starlene flopped onto the floor. "Jeez, it's like pulling teeth."

"Gentler," Scarlett chided.

Igneous opened his eyes to see Starlene picking at carpet fibers. "Fine, fine." She locked eyes with Igneous. "You still crushing on us?" The latias pointed to Scarlett.

"Uhh..."

"Yes or no."

"Maybe?"

Shimmer: "I don't know! Can you repeat the que-?" O_O;
Igneous: "Stop." >_<

"Yeesh." Starlene rolled her eyes. She turned her head in Shimmer's direction. "What about him?"

Igneous tried to straighten out the leaves on his right arm.

"I think we have to be more specific," Scarlett said. The dragonair pointed her tail at Shimmer. "Do you find him attractive?"

"I, uh—"

"Yes or no."

The grovlazzle's head leaf crinkled. When did this become an interrogation? "Yes," he admitted in a whisper.

Ah yes, love triangle time. Even if I'll have to admit that I'm on Team Ignette for this one.

"Do you think you like him?" Scarlett asked. "In a 'we should go on a date' sort of way?"

That one stumped Igneous. Sure, he saw himself in the ponytales... but was that a good thing or a bad thing?

All Igneous could manage was scratching his head. Shimmer was still hiding his face behind his hair, so Igneous had no idea how he was taking this.

"Okay." Scarlett lifted her head up and recoiled around her pillow. Starlene vanished back into her neck bauble. "Then I think... we're all in similar places."

Igneous frowned. "In what way?"

"Uncertainty." Scarlett brushed tip of her tail back and forth across her blanket. "We're all conflicted about whether or not our feelings are real." The dragonair pointed her tiny wing at Shimmer. "Because of the past." She pointed the wing at Igneous. "Or the present."

I'll admit, I wasn't expecting this chapter to wind up going this direction. But it is an interesting thing to ponder for these characters and whether they're better off trying to chase the past that was stolen from them or live in the present. I mean, I suspect that you're going to wind up leaning to the latter, but....

Then she looked down at her pillow. "Or the future."

Shimmer finally brushed his hair out of his face so he could look at Scarlett. "Referring to yourself?"

"Yeah. Cuz, like..." Still rubbing her tail against her blanket, Scarlett stole a glance at Igneous. "I've, y'know, seen the changes you've been making. You stuck by me in Herbrides. And tried to save Seifer, even recognizing Gene gave him the best chance. You didn't run off this time."

Igneous’ heart fluttered, but he kept his expression stoic. "I hear a 'but' in there."

Shimmer: "Wait, huh? But she literally didn't-"

Wings drooping, Scarlett sighed. "It's hard for me to, like, rationalize thinking about love or whatever when it feels like the world's on fire. And I don't know if that's because of Polaris' experiments or something else."

As much as Igneous wanted to jump to Scarlett's defense, he stayed his tongue. She had said it before: she didn't want a white knight. Maybe she wants validation.

I mean, it would explain her life choices for consenting to medical experimentation for the sake of a pop star career...

"That's fair." Igneous' claws dropped to his sides. He tapped them against the carpet. "We haven't even talked about that shit Xeromus said about the cloud daemon being the 'real arceus.'"

"And I don't want to." Scarlett shook her head. "He's lying for Zodiark's sake."

Igneous nodded, though he had the nagging sense they were missing something. Still, if Scarlett didn't want to press it, then he'd drop it. "Yeah. It was just, y'know, an example. Of what could make it hard to think about love and relationships and stuff."

Shimmer got to his feet and made his way over to his bed in the corner opposite the door to their room. "Great," he muttered. "Does that make me a bad person for thinking about it, then?"

Talk about a lose-lose question. Igneous doubted he could say anything that wouldn't upset Shimmer. He silently watched the ponytales climb onto his bed.

"No. People have needs," Scarlett said, to Igneous' surprise. "And, like, if you two want to test the waters, go ahead. Only thing that matters is trying to help the resistance, right?"

I can't tell if she genuinely means this or if she's just saying this because she thinks it'll make Iggy happy.

There had to be better ways to phrase that. A tingle ran down the grovlazzle's spine and he wasn't sure if that was out of awkwardness or potential excitement.

"I don't know." He stood up and flopped onto his bed, burying his face in his pillow. "It's been a long day. I just want to sleep."

"What was that?" Scarlett asked.

Igneous tilted his head right. "I just want to sleep. Maybe tomorrow we can, I dunno, do something low-key. Nikki and Yuna can join, too."

The Plot:

Assuming there wasn't some resistance issue they had to tackle, of course.

He didn't bother waiting to see if either of them responded, however. Igneous smushed his face into his pillow, dug his arms underneath it, and tried to will himself to sleep.

I can already tell that he stayed up for a long time afterwards.

Chapter 99

Spoiler: Line-by-Line

"Do you ever think about him at all?"

Tessa dabbed her muzzle with a cloth napkin, then set it next to her empty plate. Next to her, Nickie's left ear flattened.

"Think about who, Nero? Just because I complimented his thighs doesn't mean—"

"No, silly." The riolu chuckled. "That friend of yours back home." Her aura feelers twitched. "Or, uh... maybe he wasn't your friend anymore by the end?"

Wait, so Tessa-2020 did have a Shane after all?

"Oh." Nickie looked down at her remaining tart. The icepix's snout wrinkled. "Yeah. A few times." She looked at the ceiling. "If he was here, he'd be bouncing off the freaking walls. The guy'd be so jazzed. He was, like, unhealthily obsessed with pokémon."

Oh. I didn't realize that it was

that was speaking there. So we were talking about Shane-2020, just not in the universe that I thought we were.

Tessa raised a brow. "So there are pokémon in the human world?"

Nickie's tails puffed up. "Uh, well, yeah. It's, y'know, kinda complicated." She laughed nervously, then scarfed down the rest of her tart. Crumbs littered her white snout.

Tessa: "So... that's a 'yes', then?"
Nickie:

"Sometimes I wonder what would've happened if he was here instead of me." Nickie looked at Tessa. "And then I tell myself it'd be a disaster. He'd treat everyone around him like dirt and think himself the most important guy in the room."

Shots fired at Shane-2017. Since... uh... yeah. That was more or less exactly how he was before undergoing character development around 30 chapters into GL.

She turned up her nose. "Before I disappeared, I told a couple of buddies that Shane outed me to my dad. I hope that spread through the school like wildfire. Maybe it'd be the wakeup call he needs."

I mean, considering what became of him in this universe... that didn't exactly turn out well, I can already tell.

Tessa's aura feelers throbbed. Despite Nickie's even tone, there was a lot of emotion behind her words. "I see." The riolu rubbed her shoulder. "That bad, huh?"

Nickie saw Tessa's expression and her ears folded. "Shit." Her tails curled up. "I, uh..." She bit her lip. "That wasn't supposed to sound so harsh."

Yeah, being bitter at

over a personal betrayal does sound like the most Nick(ie) thing imaginable. It makes me wonder how things would've turned out had Nick-2017 stayed a Growlithe in that story.

She scooted next to Tessa, who squeaked with the icepix's tails brushed against her waist. "It's not all bad," Nickie said. "I got to meet you, didn't I?"

"Me?" Tessa's aura feelers stuck up. "It's only been a couple of months."

"Yeah." Nickie leaned over. "Still enough time to think you've been one of the best things that's happened to me."

Blood rushed to Tessa's cheeks.

Boy, that one is going to be awkward whenever Nikki gets wind of what Vegna's full backstory is.

With newfound hindsight, Reshiram's revelation seemed so obvious. Vegna had Bahamut's journal memorized. He commanded multiple Sages. His focus had been squarely on Necrozma since he showed up at the outpost. Hell, the fact that he got to the outpost meant he had to have formed a rift between the regular and reverse worlds. And the thing he told her a couple of weeks ago...

"Continuing down this path will lead you to discover several horrible truths. And without that tenacity... the weight of those truths will crush you."

Trippy music is trippy. Though that actually makes me wonder if Vegna also has memories of being Shane-2020, or if those have faded or else gotten airbrushed out from his split off of the rest of Bahamut back in the day.

Maybe one of these could've been a coincidence. But taken together, there was only one logical explanation.

Yuna wanted to be mad. What did Vegna have to gain by sitting on this secret?

The dragapult scooched toward the edge of the bed. "Why?"

Vegna's look practically screamed "elaborate."

Vegna: "'Why' what? There's a lot of ways I could answer that right now, Yuna."

"Why hide it like this? Especially after coming to us for help?"

The dusknoir's eye glowed blue. "Yes, why hide being the soul of a large dragon of light worshiped by half the world and scorned by the other half?"

Something something, running away from the past, I'd wager. Since uh... Bahamut had untold numbers of genocides under his belt from the past. ^^;

If he was trying to spin this back on Yuna, she'd have none of it. She curled her golden claws around her blanket. "This isn't some courtroom debate. I want answers."

"Me too." Reshiram looked more hurt the longer the conversation went on. "You told my wife you hated her big mouth."

"And you went behind my back and eloped," Vegna growled. He tilted his head right and shook it, sighing. "Which is... irrelevant. You want answers? I told you, it all goes back to selfish vengeance."

Wait, is that referring to Cecil's relationship with Jade, or...?

"Revenge." Yuna curled and uncurled the tip of her tail. "On Eternatus?"

"On Isola." Vegna held his right hand up. Blue Will-O-Wisp embers crackled around his fingers.

Ah yes, priorities™️. Though let's hear what on earth the backstory behind this one is.

"What?" Reshiram's tail turbine matched Vegna's embers with some of its own. "If you want revenge on her, why work for her? And wouldn't that, y'know, give you a motive to do Grim Reaper killings?"

"The body snatcher is the one who killed Chiron and Leo," Vegna said, locking eyes with Yuna. "My memory of that day is... spotty, but I'm sure of it. I have evidence."

This... is starting to make me think that somehow Vegna is wrong about this, just saying.

The Will-O-Wisp embers congealed into Bahamut's journal, which Vegna held in his hand. It flipped open to show the word TRAITOR scrawled in red ink, along with jagged scribbles and puncture marks suggesting the writer had stabbed the pages with a pen repeatedly.

A gush of hot air from Reshiram's tail turbine rippled the part of the blanket dangling off the side of the bed. "Traitor? You don't think—"

"That one of the Sages is related?" Vegna's eye dimmed. "Clearly I do."

Well, someone certainly had anger issues. Though I take it that that's Zacian's doing, then? Since we never did see what became of her from those past glimpses.

"But how?" Reshiram squeaked.

"They never sealed themselves away in a Needle." Vegna shut the journal, which dissolved into gold light his hand absorbed. "For a time, I thought perhaps it was the former Sage of Justice. After all, there was no logical reason for a keldeo to be around Radiance."

"Couldn't you say the same thing about an articuno, moltres, and zapdos?" Reshiram pointed out. "None of them were Sages, yet they're in the Radiant Guard."

"Which is why my focus shifted to Isola," Vegna said, tapping his right index finger against his left arm. "I suspect she's the reason. Just as I suspect she unsealed Keldeo and allowed her to procreate. If Isola does have a Red Chain fragment as the clown prince suggests, it would all make sense."

Yuna: "... I am so lost right now. But then who do you think is this traitor among the Sages, then?" ._.;

"Well, we've pulled a lot of Needles," Yuna mumbled. "I know Necrozma got Suicune and Zygarde. Scarlett seems to have Latias. And you have three. So that leaves—"

Vegna held up two fingers. "Two. There should be two Needles remaining. Diancie, Sage of Heart. And Enamorus, Sage of Beauty."

Wow, I didn't realize we were that close to running out of Needles, but we have our answer for a culprit, since I remember the mention of Justine seeing a 'pink serpent' before getting Iron Leaves'd two chapters ago.

"What about Latios and Zeraora?" Reshiram asked. "And Victini, too?"

"Already with Necrozma. And Victini most likely had their needle corrupted and broken already."

Yuna gulped. Then... there wasn't much left keeping Eternatus tethered to the reverse world. "Okay. Two potential Needles. But one of them might be the body snatcher. Then we'll just end up learning who it is by process of elimination after pulling the next Needle, won't we?"

Oh, so things are going to be hitting the fan again nice and fast in this story, huh?

"By then, I fear something terrible might happen," Vegna growled. "Considering there are multiple people trying to expose Isola."

He looked down, eye dimming. "Not to mention that if one of them is the body snatcher, then there's really only one Needle remaining."

Vegna lifted a shaky hand and examined all the gold cracks in it. There were more there than the other week. "One Needle... keeping this fragile body together."

Whelp, I guess that hard-confirms that we are going to see at least one more character death in this story before the end.

Yuna pinched her brow. This was a problem. One that also came with the extra uncertainty of Yuna not knowing whether getting to the bottom of this was her desire... or Yaldabaoth exerting their influence.

"So you... intend to recombine with Necrozma?"

Vegna was silent.

Yuna: "Vegna, that isn't a 'no' there!" O_O;

Yuna crossed her arms. She needed a slightly different angle. "Eternatus can't be destroyed. Necrozma wants to destroy it. Do you still feel that way?"

"I do not."

The dragapult wished she found that reassuring. "If you recombine, then will Bahamut lay off?"

"I cannot say," Vegna responded. He turned his head toward the door again. "I'm unsure whether or not Necrozma's single-minded obsession with destroying Eternatus will win out over me. My body is... far stronger than my spirit."

Yuna: "I'm just going to take that as a negative." ._.

"But it's the only way to stop Bahamut, right?" Reshiram poked his wing-claws together nervously.

"I was trying to work with Gene to find alternatives," Vegna explained, flicking his right hand. "If we destroy Necrozma as it is now, my spirit will fade when the final Needle is pulled. I had suggested he take a blessing from Leo, but he is... unwilling."

Leo. Yuna thought of the cosmic arceus as she also stared at the door.

Yuna: "I... don't want to know what that entails, do I?"

Vegna: "Probably not, no. Though circumstance may force your claw in the not-too-distant future."

Another thought tickled the back of her head. "Did you sense Chiron? Is that why you put me in your class?"

I mean, we all know the answer to this is 'yes' regardless of whatever Vegna says.

Vegna sighed. It lingered for several seconds. "Do recall that I never even met you until you came to the academy. But I did sense... familiar traces from meeting your parents on their prior trips. So, yes, I admit I arranged to get you into my class so I could see you for myself.

"And when I did, I thought that parts of your aura brought Chiron to mind. But other parts... reminded me of myself."

That was probably Yuna's distortion powers. Giratina did say Bahamut stole them somehow.

Waaaaait, doesn't that mean that there's a chance that Vegna's spirit will go to Yuna after he poofs if Yuna now has some attributes of the original Bahamut?

"It's not the same. Neither you nor Leo." The dusknoir shook his head. "Perhaps you both reincarnated. I'm unsure. Either way... I don't consider either of you family, if that's what you're worried about."

There was plenty Yuna was worried about. Enough to not find any solace in Vegna's words. The end of her tail twitched with irritation. "How did this all happen?"

"It's complicated," Vegna whispered.

Yuna: "Look, in case you haven't noticed, but Seifer died because we weren't all on the same page earlier. The least you can do right now is explain what's so complicated here." >_>;

She rubbed the brim of her triangular head. "Then make it make sense."

Yeah, I figured. Even if Yuna was much more to the point in the actual text.

Another sigh. Vegna folded his hands over his closed stomach mouth. "As I said... my memories of the day I lost Chiron and Leo are fuzzy. But I think... that was when I learned many of the same things you heard from Giratina."

Before Yuna could make a remark, Vegna held up his right hand. "I don't remember specifics of my past life like you claim to." He lowered his hand. "There are... vague recollections. Of struggling to understand the world around me. And the world, in turn, not understanding me."

His hands balled into fists. "Frustrations giving way to isolation giving way to yet more frustrations. A vicious cycle feeding into itself."

The dusknoir tucked his head down. It was... shameful? Yuna couldn't quite peg his body language.

I mean, Vegna has Bahamut's journal. If the antics recorded in there didn't sit right with him, it'd only make sense he'd be ashamed of the way he used to be.

"And then I woke up alone. A giant dragon of light." Golden embers drifted off the exposed cracks in Vegna's arms. "I wandered the universe — or, as it turns out, the distortion world — seeking an end to my loneliness. But the same pitfalls that befell my past self happened here.

"I did not understand the places I visited." Vegna shook his head. "And I did not communicate well. But this time I had power." He held up a clenched fist. "I could make my frustrations known... through force."

Yuna's tail slowly curled throughout Vegna's explanation. "Just how many places did you attack in your travels?"

"Too many. It felt good. It felt right." The dusknoir bowed his head shamefully again. "I could blame Giratina's powers, but in the end it was still my choice. And, perhaps, I might've continued down that path... had I not met the Overseers."

Which IIRC are Word of God the same as the Overseers from HoC. Makes me wonder if we're going to see ripple effects from HoC's plot ending in the upcoming year on this story somehow.

Reshiram's tail turbine crackled like the engines in Cyril's workshop. "You were on Chakran when they were around?"

Vegna nodded. "And when they abandoned our world." He folded his hands over his stomach mouth again. "But I met someone there. And it was like... looking into a cracked mirror. I couldn't shake the feeling that this person... was a happier me. Similar struggles, yet he found friends and family to support him.

I mean, given that they were both literally Psychic, that must've been a real strong feeling there.

"Something about that made me snap." The dusknoir squeezed his hands together. "I lashed out at him. He defended himself... with a power that split my soul from my body."

Wait, what is that power that Vegna is alluding to there? Since I didn't remember

doing anything like that in GL unless that's related to his ability to conjure spirits at the very end of the plot.

"Wait, what?" Yuna leaned forward and almost fell off her bed. "But then—"

"He pulled me back together," Vegna said. "But, yes, I ended up learning that power from him. And using it on myself." He shook his head. "After Chakran, I thought that... the only way I could be like that Overseer was to make my home. I didn't create the life that would inhabit your home, but I brought about conditions to allow life to evolve."

Totally a good sign for what Bahamut intended to do with that power, really.

"Then put yourself in charge of what resulted," Reshiram said, shifting around uncomfortably. "And I was part of that."

"You guys described Bahamut as a bit of a control freak." Yuna tapped a gold claw against her core. "Do you think that was because of Giratina's powers?"

"I think it was both of us," Vegna responded. He waved Yuna off. "Regardless, all my controlling tendencies couldn't stop Eternatus from showing up. Along with everything else that followed."

Yuna tried to recall what Igneous had told her about that final entry in Bahamut's journal. "You were... tired of emotions weighing you down. So, you split your soul from your body."

Yuna: "Which for reference, was an absolutely terrible idea." >_>;
Vegna: "Oh, I'm all too aware. Even if I'm not sure my old self realized that back then."

Vegna pinched his brow. "I had once believed... that I was meant to pass away, like any other person. That being struck by Eternatus had 'cursed' me with immortality."

"But you don't believe that anymore." Reshiram sounded sure of himself. Must've been that truth sense. "Because of Giratina?"

The dusknoir nodded slowly. "Yes. But at the time, I viewed my spirit as a burden. So, I sought to cast it off. Except when I emerged as a soul... fear took hold. I didn't want to disappear."

Ah yes, glowy divine being with a golden color scheme willing to do horrible things out of fear of fading away... why does this sound fam-?

Ah yes, that's what that was reminding me of.

"Then is some of the other stuff true?" Yuna wondered.

"I did find and pull Zekrom's Needle," Vegna admitted. A blue glow took over his eye, but quickly faded. "The necromancy stuff is true as well. However, that was because this body proved fragile from the beginning. Not after pulling Zekrom's Needle."

He held his hand up to expose the gold cracks along it. "All the necromancy acts were attempts to preserve my body and keep it from crumbling. It's why I became an executioner for Radiance. To use those spirits to preserve my body." Vegna lowered his hand. "I only transferred to the Ministry of Justice after suspecting Isola had a connection to the one who took Chiron and Leo away from me."

Yuna: "Wow, that's- more than a little messed up there."

Vegna: "Well, hey, it bought your world 1100 years of life not being devoured by Eternatus, so there were some upsides to things."

With a grunt, Vegna pushed himself off the floor. "That is, to the best of my knowledge, the whole truth."

"I see." Yuna sat up straight, then immediately asked a question that sprang to mind. "Do you regret what you've done?"

Vegna braced his left hand against the wall. "If this were a court of law... I'd have argued that Giratina's influence drove my actions. That I never intended to cause so many problems." He looked down. "And so much harm."

Yuna: "That's not a 'no'!"

"That doesn't answer my question," Yuna growled, trying to stop her tail from lashing at the dangling edge of Leo's covers.

"I regret it," Vegna said. "I wish I'd never had such terrible power. Perhaps if I could go back to that distant life... I'd do things differently."

That actually makes me wonder if Vegna will get a chance to meet

again before blipping out.

Reshiram flew up to Yuna's left on the bed, between her and Leo's plate. "Well that's, y'know, good. It's a start." He looked between the two ghosts, tittering. "Maybe if you hold onto that mindset, when you become whole that'll—"

"You should try to destroy Necrozma as it is right now," Vegna said. He floated closer toward the door. "I— we've done too much harm. If you and your allies do possess great power from the distant past, then it should be possible. It is... the most pragmatic option."

I can see that evasion of responsibility there, just saying.

"No."

She didn't think she could make one word sound so forceful. But given Reshiram's dumbfounded expression, that's exactly what Yuna had done.

The dusknoir looked over his shoulder. "What?"

Yuna dug her claws into the fibers of Leo's wool blanket. "I'm so tired... of people telling me what I should do. What's 'best' or 'most pragmatic.'"

I mean, yes, but just saying, you're not exactly operating on a complete set of information here, Yuna.

Reshiram curled up his wings. "It did sound like something Bahamut would say."

She pointed at Vegna. "This is your fault, too. You don't... get to take the coward's way out here. You're helping us fix this." The dragapult tapped her right index claw into the palm of her left hand. "Whether that's as Vegna or Bahamut or something else entirely doesn't matter to me. I won't let you just disappear.

"So, yeah, I guess you were right. I don't forgive you or respect your decisions or whatever."

I mean, sure, this might end horribly in like 20-30 chapters, but you've gotta admit that it's satisfying to see Yuna stand up for herself like this.

"Yuna."

"Don't." Yuna held her left hand over Reshiram like she was ready to squish him. He abruptly shrank back toward Leo's plate. "If that's everything, you can go." The dragapult flicked her right hand lazily toward the door. "I'm going to wait for my son to get back. And I don't need you around for that."

At first, Vegna held his ground. Then his eye dimmed and he turned back toward the door.

"Perhaps there's... more of her in you than I thought."

I mean, it helps that she's an out-and-out reincarnation of your wife, so...

The dusknoir opened the door and floated out. He didn't bother shutting it.

"Well that, uh..." Reshiram twirled a lock of fur with a wing claw. "I guess that could've gone worse?"

"Save it." Yuna glared at him.

"I wasn't, um, looking to criticize or anything." Reshiram shifted his weight uneasily. "I know this stuff's upsetting, but it feels like it's making you more upset than before."

Cecil: "Also, you're kinda scaring me right now."

"You think I don't see that?" Yuna plucked Reshiram off the bed.

"Whoa! H-Hey, easy now!" The tiny dragon flailed between Yuna's claws.

"How do I know this anger is mine and not Giratina's?" Yuna held Reshiram up in front of her face. "What if they're trying to isolate me from everyone so I'll give up and let them take over, huh? How can I trust my thoughts and wishes here are really mine?"

I mean, you kinda can't since you two are sharing a body right now, so...

"... Yeesh," a new voice interjected. "Maybe I should've looked for some whiskey or vodka to bring."

Squealing, Yuna let go of Reshiram. "N-Nikki! H-Hi!"

Yuna: "I... uh... I can explain?"

Reshiram hit the bed and bounced off it with a nasally yelp. He faceplanted onto the carpeted floor then hastily got to his feet, shaking out his messy fur.

"I'm okay!" he declared.

-snerk-

Yuna recalled Reshiram into her core and shimmied backward so she could prop her triangular head against the wall. "How, um, long have you been standing there?"

The toxtricity walked inside, pausing to kick the door shut with her right leg. "When you told Crotch Fuzz to 'save it,'" Nikki replied, shrugging. "Guess you're drifting into existential shit again, huh?"

"O-Only toward the end." Yuna's long tail crinkled. "I was talking. With Vegna."

"About?"

[ ]

"Abouthowhe'skindasortamaybeactuallyBahamut."

IMO, Yuna's line would work a little better taking a moment to show her pause and "uhhh" internally a bit.

It came out so fast it sounded like one word, but Nikki must've parsed it out because her mohawk shrank. "Oh. Ohhhhh shit." She looked back at the closed door. "Is that, uh, good or bad?"

"Dunno."

"Should we be upset?"

"Yeah."

Oh, Nikki. You don't even know the half of it right now.

Nikki threw the door open, leaned into the hallway and stuck her middle finger up. "How's that?"

These comic relief moments never cease to be hilarious when they come. I don't know what dark art you use to get them to work in otherwise deadly serious moments like these, but they generally stick their landings quite well.

Nickie reared up on her hind legs. She tried to lift a foreleg but tumbled backward with a yip.

"W-What was that?" Tessa was trying not to laugh.

"I wanted to flip that fopdoodle off!" Nickie kicked at the air with her legs. "God, I miss having hands."

Oh hey, I remember you teasing this part way back when. o<o

"It works." Yuna chuckled into her right elbow.

"Good." Nikki shut the door again while rummaging through her right jacket pocket. She pulled out two small glass vials. "Was gonna keep both of these for myself, but I think you need the other more than I do."

She tossed it to Yuna, who barely managed to catch it after bobbling it between her hands. The dragapult held it up and squinted at the pink gas inside. "Wait. This is—"

"Salazzle vapors. From Twiggy's sister." Nikki strutted toward the bed, tossing her vial to herself.

Yuna: "I'm sorry, but why do I want this again?" .-.

Yuna kept staring at the pink gas swirling around inside. "Why though?"

"To take the edge off."

Yuna: "... Could you explain that in simpler terms-"
Nikki:

View: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/XangM7YHoQQ

Yuna: "... Oh." ._.;

The bed fwumped when Nikki flopped down on the edge of it. A meeping Yuna shuffled closer to Leo's plate. Her tail shot into her torso.

"Heh. Never gettin' tired of that." The toxtricity pointed to where Yuna's tail had been seconds ago.

Yuna kneaded her tail out of her torso, pouting. "Is this what you meant when you said you needed air or whatever?"

Just how many substances is Nikki even into at this rate? .-.

Sighing, Nikki pushed herself back until her waist spikes plinked against the metal wall. "Yeah. It's the Seifer stuff."

The dragapult straightened up when Nikki actually used Seifer's name. This really was serious.

"I know I don't... get memories like the rest of you," Nikki said, turning her vial back and forth in her fingers. "Still, hearing about Seifer made me think for a bit. You said I fought against Zodiark in the past. But I clearly lost."

I actually wonder if there's a reason why Nikki hasn't gotten visions of the past yet. Though then again, I suppose we haven't gotten confirmation that Vegna's memories of life as Bahamut aren't just contiguous memories, so...

She closed her eyes. "So, they must've killed me, right?"

The icepix lay unmoving on the gray and blue, stone ground. Blood stained her fur.

"I... don't know."

"Your face says otherwise."

Damn, she's good.

Yuna jolted. Nikki was leaning over and looking at her.

"I saw you," the dragapult admitted, brushing her right hand over her core.

"Figured." Nikki pulled away, mohawk shrinking. "I don't gotta know the details or anything. Just that... it's gotta go different this time, right?"

"Right. Yeah. Sorry."

"For what?"

"Trying to hide it." Yuna fidgeted.

Yuna: "Which given the recent track record of how attempting to hide things has worked out among team members with us... yeah. I should've known better." >_>;

"Eh, it's whatever." Nikki waved her off. "You were looking out for me. And I pressed you on it."

They both shared a look. The toxtricity's mohawk went pink again for an instant before she looked away and coughed into her hand. "So, uh—"

"C-Can I, um, just ask you one thing?" Yuna blurted out. She was leaning forward, hands pressed down on Leo's blanket.

Nikki opened her mouth, then shut it, then opened it again. Maybe she'd planned on giving a smartass response and abruptly reconsidered. "Yeah."

"What would you do if, y'know, Giratina ends up taking me over?"

Has Nikki even given that scenario serious thought until now?

Yuna expected the silence that followed. Nikki leaned over. Still clasping her vial, she rested her head on the backs of her hands. A soft, rhythmic thumped filled the room from Nikki tapping her foot against the carpet. She had to be thinking it over, then.

"I guess... I'd fight to get you back."

"And if it's not possible?"

"Screw that."

Yuna's ectoplasm constricted. "Huh?"

Nikki sat up. "After all the shit's that happened to us, you're really going to say something's not possible?"

As touching as this is, this feel like it's hugely tempting fate right now. Even if I suppose Nikki would just be the type to tell fate to piss off and kick it below the belt.

"I, uh— it's a hypothetical?" Yuna's voice cracked.

"Doesn't change my answer." Nikki swung her legs onto the bed, facing the dragapult in the process. "I'd fight to get you back. Even if it means pissing those Overseers off."

She looked down and mumbled, "Hell, that might get 'em to come to me faster."

Watch as this actually winds up happening later on, since the entire universe of POV-2020 is essentially treated as a mistake by them, so...

Yuna imagined Nikki charging toward some angelic light... only to get vaporized by a giant white laser. She cringed. "I thiiiink I get the picture."

Oh ye of little faith.

Hell, maybe Nikki really was onto something. Vegna mentioned an Overseer who split his soul from his body the first time. Perhaps he could split her off from Giratina.

Maybe it wasn't a complete lost cause, then. Yuna had a fighting chance. And someone willing to fight for her.

I didn't even think of that one. Clever girl, there. Especially since Yaldabaoth repeatedly has been hinted as not being a fully benign actor.

Nikki stuck her vial in front of Yuna's face and waved it. "So, how 'bout it? Dunno about you, but I've had enough existential shit for one day. Hell, for the whole month."

Yuna lifted the vial in her hand. "I, uh, guess so?" She closely examined the pink gas inside. "What exactly should I do here?"

"Pfffbt. That's easy." Nikki brought her vial over by her face. "Y'just do this." She popped the cork off and heavily inhaled. The pink gas flowed into Nikki's face. There were probably nostrils there Yuna couldn't see between the toxtricity's scales.

Ah yes, time for the Mushroom Samba sequence.

At first, nothing seemed to happen. Then Nikki reclined. A shiver ran from her head town to her legs. By the time Nikki was slumped against the wall — her waist spikes wedged in a crack between said wall and Leo's bed — her feet were twitching and her mohawk frazzling erratically.

"N-Nikki?" Yuna waved a hand in front of her face. She squealed when Nikki grabbed it and squeezed her palm repeatedly.

"Squiiiiishy," Nikki said.

Well, at least it's probably less harmful to her long-term health than doing acid? ^^

"H-Hey now," the dragapult squeaked.

"I'm fiiiiiine." Nikki let go. Her arms flopped by her side. "Just enjoying the colors."

Yuna wanted to ask what Nikki meant, but paused when she saw pink spreading over Nikki's sclera. She looked down at her own capped vial.

"Hey, so, as the guy who used to date a salazzle, maybe we ought to consider not using th—"

Yuna booted Reshiram from the back of her mind and popped the cap off her vial. She didn't have nostrils, so she simply leaned over and let the vapors splash onto her facial ectoplasm.

Oh, so Cecil huffed Salazzle gas before as well. Though no refunds, Yuna.

For a moment, she wondered if there wouldn't be any effect. Then the gas seeped into her ectoplasm.

The vial slipped from Yuna's grasp and dropped onto the bed. All around Yuna, the gray metal walls rippled and wiggled. Bright reds, greens, and blues danced around one another, twisting into yellows, oranges, and purples. So many colors swirling around and around and around...

"Feels good, doesn't it?"

Yuna:

A hand on Yuna's leg made her ectoplasm tighten and quiver in a way she'd never experienced before. She looked at the arm and saw streams of purple and yellow trailing off it. They molded into icepix that ran around the arm. Around Yuna's leg.

Ten. Twenty. Thirty. So many icepix. Spinning. Circling.

The arm turned to something heavier. Scales that smothered her jiggling ectoplasm.

Yuna fell onto her back. A thunk suggested something hit the ground, but she was long past caring.

So how long are they going to be like that anyways? ^^;

"It's not usually this quiet here, is it?"

Vince's question disrupted the soft echo of Leo's golden hooves against the metal floor. The cosmic arceus made his way down the hall. "It's late. Everyone must've hit the hay."

Ah yes, the P3 soundtrack makes its return here.

"Where are we going?"

"Quiet." Grishi shushed Vince. A whimper followed from the purple koraidon.

"Still dunno why you're here, B-T-dubs." Leo looked over his shoulder. The zorotwo was levitating Vince alongside him. "We made it back. Shouldn't you go home?"

"Grishi could go home." He rolled his eyes. "Sit and twiddle claws. But Grishi knows that dumb thing to do when everything in danger."

Oh. Someone filled Grishi in on what was going on in the past, huh? Since I wouldn't have expected him to have any understanding of just how big a deal POV-2020 spinning apart would be.

He held two claws up to his eyes, then pointed them at Leo. "So, Grishi do responsible thing and keep eye on Leo and friends. Grishi be adult in the room."

"We are adults," Leo said, continuing forward.

That's really debatable in your case, Leo. Just saying.

"Then Grishi be mature adult."

"Whatevs." Leo reached his door and abruptly stopped. His chest tightened. His starcloud mane and tail pulsated. "H-Huh?"

"Oh no. What's wrong?" Vince sounded like he was trying to worm out of Grishi's psychic grasp. "Are there Whispers here?"

"No." Leo lifted a foreleg and placed it on the door. "I sense... my power. But that doesn't make sense. What—"

The moment he opened the door he saw one of his plates lying on the carpet next to the bed.

Oh, well that explained the thumping noise in the ending of the last scene.

A bed with a dragapult and a toxtricity practically tangled together like a pretzel. Their limbs twitching and torsos shuddering.

Leo blinked once. Twice. He cleared his throat.

... Nothing. Did they even hear him?

Those two should be grateful that none of these three have a camera on them right now.

The cosmic arceus waved a foreleg. A hand made of dirt popped out of the carpet, grabbed the plate, and chucked it toward Leo, who caught it in his starcloud mane.

He silently stepped out of the room and shut the door.

Leo:

"Change of plans," Leo declared. The plate melted into his mane. A fiery orange dribbled down his wheel like someone spilled paint on it.

Grishi and Vince exchanged looks. "What's wrong? I thought we were going to your room," the purple koraidon said. "And did you just get another plate?"

"Leo taller now." Grishi held two claws close together. "By smidge."

"My mom's in there. With Nikki." Leo wasn't sure how he was keeping a straight face. "Who I might need to start calling my other mom."

Oh, so they just went and skipped a few bases for getting intimate, huh? I'll admit, I didn't expect that, but between the fantastical drugs and the memories of their past romance...

Vince stared back blankly. "What."

"I dunno. They're stoned out of their minds." Leo repeatedly moved his head in a circle. "Maybe they won't remember any of it. Either way, I'm out."

I mean, hey, if they want a deal on some MDMA-knockoff berries, I might just know a guy somewhere off in the omniverse.

He pushed past Grishi and Vince. "H-Hey, wait! Where are we supposed to go, then?!" Vince said.

"Find the orbeetle in the hangar. He'll set you up with a room."

"What hangar?!" Vince finally got out of Grishi's grip. The purple koraidon started after Leo. "And where are you going?"

Grishi: "Seerseer going to be doing this a lot, isn't he?"

Leo quickened his pace. "To take a long, cold shower."

"Why?"

"Why do you think?" And the cosmic arceus stomped into a rift of his own making.

Leo: "Also, tell Cid that mom can have everything in my room. I don't want it anymore." X(

Widget did not like lying in a "loaf" position. Even switching to miraivally mode didn't help him out. And the carpet was itchy. Why did they even have to sit on the floor like this anyway?

Your video link is broken here. Though I didn't know that Silvally could loaf.

"So, that's the situation." Gene set a handless cup of tea down on the table at their feet. "Unstable world. Threat to the universe. We could some extra muscle, especially if things keep going south on this side. What do you say?"

The shadowy mewtwo extended his right hand. The two urshifu sitting across the table exchanged looks.

Oh, those two. I honestly almost completely forgot about them. Neat to see that they're actually coming into the plot after all.

"You said there are a bunch of strong pokémon with this 'resistance' of yours?" Lin asked, a brow raised.

"They're Aeon troops." Gene kept his hand extended. "Mostly dragons and other reptiles."

The other urshifu leaned forward. "So, that include any of them big muscular dragons with the circular plates?" He traced his paws in circles.

"I think he means kommo-o," Widget offered, though he wasn't sure why the urshifu considered that important.

"More than a few," Gene said.

"Any of 'em ladies?"

Ah yes, priorities™️

"Xiao." Lin smacked his brother's shoulder.

Gene shrugged. "I'm sure there are—"

"Ya got a deal!" Xiao grabbed the shadowy mewtwo's hand and enthusiastically shook it. His yellow tail crinkled up in pain.

When the handshake ended, Gene pulled his throbbing hand back and nursed against his stomach. "Great. Welcome aboard." He got to his feet. "We'll give you time to get whatever affairs you need in order, then come back to bring you to our base."

I can already see Lin

-ing in the background at all of this right now.

Lin crossed his arms. "What about the dojo, Xiao? And the village?"

"We bring the students, of course!" Xiao got to his feet. "You saw the news on PV. Things are going sideways. Looking out for our people means getting 'em somewhere safer than this nutty kingdom."

"That's... true." Lin stood up, arms still crossed.

"Heh." Xiao rubbed his nose. "You just don't wanna admit I'm right."

I'm actually curious, but were these two always meant to come back later in the story? Or is this another artifact of PoV's premise shifting away from its initial SwSh focus?

"Perhaps keep your thoughts about kommo-o to yourself next time." Sighing, Lin shook his head. "When should we expect you back?"

"Hopefully in a day or two." Gene gestured for Widget to stand. "We're heading over to Blightsmuth next."

Which judging from recent chapter titles, is front and center in the plot right now. It'll be interesting to see this one given that a huge chunk of Nikki and Scarlett's life is tied up there.

"That's on the other side of the kingdom," Lin said. "It'd take at least two days by rail."

"Well, guess it's a good thing we'll be flying." Gene pet Widget's back.

The miraivally's thrusters coughed out smoke. "I beg your pardon?"

"You heard me." Gene stretched his arms up. "And weeeee should probably get going. C'mon, bud."

Wait, flying on Widget, or...?

"Seriously?" Widget watched Gene float over the bamboo floor toward a wooden double door. "Isn't this a bit fast?"

"We're on a tight schedule." Gene snapped his fingers.

Yeah, no kidding with what Vegna revealed about the remaining number of needles plus what will happen when they're all gone.

Widget bowed his head apologetically at the two urshifu. He shifted back to his cosmic form and trotted after Gene. They stepped through the double doors and descended wooden stairs to a wooden bridge over a small pond with lily pads and bamboo fronds scattered around.

"We have to go back to the base," Widget said.

"Not without new recruits." Gene floated across the bridge, nonchalantly resting his hands behind his head.

"This isn't about getting us numbers." Widget marched after him. His starcloud neck ruff rippled with every step. "You're avoiding Cyril."

I mean, considering the state we last saw Cyril in, can you really blame him?

"I'm not."

"Puh-lease."

Widget caught up to Gene, who was leaning against a sign reading "Unseen Fist Dojo." He jabbed a gold talon into the shadowy mewtwo's thigh.

"You're trying to recruit new people not long after telling your friend to his face that his boyfriend was as good as dead," Widget said. "It comes off as trying to replace Seifer. It's insensitive. You should know better."

Gene: "Widget, the freaking omniverse is about to implode! I think I can live with sorting out a misunderstanding!" >_>;

Gene raised a brow. "Really? You're going to lecture me on this?"

The cosmic silvally's crest drooped. "He's been with you for ages. He needs you right now."

"Nah." Gene pushed off the sign. He walked across the dirt road. "I'm the last person he wants to see right now. So, better to do something productive. Better to find us some new recruits." He punched one hand with another. "Nikki lived with Shredder and she's plenty tough. So, the guy must know a thing or two."

That doesn't feel like a remotely healthy response there, but you do you, Gene.

Widget squinted. "Which is why you want to go to Blightsmuth?"

Gene turned back, smirking. "Exactly."

"Great." The cosmic silvally sat down. "Then have fun."

[ ]

"Oh, for pity's sake." Gene pinched his brow. "You're digging your heels in? Really?"

"Yes." Widget held his head up. "Send me back to the base. I won't enable your bad decisions."

This feels like another moment where it might have made sense to slow down and show off a bit more of the characters' mutual reactions to each other.

They silently stared each other down for several seconds. Eventually, Gene relented. With a lazy flick of his wrist, he spawned a rift. Widget spotted the hangar on the other side.

"Be my guest." Gene gestured toward the rift. "Don't come crying to me when it doesn't go how you're hoping."

This isn't Gene's first rodeo trying to console Cyril over a dead love interest, huh? Since that sure felt very "seen it all" from him there.

Chuffing, Widget marched toward the rift. He paused with one foreleg on the other end to look at Gene.

"I hope you'll reconsider."

He waited for a few seconds. When Gene didn't respond, Widget finished stepping through the rift. He found a few skorps staring at him.

Gene:

Widget: "Alright, alright, I get it!" >v<

"Oh, uh, hi." Widget awkwardly waved a foreleg. "Anyone seen Cyril around?"

"Medical bay," one skorp said.

"Thanks." Widget trotted toward the hangar door.

Maybe Cyril already had other people with him. Regardless, Widget wouldn't rest until he knew the zoroark was okay.

Widget: "I mean, I kinda already know he's not okay. But Gene can't seriously be right about it being the right thing to do to just leave him like this, right?" ·^·

Alright, and made it to the end. I take it that these chapters were primarily transitional in nature, though there were some pretty big shoes that dropped from the aftermath of chapter 96. Which I take was the main point on top of teeing up the upcoming Blightsmuth arc. It largely accomplished what I think it set out to do, even if it makes me wonder just how much remains to get through in this story since if Vegna's reveal was right, we're basically on the precipice of things getting downright apocalyptic in Etherium in fairly short order.

There wasn't too much I had to nitpick mechanically beyond a couple spots where I felt a little more description would've served things well for setting a mood. I do feel like the vibe felt a little whiplash-y going straight back into "despair" mode after Noctum's triumphal Palkia-ing two chapters ago. Like it makes sense given that everyone's grappling with awful news and trying to come to terms with it, but it did make me wonder if it's an artifact of trying to squeeze too many events into a tight timeframe. The Mushroom Samba sequence with Nikki and Yuna also felt a bit abrupt, especially if Leo's implication that the two were getting more than a little intimate in his room was intended to be an accurate assessment, since it didn't feel like the two were quite that close in the present day up to this point.

Ultimately, I think that the highlights outweighed the quibbles I had with these chapters, @Ambyssin . I think that this is as good a note to leave things off with for about a week and a half, though I'll be looking forward to catching up with the remaining three chapters plus your incoming trio of fresh ones over the course of Review Blitz. ^^

 

[Ambyssin]

Chapter 103: Under the Influencer​

"So, um, I went over to Aeon Town. Like you asked."

Hydreigon looked up from his half-eaten, oversized bowl of stew. The latias lying on a cushion across from him nervously fidgeted with her claws.

"Oh, you did? Wow, that was fast!" Hydreigon spoke through his main head while his right head-hand continued slurping up stew. His left head-hand squinted at him. "Err, n-not that I wouldn't expect you to be fast or anything, Blossom. You're one of the best fliers around."

Blossom blinked. "Um, thanks?"

They stared in awkward silence that was broken by the slurping of stew broth. Blossom's wings twitched. "Are you, uh, curious what I saw?"

"Hmm? Oh, yes! Of course! Very curious!" Hydreigon nodded all three heads, including the one that was half submerged in the bowl.

Blossom's neck got splattered with broth for her troubles.

"Ah, sorry! Terribly sorry!" Hydreigon forced his right head-hand out of the bowl and drifted away from it. "So, um, what did you find?" He grabbed a small dish towel and tossed it to the latias.

"There was something off in Aeon Town, just as you thought," Blossom explained as she cleaned the broth off her feathers. "But, well... I think it's coming from one of the guildmasters?"

Hydreigon's six eyes widened. "Th-the guildmasters?" He poked his head-hands together. "Oh dear. That sounds, y'know, not good."

"I'm not really sure how to describe it." Blossom's feathers stood on end. "One of the lucario... has something off about his aura. But whenever I tried to probe more, I got a terrible headache — like the whole room was spinning — and had to stop."

"I see." Hydreigon looked down. "W-Well, even so. You've been very helpful." He forced a grin onto all three heads. "I'm sure if I do some digging, I can get to the bottom of things."

XxX​

"Are you #4realz, Cassius? What are we waiting around for? These dumbasses gonna roll out a #RedCarpet on us?"

Xander stood on a towel he'd placed in the middle of a dusty courtyard. The sylveon eyed the front door of the gaudy orange mansion in front of him. He wasn't sure what was dumber: the sides of the house resembling flexing arms or the fact that this whole building was underground. Seriously, how did the hell did this place go undetected by Radiance's police?

From his place on the mansion's front stoop, Cassius shrugged. "Don Giuseppe works in mysterious ways." The Mr. Rime adjusted his hat. "No doubt he's making sure things are ready for Turian."

Harsh coughing drew Xander's attention to his right. A balding and sickly ursaluna hacked up a mouthful of green-yellow phlegm. Xander put a ribbon over his snout and turned away. The snot reeked as bad as any pure poison-type muk. At least before this Xander could walk away from it.

"You did remember the other part of this package deal, yes?" Cassius said, watching Turian cough up more phlegm.

"Bitch, please." Xander flicked a ribbon dismissively. As if he'd actually forget. He jerked his head in Iron Enforcer's direction. "Show him."

The robotic type: null's back opened. A metal arm emerged clutching a test tube filled with glowing red fluid.

[As ordered.] Iron Enforcer retracted the arm into its back. [Is the subject still viable?]

"She was as of five minutes ago." Cassius had conjured icy playing cards in his hands and shuffled them. "The Don doesn't have the sleight of hand for any fast ones. The transfer should work exactly as we expect it to. No surprises in this deck."

"Puh-leeze lay off the card metaphors." Xander shook his head. "It's cringe."

Before the Mr. Rime could retort, the front door flew open. A guitar and bass riff echoed through the dusty courtyard.

"Hmm?" The sylveon raised a brow.

"Whazzup, Empire bros?!"

Xander saw a flicker of red in the doorway. On instinct, he jumped back and pulled out his uPhone. He managed to start recording as a red carpet rolled its way over the front stoop and all the way across the courtyard, stopping right in front of Turian and Iron Enforcer.

A grapploct clutching a megaphone stepped out of the doorway. "Put your dukes up and start clapping for the realest bro around! The Steely Spirit himself, Big Gus!"

Grapploct twirled the side, letting a dozen lopunny and lilligant file out of the front door, alternating thrusting their arms left and right in time with the guitar and bass.

"Get down tonight with our boy Gus!"

Iron Enforcer's red eyes glowed. [Why are these meatbags singing?]

"The party never stops with our boy Gus!"

Xander almost dropped his uPhone in surprise as the lopunny and lilligant stepped to the sides of the red carpet and began throwing out confetti.

"The coolest cat around, that's our boy Gus!"

The sylveon caught a gray gleam within the doorway. Then the portliest perrserker Xander had ever laid eyes on waddled out the front door, whooping and blowing kisses to his assembled cheerleaders.

"He'll knock you to the ground, cuz he's Big Gus!"

"Mwah, mwah! Hugs and kisses!" Gus switched from blowing kisses to flashing victory signs as the music died down and the lopunny and lilligant broke into applause. "Oh, you're all too kind, my darling gals!" He shot them fingerguns as he waddled past. Cassius hadn't left his spot on the front stoop and was ignoring Gus while continuing to shuffle his deck of icy cards.

Xander struggled to keep a straight face. This was the Medici Crime Family's leader?! Gus was nothing but a sleazy, smelly tub of lard!

"Well, #XanFam, I know what's going in this week's cringe compilation," the sylveon whispered. He stopped recording and hid his uPhone before Gus got a proper look at him, but he was sure chatting just a snippet later would get him a shitton of clicks.

"You da guy here to bring us da goods?" Gus stroked his bushy beard. It had several colorful splotches. Assorted sauces and condiments from this perrserker's "see food" diet, if Xander had to guess.

"No. I'm the fuzz and I'm here to arrest your ass." Xander's words dripped with sarcasm. "I've got your fighter and the blood moon serum." He gestured to Turian, who was coughing up more nasty phlegm, and Iron Enforcer. The robotic full's back opened, producing the mechanical arm holding the vial.

"Dat's your fighter?" Gus stared at Turian incredulously. "Dey look ready to keel over."

The lopunny and lilligant all laughed. It clearly sounded forced, but Gus bowed and blew kisses to them anyway.

Clearing his throat, Cassius strode down the red carpet. "And that's where your side of the scheme comes in, Don Giuseppe."

"Man." The perrserker sighed. "How many times I gotta say it before you get it t'rough your thick skull?" He tapped the side of his head with a claw. "Giuseppe was my pops, like his pops and his pops before him. I'm Big Gus." He smacked his belly.

"Whatevs." Xander was getting tired of standing in this musty courtyard. "Let Cassius speak."

"We're going to take our fighter and transfer his soul into the ursaluna you captured." The Mr. Rime explained as an icy card warped from his left hand into his right.

Gus' eyes widened. "You can do dat?"

Cassius' card duplicated, then the two cards turned to four. "Of course."

"And dat'll let us put on da show of da century at Salim Stadium?"

"Exactly."

"Now you're speaking my language, ya sonofagun!" Gus slapped his right knee, then snapped his claws. "Carpaccio! Get dat lazy greedent bud of yours out here and bring dis gal 'round back, will ya?"

"Oi, ya heard da boss, nut-for-brains! Get out there!"

A greedent tripped in the doorway and rolled down the red carpet. He managed to stop himself by Turian.

"You got it, Mr. Boss Gus, sir." The greedent waddled behind the ursaluna and began to push her off to the right.

Iron Enforcer glanced at Xander. [Do we follow?]

"I should hope so," Cassius declared, still doing little card tricks with flicks of his wrist. He and Iron Enforcer walked alongside Turian and Greedent while Gus ushered his cheerleaders back through the mansion's front door.

That left Xander at the front gates. The sylveon was about to go after them when a loud "Psst!" caught his attention. Xander glanced over his shoulder and tilted his head.

Was that a porygon-Z stuck inside the gate? It was like the gate's bars impaled its torso. How? That wasn't there before.

Xander was about to signal his allies when he noticed they were frozen in place.

... No, it wasn't just them. All the Medicis were, too.

[Don't mind them, Strimmer!] Porygon-Z's voice was garbled, like it was coming out of some vintage PV speakers. [They're just on an (ADGE BREAK)! But I've extended a little (PRIME GAMING) to you (FOR A LIMITED TIME ONLY)!]

Every ounce of Xander told him this was sus as hell. He turned to walk away. "If you're a fan, you can #BuyMyMerch from my link like everyone else." Xander flicked his ribbons dismissively.

[(OMEGALUL)! I see you are a 'mon of a culture as well,] Porygon-Z retorted. It then shouted random directions out and its body jerked around. The metal gate held it in place.

Xander had taken three steps toward the others when it called out, [Don't you want to (USE THE BOOST TO GET THROUGH)? Your good buddy, Ahsen, can grow your audience like a zillion viral videos!]

The sylveon froze mid-step. Grow his audience? Now that was the kind of language Xander recognized. He turned back to Ahsen.

"Elaborate."

At first, Ahsen kept shouting random directions and getting jerked around like a puppet on strings. But it managed to stop shouting and look Xander in the eyes.

[I can show you (A WHOLE NEW WORLD)!] it declared. Static rippled around its nubby hands, turning into several party popper emojis that showered the ground in pixelated confetti. [(HELIX) can link you to another dimension with a shiny new audience waiting for (STREAM VALUE)!]

The porygon-Z vibrated excitedly. Bony aerodactyl wings replaced its arms for a few seconds, before disappearing.

"Another dimension?" Xander tapped his chin in thought. "You mean like those #rifts Paradox keeps talking about."

[🔔🔔🔔!] Ahsen's dinging noises were unsettling. [If you (ACCEPT THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS), (HELIX) will link you up to your new audience. You'll have the power of (PRIME GAMING) on your side! (STONKS) rising! UP UP DOWN A A!]

It jerked around seemingly at random again. Pixelated blocks momentarily swallowed up its head. [We're talking millions of people captivated by your (HELIX)-approved (START9)! We'll make you the greatest (VEETUBER) known to man!]

"Veetuber?" Xander tilted his head.

[Using the power of eeveelutions to captivate a spellbound audience,] the porygon-Z said. Its arms turned to skeletal kabutops scythes for a second as it flailed them about excitedly. [It's a (100 PERCENT CERTIFIED GRADE A) plan! All you have to do is (ACCEPT THE TERMS AND CONDITIONS) to proceed!]

A small ball of static trickled out from Ahsen's chest and floated toward Xander. The sylveon eyed it cautiously. This sounded insane. But an entirely new dimension to lavish attention on him was too good to pass up.

"Hang on." He held up a ribbon. "Will I have to give up my Paradigm powers?"

A loud buzzer sounded. [You get a (HELIX BOGO)! Buy one (VEETUBER) power, get (OLDGE) power for free!]

"That's a yes, right?"

Ahsen nodded, before shouting [DOWN!] repeatedly while its body vibrated in place and more static cubes appeared around it.

"All right." Xander approached the porygon-Z. "What's the plan?"

It was still a sketchy proposition, but the fame would surely make it worth his while. Anything to get to the top... and become the world's biggest star.

XxX​

"You've gotta be shitting me! The Medicis took Freya? How? Why?!"

Sparks littered the middle of the hanger, courtesy of an angry Nikki. She glared at Shredder, who stood opposite her, at the head of the small group of Blightsmuth 'mon that followed him back to the outpost. Yuna floated next to her, along with the others who'd gone to Blightsmuth. Noctum and Valkyrie were over by the computer monitors. Yuna saw Leo by the hanger door, but he kept avoiding her gaze, which made her ectoplasm shrivel.

"Wish I was, but I ain't."

"Freya's tough as nails," Nikki said, mohawk still crackling. "How'd those clowns get the jump on her?"

Shredder nudged Floragato forward. "I only caught the end of it," she muttered, fiddling nervously with her yo-yo. "But I saw a greedent taking her through some big blue rectangle."

Yuna expected the toxtricity to offer another rebuttal, yet Nikki stayed silent.

"Big blue rectangle?" Scarlett tilted her head. "That's kinda vague, don't you think?"

"Want me to read her mind?" Gene tapped his right temple.

"No need." Igneous stepped past the shadowy mewtwo. "That sounds like Minister Charles."

"Charles?" Shredder squinted, then scratched his chin. "Oh, yeah, he went missing a few months ago."

"I saw him in Venish, corrupted by the Empire." The grovlazzle crossed his arms. "And he had a greedent with ties to the Medicis working with him. I doubt it's a coincidence. But Empire or not, what does kidnapping one ursaluna do?"

No one responded, though Yuna could see some agitated looks on the faces of the Blightsmuth folks.

"Ah, shit."

The dragapult wasn't expecting Gene to cut in. He hovered in front of Igneous, pinching his brow.

"It must be Turian."

Everyone exchanged confused looks.

"Isn't a durian a really stinky fruit?" Jade said from her roosting spot by boxes filled with the monks' medical supplies.

"Turian, Birdbrain." The shadowy mewtwo waved Jade off dismissively. "Paradigm Lieutenant. Has always used an ursaluna body despite the species being quite rare within Eternatus." He tapped his chin in thought. "Haven't heard a peep about her in months, so I figured they must be looking for a new body for her."

"And Freya's gonna be that new body?" Nikki's mohawk flared up again. It even flickered red. "Well screw that noise! We gotta rescue her!"

"How?"

The toxtricity whirled on Igneous. He shrugged. "We don't know where she was taken. It could be any Medici encampment. Or she's already been brought into the Qliphoth."

Yuna's tail crinkled. If the transfer was already complete, then they'd have to fight her. "But even if we can't stop this Turian lady, we can still free Freya. Like with Beef—"

"Nein, I'm Biff!" the buzzwole called from near the closed hanger hatches. He was doing push-ups with a nervous-looking Vince on his back.

"Right." Yuna tried to recollect her thoughts. "Um, but you get the idea. And there's my dad and Victini."

"'Cept they're both still out. Same with those two birds," Valkyrie said. The garchomp rolled her eyes when Noctum and Yuna frowned at her. "Sorry." She held her arms up. "Force of habit."

"I don't want Freya to be stuck asleep." Nikki's mohawk kept giving off tiny sparks. Yuna had to back away from her to stop the static from jiggling her ectoplasm. "We have to try something." She looked at Igneous again. "Doesn't your family keep tabs on the Medicis? Get your pops to—"

"I think I've got something!"

Everyone turned to the computer stations in the far corner of the hanger. Cid was pointing at a couple of skorps desperately trying to turn a couple of the larger monitors so that everyone could see. As soon as they did, obnoxious guitar music played from the speakers.

Familiar obnoxious music.

"Whassup #XanFam?"

"Oh no." Yuna's legs shot into her torso. Why was Xander popping up again?

"Wait a sec." Nikki pointed at the screens. "That's Salim Stadium over in Khelifet! The hell's going on here?!"

"It's ya boi Xander comin' at ya from #EnemyTerritory!" The sylveon crouched down and looked around in a poor 'mon's impression of sneaking around. He was dressed in skin-tight camo and wore a beret like he was one of those soldiers in the movies Guzzie would sometimes play in the restaurant.

"Cuz we're simulcasting to #RaDUMBance!" Xander winked at the camera and several pixelated hearts fluttered around his face. "To bring you a #SpecialEdition of #ThreeCheersThreeJeers!"

Pixelated confetti streamed out around Xander while disembodied applauding hands surrounded him. "I know, I know. I can't believe it either. And we're gonna #MixItUp in more ways than one!" He spun around, conjuring a bright pink version of that martini shaker thing Yuna saw Guzzie use at the bar. "By starting with the #Jeers today!"

Red, pixelated thumbs downs surrounded Xander as the camera pulled out for a large holographic "JEER ONE" to flash over his head.

"#JeerOne is goin' to #MeanieQueenie Isola!" Xander stepped aside for a picture in picture to appear. It showed footage of the rapidash in front of a gaggle of reporters.

"Your Eminence, what do you have to say about the Beacon's accusations?"

"Are you really some sort of body snatcher?!"

"Why didn't the Radiant Guard step in to stop Vortex or the invaders in Herbrides?"

"Where's High Inquisitor Justine?!"

The flurry of questions cracked at Isola's normally serene demeanor. Yuna even noticed an eye twitch.

"Everything in that so-called 'expose' is hearsay," Isola said. Her usual sweet tone had a layer of frost in it, judging by Shimmer's ears folding and tails puffing up. "We have arrest warrants issued for Nidoking Sakaki and the staff writers who dared to submit this slander. There are bounties of one million radians for each of them. And we're raising the bounty on his son, Grovyle Chiaki, to 1.5 million radians."

Igneous' tail leaves caught on fire. "This has gotta be fake, right?!" He stormed over to Cid. "He's conjuring this with Paradigm magic or whatever!"

"It's legit, eh!" One skorp declared from the smallest computer terminal. "PNN is showing the press conference, too!"

The grovlazzle fell silent as Xander cut the footage from his stream.

"Ya got that right, #XanFam!" He clapped his ribbons together excitedly. "#CancelCulture's coming over to #RaDUMBance and it's going straight for #MeanieQueenie herself!" The sylveon dashed toward the camera. "Oh, and just between us, that report's #TotesLegit." He winked at the camera and stuck his tongue out playfully. "Which means a #fraud's been keeping #Eternatus imprisoned!"

Xander smushed his cheeks with his ribbons, feigning shock while tons of pixelated shocked faces popped up around him. "It's totes crazy, right?"

The shocked faces went away while Xander twirled around. More pictures in pictures showed swarms of pokémon marching around, carrying a variety of signs, some with cartoonish doodles of Isola full of knives and other pointy objects.

"That's why #CheerOne goes to these brave #RaDUMBance souls!" Xander wiggled his ribbons while pixelated hands doing those "metal horns" Nikki loved so much drifted all around him. "Taking to the streets to tell #MeanieQueenie to buzz off! You totes know they want a real leader!"

The sylveon spun around, conjuring a deoxys plushie between his two right ribbons. "And you can totes get a cuddly little version of the best leader around at a whopping fifty percent off if you use my code 'IHEARTPARADOX' at the #XanFam merch store!"

"Why the hell are we watching this?" Valkyrie snarled. Purple embers licked at her lips. "Shut it off!"

"Leave it on." Gene held his right arm out. "There might be something here."

Xander now had a picture of Vegna up beside him. Several people turned toward the dusknoir, who was braced against the wall. Lightning crackled in his eye.

"#JeerTwo goes to this goober named Vegna." Xander rolled his eyes. "He was one of #MeanieQueenie's minions. A prosecutor. But get this! He was totes #Murderizing peeps who got off innocent against him in court!"

With a wave of his ribbons, Xander summoned another picture in picture. This one had footage of Vegna in the tower of the Crowne Court that Yuna had gone to. The dusknoir flicked his wrist and a flash of golden energy dislodged a portion of the tower that appeared to be under construction. It fell to the ground where it crushed a familiar slurpuff.

Yuna's tail and legs shot into her torso. This didn't make any sense. Vegna denied those allegations. Was he lying?

"Impossible." Electricity rippled through Vegna's body. Yuna swore she saw flickers of gold, too, and the flash of anger on Gene's face told her she wasn't the only one.

"I was in a meeting with the judge," Vegna growled. "This footage is manipulated. Or fabricated."

"But they're playing it on PNN!" the skorp at the tiny computer exclaimed.

"Pix News, too!" called a second skorp beside him.

"Then they were sent manipulated footage," Vegna snarled. This time Yuna was sure his eye turned gold. Everyone else in the room exchanged uneasy looks.

Before anyone could press the matter further, however, Shimmer's whinny caught everyone's attention. "W-Why am I getting jeered?!" His tails puffed out.

Yuna returned her attention to the screen where Xander shook his head at a picture of the ponytales. "#RaDUMBance's twink of a prince is getting jerked around by those #ResistanceLosers like the sad little bottom he is!" He waved his ribbons and generated a Shimmer puppet getting yanked in different directions by holographic phantoms of Gene and... Demerzel?

"The emperor still has one of his partners, right?" Reshiram reminded her. "Guess he's given up trying to blackmail Demerzel and instead painting him as an enemy."

"Now I know what you #RaDUMBance viewers are thinking," Xander continued. Another picture in picture showed Xander and a pre-transformation Shimmer exchanging a very passionate kiss. "Me and Shimmer were #OTP, so why the #Jeer? Well, that's easy!

"I just wanted to screw him and help run #RaDUMBance!" Xander laughed heartily while a big red X crossed Shimmer out of the photo. "But now that the #GrandEmperor has shown me the light, I couldn't give a lick about him!"

He leaped close to the camera and leaned in. "And just between us, dude's a terrible kisser. And he gives lousy head!"

A whimpering Shimmer had slinked onto his belly, burying his head under his forelegs. "Shut it off! Please shut it off!" he begged.

"Don't listen to him." Scarlett slithered behind him while Igneous stepped in front of him as if they could block everyone else's gazes.

Jade tapped her chin with a wing digit. "Y'know, if that body snatcher got control of Shimmer, it would've made him kick Xander to the curb, wouldn't it? So, this is pretty ironic."

Igneous' head leaf caught fire as he glared at the salugia. "Iiiiiiiii'll shut up now." She looked down.

Yuna didn't have anything to offer Shimmer, but seeing him like that brought to mind when he'd focused the whole academy's attention on her at the Crowne Cup's opening ball. And a tiny part of her enjoyed seeing him get a taste of his own medicine, which gave way to waves of guilt.

"Ah! There! That's the intel we need!"

Gene pointed to the monitors, which showed footage of a large stadium. It had banners with crudely drawn fists draped over large screens.

"Medicis?" Valkyrie held up her bladed arms. Noctum shot her a concerned look.

"That's right! These folks took over a whole stadium!" Xander's footage pulled back to reveal that he'd been standing in some sort of broadcasting booth within the stadium the entire time. "In celebration of #RaDUMBance's impending fall, our #GrandEmperor's allies, the #Medicis, are hosting a no-holds-barred tournament open to the public!"

The sylveon curled his ribbons into a big heart. "And #YaBoiXander's gonna be on the mic! I'll be bringing you all the juiciest deets, spiciest hits, and #EpicFails!"

His smile grew bigger. "And the #WinnerWinnerChickenDinner will get a prize package including a ton of #YaBoiXander's merch... and a chance to meet with #GrandEmperor Paradox himself!"

A picture of the deoxys posing proudly flashed on the screen.

"Who knows? You might get the chance to work for him directly, just like #YaBoiXander!"

The monitors then shut up and Gene turned around, rubbing his hands together. "So, we'll have at least one Paradigm Lieutenant out in the open."

"Not to mention Charles if the Medici are involved," Valkyrie added. She was still staring down the monitors like she wanted to attack them. Yuna had a feeling she was going to leap at the chance for this fight.

"That was it?" Yiazmat scoffed. The dragapult corralled a couple of armored kommo-o back toward her. "I hardly see the need to get that invested in some... takeover of a single place in Radiance."

Gene snapped his fingers. "Which is exactly why we don't need to focus all our efforts there." The shadowy mewtwo looked around. "We send a few Aeons and monks to scout around before bringing out the bigger guns." He jerked his head in Valkyrie's direction. "Chompy's ready to murder our computers, so I'd say she just volunteered to be a big gun."

Yuna saw Noctum whispering something to the garchomp, who jabbed his light blue belly with a claw and glared at him. The cosmic charizard's starcloud tail flame shrank.

"We can go over who's who once we have a lay of the land," Gene continued. "That agreeable?"

Nods and approving mumbles followed until the hangar door opened up and Archie lumbered through.

"Alder's got something!" the samurott barked. He stepped aside so the braviary could hover over him.

"Yes, a big something!" Alder's pink feathers flickered excitedly. "One of the monks that was scouting Sinnoh for us says she found a Needle! It's in Jubilife City!"

"Jubilife?" Gene's tail crinkled. "Some of us were just in Sinnoh the other day. How'd we let this slip by?"

"Tch. Not like we've been actively searching for them," Igneous scoffed. He was kneeling beside Shimmer and nudging the despondent ponytales' shoulder.

"Well, our priorities have clearly shifted," Vegna said. His eye buzzed with blue electricity again.

Yuna caught another flash of contempt on Gene's face, but the shadowy mewtwo quickly hid it. "Let's not get ahead of ourselves." He looked at Alder. "Bring that monk back here, get a report from her, and we'll go from there."

More mutters of approval followed, but Yuna stayed silent. Her gaze drifted toward the floor.

Another Needle. The final Needle, if Vegna was to be believed. Once pulled, it would tell them which Sage was missing. And which Sage could be the body snatcher.

Yuna's mind kept racing. Did Necrozma already know about it? Was it not approaching because the empire was guarding the Needle? And what would happen to Vegna if it was pulled? What if Vegna came along and Necrozma was there? Could they recombine? Should they recombine?

"Hey."

A cold hand on Yuna's left shoulder jolted the dragapult to attention. She turned to Nikki.

"You all good?" the toxtricity asked.

"No." Yuna swallowed hard. "There's a lot at stake here." She tried subtly pointing at Vegna with her tail.

"Oh." Nikki blinked. "Ohhhhhh, right." She adjusted her jacket. "All the more reason for me to go with you, then."

"But—"

Nikki put a finger on Yuna's lips. Her ectoplasm rippled.

"I won't fight directly if it's too dangerous. I can do moral support."

If Yuna had a heart, it might've fluttered. Instead, her tail undulated back and forth.

"I'd... like that a lot."

Hopefully, things would be fine. Maybe there would be no Necrozma and Yuna was worrying for nothing. Regardless, she felt better knowing Nikki would be at her side.

 

[Spiteful Murkrow]

Heya, "a week and a half" wound up coming a bit early, but Review Blitz is rewarding people for reviewing its reviewers and I figured that it was good enough to take a swing for things tonight with:

Chapter 100

Spoiler: Line-by-Line

While Spacial Rend was relatively easy for me to describe in manuscript form, Dialga's Roar of Time is much more... esoteric. Hisuian records suggest a large beam of energy, but that sounds no different from your average Dragon Pulse. Even descriptions from the second Hisuian hero suggest Roar of Time was less impressive a sight than Palkia's Spacial Rend.

Ah yes, thus why Seifer had an eternal complex and butthurt about Noctum. This certainly explains a lot.

I suppose part of it is in the name itself. What does roaring time even equate to? Is Dialga bombarding an opponent with an array of different possibilities? Are they warping time in the area of the attack?

Perhaps the Space Globe can shed some light on this for me. I'll ask Zodiark.

Are we sure that Zodiark would necessarily give an accurate answer? Especially when the Space Globe contains answers pertaining to as far as we know, the entire known Omniverse?

The restaurant had been open while the group waited for news about Seifer. And it stayed open even after Cyril's outburst, though Guzzie and Guzmelda tried their best to hastily get the remaining patrons fed and out the door.

Huh. Chill music is chill. And reminds me that I need to play more FF games.

Throughout the constant scurrying of the black and pink guzzlord couple, Artemis remained coiled next to a corner table. He stared blankly at a flickering neon record hanging above the jukebox. Artemis had no idea how much time had passed. He didn't care, either.

Oh, so this music is literally playing in-setting at the moment, huh? Or at least I think that that's the implication.

It was Artemis' fault. Seifer was gone because of him. If the milotic had just understood his place... that he'd been sitting on the sidelines for a reason. Artemis had been out of his depth with the toxic swamp that took over the skorps' home planet. Gene knew that. That was why the mewtwo had Artemis work that stupid drone when they went to Eterna City.

But Artemis complained anyway. Let that dumb samurott talk him into going back out in the field.

And now Seifer was dead.

Also, small typo there in the last line.

Why hadn't Artemis just stayed behind?

His scales tingled— no, itched.

He hunched over, putting his hands on his thighs to catch his breath. Akari was climbing off Ursaluna to gather the balms scattered at A̸͈͠r̴̛̠e̷̩͌z̸̳̉ȕ̶̖'̴͚̽s̷̼̓ feet.

Oh, so Artie is also a reincarnation of a PLA character. Time to see who he used to be.

"What were you thinking, doing all this yourself?" Artemis said. He managed to catch his breath. "Did you think I couldn't help you?"

Both girls shared a glance.

"Right." Artemis' shoulders sagged. "No one would blame you for thinking so. Not much of a leader, am I? I've never even seen almighty Sinnoh with my own eyes."

Bulbapedia coming in to the rescue with a reveal that this is one of Adaman's lines from PLA. Feels like a bit of a particular choice for a preincarnation, but duly noted.

"Y'square, mate?"

Artemis jolted. His horn grazed the metal wall behind him. Ribbons curling, the milotic hissed in pain.

Wait, ribbons? He looked at them, blinking repeatedly.

Oh, hi Jaeger. I honestly had forgotten that you existed for a bit since you basically fell off the face of the planet for 20 chapters. ^^;

Though wait, aren't those just his feelers as a Milotic? Or am I missing something there with the significance of 'ribbons'?

"Oi. Artemis, innit?"

He looked up to see that lycanroc mutt standing in front of him, paws on a sleeping Sigurd's wheelchair. Given the direction Sigurd was facing, they were probably heading to the residential quarters.

"I'm fine." Artemis waved Jaeger off with his right ribbon.

Just saying, he's a few teardrops away from literally being that one reaction image of the anime girl with the post-it note.

"Ain't a good liar, mate," Jaeger said. He lifted his paws off the wheelchair. "Heard about what happened to Seifer. Damn shame."

Yeah, I figured.

Artemis looked down guiltily. "It's my fault. He died taking a blow for me." His ribbons curled up as he suppressed a shudder. "All because I... really thought I could make a difference out there. Me, some... some random nobody milotic."

Well, not quite. Even if you obviously don't understand why that isn’t the case just yet.

Jaeger scratched his chin. "Easy to blame yourself right now. But it sounds like Seifer chose to run in and take that blow."

"Only because I was careless," Artemis countered. His brows drooped. "I'd been... icy toward him, because of what happened in the past. Never got to a point where I could forgive him." He shook his head. "Then this happened."

Jaeger: "So... ya forgive him now, then-?"
Artemis: "Oh my god, can we not right now?!"

"That's the grief talking," Jaeger said. "Sounds like y'need time to sort through it." The lycanroc mutt rubbed his rocky mane. "Wish I could help, mate, but it ain't exactly my forte."

I mean, yeah. That's basically the story of the entire Resistance's lives right about now. And no, bland-name LSD is not a healthy coping mechanism.

Artemis' eyes narrowed. "And just what is your forte? You're supposed to be one of these Overseers, aren't you?"

"Intern."

"Whatever!" Artemis flicked a ribbon in Jaeger's direction. "Doesn't that make you strong? Why aren't you out there fighting these guys?!"

That's obviously a "Lol. Lmao" considering everything we've seen of

over the past few chapters.

He slithered up to Jaeger and jabbed a ribbon into his chest. "If you'd gone out there, then... then maybe I wouldn't have! And Seifer would still be—"

Jaeger grabbed the milotic's shout and shushed him. He tilted his head in Sigurd's direction as a warning not to wake the guy up.

"'Fraid it don't work like that, mate." Jaeger let go of Artemis' snout and stepped back. "Overseers get power from entering a world with the help of the local gods. Didn't happen to me, so I don't have that power. 'M like a normal lycanroc."

Ah, so basically the local Pokémon that keep a universe humming decide whether the Overseers can come in and how much power they have in their realm. In that case, I'm honestly shocked that Grishi didn't lobby harder for

to get nerfed upon returning to his world.

"Seriously?" Artemis slouched to the point where his ribbons dragged on the floor. "But what about that emerald sheen your fur sometimes has?"

"Yeh, 's just a glow." Jaeger held his paw up. It flashed emerald for a bit. "Cuz 'm usually a zygarde when I visit a world."

I'm sorry, what?

What? The milotic struggled to imagine how one jumped from serpent dragon to rock dog.

Jaeger scratched his ear. "Zygarde got a canid form, mate."

Jaeger: "To say nothing about the ones it'll likely get in oh... about 11 months from now."

"Oh." Still, Artemis didn't buy it. He straightened up. "Well, we literally have the local god here: Leo. Why can't you borrow some of his power so you can fight? He already shared his power with Cyril and Widget, so..."

Though I see it's the local Arceus specifically who dictates terms for Overseers trying to futz around with given worlds. That makes me wonder if it'd be open season in a world where the local Arceus is unreachable or absent entirely.

His voice trailed off. "He shared... his power with Cyril and Widget..."

Jaeger raised a brow, only to grunt as Artemis shoved him into the back of Sigurd's chair while slithering around him.

"What's the hurry, mate?"

"Leo! I need Leo!" Artemis slithered toward the door. He'd been in such a stupor for so long that it hadn't occurred to him that the cosmic arceus should have been home by now. Which meant that he was somewhere in the outpost.

This is going to result in a calm and totally not unhinged demand for Leo to rez Seifer, isn't it?

"What for?" Jaeger said.

"There might still be a way to save Seifer," Artemis said.

Yeah, I had a feeling. Time to see whether or not Jaeger puts the kibosh on things before the meeting happens or not.

Jaeger muttered something, but it was too quiet for Artemis to hear. The metal doors slid open for the milotic. He headed into the glass tunnel.

Yes, Leo was the key. The key to saving Seifer... and to his power woes. Leo was God. He had to have some sort of control over life and death. Now that he had several plates, surely Leo could tap into those powers. And also give Artemis a boost, too.

To say nothing about how Leo technically isn't your world's Arceus.

Blessings for both of them. That was the solution. A way for Artemis to undo his terrible mistake... and to make sure no one would ever get hurt covering for his stupidity again.

It was a solid plan. It was going to work— no, it had to work.

Narrator: "It will absolutely not work and cause even more problems along the way."

Widget had initially checked the "main" infirmary area — several repurposed rooms whose walls Gene had broken down — but found no sign of Cyril or Seifer. He asked one of the cyclizar monks carrying around some towels. She told the cosmic silvally they'd taken Seifer into an empty room at the end of the hall.

The first room he tried had Ifrit and Shiva, who were still asleep. The second had Yiazmat beside a slumbering Calcifer. It was the room at the very end, by a glass wall looking out at the asteroid belt and brilliant aurora, that Widget found an ajar metal door.

He lightly tapped the door with his talons. "Hey. Anyone in here?"

Alright, time to see how much of an utter disaster this turns out to be, since Gene repeatedly insisted that attempting to console Cyril was a bad idea.

No response. Widget leaned over. His head crest nudged the door open. He recoiled upon seeing a charred, vaguely equine body lying on a blue tarp covering the bed. There were scented candles and lilac flowers around the bed. Widget wondered if those were trying to mask the smell of a burnt corpse.

"What do you want?"

Oh, hello, Xenoblade music. I'm telling you, man. If you can make time for Persona, you need to come along on Takahashi's wild ride someday. Especially since you seem to be drawing a fair amount of secondhand influence from it on this story.

Cyril's voice was hoarse, but he still managed to sound harsh. Widget shrank back, his head crest drooping.

The door opened fully. Cyril walked back toward a metal folding chair beside Seifer's body and slumped down into it.

"I, uh—" Widget couldn't take his eyes off the tarp. He wouldn't have even known that was Seifer had he not seen the lightning fry the keldeo. "I just wanted to check in."

Cyril: "Great, you checked in. So are you done or what?"

"I'm not up for talking." Cyril let his starcloud mane drape over his face. It was more disheveled than usual. And his ectoplasmic pelt was knotted up, too.

"I know he meant a lot to you," Widget whispered.

Cyril's black fur flickered red. Widget's claws scraped against the floor. Had he said something wrong?

I believe that that one's called 'hitting a nerve', Widget.

The cosmic zoroark stayed silent, still facing Seifer. Though Widget had no idea if he could see the keldeo's corpse through all that fur.

Eventually, Cyril muttered, "This mean Gene's back?"

"No." Widget stepped into the room. Lilac and lavender scents practically assaulted his beak. It was almost suffocating. But better than the alternative, I guess.

Widget: "So... uh... I don't suppose that you wanted to try and talk about what you've been going through at all?" ·v·

"No?" Cyril's fur flickered red again.

Widget tensed. Was honesty the best policy right now? Then again, he wasn't a great liar and lying could just make Cyril angrier.

"He didn't want to come back." The silvally's starcloud neck ruff deflated. "He thought you didn't want him around. So, he's trying to recruit ousted Crowne Ministers over in Radiance. I think he's heading for Blightsmuth."

At first, Cyril didn't respond. Then he smacked his right leg with his right hand. "Oooof course he is. Gotta find some way to salvage this, right?" He flicked his left wrist toward Seifer's body.

Widget: "I mean, he didn't burst out into an expletive-laden tirade, so... minor victories there?" ^v^;

"I think he's afraid," Widget mumbled.

"Of what?" Cyril whirled on Widget. His mane still obscured his face but locks of hair rippled like stormy waters. "Me chewing him out for not dropping everything to get Seifer to safety?"

Widget's crest drooped. "That's, uh... a pretty good guess?" He looked down at his gold talons. This idea was turning worse by the second.

- Meanwhile from somewhere beyond the horizon -

Gene: "I warned you about talking to Cyril, bro-"
Widget: "Yeah, yeah, rub it in, why don't ya?" >v>;

Raspy laughter followed. "No reason to worry." Cyril slapped his right leg again. "Because he was right. As usual."

"Huh?"

"There was no reason to rush him back." Cyril's laughter continued. The gems in his limbs flickered erratically. "That lightning fried him. He was... he was..."

His laughter faded to choked back sobs as Cyril slumped off his chair and onto his knees.

Oh hey, there's a gif for this:

"C-Cyril..." Widget took a step toward the cosmic zoroark... only to jump back when Cyril punched the tarp.

"Why?" He punched again. "Why, damn it?" And again. "Why did this have to happen?" And again.

Oh, so I was right that this wasn't Gene's first rodeo with Cyril having a love interest die on the job.

Widget had to say something, right? "He was trying to save Artemis. Trying... to be the hero he always saw himself as."

"I get that!" Cyril snapped. Widget caught a quick glimpse of the zoroark's puffy eyes before his hair obscured them again. "But the last thing that happened before that was his asshole father disowning him because I let him rile me up!"

He turned and punched the tarp again. Cyril's right arm rippled with static. "I screwed up! I loved him and I... I'll never..."

Oh, so Cyril is basically Yoko Littner from TTGL, minus the M82 knockoff and being a girl.

The cosmic silvally's neck ruff deflated further. Those static ripples meant Cyril would erode into a Whisper if Widget didn't do something.

Boy it sure is a good thing that Gene decided to just blow off Cyril right now, huh?

"It's not your fault." He quickly went to Cyril's side and sat down next to him. "Between the pirates and Xeromus, everything was out of control. I'm sure if Seifer were here, he wouldn't blame you for losing your cool."

"But he did blame me!" Static briefly replaced Cyril's mane and torso. "He scolded me. And I never got the chance to apologize..."

Crap! Widget was making it worse!

Widget: "... Okay, in retrospect, maybe I should've listened to Gene earlier with how good of a job I'm doing right now." >v<

"W-Well, um..." He had to think. Think. Think. "If he was, y'know, really mad at you, would he have gone with you and Artemis?"

Widget flinched when Cyril turned to him. His hair was still covering his face, but at least the static wasn't showing up this time.

Progress™!

"I dunno," Cyril whispered. He slumped to his right so his head and upper torso were lying on the chair. "But he's gone now. I'll never get to make a proper apology."

"There might still be a way!"

Artie, why? Even if I suppose that spirit summoning is a firmly established part of PoV's setting going all the way back to GL days, so he might not be fully wrong there.

Widget turned to find Artemis in the doorway. The milotic leaned against the door, trying to catch his breath while also shoving Leo's side with a ribbon.

"Hey! C'mon, dude, my fur's not even dry!"

The cosmic arceus hesitantly entered the room. Water dribbled off his blue-purple, starry pelt. The towel draped over his torso dropped onto the floor.

"You pulled Leo out of the shower?" Widget asked.

Wait, so does that mean that his naughty bits are going to be showing like how that was a thing in GL?

"Of course not." Artemis finished catching his breath, slithered inside, and shut the door. "I pulled him out of the shower area while he was drying off." He pointed a ribbon across the room. "Because this is important! Leo can save Seifer!"

Cyril's head snapped in Leo's direction. Leo turned to Artemis. "What?"

"A blessing should totally work!" Artemis sounded awfully sure of himself for what sounded like a complete wild guess. "Look at what it did for Cyril and Widget." He gestured to both with his ribbons. "And you have a ghost-type plate, right? So, you should totally be able to revive a soul. If you're the creator of the universe, nothing's impossible for you."

I can already tell that it's going to take every ounce of willpower by Gene to not murder Artie from existence after coming back, since I remember how he reacted when Vegna suggested that Leo do this for a significantly more cosmically important purpose.

Widget looked down at the floor. All those concerns he brought up to Gene about Leo's blessing rushed back to the surface. Could Leo really bring Seifer back? Or would he end up putting an entirely different spirit into Seifer's body? Did the cosmic arceus even understand how his blessings worked?

Widget, if you have to ask the question...

"Wait." Cyril held his hands up. "No, something about that ain't right. Seifer was killed back in Radiance. His soul shouldn't be here anymore. It'd be... claimed by Eternatus, wouldn't it?"

"Maybe?" Leo shrugged. "TBH, I'm not really sure."

"TBH?" Cyril pulled his starcloud hair aside to squint at Leo. "Seriously, dude?"

Ah, I see that Cyril is also not a fan of zoomer IRL chatspeak.

The two cosmic fuzzballs' ensuing bickering barely registered to Widget, who was repeating Cyril's claims over and over in his head.

Souls claimed by Eternatus. Claimed by... Eternatus...

"I might be able to help with that."

Widget hadn't realized what he said until he saw three sets of eyes on him. Artemis wrapped his tail around one of the cosmic silvally's hind legs. "Don't just stand there. Explain!"

I'll admit, I didn't see that one coming either. Let's see where Widget is going with this.

"I, uh—" Widget blinked several times. "Well, y'know, the emperor built me to interface with Eternatus. So, um, I might be able to locate Seifer's spirit. If it's, like, adrift and stuff."

I'd say that he logically should've frozen you out entirely, but right, his computer faked a self-destruct sequence to avoid being destroyed. So that was going to become important in the future beyond a comedy sequence.

"You don't sound too sure of yourself." Cyril crossed his arms and tapped a foot on the floor.

Widget: "I mean, I've never done any of this before, so..." ^v^;

"But he can try." Artemis let go of Widget's hind leg. The milotic pet the leg with his tail. "For everyone's sake, right?"

"Does that mean I can go back to drying off?" Leo reached a foreleg toward the towel he dropped.

"No, we still need you," Artemis said. Leo brought his foreleg back, an unamused look on his face.

Leo: "Look, do we really need to spell out why me strutting around soaked in-setting is a bad idea right now? Seriously, can't this wait five minutes?" >///<

"Uh, right." Widget stepped toward Seifer's body. His form shifted back into his original, Eternatus-esque look. His glassy, red-pink torso was... strange after not experiencing it for so long.

"Here goes." The eternavally shut his eyes and concentrated. What was it the emperor had told him to do?

His fur bristled. No, forget him. Do what feels natural.

Widget took one deep breath. Then another. And another.

Even though his eyes were closed, a dully, hazy outline of the room painted itself in front of him. There were two bright, white-blue flames to his right. A gold flame sat between them. It was so intense, it almost broke Widget's concentration. It had to be Leo's spirit.

Oh, so the default appearance of a spirit in POV-2020 is basically as a hitodama. Duly noted. I do wonder whether that gold flame is really Arceus power though given what we found out about who POV-2020's Arceus truly is.

Focus. Deep breaths. Widget had to think beyond the—

"What?"

Widget's eyes opened. He stumbled toward the bed, shaking his head and blinked stars from his vision. "That doesn't—" Widget looked at the bed where Seifer's body lay.

"Did you see something?" There was a spark of hope in Cyril's voice.

"A crystal," the eternavally whispered. "A gray and blue crystal... right on the bed. Which I don't understand. Cuz you guys looked like ethereal flames to me when I was concentrating."

Oh, so the spirits of Legendaries don't necessarily look the same as normal Pokémon's. To the point where they might not look like flames at all.

Cyril hummed in thought. Artemis slithered between him and Widget. "That's a good thing!" the milotic chirped. "That's gotta mean his spirit's here. Which means Leo can help!" He turned to the cosmic arceus. "I bet all you gotta do is 'break' that crystal and you'll free Seifer's soul!"

Artie, I think you should slow down a bit, since for all you know, this is going to wind up deleting what little remains of Seifer from existence.

Leo's damp starcloud mane dimmed. "Gray crystal? I dunno..."

"Please, Leo, you have to try!" Artemis beckoned him with his tailfins.

"Uhh..."

Artemis nudged Cyril with his left ribbon. "You agree with me, right? You really want Seifer back!"

Artie, is this really all platonic concern talking right now? Since just saying, you are being really insistent at the moment.

The cosmic zoroark's mane dimmed. "Yeah. I do."

"Then what do we have to lose?" Artemis looked between Cyril and Leo.

Why do I get the feeling that Artie would be singing a really different tune if he understood what the answer to that question was?

After a few seconds of silence, Leo stepped forward. "Fine. I'll try." He approached the bed. "Maybe it is that simple. And I have a lot of plates now, so that's bound to help."

Leo: "... Even if I have no idea what I'm doing right now."

Widget shuffled back. His fur stood on end. Something about the crystal bothered him. He wasn't sure why, so he kept his beak shut. Widget silently watched golden filaments unravel from Leo's wheel. They gently touched Seifer's corpse. Leo's wheel and starcloud mane sparkled with a blue-purple aurora. The dampness from his shower turned to small bits of steam above his head.

Though tempted to tap into that spirit sensing power again, Widget feared he'd break Leo's concentration. He stood as still as a statue.

... And then the filaments twitched.

Widget: "Um, they're supposed to do that, right?"

Leo's eyes opened. They were full of panic.

The filaments twitched again. Artemis and Cyril didn't seem to notice, gazes locked on Seifer's body. Its hooves were... glistening?

This time the filaments jerked. Was Leo trying to pull them away?

Something's wrong.

Great going, everybody. Now it's time to see how sideways things go from here.

Widget had to speak up. "Leo?"

"I can't, nnngh, get them back," he said. The filaments jerked again, but remained attached to Seifer. The glistening had spread over the keldeo's charred body.

"Wait, what?" Cyril stepped up to Leo. "If there's a problem then stop."

Leo's wheel and starcloud mane flickered. "I can't! It won't— why isn't this working? Stop! Stop!" He kept jerking the filaments.

Widget: "Uh... Artie, you wouldn't happen to know how an Arceus is supposed to stop in the middle of this process, would you?"

Artemis: "... No. Not particularly." o_o;

Widget's head crest glowed. He shifted back to his cosmic form. "Do you want me to slice them? I'm sure I can—"

"No! Get back!" Leo stuck his left foreleg out.

Artemis finally seemed to register the problem. He was reaching toward Leo when the cosmic arceus suddenly tensed.

The filaments were ripped from Seifer's body. They flailed about like rapidly deflating balloons. Leo staggered back, eyes wide. Cyril dove onto the floor, narrowly avoiding one.

Oh, that can't be good there.

Widget jumped over one of the filaments just as another smacked Artemis across the face. Despite being thin, the filament's slap slammed the milotic into the wall. His golden scales darkened to black and his ribbons turned into starry nebulas that matched Cyril and Leo's hair.

>dat art

Well, Artie got that blessing he wanted, so it wasn't a total bust? ^^;

Artemis slumped down onto the floor and lay still.

"Artemis!" the cosmic silvally cried. "Leo, you have to make it stop!"

The filaments — no, they were more like tendrils now — continued lashing at the air. Leo staggered back, his wheel dimming and brightening erratically. "I can't! Nothing's working!"

And the moral of the story is: don't play with powers beyond your understanding, kiddos.

"Then try something els— auugh!"

A tendril slapped Widget's right cheek bolt. Like Artemis, he was flung into the corner of the room. A resounding clang echoed in the room, but Widget didn't hear it. His ears hadn't stopped ringing.

Widget collapsed. The room spun and spun and spun. The gray walls and ceiling melted away into a swirl of reds, purples, and violets.

"Wha?" He blinked rapidly, but the sea of colors wouldn't disappear. "Leo? Cyril?!" Widget tried to lift his head, but found he couldn't move it.

>dat song

Huh, didn't expect that one. Though what on earth just happened to Widget?

The sea of red and purple rippled. One by one, silhouettes drifted toward him. He spotted a charizard, then a decidueye beside it, then a xatu floating behind them both.

Silhouettes kept popping up. Soon there were ten— no, twenty? Widget had quickly lost count. He tried to move away from them, but he couldn't.

Widget couldn't open his beak, either. Only stare at the silhouettes.

Some larger ones stood behind the others. A reshiram loomed over them all. A miraidon floated beside it. And behind them both... a familiar silhouette resembling a giant hand.

Oh, he's having a vision of the Darkest Day, isn't he? Though not sure what to make of the Charizard, Decidueye, and Xatu there, even if I'm sure this won't be the last time we see them.

The cosmic silvally tensed up. Those three... were parts of the transformations he used. Widget never thought about why he could transform like that. He figured the emperor had built him that way.

All the silhouettes' lifted their heads. Hollow blue eyes stared Widget down from all directions.

Again, he tried to get his beak open. Nothing happened.

Oh right, this was the chapter that you teased as revealing who POV-2020's Voice of Life was. I'm going to go ahead and assume that that's Widget there.

Widget trembled. Why was this happening? Was this because of Leo's power? But it had already helped him before... hadn't it?

One of the silhouettes was right in front of Widget's face. Three heads. Three sets of hollow blue eyes.

Hydreigon stared Widget down. Its main head looked over its shoulder at the silhouettes. Then it turned back to Widget.

Finally, Widget's beak moved. "What do you want from me?" he squealed.

Silence. Hydreigon continued staring.

>dat art

Yeah, I'll just take that as a confirmation.

"Puh-please." Widget was able to look around. Everyone was staring. Boring through him with their hollow blue eyes. "I don't... understand..."

Voice.

Widget tensed. His claws dug into... the purple and red swirling beneath him. "Who said that?!" He looked around in a panic. "Was it you?" Widget eyed Hydreigon.

Voice.

And there we go. Even if I have to wonder what the implications of this are. Does this mean that Widget is literally unkillable much like the canonical Voice of Life?

It was louder this time. And coming from all around Widget. "Voice what?! I'm talking! You can hear me!"

Hydreigon inched closer. So did the other silhouettes.

Voice. Together. Voice. Together.

Can't tell if all those other Pokémon are meant to be preincarnations of the Voice of Life or else he's seeing "something something shared life force" or something like that.

"Stop it! You're not making any sense!" Widget pleaded. He tried conjuring an attack to ward off the silhouettes, but the energy fizzled out the moment it reached his beak.

"Stop! Get away!" Widget rapidly shook his head, as if that could somehow force the silhouettes back. "Get away from me!"

Hydreigon placed one of its smaller heads on Widget's crest.

We carry the wills of slumbering lives. We are their Voice.

Oh, so Widget is the one who will have the power to deal with the departed from here on out, huh?

Melding together, the silhouettes funneled into Widget's chest. His starcloud ruff swelled up.

Widget screamed. A wall of blue light swept away the red and purple ocean, but his screams didn't stop. Not for an unconscious Artemis. Not for Cyril, who was slumped on his knees beside a keldeo-shaped blue and gray crystal.

When Widget's screams died down, his gaze fell on Leo. The tendrils were gone, but the cosmic arceus looked around the room with increasing horror on his face. Rapidly shaking his head, Leo slammed the door open and bolted from the room.

Well that's certainly on-brand for your prior depictions of Arceus. Since I remember what GL's did when presented with a problem that he was in out of his depth on.

The metallic thumps of Leo's galloping echoed in Widget's head even as they grew steadily farther.

Widget shakily took one step toward the door. Then another. Then a third. He tried to will himself to go after Leo, but that one piercing word kept echoing in his head.

Voice. Voice. Voice.

He managed one last step, before falling over on his side and blacking out.

Widget: "Okay, in retrospect, this was a terrible idea, huh?"

Shane lifted his head off the glowing root of the crystal tree surrounding him. Its prismatic branches and leaves turned the small cavern's walls into a rainbow mosaic. It was practically a sky shifting from the soft blues of morning to the orange and reds of sunset. It was a sight Shane had taken in so many times it had practically lost all meaning to him.

Well, guess we're not finding out what just happened to Widget until another chapter. Though that was an unexpected change of scene there.

Besides, it wasn't important. He had a visitor. The icetales got up, stretching out a hind leg... only to sharp in a suck breath when the leg cramped.

"Ow! Ow! Charlie— gah!"

He fell over on his side, disheveling his chest ruff and exposing the rainbow crystal underneath.

A crystal the summer form deerling that stood at the opposite end of the cavern eyed intently.

"Angel! Hi!" Shane blurted out her name a bit too loudly as he scrambled to his feet. He winced from his own echo. "Uhh... I wasn't expecting you here. Right now. At this very moment." He awkwardly punctuated his wording while he dusted himself off with four of his tails.

"Well, spontaneity can be one of life's many joys," Angel said, slowly walking further into the cavern. "How's the Tree of Light?"

Shane glanced over his shoulder. "Same as it was the last time you asked. You know we don't have to do the small talk stuff, right?"

When he turned back around, gone was the simple summer deerling. In her place stood a xerneas with a golden pelt, gold antlers, gold crystals on her chest and legs that brought Shane's true form to mind. Her vibrant glow melded with the Tree of Light's aurora to spread a golden tinge around the cavern.

Oh. Oh. So wait, is this Xerneas from GL? Since the demeanor vaguely reminds me of what I remember of her, but...

"True." Angel's gaze drifted toward the Tree of Light's branches. "But I was concerned." She continued forward. Her crystal hooves plinked softly on the cavern floor with every step. "I poked around Ginnungagap. By 2020."

Shane's tails puffed out. "I, uh... I know I'd suggested it, but you didn't have to go do that right away."

"You were distressed," Angel said." She stopped by the icetales and leaned over. Her golden antlers dimmed along with her rainbow eyes. "Still are distressed." She sounded quite sure of herself.

So, this is

's current love interest, or...?

They looked at each other in silence for a few seconds before Shane turned back to the tree. "Maybe a bit," he conceded, pawing at the ground.

Sighing, Angel shrank back down to a summer deerling. She brushed against Shane's side and sat next to the edge of a nearby tree root.

"Something happen?"

"You remember that world that got me in trouble over the whole 'protecting ogerpon' thing?" Shane asked. Angel nodded as he sat down next to her. "One of Zodiark's mystery dungeons targeted that place. 2020's new arceus managed to settle things down, but he... did something surprising."

"What kind of surprise?" Angel wondered. "Not a pleasant one, from the sound of things..."

"He took Vince."

Oh, so she's a fellow Overseer. Though cue the freakout in 3... 2...

Angel leaned into Shane's line of sight, flabbergasted. "You're kidding."

"Wish I was." Shane sighed. A tired smile spread over his muzzle. "Besides, weren't you the one who said I only know how to be unintentionally funny?"

That flummoxed the summer deerling. Enough for her golden antlers to flicker in and out of existence. "Well that's—" Angel shook her head. "I'm sure I've told you that friendly ribbing — whether from friend, family, or partner — is a small way for two souls to share in the joy of life."

Actually, I just realized. Given that we've seen multiple AUs of Shane up to this point and that Angel has the same Ultra Necrozma motif going on, is she...?

"Maybe." Shane playfully poked Angel's side with a tail. "But I'm not exactly known for being a good listener."

They shared a look and then a quick laugh. Then Shane's ears folded down. "Anyway, it turns out that the Reverse World guardian for that dimension was helping 2020's new arceus."

Angel tilted her head. "And that was?"

"The fuzzy mewtwo-zoroark mishmash." Shane curled two of his tails together. "He, uh, remembers me from when I helped with his ascension."

WHAT. How on earth did that one happen when that dimension outwardly looks normal?

"I see." Angel put her left forehoof over Shane's right forepaw. "That must have been awkward."

"Well, it did make me feel like I was a dolt," the icetales conceded. "And I betrayed Vince's trust." The gem in his chest flickered. "Not exactly a great quality in an Overseer."

"True." Angel took her forehoof off Shane's forepaw and instead placed it on the rainbow root to her right. She still wore a calm expression. "Still, mistakes are as much a part of life as love and lust. Whether you let them define you or rise above them will determine the sort of person you are. That goes for gods or mortals. Overseers or interns." She conjured a small mote of light that she placed on the tree root. A tiny blue flower sprouted from the root.

Someone's certainly a chill one. I take this is meant to be a pretty big character introduction right now, since with how prominently you're showing off Angel, I'm convinced she'll be a much bigger deal in the future.

"I know." Shane had heard that from Angel before. "This one's... different. Because of all the 2020 stuff." He winced. "And how I contributed to it." He sucked in a sharp breath. "It's... hard not to let it all get to me. Especially when I can only try and help indirectly."

Angel grew back into a golden xerneas. She leaned over and gently licked Shane's back.

"H-Hey!" His tails puffed out.

"You poor thing~" she said. "You've been talking with one of the Dark Matters again, haven't you?"

Shane: "Uh, I mean, I'm technically like a third Dark Matter, just saying."

Shane shook himself until Angel pulled away. "Tama, actually," he said.

"Well, he does still lean cynical on these things," Angel said, shrinking back to deerling. She climbed onto the tree root and playfully nudged the flower she'd grown.

"I know... and he is trusting me on this." Shane got up and stretched in a downward dog pose, fanning out his snowy tails. "But he does have a point about how thin a tightrope I'm walking."

"In what way?"

"It's... dangerous for me to get close to 2020's divine energy," Shane said. As he finished his stretch, he slowly expanded into his necrozma form. He stretched his upper half toward the Tree of Light's trunk. Shane rested an upper wing against it. "There was a reaction when the new arceus showed up. I'm not sure he realized it... maybe because he doesn't have a full grip on all his powers."

Wait, wha? I didn't expect that one, even if it's a fairly convenient method of keeping Shane from just swooping in and saving the day for the PoV cast.

He lifted his lower wings. They darkened and staticky red energy pulsated through them. "If we'd stayed together a bit longer, we'd have caused another mystery dungeon to form up. Right after he'd sealed Zodiark's." Shane lowered his wings and the energy dissipated. "And I tried to track down some of his missing plates after leaving 4940, but every time I thought I sensed one... I lost it."

Angel tilted her head, but then her eyes slowly widened. Her golden antlers flickered in and out of existence. "Wait, you don't mean..."

"That divine energy I banished from home must be baked into 2020's." Shane squished his eight-pointed head against the tree trunk. "It still, like, remembers me. And so my presence repels it." His face slid down the tree trunk until he was lying face down on the ground. "I guess it wasn't a problem back when I visited the old outpost because all that energy was sealed up. But now that it's free and spreading around—"

Oh, so that one thing Shane did as part of restoring GL's world from the effects of the Great Dieoff in the denouement did have negative side effects after all.

"You can't get close to it without risking a reaction," Angel cut in. Hoofbeats suggested she was walking on her tree root toward Shane's head. "And not the fun kind, either."

Shane half-grunted, half-laughed at that last comment. He turned his head left and saw gold, crystalline forehooves dangling off a tree root.

"Pretty much," he said. "It's like my wings are tied." A pause, and then he added, "And that's not the fun kind, either."

Um. Shane? Do I want to know about the sorts of things you get up to in your romantic life? Since you're kinda scaring me there. ^^;

"Oh, you." Angel nudged his left upper wing with her forehoof.

"You started it."

"God of life perks."

Okay, yeah. These two are in a relationship right now, I can already tell.

Shane turned his head further to find Angel winking and sticking out her golden tongue. "Fine." He rolled over on his back, folding his four wings across his crystalline chest. "At least there's an upside to this. If I could feel that strong a reaction to the new arceus... then it's possible that shadowed soul I mentioned to you might finally be able to let go."

Several seconds of silence followed. Shane was going to elaborate when Angel said, "That silvally?"

He nodded slowly. His head tendrils shriveled slightly. "He's been drowning in shadows for so long. All because I've told him he needs to hold out for the right moment." Shane's tendrils extended. "And I think that moment's here. If I'm right... he may be able to help the new arceus stop Zodiark."

Well, that's certainly a sign that we're going to be seeing a lot more of Widget from here on out. Even if I'm not exactly sure what it is he has to let go of.

"And if you're wrong?"

Shane's whole body dimmed. "That's... what this backup plan's for."

This 'backup plan' is the meta 'story needs to end, let's plow along to the ending' route, isn't it? Since I keep seeing it mentioned over and over again, along with how if things play out as intended, it won't be needed.

More silence followed. Enough for Shane to believe Angel decided against pressing him further on that subject.

But where did that leave them? Heck, they'd gone off on such a long tangent that Shane had forgotten why Angel had even dropped by. "So, uh, what were we talking about before?"

"My little 2020 drive by." Angel got off the root. Her golden antlers glowed brighter. "I think its Voice has awakened to their true nature."

And there it is out in the open about what Widget's true identity is.

"What?!" Shane sat up so quickly his head tendrils whipped back and forth. "Hang on. Shouldn't there be multiple—"

Oh, so that's why there were so many other Pokémon in Widget's vision.

"It was only one energy spike I sensed," Angel said. A shudder ran down her golden body. "But it was... an intense spike. Almost too much to handle." There was a bit of... excitement in her voice. Shane's rainbow eyes swirled around as he tried to come up with an explanation.

Eventually, something sprang to mind. "You don't think..."

Angel nodded. "I do. Mashed together into one entity. A Super Voice, if you would."

Wait, but isn't there only one Voice of Life per setting to begin with? Implying that POV-2020 is multiple worlds fused together, or...?

"I see." The necrozma traced his wing claws around his chest spikes. "That's... hmm. Not really sure what we can do with that right now. If anything."

"I take it you don't want me telling the higher-ups?" Angel leaned forward, practically resting her head on Shane's top chest spike. His rainbow eyes turned shades of red.

"Uh, well... they'll probably figure out I had something to do with it." Shane laughed nervously. "So, um, maybe we keep it our little secret? I'm sure they'll sense it soon enough."

How on earth has Shane not gotten kicked out of the Overseers at this rate? Since it just feels like he has a lot of these chaotic moments follow him wherever he goes.

"Oh my~" Angel fluttered her eyelids. "How scandalous. And yet it's quite exciting. I heard you had a wild streak about you."

"H-Hey now." Shane nudged Angel's golden snout with an upper wing. "Do I need to toss you in a cold shower?"

"Are you threatening me with a good time?"

'Wild streak' indeed, there. ^^

Shane's head went from gold to bright red. He opened and closed his crystal beak several times.

Angel smiled sweetly. "You've got nothing."

"I've got nothing."

Oh, so they are in love~ <3

The golden xerneas pulled her head off Shane's spike and stood up. "Well, as much as I'd like to celebrate life with you right now, I should probably get home before I lose track of time." She glanced back at Shane. "If anything else pops up or you'd like any more of my help, you know where to find me."

She sauntered across the cavern for a few seconds before breaking into a gallop. Once her hoofbeats had faded away, Shane slumped back onto the ground, groaning loudly.

He really wished Nero was still around. The old fella would have been perfect for a situation like this. But alas, that wasn't the case. Shane had a feeling he'd need folks like Angel and Tama to get through this crazy situation.

Huh. I'll be filing that one away given that Angel and Tama are apparently in a shared class of entity, whatever they are.

Alright, made it to the end. I'll admit, I didn't really know what to expect coming into this chapter, but that was... uh... something given that the seemingly infinite twist factory that is POV-2020's backstory had another card up its sleeve. Thar be some massive implications for the things that just came out in this chapter, so even if it wasn't super eventful aside from a new batch of backstory reveals and Leo's freakout effectively awakening Widget as the Voice of Life, I can already tell there's some pretty big shoes waiting to drop from all of this.

I spotted a couple small errors that I pointed out while reading, but otherwise this chapter was mechanically quite on-point. I do wonder if the last scene is straddling the line a bit between "mysterious" and "impenetrable", in particular for readers coming in without having read Guiding Light. Since I read Guiding Light and remember the note it ended on, but even then, I found myself getting a bit lost as to what was going on with Angel at times that I wonder if I wouldn't have if her presence were foreshadowed and built up a bit more earlier on.

But I trust that you'll fill in the deet as we get there. Good work @Ambyssin , and I'll be looking forward to coming back for another fill of this tale next week. ^^