If there was one reason Kimiko had to be thankful for all her ghost problems, it was the resilience to the creepy, oppressive atmosphere inside Orzo's castle. Had she not just been through hell and back that might be different, but in a strange way, Darkrai's accidental Nightmare Fuel had strengthened her. She'd been through worse than this. Nothing Orzo could do to her now was worse than that, and she'd survived even that - not just the nightmare, but the
real thing. And this time, she had help. She had friends.
That wouldn't make the battle any easier, she knew. They were all still about to be in for the fight of their lives (or at least,
one of them). And yet, she still felt like they had pretty good odds. This wasn't her first rodeo... or, well, not the first time she'd resigned to fighting against some sort of human-hating, soul-sucking hack. It was definitely the first time she'd actually
confronted one. (And she'd have to do this again back home if they failed...) Still, she was ready for this. She had no logical explanation for it, but she wasn't about to argue.
But then, despite the bizarre confidence, Orzo threw them a curve ball. The sight of Xavius possessed like that was unsettling - more so than any other ghost possession she'd seen so far. Likely due to the significant difference in power - Orzo was a mythic himself, after all (and still a ghost-type, to boot). Still, disturbing as the visual was, Kimiko distracted herself easily with something more pressing. Were they... supposed to battle Xavian-possessed?? How could they do that without harming him?
Stick to your strategy, she told herself. Paralysis wouldn't harm him permanently. They'd need to find a way to remove Orzo before they really got going, and quickly. Would the same method used back home work here? Orzo did have a significant weakness to dark-type aura...
Of course, that was assuming everyone else here was in agreement; she had a vague notion that surely there were a few in their midst who weren't terribly pleased with Xavian, either. But they wouldn't actually attack him... would they?
“However... I am a merciful king. I am willing to spare the lives of your partners, silly humans. All you must do is kneel.”
His red gazed danced across the assembled trainers. Amusement twisted his tone. “Kneel and you shall be spared. Resist and face annihilation.”
With each word he spoke, the air seemed to tremble and a great, horrible presence grew. A crushing pressure, closing in on all sides, crushing, overwhelming, almost unbearable. Yet at the same time, there was a sense of peace. Resolve. As if the pressure were there, but being repelled by a force.
The shadows in the roomed deepened, rising around him. Orzo spoke again, with a voice that drowned out thought.
“Kneel.”
Orzo's mind-numbing speech and Olivia's accompanying snarls finally pulled her out of her internal strategizing.
No, he did
not just say that...!
"Kneel? In this skirt?" she shot back. "Unlike your empty threats, this thing wasn't cheap." She crossed her arms, forcing herself to glare into Orzo-Xavian's eyes. In her peripheral vision, she saw Olivia crouched low, ready to pounce at a moment's notice. Lucy hovered just above, side-eyeing her human, looking determined, perhaps somewhat judgmental. Waiting. Kimiko was thankful, somewhere in her subconscious, that they were ready to go, but her mind was focused on one thing. She'd had her pokemon, her
friends, used against her once before. And Orzo had the nerve to try the same bullshit? No, she wasn't about to let that happen. He'd pay for even thinking it.
"Y'know, all you power-crazed lunatics are all the same. Think you can threaten and torment anyone you deem weaker than you. Think you can play your predictable games with them. As if you'd spare anyone. How about you spare us the bullshit, instead? Because you know something else you all have in common? Over-confidence. Arrogance.
Blindness. You think you know all, see all, when in reality, you're oblivious. Here's a wake-up call for you. Those
weaklings? They're stronger than you realize, and they're about to make you
wish you'd remained locked away."
"I kneel to no one," Lucy wailed, satisfied with her trainer's answer; the temperature around her dropped drastically.
"That's right!" Olivia added.
"You don't deserve it! Why should we respect you? King of nasty meanness, nothing more! You are bad
, your lawn is dead and ugly, and you smell like rotten berries! And I'm going to hurt
you for hurting my family!"
Kimiko wasn't sure why she hadn't been granted the ability to understand her pokemon's speech like the others, but she didn't need it now. Their messages were clear. Her pokemon were pumped up, agitated, and
angry, and she knew this was it. Shit was about to hit the fan.
She couldn't help the wicked grin on her face as she readied her attack commands. "Hope you've enjoyed your little fantasy week, because now it's your turn to suffer
your worst nightmare. For bringing us here. For kidnapping Xavian and the others. And on top of all that,
for ruining my fucking vacation."
"So, no. The only reason you'd catch me kneeling is to desecrate your grave."
