TEEN: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Hands of Creation

[namohysip]

Chapter 19 – Synthetic​

Amia trembled. She stared at the Garchomp, who was barely breathing on the ground and then at the Lucario still standing. The Aura Sphere had sent the artificial Pokémon flying backward, yet miraculously it was durable enough to remain in one piece. Amia didn’t know what to think about the strange mixture of fear and relief she felt when realizing that the Charizard—no, the Garchomp was still breathing.

“Guardian Manny,” said Rhys. “I think that is enough.”

“Eh?” The Lucario looked up. “Oh, well ain’t that somethin’. Yer aura. Ain’t you Rhys?”

“…I am, but I do not know how you know that. Did Star tell you?”

“Nah,” Manny said. “Well, yeah, heh. But I knew ‘bout yeh befer that. Long time ago, real long time ago, ran across yer student. Good kid. Real firework, got a blazin’ heart.”

“E-excuse me?” Amia said. “You know about Owen?”

Manny got out of his battle stance; he put most of his weight on his left leg, swaying a few inches to the left and right. “Baah, what was his name, eh… Gehi… Gaho… Gahi! Yeah, that was it, heh, Gahi. He kinda was real impressionable, I think. Liked m’ accent, tried ter emulate it, I figure. He still got that?”

“Wh—you… you’re the reason why Gahi talks like that?” Amia said. “…Where is that accent from, anyway?”

Manny shrugged. “Always had it,” he said. “That’s how accents work, I figure. Been alive too long ter remember where I got it. Maybe it’s some ancient accent that’s only lastin’ with me an’ him. Survivors o’ th’ ancient dialect.”

“Dialect, hm,” Rhys said. “Well, I regretfully inform you that he still has that manner of speaking, even if he doesn’t remember he got it from you. And thankfully it is not as thick as yours.” Rhys murmured the last part only to himself.

“Oy, what, he’s still alive?” Manny said. “Well ain’t that somethin’! He became a Guardian too, eh?”

“N-no, he didn’t,” Rhys said. “Actually… Owen did.”

Amia recognized the tension in both Rhys’ stance and his tone. She tried not to point it out, and instead listened for what Manny had to say.

“Owen?” Manny said. “Th’ crazy-lookin’ Charizard with th’ funny techniques? Gahi told me all about’m. Only met yer Flygon student; he told me ‘bout all th’ rest.”

Rhys stared at the ground. “Yes,” he said. “That Owen.”

“Hah! Well, Star didn’t go an’ tell me that! Should talk ter her more often! Which Type he got?”

“The Grass Orb,” Rhys said, but then eyed the Garchomp on the ground. Her leg twitched to life, barely. “Manny… you didn’t have to kill them,” he said.

“Yeah, I did,” Manny said.

“N-no,” Amia said. “You really didn’t. You could have easily just scared them off!”

“They ain’t got fear,” Manny said. “Ain’t capable of it. They’re in a ‘battle mode’ an’ there ain’t no stoppin’um.”

The Garchomp growled groggily. Manny eyed her carefully, yet the left side of his face twisted into a challenging smirk.

“But,” Amia said, “but couldn’t you just tire them out?”

“Don’t tire,” Manny said, shrugging. “If I didn’t kill’m, they woulda done it ter th’mselves from overexertion. If they ain’t fightin’, then they ain’t awake. Never woulda ended. Been through this befer.”

“Y-you have?” Rhys asked. “You’ve been attacked by these mutant Pokémon before?”

“Heh, so that’s what yeh call ‘em?” Manny said. “Call it like it is, ol’ timer. These’re artificial Pokémon. Synthetic.” Manny rubbed two claws together. “I call ‘em Mod Pokémon—short fer modified. ‘Cause that’s what they are, y’know. Modified.” He stared down at the Garchomp. For a moment, his eyes looked serious, defying everything else about his demeanor. “All the way down ter th’ very core. I figure even their souls are artificial.”

“You will not say such things,” Rhys said venomously.

The Garchomp twitched slightly and opened her mouth, about to fire a plume of blue fire, but Manny saw it coming. He leisurely pointed his paw her way and shot one final Aura Sphere at it, but this one enveloped her body. She screeched and struggled against the strange field, flailing her arms and legs, thrashing against the air. But then her movements slowed down like the very life was being drained from her. And then, out of her mouth, came a little, golden light, surrounded by a blue ember—and the Garchomp was dead. The ember moved to Manny’s paw and vanished inside. The Garchomp collapsed to the ground, blending in with the rest of the corpses that lacked fatal wounds.

Amia nearly fainted, but she was held up by Anam. The shock of seeing Manny extract the mutant’s very essence stunned Anam into silence.

“Manny…” Rhys said lowly, his own aura flaring at his paws.

“What?” Manny said. “I’m doin’um a favor.” He fired from his paw an aura; it splashed on the ground and condensed into a solid form again. A Garchomp—the very same one, with the very same mutations. She roared; the whole cave shook, and then she ran at him again, claws kicking up rocks. Manny clenched his paw, and she disintegrated into an ember, returning to her host once more. “See?” he said. “Alive ’n’ well.”

“Th-that’s hardly…!” Amia said.

“They live on in th’ Orb. They can fight fer as long as they want. Th’ old timers from th’ last attack a couple decades ago? Found a way ter calm ‘em down, so now they fight fer me. Yeh met ‘em, didn’t yeh?” he said. “Azu, Verd, Roh… yeah. Those three’re my best from back then. Trained by an old friend that’s too strong fer me ter summon. I gave ‘em new bodies, helped repair their heads.” He tapped a claw against his skull. “Fixed th’ instincts that their master gave ‘em. I figured out how ter give ‘em a proper free will. Too bad they forgot where they came from. Was curious, but I guess that’s a side-effect.”

“I… I see,” Rhys said. He looked down. “…Are they… sapient? Can they speak? Beyond Azu and your best…”

“Eh. They’re gettin’ there,” Manny said. “But hey, way better’n I first met’m.” The Lucario paused for quite some time as if thinking about something. Meanwhile, in the silence, Amia tried to regain her composure; James was inspecting some of the fallen bodies, noticing that most of them didn’t have any severe wounds on them. Anam made sure Amia didn’t collapse again. Rhys was deep in some other part of his mind.

“So,” Manny said. “Yer takin’ care o’ Gahi an’ the other ones? How’re they still alive? Figure Mods also age. What’s keepin’ ‘em from passin’ through the aura sea, eh?”

“They… have been reverted to past selves, so to speak,” Rhys said. “And… Mod Pokémon, as you call them, do not age. They were not built to age and degrade.”

“An’ jus’ who built these guys? Must’ve been some real genius ter come up with that. They’re givin’ me some theories, but their past memories’re real blurry. Somethin’ about bein’ in that battle mode fuzzes it up.”

“Genius, huh?” Amia said. “Well, it was a Hunter, right, Rhys? It… i-it couldn’t have been N-Nevren, right…?”

Rhys sighed. “I thought that without Nevren, the other Hunters wouldn’t have been able to continue the project,” he said. “Clearly, I was wrong. Nevren is going to be very upset about this.”

“I’ve never seen Nevren be upset,” Anam mumbled quietly.

“I have,” Rhys mumbled. “This is precisely the thing that will put him in a mood. He assured himself that the stray mutants we’ve been finding are all there are. Clearly, that is not the case.” Rhys scanned the spire’s chamber. “Eon is making an entire army.”

“Heh,” Manny shook his head, tapping the spikes of his paws together to get their attention. “Well, hey, th’ whole reason yeh came… Yer here fer gettin’ me ter join yeh? That’s what m’ spirits told me. But y’know what that means.” Manny nodded.

“W-wait! Didn’t you already get in a bunch of fighting? Y-you must be tired,” Amia said. “Why don’t you just come with us and rest, and then maybe we’ll do a battle?”

“Maybe? Heh, that ain’t gonna fly,” Manny said, wagging a claw at the blue Gardevoir. “Now er later, yer gonna fight me here an’ nowhere else.”

“Are you not tired?” Rhys asked.

“Feh, I’ll live,” Manny said. “A li’l break an’ I’ll be in top shape, if yeh wanna fight with honor.”

“I suppose that would be my preference,” Rhys said, carefully eying the bodies scattered around them. “What will we do with these?”

“Was gonna haul ‘em out an’ bury ‘em befer they stink up the place, I guess,” Manny said. “Gonna take a while, but with some help, maybe it’ll only take three trips, heh.”

“Hmm…” Rhys said.

“Oh! I bet it would be easier if, um,” Anam said, “we, um, we set a Waypoint here? Then we can warp from here to Kilo Village easily…”

“And they would see us hauling carcasses of Mods,” said Rhys. “We should do this the manual way.”

Manny sighed and hauled the Garchomp’s body over his shoulder first. “Guess we better get goin’, eh?” He summoned multiple spirits; they all burst from his free paw and solidified, grabbing a body or two—whatever their respective sizes could handle—and followed Manny. Amia helped as well. Though a bit too dainty to carry one on her own, Alex was able to help once summoned, and she used a portion of her Mystic powers to levitate another, with effort. Anam did the same, levitating three. Rhys manually carried another. James vanished to give Anam more power.

<><><>​

The lava stung a bit, but after a while, Owen’s body grew used to the hot, dense fluid.

This part of the cave was always glowing orange; the ceiling was high above him, flickering slowly from the ocean of molten rock. The lava flowed gently, and it would eventually reach a point where it became solid, and Owen would no longer be able to follow the current. However, that was a long time away; this particular river was lazy enough to last him a small portion of the day. Normally a lava’s flow was tumultuous and a bit of a danger to stay in, but the Mystic flow of Hot Spot was much easier on his scales.

It gave him time to think. Decompress. Be alone with his thoughts. As much as he didn’t like what those thoughts were, he had to be with them. It was better than not thinking at all, becoming some mindless beast.

Klent… Did he really kill him? He didn’t remember it, but Klent had no reason to lie. Owen didn’t sense any sort of dishonesty in what Klent was saying. Star didn’t object to it, either. And the spirits within him had gone silent—not that he wanted to ask them. He was afraid that there was even more that Klent didn’t tell him. How did he kill him? Who did he kill first? Did the daughter die first? Who is his daughter? How horrible was…?

Owen shook his head and rolled over. Any tears he made boiled into steam before they had a chance to hit the lava.

Owen? Someone called. Owen, are you there…?

Owen didn’t want to reply. But, without thinking about it, he did. Yeah, I’m here. He recognized the voice as Star’s. She must have returned to the spirit world just to talk to him. He could easily block her again… but he was starting to hate his thoughts in silence. He had to drown it out. Star was a great distraction.

Everyone’s worried. They know you’re going to be fine out in the river, but… they’re worried about how you’re feeling. Don’t you want to go back?

River doesn’t run forever, Owen said, rolling onto his back again. I’ll go back when I reach the end.

That’s a while from now, Star said.

Silence. Owen scooped up a bit of the lava and tossed it behind him. The disturbance caused the lava to bubble and splatter, and then it settled back like the impact hadn’t even happened. An insignificant little outburst in the hot, calm flow.

Owen, Star said softly. Would you like to meditate?

Owen was starting to feel annoyed. He knew that she just wanted him to talk to her more, talk about his problems, how he felt. Star was playing therapist; she was trying to lift his spirits. She was just trying to help… The Charmander’s eyes, glaring at the ceiling, softened. Okay, he said.

He steadied his breathing. He shut his eyes and emptied his mind. There was a lot to empty out; even when he was calm, it was never truly without thought. It was even harder this time. Some of it was fear. If he stopped thinking, would he start seeing his past again? He could feel it prodding at the psychic blocks Star had put on his mind. Just one slip, and…

I want you to meditate… inward again, Star said. As deep as you can go, until… until you feel like you’ll pass out. You can go that far, as a Mystic. And when you do, you’ll wake up in the Orb’s realm again—I’ll be waiting for you there, alright?

You want me… to go into the Grass Orb again? Owen said. I don’t think I want them to see me right now…

You won’t have to face them, Owen, Star said. It’s just for me. They’ll leave you alone if you want.

I… Owen opened his eyes, breaking the trance. I’m not ready for that.

More silence. Owen knew that Star was still thinking of what to say. He could feel her presence. He hated it. She wasn’t going to go away until he felt better. Couldn’t he just spend a bit of time brooding? All he wanted was some peace. If the lava swallowed him up forever, so be it…

Owen, you know I can read minds… Star said. Thanks for not blocking me, at least. I know you’re in a lot of—

Go away! Owen finally snapped. Just… just let me think. I… I thought I could handle all this, but I can’t. Just take it all away again…. Just let me forget…

I can’t do that anymore, Owen, Star said softly. Now that you’re Mystic… I just can’t take those memories away. The seal won’t work anymore. Like gluing paper on a wet bulletin board… It just won’t stick, Owen.

Then… Owen said, then just take it away! Take away my power! I don’t want it anymore. I just… I just want to…!

Owen slammed his fist against the lava, making little splashes. The molten rock popped and splattered over him, hardening into little pebbles. They fell off of his scales, into the lava, and become a part of the river once more.

Owen, you… you don’t mean that, Star said. Think of all the people you’d leave behind. Your parents… Rhys… the other late-evolvers… What about Zena, and the other Guardians?

Just shut up… Owen said. His heart skipped a beat from guilt. He could block her at any time, but at the same time, he couldn’t. He was already regretting being alone. His thoughts haunted him. He needed Star to keep him distracted.

It was another long silence. Owen sniffled a few times, rubbing his eyes. If he could just go back and stop all of this from happening, he’d do it in an instant. Klent didn’t deserve to die. And his daughter…

Owen took a deep breath and held it. The hot air cooled him down. He breathed out. I… I know you’re right, he said. He wanted to say he was sorry, but he couldn’t bring himself to say it. I just… I don’t want to hear it right now. I know I can’t just…

I know, Star said softly. I know it’s hard. And it’s not fair. None of this is fair… none of it, for any of you. I’m sorry, Owen…

Don’t… don’t say that, Owen said.

More silence. Owen sat up; his legs barely dipped in the lava like this. It was simply too dense to allow his tiny body to sink. The Charmander finally sighed, rubbing his eyes. He didn’t want to talk aloud. He knew he’d break down if he did. Thoughts were easier.

How did I do it? Owen said. How did they die?

It was… it was fast, Star said. In a way. The… time between the first hit and the finishing blow was… very close together. It’s just, before that, it was a lot of… chasing, and stuff.

Owen knew that Star’s temporary seal was still working, and he was thankful for that. He felt memories pressing against that seal. If he pushed too hard, they might come flooding back… But he still had to know.

Who died first? Owen said.

Klent, Star said. He stayed back so Amelia could run. But she only ran away for a few steps. She turned around and… saw you do it. Really fast, Owen. It was really fast…

Owen shivered, and he couldn’t stop. Even with all the heat around him, there was an icy void in his core. Like a spike was being plunged into his chest. But if he stopped now, it would never go away. He had to keep going. The spike had to go deeper.

What did I do to him? Owen said.

Air Slash to get him on the ground… and then a Flamethrower to finish it off, Star said. You were so strong compared to him that… he was unconscious near the beginning. He didn’t… suffer all that much.

And his daughter? What happened to…? Did she run?

No, Star said. She saw you kill him, and… she just stood there. She didn’t run or fight. Just… stood there. And, Owen, you… were in a state of mind where your only action was to fight. So, once Klent was down, you went right for her… Same moves. Air Slash, Flamethrower, and she died from it.

Owen noticed that Star left out a detail. The spike twisted and twisted. And how long did that take? He said.

It was… still quick, Star said.

There it was. That was as deep as the wound was going to get. Owen wanted to vomit. But the pit in his stomach was too heavy to heave out. Does it still hurt her? Is she still…?

She’s… fine, Star said. I helped her out. Klent and I did. She’s great, a really strong Pokémon. But… she isn’t ready to see you yet. That’s all.

N-no, I get that, Owen said. I get that.

Owen let the lava’s flow fill the air again. He killed Amelia painfully. So painfully that even now, she couldn’t bear to see him the way Klent did. He killed his daughter, and he still took the time to train him. How could he possibly deserve that? He didn’t. He didn’t. But that wasn’t going to get him anywhere. The icy pit was subsiding, even if the thoughts didn’t. He felt he had it in him to ask another question.

Star… Owen said. How old am I?

You’re pretty old, Owen, Star said. But since you’re repeating the same sorts of memories over and over, you aren’t as old, too. Mentally speaking, y’know? And since most of those memories are still all scrambled… I guess you are a kid, in a way, huh?

The pang of irritation Owen felt was a relief compared to everything else. I’m starting to feel really old…

Yeah, getting them back will do that to you, Star said.

What’s my actual age? Owen asked.

Ehh… you, uh… well… probably around three, four hundred years?

Th-that long?! Owen audibly gasped, but kept it together, closing his eyes again. Why didn’t I just shrivel up and die yet?

Synthetic Pokémon like you were made to not… do that, Star said. You’re… a genetic wonder, Owen, and it was Nevren and Rhys’ work that made that happen, you know.

Nevren and Rhys… Owen said. They made Demitri, Mispy, and Gahi, too, huh?

Yeah, Star said.

For some reason, Owen got the impression she was nodding, like she was talking right in front of him. The pit in his stomach, while still present, was starting to fade. His breathing was returning to a slow rhythm.

You guys were meant to be the perfect team. Four in a set, she said. To be honest… you guys are as close to perfect as I’ve ever seen, but…

But, what? Owen said. He thought briefly about the team name that the trio had come up with before he joined them. Team Alloy. A team that could work together to combine their strengths to eliminate their weaknesses. Just like a real alloy, he supposed. Were they designed to be that way? Was all of this… predetermined? What do you mean, Owen asked again, that we were meant to be the perfect team? What went wrong?

I… don’t think you should know yet, she said. I can already feel those memory blocks slipping just mentioning it. Can’t you?

He could, and Owen trusted her judgment. The Charmander nodded and stared ahead at the lava. The wall was coming up; soon, he wouldn’t be able to advance in the river. He sighed and got up, carefully waddling his way across the lava to get to solid ground. When should I remember everything? Owen asked.

That block I put will slow it down so you can handle it, Star said, And I put some on the other three proactively, too. So, when their memories start coming back, it’ll be a little easier than that flood you got.

Good, Owen said. I guess I’ll… just wait and talk to you when they start coming back again. He paused, rubbing his little claws together. Star? If I was created by Mystic power, doesn’t that make me Mystic, too, all this time?

Eh?

I was… created. Doesn’t that mean I’m Mystic? How come you can’t block my memories now compared to before?

Oh, no, Star said. You weren’t Mystic. You were created artificially. Sure, some Mystic stuff contributed, but you were never Mystic. It was… more sciencey stuff for you guys. You can’t just make life that easily, even for powerful Mystics.

Thanks, Star, for… dealing with me, he said.

It’s alright. Owen, I think… I think I owe you an apology, too. And I want to congratulate you for handling this as well as you did.

This counts as well?

It does, Owen. Because even after all this… I still trust you with this power. Because the whole reason you’re behaving this way in the first place is because you hate what you used to be. And with your Mystic power, and with Rhys’ help, and everyone else behind you—you can conquer it! Okay? Are you hearing me?

Yeah. I get that, Owen couldn’t hide his smile. He did have a lot of people rooting for him. And sure, he disappointed them from time to time, but… he felt different, now. His memories were returning. He wasn’t some kid anymore. He had an inkling of what he used to be like. Too bad it wasn’t very different from now. He wondered if he was just young at heart. But Anam was, too. Maybe that wasn’t a bad thing.

Owen continued, And I still haven’t forgotten about what I can do with this power, either. I mean—look at Anam! I bet he wouldn’t have gotten nearly as far in stabilizing the whole world without the help of his Ghost Orb. He founded the Thousand Heart Association. Just think what we can do with even more Orbs!

That’s the spirit, Star said. See, that’s why I want you guys to gather all this up. You all can make a good world, Owen. Make it all better…

Huh?

Oh, sorry. Just rambling. Godly things. Ask Zena about it…

Owen looked ahead. The cave wall was approaching; he’d have to get out of the lava soon. Thanks again, Star, Owen said. I think I feel better about this power. I still have a lot of questions, but… you know, I’m going to try to answer the ones I have now, first.

Star laughed. Go back to the others—they won’t bother you. They just want to know you’re alright.

Owen nodded. The sealed mutant followed the path back to the hidden village. He still felt heavy, like he was sinking into the ground… but at least he knew the others would hold him up.

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 20 – Blade and Fist​

Large mounds of dirt moved on their own, floating in the air. Little particles fell to the ground, collecting near the bottom of this forcefield. The evening sun cast long shadows to the trees that surrounded the spire, as well as the mounds of dirt covering the bodies of the mutants. The longest shadow seemed to be from Rhys, staring at the last pit. Unceremonious, thanks to Manny’s careless speed.

“That’ll be enough,” Manny said. “Dunno why you wan’ed ter make individual graves fer ‘em.”

Rhys shook his head. “It was necessary,” he said.

“You could have burned ‘em,” Manny said, looking at Amia.

“O-oh, I wouldn’t…” the Fire Guardian shook her head. “I don’t think that’s… my choice to make.”

“They deserved marked graves,” Rhys said.

“Y’know they’re all still here, right?” Manny said, holding his paw up. A few embers spun furiously around his claws.

“Their lives are still over,” Rhys said. “Just because they are still with us does not mean that a number of doors have closed for them.”

“Not like they had all that many, heh,” Manny said.

“Do not trivialize their lives,” Rhys said, keeping calm. “They had feelings and dreams, just like the rest of us.”

“Yeah, a dream ter fight,” Manny said. “Ain’t got much more than that ‘til y’ fix’m. They’re broken.”

Rhys jerked his head at Manny, eyes firm with light. The other Lucario smirked and held his two paws up as if he intended to avoid an argument he clearly started. For just a moment, Rhys felt his composure wane. Manny showed no respect for the Mods that he controlled. Did he even understand the gravity of the potential that he stole away from them by ending their lives? Or… was it truly not worth it? How much did Manny know about these creatures?

“Hey, c’mon,” he said. “I should know more’n anyone, these guys’re built ter fight an’ nothin’ else. They’re stuck that way, down ter th’ core. Seems like someone made’m that way. Berserk. They’ll fight ‘til they drop. If they weren’t spirits, they’d all be dead anyway.”

“You can turn them back,” Rhys said. “There’s—there’s a key to it if you radiate the proper aura signature. It’s… merely different than the one I know,” he said.

“Oh, yeah?” he said, smirking. “Yeah, yeah, that’s th’ story, ain’t it? Yeh helped design these things. Gahi an’ the rest o’ their lot. They were the originals….”

Amia bit her lower lip and glanced at Anam and James. James was keeping his head down toward the graves in observance; Anam was nibbling nervously on his slimy fingers, gobs of purple slime flowing off of his thighs and onto the ground.

“Rhys…?” Anam said softly. “Does that mean these ones are… even stronger than Owen’s set?”

“Unlikely,” Rhys said. “Even if they are, they are untrained. If we can keep Team Alloy controlled, we still have a chance at outpacing them.”

“Heheh… now yeh got me curious,” Manny said. “Pretty confident in those early models, I take it. Well, if yer their teacher, then yer pretty strong, too.”

“You speak like the other Pokémon you house are lower creatures, yet all you want is a fight, too,” Rhys said, countering with his own smirk.

“Oy, who said I thought they were inferior, eh?” Manny said.

Rhys’ ear twitched irritably. If he didn’t think he was superior, then what was the issue with his attitude?

“They’re fightin’ machines, so they’re perfect fer my whole gimmick! Hah! Jus’ sayin’ it’s a fact that they ain’t set fer living normal lives unless yeh, what was it? Turn ‘em off? Yeah. Ain’t easy without that, an’ I dunno that. So, quit barkin’ at me.”

Indeed, the graves were all filled. Rhys finished placing stones at the top of each one. He looked at Manny, sizing him up, and then snorted. “So, you truly won’t join us without a fight?” Perhaps Manny felt he was the Mods’ teacher, just as he was to Owen and his team. In that sense… perhaps they were more alike than he’d allow himself to admit.

“It’s in my blood, my mind, my soul, Hunter,” Manny said, tapping his claw against the spike on his chest. “You ain’t worth it if I can’t be beaten by yeh. Or at leas’ put up enough o’ a fight ter get a draw er a stalemate, eh? As th’ strongest.”

“Technically, I am not,” Rhys said. “Anam would be the strongest, should he unleash his power to its fullest extent. But it was recommended that I fight you… likely due to my species.”

“Heh, yer coordinators got good taste.” The Fighting Guardian went into a battle stance, one leg forward, one leg back, both arms glowing with aural fire in front of him.

Anam jumped and wobbled to the sidelines with James and Amia. “G-go, Rhys! Beat him!” he said.

“Of course,” Rhys said, mirroring Manny’s battle stance. He looked at the Lucario and shifted awkwardly. This wasn’t a stance he was familiar with; Manny’s guard was completely open. Was it some sort of ruse? Was he taunting him to get up close? The way Manny’s lean muscles tensed against his oddly thin fur, his stance to run straight into battle… Manny was a fighter up close. Rhys could use that to his advantage. He shifted his stance to something more evasive, legs ready to jump back with no delay.

“Oh? Yer gonna go fer that, eh?” Manny said.

Rhys didn’t reply. He was waiting for Manny to make the first move.

Manny stayed still but then vanished from view. Rhys vanished at the very same time. All that they left behind was a small plume of dust where their feet had once been planted.

Anam squeaked and tried to figure out where they went.

James merely closed his eyes. “They’re taunting each other,” the Decidueye said.

“T-taunting?” Amia asked.

They appeared in the middle of the makeshift arena, clashing at each other at high speeds. The impact created a shockwave that blew up even more dirt from all sides; Rhys felt the recently departed spirits within Manny flare up with aggression and fulfillment, entertained by the battle. Rhys felt a bit of their soul in Manny’s eyes. They were watching.

“Heh… so yeh know that move, eh?” he said.

“As do you,” Rhys grunted.

Their fists had hit one another in the same spot, near the base of their ribs. Yet, both of them had tensed enough to resist the blow’s effects.

They jumped away from one another and launched two blue spheres of aura energy in complete sync—the two collided and exploded, sending the two Lucario back even further in the resulting, blue blast. Aura embers swirled and dissipated.

“Peh—” Manny skidded to a stop.

“Ngh—” Rhys stumbled but steadied himself.

“Not bad,” Manny said. “But I figure that’s where our techniques’re gonna stop bein’ th’ same.”

“Oh?” Rhys said. He moved his paws forward, metallic light energy swirling between them.

Anam tilted his head, puzzled. Why would he use such an ineffective attack against Manny?

Manny, meanwhile, rushed toward Rhys at blinding speeds again.

“What—” Rhys had no time to react; he was punched in the gut, but he launched his Flash Cannon at the same time, point-blank. Manny jerked his head sideways and punched Rhys just below the spike on his chest. The blazing light singed the fur on his right cheek, but nothing else.

They both jumped away again, kicked off of the ground, and rushed toward each other again. Rhys formed another ball of steely light in his paws. Manny weaved out of the way and crouched down, flipping his body for a kick in the stomach. Rhys grunted and fired his Flash Cannon on the ground, redirecting himself and his momentum just enough to dodge the kick. Manny’s foot grazed his fur. Rhys immediately formed another Flash Cannon in his paws, aiming it right at Manny’s face again. This time, he didn’t miss, and Manny had to jump back.

“Hah!” Manny said. The fur on his face was singed slightly, but he was ignoring it, or perhaps didn’t notice it. “Bullet Punch versus Flash Cannon! Guess yer a distant attacker! So, what’re you doin’ luggin’ around Extreme Speed?”

“In case I can’t fight from a distance, I suppose,” Rhys growled, pulling away. “I can outpace almost anybody with it. Why would you have Aura Sphere?”

“Aaah, c’mon, what’s a Lucario without Aura Sphere?” Manny said. “Besides, hard ter miss with that one, heh, since it zeroes in on th’ enemy. Heheh… So… what’s yer next technique?” he asked. “Gimme somethin’ good. Yer holdin’ back. I feel it. Who uses Flash Cannon on a Lucario?”

Rhys smirked slightly. “I suppose it was quite obvious. As it was for you, Manny. Bullet Punch? Really?”

James’ feathers abruptly puffed out. “Are we really doing this right now?” he said, raising his wings in exasperation. “Truly, you were toying with one another?! Rhys, I thought better of you.”

Rhys flinched. Perhaps he got carried away. Manny’s fighting spirit was infectious, even for him. And he could feel the many spirits inside of the opposing Lucario roaring for a good fight. He felt a small bit of Team Alloy in that. He had to entertain them, at least in some small way. Tiny joys to satiate their sad lives. Or, that was what Rhys told himself. He worried that perhaps Owen and his ilk were rubbing off on him after all…

“I wasn’t going to do the dishonorable move and fight him at my best when he’s simply grappling,” Rhys said, figuring that was a noble enough excuse.

“Hah, that’s th’ spirit,” Manny said, holding out his paw. “Then let’s shake on it! We’ll go all-out, an’ see who wins, eh?”

Rhys hesitated. “I… cannot fight at my best,” he said. “I made a Promise to not attempt to kill another Guardian. A Divine one.”

“Well, ain’t you confident,” Manny said. “So sure you’ll beat me. Aah, so what’ll happen if yeh try?” he asked. “If y’come close, will yer power get taken away?”

“Not necessarily,” said Rhys. “The last time this happened, before I launched my final strike, my paw glowed with divine power leaving me—as if it was a threat that proceeding would revoke my status as a Hunter, or at least the power that came with it.”

“Well, how ‘bout this, then,” Manny said. “Yer paw glows, that counts as a win. Sound fair teh you?”

“Hmm… Very well,” Rhys said.

“Then let’s go all out,” Manny said, stomping his foot on the ground.

This single motion created a crater in the dirt larger than Manny. He remained floating in place; the ground beneath him vanished, compressing into the earth. The Lucario’s body bulked up, muscles toning his legs and arms, followed by the spikes along his paws and chest vanishing. Rhys recognized this as a subtle change, but an important one—he was now fully Fighting Type, in his Guardian form. Aura Sphere would hold no advantage against him. More worrying was that a single punch would end Rhys. Three, four, perhaps all of his ribs?

“Well?” Manny asked Rhys. “As a Hunter, I know you’ve got somethin’ ter show!”

“Hmph,” Rhys said, slowly entering a neutral stance.

“Eh?” Manny rose up, entering one as well, standing on an invisible platform created by his Mystic power. “What, y’done? Forfeit?”

“Far from it,” Rhys said, looking at the opposing Lucario. “But I believe that if I go, as you call it, all out, this battle won’t last very long at all.” He looked at the spectators. “Anam!”

Manny looked genuinely insulted, face screwed up in a scowl. He crossed his bulging arms.

“Y-yes!” the Goodra said, straightening.

“We have a few Reviver Seeds, do we not?” he said.

“Yer jus’ tryin’ ter get me mad, ain’t yeh?” Manny hissed.

“We do, um…!”

“Give one to Manny. Then I can fight without holding back or worry of losing my power to my Divine Promise.”

“O-oh!”

“Oy, I take offense ter that!” Manny waved his fist in the air. “What’re you playin’ at?”

“Just take it and if it is used up, it’s the same as being defeated, hm?” Rhys said. “You don’t want me holding back. I have a Promise to keep. This is the compromise.”

Manny glared like he’d been tapped on the nose as a punishment. He snorted. “Ehh… Fine.”

Anam wobbled over and gave the Mystic his Reviver Seed. Manny didn’t seem very pleased with this perceived handicap, but he shrugged it off. Anam gave him a small bag to tie around his neck to keep it safe without encumbering his fighting. “Thanks,” Manny said. “Heh… y’got a strong aura.”

“O-oh, I guess so…!” the slimy Goodra replied. He wobbled back to the sidelines and watched.

“Let’s get it on already!” Manny said. “My muscles’re achin’ fer a good punch!” He slammed his fist toward Rhys; the resultant gust of wind nearly knocked away Rhys’ breath.

“Ngh—Of course.” He closed his eyes and tensed his body for a split-second.

His two paws glowed with a bright, blue flame—and then, with a sudden flurry of power, that flame spread up his arms, over his shoulders, over his head, and then down his torso and legs, ending only when his feet were engulfed in a great fire. Rhys opened his eyes, breathing deeply. He brought his left arm forward and bent, his right arm back and ready to strike, his legs poised to jump back or leap forward as the situation called.

“Now we’re talkin’!” Manny said, entering a similar stance. He made the first move again, dashing with an Extreme Speed, but then transitioned into what Rhys could only guess was his opponent’s personal favorite move. With a flurry of punches and kicks, leaving his defenses completely open, the Fighting Guardian traded his defenses for a complete, unmitigated offense. Rhys took every single hit. Every blow cratered the ground beneath him; the shockwaves were deafening. The nearest tree trembled, dropping a few apples onto the ground.

Anam covered his mouth at the onslaught, but the flame of Rhys’ aura made everything obscured. Manny laughed maniacally with every strike, knowing that every single one was connecting. He felt the impact of every punch. His spirits roared, pressing him to fight harder. Rhys could almost sense their restless souls lashing against his fur.

“Haaaaa!” Manny finished it with a punch to the gut that bent the light around them in a ring-shaped pulse; Rhys grunted and bent over by only a few degrees. Manny panted, fist numb. “H-had enough?” he asked; he was completely open. His Close Combat never failed! Rhys was probably passed out upright.

“You expected me to fall from that strike…” Rhys said, strained. “So, you pushed yourself to guarantee your win… But you didn’t expect this… did you?”

The aura flare that surrounded Rhys was dying down. The embers danced and mingled with his blue and black fur, sinking inside like a dying candle. But some of it remained. The fire around Rhys obscured it at first, but now that they died down, it was clear: a thin, cyan layer of solid aura—the same sort that Rhys had used to deflect Zena’s Hydro Pump—coated him from his ears to his toes. Every move Rhys made, the armor followed, bending at the joints just as his bones did.

Manny’s eyes widened. “Armor?”

While the strikes indeed connected, they were dulled by this strange barrier.

“You wanted to know my final technique,” Rhys said.

Manny realized too late what was coming. His legs bent to jump away, but Rhys already struck in return—a single, precise thrust, squarely in Manny’s chest. The strike wasn’t with Rhys’ paw or even an Aura Sphere—no, instead, it was an extension of his paw, made of that same armor, that elongated and tapered off into a single, fine, and flat point. It went right through Manny, splitting his chest open where it sliced. More aura energy rushed through Manny, spreading through his whole body explosively. He couldn’t even grunt.

Then, Rhys jumped away. The Fighting Guardian collapsed to the ground.

Anam stared, wide-eyed. Amia reacted similarly, trembling. They both knew how strong Rhys was, but they thought he wouldn’t actually go all-out. But by some twisted honor of the Fighting Orb, Rhys granted Manny his wish.

The blessed seed inside of Manny’s small bag healed him of his injuries in a wash of golden light. Manny gasped for air and rolled onto his back, huffing with strained breaths. He raised his hand—it was shaking—and held at where he still felt the lingering, yet woundless pain of Rhys’ strike, as if his mind and aura were still adjusting to not being injured.

“S-so that’s yer power…” he said, puffing. “Yer… Mystic desire…”

Rhys nodded. “My specialty is the aura—to the point where I can use what little divine energy I possess to make my flare manifest as a solid object. I… try not to do it too often.” He closed his eyes; the flare became a cloud again, evaporating into nothing. “I hope you are satisfied.”

“Heh… yeah. You win,” Manny said. “Without that Reviver Seed, I’d’ve been down fer a while. Takes a lotta time ter heal from a wound like that. I wouldn’t’a been able ter fight.”

Rhys nodded. “Good. Then you will be coming with us?”

“O’course,” Manny said. “If yer not ev’n th’ strongest… then I gotta see th’ others, an’ how yer students’re doin’.” He held out a paw.

Rhys nodded, smiling with relief. At least Manny had his honor to accept a loss. He held out his paw in return… and then fell backward, straight into the dirt.

“Rh-Rhys?!” Anam said; he and Amia rushed to either side of the Hunter. Amia took the liberty of sitting him up.

Rhys opened his eyes and looked around, ascertaining the time of day. “I—I will be fine,” he said. “What happened? Was I unconscious for only a moment?”

“Yes, dear. Please, don’t strain yourself,” Amia said.

“Ngh… how embarrassing,” Rhys said.

“Oh, sure, no, don’t worry ‘bout me er anythin’,” Manny said, holding his paw in the air to be helped up. James ended up being the one to assist the Guardian to his feet, using his wing as Manny’s anchor.

“That… that technique takes out quite a bit of me,” Rhys said. “I can only use it for a short while before I, well… become unable to fight, too. I prefer to only use it if I know I’ll win quickly.”

“Yeah, sure, rub it in,” Manny muttered, turning away.

Rhys chuckled weakly. He leaned weakly against Amia, dropping any pretenses of dignity. Everything felt numb. “You’re a very strong fighter, Manny,” he said. “But… I may need to be carried back.”

“Aw, I gotcha covered,” Manny said. “But… how ‘bout we jus’ sit an’ rest fer a sec? I think my aura still feels like it’s gotta repair. What’d you do, bust m’ spirit?”

“I may have done some of that,” Rhys admitted. “N-nothing to be alarmed about. You will recover shortly.”

“Feh.” Manny leaned back and then plopped his back against the ground again. The angle seemed awkward, considering he was still partway inside the crater that they’d generated during their fight.

Amia and Anam looked at one another and sat down, too. Amia crossed her legs and adjusted her dress; Anam plopped down with a wet wap and started playing with his little clawless toes, humming quietly to himself. James inspected his feathers, preening where necessary.

“Yeh really managed ter stabilize them?” Manny asked.

“Hm?” Rhys said.

“Gahi seemed fine when I saw’m. But then I saw more like’m, an’ they were all hostile. What’s up with that? Stray mutant Pokémon like’m poppin’ up here an’ there…”

“I’m not sure what caused that to happen,” Rhys said. “I personally would like to know myself. If they’re intentionally being let out to cause chaos… they aren’t doing a very good job. Hmph. But regardless, yes. Team Alloy—the group Gahi is a part of—became unstable after an… incident, and we’ve been repairing the damage ever since. They defaulted to their battle mode, as you call it. And have been in it ever since. They can only stay sane if we suppress their forms in their unevolved states, which haven’t been modified. In a way, it is a means to seal them away in a smaller, safer form.”

“Heheheh…”

“You find that humorous?” Rhys asked, tensing.

“Nah, nah,” Manny said. “Well, that explains it. So, what, yer sayin’ they’re… not at their evolved forms righ’ now?”

“No. If they were, they would be unable to… think beyond their instincts for battle.”

“Well, ain’t that a shame,” Manny said. “Guess yeh’ve got it covered.”

“Mm… I am a bit concerned,” Rhys admitted. “Owen is starting to learn about his past early. When suppressed, their memories are also sealed away. But now that he’s Mystic…”

“Yeah, I spotted that bit when he visited an’ fought Azu, heh,” Manny said. “Y’think he c’n handle it?”

“I think he will,” Amia spoke up. All eyes turned to her, and she shrank down.

“Y-you… you do?” Rhys said.

“It’s different,” she said. “I think the timing is perfect, Rhys. Owen’s having a hard time right now, but… I have faith that he’ll pull through with everyone else by him.”

“Faith…” Rhys said.

“Heh. Faith. That’s a good one,” Manny said, looking away. “Before I got into this Mystic business, I figured all those stories about Mew an’ Arceus were jus’ that. Stories. ‘Cause I work with facts. Solid, tangible facts. Somethin’ I can punch, eh?” He threw his fist weakly in the air. “Even now, I’m gonna work with that.”

Amia gulped, looking down. She didn’t say anything, but James quietly moved closer to try to assure her that Manny was an idiot.

Manny shook his head. “An’ th’ fact is… I agree.” He flashed Amia a genuine grin. “He’s close, th’ way he was fightin’ Azu. A bit o’ him was in there, even when he evolved. Kinda.”

Rhys looked at Amia, then at Manny. “Amia,” he said, “I understand that it was difficult for you to explain what had happened before, but, please, could you tell me what happened?”

The Gardevoir looked at her hands in her lap. “Mm… I suppose it was different than the other times. Closer than ever, Rhys. First, he evolved, yes. But then… ooh… he tore Azu apart.” She shivered.

“L-literally?” Rhys asked.

“Yeah,” Manny said with a dry chuckle. “Heheh… shook Azu up good, that.”

“I find that hardly funny,” Rhys said.

“I dunno, seemed pretty funny,” Manny said.

Rhys rubbed the bridge of his snout. “Amia, please continue. Azu was defeated. Then what?”

“Well,” Amia said, “Owen was, er, he… tried to attack Azu’s spirit next, but that didn’t work out so well. He just fled. Then Willow and I were calling for him to calm down, and, well, that never really worked…” Amia hesitated. “Except, this time, it actually did.”

Rhys blinked. “What do you mean?”

“Owen stopped. He… he stopped. But… but then he turned around, and he walked toward us. Oh—oh, Rhys, his body was shaking. And his eyes… oh, his eyes, I—they were so…”

Anam and James looked at one another. “Angry?” Anam asked.

“Savage, I figure,” Manny said.

Amia shook her head. “Afraid,” she said. “He said… ‘help.’ He said help, Rhys. He was there, Rhys…!” Amia smiled, but then gasped back a sniffle. “He was so close, Rhys…!”

“But… he wasn’t able to be in control,” Rhys said.

“He was hurting,” Amia said. “He said it was in his chest. Like he had to fight, his body was moving like he had to fight, but he wasn’t actually fighting. Too much… energy. I told him to breathe and meditate, and it worked a little, but… oh, if I waited a little longer, maybe he would’ve…!”

“No,” Rhys said. “You did the right thing. I—I had something similar happen to me,” he said. “But rather than continue fighting, after our encounter with Rim, she simply disappeared. Mispy, Demitri, and Gahi all evolved, and then I felt… quite a few vines wrapping around my body. And then I felt energy, and my vision came back, my wounds were healed…” Rhys nodded. “Mispy told me to hurry. Yes. I remember that quite well. So, I returned them to their lowest forms again, but… she was very composed. I honestly think she was just afraid of herself.”

“Composed?” Amia said. “Y-you think—?”

Rhys nodded. “I do,” he said. “It has been centuries, but… I think they’re almost completely healed.”

“Took long enough,” Manny said absently. “Centuries! Hah! That’ll be fun fer them ter sort through.”

Rhys growled to himself. “It isn’t ideal, but it’s better than permanent insanity, wouldn’t you agree?”

“Nah, nah, I get it, I get it,” Manny said.

Rhys was beginning to get second thoughts about inviting this Guardian over. He already demonstrated himself as a bad influence on Gahi. What if they relapse?

“Heh,” Manny went on. “Guess we should head back.”

Manny nodded and stood up, looking refreshed. He held out a paw and released Azu, who happily posed and flexed with a showy shockwave. He leaned forward and hauled Rhys over his shoulder like a log.

“Urf—”

“Ha!” Azu declared. “The challenger Lucario won the battle, and yet he is the one who must be carried!”

“Easy, Azu,” Manny shook his head. “I’d be bleedin’ out if it wasn’t fer that Seed. Oy, Goodra.”

“Y-yes!”

“Lead th’ way back!”

“Okay!” Anam fumbled through his bag, still lodged partway into his chest. With a cheerful grin, he raised the slimy, glistening Badge into the air. “To Hot Spot!”

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 21 – Our Lord​

Demitri and Mispy wandered through the inner caverns of Hot Spot. It was odd not having a forest to walk out of from their old cave; the lack of foliage unnerved Mispy in particular. Back at their old home, they would have gone out of the cave, headed into the nearby forest, helped water Rhys’ garden—

“Mispy, do you think Rhys still checks on his berry garden at our old place?” Demitri said. “We kinda just up and left…”

Mispy frowned, thoughtful. That garden always had the best-tasting berries, possibly because of how fresh they were. Could they find a way to grow them in Hot Spot? Maybe if they went outside and then climbed the hills that were above them.

She missed the sun. The Mystic glow of the mushrooms that coated the red rocks blue just weren’t enough. She absently prodded at one with her foreleg, noting the relative firmness of the otherwise soft fungi, and then glanced at Demitri.

“Mispy, what’re you—”

Mispy wrapped a vine around one of the mushrooms and tugged; the rounded cap was about half the size of her head, and the stem was nearly as thick as her leg. She had to pull harder. It broke near the base, but the glow remained, albeit quickly fading.

“Hungry?” Mispy asked, offering the mushroom.

“Is that even edible?”

Mispy shrugged. “We can try.”

That didn’t comfort the Axew very much, but before he could object, the Chikorita took a nibble from the cap. Bland, but with a hint of an earthy, savory flavor. It wasn’t dry, but it wasn’t exactly dripping wet, either; the insides reminded her of mild cheese. When was the last time they’d gone to Tank of Miltank, anyway? Well, dairy didn’t agree very much with Demitri, but Mispy wouldn’t mind trying some again.

“How is it?” Demitri asked, breaking Mispy from her thoughts.

“Mm.” Mispy offered the other side of the cap to Demitri, bobbing her leaf. “Good.”

Demitri took a nibble next, humming uncertainly after a few chews. “It’s okay,” he half-agreed. “I miss Rhys’ berries, though.”

To that, they could both agree.

All around them were empty homes; they were slightly deeper in Hot Spot, not really trying to chase Owen, but still wanting to at least be, in some small way, closer to where he was moping. Any closer and the heat would’ve gotten to Mispy—her Grass instincts were already telling her to go back. Then again, they had been telling her to get out and get some sun, too.

“I hope Owen’s okay,” Demitri said, frowning.

Sensing that their walk was over, Mispy moved near the wall by a patch of mushrooms and planted her rear next to them decisively. Demitri suppressed a laugh and followed her, brushing his hip against hers. She leaned behind his tusk and gave it a playful nibble.

By the time their first mushroom was halfway eaten, Demitri spoke again. “I can’t even imagine it,” he said. “This whole town used to be filled with villagers. Owen mentioned a few of them. Apparently, there was a Fennekin that had given him, like, courtship advice, or something. And an Arcanine that always gave him rides around the village. And then a bunch of other Pokémon, too. But now it’s so awkward now that the secret’s out that they don’t even show up anymore.”

Mispy tore off another strip of the mushroom stem. “All an act.”

Demitri shuddered. “All fake…”

An uncomfortable silence surrounded them and Demitri pulled his legs closer to his body. “Who would’ve thought that a literal ghost town could feel even worse when the ghosts are gone.”

Mispy almost lost her appetite to empathy. Almost. She grabbed another mushroom beside her and started anew. “Owen…”

Why did they care so much about him? They only remembered meeting him about a moon ago; while it was unfortunate that he had to go through this, it shouldn’t bother her this much to think about how much he was hurting. It tugged at some deeper part of her heart, the same way she would’ve felt if Gahi had gone through the same thing.

Mispy noticed that Demitri was staring at her. She held up the mushroom in offering, but he declined with a polite claw shake.

“Mispy,” Demitri said, “when we lost against that Hunter and we lost the Ground Orb, and Forrest… do you remember what happened?”

Mispy shook her head, slowing her eating.

“Me neither. It’s all a fog before that. And then we just passed out during discussions, too. I hope that Espurr didn’t do some kind of Psychic mind tricks on us.”

“No,” Mispy said.

“No?” Demitri asked. “…Oh, yeah. I don’t think so, either. It feels like this fog goes a lot deeper. There’s a lot that’s similar between us and Owen, and I think maybe that’s why I feel so bad about…”

“…No…” Mispy stopped eating this time. “There’s more.”

Demitri unfolded his legs, picking at his tusks. “More, huh?”

The Chikorita nodded. “Fog… in my head.”

“Exactly!” Demitri shouted, startling Mispy. “Sorry.” When she resumed eating, he continued, “I feel like everyone’s keeping a secret from us, but I don’t get why. Because their minds aren’t in a fog, and they act like they’ve known us forever, but I can’t even remember the specifics on how we got here! When did we even get Heart badges?” Demitri rubbed his eyes. “Argh, I can’t even remember Heart of Hearts Anam giving it to me, and there’s no way I’d forget something like that!”

“Something’s wrong,” Mispy agreed. “But…”

“But we don’t know what to do about it, right?”

Mispy’s leaf drooped and she took another, sad bite out of her second mushroom. “They know,” she said.

“But they won’t say.” Demitri looked down. “Seems like Owen knows, too. Maybe that’s why he got so upset that he had to leave…”

Mispy stiffened. “Did they… make us forget?” she whispered.

An icy chill ran down their spines, and for a while, they sat in complete silence. Far, far away, at the entrance to the cave, some jovial voice announced his presence. It was so far that the echo of his call was unintelligible.

“I think that’s the Fighting Guardian,” Demitri said. “Rhys must be back with him. We see how they’re doing, but what do we…”

“Play dumb.” Mispy got onto her feet.

“Play dumb?” Demitri frowned, unsure. “I—I’m not that good at acting.”

“Then be me.” It wasn’t like she could talk all that easily. It was only because she was talking to Demitri, alone, that she wasn’t constantly stumbling over her words. If Demitri just kept quiet and played dumb, maybe they could uncover some memories.

Maybe that’s what Owen was doing, too.

<><><>​

Star, a floating, pink haze, bounced in the air to get the attention of the others. It was hard to tell what gestures the pink cloud was trying to make, but they had the impression she was waving her arms around.

“Guys! He’s coming back now! Just—just keep it cool, alright? Don’t ask him anything, but don’t try to ignore it either, okay? Like, just make sure he feels… like how we all think about him, right?”

“Pretty much,” Gahi said, looking refreshed after his nap. He flicked his huge head in the air. “I mean, c’mon, he’s Owen! Wouldn’t hurt anyone, guy wants even outlaws ter get a second chance and get back on their feet! He’s the ideal Heart!”

The rest of Team Alloy nodded. Demitri, who seemed winded from rushing back to the central caverns, said, “We’ll be there to support him no matter what!”

“Exactly!” Star said. “Yes! Good! Keep that up.”

Gahi clicked his jaws at Demitri. “And what’re you doing all pantin’ like that?” he said. “You an’ Mispy were gone fer a long time. You two weren’t—”

“N-no! No, nothing like that!” Demitri said. “We were just—”

“Yes,” Mispy confessed, lowering her head.

Gahi reeled in faux-disgust.

Owen could hear the tail-end of their conversation, but he didn’t want to admit it. They thought that he was an ideal Heart? He killed someone! No—he killed two Pokémon! At least! But… it was like Star said. He wasn’t truly that person anymore. That was just… how others wanted him to be. Right? Well, not anymore! He puffed out his chest.

“Hello?” Owen called.

“Hey, Owen,” Demitri said. He nodded, though it was a bit shaky. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah. I just needed to… cool off… in the lava.”

Mispy frowned, disappointed at Owen’s sense of humor.

“That, uh, that’s an interesting way to cool down,” Demitri said.

“I’m… I’m just really tired,” Owen said. It was plainly obvious in his lethargic body language. He looked like he could lose all control and sleep on the ground. “I’m sorry that I ran off like that.”

“It’s okay,” Mispy said. The Chikorita saw his aura—the flare was weak and jittery. Tired after a stressful day. Owen wasn’t going to be in the mood for much.

“Yeah,” Demitri said. “I mean… to be honest, we’re still kinda trying to figure out what’s going on, too. Because… apparently, we have… we have a lot of missing memories, huh?”

Owen hesitated. Did they know more than he did? No. If they did… they would’ve been screaming. He knew it. But they were definitely nervous about what they could find out.

“I just want to sleep,” Owen finally said. “I’ll… I’ll talk about all this later. Tomorrow. Okay?”

“Yeah, totally,” Demitri said. “And then maybe we can train and fight tomorrow?”

Owen’s tail flickered brighter at the offer. But then it waned. That feeling of joy at fighting… Was that his emotion, or was that his instinct? Was that his choice… or was that how he was supposed to react? Who was he, really?

The Charmander shook the thoughts away. He’d never sleep like this.

“Hey, Owen,” Star said. “Don’t forget.”

Owen could’ve broken down right there. Instead, he took a deep breath and nodded. Ideal Heart… If he could give off that impression, then there was still hope.

Mispy’s leaf wiggled. “Hm?” She turned around. “They’re back.”

Taking the lead were the two Lucario; the lithe one they recognized as Rhys and deduced that the bulkier one was Manny. “Wow, that’s pretty interesting,” Demitri said. “Two Lucario, huh?”

“Yeah, kinda cool,” Gahi agreed. “Ehh… the Fighting Guardian…” He stared at the Lucario, clicking his jaws. “He seems real… familiar… doesn’e?”

“Oy, that Gahi an’ th’ others?” Manny said.

Demitri blinked. “Hey, he talks the same way you do, Gahi. Almost exactly the same, actually…”

“Uh, about that…” Star said. “Uh… you remember him at all? Gahi? Guys?”

“I mean, he’s a Lucario, so maybe I have it kinda mixed up with Rhys and stuff,” Demitri said. “Don’t you think? I mean—how would we’ve met him? He’s super old!”

“Aw hey, I ain’t gray-furred yet,” Manny said. “But I guess I’ll jus’ go an’ tell yeh, I remember yeh guys. But back then, yeh guys were fully evolved an’ in yer, eh… modified forms, compared ter how yer species usually looks. Gahi told me ‘bout it, th’ guy looked real shiny.”

“W-wait, you mean…?” Demitri said. “So—it’s really true? We’re like Owen?”

Mispy tensed, glaring at Demitri; what ever happened to keeping quiet about getting wise? Then again, Star was Psychic.

“Yeah,” Star said, gently waving a flash of Mystic energy to keep the memories from spilling over for the three. “I guess now that Owen is a Mystic, it isn’t exactly going to be easy to keep this all hidden forever. And besides—you guys are getting a lot better! But… ugh… fine. Anam?” She spotted the Goodra licking his slimy fingers of the remainder of an Aspear Berry.

“Mgg—Yeah?” he asked, mouth half-full.

“How about you head back to Kilo Village and tell Nevren to head back here? We’re gonna need him and Rhys to… explain everything. Because in a way, they’re the ones that are responsible for… all of this.”

“The Hunters, right?” Owen said. “I mean… I do feel like this should all be out in the open, but…” Owen rubbed his head. “Can it wait? Please? I just… I can’t deal with this right now. I already know what’s going on, mostly, and I don’t know if they can handle it yet. I’m Mystic, and it’s still hard.” He looked at the Chikorita, Axew, and Trapinch.

Team Alloy nodded. “If Owen thinks it’s too much for us,” said Demitri, “then we’ll wait, too.”

“You’re sure?” Star said. The cloud floated closer. “I mean, maybe this will help put you at ease, right?”

Owen smiled slightly. “I think finding out will make it worse,” he said. “Just… tomorrow. Tomorrow morning. Guys? What do you think?”

Demitri, Mispy, and Gahi looked at one another.

“Yeah,” Demitri said.

“Eh, sure. Ain’t gonna matter ter me. I don’t get any o’ this yet, heh.”

Mispy nodded. “You’re the smartest,” she said to Owen.

“A-aw, thanks…” Owen scratched behind his head. He still missed his horn.

Manny looked the four over, crossing his arms. He leaned toward Rhys, “Their auras…”

“Quite a bit calmer, hm?” Rhys said.

“Yeah. Whatever yer doin’, it’s workin’. Not quite there yet… eh… but it’s almos’ there. They migh’ ev’n make it next time.” The two Lucario nodded at one another, but after that, they let the group disband. It was a long day of training for them, and recruiting for Rhys’ team. Anam left for Kilo Village—He could at least tell Nevren about the situation.

Owen was about to leave for his home, but he paused on the way. He glanced to his right. This was the same cavern that he would normally use to walk to the lava river. At his usual walking pace as a Charmander, it would take him twenty seconds just to walk across from wall to wall. He saw someone shifting around inside, and some latent, buried part of his memories urged him to move forward.

“Hello?” Owen called, stepping inside. He didn’t see anybody, but he did spot a pool of water in the middle of this tiny home. “Huh. That’s weird.” He figured there was nothing inside and turned around, but the feeling returned. He couldn’t leave. But what was the point? He didn’t like water anyway. He rolled his eyes. His mind was just scrambled. He shouldn’t be trusting his feelings at a time like this. He could barely remember a few days ago. But, still…

Owen glanced back, expecting to see an empty pool again. Instead, he saw a Milotic’s upper half sticking out of the water, her lower half blending in with it. “AUGH!”

Zena jumped. “I—I’m sorry,” she said. “I didn’t mean to—”

“N-no, no, it’s okay! I—I just thought—”

“I was resting. I didn’t realize you returned. Are—are you okay?”

“Yeah. Yeah, I’m fine,” Owen said, clutching his chest. “I’m sorry I ran off like that. I shouldn’t have blamed you for any of this, either, too. I get it. You guys were just trying to help.”

“More like Star forced us to,” Zena said.

“She was right,” Owen said quickly, earning raised brows from the Milotic. Massive brows. Owen was briefly distracted by how huge they were. He shook the thought away. “If that block wasn’t put in my mind, I think I’d’ve gone insane. I need it. F-for now.”

Zena didn’t respond immediately. She just looked away, nodding.

“Anyway, um, I guess I came here to make sure you were alright. So, you are?”

“I am.”

“Good. That’s good.” Owen stood there. He shifted on his feet. “You’ll be fine?”

“I’ll be fine.”

“Okay.” Owen turned around but then hesitated again. As a Charmander, his senses were still dulled. He had a vague idea that they used to be much sharper. He also had a vague idea that Zena was tense. His heart sank. He was the killer of the very Guardian that used to hold the Orb he now possessed. She didn’t want him around. And why would she?

“Okay,” he said again, stepping outside.

Now that he thought about it, he wondered if this was something that he’d gone through time and time again before. His parents raised him for so long. Weren’t they sick of him? Not to mention, what others did he forget about? But still, this was it. He was almost ready, wasn’t he? Maybe next time, he’ll really stay evolved. And he’ll get all his memories back. And then…

And then what?

“Owen,” Zena said.

Owen stopped, halfway out of Zena’s home. He shook his head, forgetting his train of thought.

“No matter what happens,” she said, “I… want to be there for you. Okay?”

Owen turned around, taken aback. His mouth opened just slightly, but no words came.

Zena smiled. “You’re my friend, Owen.”

Light returned to Owen’s eyes.

<><><>​

The sealed Charmander rolled onto his Rawst bed, skipping dinner. He wasn’t hungry. Maybe he didn’t need to eat anymore, as a Mystic? Either way, he wasn’t in much of a mood for a meal. He let out a steady sigh; he felt like the last day was actually ten, and he hadn’t slept for any of it. This seemed like the first instance of a real, calm, quiet moment to himself. Star wasn’t giving him a pep talk—though he’d’ve appreciated another—and it was just him in the darkness and his fire. The chat with Zena lifted his mood somewhat, but now that he was alone with his thoughts, everything still bothered him. He even felt the thoughts of the day leave him for a few blissful instances. The crackle of the embers in the middle of the room lulled him halfway to sleep.

“Owen,” Amia said softly.

A pang of irritation. Owen curled up, but he didn’t say anything.

“Owen, I’m… I’m sorry.”

Owen didn’t reply. Couldn’t he just sleep?

“We shouldn’t have kept this all from you, and… we know that it’s just going to make getting all of those memories back really painful, and confusing, and scary, and… and I’m so sorry. If I could just undo it, I’d… I mean… I don’t know.”

Alex spoke next, just behind Amia. Owen heard the nervous grinding of the Magmortar’s two cannons bumping against each other. “I’m sorry that you had to go through this, but if we didn’t seal your memories, we never would have been able to calm you down. Calm you from… how you were before.”

“Alex,” Amia said quietly.

Owen knew it was right, but it hurt to hear. He was a monster—and he could become one again, couldn’t he? When he evolved—those memories he still couldn’t recall. What happened then? Did he go berserk again? How badly did he defeat Azu—and in what way? It’s all a mystery—and even with Azu, within Manny, a few houses away, he couldn’t bear to ask. All he had to know was that he did it, and it was enough to terrify Willow into not speaking to him.

“Owen, if there’s anything you want me to do that can help,” Amia said.

“I just want—” Owen choked up. He felt like everything was collapsing around him—or that it already did, trapping him under the rubble. There wasn’t a way out, was there? Short of dying, he was stuck in this life for who knows how long. “I just want…” He trailed off again. “I just want to help everyone…!”

Amia sat down next to Owen. The leaves brushed against one another and her dress. Alex stepped over next; his heavy footsteps disturbed the bed. He sat on the opposite side of Owen, looking down at him.

“We’re here for you, Owen,” Amia said, finally placing a hand on his back. Owen flinched but didn’t resist. “It’s okay. Come on, c’mere…”

Owen trembled and sniffled. He uncurled a bit. Amia leaned over and picked him up, pulling him until he was against her chest. He sniffled and pressed his head against her; finally, the tears began to flow, pouring out of his eyes in thin streams. Alex brought his head down, but let Amia handle it for now. Owen could barely keep it together, releasing himself through little tremors and gasps.

“It’s too much,” Owen said. “It’s too much…!”

“I know, Owen, I know,” Amia said. “It’s so much… but you’re so strong, Owen. We’re here, too. Ohh, it’s okay, let it out… let it out…”

Owen blubbered, coughing and shaking. No matter how old he was, he only had a child’s handful of memories to work with. Amia was still his mother, and Alex, his father. He wrapped his arms around Amia, but then glanced at Alex. The Magmortar gave him a little smile with his huge lips.

“M-Mom… did… did I kill anybody else?”

“You didn’t, dear,” Amia said gently. “You were unstable… but Klent and Amelia—those were the only two that died. I promise.”

Owen sniffled. “And what about spirits? Did I hurt any of…?”

“They don’t blame you, Owen,” Amia said. “They all understand what’s going on. They still do. And they’re so proud, Owen… And so am I, and your father.”

Alex nodded. “Keep it up,” he said. “I know you can do this. I’ve known you for so long, and I know you can handle everything the world and beyond throws at you.”

Owen sobbed for quite a while, letting it all out into Amia’s chest. He bumped his head against the flat, fin-like horn in the middle of it—it always comforted him, and Amia gently rubbed at the scales on his shoulders. “You’re just fine, Owen,” she said. “You’re a kind soul, and no instinct will change that with us around. We’ll conquer it. You, Rhys, Star, and us… we’ll handle it together. Because that talent you have, the talents all of Rhys’ students have? Imagine how many others you can help!”

“M-mhm.” Owen sniffed.

“And,” Alex said, “then you’ll be even stronger, don’t you think? Great power and complete control over it.”

“Y-yeah… And you really think I can control it?”

“Owen, that last time you fully evolved, against Azu?”

Owen winced.

“You almost had it. You almost had it, Owen. You’re closer than ever.”

Owen sniffled. Was he really that close, after all this time? How many tries did it take? How many more? The way Amia spoke, it sounded like the very next time would be the last. He was so close.

Amia rubbed his back. “Are you hungry, Owen?”

“No… I don’t think I… need to eat…”

“Oh?” Amia said. “Goodness. I didn’t think you got to that point already.”

Owen laughed through his sniffles, but then said, “Y-yeah. I’m getting strong… maybe getting beat half to death by Azu boosted my Mystic aura again.” He laughed, coughed, and sniffled. The weight felt lighter.

Amia finally pulled away. “Want to sleep in our room, dear?” she said. “It’s okay, just for tonight, if you want.”

Owen hesitated, looking at his bed. “Just tonight…”

Alex leaned forward and wrapped his huge arms over the network of Rawst leaves. He headed over to their room in the other part of the cave; Owen’s tail-fire lit the way in along with his father’s flaming upper half. He stared at the ceiling as it moved past him. He remembered this sight. He used to be afraid of the dark when his tail didn’t quite light the whole way. How long ago was that? It was before the cave had mushrooms—before Amia made them to keep the area well-lit for him. She did that for him…

What was he, a horrible monster, doing being afraid of the dark? What would try to hurt him? If anything, he was the creature in the dark that others feared. Owen sniffed again, looking at the rocky walls and the mushrooms that embedded them. They really did care about him. They all did.

If they weren’t giving up on him, then he’d keep going, too.

Amia and Alex’s room was somewhat larger than Owen’s, but looked similar, with a single, large bed at the back edge of the cave wall. It, too, was made from Rawst berries—mainly due to Alex, and also because, sometimes, Amia had sleep-fights and set herself on fire in the middle of the night. Many beds were lost to this until they decided to get a Rawst one.

Owen… Klent called.

Owen jolted. Amia looked down, concerned, but he shook his head. O-oh, hi, Klent.

Klent was quiet.

Klent?

...We’re here for you, too. Star wanted me to… remind you about that.

Owen gulped, sniffling again. Thanks, Klent…

Alex pushed Owen’s leaves into their own, and they settled in with the Charmander between them.

Snuggled between his parents, he fell asleep in seconds.

<><><>​

…Charmander Owen… conqueror of instincts…

Uhh, hello?

Owen… follow my voice… reach out to me.

Mom said not to talk to cosmic strangers.

I am hardly a stranger. Come, Owen. I mean you no harm. I also doubt your mother told you that specifically.

Well, I bet she would if I asked.

Silence followed.

…Owen…

You’re not gonna stop bothering me, are you? Is this a dream?

This is hardly a dream. Come, Owen. My name is Arceus.

Owen stood on a black floor in the middle of a void. “Uh—what?” Which direction he looked didn’t matter. The only thing he could see was the flame of his tail. “Is this another one of those weird dreams?”

A blinding light shined in front and above him. Owen shut his eyes and covered them with his right hand. “Ugh—turn that out!” he shouted. Even with cover from his claws and his eyelids, he still saw the light. It slowly faded to a dimmer glow; Owen took the chance to peek. His jaw fell.

It was an incredible sight—one he thought didn’t exist for quite a while, at least until he met Star. A creature with four legs and golden hooves, a grey underbelly, and white fur. Just as the descriptions went, and how the artists had depicted him. He had green eyes and red irises, and a gold, wheel-like decoration around his abdomen, tipped with emerald-green jewels.

“A-A… A… Arceus…?” Owen said, feeling his knees shake. “Oh, Mew, this is the craziest dream yet.”

Arceus, while he didn’t have a mouth, was still able to speak, simply staring at Owen. “This is not a dream, Grass Guardian. I am Arceus. I have summoned your aura to speak with me. Do you not remember my calling your name?”

“Uhh—I think? I was probably, like, half-asleep… Wait. You—you’re the Arceus? Not—not some… figment or fragment or something that you sent down, or anything like that? You’re the…”

“I am.”

Owen’s heart skipped a beat. It had been dawning on him in the back of his mind that if Star was real, then Arceus probably was, too. She mentioned the deity, after all. Apparently, he had a temper, but he looked as serene as ever here. Wait. Arceus—shouldn’t he be showing some form of respect?! As much as he hadn’t believed in him at first, this was pretty clearly proof. He quickly got to his knees. “I—it’s an honor for me to see You!” he said. “Wh-what can I do f-for You?”

“…Grass Guardian Charmander Owen,” Arceus said. “Do you feel that this Mystic power has become overwhelming to you? That you think you cannot uphold the responsibilities that the world is forcing upon you?”

He flinched. Owen wondered if Arceus was watching him this entire time. It was a lot. He would have agreed in the afternoon. But now, tonight? He wasn’t done. It was all going so quickly that he needed a few seconds to process it. Arceus waited, unmoving, unblinking. He remembered to breathe—wait, did he need to breathe here? This felt like some part of the spirit world.

Was he so important that even Arceus was watching him, personally? There was a pang in his gut, even as an aura, that didn’t go away. Owen didn’t consider himself to be at that level of importance yet. Especially now, being among the lower tier of Guardians. He decided to play along, wondering if Arceus could read minds the way Star could, or if he had to allow him that privilege. Just in case, Owen decided to keep his thoughts private, preemptively blocking Arceus’ advance, in case that was what he was doing.

“W-well, I mean, it’s pretty hard,” Owen admitted. “And I’ve been going through a pretty rough patch right now since I found out about… You know… You do know, right?”

“I do.”

“Yeah, that,” Owen said. “So, I guess it’s…”

“Would you like things to go back to normal?”

Owen hesitated. Normally, he would just say, yes, he certainly would. He’d love to live a normal life. But could…? Arceus… could He do that? Just… make it normal?

“What do You mean?” Owen asked. And he still had that pang in his stomach. Even stronger, now.

The temptation of everything going back to normal, even after all that talking from the others? He’d be letting them all down! Klent, Star, his parents, his mentors, the Hearts, Zena…

“If you wish,” Arceus said, “I can undo it all. I can take your power away and wipe your memories of ever acquiring that Mystic power—and then make the others forget you ever did, too. It will be as if this all never happened. Is that not precisely what you wished for?”

Owen’s mouth felt dry. He gulped and looked down. He was still on his knees. It didn’t feel right. “I…”

“I’ll even use some of my power further, to rid you of your tainted instincts. I will fix you.”

Owen’s heart skipped another beat. Or did it stop entirely? As an aura, it probably didn’t even matter.

They wouldn’t be let down if they didn’t know it even happened. And without his instincts to get in the way, he could finally evolve. His dream was always to evolve—and stay that way.

Arceus continued. “You will evolve into a Charizard, pure, unmodified, unmutated. You will live, age, and die as one. Everybody else will accept it. They will think this was how it has always been.” Arceus held out one of his hooves. It glowed slightly. “Let me relieve you of your burden, Owen,” he said, “so that you can enjoy life again.”

The Charmander stared at Arceus—part of him still couldn’t believe it. But the other part… even if it was a dream…

It was Arceus, after all. He could do anything. But did Owen want that? A normal life. What was a normal life? He was never normal. Would he have even gotten into the Thousand Hearts as a normal Charmander? And what about the others?

“What about Demitri, Mispy, and Gahi?” Owen asked. “Can You fix them?”

“Not immediately,” Arceus admitted. “They are too far away from my influence. But after I help you… I believe I will be able to assist them, too, in time.”

“And—and what about the other Mystics?” Owen said. “Their lives are all so hard, too. And some of them are in danger right now! The ones we can’t find. A-and… and some of them were killed already. The Ground and Flying Guardians… Cara was one. She was so scared, even after it was all over. A-and Forrest… Star said that he didn’t even want to show up.” Owen gulped. “Can You help the other Guardians, too?”

“Certainly,” Arceus said. “I will free them of their Mystic responsibilities, too.” He held out his hoof again. “Do you accept, Owen?”

Owen stared at the hoof. His right hand twitched. A small part of him was telling him to just accept it. Abandon this entire mess, put it in the hands of the Creator Himself. This divine power wasn’t meant for him, after all. It came from Arceus! And now it would return to Him, just as it should.

No. They were strong thoughts. They were selfish and shortsighted. Owen knew better. There were other thoughts that whispered to him in his mind. One part was rational; another was instinctual. And as much as he hated his instincts… there were times when even the worst power was useful.

Why was Arceus approaching him now, of all times? Star, his parents, the Guardians, and even his fellow artificial students. All of them were behind him. He had a lot of uncertainty, sure, but between Zena, his parents, and how tantalizingly close he was to stability… And now, Arceus was coming to take that power away? Talk about bad timing. It didn’t make sense to him. Why didn’t Arceus make this offer to Zena and the others, too? He wasn’t anything special compared to them, right? Aside from… Well, perhaps he was a little special.

But there was more to it, too. Something less logical. Something in Owen’s core that hissed savagely. Owen wanted to hiss at the Creator. But he held back. But why would he feel that impulse? That defiance against Him, of all Pokémon? Owen usually only felt this way when he was in front of someone being tense, as if anxious, waiting for some kind of opening in battle. But… Arceus? No. Arceus would be the last Pokémon to behave in such a way. Owen ignored his instincts.

But he couldn’t ignore his mind. He had to ask more questions. It was a big decision, after all.

“I… I don’t know,” he said. “This… this power. I feel like I can do a lot of good with it.”

Perhaps just a day ago, he would have accepted this offer. But this night, he wasn’t so sure. Maybe he could handle it, with everyone else’s help.

“And I don’t know if right now’s a good time anyway, y’know, when all my friends are trying to defend themselves against the Hunters, y’know?”

“Mm,” Arceus said.

Owen tilted his head. Did He have more to say?

Arceus went on. “That’s very noble of you, Owen. You wish to use your power to keep the Orbs out of the Hunters’ hands. And I am aware that you wish to follow in Anam’s footsteps, and make the entire world a better place. If that’s the case… Hmm. I must admit that the Hunters, created by Star, are beyond my influence. I cannot easily stop them. I will happily allow you to retain your power if, instead, you pledge to do it under my command.”

“U-under the command of Arceus himself?!” Owen said, rising to his feet. “I’d—I’d…! That’s awesome!”

Owen spoke before his mind could stop him. Even after he said it, he had a doubt. Arceus still didn’t answer his question. But perhaps he could make an exception? Surely, he had a grand scheme of some kind. It would probably take too long to explain. Arceus was probably a very busy Pokémon. Did he get paperwork?

Arceus beamed with his eyes alone. He even glowed brighter; that warm light made Owen want to just curl up and sleep in His fur. It looked so fluffy!

“Perfect, Owen. I’m proud of you,” He said. “Now, please, hold out your hand.”

Without thinking, Owen obeyed. But then he jerked it back. Bad move—how rude! He glanced up at Arceus.

“There is no need to be shy,” Arceus said.

Owen recognized this pose. It was the same one that Zena and Rhys had made to one another. A Divine Promise--something that made even Nevren flinch. At the very least, Owen could listen to what the terms of this Promise would be. He reached out. Arceus’ hoof felt like solid gold. It was hot, even to his fiery self.

“Owen, do you hereby Promise to use your Mysticism under my orders?”

Owen was lost in his eyes. Instincts paralyzed his throat. His lungs refused to let out a breath. Even his thoughts froze from thinking anything affirmative. He was entranced by the glory of this Pokémon. And yet… And yet, and yet, and yet. What was this doubt? What was this feeling? It almost hurt, how it kept him from saying yes, just entrust himself to Arceus, let Him do the important thinking. Easy! But his mind still didn’t understand the full terms. It was such a broad Promise.

“I… I can’t,” the Charmander said. He let go of his hoof. He lowered his tail with his arms.

“…Excuse me?” The hoof remained.

“I—I need to… Can I think about it?” he said. He was starting to recognize the gut feeling—Arceus… was He…? “What would your commands be, and stuff?”

“To carry out my missions in the mortal realm. To eradicate the Hunters and liberate the Guardians. To restore my power. You trust me with such a thing, don’t you?”

If Arceus needed his power back, what took it away in the first place? Was he not the ultimate being? “A-about that, I had a few questions. I’m very sorry, Your Greatness, but You know how I am as a personality, right? I’m kinda really… curious, about how something isn’t adding up. I used to not even believe you existed, or anything about the spirit world. How come You’re asking me all this stuff now? Did You ask the other Guardians, too? I bet they’d really like to give up their power the same way. Zena was really unhappy for hundreds of years. How come You didn’t help her? That… doesn’t seem right, Arceus. If You’re relieving me of that… how come You didn’t for her?”

The more he vocalized it, the more it didn’t make sense. Why him, and not her? There was more to it. Arceus wouldn’t make these decisions arbitrarily.

“That isn’t really your concern, is it?” Arceus said. “I created this world with my thousand arms. Surely you can trust me to direct your power. I will train you and hone your skills beyond anything you could have imagined. It is all part of my divine plan.”

“Y-yeah, but… what for? What is the divine plan?” Owen said. “I—I mean, you definitely know that I’m kinda nervous about being directed to use my power a certain way, right? You know, being artificial, being designed…”

“I do understand your apprehension,” Arceus said. “I will assure you that my orders will be just, and you will be perfectly content with what I request.”

“Okay,” Owen said, “but how come You’re asking me, then? Oh—and, um, Arceus, Your Greatness, you still didn’t answer my question. Why didn’t You ask Zena the same thing, or the other Guardians? You’d be able to do that, right? Or…? Or can’t You? Is it because—”

Owen nearly choked on his own gasp. If the Hunters were beyond Arceus’ control, what about the other Guardians? Would they be beyond his control, too? What kept him from…

Star…

Owen had to test something. And when he spoke next, he made himself very aware of the deity’s body language. If there was one thing his instincts were good for… it’d be this. This was what his instincts were hissing at. They were dull against Zena, so he had to focus a lot harder this time.

“Your... Holiness. Where is Creator Mew Star?”

He saw it. It was an instant. The smallest twitch. It wasn’t his instincts; he didn’t need them after all. It was obvious enough from the little flicker of light that Arceus gave off, that wavering in his expression. Anger. Arceus reacted negatively to Star’s name. He stared into those red pupils.

Arceus had a temper. Star had said as much.

“Is it okay,” Owen said, “if we invite her here?”

“You…” Arceus’ voice deepened, “shall listen to me. Understood?”

“N-no, not understood,” Owen said. Realizing he had just outright said ‘no’ to the topmost being of the universe, he quickly amended himself. But his trust was already gone, and so was any reverence that he may have held. It wasn’t too hard to discard, considering he didn’t believe in him for very long—and since Star already tarnished his idea of what it meant to be a deity. “I—I mean, Arceus, I know that you know everything, but can you maybe give me some of that omniscience? It kinda feels like I don’t have the full picture here…”

With nothing in this black void but the two of them—no visible ground, no rocks, no plants, no movement… the silence that followed felt like an eternity. Owen couldn’t even hear his heart. Maybe it did stop.

“No,” Arceus said. Suddenly, the divine being’s back glowed with a soft, white light. Owen saw tiny, filament-like tendrils, like long bits of thick fur. It radiated an incredible amount of power—Owen felt like he’d collapse just from standing before it. “You will choose, now,” he said, “to either follow me… or be rid of your power completely.”

“Th-that’s… that’s not right!” Owen said.

“Choose.”

The tendrils of light floated like seaweed in still water; gently, they pointed toward Owen and glowed brighter. Owen gulped. Star… help…! “What… what happens if I don’t accept?”

“So, you refuse me?”

Owen knew that he’d regret it—but he had no choice. His instincts were screaming at him. Arceus was obviously hiding something, and it wasn’t for his own good. Owen didn’t want to believe it, but every fiber of his deepest being was screaming at him—this was indeed Arceus… and he was indeed lying.

No turning back now. “I refuse.”

And just like that, the many tendrils rushed right for Owen. He shut his eyes tight—this was it, wasn’t it? For a split-second, he wondered if he should have said yes. Because either way, it was going to end. Would this hurt? Would he even remember this? Or was it another stress-induced dream? Oh, please, let it be a dream—he missed worrying about his own sanity. That was much better than facing divine retribution.

But then, he heard a collision—many, many collisions, with strange, ethereal echoes. He didn’t feel anything—no pain from the strike, no loss of power. After a few seconds, he opened his eyes.

“S… Star?”

It was the Mew, but she was glowing—and her back had the same, white filaments from her back, like wings. Each one blocked one or two of Arceus’ filaments, neutralizing his attack.

“You’ve got guts, Owen,” Star said. “But you bit off more than you could chew this time.”

“Star,” Arceus said, staring down.

“Yo, Barky.” Star smirked.

“You shall not use such a name,” Arceus said.

“Trying to pluck away another one?” Star asked. “You didn’t even give your usual compromise this time. You must be real scared, huh?”

The sight of Arceus’ angry expression made Owen want to throw up. What little breath he had left exited his throat. “St-Star…!” Scared? Was that the answer? But he was weak! Anam was a much bigger threat to Arceus if they were going by strength.

The Mew gave a little wink at Owen. Owen realized it then—if he was going to get answers, it was going to be from Star.

“I’m going,” Star said. Facing Arceus, she continued, “Follow me, and you know you’ll be in trouble. C’mon, Owen. Let’s go.”

“Wait, wha—”

And they vanished.

In the silence of the void, Arceus hissed. “Star,” he said. “you really mean it this time… don’t you?” Many seconds of silence filled the void. He closed his eyes, sending a thought her way. I hope you have the resolve to follow through, Star.

And Star replied. Bite me.

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 22 – The Endless Forest​

“Wh-what’s going on?” Owen said.

He was weightless – nothing was around him except a swirling, blue-black void in all directions. He looked up; he saw blackness with a flickering, cyan mist. But then, when he squinted, he saw that this mist also had brighter spots in it. “Are those…” They reminded him of Rhys’ paws when he was meditating or fighting. “Are those auras?”

“Yep,” Star said.

“W-wah!” Owen jumped, losing his balance in the void. “Where’d you come from?” He was stuck rotating laterally.

“Oh! Sorry. I got distracted along the way; nearly lost you, ha!” The Mew chuckled, patting him on the back. She grasped him gently by the shoulders to halt the spinning.

Owen sighed. “Don’t—don’t do that! Just tell me where we are!” Owen pointed at the mist but then noticed his arm. It looked blurry. “What’s…?” He brought his left hand on his right arm; it passed right through. The scales flew off like dust in the wind—along with everything else in him. His hand went first, the little fingers washing away like a wad of mud in a river. There was no pain—and for some reason, that made it worse. “What’s happening?!”

“D-don’t panic, Owen! You’re fine!” Star said, holding his right shoulder. “Uh—oops.” When Star pat him, his entire arm fell away, floating in front of him. It dissolved into a fine, cyan mist. Owen stared helplessly as his body faded into light. While it didn’t hurt it didn’t feel good, either. He lost all sensation. He tried to move his arm—but he no longer had an arm to move.

After the arm, everything else advanced much more rapidly. His claws and tail, then the legs. Did he have a head? He couldn’t use his arms to feel for his head, because those were already long gone. His torso floated past his vision like smoke. He tried to gasp with the lungs he no longer had.

He tried to talk, but it didn’t work. He didn’t even know how he was seeing anything—he had no eyes. No eyelids to blink with—no mouth to speak with, nothing. Nothing.

“Just—just talk with your thoughts, Owen. It’s okay,” Star eased. “You’re in the aura sea right now, Owen. You’re pressed up against the edge of, uh… the living world.”

Owen struggled to work with this new sort of communication. It felt like it was all he had left. What do you mean, the edge? Isn’t that just the Grass Orb, and the other Orbs?

“Yes and no,” Star said, rubbing her head. “C’mon, stay by me, okay? Or you’ll get caught up in the flow.”

Flow… right… Owen reflexively tried to look down at his hands. Not only did he not have hands, but he also didn’t have a head to look down with, or a neck. He didn’t know what nothing felt like, but this was as close as he’d ever gotten to it.

“Don’t worry, don’t worry. This’ll all go back to normal soon. It’s just, weaker auras don’t last very long here. They dissolve into their most basic component, the flare, which encapsulates their spirit.”

Owen adjusted. He looked at the many others who looked exactly like him. They were moving in the opposite direction that he and Star were, toward some other void. Where are… they going?

“Oh, just the spirit world,” Star said. “This is sorta the passageway from the point when an aura passes on, to the spirit world.”

So this is… I heard legends about this…

“Legends? Huh. Once a mortal gets here, there’s no going back, usually. I guess some of them just guessed correctly.”

Something else was floating ahead. A hulking creature, to be sure, with a gray body with yellow stripes and a single, glowing, red eye. Dusknoir. Owen hesitated on advancing, but when he fell too far behind Star, he felt a strange force pulling him toward the void that the other auras were heading. He tried to call out to Star with his nonexistent mouth.

“Don’t be afraid,” Star said, reaching over to keep Owen from slipping away. The mere gesture of her hand created a force that drew Owen closer. “That’s just Hecto.”

Hecto?

“Well, one of him.”

They were going right toward him. Eventually, they were right in front, and the Dusknoir stopped whatever he was doing. “Star,” Hecto greeted. “Hello. I didn’t expect to see you here. Are you not with my others?”

“Oh, I was, but I had to grab Owen.” Star pointed at the flare. Owen felt himself shrink.

“…He has perished? Already?”

“No, no, nothing like that,” Star said. “Barky summoned his aura when he was asleep, and now I’m taking him back on the down-low so the Alpha can cool off.”

Wait, Barky? What? Huh? Oh, you mean….

“She means Arceus,” the Dusknoir said. “It is a nickname developed by Star, specifically because, as you put it, he barks a lot.”

“Barks orders, more like,” Star muttered. “I could’ve called him RC instead, because he’s a pain in the—” Owen caught an amused glint in Hecto’s eye. Star, perhaps in response to this, balled up her tiny paws. “Look just because he has a few more Hands than I do doesn’t mean he’s the strongest in the pantheon. I’m important, too!”

“You certainly are,” Hecto said. Except for that brief glint, he was quite expressionless. Owen had no idea if his statement was sarcastic or genuine. “Would you like me to create a fast route to your home, then?”

“Nah, I could’ve done that myself. I just wanted to take the scenic route so Barks can cool down.”

If I call Arceus that… will he kill me? Owen said.

“Probably.” Star shrugged. “But hey, do what you want. I’ve got you protected.”

Okay, actually, hang on, Owen said. Why am I protected? Compared to the other Guardians? What’s so important about me? I’m not even that strong compared to some of the others.

“Hm. So you haven’t explained this to him?” Hecto said.

“I mean, I explained most of it. But now that Barky’s in the picture. I guess I should give him more of the story. Did your others tell you about what happened?”

“Of his memories returning? Yes.”

Star nodded. “Owen… I think it’s time that we explain to you why you’re so important in all this. I mean—I don’t think we can tell it… tell it all just yet, but at least what sets you apart from the others.”

You mean aside from the fact that I’m a freak of nature, Owen said.

“Yeah, actually,” Star said. “There’s more to it. Want to come along, Hec?”

“My others will be there. I am still watching the flow.”

…What do you do here? Owen asked.

“I watch,” Hecto said. “There is a lot to learn… if you just watch.”

Watch? Owen turned his focus on the flowing auras. All he saw were a bunch of cyan flames in a thin stream. Each cyan aura had a small, golden glow in the center. Was that their spirit?

Star sensed his concentration and chuckled. “Sure, let’s spend a bit of time doing this.”

Owen stared, and stared, and stared…. And then, he started to hear something. Little whispers, voices. Confused voices, mostly. Some sounded sad. Others were relieved. And others still, angry. Desperate. Eager. Worried. But he couldn’t make out what they were saying—it was a cacophony. He heard words, but he couldn’t make it all out. There was too much to hear—a thousand words a second, a million… He had to break away.

U-ugh…

“Pretty overwhelming, huh?” Star said. “Don’t worry. Let’s get going, huh?”

Y-yeah. I’ll leave that stuff to Hecto.

Owen appreciated that the rest of the trip through the aura sea was quiet. Star didn’t ask any questions, but she did give him a little, reassuring smile when she sensed he was feeling uneasy. Somehow, it helped. He knew he was still experiencing some sort of shock from having the very creator of reality try to kill him. How deep into this mess was he? Still, Star had his back. And she seemed to be able to fend him off, at the very least.

Star eventually broke the silence. “Oh, we’re almost there. It’s gonna get bright.”

Just then, Owen’s surroundings lit up—he was still an ember, but now he was floating in a brown, rocky cave. Directly ahead of him was the mouth of the cave. He couldn’t see anything from where he was standing, but it appeared to be overlooking a cliff. Behind him, further inside, was a complex network of tunnels and corridors, and even some furniture. Owen was unnerved at how… normal it all seemed, after what he had just gone through.

“Welcome to my hangout,” Star said. “Oh, uh, sorry. Forgot that your body dissolved. So, just focus, and you’ll form it back.”

Just focus? Owen said.

“Yeah, like, imagine that you have a body again, and you’ll become what you’re thinking about.”

Owen bobbed in the air and concentrated. First, he felt his legs return to him, and then his tail and waist. Then came his belly, and then his arms, and finally his head; next, from his back, two large wings sprouted, followed by two horns on the back of his head.

Star blinked, but then smiled sadly at him. “Oh, Owen…”

“H-huh?” Owen said but then gasped, clutching at his long muzzle. He didn’t expect his voice to be so deep. “Oh, I… I guess I…”

Star chuckled. “You really want to evolve, huh?”

Owen looked back at his massive tail, swinging it a few times, and tried to outstretch his wings. It felt… strange, having two new limbs, yet familiar. “Did I… look like this?” the Charizard asked.

“Mn… no,” Star said. “You… didn’t look like a normal Charizard. But, you know—just work with this! I think you look good in whatever you’re comfortable with, Owen. Just, uh, walk carefully. Your balance is going to feel different.”

Owen rubbed the back of his neck. That was strange, too. It felt so much longer now.

“Actually, this might turn out to be useful,” the Mew said. “See, I want to go down there.” She pointed to the mouth of the cave and floated to the entrance. Owen followed, wobbling for the first few, heavy steps, but had to stop just to admire the view.

“Whoa,” Owen breathed. “It’s… it goes on forever!”

Below him was a sea of green leaves atop tall trees. There was a bluish tinge to them, vaguely reminding Owen of the auras of the sea he was just a part of. There was certainly something mystical about it—it must have been the glow. And indeed, it went on endlessly, blending into the purple horizon like a lumpy field of aether.

“This is Aether Forest,” Star said. “It’s kinda where I go if I want to think—I made it myself a long time ago.” She jerked her head to the side, motioning for him to follow, and floated down to the forest floor. Owen hopped and stretched his wings—by instinct, he knew how to glide and descend to the bottom.

His heavy body felt like air for that brief moment; a stupid grin spread across his face halfway down. He broke through the trees and landed on dark, blue grass, where the leaves blocked most of the sun. Instead, the plants underneath glowed, similar to the mushrooms of Hot Spot Cave. The same went for the black tree trunks. Owen kicked over a pebble and saw a fine, cyan mist puff out and dissipate. Entertained, he kicked over another, and another; he accidentally crushed one, and it, too, burst into little blue lights.

Owen suppressed his smile to address Star. “Um, so, why did you want to come here?” Owen asked.

“To talk,” Star said. “This is my turf. Barky can’t bother us here. So… I just wanted to tell you about… what makes you so special. And not in the stupid way where everyone is special. I mean like, on a practical level, you’ve got something that sets you apart from the other Guardians. And also, you’re synthetic, but that’s beside the point—okay, so… are you still with me?”

“Halfway.”

Star sighed. They continued through Aether Forest. Owen took some time to admire the blueness of the leaves, and then at the seemingly infinite web of trunks ahead, behind, and all around him. He ran his hand along the trunk. The wood was hard, but it wasn’t dry. He’d have to really put forth an effort to knock one down.

“Let’s just put it this way,” Star said. “Yeah, you’ve got special powers, and maybe a few perks from being genetically crafted by crazy aura-bio science, but… the main difference that you have between all the other Guardians with us? It’s that you aren’t… aligned with Barky yet.”

“What? You mean the Guardians all made a Divine Promise to him?”

“Yes,” Star said. “But Barky didn’t see them as a threat. He made them Promise… to never gather the Orbs together into one person. I guess that’s why he’s not complaining about them joining up with you to fight the Hunters, because even if they win, they still can’t overpower him.”

“Wh—I mean, yeah, isn’t that what we’re trying to avoid?” Owen said. “That’d usurp Arceus! And I feel like that’d be really, really bad news.”

Star was quiet. Owen stopped walking through the infinite forest; Star floated a few more feet ahead.

“Star?” Owen said. “What… what are you getting at with this?”

Star stared at the treetops, flicking her tail. For just a second, her tail split in two, akin to an Espeon’s, and the two ends swatted at one another.

“Owen,” Star said. “Times… change. And leaders… that are in power for too long… can lose touch with the world they rule. Don’t you think?”

This time, Owen was quiet.

“There’s… a lot that I don’t know if I’m ready to tell you, or anyone,” Star admitted. “But… you saw how Arceus was to you. That wasn’t some exception. He’s just like that, now. High and mighty, forgetting that he works for mortals, not the other way around.”

“Wh-what do you mean? Aren’t… aren’t we supposed to be thankful to Arceus for all he’s done for us? Maybe he’s a little worried or—” Owen shook his head. What was he saying? He tried to kill him!

Star laughed weakly. Owen never heard a laugh so bitter. “Maybe that’s the opinion you were taught,” she said, “but come on. I know you weren’t the sort to believe in either of us until recently. But you know what? I think we can do better than sit in our kingdom and stare down at the world. If you guys are forgetting about us, we aren’t doing a good job, are we? I know we can do better.”

Owen shifted from his left foot to his right, shuffling his wings awkwardly.

“I know you aren’t ready to decide or anything, Owen,” Star said, “but… you want all this to end, right? You want to stop the Hunters from trying to gather the Orbs, and you want to stop Arceus from being… well, the way he is?”

“I—I do,” Owen said. “I just want everyone to be happy, and I don’t want anybody to feel afraid.” He felt like he’d said this a thousand times, but he said it again. “Just like Anam.”

Star nodded. “Well, I’ll… help you, okay? We’ll stop Arceus and the Hunters, together.” She stopped floating ahead and turned around. “Hey, Owen. Would it be okay if…?” Star looked right in the Charizard’s uncertain, blue eyes.

Owen gulped. He got that feeling again, even from Star. An icy pit formed in his chest, already flashing back to that warmth that Arceus radiated while coercing him to make a Promise. He didn’t feel that from Star. But knew the question was coming. She was going to ask him the very same question all over again. She just rescued him to get his’s loyalty for herself…

Star smiled slightly. “…No. It’d be wrong of me to ask you that now, of all times, huh? Okay. No Divine Promise from you. But… can you just give me a regular promise that… you’ll hear me out when the time comes?”

The icy pit subsided, but only slightly. No Promise? His pulse slowly lowered, but that didn’t free him completely of his lingering doubt. He just got through denying one deity a Promise, and he felt like he had just gone into round two. “What’s a regular promise to you?”

“The ones you can break… if… I dunno, if you need to,” Star said. “Won’t take your power away or anything. Just a normal one.”

Owen shuffled uncomfortably where they had stopped walking, admiring, again, the dark trees and dim glow. It distracted him. If Star could just vanish for a while, that’d be lovely. Unfortunately, Star seemed adamant about staying by Owen. “I guess so,” he said. “I’m just not comfortable making promises to a god right now, okay?”

Star winced. “Y-yeah, I’m really sorry,” she said. “I didn’t think it through. I shouldn’t have hinted like that. Bad taste. Too soon.”

“I mean, you were planning to ask me this some time anyway, right? To pledge… loyalty to you, or something.” Owen looked down. “I’m just not comfortable doing that, Star. To anybody. Because that’s not what it means to be a Heart.”

“Not what it means to…?”

Owen shook his head. “Hearts aren’t loyal to Anam. We fight for the world and everybody in it. We’re supposed to keep them safe.”

Star stared at Owen for five seconds. Owen maintained his eye contact. If anything, his gaze, while neutral, intensified. And then she smiled, breaking the stare, laughing.

“What’s so funny?!”

Star shook her head, covering her mouth with her left paw. “Your eyes looked just like Anam’s for a second,” she said. “I mean, yours are blue, and his are green, but they were so full of light! I don’t know, Owen. I just felt really happy for a second, if that makes any sense.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Owen frowned.

“I should expect it. That’s the sort of personality that Anam likes to recruit. Bright-eyed.”

Owen sighed, settling down. Star slowly did, too, lowering her altitude until she was at eye-level again. A slight tension returned. Aftershocks from meeting Arceus, he was sure. Owen clenched his claws and breathed deeply. He wondered if meditating worked in the spirit realm.

“Star,” Owen said. “I’m… I’m sorry, but I don’t know if I’ll be able to make a Promise to you. Ever.”

“Oh.” Star quieted down. She curled her tail around her floating body. “H-how come?”

Owen rubbed his right arm with his left. “I know that you saved my life a little while ago, and I know you’ve been going out of your way to try to get as many Guardians together as you can, but… after what happened back there… How do I know you aren’t doing the same thing to me?”

“Well… I’m not trying to kill you right now, aren’t I?” Star said.

Owen flinched. “I guess,” he said. “But—”

“Owen, do you seriously think I’d try to kill you? I’ve been trying to help you guys this whole time!”

Owen wondered how much he should press when in Star’s ‘turf.’ But he still had the smallest bit of trust in Star, at least enough to believe that she wouldn’t kill him. It was a low bar of trust.

“How do I know you aren’t just doing it to eventually turn on us or something? Gather up the Orbs to steal from us all at the same time…” he trailed off.

Star crossed her arms. The Charizard gulped, realizing the flaw in his idea. “Go on,” Star said.

Owen sighed. “You could’ve just killed us one by one if you could’ve done it to all of us at once.”

“Uh-huh. Also, if Barky’s worried about gathering the Orbs together, then you’re technically a threat to me, too. Just pointing that out.”

“R-right. Right.” Owen nodded. “Okay.”

“But,” Star said, “I’m glad you’re being careful, Owen. To be honest, I think a lot of the other Guardians are kinda indifferent about me.” She rubbed the back of her neck thoughtfully. “And Zena’s… uh… I need to try to patch things up with her in particular. And the others… They’re just going along with it because it’s better than how they were before. It’s not like they… trust me, either. I know what I did to them.”

Owen briefly thought back to Zena, alone in her home just that night. His heart hurt just thinking about it.

“I just want to make things right, Owen,” she said. Owen looked up, hearing her voice, just barely, strain. “I’m sorry that I’m not ready to tell you guys about all the mistakes I’ve made. But I will, okay? I will. Then I’ll… let everyone judge me. For everything. I’m… I’m just not ready yet. I thought I was, but then, the way Zena reacted…”

“Rightfully,” Owen said automatically but regretted doing so moments later.

Star shook her head. Owen was ready to vocalize an apology, but Star held her paw up. “Y-yeah. I just—I need time. I’m sorry. I’ll feel better about it after I actually fix everything I broke. Okay? Do we have a deal?”

Owen tensed.

“Sorry, bad phrasing,” Star tittered nervously. “I mean, are you okay with that?”

The Charizard relaxed, puffing a small plume of smoke from his nostrils. He nodded. If anything, he sensed no malice from Star the same way he did from Arceus. He supposed that, deep down, he trusted Star for him to question her so openly in the first place.

There was still one question nagging at him. “So,” he said, “how about why you can’t tell me about my issues?”

He caught a twinge of annoyance in the way Star’s left eye twitched.

“Listen,” she sighed, rubbing the bridge of her tiny snout. “Think for a second. What happened when you found out that you killed Klent? All the memories started flooding back, right? And why I told you not to try to jog Gahi’s memory. Because that’d make him get the same panic attack, yeah? You were losing it. Now, imagine that, times, like, fifty. That’s why I can’t tell you yet.”

“Oh.” Those memories were overwhelming. “But—does that mean I have to never remember at all?”

Star shook her head. “They have to come slowly, and when you can control yourself when you’re totally… unsealed. If you can fully evolve, and stay sane—that’s gonna be the best time you can handle it. Your brain won’t… break, trying to reconcile all the craziness of remembering being a Charizard when you’re still a Charmander.”

Just listening to that statement gave Owen a sharp headache near his right temple. He grumbled and grasped at the area just above his right eye.

“That,” Star pointed at him, “is my proof. Believe me now?”

“O-okay.” If just knowing a little about his past made him panic, he can only imagine what would happen if he knew the trigger.

Star sighed again, shaking her arms and legs as if getting the last of her vulnerability away. “Are you satisfied, now?” she asked. “Your memory seal is teetering, and if too many come at once, it’ll scramble all over again. Don’t make me do that again.”

Owen felt the tension leave his chest. He nodded, but then said, “No promises.” He smirked.

“Not funny.” Star smirked back.

They spent a few seconds just staring at one another, and Owen finally had the sense to continue walking. But then, he heard something off to the side; his tail-fire lit up bright and he swung in the direction of the noise, ready for some disciple of Arceus to come to take his soul. It was a strange, canid creature with a black body and green, hexagon-like markings all over, with white, hexagon eyes. “W-wait, isn’t that a…?” Owen trailed off. “That’s—that’s a tenth of a Zygarde!”

“Oh, don’t worry!” Star said quickly. “That’s just another Hecto! Yo! Hecto! Were you eavesdropping again?!”

“I apologize.” He stepped out from the bushes and bowed to Owen. “You already met my Dusknoir manifestation, yes? I monitor the flow of the spirits transitioning into the spirit world, but most of my copies are dedicated toward observing the living realm. I suppose you can call me Star’s eyes.”

“And my better half.” Star winked at Hecto.

The Zygarde, expressionless, said to Owen, “Yes. That as well.”

Owen had to stare between the two. He shook his head. “You guys are weird,” he said. “I don’t think all this cosmic stuff is good for my head. Got me all confused and… I dunno. I feel like I should focus on simpler stuff.”

“Hah!” Star said. “You’re my kind of guy, Owen. Glad that you can keep a down-to-Kilo head even after becoming Mystic and stuff. You’ll need that.”

“Y-yeah.” Owen tittered. “So, uh… where does this forest go, anyway?”

“It goes to where you wish for it to go,” Hecto said. “I mean this literally. Moving forward is all that is required to reach a place you desire, so long as it is within the spirit realm. It takes some time, but you will indeed arrive.”

“Wow,” Owen said. “That’s crazy. And why does it work like that?”

“Just because,” Star said. “It’s the spirit world. I mean, it’s my realm. I kinda make the rules.”

“Oh, yeah, that’s right.”

It only took a few steps before Star saw what appeared to be a forest that was paler and greener than her blue, ethereal one.

“Oh, so you wanna go to your Orb’s realm?” Star noted.

“Yeah,” Owen said. “Just… I think I’m ready to talk to them. And see Amelia. Like how you wanted me to at the lava river.”

“O-oh.”

“I want to apologize, even if… I know that’s not enough.”

Star nodded. “I think it’ll go okay,” she said. “Not great, but… okay.”

Owen smiled slightly. “Thanks.”

Eventually, they were halfway toward the Grass Realm. Owen found himself focusing on how the sounds of his footsteps were louder like this. He was starting to grow self-conscious of it. Was that loud sound annoying the other two? Hecto walked softly, and Star simply floated. “Star,” Owen said. “In the memories I have right now, I… have really vague memories when I was a Charizard, or—the synthetic version. I felt… fine. Felt normal. I didn’t really… go crazy.”

“You weren’t in your battle mode,” Star said. “That’s when you go crazy. Synthetics like you have two modes—controlled by your masters. Or, well… that’s how it was supposed to be. Something went wrong with you guys, and you couldn’t get out of that mode. Manny figured out how to sorta grind it away for the spirits he has, but it’s not as easy for you guys. You’re unstable.”

“I mean… we were the first of our kind, right?” Owen said. “I guess that’s part of the reason.” He looked at Star again. “What caused it to go wrong for me? Do you know? What’s the trigger that made us go crazy and couldn’t get… not-crazy without resetting us?”

Star hesitated. “Didn’t we go over this already?” she said. “Please, Owen. Not this line of questions.”

“…Oh, is that one of the things that might make me lose it?”

“It’s probably the single worst thing I can make you remember.”

Owen’s jaw clenched, frowning with worry.

“You’re close to suppressing it already,” Star said. “You almost pulled through at that fight with Azu, but we lost you. Amia had to reset you—Rhys taught her how, since we had to keep you with her so you were away from the other three. Rhys could handle them.”

“Not me?” Owen said.

“Ohh, no.” Star chuckled. “Of the quartet, you’re the brains. Rhys saw you as a real threat if you had enough resources. That was your specialty—being resourceful. Your head… it was just so good at using everything at perfect efficiency. That’s your special move, Owen. Fire Trap. A trace of your true abilities…. But… I don’t want to trigger the memories yet. It might mess with you even in your current state,” she said. “So… I’ll just tell you this. If you ever see Demitri, Mispy, or Gahi evolve to their synthetic forms…” The Mew stopped floating to look right at Owen. “Run. Okay? Get as far from them as possible.”

The forest stood still, and Owen gulped. He nodded.

“Good!” Star grinned. She turned around and advanced. “C’mon! The Grass Realm is just this way!”

Hecto and Owen watched her. Then, the Zygarde turned his head, looking up at Owen with his blank, hexagon eyes. “She is very proud of you,” he said. “It isn’t often that she puts so much trust in a mortal to handle something this large.”

“Oh, really?” Owen said. Then, not saying it, he thought, Do I even count as mortal?

Hecto nodded. “You have potential,” he said. “She wishes to harness that potential for the good of the world. I do hope you can align with her one day.”

“I—I don’t think I’m at that level,” Owen said. “I just want to help everyone…. And no alliances! Not until she tells me everything. I already had Arceus try to trick me onto his side, and don’t think Star’s getting any favors, either! As far as I’m concerned… they’re just trying to use me for their own war. And I’m not having any of that.”

“Mm,” Hecto said.

Owen tried to push his powers into overdrive to sense any sort of twitch from the Zygarde. Now that he knew this was part of his synthetic, weaponized talent, he had even more confidence than before that he’d be able to use it. And yet… nothing. From Hecto, Owen couldn’t sense anything. No positive or negative reaction. Could he be hiding it? Even from him? Hecto was listening, and that was all Owen knew for sure.

“U-uh, anyway,” Owen said, unnerved, “what’s your story? With Star?”

“Hm? My story?” Hecto said. They finally resumed their walk. “Star and I are partners on the cosmic scale. While I am native to the world she created, I suppose I caught her heart, long ago.”

“…Huh?”

“We have a history,” Hecto said.

“I mean, sure, I figured that much,” Owen said. “You… caught her heart?”

Hecto stared at Owen. “Hm.” The Zygarde walked on.

“W-wait! What does that mean?!”

Soon, they exited the ethereal forest.

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 23 – Past and Present​

“Hello?” Owen called. “Klent? Everyone…?”

It was like what had happened when he had first arrived. A clear, bright glade without any sign of Pokémon life. But Owen could sense them this time. He figured it was because his aura was getting stronger and more tuned to his Mystic energy, or perhaps as a Charizard, his natural perception abilities were heightened. He could sense Klent specifically, as one of the strongest spirits of this realm.

He turned to his right. “Hey, what’re you so shy for?”

Silencce at first, and then the Jumpluff emerged with his eyes downcast, somewhere between apprehension and, oddly enough, guilt. “I, er… I wasn’t sure if you were still upset or not,” Klent said. “Are you…?”

“Don’t worry, guys,” Star said. “He’s fine. And Barky didn’t get him, either.”

Klent deflated with relief. “When I felt him leave for his realm, I thought it was over,” he said. “Owen, you’re still free to… choose what to do?”

“I, uh, yes?” Owen said. “Free to choose what?”

“What to do with your power, compared to just following what Arceus says,” Star said.

“Oh, yeah. Yeah, I can,” Owen said. “And I’m not with Star, either. I’m just me. Actually, about that, um, about power, and stuff. Klent, I… I’m really sorry about what I did to you, y’know, when…”

“It’s okay, Owen.” Klent shook his head. “I… suppose I’ve also been holding a grudge. You weren’t in control of yourself. But… well. It’s hard to shake the image. But I’ll move through it. You’ve changed… and you’re in control, now.” He spoke as if it was rehearsed, but Owen chose to believe that it was coming from the right place. He was the one who killed Klent and his daughter, after all. Even after a few centuries, that might still sting. He wondered if it was true that spirits held grudges for much longer than mortals.

Owen shook his head. Just a moon ago, he wouldn’t have even entertained thoughts about spirits, and now he was thinking about them like they were common theory. “How—how in control was I against Azu?” Owen asked.

Klent rubbed his pom-poms together. “A bit ruthless, yes. You used the same attacks that we’re… familiar with. But Amia was able to calm you down enough to reset your form.”

“Calm me down?”

“That was impossible before,” Klent said. “That shows just how much progress you made. And I have… more faith in you, now, in controlling yourself when you evolve again. Perhaps if we can do it in a less stressful situation, you’ll have a better chance at controlling yourself. But for that to happen, we’re going to have to keep training you—in the mind, body, and aura—to make sure you’re ready for what’s to come with the Hunters.”

“Y-yeah. We’re fighting them, huh?” Owen said.

Sta shrugged noncommittally. “Unless we find some way to make a compromise, yep.”

Owen nodded, but then gently shuffled his wings, grabbing his right one to pick between the scales. “Klent… where’s Amelia?”

The Jumpluff’s gaze darkened slightly. “I—er, she’s… she’s nearby.”

A little gust of wind blew through the otherwise still forest. Owen wondered if he should drop the subject, but his mouth moved on its own.

“Should I turn to my Grass form?”

More silence filled the air. The gust of wind had passed, leaving the forest in complete silence.

“No,” Klent said. “Stay… stay in that form.”

“As—as a Charizard?” Owen stuttered. “Is—isn’t that the form that—”

“Not that Charizard,” Klent said. “This will do. I’m sure of it. You look… a bit cuter that way.”

Owen’s flame crackled. “Wh-what do you mean?”

“Well, you’re shorter, less muscular, a little chubby… much less intimidating than how you normally look.”

“I—I’m not chubby!” Owen protested, clutching at his round belly. “Th-that’s the natural look for my species! It’s—it’s healthy!”

“I’m sure it is, Owen.” Klent chuckled, hiding behind one of his pompoms. “but that doesn’t hide the fact that it’s cuter.”

Owen whined and looked at Star helplessly.

The Mew giggled. “Well, I did design you guys to look like chubby bipedal fire-dragons.”

“Would it’ve hurt to give us the actual Dragon type?” Owen mumbled.

Klent and Star both chuckled.

Owen pouted again. “Well… if you think Amelia is ready, and she’s fine with me looking like this, then I’ll… be here.”

“I’ll see.” Klent nodded. “It won’t be long. I’ll be back.” The Jumpluff floated into the forest.

Owen had a few seconds to himself. Star was chatting with the other Grass spirits. Hecto was silently gazing upon the field nearby. The Charizard rubbed the back of his head, startled at the two horns that sprouted in the back. Did he have horns in his true form, too? They felt so foreign, somehow. Perhaps they were different. He vaguely recalled having horns of some kind. He hoped they looked cooler.

“Hey, Hecto,” Owen said.

“Yes?”

“Are there other Legendary Pokémon like you around?” Owen asked. “I never see them. You only read about them.”

“Mm. There is one more.”

“Oh. Just one, huh?” But before he could ask, he heard the bushes shuffling, and the thought left him.

Klent returned after only a few seconds, nodding. “Just don’t make any sudden movements.”

“Y-yeah, totally.”

The bushes breathed out a whisper. Owen gulped, wondering if this would trigger any memories, but held strong. He kept himself as neutral as possible, but couldn’t keep his eyes from locking onto the movement. His heartbeat quickened.

Finally, she revealed herself—a Lilligant. Her orange eyes were fearful, and she, like a nervous tic, adjusted the flower atop her head to keep herself calm. She froze once she was halfway to Owen, and it didn’t look like she’d take another step forward.

Owen slowly lifted his hand to wave, showing as few threatening gestures as he possibly could as a Fire in a forest; Amelia flinched but held steady. “Hey,” Owen said. “Um… you’re Amelia?”

The Lilligant nodded. “A-and… you’re… Owen?”

“Yeah,” Owen said.

Star and Klent both stood to the side and didn’t interfere. Others were watching from the outskirts of the clearing—it seemed that everybody knew their history. Unsurprising—many of them probably witnessed it from within Klent.

“I’m sorry,” Owen said. “I… I wish I could’ve stopped myself back then.” He felt a pit in his stomach when he didn’t get any new memories from seeing her. He wanted to know what happened, and not knowing somehow made it worse.

Amelia nodded. “But… but you’re better, now,” she said. “Th-that’s good… I… I’m glad that…” The Lilligant shook slightly. “I’m glad that they aren’t using you anymore.”

“Yeah.” Owen shifted where he stood. “I hope I didn’t scare you when I attacked Azu. I don’t remember… what happened yet, but I know it scared Willow a lot.”

“I didn’t watch,” Amelia said.

There was a tense silence between them. Owen took in a breath, as if he was about to say something, but then breathed out.

Amelia spoke instead. “Are you… going to be like that again?”

“N-no,” Owen said automatically. “I’m going to—I’m going to keep myself from doing that. I don’t want to lose control of myself at all, and I almost made it last time, right?” He looked at Star.

She nodded. “Almost there.”

“Then I’ll do my best, okay?” Owen said. “That way you won’t have to be afraid anymore. And even if I look big and scary, I’ll… still be in control. Right? There’s lots of scary Pokémon that are actually really nice.”

“Yeah, like Alex,” Star said. “Magmortar look pretty scary, but he’s as gentle as you can get. You saw him, right? The scary fire Pokémon that’s with Amia?”

“Yeah!” Amelia said. “I like him, even if I probably can’t get too close to his body…”

Owen grinned. “I’ll be just like that.”

Klent’s eyes lit up imperceptibly. “Amelia, would you like to do anything else?” he asked. “Owen probably has to wake up soon, but we still have some time.”

Amelia hesitated, her flower drooping.

“It’s okay,” Owen said. “I think I’m gonna wake up sooner than soon. I kinda feel it, you know? But maybe tomorrow night, we can do something. How’s that?”

Amelia nodded.

“Alright,” Star said. “See you, Owen. We’re gonna do some training today, maybe, or maybe tomorrow, before we go after the other Mystics. I’m gonna have Hecto try to monitor the Hunters and see if those mutants are going anywhere else. Until then, we need to hope that the Association’s scouting turns something up.”

“Right,” Owen said, but then looked down. It felt like his body was being pulled away somewhere, little golden pieces of light rising from him. “I think I’m waking up.”

“Yep! See you, Owen!”

And then the Charizard vanished in a mist of orange and white.

Klent watched the mist dissipate. Amelia collapsed where she stood, alarming half of the silent audience in the trees and bushes, who finally revealed themselves when he left.

Star floated toward her and helped her up. “Hey, hey, that was really good,” she assured her. “How are you feeling, Amelia?”

The spirit nodded. “That was scary… but… he’s totally different. He’s…” She looked at Klent. “His eyes were sad.”

“Of course they were, Amelia,” Klent said. “Owen’s… sapient, right now. And hopefully forever. I guess Star was right after all. Maybe this is the real Owen, and everything before was just… his instincts.”

“The line is pretty blurred,” Star said, “but if you want my opinion, I like this Owen better.”

<><><>​

“Ugh… my head,” Owen said, sitting up. He was in the middle of the fire in the middle of his room. Wait, his room? His parents must have carried him back while he was asleep. And, he must have rolled into it in his sleep again. He groaned. The Charmander tried to stretch out the wings he didn’t have. “Ngh… that’s right,” he mumbled, disappointed.

“Owen! You’re awake?” Amia asked.

“Yeah!” Owen called.

“Star told me everything,” the Gardevoir said, rushing into his room.

Alex was somehow faster, and he scooped him up and pressed him tightly against his chest. He frantically mumbled something, asking if he was okay and if he was in one piece. Owen tried his best to look dignified. It wasn’t working.

“Ohhh, you were so brave, Owen! I’m so proud!” Amia said from the side.

“Nng—thanks…!” Owen said, kicking his legs helplessly.

Alex set him down. “I’m so sorry that you had to go through all that,” he said. “I didn’t think it would be that scary. Ooh, to say no to Arceus…”

“S-so, Mom said yes?”

Amia nodded. “A long time ago. It was a basic Promise, though—nothing like what he was asking of you. I just Promised to never have more than one Orb within me. I had no intention to, and, well, at the time… it was Arceus! I think a lot of Pokémon here would tell you a similar story.”

“Mm.” Owen looked down. “Well, I don’t plan to gather the Orbs, either. That would mean killing you guys. I doubt that’s what Star wants.” Owen paused. “Wait. But Barky—I mean, Arceus—I mean—ugh. What he told me was that he wanted me to just… give up my power. And when that didn’t work, to work under him. Not to Promise to not gather the Orbs or anything!” Owen shuddered. “Was he going to make me kill you guys?!”

“I doubt he’d do something like that,” Alex said, flinching. “I—I hope not. Star never said he was an evil person…” He looked to Amia, who shrank uncertainly.

“I’d hope not!” Owen said. “He’s Arceus! He can’t be evil!” Right? Star, you there?

No answer.

“Guess she’s busy,” Owen said.

“What was that?” Amia asked.

“Oh, sorry—I was trying to call for Star. Anyway, what were we doing?”

“Well, we were thinking about doing some meditation,” Amia said.

Owen instantly deflated.

“But,” Amia amended, “we were also thinking about heading into Kilo Village to get some supplies for Team Alloy, since they still need to eat. But it’s a bit dangerous, considering Eon might be waiting for us if we left. We were going to split into two groups—half of us would go to Kilo Village for supplies for the rest of Team Alloy, and the rest would stay back here. That way, Eon can’t split us up.”

“Right, okay,” Owen said. “So, can I go to Kilo Village, then?”

“If you want, dear. Rhys was also going to go, and Anam to check on the Hearts with Nevren. He’s still at the village keeping the paperwork flowing. Your friends are going to be meditating, though. They need it more than you do.”

“How about you?” Owen asked.

“Your mother will need to stay back to keep Kilo Village safe,” Alex said, shaking his head. “With Rhys and Anam gone, she’s the strongest Mystic here.”

“Oh, yeah,” Owen said. “How strong… are you? Wait—and what about Manny? Isn’t he stronger?”

Amia giggled. “Well, he’s definitely a better fighter.”

Owen gulped.

Hey, yo! Yes? Hello? You called?

Oh! Hi, Star! What took you?

“Owen?” Alex asked nervously. “Is Arceus trying to…?”

“Oh—sorry. No. Star.”

I was searching the spirit realm. Takes a bit of time to make my way back to the Grass Orb.

Oh, okay.

So, what’s up?

Is, uh, I was just wondering, is Arceus evil?

A pause. That, uh, she said. That’s a loaded question.

I mean, yes or no, is he evil? Owen said.

You can’t just… call someone evil. It’s… I mean… c’mon. He’s my cosmic roommate. I know the guy. He isn’t all bad; he’s just… warped.

Warped, huh? Owen replied, crossing his arms. What was he gonna make me do, Star? If I followed his orders?

I dunno. What, you think I can read his mind?

…Yes?

Well, I can’t. Can barely read you guys; what makes you think I can read him?

Right…

Anyway, that all? I want to find the next Orb asap.

N-no, that’s all. Thanks, Star. Sorry for bothering you.

No prob. Gonna go now.

Mm.

Owen noticed that his parents were staring at him. “Uh—sorry. Star says Arceus isn’t evil, just warped.”

“I don’t know if that’s any better.” Alex frowned, the flames on his shoulders dimming.

Owen sighed. “I need to take a walk, I think. I’m definitely going to Kilo Village.” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “…Can Zena come, too?”

Amia and Alex blinked, exchanging looks. “Zena?” Amia asked.

Owen closed his eyes. “I don’t know,” he said. “Just a feeling.”

“Well, you’d have to ask her,” Alex said after an uncertain pause. “But if not, bring ADAM instead. He’s about as strong as Zena is, from what we can tell by his aura.”

“Okay, sure,” Owen said.

He ran straight across their dividing cavern and knocked at her home’s entryway.

“Zena?” he called. “Are you—oh.”

“Do you like it?” Zena asked. The Milotic wore a bag tied around her horn, resting comfortably on her neck. “I’m not sure who made it for me, but it was too lovely to pass up. I found it in front of my home.”

Owen squinted. “Huh. That looks like Rhys’ handiwork.”

Zena’s bright expression dampened slightly. “Oh? Rhys?”

“Yeah. It looks great!”

“Mm. Well, if you say so, I’ll gladly use it. Now, what did you want?”

“Want to come with me to Kilo Village?”

Zena flinched. “W-with you?” She rose with hope. “Just you?”

“Yeah! Oh, no. You, me, Rhys, and Anam.”

Zena’s stance lowered.

“Hey, I know you don’t care a whole lot about Rhys, I think, but…”

“No, it’s fine,” Zena said, nodding. “I’ll come. Certainly.”

<><><>​

He couldn’t find his bag.

The little Charmander searched high and low, increasingly more frantic, for his trusty and sturdy and constantly replaced Heart-approved exploration bag. Even with his blocked memories, the apparent wear and tear of his bag was frequent enough that he knew, in his very core, that it happened too often to be acceptable.

“No, no, how did I misplace it? Again, maybe?” Owen whispered, but then stopped himself. No talking to himself. Bad. He was trying to break that habit, wasn’t he? Worried chirps left his throat instead; soon, he looked and sounded more like a feral searching for a lost scrap of food. He had even come across a hidden stash of Roseli Berries, which only made him let out a perplexed and frustrated whimper. Who even needed those things here? Nobody was weak to Amia’s Fairy aura, and—

“Uh.”

Owen let out a loud chirp in response and spun around. “Ah! Demitri! Don’t do that!”

Demitri blinked. “Were you just talking like a feral?”

“No, I, uh, I was just searching for my bag.”

“Y’know, down south there’s a place where a ton of Fires settled and made it a lava field,” Gahi remarked, waddling into Owen’s room. “Saw some Charmander there. Made the same sounds.”

“I wasn’t—I was just panicking! Who loses their bag?!”

“Who chirps like a feral?” Gahi quipped back, clicking his jaws.

Mispy, rolling her eyes, squeezed past Demitri and looked around the room.

“Mispy’s got the right idea,” Demitri said. “Let’s help Owen find his bag.”

In less than ten seconds, Mispy cleared her throat wordlessly and raised Owen’s bag with a vine, tossing it over to the immensely relieved Heart.

“Where’d you—”

Mispy curled a vine under Owen’s leafy bed an raised it, revealing a hidden stash of comic books, a half-full bag of Tamato jerky, and a rock with several claw marks on it.

“How did you find that so quickly?” Owen said.

Mispy shrugged. “I’m smart.”

“Heh-heh-hey,” Gahi said, eyes sparkling with mischief. He skittered toward the bed and nipped at one of the paperbacks, pulling it away. “Books under yer bed? Ain’t you got a dark side.”

Owen, helpless and paralyzed, could only gasp and say, “No, no! That’s not at ALL what I—”

“Ho-Oh’s Absurd Escapades?” Gahi read out, tapping his jaw on the cover as if that would give him a better idea off what it was trying to convey. “Part seven?”

“It’s the best part, okay?” Owen seethed, snatching the comic away before shoving it back under his bed. “I think. Why else would I keep it?”

“What, you don’t remember?” Gahi said.

“No.” Owen’s flame dimmed slightly at that, and Gahi growled, perhaps realizing that he’d just sucked the mood out of the room. “And thanks for the bag, Mispy. I don’t like leaving without basic supplies.”

“Yeah, eh, glad she found it,” Gahi mumbled. He said something else, too, but it was so soft that Owen didn’t hear him. But he had a guess.

“How are you feeling, Gahi? Guys?” Owen said. “Er, I know yesterday was pretty stressful… And—and to be honest, I’m still a little out of it, so I’m not really to talk about…”

“Nah, nah, it’s fine.” Gahi waved his head dismissively.

Demitri and Mispy exchanged uncertain looks, and then the Axew asked, “Um… about that. Those things about you… and how it might apply to us. Do you think we’d be able to, you know…”

Owen tensed. He wasn’t supposed to tell them. He could practically feel the Grass spirits in him, quietly urging him to hold off. “It’s probably a bad idea for now,” he said. “Maybe when we know we’re more stable.”

Demitri poked his claws together. The crestfallen look was nearly enough to make Owen spill anyway, but not enough.

Mispy, meanwhile, nodded and said, “I trust you.”

“Yeah, whatever yeh say,” Gahi said. “Jus’, y’know, when they finally let us, let’s go on a mission t’gether. Sure, just the three o’ us as Team Alloy feels more familiar… but yer our leader, now, so, eh—”

“Second in command,” Mispy said, raising her leaf a little higher.

Gahi snapped his jaws in Mispy’s general direction.

“A-and besides,” Demitri said quickly, standing between the two of them. “With you on the team, maybe we can actually take on Ice-heavy missions.”

That one, for some reason, got a laugh out of Owen. “Maybe,” he said, thought his tail brightened. “How about when I get back home, if we have time, I meditate with you guys instead?”

Their expressions brightened in kind.

<><><>​

The enthusiastic Charmander took a deep breath, exhaling a plume of fire. “Ahhh, light! Sunlight!” He spread his tiny arms. “I hope I went out often in the past. I did, right, Rhys?”

“Mm, I believe so. You went on small-scale missions quite often.” Rhys looked down at Owen. “Do you remember any of that?”

“Not yet,” Owen said. “What sorts of missions did I take?”

“Simple ones. Lost item recovery, a thief here and there, troubled Pokémon, and the sort. But they were typically only for Provisionary-approved Dungeons.”

“Provisionary?” Zena repeated.

“Pre-Hearts, kinda. Kinda like an apprenticeship!” Owen said. “For… four hundred years… now that I think about it.”

“Hmm. Sounds like quite the career path,” Zena said absently.

“…Was… was that a joke?”

“Hey!” Anam suddenly said. “Look! It’s Nev-Nev! I’m gonna go catch up on Heart stuff with Jam-Jam!”

And just like that, the Goodra and Decidueye were off to the Alakazam, leaving Rhys and Zena with Owen.

Zena watched. “Does it ever bother you that your leader is an adult hatchling?”

“Yes,” Rhys grunted.

“I dunno, I think it’s kinda cute,” Owen countered.

Rhys sighed. “So long as Nevren and James can handle the complicated work, I do not mind Anam as a figurehead. I won’t deny his positive effect on Kilo’s morale, let alone Kilo Village itself.”

“Mm.” Zena nodded. “That, I suppose, is fair. Well, Lucario. You know your team more than any of us. What do they want for food?”

“Ah, I know just the place.” Rhys inspected his bag of Poké to be sure they had enough funds.

Owen heard the jingle of coins, but then had a brief moment of panic, like he couldn’t see.

“Hm?” Rhys glanced at Owen. “Are you okay?”

“Uh—I don’t know,” Owen said, holding his chest. “I…”

Rhys stared worriedly, as did Zena. But then the Lucario’s eyes flashed with recognition. “Ah,” he said. “Not to worry, Owen. You might be reacting to your senses being so dull as a Charmander. Perhaps the jingle of coins made you curious how many there are inside. Would you like to see?”

“Yeah, please,” Owen said, reaching out to grab it. “Sorry,” he mumbled, avoiding Zena’s confused stare. He looked into the bag and fiddled with its contents for a while—a mixture of silver, gold, and shimmering coins. He made sure to get a glance at the very bottom, every small circle. Satisfied, he closed the bag and returned it to Rhys. “Thanks.”

“…Owen?” Zena said.

Rhys explained. “Owen has impressive perceptive senses, but they aren’t their best as a Charmander.”

“They were a lot stronger in the spirit world,” Owen said. “But I think out here…”

Rhys nodded. “It must feel like he’s blind, or walking in the dark,” he explained. “Are you sure you’re fine, Owen? I can let you hold our funds, if you wish.”

“No, it’s okay. Let’s go!” By some miracle, he remembered the name of one of his favorite stores. “And maybe after, we can stop by Sugar ‘n Spice?”

Rhys chuckled. “Of course.”

<><><>​

Shopping was surprisingly easy. First, they headed down the road from the main Waypoint and advanced north. They went past the multicolored, old buildings that sold Dungeon equipment—some shops were now closed for an early-noon break while Heart traffic was at its lowest—and continued further down the paved roads. The further they went, the more developed the buildings became, transitioning from stones and mortar to bricks, and later to what seemed to be carved and colored stone of some kind. They only passed by a few Pokémon on the way. Kilo Village was eerily quiet, but it was only expected thanks to their odd time to visit.

They went into a general store for their main supplies, with foods of all kinds stocked on shelves almost as tall as Zena. The middle shelves immediately in front of them held things like berries, vegetables, and fruits. The outer-middle shelves had things like sugar, breads, and oils. The walls had strange, large tubs that contained meats, juices, and other perishables. A Froslass patrolled these tubs, radiating freezing air over them one by one in a routine cycle.

Near the front, a Tangrowth oversaw the shoppers, counting coins and bagging items in little, leafy pouches for customers to take home. He glanced worriedly at Owen, who gave a nervous wave back. His tail always made shopkeepers nervous. He had a pang of guilt whenever he looked at the Froslass. Based on how she hovered protectively over the produce… he had an idea why.

“No sneezing,” Rhys mumbled to Owen. He then headed to the produce section.

To Owen’s retroactive relief, nothing befell them in the market. Owen didn’t sneeze once; he kept his tail in check; and best of all, he convinced the others to buy a few Berry Pops from the frozen section to try later. Owen glanced back to see the Froslass and Tangrowth collectively sigh when he left. Pushing that to the back of his mind, he followed Rhys and Zena to Sugar ‘n Spice next.

“Such interesting architecture,” Zena said, looking at the buildings. She had been politely silent while they went shopping, but Owen knew that she was trying her best to take it all in, and had been careful not to touch anything the whole time. “Why do the buildings change so much? These seem so much more… refined than what is near the Waypoint.”

“As the population grows, so does Kilo Village’s size. Thankfully, the crater of Kilo Mountain is quite accommodating. The outer buildings are more advanced because they were made with better technology.”

“Mm. A crater…” Zena eyed the distant, black hills. “And what if it floods?”

“We have runoff systems.” Rhys motioned to the dips in the roadsides. “Among other precautions.”

Owen walked ahead, eager to get to their last stop. His mind filled with fuzzy, vague memories and strong, precise feelings. There was something there that he really liked. Something heavenly that they always sold. He had no idea what it was. He’d just have to look at everything until the feeling struck him again.

“Eh?” Owen blinked, realizing that he was already there. “Wow, I walked fast,” he mumbled. The building was pink on the outside and a pure white on the inside. Shelves were lined with samples to pick from, though Owen was a bit too short to see most of them. Thankfully, a menu had been commissioned by some Smeargle long ago to illustrate most of the items.

It hit him. That was it! He stepped inside, his little feet making scaly taps on the marble floor.

“Hey, there,” greeted a Salazzle at the front desk, behind a white counter. There was a little tag on her chest that said ‘Sugar’ on it.

“Hi!” Owen said. “Um—give me a second.”

“No problem.”

A second Salazzle peered out from the back-room’s curtains. Owen did his best not to gawk or flinch, but it was hard to ignore the gigantic, explosive scar that tore across her chest like lightning. She had ‘Spice’ written on her name tag in the same spot Sugar’s was.

Owen averted his eyes to be polite and said, “Uh, those. The cinnamon Pecha bonbons.”

“You got it,” Sugar said, giving Spice a nod. She headed into the backroom again. When Sugar looked back at Owen, she blinked, as if startled. “Oh! And how about your brother?”

“…What?” Owen asked, but then looked back. “Wh—"

A Charmander stood behind Owen, identical to him in height and build. The only difference was that this one had a green scarf wrapped tightly around his eyes, blindfolding him. “Oh, we’re not brothers. And I’d like ten of those, too,” the Charmander said. “Do you guys still sell Cheri chocolate?”

“Oh, sure, but it’s spicy,” Sugar warned.

“I know.”

“Cheri chocolate? Spicy?” Owen asked.

“It’s very good,” the other Charmander said.

“Oh.” Owen paused. Where were Rhys and Zena? He was sure they were right behind him… “Uh—hang on,” Owen said. “I need to check something. I think I lost the rest of my group.”

Owen walked around the other Charmander, but couldn’t keep his eyes away from him. That nagging feeling got to him, but even without that, how could he react any other way? Another Charmander! This was amazing! He never got to—well, then again… perhaps he had before, and he just didn’t remember it.

Nothing was waiting for Owen outside. The town was completely still in midday. Not even the clouds moved, and there wasn’t even a hint of wind. Owen sighed, spinning around. “How’d I…?” he mumbled, nervous.

“Something wrong?” Charmander asked.

“Um, my folks. A Lucario and Milotic. Did you see them around?”

“Mm, can’t say I have,” Charmander said. “Hey, if you’re waiting for them, how about I stay by you, huh?”

“That’d be great.”

“Something wrong, kids?” Sugar asked. “Lost your parents?”

“We’re not kids,” they both said.

Owen flinched, looking at Charmander. “Hey, uh…”

Sugar shrugged and looked back to Spice, who came out with their orders.

Charmander walked over and paid for his piece, and then Owen realized he didn’t have money on him. He should have volunteered to take the bag after all. “Uh—hang on,” Owen said. “When my folks find me, they’ll pay. They have the money.”

“Oh, it’s okay. I’ll pay,” Charmander said.

“N-no, you shouldn’t.”

“It’s fine, it’s fine. I’ve got lots to spend. Besides.” The blinded Charmander turned back, “I feel like we should look out for each other, y’know? Same species and all that.”

“Oh, you two are adorable,” Sugar said. “Spice! Come here and look at how adorable these two are!”

Spice giggled, weaving out of the back-room. “I wouldn’t mind inviting both of them over to our place some time, Sugar.”

“N-no, thank you,” they both said.

The two Salazzle giggled.

“Say, uh, Charmander,” Owen said.

“Deca.”

“Deca, where are you from? I’ve never seen you before!”

“You haven’t?” Deca said coyly. “I think I’ve seen you around. You’re a Heart, right? Charmander Owen?”

“Yes! But, only recently.”

“Yeah, but I saw the ceremony. You looked awesome, actually!”

“R-really?! Aw, c’mon, it wasn’t that grand…”

“Yeah, but you stood out the most,” Deca said. “Hard to miss that tail-fire, eh? We’re naturally pretty easy to spot.”

Owen tittered nervously. “Yeah, I guess.”

An awkward silence followed.

“Say,” Deca said. “Your folks, you said. A Milotic and Lucario?”

“Oh, yeah. I’m not actually… sure where they went. I hope they get here soon.”

“Well, you couldn’t have gone that far ahead. They should be here soon,” Deca said.

Spice walked over with two stools for the pair to sit on. “You two seem familiar,” she remarked. “Have we met before?”

“Have we?” Owen said. “I’m not… sure… H-ha, sorry. I have really bad memory.”

“No, we definitely met before,” Spice said. “Ahhh…” She tapped her chest thoughtfully. “Now I remember. You little bright-eyed idiot…”

“Idiot?!” Owen said; Deca giggled.

“It’s no wonder Anam let you in after that stunt,” Spice said, wiggling a claw. “Aw, good on you, little guy.”

Deca adjusted the blindfold around his head. “Bad memory?”

“Yeah, but it’s getting better,” Owen said. “I guess I had some past trauma, but thanks to my friends, I’ve been slowly getting it back. It’s kinda a long story.”

“Your friends, your friends, right,” Deca said. “How many friends?”

“Oh, lots! We’ve actually been making a sort of mini-Heart team, kinda.”

“And they’re all your friends?” Deca asked.

Owen nodded. “Yeah. I only met a lot of them recently, but they feel like family to me. It’s kinda funny how that works, huh?”

“It is, it is.” Deca nodded. “It sounds like you care a lot about them.”

“Yeah,” Owen said, but then caught himself. Why was he being so open with this random stranger? Even though he was a fellow Charmander, he shouldn’t be giving out this kind of information! But… why did it feel like he still wanted to talk? “Hey, Deca. Have we met before?” He wondered why he was being so coy about it, if that was the case, unless he already knew he had memory problems. Was Deca an old friend, too?

“We have,” Deca said. “I was just playing along because you mentioned you had bad memory.”

“Oh. Sorry,” Owen said. “Ugh, wow. That sucks. I have no idea who you are. I’m really sorry.”

“It’s okay,” Deca said, tilting his head down as if to stare at his hands with his blinded eyes. “We didn’t know each other for very long. Maybe a few times we crossed paths, y’know?” He stood up. “I think your folks will be coming back soon. Can you hear them?”

“No,” Owen said.

“Oh. I guess those sharp senses of yours aren’t that good right now, huh?”

“I—I told you about that?”

Deca nodded. “Hey, it’s alright. I’m not mad. Actually, I’m really happy I got to see you again, Owen. Glad you’ve got a lot of new friends. But… you seem worried about them.”

Owen winced. “I mean, kinda,” he said. “We’re in a dangerous business, you know?”

“You’re telling me,” Spice murmured, tracing the scar along her chest.

“Mm. I understand,” Deca said. “But I wouldn’t worry. If you’re with them, they’re bound to be safe!” He laughed. “…I’ll see you around, Owen.” He walked toward the exit.

“Wait,” Owen said desperately.

Deca stopped, turning back. Even with the blindfold, it still felt like he was staring at him.

“S-sorry,” Owen said, shaking his head. “Sorry. Don’t know what came over me there.” He laughed again, trying to shake away that tightness in his chest. “My head’s all kinds of messed up. I think I just like being by another Charmander, is all.”

Deca sighed. “It’s okay, Owen. Take care. Tell your friends I said hi.”

“You don’t want to meet them?” Owen asked.

“Can’t. I already gotta rush back home.”

“Oh. Okay. See you,” Owen said, but Deca was already gone.

Owen remained there, on his stool with his bonbons, for fifteen silent seconds. Did that just happen? Who was he? Why did he ask all those questions? No, why did Owen answer all those questions?

“You know,” Spice said, “if I didn’t know any better, I’d’ve called him your long-lost twin. Who was that?”

Owen glanced at Spice, then at Sugar. “I have… no idea.”

“He’s a lot like you,” Sugar said.

“Don’t be like that, Sugar. Just because they’re both Charmander doesn’t mean they’re alike. Look at us! A Heart and a confectioner!”

“OWEN!”

The Charmander nearly fell out of his seat. “Zena!” Owen said. “Hi?!”

The Milotic barged into Sugar ‘n Spice, staring desperately at him. “H-how did you—”

“Uh—I just walked?”

Rhys entered next, quick to scan the room with fierce eyes. Sugar and Spice both tensed.

“Is—is something wrong?” Sugar asked.

Rhys was silent for some time but then shook his head. “No. I apologize.”

“You practically vanished from us,” Zena said. “One moment, Rhys and I were looking at one another to chat—it’s polite, after all—and I look back to see you, and you’re gone!”

“M-maybe it was a lapse in memory? Like, I get those all the time, apparently, so, I mean—”

“That’s hardly a normal thing to happen,” Zena said, and Owen tried to ignore how unintentionally hurtful that sounded.

Rhys growled. “Owen, was there anybody with you?”

“Yeah, actually,” Owen said. “Another Charmander! Oh, Mew, he sounded just like me, too! It was surreal! But he looked so cool! He had a blindfold on, and it made him look totally awesome! Like—like if he stood in the wind, it would be all flowy behind him and…” Owen paused. “And, uh, I mean, it was nice to talk to him.”

“I see,” Rhys said. “Well. It looks like he bought you your sweets.”

“Y-yeah. He offered. Seemed rude to say no. I’ll pay him back next time I see him! Promise!”

Rhys sighed. “Of course.”

“Oh, and he told me to tell you guys hi.”

“Oh, that was nice,” Zena said. “You must have talked now and then in the past. Perhaps you crossed paths during missions?”

“I think so,” Owen said. “He knew me. I just have to remember him. He didn’t seem all that mad about it, but…” Owen paused, rubbing his head. “Actually, hang on. This is starting to add up in a really weird way. I guess he’s just really eccentric…”

Rhys nodded, holding the spike on his chest thoughtfully. He sighed. “Well. My pulse is back to normal, at least. I thought you were in actual danger when we lost you. Thankfully… none of that happened. But I’m too nervous to stay here any longer, Owen—let’s return to Hot Spot.”

Owen nodded. “Sure,” he said, stepping outside. Just then, a gust of wind blew past him, and he had to keep his eyes closed so dust didn’t get in his eyes.

“Let’s be fast,” Rhys said. “The wind has been relentless ever since we left the market.”

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 24 – To Death and Back​

After the unnerving encounter with Deca in town, Owen had a gut feeling that it wouldn’t be a good idea to go out again for a while. Hindsight—after the thrill of meeting a fellow Charmander—suggested that even if Deca was someone he could trust, he wouldn’t want to endanger him with this Guardian business. He sighed at the thought. Just when he thought he’d be reuniting with a normal friend…

Why did that not settle right? Deca didn’t seem like a normal friend. He knew that for sure. He shook his head. It was a memory still locked away.

A few days passed after that where they went back to their usual routine of meditating and training—for Team Alloy, it was to calm their auras for their inevitable evolution. For the Guardians, it was to continue their everlasting struggle to tune their auras with their Mystic spirits.

Owen fell into a routine on the third day and meditated with Zena the most often. Each day they greeted one another, sat nearby—or in Zena’s case, coiled up—and closed their eyes. Zena mentioned that this was what she did on most days when she was in her cave, but that it was much better now that she had company. Owen couldn’t understand how lonely it must have felt before.

On the fourth day, right when he was leaving his room, Amia approached.

“Owen, everybody else is gathering together for some training. The scouts at Kilo Village didn’t turn anything up yet and, apparently, Star hasn’t been able to find anything good in the spirit world, either.”

“Oh, okay,” Owen said. “What kind of training? Meditating again? Why’d you tell me if…”

“Umm…” Amia rubbed the back of her head. “We’re going to be pairing off, actually. An advanced Mystic training a junior Mystic, so to speak.”

“And I’m… a junior Mystic? So, you’ll be training me?” Owen said, perking up. “That sounds awesome!”

“Actually,” Amia said. “I am going to be training Willow.”

“Oh,” Owen said. “So… Zena?”

“Zena’s going to be trained by Anam, actually,” Amia said.

“…ADAM?” Owen said.

“ADAM and Valle are going to be sparring one another as fellow mid-tier Mystics.”

“W-wait, then who’s left?” Owen asked, mentally going over everyone in his head. A spark of hope: “Wait! Am I gonna be trained by—by Rhys?!”

“No.” Amia sighed. “Rhys is going to train the other three.” Owen counted on his claws, trying to recall who was left. “Owen… Manny personally asked to be the one to train you.”

Owen felt the ice in his stomach return, this time from dread. “Y-you mean… the Fighting Guardian?” he said. “B-but I barely beat Azu…”

Amia shrugged, though she was clearly trying to be delicate. “It’s okay,” she said. “I’m sure Manny will… do something helpful.”

“C-can’t you ask him to maybe… not?”

“Believe me, I tried,” Amia apologized, “but everybody else was in favor of it, dear. I… I couldn’t go against the majority. And they did have a point. Of all of us, you have the most potential to grow—and Manny knows how to do that. He specializes in training your… you know. Your kind. S-so, er… Let’s go!” She headed out.

“W-wait! Don’t I have to eat breakfast?”

Amia paused in her exit. “Do you?”

“I,” Owen paused, feeling his stomach. “…I guess not. Huh.”

Amia smiled and led the way out.

<><><>​

“Hah! Th’ sleepyhead’s finally awake,” Manny said, clapping his paws together, making a muffled, furry pat. “Took long enough! Oy, did yer mom fill yeh in?”

Owen stood straight, tail trying to look as tall as his head. “Y-yes! Um… but I kind of don’t want to die.”

“Aaah, you’ll be fine,” Manny waved his paw. “C’mon! We’re gonna start with Azu like befer. Don’t worry, he ain’t gonna be scared this time.”

“Scared? I scared him?”

“Yep! I hyped ‘im up, though. He’s good.”

Owen sighed, looking at Amia helplessly as if expecting her to change her mind.

But she just smiled and shook her head. “Good luck, dear.”

“Heheheh…” Manny walked down the rocky caves, deeper into the complex. It was cooler where he was heading; Owen figured it would be easier for him to fight there. The Charmander hesitantly followed, wondering if Manny wanted to train him to help… or to get back at him.

“Owen!”

Loud skittering and tiny pebbles bouncing signaled Gahi’s rapid approach. By the time he turned around, the Trapinch’s massive head was already a split-second away from slamming into his chest. Owen didn’t have time to bring up his Protect barrier; The slam, wreathed in the dark aura of a Feint Attack, sent Owen skidding and stumbling back. Gahi then jumped out of the way; across the hall, Mispy’s leaf glowed bright.

“Oh no.”

This time, Owen had time to react; crossing his arms, a golden barrier formed in front of him and deflected the barrier toward Manny, who shouted in surprised and crossed his arms. No barrier formed. “Aw, c—”

They all winced when the small explosion deafened the team. When the light finally faded, Manny brought his arms down to inspect his scorched fur, then laughed. “Hah! Feelin’ rowdy?”

Demitri, who had been behind Mispy, uncovered his eyes to inspect the damage. He sighed with relief when he saw that it was minimal, and Amia, who had been startled enough to mimic Manny’s movements, formed her own cyan Protect barrier, though it was useless.

“Rhys said we can’t train with Owen,” Gahi said. “So, we just wanted to get a cheap shot in so it counts as a fight!”

Owen smirked. “Well, it only half-worked,” he said.

“Bah!” Gahi snapped his jaws in Owen’s general direction. “That Protect’s cheating! Dumb gold shield…”

A shrug was all Owen gave in reply, at this point toying with Gahi’s aggressive mood. “Hey, Mom did it, too, so I guess it was reasonable.”

Amia tittered. “Well, I saw you doing it, and you’re always good at knowing when to use those…”

“Erm, Gahi, we should go see Rhys now,” Demitri said. “You know, so he doesn’t start to worry.”

All Demitri got in response was a growl, but he eventually shuffled away, though he stopped to look back. “Oy, Owen,” he said. “Think we can hang out after the training? Y’know, just… I dunno.”

To that, Owen’s expression softened, a warmth spreading through his chest. “Totally. We’re Team Alloy, after all.” He tried to ignore the bittersweet feeling that nudged away the warmth. “So, we should do stuff as a team every so often.”

“Exactly,” Gahi said, a sad glint in his eyes. “Well, I, eh… yeah. Gonna go train.”

Demitri and Mispy exchanged a look, and Demitri asked for them both, “Gahi? Are you okay?”

“What’s that supposed ter mean?” Gahi growled, speeding off. “Let’s go already!”

Mispy rolled her eyes and bobbed her leaf toward Owen.

“Guess Gahi’s just a little miffed that we can’t train together still,” Demitri translated for the departing Trapinch. “I miss it, too, y’know. But it’s fine. You need to do your special Mystic training, right?” he asked.

And Owen saw a knowing look in Mispy’s eyes, too—because they still couldn’t risk training together with what little they knew about their true forms. “Right,” Owen said. “One day. Maybe we can, I dunno, cook together sometime?”

Demitri’s eyes lit up. “Yeah! Actually, I wanted to get back into cooking more. It’s hard to compete with Rhys, but I don’t want him doing all the cooking anyway, and, er… And Mispy likes it, too, so…”

She giggled and bumped her hip against his. With a final leaf-bob to Owen, Mispy left and guided Demitri with her.

Owen watched fondly, a new resolve bubbling in his mind. The sooner he perfected his training and prepared himself for his Charizard form, whatever it was, the sooner he could be with them as a proper team again.

“Alright, I’m ready,” he said to Manny, and then gave his mother a confident smile.

<><><>​

“Um… Auntie Amia?” asked Willow, watching the Charmander leave with the rowdy Guardian.

“Auntie?” Amia repeated, looking down at the tiny Joltik. “When did I get that title?”

“I dunno…” Willow said.

Amia smiled. “Well, what did you want to ask, Willow? Before we get to training.”

“Is Owen gonna be okay?”

“Oh, Willow.” Amia sighed. “Yes. Owen will be fine.”

Willow hopped on one of the glowing, blue mushrooms, then another, and then stopped on top of a large one. She wobbled when the stem broke, the cap hitting the floor on its corner. “You didn’t send Manny to assassinate him?!”

“O-of course not!” Amia said. “Why would—no! That’s not it at all! I trust Manny. He knows that Owen is stable as a Charmander. He won’t have to do anything like that.”

Willow sparked uncomfortably. “Owen’s scary when he…”

“I know, Willow. You were so shaken up.” The thought alone “I’m sorry you had to see him like that. But he’s nice now, right?”

Willow hopped off the mushroom, mumbling to herself.

“What was that, dear?”

“…Which one’s the real Owen?” Willow asked.

“The real…?” Amia repeated, but then went quiet.

“If this way that Owen is now is just… him being suppressed… and sealing away his memories and stuff… and in the end, when he evolves, he becomes… that… then who’s the real Owen? His suppressed form, or his…”

It was as if Willow was pulling from Amia’s deepest fears. The Gardevoir was frozen in place.

Willow, oblivious, kept talking while staring at the mushroom’s dimming glow. “It’s like we’re only seeing a tiny part of him, and there’s this… this huge monster that’s waiting to break out. And… and when that part comes… what’ll happen to this tiny Owen? If you’re tiny… you’ll just get squished. Who’s… who’s really Owen?”

The Gardevoir finally came to her senses. “The one we know, of course,” she said. “Owen used to be in control of himself all the time—but something happened that made him—all four of them, actually—unstable. Like something didn’t… quite go right. So maybe the Owen you saw wasn’t the real Owen, either.”

“What happened?” Willow asked.

“I wasn’t around to see it myself,” Amia said evasively. “So, I’m not sure. But—Rhys could tell you!” She nodded. “We… we aren’t supposed to talk about it. They might overhear, and that might trigger the memories. It’s too risky.”

Willow buzzed irritably. “Is Owen evil?”

“No! No, nothing like that. I promise,” Amia said, nodding.

Willow’s big, blue eyes stared at Amia. She huffed. “Fine,” she said. “Let’s train.”

<><><>​

Owen sputtered and coughed, feeling something crack in the back of his head. He slammed against the rocks and felt the entire world go dark. In what felt like an instant to him, his eyes shot open, gasping for air. He panted and felt the back of his head—no wounds, but he felt something crusted and caked on. He pulled his hand forward; dried blood fell from his scaly palms. “What—”

An Aura Sphere slammed into his chest, smashing him against the rocks again, dislocating his arm. He yelped and tried to find the source frantically, spotting Manny. “W-wait! That’s not fair!” he shouted. “I—I was fighting Az—”

A blue fist slammed into Owen’s stomach, pushing him even further into the wall. He was positive that a few of his organs had flattened against the back of his body from that one. “W-wait… t-time out…!”

Azu punched him near the center of his forehead, and he blacked out again.

Another instant in Owen’s mind passed, and he opened his eyes.

He saw a fist going right toward him. Owen held his arms up in a cross—he blocked it in a shield of light. “Ng—” Even with the Protect barrier, the shockwave knocked the wind out of him.

“Eh?” Azu said. “Hey, look! The little guy blocked it!”

“Hah!” Manny said.

“Y-yeah… I did!” Owen said, thrilled. “I blo—”

Azu’s second fist slammed into Owen’s chest, rupturing his lungs. He couldn’t breathe. The Charmander’s eyes bulged out—vision fading… He fell to the ground. He saw Azu’s tail swing toward him, slamming him into the opposite wall across the training grounds. Then, he blacked out completely.

And again, Owen’s eyes shot open. But this time, only slightly. He didn’t want to look awake yet. Through the thin sliver he opened, he saw two blue figures sitting nearby. Azu and Manny. They were staring at something on the ground. He focused… They were playing some sort of game with rounded pebbles. Owen breathed a bit too loudly, and the two looked at him. They both stood up.

“W-wait, p-please—” Owen begged.

Manny casually fired an Aura Sphere from his right paw. Owen reflexively opened his mouth and blasted a plume of flames. It slowed the attack but didn’t stop it, and Owen flew across the ground in a messy, rocky twirl, losing some scales in the process. He flicked his tail to alter his angular momentum just enough to get his footing. Using his good arm to stabilize, he miraculously found his footing. Azu rushed toward him with a firm punch. He dodged to the left and countered with another Ember.

“Gah—” Azu turned around and swiped at Owen with his tail. Owen jumped and turned green, opening his mouth again. A huge vine shot from his throat, wrapping around Azu; he swung his head and slammed him on the ground. Azu grunted and broke free, but Owen turned orange again and the vines became flames, burning the Feraligatr. He chomped down, snapping the burning vine away to extend the burn even longer while Azu tried to pull free.

Azu struggled to his feet, panting. “W-well… that ain’t so bad,” he said. “Heh… the Charmander’s much better this time. It only took a few mortal blows.”

“C-can’t you tone it down a little?!” Owen begged, seizing the opportunity. “You could’ve killed me!”

“Ha-haaa!” Azu declared. “But we did kill you, Charmander! Quite a few times! In a technical sense.”

“Well, if yeh were a normal Charmander,” Manny said, “we totally would’ve killed yeh fer real. We were doing some real strong attacks, not holding back at all, heh. But yer Mystic. Amia said yeh weren’t eating. That’s th’ sign.”

“The sign?” Owen asked. “Not eating? Wait,” Owen said. “When was the last time that I ate…?”

Manny looked at Azu, but then flicked his head back. Azu nodded and disintegrated into a blue ember, returning to Manny. The Lucario motioned for Owen to sit down; he obeyed and, thankfully, Manny did as well.

“It’s like Star said,” Manny said. “Mystics… don’t get strong th’ same way normal Pokémon do. Eh… they do, but their Mysticism, heh… it’s trained in another way.”

Owen hesitated. It wasn’t his perception talking, just general intuition. Was he about to get an important lesson from Manny about Mysticism? He gulped. “Um, Manny.”

“Eh?”

“You’re gonna explain to me a lot of stuff, right? You’re giving me a lesson?”

“Yeh.”

Owen shifted where he stood. “I… can’t understand what you’re saying half the time.”

Manny flinched. “E-eh, yeh, I figure.”

“I’m—I mean, I hear it from Gahi, but for you, it’s—”

“Nah, nah, I get it.” Manny shifted awkwardly. “Feh…”

“I’m sorry. I’ll try to understand! It’s just, I’m apologizing in advance if I have trouble with what you’re saying.”

“Nah, nah,” Manny said. “I got an idea. Hang on.” He shut his eyes, breathing deeply. For a split-second, Manny jostled where he sat as if he thought he was falling. Then, his eyes shot open. He stared at Owen, then at his paws, and then at Owen again. “Hello.”

“…Hi.” Owen knew this was someone different. “Did Manny just… switch places with one of his spirits? You can do that?”

“Mm, yes. My name is Yen. It takes a lot of energy to do this, but I suppose this would be easier for a lesson. I always was the better teacher, ironically.”

“Ironically?”

Yen chuckled. “Ah, just thinking. You’d expect Manny, as Guardian, to be better than me. In any case, you wished for an explanation on Mysticism?”

“Just a little. I’ve been going through the motions, but I don’t know what the motions are for. Does that make sense?”

Yen held his paw forward, creating a small Aura Sphere. Owen reflexively flinched and brought his arms in a cross, forming another Protect shield.

“Now, now, there’s no need to worry,” he assured him. “This is only for visual aid.”

“O-oh, okay.” He lowered his battle stance, but only halfway. His muscles twitched, ready for anything.

The Lucario resumed. He held the sphere forward, and then faced his paw upward, like a stage. “Now. Let’s say this is the aura for the average inhabitant of Kilo. Not just Kilo Village—the whole world. Most Hearts reside in the crater, so that skews the average quite a bit.”

“Okay,” Owen said. It was about the size of a small apple, and about as bright as one of the mushrooms in his room, barely enough to illuminate it in the dark to see the walls. “Hey, is this like Nevren and Rhys’ whole theory on aura efficiency?”

Yen stared at Owen with an odd look. “Aura efficiency?” he said. “You’re aware of that?”

“What? Uh… I mean… kinda. Rhys is kinda pioneering the theory. And Nevren has this scanner that measures our… aura efficiency, or something, based on how much power we can dish out, and how fatigued we feel after. Last I was scanned, I scored—er—really high! For my species. Pretty high.”

“Hm. How interesting. Very well. We shall call it that, aura efficiency.” Yen continued with his explanation. “The more you use your techniques to fight others, or to simply train in other ways, the more you…” Yen watched Owen. “Your eyes are glossing over.”

“H-huh? No!”

“Hm. A book-smart Charmander. How interesting.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?” Owen frowned.

“Well, I imagine Charmander would struggle to use books. The burning,” Yen said evasively. “Er, well, Owen. Tell me what you know, first. I can build off of your understanding. Does that sound fine?”

“Oh! Y-yeah, Rhys taught us this!” Owen said. “Basically… every technique that we do is actually channeling from the aura’s inner energy. The same energy that helps some Pokémon evolve, when our aura becomes strong enough. It’s like… a little bit of power that helps us do what we want it to do. Breathing fire, or weakening the enemy, or even making it rain! It’s all because of that power in our aura cores. We use that same power to resist what others are doing to us. So weaker Ember attacks, for example, hurt less… because our auras deflect a lot of it.” Owen rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “I guess that means I still have a long way to go, if your host is getting me in just a few hits. I can’t deflect those attacks at all.”

Yen nodded. “Very good,” he said. “Efficiency is indeed how rapidly you can draw from that aura core.” The aura in his paw glowed brighter. “So… how does Mysticism come in?” He nodded. “Everyone’s core’s output is fixed. Once at full efficiency, you can go no further.”

“Yeah. That makes sense. Once you’re fully efficient, you can’t really draw more than everything!”

Yen’s brow raised slightly.

“Y… you can’t, right?”

“Well, yes,” Yen said. “If you have ten apples, and your arms are large enough to carry twenty, you can only carry ten apples regardless.”

“…Why big arms?” Owen asked.

Yen waved his paw dismissively. “But what if,” he said, “you made more apples? Different apples?”

“Uh—”

Yen brought his second paw forward and created something else—it wasn’t another sphere. It looked more like a blue, bright flame. It reminded him of the spirits in the aura sea that Hecto oversaw. “Hunters, Guardians, and the Creators all possess Mystic Energy. It’s similar to what you know, but it provides so much more.” He combined his two paws into a bowl-like shape, and the flare enveloped the sphere, creating something that Owen had to squint at to see. “Now, there’s more to get.”

“But it looks different,” Owen said. “It’s not just more power. There’s… it doesn’t…” Owen knew that much. The moment he had become a Guardian, he already did something that no ordinary Pokémon could do—become a Grassy Charmander, humiliating as it was. Not to mention drown and survive. And apparently, in a little while, he was going to learn how to fly, too, just like his mother. “That power doesn’t feel… solid, like our aura powers normally.”

“Mm. So, you mean it isn’t defined?”

Owen nodded.

“That’s because it isn’t. Not quite. Normal energy is defined. You can only do certain things with it. Flamethrower… Aura Sphere… they’re defined techniques, crafted by Star, I imagine, for mortals to access controlled versions of the divine power inherent in all Pokémon. But Mystic Energy? Quite broader. Yes, it may be easier to perform certain actions—for example, become an embodiment of your Orb’s Type—but then… because it is not defined, you can get creative, with enough skill and power. Indeed, after enough time training, you practically become a spirit in the flesh.”

“A spirit… in the flesh,” Owen said, pinching his arm thoughtfully. The scales held their pinched shape slightly along his elbows. Owen made a mental note to drink some water later.

Yen nodded. “Guardians can bend reality just a slight bit more… dynamically, harnessing the same power that the Creators used to craft the world.”

Owen gulped. “That’s… not what my power feels like at all.”

“You’re still weak,” Yen said. “And it’s not as if we have any significant portion of that power on our own.” He shrugged. “At most, you can easily change things about yourself, and perhaps the area immediately around you. With the little amount of undefined energy provided by a single Orb, you cannot go beyond that sphere of influence. Still, you can certainly hone its intensity…”

Owen blinked. “How?”

Yen went on. “As Star said, Mysticism is not strengthened the same way the traditional aura is. You must connect with your core directly by performing actions that affect your flare—powerful emotions, deep meditation, and, ah… almost dying.”

“A-almost…?”

Yen chuckled. “Well. Once you reach a certain point, nearly dying does not become viable. Diminishing returns. Still, so long as we don’t hit you too hard, it’s a very effective method for weaker Mystics to become stronger. So, we can ‘kill’ you all we want,” Yen smiled apologetically, “and you’ll come back. Consider it… an at-death experience. Right up to Dusknoir’s Door, hm? But then you turn around and return to the living. But every time that happens…”

Yen showed the flare dying down and rising up, dying down, rising up, stronger and stronger each time. “You tap into that power a little more. Make your arms bigger to grab hold of those apples.”

“Again, with the arms… Do you guys have a thing for arms?”

Yen cleared his throat. “Once you have full access to your Mystic power through this method, you can meditate to hone the specifics and refine it. That is what most of the mid-level Mystics, like ADAM and Zena, are doing at this point. You are still catching up.”

“So, at first, to get full access to my power as a Mystic, I need to… die. A lot. And after that, I can work on actually improving it?”

“Yes! Well, to get there the fastest,” Yen said. “Still, I recommend you fight back. Mysticism is strongly tied to desires, and the desire to fight back can accelerate the process further.”

“But why do I need to die for that? How come all of those things with emotions, and dying, and meditating—that’s all with the aura, too, right?”

“There is a key difference,” Yen said. “Normal training. That’s how the body and the mind connect to the aura, which itself channels the defined power, provided by Star.” Yen closed his eyes. “Mysticism, you can’t rely on that defined connection. It is not your body to your aura. Mysticism is tied to something deeper than the aura—to the very source of your power. This training is for the connection between your aura and your spirit. Something normally untouchable. The body and the mind are the outermost layer. Then, there is the aura. And within the aura is your spirit. That is the true source of power. The aura is just a filter on what that power can do. Mysticism… weakens that filter.”

“The… spirit,” Owen said. He hadn’t realized it until just then, but without any fighting in this part of Hot Spot Cave, everything was silent. He could hear his own little heart struggling to beat. He hadn’t realized how broken his body still was. “Sorry,” Owen said, realizing he’d been silent for too long. “Before all this Guardian stuff, I didn’t even think Star was real, forget the soul, or the spirit, or whatever. I guess I’m still trying to wrap my head around it.”

“I understand,” Yen said. “Manny and I were the same way. Take your time.”

Owen nodded, but then gathered his bearings. “What’s… the difference? The aura and this… spirit thing.”

“Ahh…” Yen’s tail wagged twice in a slow, rhythmic motion. “How nostalgic, that question.”

Owen waited patiently. His eyes were bright with curiosity—but, more importantly, the longer he could stall, the longer he could catch his breath.

“The spirit… it’s an interesting concept. It’s something that I learned about a long time ago. Old, old culture. Something you can’t quite see. Something you can only feel.” Yen looked up. “The inner aura. The source. Where you are. What stays when everything else goes. That… is the spirit.”

“Isn’t that just the brain?” Owen mumbled. “I read books on this. All that stuff is just the brain.”

“Well, er, I suppose, physically,” Yen said, his momentum completely interrupted. “But it isn’t as if you’re carrying your brain with you in the aura sea, hm?”

“…Good point,” Owen mumbled. “What stays when everything else…” He thought about the aura sea. His body had dissolved there. In the spirit world, like the Grass Orb’s realm, or the ethereal forest, he had been an aura—a spiritual form that looked like his body. But in that strange void, even that body had dissolved away. He had been nothing but his aura flare. Yet he had still been there.

Owen looked at his hands again, as if they weren’t real. He sighed. He should have become an academic. Or maybe it wasn’t too late to become a farmer as his father had suggested.

“The connection…” Owen said again. What could that mean? It didn’t sound like Yen knew the full extent of this ‘spirit’ business. Perhaps Star did, but Yen just saw its effects. Still, one thing was clear: Yen, and by extension, Manny, were looking for results, and what he was doing supposedly made Owen’s Mysticism stronger.

“So, you’ve been ‘killing’ me all this time to… make my aura closer to my spirit? Or to make my Mystic power connect to it better. So, by dying, and meditating, and having these emotions, that speaks to my spirit, which the power of the Orb can let me… harness?” He paused. “Wait. This sounds more like you’re just making my aura unstable so more ‘Mystic’ leaks through!”

“Yessir.”

Owen flinched. It was Manny again. Based on the smirk the Lucario gave him, Yen must have either lost hold of his control or relinquished it upon completing his explanation. Owen missed him already.

“…Couldn’t you have told me that?!”

“Nah, bein’ scared an’ fightin’ fer yer life? That builds th’ spirit, too.”

“That’s…!”

“Well, enough talkin’,” Manny said, cracking his neck. “Y’know what I’m doin’.”

“W-wait, bring Yen back, please, I—”

“Nope!”

Manny fired the Aura Sphere he was preparing straight at Owen, and the helpless Charmander hit the wall once again.

<><><>​

Willow screamed in the blue flames that surrounded her. In an instant, they died down; the smoldering Joltik twitched and opened one eye. “What?” She coughed.

“Y-you were screaming,” Amia said, shivering.

“And you stopped?!” Willow said, hobbling to her feet. The very tip of the fur on her tiny body was still on fire; she shook, ridding herself of most of the ash, and the flame went out.

“Yes!” Amia said. “Because it… it looked like it hurt!”

“Of course it hurt!” Willow screeched. “But we’re training! Don’t stop!”

“B-but, Willow, you’re half-ash at this point!”

“But I didn’t pass out, so let’s keep going!”

“I—I can’t do this,” Amia said, voice hitching. “I’m sorry, I just—ow!”

Willow zapped Amia with a bolt of electricity. She sped toward her. “Don’t you dare stop now! You’re way stronger than me, and I want to get to that level, too!”

“B-but, I can’t, Willow, I just…!”

“What kind of Fire user are you? You can’t even go full-force!”

“I—I’m just… I’m just not a fighter, Willow. I’m strong, yes, but… But this is too much! It’s torture! I can’t—”

“Keep fighting!”

“B-but you’ll die!”

“I won’t die!” Willow shouted. “So… stop being so weak!”

“I—I…” Amia gulped.

“DO IT!”

The Gardevoir shut her eyes and blasted Willow with another flurry of flames. She tried to dodge, but the blast radius was simply too large. She screamed and collapsed on the ground, unconscious.

“I—I can’t do that! I can’t!” Amia covered her eyes.

“Wh-huh? Did I pass out?” Willow coughed a cloud of ash.

Amia was trembling and had to sit down. “It’s too hard to hurt friends! This kind of training is… is too much!”

Willow shook away the soot from her body and skittered toward the Gardevoir. “Mnngh…! I can’t believe you! All that power and you’re afraid to use it!”

Amia couldn’t look at her. “I know, I know…”

Frustrated, the Joltik shook her fur and started creating little sparks. Eventually, however, she settled down in a huff.

It was a quiet part of the cave. Manny was still beating Owen to a pulp a few corridors down. Owen was screaming for help. Manny just laughed.

“Scared of your own power,” Willow repeated. “Maybe that’s where he gets it from.”

Amia watched Willow with concern; the Joltik could barely climb her dress, but she managed it. She sat atop her lap.

“If someone like you raised Owen…” She trailed off. “…and if he took on even the littlest fraction of how you are…. I see why you think he can overcome that battle instinct he’s stuck in.”

Amia flinched. She bit at her lower lip and tried to stay calm. At least this was giving Willow some time to look less charred. “Yes,” she said. “I’ve shown Owen… a lot of love. And he’s been so gentle… So, he’d surely be able to overcome it.”

“I think he can, too,” Willow said. “He’s too nice.”

“Y-you think so?”

Willow nodded. “…So… you aren’t gonna beat me up?”

“I… I don’t think I have it in me,” she said, lowering her head. “I’m sorry,”

Disappointed, the Joltik turned around. “Then I guess I’ll train with them, instead,” she said, turning to look down the large cavern. In the open area, the group was locked in combat.

ADAM and Valle were sparring with one another. At similar strength, they grew together almost as rapidly as the weaker ones who were trying to catch up. While the Porygon-Z was not able to have much of an effect with his Normal attacks against Valle, the rocky Shiftry was not quite able to hit ADAM as easily due to his lack of movement.

“Well, um… okay,” Amia said. “I’m sorry that I can’t…”

“It’s okay,” Willow said. “At least we have someone who can tell us to not get so angry, right?”

Amia gently touched her chest. “Oh,” she said softly. “…Thank you, Willow.”

And with that, Willow dashed toward ADAM and Valle. She hopped in front of a Hyper Beam, blocking most of it, but screamed nonetheless.

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 25 – A New Sighting​

For the next few days, the Mystics in Hot Spot cycled between training and resting to the point where they had lost track of time. In the caverns, there was no real way to tell if it was day or night, especially since Amia was usually the one to keep track of that with the glow of the mushrooms. With her preoccupied with training, they were only able to determine how many days passed based on how often Team Alloy—sans Owen, at least—came back from daily missions.

Owen asked time and time again to go on a mission with Demitri, Mispy, and Gahi, but it was always shot down with the fact that he still needed to train. Not only that, but after the strange encounter with Deca the time before, the other Guardians were hesitant to send him out again to be lost in town. After each trip into town, Demitri, Mispy, and Gahi all said they hadn’t seen Deca.

One day, Owen trained with Zena; he was glad to finally get a break from Manny’s method of training. This, however, was short-lived. For some reason, Zena wasn’t able to fight at her best against Owen. The Grass Guardian figured it was because of his type advantage in his Mystic form that unnerved her, though Zena couldn’t find the words or explanation on why this was the case herself. She did know, however, that it wasn’t because of his type. Zena and Owen asked Star why they weren’t able to hurt each other effectively; in reply, she rolled her eyes and floated away.

Therefore, Owen returned to reluctantly train against Manny, and Zena instead challenged Anam when he was available and not managing the Association with Nevren.

Zena was barely able to open her eyes after every strike that Anam delivered. She felt powerless against him. Her watery attacks weren’t very useful against a Dragon type—let alone one that was so gooey like Anam.

Zena panted, her lungs burning. “Anam—are all of your kind like this!?”

“Like what?” Anam asked, holding his hand out to block most of her Hydro Pump attack. That simple gesture split the beam of water in two, missing the rest of him completely.

“So… immune to water!”

“No, but I’m a little different because I’m Mystic. I like being like this!”

“Extremely… slimy? You have the consistency of a Muk, Anam.”

“Aww, thanks!” Anam giggled. “But I think I’m a little thicker than a Muk,” he rubbed his cheeks. His fingers sank into his face, slime merging into slime.

Zena, seeing this as an opportunity, launched yet another Hydro Pump at Anam. The Goodra gasped, his head inflating several times in size when the water infiltrated his open maw. He spewed it back out and fell onto his tail. “Owowow…” he mumbled, rubbing his head. He squeezed the rest of the water out. “Good job! I didn’t know you could use Flatter!”

“I—I can’t,” said Zena. “…Anam… are you taking this seriously?”

“Seriously?” Anam repeated. “Of course! I mean… I need to train you, right?”

“Of course,” Zena said, “but I haven’t seen you use your Mystic powers much at all. Your Ghostly abilities, that is. I’ve already exhausted my Water form against you…”

“B-but it’s scary,” Anam said, grabbing his horns and tugging. “It’s not just spooky Ghost powers, it’s—it’s a lot of things, you know?”

“That’s…” Zena shook her head. “Can’t you just use a little bit of it, then? It can’t be that bad.”

Anam bit his lower lip helplessly. “Okay. I’ll—”

A muffled voice echoed from Anam’s thigh. “Hello?” the voice said. “Anam, are you there? I have a report!”

“Oh! Nevren!” Anam clapped his gooey fingers together, bouncing. “Um—Zena, hold on!” He plunged his hand into his thigh and pulled out one of their silver communicators. “Hi, Nevren! Do you mean there’s a report about a possible Mystic sighting?”

“Yes,” Nevren said. “At first, we believed that the Mystic that once lived in Nightshade Forest was relocated or otherwise… removed, but we found new sightings in the depths of it. It’s very likely that the Electric Guardian is still there after all.”

“Electric Guardian? That’s cool!” Anam’s green eyes brightened to the point of actual luminosity. “Okay! I’ll go and gather the others right away! Um—any other sightings?”

“None yet,” Nevren said. “I am still coordinating other scouting missions based on preliminary reports and rumors.”

“Got it,” Anam said. He nodded at Zena. “We’ll train later?”

“Yes,” Zena said. “…Perhaps I will train with someone else for now. I do not think I should go to this particular Mystic, considering my Type…”

Anam nodded and ran to get the team together.

<><><>​

“Nightshade Forest,” Star said, shivering slightly. “Talk about bad vibes.”

Everybody was gathered in the middle of Hot Spot. Demitri, Mispy, and Gahi were having a small snack in the middle of their training, all panting from whatever regimen Rhys was putting them through. The mushrooms of Hot Spot glowed only enough to keep things well-lit, but the brightness suggested it was more like afternoon outside. Mispy mumbled something to Demitri, and he replied back that they could get some sun later.

“Don’t like Dark Types?” Owen asked, amused.

“Hey, it’s not my fault! That’s instinct! N-no offense to any Dark Types or anything, I just… you know. It’s a little unnerving to go there, sometimes, since a lot of the wild Pokémon are Dark and they love defending their territory.”

Anam nodded. “Star doesn’t like my power, either,” he said. “But it’s okay! I don’t have to use it yet. Um—I can go, though!”

“That’s a good idea,” Star said. “I’m going on guesswork, but the Electric Guardian… she can scare easily, last I checked on her. Really jumpy, so you can’t have any scary people or sudden movements.”

“Feh, guess I’m out,” Manny said, shrugging.

“No sudden movements?” Owen repeated. “I mean… I can probably go, if I move carefully.”

“You don’t look that intimidating right now,” Star agreed, which earned a small, irritated spark from Owen’s tail. “As long as you keep calm, you’ll be fine.”

“How about us?” Demitri asked.

“Ehh… maybe not,” Star said. “Let’s stick to Mystics for this one. Enet, the Guardian, might be able to read auras—and I think she’ll only trust Mystic auras.”

Demitri deflated faster than Anam’s head after one of Zena’s Hydro Pumps. “Hmm, well, if that’s the case, I guess we can’t go…”

“There’s no need to worry,” Rhys said. “We can continue to train here.”

Star surveyed the group. “So, we’ve got Owen and Anam, who else wants to go? Amia?”

“Oh! I can, definitely.”

“Amia’s definitely great if we need a friendly face!” Willow piped up from atop Valle’s stone head.

“Three should be good enough. Four might be overwhelming for her,” Star said. “So, that’s the plan! Just make sure you guys have a communicator with you in case something goes wrong, either here or there, okay? Oh, and be careful. She’s a Zoroark. Don’t trust your eyes.”

“How’d you know about all this?” Owen asked. “We were looking for a while!”

“Actually, Nevren pointed out the possibility. I personally thought this Electric Guardian didn’t last, and Eon already took the Orb. She’s totally silent to me. But I did some asking around in the spirit world, and it doesn’t look like she died after all. So…” Star sighed. “I guess it could’ve gone faster, but we didn’t want to send you guys out unless we were totally sure. This time, we are. I know she’s in Nightshade Forest.”

“Nightshade Forest,” Owen mumbled, rubbing his head. “That sounds… really familiar…”

“Don’t think too hard, Owen,” Star said.

“Right,” Amia said. “So!” She clapped her hands together. “Are we ready to go?”

“I guess so.” Owen, stretched, but the fact that his arms barely went past anybody’s knees was a reminder of how small he’d become again.

He was already recovered from his training with Manny—and he felt quite a bit stronger from it, too. How much stronger, he didn’t know. He’d have to test it out—if this Electric Guardian happened to lash out at him, perhaps that would be his test.

<><><>​

Nightshade Forest was a place where, true to its name, barely any sunlight reached the forest floor. The trees were far apart, but the tops were filled with wide tops and leaves, high above their heads. If the wind blew hard enough, little flickering lights would illuminate the ground, but it was fleeting. There were simply too many leaves blotting out the sky. Owen and Amia relied on their fire to light the way.

“It’s really spooky here,” Anam said.

“Anam, please, you’re the Ghost Guardian,” Amia said. “Wouldn’t you be right at home here?”

“I—I guess so, but… it’s still a little spooky! What if there’s a monster hiding in the bushes…?”

Amia, baffled, glanced at the invincible Goodra. “Anam, dear, aren’t… you more likely to be the monster hiding away?” She motioned to the blackened tree trunks and deep-green grass. “From what Star told us, the strongest Pokémon here are about as strong as Owen was when he last became an Entry Heart.”

“W-well, um…”

“Actually, yeah,” Owen said. “Anam, we don’t really know what your powers look like at all!”

Anam gulped. “Th-that’s because… um…”

“Owen has a point,” Amia said. “As the Ghost Guardian, don’t you think you—”

“You should not press Anam with such things if it isn’t necessary,” Anam suddenly said, eyes closed. His voice had changed.

“…J… James?” Owen blinked.

“I don’t like when they do things like Scary Face,” Anam mumbled., voice back to normal. “It makes my heart go all thump-a-thump!”

Owen and Amia exchanged an uneasy glance. Owen figured now wasn’t a good time to press the issue, but a new thought crossed his mind.

“Do you even have a heart anymore?” Owen said. “Zena mentioned you just got… stabbed while fighting ADAM, and you were just fine.”

“I have a heart metaphorically!” Anam said. “But I guess so… Maybe I shouldn’t be so afraid… Are we there yet?”

“Hmm…” Amia looked at their Badge. “We’re supposed to make it through the halfway point of the Dungeon, followed by three segments of the next part. There, we should see a hidden passageway, invisible to all but the aura eye… That’s what Nevren told us. And from there, we have to see if the Electric Guardian is still present. I certainly hope she is…”

“I hope so, too,” Owen said. “I don’t want to lose another one just because we couldn’t find them fast enough.”

After several more turns and a number of distortions later—most of the wild Pokémon fled at the very presence of Anam—Amia inspected the Badge; it flickered briefly. “We’re in the Deepwoods,” she announced.

Anam hummed, running his fingers over the wood that was even darker than when they had entered. A thick layer of moss covered large portions of each tree, absorbing some of Anam’s wet form.

Anam glanced at Amia. “Can you tell Nevren and the others we’re okay?”

Amia nodded and grabbed their communicator next, speaking into the badge. “Are you there? We’re doing okay. We just made it into the Deepwoods. Does Star or Nevren happen to know where specifically we should be looking once we get to the third section?”

A pause. Then, Nevren said, “No, only to look for Mystic residuals. It shouldn’t be hard to miss for your current Mystic powers, yes?”

“Okay, got it,” Amia said. “Um—thank you. I’m going to stop talking to this now.”

“Of course. Thank you.”

Amia stared awkwardly at the device and placed it back into her bag. “That’s still a strange… communication device. Where did Nevren even get the idea for something like this?”

“Nevren has a lot of crazy ideas,” Anam said. “But they’re really cool, too. Did you know that he’s starting to make these special devices that can keep food cold for a long time? And you won’t even need Ice types, either! I think it’s with a modified Hail Orb…”

“Oh, wow,” Amia said.

“Yeah, it’s really cool,” Anam said. “I wish I had his creativity, getting all those ideas…”

“Nevren’s really like that, huh?” Owen said slowly, thinking about the Alakazam. “He must have been really creative to come up with me and the others, huh?”

“Yeah,” Anam said. “I think you guys are really cool, too!”

“You do?” Owen said. “Even if I…”

“Well, once you guys are in control of yourselves… you’ll be all-cool and not scary at all!”

“Maybe a little scary,” Amia said with a titter. “Just like your powers, Anam. You can control it, but you’re still scared of your Ghosts!”

“Th-that’s not fair!”

For just a second, Owen saw little lights in the green orbs that lined the Goodra’s neck and tail. It was as if the spirits within Anam were laughing. The Goodra blushed a deep purple and covered his eyes with his fat antennae.

A calm silence followed for some time until Anam suddenly stopped walking.

“Uh—are you okay?” Owen asked, looking back at the Heart of Hearts.

“Um—what’s that?” Anam asked, pointing down the corridor.

To the normal eye, it was just a hallway. But to the aura eye there was something in the right wall that gave off a faint glow. “Hmm.” Amia squinted, concentrating on the otherwise normal, twisted Dungeon wall. “So that’s what Star meant. It must be a burrow of some kind.”

Amia carefully stepped toward the wall and tried to move some of the rocks aside. Her hands passed through. “Wh—” Amia looked at the others. “It’s… it’s an illusion.”

“An illusion?” Anam said.

“Well the Electric Guardian is a Zoroark,” Owen theorized. “They’re great at illusions, and maybe her Mystic aura is amplifying it. Her name’s Enet, right?”

“Right, a Zoroark.” Amia balled up her fist, forming a weak, pink aura, like she was debating on whether channeling Fairy energy would be better or worse when approaching. She must have decided worse, because the aura faded.

“We should be careful,” Owen advised. “For all I know, she might be able to mess with more than just sight and sound. Maybe she can mess with all of our senses, right? …Guys?” The little Charmander turned around. They were gone. Alert, his tail-flame grew bright. “Oh… good. I hope they heard me.”

Owen sighed and closed his eyes, trying to focus. It was incredibly dark. If it wasn’t for his tail, he wouldn’t be able to see more than a foot ahead of him, even with the dim, Mystic glow. Still, he had a vague recollection that he wouldn’t need his eyes if he could just use his perception abilities to feel the world around him. It was a shame, then, that as a Charmander, those powers were almost completely sealed, no better than a basic Foresight technique.

The burrow was big enough for even Anam to step through, though he’d need to crouch down for it. That left a lot of room for Owen to walk through the tunnels; he decided, for now, that the best thing to do was go forward.

What could he do to counteract the illusions? He still didn’t know the extent of her power, but he could at least try to navigate forward again. There was a wall. He tried to step through it—and it worked. Owen smirked; with new confidence, he approached another wall and walked toward it—and then, through it. “What, is it just a straight shot?” Owen said.

He kept walking. This time, he saw a pit ahead and no other way around. “So, it’s a fake pit,” he mumbled, and kept walking. He stepped on the air like it was solid ground. He felt soil beneath his feet. Another illusion.

He cleared the pit and advanced. It seemed like a straight line from then on, with a clear exit ahead of him. So, Owen stopped. He looked down at the ground and saw a stone nearby. Gently, he rolled it across the ground. It fell into the floor a few paces ahead.

“Figured,” he mumbled. This time, it was a real pit, covered by a false ground.

Owen tried to hold his arms out to touch either side of the wall, but his tiny Charmander body didn’t have the span. But he knew one of these walls were fake at some part of the hall. He couldn’t risk going too far ahead for just one side, and alternating between the walls would take too long.

“C’mon, there has to be something I can use in here,” Owen mumbled, rummaging through his bag. He spotted Nevren’s Eviolite and lingered over it, admiring its gentle glint against his tail’s fire. Then, he fiddled with a few seeds, wondering which one would be helpful. None. “Hm?” He pulled out a small bundle of sharp sticks. “Oh, these things,” he said. He never really had to use them, but it didn’t hurt to carry them around to scare off ferals. They doubled as short-lived torches if his tail wasn’t enough. But now? He had an idea.

He grabbed two of the sticks, holding one in each hand. Then, he stretched his arms out as far as he could. It was just enough. Perfect! Owen dragged the ends of the stick along the right side of the wall, taking tentative steps until he couldn’t feel a floor. He stopped and felt the left wall—and, indeed, the wall was false at a small portion of it, and he stepped through. All as planned.

Owen then tripped and, in a single misstep, fell forward and lost control of his surroundings. He yelped and helplessly grabbed for any purchase, but it was too late—he saw something down below. Spikes, even harder and pointier than the sticks that he had lost the second he fell down.

Desperate, he fell back to some Mystic improvisation; claws became vines and latched onto the soft walls, anchoring him in place on either side, dangling in the middle of the pit. He should have done that in the first place; forget those useless sticks!

The spikes below looked… quite sharp, yet also unused. “H-hello?” he called upward. “Anybody…?” The walls were soft and absorbed most of the sound. Without an echo, Owen figured his voice wouldn’t carry very far. He was on his own.

Or, so he thought. Owen? Are you okay? Klent called.

O-oh! Klent! G-good to hear you! Um… no! I don’t think I’m okay.

You seem to be… a bit stuck.

Yeah, I think there are a bunch of illusions here. I can barely see now that I’m Grassy. My tail doesn’t glow as bright. But I can’t turn back to normal without losing my vines—there are spikes down there. I’ll get skewered if I fall!

Only spikes? Klent asked. Hmm… Well… you can try to climb up, he said. But if you fall, you should be okay.

Okay?! I’ll look like an Aron’s face if I fall down there!

Well, you’ve already been through worse with Manny, haven’t you?

W-well… Owen didn’t want to look down. He could already imagine the feeling of it piercing his tiny scales and through his chest, forcing poison through his heart. Wait, these spikes weren’t poisonous; where did that thought come—

Just focus, said Klent. If you focus, you’ll be able to take the spikes and then get out of here in one piece. It won’t even hurt. Maybe. Okay?

I, uh, if you say so, Owen said. It made sense. As a Mystic, injuries weren’t as significant anymore, even if they were mortal wounds. Still, his physical-body instincts were telling him that spikes were bad. He had to push past those. He closed his eyes… slowly, his breathing steadied, and it felt a lot like his pace when he was meditating.

Now… drop.

Putting his faith in Klent, Owen released the vines and fell. Owen briefly wondered if Klent was just telling him this so he could feel what it was like to die. He tensed for only a moment. And then, he relaxed, in that split-second of falling.

If he had to feel that, he deserved it.

He fell for less than a second and hit the ground. “Uff—” He stopped and didn’t move, hesitant to open his eyes. But he had to. His chest… no wounds. He checked the rest of him—nothing.

“Oh, come on!” Owen shouted.

It was just another illusion.

“Okay, now I’m a little irritated,” Owen said, advancing. He felt something strange behind his head and rubbed it. “…That was weird,” he mumbled. It felt like a tingling on his scales.

A loud crack—and Owen was pushed forward with a searing, powerful explosion. He yelped and tried to turn around, but he only saw a glimpse of what appeared to be a dark, furry creature rushing toward him. Red claws.

He knew to duck, narrowly avoiding the strike. “Wait!”

The creature hissed and turned around, fleeing. Owen turned back to his normal form; the light from his fire revealed that it was indeed a Zoroark. It could have been another illusion, but it was his only lead. He chased after her, careful not to trip over anything along the way. The pit seemed to be a hidden floor of the burrow.

It was hard to tell what was what—but this Zoroark was still ahead of him. All he had to do was run a little faster, and—

The Zoroark vanished. “Uh—”

Then came a strike to the back of his head. Owen fell forward with a grunt, clutching at where he was certain a few scales had been scraped off.

“O-ow! D-don’t do that!” he shouted. “I’m trying to help!”

Dizzy, he saw her running in the opposite direction.

“Wait!” Owen shouted, running along with her. He suddenly fell down and into a pit of false spikes again. Despite this, he crossed his arms for a Protect, but there was nothing to block. It only wasted more time. The golden shield illuminated the entire hallway, reminding Owen once again that he had failed to utilize his own powers for this trek. He was getting sloppy.

Scrambling to his feet, Owen decided to improvise with another utility. He plunged them into the soft walls, extending through the soil. “Yes!” Owen said. He felt his arms extend like vines into the walls and out on the opposite side of the hall where Enet had run, blocking her path.

Good—that meant she wouldn’t be able to advance, and he could try to—

Enet sliced her claws through the vines, breaking them cleanly apart.

“AAAAAAAAA!”

Owen retracted his vines into his arms, only to see that a few of his fingers were missing. “Ohhh, that hurts,” Owen mumbled, holding them under his pits.

You probably shouldn’t have put pain receptors in those, Klent said.

I can take those away?! Owen said. Tell me next time!

Well, I guess it’s natural to have them…

Owen whimpered, turning one of his fingers into a vine to grab an Oran from his bag. He popped it in and let the healing aura rush through him—and thankfully, into his fingers, where the tiny things quickly grew back.

“Thank Anam’s blessings,” Owen mumbled, staring ahead. Enet ran off… How was he supposed to catch up to her now? A Charmander’s stubby legs would never be able to catch up to a Zoroark. All he could do was yell and hope she heard, even in the soft, sound-absorbing walls of her den.

“ENET!” Owen yelled. “WAIT!”

Owen rubbed his throat. “I need to get used to yelling more,” he mumbled, coughing.

You know, you don’t need to talk out loud. We can hear your thoughts.

He walked briskly down the hall and over the vines that Enet had sliced through. He turned the corner and saw Enet running right toward him. “Eep—!” He didn’t expect it to be that quick. “Enet, I—”

Enet pounced on him and bit him on the shoulder. Owen roared in some strange mixture of pain, fear, and annoyance. Reflexively, he brought his arms together before she could do any further damage, sending a shield of light out to push her away. The Zoroark jumped off of him with a rude kick to the barrier and bounded in the opposite direction again.

“Ugh—she can’t get away,” Owen mumbled. “Enet!”

But then—to Owen’s surprise—the Zoroark stopped. For a few seconds, she didn’t do anything. Didn’t turn around, didn’t keep running.

The bite mark Enet left on his ill-defined shoulder simultaneously massive and shallow. It’d heal on its own.

“Th-that’s your name, right?” Owen said, tentatively prodding at where Enet bit. Bruised, but that was all. Despite being a Charmander, he was becoming quite durable! He wondered if he should be worried at how he was becoming accustomed to the regular maiming. “Star told me about you, Enet. You’re… you’re the Electric Guardian, right?”

Finally, she faced the Charmander. The Zoroark stared at Owen with wide, fearful eyes. She was crouched, ready to flee, powerful muscles tense for immediate action.

Owen stood awkwardly. “Um… so, I don’t want to hurt you, okay? The other two who were with me—Anam and Amia? We, um, we wanted to take you someplace safe. It’s okay. And… it’s rude to bite people.”

Enet stared at Owen without even an ounce of recognition or realization.

“Um… Enet?”

Her ears flicked at her name. Owen, in the dim light, was able to get a better look at her body language. She was panting, anxious, and she couldn’t understand anything beyond her name, based on how her ears twitched at it and nothing else. He saw that sort of stance for her body type often. But it couldn’t be… could it?

“Enet… are… are you… are you a wild Pokémon?” he said. Was that even possible?

But the more he looked, in the silence of her complex burrow, the more it made sense. The Electric Guardian was feral.

 

[namohysip]

Spoiler: CONTENT WARNING [M]

This special episode contains suicide and mild gore. If you've read up to this point in the story, you likely know that such an act is... different in this context, but for those who are sensitive to the issue, this is your warning in advance if you must mentally prepare. If you have any concerns (such as where it happens or other assurances before you can read) feel free to send me a private message here or on discord. Thank you.

Special Episode 2 – What You Deserve​

The clear, blue sky taunted his blurry, tear-warped vision. Claws dug into the dirt. A little voice echoed in his mind.

“Hey, Ra, listen. I’m really sorry you’re feeling lonely, and I get it. Can’t you just meditate for a while longer?”

Meditate. It’s what she always asked for. And for what? For what purpose? He was already strong enough. There was no point… “I have been meditating for centuries, Star. Please… I just… I just need somebody to talk to.”

“What about your spirits?”

Ra shook his head, rubbing at one of the giant scales that covered his arms. “It’s not the same… it’s… it’s like I’m…”

“Okay, okay,” she said delicately. “I’ll think of something, Ra. Just for you.”

Lightning shattered the sky.

Thunder deafened all of Nightshade Forest’s inhabitants. Wild Pokémon fled in all directions, all but one. The lightning struck the ground around this lone feral, the strongest of Nightshade. The one that he had been watching grow since it was just a little, talented hatchling. It kicked up dead leaves and splintered wood with each bolt that redirected her.

“Ra! STOP!” Star cried, her misty form clutching onto his arm.

“Your words are MEANINGLESS!” Ra roared back, shoving her away. He slammed his scaly arms against his chest, causing another thunderous boom; at the same time, the sky shattered, sending bolt after bolt into the ground. Rain covered the Kommo-o’s scales. Electricity danced at the end of his tail and sparks flew across every large plate of his body.

He vanished into electricity, surging upward and into the sky. The inky darkness gave way to white, blinding bolts.

From above, disembodied and one with the clouds, the Electric Guardian watched the scattering forms of the forest. The fire grew where he wanted. The ferals fled. The rescuers went in for the weakling stragglers. It was all just a dance of struggle. A dance he had long since overcome—an existence that he wanted nothing more than to abandon.

Memories echoed in his mind. They were words that cut him more than any claw.

“Hey, Ra! Look at that little lady, eh? She’s a little uggo, but I think she’s your type. Eh? Eh?”

Ra wasn’t sure what ‘uggo’ meant. Apparently, Star found someone of his ‘type.’ What exactly did that mean? Another Dragon-Fighter?

“You understand why I am skeptical.”

“Ugh, just go in the clouds. Check it out. I bet you’ll like what you see.”

Ra humored her, looking below—an Aggron? That was his type? That wasn’t anything like a Dragon! But… now that she mentioned it, there was something more. What was it? Ra looked closer. “Star… her aura…” For some reason, it felt like he had seen her for so long already.

“See, I knew you’d like her! Now go warm her icy heart.”

The world trembled. A Charmander struggled through the rain with a Bulbasaur over his shoulder, meeting with a Delphox and his team. After an exchange, they separated, the Salazzle of that team advancing with the Charmander.

Where was the feral? He sent another bolt of lightning down. He ignored Star’s protests and watched his home burn.

“Ouch!” Aggron put her claw in her mouth as if it would help. “You sparked me! How rude—are you not able to control your Electricity at all?!”

Ra shrugged indifferently. “I warned you. You should have been more careful.”

Frost surrounded the plants near her. “Insolence! What kind of potential mate do you consider yourself?!”

The ice did not make Ra flinch, even as it crawled over his scales. “A very strong one.”

The ice stopped. Aggron glared at him, crossing her arms. “Incredible.”

Oh, and who was that? Yes, yes. He saw someone. But what was it? It was too difficult to tell from this far up. Should he come closer? No. He saw it now. He saw the little flame on his tail. That flame seemed to appear out of nowhere. Charmander! Another one! He seemed to be helping with a Jolteon after he’d caught up with the Salazzle-Charmander duo. Yet his aura was quite strange. Their auras—both of theirs—felt suppressed, but in different ways.

Where was that feral? There she is. Yes, keep coming. Closer, closer. She was just what Star deserved.

They nearly had the Jolteon awake. They were too close to Ra, though. If they got too far into the forest, they would certainly find him. And then what? Star might even get a proper minion out of them. That wouldn’t do.

Static formed in the clouds, ready to shoot down and into the trees. This time, he wouldn’t miss. The Charmander. That same Charmander that carried the Bulbasaur to safety. That light in his eyes. How irritating to see. He’d snuff out his aura first.

Ra took aim. A bolt of lightning went straight for the little thing—but, midway through, it diverted and gravitated for the Jolteon instead. The Salazzle was fried right through her back. Perhaps Jolteon attracted the electricity. How inconvenient.

His power was fading—he had to land to recover. He took a few fleeting seconds to check on the feral. Closer, closer. She was still going blindly in the right direction, right to him.

Ra landed back in the forest with a rough grunt. “Perfect.”

“Ra, stop this!” Star bumped weakly against him; she felt like a breeze. “Why?! What did I do?! I’m just trying to—”

“You know what you did.”

“I don’t!” Star said. Her tiny, transparent hands grabbed the Kommo-o’s giant scale on his left shoulder. “Please! Just tell me what to do, and I’ll do it! Okay? I’ll fix it! I can, I promise!”

Ra stared at Star, glaring a hole through her head. Thunder boomed above—whether that was from a latent surge of his power or the natural momentum of the weather, he did not know or care. The rain drowned out the sound, splashing over his shoulders and dripping down his forehead. He could barely hear Star. The rain, too, passed through her body, only briefly slowed by her presence.

“Please, Ra,” Star said. “You know I can’t read your mind from here. Is this about Step?”

Ra and the Aggron sat next to each other at the edge of the forest in a rare moment of serenity. The Hunters seemed to have calmed their activities lately, and he sensed no odd auras in Nightshade Forest. The sunlight was welcome.

“I have to comment, Ra,” she said, “For someone who follows Mew, you’re quite Arceus-like.”

Ra squinted at her. “And that means?”

“Hmm…” She crossed her arms, making a deep, metallic boom when they hit one another. “Why do you like Her more than Him?”

Ra twisted his face into one of concentration and uncertainty. “That’s… a difficult question, Step.”

Step’s frozen face expressed her skepticism through her eyes. “Oh? More difficult than ‘Do you love me?’”

Ra looked to the ground instantly.

If Step’s metallic face was capable of smirking, Ra was sure she would have. Instead, he felt it in her voice. “Indeed,” she said. “You said I should be more direct. I am granting that wish.”

Ra taunted Step with his own smirk. “Hmph. How silly. That’s an easy one to answer.”

“Oh?”

Ra reached out and grabbed Star’s tiny, transparent body by the chest. His massive claws easily wrapped around her. He pulled her close, staring into her eyes with a gaze so piercing, he was certain it was giving her a headache.

“Your incessant need to fix things,” he said, “is itself what must be fixed.”

He slammed Star’s body into the ground. She cried out in surprise when his claws pierced her gut, cleaving through her ethereal form like pudding. With another swipe, the Kommo-o sliced her aura in half. She evaporated away, returning to Ra as nothing but a blue ember.

He didn’t spend too long relishing the feeling of finally making Star disappear, if only for a few seconds. Every moment counted. Ra closed his eyes, ready to become the clouds for the last time. He could feel his power fading. Everything that kept him alive… fading. It wouldn’t be long now. A sick smirk spread across Ra’s face.

It was time for someone more appropriate to take on Guardianship.

With another crackle, electrical arcs danced over his scales. He shot into the clouds. She was coming right into his abode. He had to act fast. The two Charmander, meanwhile, were running toward the Nightshade Forest Dungeon. Now, why would they bother with that? They must have been trying to save the doomed in there.

He felt the smallest ounce of hope that those two would be successful. Two Charmander, saving those that got trapped in the Dungeon? They may survive the fire, but those trapped would burn. But maybe, just maybe… Ra grunted, shoving the thoughts away.

Ra fell to the ground one last time and spread his arms wide. Five blue embers shot out in all directions, manifesting themselves into similarly crackling spirits.

“Bring her here!” Ra shouted.

They all nodded and bolted into the shadows. Ra watched them for a few seconds, listening to the thunder boom. He closed his eyes again, ignoring Star’s pleas to stop. It was too late for that. His power was already waning, and he was surely attracting the Hunters here at the same time.

Step twirled on her feet with newfound grace. She wasn’t an Aggron, but instead a fellow Kommo-o. Star had apparently taught her the technique, based off of those strange Orbs invented in a faraway city. While the transformation was temporary, it was long, and it would last for what they wanted.

“Ra… Are you sure?”

Ra nodded. “I’ve never felt so sure about something in my life.”

Step raised a paw to her chin in concern. “Star warned—"

“Star has been wrong before,” Ra said quickly. “About a lot of things, apparently. So, I am sure. There is no need to concern yourself with a dead god’s warning.”

She stared at Ra, sighing. “Very well. If you’re so sure… we shall try, just once.”

“Twice.”

Step widened her eyes and then smirked. Ra liked her smile in this form. “Twice? How eager. Am I that desirable?”

“I want two.”

“Ra, did your Dragon culture never teach you how to speak to a lady?”

Ra pondered this. He realized his error. “I would like to have two, please, Lady Step.”

Step’s expression did not change. “You… are hopeless.” Yet she approached him, wrapping her arms around his neck. Their muzzles touched, and shortly after they were cheek to cheek, chest to chest, tails entwined.

“She’s coming,” Ra said. “It’s time… it’s time, it’s time…” Despite how long he’d thought about this moment, his heart still pounded. Something primal, he imagined. Self-preservation. A Dragon’s pride to live through any struggle. But he was past that. He had ascended into being Star’s little demigod long ago. But now, after conjuring a single freak storm, he felt mortal again.

It was wonderful.

And now, he was ready to take full advantage of his mortality. A charge formed in the skies above him and the world flashed. Lightning struck him: straight through his spine and into the ground. He collapsed instantly, and his vision and hearing were gone completely. But he could still feel. He felt the pain of the electricity rocketing through him, the charred scales and flesh of his mortal body, the tense muscles spasming.

He grunted and convulsed—somehow, his hearing returned, though not his sight. Or perhaps it was simply too dark to see. And his own breathing was raspy. He tasted something metallic. Something was partly missing in his mouth. What was it? Oh, it was probably his tongue. He must have bitten it when he had been struck. No matter. He was still alive, and that was irritating.

Even with his ringing ears, Star’s pleading was the loudest of all. He refused to listen. He couldn’t believe how durable his mortal body was. Could he stand?

He knew physical pain. He knew all sorts of physical pain in his long life. But in his isolation, the few mental wounds he sustained cut deeper than any battle. His immortal body healed from those.

Regrets lasted much longer.

“This way!” Ra shouted.

“Pops!”

“Daddy!”

Ra scooped the two Jangmo-o just in time to evade an incoming blast of Fairy energy. The explosion grazed him and boiled his aura, but he refused to stumble. He ran faster, his two daughters fixated on something behind him. Step, the Aggron, was still holding them off. He didn’t even get a look at what it had been, only the blast that had rendered his tail nothing but a numb lump that dragged behind him.

Step roared, slamming her tail on the ground, as a flurry of ice obscured everything around her. Something else screeched; the mutant fell in a frozen heap, but two more took its place, and Step had to retreat.

Ra couldn’t shout for her. They’d know his location. His kids were still too weak to fight back. They could only thank the stars that it wasn’t an actual Hunter that had found them and only a rogue squad of mutants. But even if they killed them, they’d somehow find out about their presence; they’d have to relocate yet again.

“Mom…” Cent said, shivering. “Is she okay?”

Ra rubbed the back of Cent’s head and tapped the great scale on her forehead. “Your mother is too strong to fall to them,” he lied. He then set them down.

Kana knew immediately. “Dad, wait—”

“Stay here,” Ra said. “Don’t move.”

“Wait!” Cent shouted.

“Shh.”

“We want to fight, too!”

The fire in their eyes made him proud. He’d have to do something to comply with their requests, but now was not the time.

“You’re too weak.” It stung for Ra to say that, and he knew it’d hurt them even more, but it was true. “Stay here.”

They watched helplessly, but they obeyed, and Ra ran through the forest just in time to see Step’s icy arm shatter into pieces.

The Kommo-o was still alive. He slowly stood up, trembling, as his claws dug into the dirt. That Mystic power was almost completely gone. All that was left was the residual power of his spirits. They were persisting enough to guide the wild Pokémon his way. But if he was alive when she arrived, the whole plan would be pointless. He’d have nothing to give her.

There was something in his chest. He realized only seconds later that it was his heart, struggling to beat. But it would last too long. His Dragon pride refused to let him die, even now. “Cursed power… even as a mortal, I’m too strong for myself…” he wheezed. “No matter… I only need… to…” He raised his right hand up, claws clenching. “Star,” he said, barely able to hear her begging cries. “This is for you.”

His claws lit up with blue, dragon fire. For just one second, he hesitated, his mind envisioning those long, indigo flames carving into him. But that was all he spared for himself. He took one last breath.

“It’s my turn.” Step glared at Ra, her one hand squeezed tight. The other one was nothing but a slowly regenerating, icy nub.

At least she wasn’t totally armless by now, but those attacks by the mutants had harmed her so badly that not even Orans could heal them properly. It had been a moon.

“Nonsense, Step,” Ra said. “I will hunt. I know a patch of berries, too. You can rest with—”

“It’s my turn,” Step said, slamming her tail on the ground. Cent and Kana flinched, neither one wanting to interfere, yet they watched from the side in their little, dark cavern of leaves and twisted Dungeon walls.

“W-we’ll be fine. There’s still some food left,” Cent said. “You guys don’t need to eat anyway! We’ll… um…”

Step was already walking away, leaving Ra no choice but to stay behind with them. He could only pray to Star that she would return safely.

The crestfallen faces of his daughters haunted him. Cooped up in the cave without a chance to leave; the spirits helped teach them how to live normally, and perhaps one day they would be able to, but…

They were still hiding from the mutants and the Hunters. They were too weak to fight back, but he could see the Dragon fire within their hearts.

“Cent,” Ra said. “Kana.”

They looked up, helpless.

“If you want to fight with us,” he said, “we need to train.”

At first, they were confused, but then their eyes lit up. Ra’s expression mirrored theirs.

Claws plunged into his chest.

“GHHAAAAAAAAUUUU—”

Ra couldn’t scream after half of a second. The pain was immeasurable. He forgot what it was like to feel that mortal sort of pain. As a Guardian, he always dulled it. No such luxury blessed him this time.

That meant it was working.

Ra pulled his claws out, convulsing. His mouth tasted nothing but metal. It was too dark to tell what he had pulled out, but it felt very important. He tossed it aside. He wanted to go again. He wasn’t dead yet. Had to keep going. Star’s voice had fallen silent. In fact, everything was silent. It was odd. That pounding in his ears had been so persistent seconds ago.

In that last, fleeting moment, Ra felt something new and warm—no, hot—inside his chest. And it was one of the few things that lit up the stormy night. He recognized that cursed glow. The dim, yellow glow, like his soul—but it was anything but. If anything, it had been his soul’s prison. The Electric Orb. It had returned, no longer finding any use in its host.

With the very last of his strength, Ra brought his hand into his chest and pulled it out; blood fell away from its smooth surface easily. He gave it a weak toss forward—it was all he could manage—and fell backward with a smile on his face.

Cent lay crumpled on the ground with labored breathing and an open wound on her side. The little Dragon tried to move, but one of her legs was bent at an odd angle.

Ra watched with cold indifference. “You’re still weak. Try harder. Stand.” He cleaned the blood off of his claws with a flick.

Step—her arm was fully healed, now—watched with an open mouth. She shook her head, stepping toward him. “Ra, you’re going too hard on them!”

Kana stood trembling next to Cent. She nuzzled her side desperately, but she only whimpered in reply. She stared up at Ra. “Dad! Stop! Cent’s bleeding!”

“Pops… it hurts,” Cent said weakly.

Ra narrowed his eyes. This was the way that his kind trained. Nothing more, nothing less. He wasn’t going to break from tradition. They were Dragons. Such injuries were trivial. They had asked to become stronger; they had been showing so much progress already! It had simply been time to increase the difficulty.

He could sense it in their auras; the light of evolution would bless them today.

“I shall not repeat myself.”

Cent gasped for air.

Ra shook his head. They had to evolve; it would surely give them the edge they needed against the Hunters. Otherwise, they would have to stay behind again.

Ra raised his arm to scratch his cheek, wondering if a break was warranted anyway.

“Ra, love, STOP!” She grabbed Ra’s arm, holding him firmly.

Ra stared at Step, baffled, and then looked at his two daughters. Barely, his eyes softened. But what burned into his memory the most was her cold glare. He’d never forget it.

First, there was pain. Then, numbness. And after a while, he wasn’t sure what he was feeling. His mind wasn’t working as it should have. With so little blood, he was starting to hallucinate. Strange figures filled his unseeing eyes. He thought he saw Star with her arms outstretched, golden wings waiting to greet him. But he knew those were hallucinations. They weren’t really Star. Because he knew Star. She was not going to greet him with such a smile.

And then that, too, faded to black. For a few fleeting, precious moments, Ra didn’t think. He was only there, or perhaps not there, with his final, vague thought being that he had succeeded. And then, like being disturbed from a great slumber, he opened his eyes.

“Bother me, will you?” Ra mumbled to the world. He lifted his arm. He felt weak all over. Every movement felt like a chore and—in a brief moment of panic—he thought he was alive again. He felt his chest—it was intact, but it felt unreal at the same time. And then he looked down.

It was his body, still bleeding a bit, though most of it had drained away or pooled in the great hole he had left behind. His body spasmed a few times, flexing the claws. The tail twitched randomly. One arm even made an odd motion toward the chest, pressing down. Ra smirked. Even when he was dead, he still persisted. Or perhaps it was some quirk of the body that he did not understand. There was no point in learning; he was dead, after all. Instead, he looked at his fading claws. Yes. Without a body, his aura was rapidly dissolving. His time was fleeting. But he had to persist. He wanted to see it happen. He had to.

And so, the bodiless aura waited. He was sure that his solid spirits would be fading soon, too, now that their source of power was gone.

There she was. Ahh, it was wonderful to see her up close. He never had the opportunity. It was ironic he had to be dead to see her, but that didn’t matter. The Electric Orb glowed faintly a few paces away from his body. He saw the fading spirits chasing her down.

Ra stood in the small den that they called their home. Yet another new one, because they had to keep changing locations to throw off the Hunters, just in case. A humble burrow in Nightshade, lit only by Mystic power. Step was opposite to him, by the entrance. Behind her, where Ra could not see but could only sense, were Cent and Kana.

Ra gulped. “I’m… sorry.”

Step’s intense glare didn’t let up. “She’s never going to fight again, Ra. You traumatized her. They aren’t like you.”

“I’m sorry.”

Step shook her head. “You cannot forget about mortals, Ra. This Guardian business… your silly Dragon traditions… you’ve lost touch with how reality is for them. They aren’t like us, Ra. They aren’t. We are from another era. We need to acknowledge that.”

“I’m… I’m sorry.” His voice trembled. There was nothing more that he knew to say. What more was there to say?

Step sighed. She turned around. “Ra… I need to go. They can’t see you right now.”

Kana peeked in from the side to look at him. Ra made eye contact. She quickly flinched and hid away.

Ra stared at her metal back. “Please… Step…”

“No, Ra.”

“Please…”

Step’s head lowered but she didn’t turn around. “I’ll… visit.”

Zoroark were such clever creatures. They made illusions that could fool entire populations, should they become skilled enough. Quite a few precautions were needed just to not be fooled by one. This particular Zoroark was the most talented of all of Nightshade Forest, able to shift whole clearings into her personal darkness.

But she was also feral. And that was perfect for Star. A well-deserved Guardian indeed. The five spirits were closing in, wise to her illusions. No matter how talented she was, she was still feral, following instincts and easy patterns. He and his spirits knew her habits like the back of their claws.

Dead claws! Ra felt another swell of spiteful joy at the thought. But he had little time to celebrate again; she was finally here. The spirits drew her straight into the middle of the clearing, and she was running toward the Orb. Her eyes flashed with interest, and by some intense curiosity, she went right to it and picked it up.

She promptly collapsed, tumbling into the dirt. Ra blinked. He thought it would be a lot harder to coax the feral to touch the thing. Still, that made the rest of their job all the easier.

“Ra!” one of his spirits said. “You did it?!”

“Yes!” Ra grinned. “I am finally finished. You may return to the Orb if you wish… but…” He stared at his claws. “But I believe I am ready to leave.”

“Shouldn’t we help her to the Core?” asked one spirit.

“What’s there to help?”

“Star will try to stop her.”

“And leave the Orb exposed?”

“There is no telling.”

Ra growled, thoughtful. Yes. She might try that. “Very well.”

And while his aura was barely able to hold its form, he floated to the orb and plunged his cloudy arm into it. The rest of him followed.

“Pops?”

Ra jolted out of his meditation. His head swiveled around until he saw the Hakamo-o. His chest rose and he eagerly stepped toward her.

“Kana! Oh—hello, Kana. How is your mother?”

He looked to the right for the berries that he’d been saving for when they visited, but then realized, just by the look, that they were rotten. It had been so long… He hoped that Kana didn’t notice. But he followed her eyes. She glanced at it, but then looked away. How polite of her, ignoring it for his sake. How embarrassing. He should have remembered to replenish it. It was polite to give mortals food, right?

Kana shifted awkwardly. “Mom’s the same as always… Can’t visit her as much since it’s so cold, but… The occasional Heart mission goes to that part of the world, and I always grab it.”

Ra nodded, clasping his claws together in thought. He nervously picked at his claws, hesitant to ask the next question. So, he substituted it with another. “You’ve become so strong, Kana,” he said. “And Cent, how’s she doing with her hospital work?”

“Good,” Kana replied simply, though she did smile.

“That’s good, that’s good.” His throat felt dry. “Will… they be visiting soon?”

Ra gasped for air that he did not need. He stared into the black heavens. There was no light from that starless sky, but he could still see his arms. They weren’t lit by any Mystic glow. The ground itself was aglow with sparks of white electricity coursing through damp, puffy clouds, somehow solid enough to walk on.

He knew that clouds did not normally operate this way. Yet by Star’s whimsical magic, they behaved as such in this place—the Electric Realm, Thundercloud Temple. Another surge of electricity danced harmlessly past him, lighting up his massive, plate-sized scales from below.

He watched the surge move across the clouds and toward a great cluster in the center of a lumpy, gray field. White sparks coursed through the strange structure like blood, revealing its building-like architecture. It had five spires—four corners and a tall center—connected at the bottom by walls that formed a square. The Core was in the center of the lower floors.

“Ra!” a spirit called.

The ex-Guardian—the very thought thrilled him—spun around, grinning. But it wavered when he saw the huge, shelled Pokémon’s urgent look.

“What?” Ra asked the Turtonator.

His shell was an electric blue with sparks dancing across the edges. “We have to help the Zoroark! Star’s trying to stop her!”

“Oh, perfect,” Ra hissed.

The Turtonator struggled to keep up, but Ra understood that he’d just have to race ahead. As a reflex, he tried to sink into the clouds as electricity. Then the reality hit him—as he was no longer a Guardian, he could no longer Electrify. He was a foreign entity in this Orb, just like Zoroark. He had to go on foot.

“Why can’t you Electrify?” Ra shouted back to Turtonator.

“Star’s aura is disrupting it, or something,” he said. “Keep trying! It’ll distract her!”

“Ngh, so she truly intends to kill her, just to keep her from becoming the new Guardian?” Ra said. “Doesn’t she realize that if the Orb is unguarded, anybody could get it? I at least gave her the charity of picking the forest’s strongest feral.”

Turtonator puffed a few times, his entire shell wobbling with each step. He struggled over the soft clouds, tripping over himself. “Ungh—go on ahead, Ra! You’re much faster! You—”

Ra wasn’t even listening. He just kept running.

“Y-yes, well… don’t worry about me or anything…”

Ra heard someone stumble toward his hidden abode. He sensed her aura before and used little pulses of electricity to guide her closer. But she was so slow… and her aura, so weak. He stood up with concern when he realized her pace was at half the speed it usually was.

“Cent… what happened? You look so different!”

Indeed, half of the Kommo-o’s scales were missing. Large plates, gone. What remained looked faded and ready to fall like autumn leaves.

“What’re you talking about? It’s called aging, Dad. You should try it some time. Actually, no. Don’t. It’s pretty rough.” She shifted her weight uncertainly. “I guess you were right after all, though. A Dragon that doesn’t fight wastes away faster.”

That one tore his heart in half. “Cent, you know that’s not true,” he said. During all her visits, he’d said so many times how strong Cent was—stronger than he’d ever be—for her tireless efforts at healing other Pokémon. She’d even helped Kana when her missions with the Hearts went awry.

“Well,” Cent said, looking off. “I just wish I wasn’t weak.”

From halves to quarters. “Don’t be silly,” Ra said, easing her onto a seat. It had been specially made—extra soft—just for when they visited. It was supposed to be easy on stiff joints.

She complied, though not without a creaky groan. When Ra pulled away, his palms felt dusty. After inspecting them…

“But your scales… They’re falling away!”

“I, uh, look, I’m getting it checked, alright? Don’t worry about it.”

Up close, Thundercloud Temple towered over Ra. The door’s entrance alone was as thick as his body and went across seven of his full arm spans. The entrance also rippled with distorted light—within, it was going to be the Orb’s Dungeon. But it was nothing he wasn’t familiar with. Without stopping, Ra went straight into the temple. The moment he did, the doorway behind him snapped into a wall. Clouds shifted and softened in some places and materialized and hardened in others instantly. His entire surroundings had changed.

And Ra stopped. “…No,” he said. “What is this? What happened? What—”

The ground below him swelled. Solid clouds liquefied into some strange, cold mush, electricity coursing through his body. He jumped away, body trembling on its own from the surge. He wasn’t an Electric Guardian anymore—and as much as he liked that, it meant he would be vulnerable. He didn’t have time to acclimate to its atmosphere. He was just a normal Kommo-o spirit. He had to be careful. He wasn’t sure what happened to unacclimated spirits that perished within an Orb. Normally, Electric spirits returned to the Core to recover. But he wasn’t Electric yet. Where would he go?

Still, it was too late to turn back. He was within the Dungeon. The only way through now was the Core. But what happened to it?

Thundercloud Temple used to be a blessed Dungeon, like all the others in the world, physical or spiritual. Benevolent Mystic energy coursed through it, providing useful boons to travelers such as blessed berries and trinkets. Even in the Orb, such things existed within Dungeons to assist in safe travel. It also helped to stabilize the Dungeon’s architecture in and of itself. Hallways and rooms, connected to one another, leading from one segment to the next.

But now?

Ra saw the wall behind him collapse, revealing another room. In it, a great fissure in the clouds revealed a black void below. Ra did not want to imagine the fate of someone who fell into it.

He sank partly into the ground. The clouds below him softened. He had to move before his fate to the void became a reality. He spun around and ran, realizing that the Zoroark must be in here somewhere, too.

Thundercloud Temple was a single-segment Dungeon. Apparently, that was how the spiritual Dungeons operated. Intuitively, the Core was near the middle. He looked up. Could the Core be above? Or is it on the first floor? Where were the stairs? The Temple had stairs leading up and down in a multi-floor labyrinth. The path was never the same. He often went into it to clear his head, as the monotony of walking combined with the thought of remembering his path helped distract him from his troubles.

The ground shook again. He just needed a sign. He closed his eyes, but then realized he had no means of sensing aura anymore. It was as if a part of his vision was forever lost. How was he dead, and yet still felt mortal?

Ra didn’t know what to think of his new surroundings. It was a miracle that he was able to navigate his way to the mountain at all. Waypoints were such a strange, disorienting technology.

An Aggron glared at him. “You shouldn’t have come to Kilo Village, Ra.”

“I’m sorry. I’m sorry.”

She shook her head. “Love… why would—"

Ra jumped. “L-love? You called me…?”

Step answered Ra with a long silence. She avoided his eyes, glaring at the walls of the hospital. “A slip of the tongue.”

Ra deflated, looking at the opposite wall. “…I just wanted to see her.”

“And risk your life?” Step asked, glancing out the window as if she’d see a Hunter right there. None came.

“Her life is worth more.”

Step grunted, gently knocking her fist against the wall. It left a fist-shaped dent. She quietly scooted her body so it’d block anybody from seeing it.

Step sighed slowly, her breath whistling past her metallic jaws. “…You… foolish idiot. You… foolish…”

“You came, too, you know.”

“I detest our similarities.”

Despite everything, Ra gathered enough courage to touch her shoulder. She didn’t resist, so he squeezed a little so it would register against her steel hide.

“Enough,” Step said, jerking away. “Ra, we… can’t be together. Two auras together are too easy for the mutants to detect.”

He knew that. He didn’t want to care anymore. If the mutants got them, so be it—it felt like he’d known Step for far longer than the decades they’d spent. It felt more like they had known each other for lifetimes, ages! To forcibly split themselves apart—he could see how bitter it was turning her. How desperate and broken their spirits were becoming.

“Please,” Ra said.

Step’s claws left little dents in her own arms. “Star was wrong to unite us.”

After some wandering, being careful to avoid the voids in the clouds and the ground that looked questionably soft, he saw his first sign of life. A Manectric dashed past him, skidding to a stop. His paws tossed up hazy vapor.

“Ra!” he said.

“Where is the Zoroark?”

“Further in—or further out? I don’t know—the temple, it keeps shuffling. It’s in total chaos!”

“Why?!”

“I think Star revoked all of the blessings. It’s not a blessed Dungeon anymore—it’s—it’s just pure chaos! I don’t think it’s even an untamed Dungeon. I think it’s cursed, not blessed! I—”

The clouds between them shot up, straight through Manectric’s abdomen. It was so quick and violent that it went straight through him, and his front half was separated from his back half. Cyan embers poured from his body.

He gasped in surprise, but then stared up at Ra. “I last saw her running that way!” He pointed his paw to Ra’s left. “Star’s trying to kill her!” And that was all he could say. The embers overtook him and his body evaporated. The remaining puff of existence flew at high speeds further into the Dungeon.

He had to follow it—his spirit was being drawn to the Core. If he followed Manectric, he could at least get closer—at least until he was too far to see. Ra sprinted as fast as he could, tripping over softer lumps on the ground.

Bolts of electricity surged through his legs with every step. He wasn’t sure how he was able to keep walking through it, but perhaps some residual part of his Electric past helped him through the pain. He saw another aura ember move past him and used that as another lead, jumping over a forming fissure before it became too wide to cross.

“The Dungeon is falling apart,” Ra muttered. He looked back. “No. It’s already fallen. Now, it’s just… shifting…”

He heard a yelp and knew immediately who it was—the feral. He finally made it. And he saw someone else there, too—an unmistakable, pink figure flying across the distorted halls. The walls parted ways for her easily, and Ra suspected Manectric’s theories were correct. Star had cursed the Dungeon, all to prevent Zoroark from getting to the Core.

“STAR!” Ra shouted.

The Mew jumped. “R-Ra?!”

Ra slammed his fists against his chest. The reverberations weakened his stance—he knew that he’d be more vulnerable to her—but he was going to do it anyway. He was dead. What more did he have to lose? He slammed his fists against his scales again, sending dragon-enhanced, sonic waves straight for Star.

She shrieked and covered her ears. Ra didn’t stop. He readied another Clanging Scales strike, knowing that this would be the best way to slow her down.

It did not last. A Psychic blast twisted the air around him and he couldn’t dodge in time. He roared when the ground was taken from his feet, spun all the way around until he was on his side. He was lucky that most of the attack had missed, or his spirit would have been torn apart.

Star floated up and flew away.

“How dare you… run away…” Ra staggered up and slammed his fists against his scales again, sending another wave of sound toward Star. It hit right where he wanted and she shrieked, faltering where she stood.

She turned her tiny head around with wide, angry eyes. The Dungeon walls collapsed around them, becoming nothing more than clouds and fog as the entire floor shifted and shuffled. Ra weakly jumped to a part of the ground that felt solid, even while electricity danced around every part of the cloudy floor. But he didn’t step wisely. He sank through the ground instantly and saw a glimpse of the void below.

For just a moment, Ra felt fear.

“Hey, Ra.”

Ra was lying in the middle of the clearing in total silence. He could only hear Star’s voice, but he knew she was somewhere inside his Orb.

“Star.”

“So… I figure you heard the news.”

Ra’s claws strangled the air. Despite this, he spoke calmly. “With life comes death. It means nothing to me.”

“Well… okay.”

Ra grunted. “It’s just fine. I’ll be fine.”

“Mhm. Sure. So, anyway, Hecto spotted her along the aura sea… so… if you want, I can—"

“No,” Ra said, no matter how much it pained him to say it. “Send her to Step, first.”

“You can always just visit her in her realm…”

But Ra knew he couldn’t. He couldn’t face her again. He understood, now, why she visited so rarely. It had nothing to do with their two auras being too much for the mutants to detect. That attack was a fluke and he had overreacted. He had played it over and over in his head for decades. And only once or twice did such an encounter happen again. All that harsh training, all that senseless bloodshed of his own daughters, for nothing.

He did not adapt. His Dragon pride, his Fighting spirit—it was too much for her, and he was too foolish to not compromise for her sake, and for their kids’ sake. This was his punishment.

“Grab him!”

A huge hand grabbed Ra by the arm, stopping his fall. The edge of his tail and the large scales attached to them grazed the blackness below. It evaporated instantly. He jerked his tail up and stared at his savior—an Electivire. The hulking Pokémon smirked and pulled him out of the pit. Just then, a Zebstrika and Vikavolt crackled past them, tackling Star simultaneously.

“What do you think you’re doing?!” Star shouted. “Do you realize that if she takes the Core, you’ll all—”

Twin Thunders struck Star; her scream was deafened by the boom.

Ra stared dumbly at the display. He only broke his gaze when he heard a crowd of shouts behind him. That’s when he realized—his Clanging Scales were so loud that they drew all of the spirits his way. They were all coming to him—all of them.

Electivire held Ra by the shoulders, shaking the sense back into him. “Find Zoroark. Bring her to the Core.”

“But you’ll—”

“Go!” Electivire threw Ra into the air with a single thrust. Something held the Kommo-o in place after that.

“What—?” He looked back to see a southern Raichu, balanced on her own tail for levitation, holding her tiny paws toward him.

“Get her, Ra!” the southern Raichu said.

He accelerated rapidly over Star and the others. Star glared and held her paw up. Ra felt something squeezing at the inside of his chest, but only for an instant. Seconds later, an Electrode slammed into Star’s back, held in place by a Heliolisk.

“Run! NOW!” Electrode said and then shut his eyes tight.

“Nooo, no, NO!” Star said, but Electrode’s body was already a bright white. He exploded, evaporating the spirits nearest to Star, but not Star herself. Ra knew this only because of the pink sphere that enveloped her, protecting her from the blast, though she still couldn’t see through the smoke.

He smashed through one of the cloudy walls and flew over another void. He tried to get some sort of leverage, but he was helpless in the air. He saw another creature ahead, flying over the fissure. Its ugly face was a relief.

The Eelektross wrapped around him and pulled him over the fissure with what momentum he had, finally letting go when they reached solid ground.

“The Core is just ahead. Zoroark is nearby. See her? There!” He pointed a claw toward a black blur rushing past the collapsing halls to their right. “I don’t know how she did it, but she made it through the Dungeon. She’s a smart feral, that’s for sure.”

Ra nodded. “Thank you,” he said. “Stop Star for me.”

“You got it.”

Near the Core, the ground felt a lot more stable. Perhaps even the shifting portions of this cursed Dungeon was unable to split apart the Core’s general area. He sighed in relief, realizing this, and focused entirely on chasing after Zoroark.

A few spirits were still trailing her. It seemed like she was trying to flee but inadvertently wound up going straight to the Core as they wanted. All she had to do was grab it. They’d force the Core to accept her if they had to, even if Star wasn’t going to allow it. That was easy enough. They just needed time.

He heard it again. Shuffling. Weak, slow shuffling, from a fading aura. “Dad…”

He rushed to the entrance. “Kana… How did you make it here?”

“Not sure myself, heh…”

Her voice was softer than ever. Shaking, even. Her scales were faded, and a few had come off in small patches that never quite grew back. It wasn’t as fast as Cent. No, this was simply age. It happened to the best mortal—death claimed them all in time. All except for Ra.

“Please, sit down. Don’t strain yourself,” Ra said softly. He helped her to the wall, where she gratefully sank down, breathing heavily to recover.

“I just wanted to see you. You know, in person. Before I… can’t make the trip anymore, heh. You wouldn’t understand.” Kana rubbed the back of her head. Her arm trembled when it did. It always trembled—it had been that way for three years, now.

“Kana…”

Kana shook her head. “Pops… I don’t remember where Mom lives.”

He remembered how she had gotten lost before. She had wandered all the way to Nightshade as if it was an old part of her memory coming back, forgetting everything else. Ra had asked Kana about her mate—he had died long ago, too—and Kana didn’t know what he was talking about.

“Can you write down where she lives?” Kana asked. “So I don’t forget.”

The Core’s chamber of Thundercloud Temple was as it always had been. Clouds formed a great dome within the center of the building. Jittering strings sizzled across the fluffy interior, all converging toward the center, where lightning whipped at everything nearby.

He remembered touching this Core long ago. He never knew what happened to the last Guardian. Or was he the first? He had been one for so long, he wouldn’t doubt if that was the case. This world felt so young.

Zoroark entered the chamber. She spun back upon realizing that she was trapped. Ra caught up with the two Pokémon that had chased her inside. First, he looked to the left at a Pachirisu. Then, he looked to the right at an Electric Typhlosion, lightning erupting where flames usually rose.

“Good work,” Ra grunted. “Now we just need to keep her inside this chamber.”

Zoroark hissed at the three of them.

“H-how do we do that?” Pachirisu asked. “We can’t attack her! If we kill her here—”

“Her spirit is strong,” Ra said. “Don’t think she will fall so easily.” He held his arms forward and upward, ready for anything she had for them.

“Stay behind,” Ra said. “Keep an eye out for Star. I will test Zoroark’s strength myself.”

“D-don’t you die, either,” Pachirisu said. “You aren’t tied to the Core!”

“I will be fine.”

Suddenly, countless blue embers flew over Ra and Zoroark’s heads, entering the Core like embers from an exploding fire in reverse. Ra knew that this meant Star just finished dispatching all of the spirits in the Electric Orb. She’d be coming here soon, perhaps even teleporting right inside. Wait. Why hadn’t she done that before?

Was it the chaotic Dungeon? Was that the cause? Why? Did she make it that way herself? No… Perhaps not.

Perhaps Ra himself had done it when he died. Perhaps this realm was in chaos because of his own spirit’s state upon death.

But the reason no longer mattered.

“Zoroark!” Ra shouted, pointing at her. “I challenge you to a—”

Something sharp sliced right through Ra’s back. He roared and stumbled forward, staring at the Zoroark before him. The illusion evaporated. He spun around and swung his arm at the true Zoroark, miraculously connecting.

She responded by crunching down on his scaly arm, breaking through one of the plates. He, in kind, responded by slamming her against the ground, pinning her down. He didn’t have to hurt her too badly. Just keep her steady. He stared up at the Core, too bright to look at directly. He brought his arm up, ran three paces, and slammed Zoroark against the bright light. Electricity and heat surged through them both. She shrieked and flailed, trying to push Ra as far away as she could, but even though her spirit was strong, Ra’s was stronger.

Hands began to emerge from the core—countless paws, tendrils, and limbs wrapping around Enet’s body, digging into her fur and into her spiritual flesh. She screamed, breaking away from it with one final jolt. Ra reached out one last time, but Enet snapped down on his arm instantly—and that was the last his spirit could handle. She crunched straight through it, blue fire pouring out of the wound. He staggered back, clutching at the arm. It didn’t hurt—nothing hurt anymore—but he felt his body evaporating. He felt… fleeting.

No. Not yet. He wasn’t done yet. He focused, and his arm returned to normal. The blue embers faded away, sealed back inside.

The Core glowed brightly. Two embers rushed past him and into it. That only meant—

“Nice try.”

Ra suddenly couldn’t feel his lower body. He fell forward, flat on his face, and used his arms to roll onto his back. He saw his lower half still standing, spewing blue fire. It evaporated in seconds, revealing Star at the entrance, her paw still glowing from the aftereffect of a Psycho Cut. How could she use such a technique? Oh, of course. She wasn’t just a Mew. She was the Mew—designer of all techniques.

Ra knew he was outmatched, but that didn’t matter.

“It’s too late, Star,” Ra said, using his left hand to point at the Core. “It’s too much to stop, now. They already touched her.”

Star’s tiny paws trembled, clenched like fists. Ra just laughed. Sliced in half, lying helplessly on the ground before his Creator. Ra never felt so free.

Zoroark hissed at Ra, rushing toward Star. The Mew flinched but then realized that she was hiding behind her for safety.

“What will you do, Star?” Ra asked. “Will you kill her? Your own child?”

“Don’t use that line on me,” Star hissed. “Practically everybody’s my child!”

“And look at how you treat them,” Ra said, holding his chest mockingly. “I’m so hurt, mother.”

“Oh, like you’re one to talk,” Star said. “As if you can tell me you never beat up your kids.”

Ra’s smile was obliterated.

Star looked down at Zoroark. The feral looked up at Mew with wide, ignorant eyes. She pointed at Ra commandingly.

Star raised her paw. Pure fighting energy collected at the tip—a Focus Blast. At the same time, countless white filaments of light emerged from her back like wings.

“You’re really going to do it,” Ra said. “I suppose you’re showing your true colors, now, aren’t you?” he said. “Pathetic. Truly pathetic. Just to keep your precious Orb safe, you’ll obliterate an innocent feral.”

“One that you tricked into coming here,” Star said, but the energy in her paw flickered.

Zoroark stared at Star for a while longer, clearly not realizing that Star intended to destroy her.

“And then what?” Ra said. “The Orb has nobody. A Hunter will get it. Then what? I did you a favor. I gave you a strong replacement.”

“She’s hardly strong,” Star shouted. “She can’t even talk! What good is that?!” She winced. “I’ll just have to find someone else. I’ll draw in a new hero. I’ll make them a Guardian instead, and we can start from scratch. Easy.”

Ra laughed weakly. “But didn’t you forget, Star?” he said, pointing at her. “It’s already too late.”

The Core flashed. Countless wads of electricity and light exploded out from the chamber, surrounding Star from all sides. Zoroark screamed and ran away, but one of the beams of light latched onto her, piercing her through her back. She wailed and tried to slice it off, but it was already a part of her soul. It dragged her to the Core, even as her claws dug into the clouds. She shook her whole body, flailing.

“STOP!” Star roared.

Electric spirits solidified around her. Countless Pokémon. Ra knew the name of every single one. He knew their Electric spirits, and he knew the bodies they used to be long before. Some never abandoned it completely. He saw the Electric Typhlosion again, blasting Star with balls of white sparks. He saw a Luxray—long ago, he had been a Nidoking, but had since chosen a different form to take, after so many centuries of being dead.

All of them barraged Star, attack after attack. Her tendrils of light exploded out, piercing through some of the spirits. The air spun with every Psychic blast. Blue embers poured back into the Core, only to be replaced by new spirits ready to fight.

Zoroark was pinned against the Core by her own link to it. She was sinking, still screaming. Limbs of spirits in the Core grabbed onto her, stroking her fur. Whispers of calm. But she didn’t understand their language. Finally, the light enveloped her completely, and the Core briefly—absorbed into Zoroark, the new Electric Guardian.

“Good,” Ra said, closing his eyes.

Zoroark fell to the ground with a thud, unconscious.

“And now what… Star?” Ra said.

The world trembled as if heaving a sigh at new stability. Zoroark’s wild heart, while terrified and confused, was not in pain like Ra’s was. And, indeed, the Kommo-o could sense Thundercloud Temple slowly ease its way back into stability.

Star stopped fighting the spirits to glare at Ra through the many bodies that blocked her view. The spirits, too, stopped, knowing that their part of the job was over.

One final Psychic blast eliminated them, leaving only Ra behind. The rest watched from the new Core that grew in the old one’s place. At this point, only his upper chest, arms, neck, and head remained.

“I’ll just… kill her now,” Star said. “She’s… she’s asleep. She won’t even know it.”

“And what then?” Ra asked.

“I already told you.”

“No, Star,” Ra said. “You’re just telling yourself that. You’re just upset that I’m leaving… that I’m finally free.”

“It isn’t like that, Ra,” Star said. “I’m just trying to help!”

“Oh, and what a wonderful help you’ve been!” Ra said, waving his right arm. “Centuries of isolation and suffering for all! Yes! A fantastic existence!” He let his arm drop. “My lovely Step was right to abandon you.”

“Just like she abandoned you,” Star said.

Thundercloud Temple was silenced.

“…I’m sorry,” Star said, lowering her head. “That… that was uncalled for.”

“It’s just like you, though,” Ra said, but he couldn’t hide the tremble in his voice. He steadied himself. “Doing something you think would be good right now… not realizing the consequences later. For a Psychic, you have surprisingly little foresight.”

Ra grunted, realizing that his arms were too weak to hold him up. They were evaporating. Now all he could do was stare at Star with what little strength he had left. He wondered what would happen to him afterward. Still, after everything, he wondered if the peace of oblivion would be preferential. Was that his destination?

“Star, if you kill this feral,” Ra said, “you’re no better than Arceus. Remember that.”

Star flinched. The temple let out a final sigh.

“I have one more thing that I want to ask you, Star,” Ra said, knowing that he’d won. “Something that… you never answered. That you always evade when I ask. The memory is so… faded. But seeing as I’m about to go… I want you to answer for me. Finally, you can be honest. Why I can’t remember. Why this person… is so faded from my mind… and yet… feels so important. Perhaps as important as Step. Yet by what I imagine is a Divine Decree… I am not allowed to remember.”

Star said nothing, but he had her attention.

“Where,” Ra said, “is Yveltal?”

Based on how Star didn’t react, Ra knew she was expecting this question. His vision was fading. He felt oddly tired. His mission complete, he actually felt rested. At some point, his eyes had closed, ready for an eternal nap.

“Ra,” Star said.

One last annoyance, he figured. He opened his eyes and glared at Star. “What? Will you answer?”

Star looked down, flicking her tail. Ra sensed that this bothered her more than it should have, but had no time to ask why. She finally answered, “…I can’t.”

Ra snorted. “Of course.” And with that, his spirit evaporated completely.

Ra stood in Thundercloud Temple. Only moments ago, his heart had been filled with more joy than he’d ever felt in decades. Both of his daughters had returned to him, and they looked as youthful as ever. In their prime, even, like a proud Dragon should.

Cent shook her head. “Like, Pops, my mate is waiting for me across the aura sea. I can’t stay. I just came here because… I know you can’t really follow.”

Ra shook his head in disbelief. Then, he turned to the other daughter. “Kana…”

But she, too, shook her head. “Dad, I… I can’t just stay here forever. The other spirits might be happy, but I don’t want to lose myself here. I have to go.”

Both his daughters turned away. They couldn’t bear to look at him, but Ra just wanted to see their eyes one last time.

“Mom already said bye,” Kana said. “She’s glad that we can move on. But, Dad…”

“Please… there has to be some way,” Ra said. “What—what about your children? My grandchildren? Can’t—can’t I see them?”

But Ra knew the answer. He was never allowed to see them—not him, nor Step. And he shouldn’t. They shouldn’t know about this Guardian conspiracy. They should live normal lives. They should never know he exists…

Cent sighed tiredly. Ra thought, for a moment, that they would actually stay. But then she said the one thing he didn’t want to hear—the same words that he’d heard so many decades ago. The empty promise.

“We’ll visit.”

Where was this?

Ra recognized it, vaguely. He couldn’t move. He lacked a body to move. All around Ra was a great, endless expanse of darkness, populated only by the gentle glow of countless auras, all moving in one direction toward a great, dim light.

The aura sea, Ra realized. So… that’s where we go. Even if a spirit dies… we still can’t rest. We go right here. We all go… right here.

The faint glow of the outer spirit world beckoned him. He let the flow take him, for he knew his daughters would be waiting.

But then the flow changed, just for him. He bumped past a few spirits, falling through their fire. He heard their thoughts. Terrified thoughts, confused thoughts. One was whimpering that it still burned. The other one was nothing but a series of hisses and growls.

A great, gray figure stood above the sea, staring at Ra with his one eye.

“Hello, Ra,” the Dusknoir greeted.

Hecto…

“I am fortunate to find you in the sea. Star warned me that you would flow here soon.”

Then perhaps I should have stopped thinking.

“Perhaps, yes,” Hecto said, “if your desire was to evade my eye.”

Hecto held out his massive hand, grasping Ra’s flickering soul within it.

Where are you going to take me, then?

“Star requested I send you somewhere specific,” Hecto said. “The typical afterlife is not a location suited for one such as yourself.”

This was the second time that Ra felt fear that night. That fear was snuffed out by spite and anger. So that’s how it is? he said. Such a place truly exists after all? When Hecto did not reply, Ra continued to speak. Know that she’ll never be happy with what she’s done to me. I’ll never give her the satisfaction that I’ll suffer. I’ll take whatever eternity you give me, and I’ll take it with nothing but eternal hate. When I’m free, I will do more than kill her, Hecto. I’ll do everything in my power to ruin her, the same way she did for us. To all Guardians. To this whole world. The world you claim to watch over. You are a blight. You and that despicable Creator.

Still, Hecto said nothing.

I should have sided with Arceus and the Divine Dragons.

Hecto’s one eye did not blink, but Ra was out of words to say. The Dusknoir turned, pointing Ra toward some black void in the sea.

“Farewell, Ra.”

Hecto pressed his hand forward. Ra flew through the sea, far, far away from the flow of the many spirits that made their transitions into the next world. He was away, now.

Ra cursed Star all throughout the void.

Ra stood outside of his den, walking deep into the clearing. The once clear sky darkened with lumpy clouds. The world roared. “You did this to me.”

“No—Ra, that’s not what happened!” Star said. “I wasn’t trying to—"

“You… RUINED my life!”

“I—I had no choice! I was just trying to help! I—"

Ra shook his head. “I’m done.”

“D-done? R-Ra! Wait! What are you doing?”

Ra held his arms out. The lightning crackled along his scales and between his claws. “The forest will burn… and with the last of my power… I’ll lay the Orb bare.”

“Gnnkk—!” Ra gasped his first breath. A horrible coldness pierced his throat. He struggled to his feet. All he could see was a gray darkness. Hard snow and heavy winds slammed against his scales, freezing him to the bones. A single step was too much.

“S-so this is my eternity, is it… S-Star…” Ra looked at the black sky. He wandered through the snow even as his scales became coated in a thick layer of ice. His limbs froze in place any time he decided to stop. Every step chipped away at the ice layered upon his cold form. “I will… for all of my existence… devote every second… to…”

He collapsed. The snow billowed over him, covering his body. His spirit wanted nothing more than to move, but his energy was gone. Everything was fading again. Step… Kana… Cent, Ra thought. I’m… sorry.

It all faded…

<><><>​

“I found him!”

Ra’s eyes shot open.

“Oops. I think he’s frozen already.”

“Don’t just stare at him—help out, Sis!”

“R-right, sorry. MOM! We found Dad!”

Icy hands wrapped around both of his arms.

“Okay, one, two—three!”

They lifted him up. By some miracle, he could still see. Tears froze painfully against his eyes. He couldn’t speak.

Two Kommo-o tilted their heads at him. They were see-through, like glass. Closer inspection indicated that it wasn’t glass—it was ice, like living sculptures.

“I think he’s out of it,” said the left one.

“Where is he?” a booming voice called.

Ra knew the voice, but he also knew the sound of her heavy, slow steps. He saw an Aggron in the same style as his daughters, see-through and glimmering in the dark. Her steps pierced through many feet of snow without effort. Her solid eyes softened upon seeing the helpless, frozen Dragon.

“Unbelievable,” Step said, putting a hand to her forehead, making a dull tok noise. “Star told me that I should be expecting you. I didn’t think she meant it like this.”

“St… ar…”

“Yes, Star,” Step said, crossing her arms irritably. “I thought she meant you were going to try to visit at the same time as Kana and Cent.” When Ra didn’t reply, she went on. “This is more than a visit, I imagine.”

“Uh, Mom, I think he’s an icicle,” Kana said.

Cent tapped her claws on Ra’s cheek. Solid. “Yeah, he’s frozen.”

Step sighed, this time using both of her hands to cover her face. “What a fool… what a mess…” She groaned. “You’re helpless without me.”

The statue of Ra did not reply.

“Come. Let’s take him to the Core so he can acclimate.” Step turned around, walking through the snow of the Ice Realm.

Kana took the front, while Cent took the rear, making sure they didn’t accidentally break some part of their father’s frozen spirit along the way. He was so stiff that it actually was much like transporting a statue.

“Mom?” Cent said. “I guess we can visit a little more often, but… are you gonna talk to Dad more, now?”

“I doubt I have a choice,” Step replied.

“Yeah, but,” Kana interrupted, “we mean more like… are you two… gonna be together again?”

“Again,” Step said, “it is not like I have a choice.”

“But you do,” Cent said. “You can just tell him to go. But… you aren’t.”

Step pressed on without a change in expression. “We’ll talk,” she said. “If he chooses, I will allow him to… stay. Perhaps… it is time we reconnected.” She looked down. “After all, there is… nothing separating us now, is there?”

Step looked back at Ra’s desperate expression, frozen in time. She sighed. “You look disgusting when you’re weak,” the Ice Guardian said. “When you attach to my Core, I expect you to be stronger. Like you used to be.”

They climbed a small hill and slid down. Snow collected over Ra’s eyes, blinding him. He only heard the howl of the wind and the sound of her voice. But that was enough.

“Star came here only moments ago to tell me about your arrival,” Step said. “I’ve never seen her so shaken.”

Despite being unable to see, Ra could feel her smile.

“I liked that.”

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 26 – Isolation​

“Enet… that’s your name. Right?” Owen said, careful to not speak too loudly. The Electric Guardian, feral? A wild Pokémon? How was he supposed to work with that?!

The Zoroark stared uneasily at Owen. The Charmander was never good at reading wild expressions. Was she afraid? Happy? Defensive? Angry? It could be anything. Their culture was entirely alien to him, if he could call it a culture… Maybe it was just instincts. Oh, if only his perception wasn’t so dulled as a Charmander. Maybe he’d get a better clue. He just had to guess. How would wild Pokémon normally behave?

Owen took a careful step forward. Perhaps not the best move, Owen considered. He saw the Zoroark tense and he reversed. “Sorry,” he said. “Enet?”

Her ears flicked.

“I’m… I’m a friend. Oh, um…” Owen carefully moved his arms. Enet watched every movement, especially when he put them into his pouch. Slowly, making sure he made no sudden movements, he pulled out an apple. Enet lost her tension when she saw the red fruit, but still stared uneasily.

“Here.” Gently, he rolled the apple toward her. It stopped a few inches from her feet. Without taking her eyes off of him, she reached down and held the apple, tentatively sniffing it. She took a bite and lost sight of Owen for only a split second. Immediately, she looked back at him; Owen sensed her aura flare with panic at just that moment. When Owen didn’t do anything, Enet’s tension faded, but not as much as before.

He took another step back, trying to look as nonthreatening as possible. But what would she be afraid of? She was at least thrice his size… Maybe it was his flame. But if he transformed now, it would just startle her.

“I—I’m not gonna hurt you,” he said. “I’m here to help. Okay? Enet?”

“Enet,” the Zoroark finally repeated.

Oh, thank goodness, she can actually talk! Owen tried not to look too excited.

“Yeah, Enet,” Owen said. “Do… do you know that’s your name? Enet—if you know that, and you can say your name—does that mean you can actually talk?” It wasn’t so helpless after all. Still, she was definitely wild to an extent…

The Zoroark took a long time to answer. She was halfway done with the apple. “Talk,” she said. “No.”

“I—I mean, you can kinda talk,” Owen said.

Enet growled.

“S-sorry, I didn’t want to patronize or anything…”

Enet growled more.

“What?” Owen squeaked. “I—I’m sorry!”

Enet chomped on the last of the apple and turned around in a huff. She started to walk away.

“Enet?”

She wasn’t watching him anymore—did she feel safer?

“Wait!” he called, walking after her, just fast enough to keep up, but not get closer.

The walk was surprisingly long. The Zoroark made specific turns; they seemed random, but Owen had a feeling she knew where she was going. Every so often, Owen spoke up, but Enet would usually only reply with a huff or a growl. It wasn’t until at least several turns that he actually got a meaningful response.

“Um… so you’re the Guardian? Electric?”

Enet huffed and flicked her tail. Little sparks flew from her fur.

“Wow! Yeah, that’s it alright… Cool… I’m the Grass Guardian,” Owen said. “See?” He waved his hand, turning it green.

Enet wasn’t even watching, and more silence ensued between them.

“Um… do you like apples?”

“…Apples. Good.”

Owen thought he’d hallucinated the response. It took him a few seconds to come up with his own. “Okay, that’s good. Apples are good.”

“Good.”

Owen nodded. “Um… how… much do you know? How to talk?”

“Words.”

“Yes, you know words.”

Enet growled at him again.

“What?”

“Not stupid,” she said.

“Oh!” After that, Owen nearly said, ‘So, you know that word,’ but managed to save his own life by refraining. Instead, he said, “Sorry.”

They made a few more turns. The cave was getting even darker. How deep did this burrow get? The ground was starting to feel compact, like rocks…

“Do, um… are you… wild? Always wild?”

Enet took a bit of time again, but then she shook her head. “No.”

“Oh, so you used to be… not wild?”

“No,” Enet said.

“Um…” Owen hesitated. “So… you’re wild?”

“Yes.”

“Always wild?”

“No.”

“But you used to be wild… wait… um…”

Enet snorted, impatient. “I know words.”

“Oh, yeah. Yeah, you do.” It took a few seconds for him to realize what Enet meant. “Actually, about that—who taught you…”

Enet waved her arms around, briefly shifting her appearance until she resembled a Mew. Then, she reverted back to normal. Owen made a mental note that this Zoroark’s illusions were well above average.

“Oh! Okay, okay, I get that,” Owen said. “Star taught—wait… s-so you really were wild when you got the Orb! That’s… that’s crazy! How did they accept—”

Enet was growling again. Owen recognized this as her way of saying he was talking too much, or speaking in a way that she didn’t understand.

“Sorry. Um… so… when you got the Orb… they let you?”

“No.”

“Oh. How did you?”

“I fought.”

“Oh.” Owen supposed he should have expected that response. “You fought off… the Electric spirits? Or… the old Guardian? Or…”

Enet shrugged. “Fought. Scary.”

How strong was Enet? Owen hesitated, wondering why she was afraid at all. Or was it just her spirit that was powerful? “So, you took the Orb by force? From who? Who had it before?”

“Who?”

Owen paused. So, the Orb was abandoned, or otherwise alone, and Enet found it. It seemed like when she touched it, the spirits tried to drive her away, but she was too strong. That seemed like a reasonable story. A powerful, wild Zoroark.

“Why… follow?” Enet asked.

“F-follow? Oh, sorry, I… I wanted you to come with me.”

“To?”

“My home,” Owen said.

Enet scoffed. She flicked her hair against the Charmander—the sheer force and weight of just that brush and the odd, teal bangle that kept it all together nearly knocked the tiny reptile over.

“No,” she said.

“Why?” Owen asked. He briefly wondered if offering more apples would appease her. Infinite apples for the feral? They were very food-driven, after all. But given how she had reacted when he insinuated she wasn’t smart, she’d probably take it the wrong way if he offered her food. He tried a different strategy. “Isn’t it… lonely?”

Enet flinched.

Owen saw that as progress. If she wanted companionship, they had lots of that. He could only imagine what it would be like to be isolated like that, just like all the Guardians. He saw hints of that damage from Zena. But for Enet—even if it didn’t look like she was Guardian for very long—she didn’t even understand why. She was just a feral. Didn’t she want to be with a pack?

“No,” Enet said. “Not lonely.”

But it wasn’t going to be easy, it seemed. She was stubborn. Leave it to a feral Guardian to be that way. “Enet…”

“No!” Enet growled. She spun around and pointed at Owen in an accusatory fashion, eyes narrowed dangerously.

Owen let out a small “Eep—!” and stopped when her claw poked at his scales.

“You’re… small!”

Owen’s eyes maximized. Despite the claw only brushing his chest, it felt like he’d been stabbed in the heart. “I… I’m small?”

“Too small!” She stuck her nose in the air, crossed her arms, and turned around. “Want better.”

The confidence drained from Owen like blood. Flustered, he tried to salvage what he had left. “I… I mean… I mean, why… My home is… big! Lots of friends!”

“Bigger friends?” Enet asked.

Owen stared down. “Y-yes. Bigger friends. Wait. Um—Enet?” Owen looked up. “Did you see… a Gardevoir and a Goodra?”

Based on the blank look she returned, Enet didn’t know what those species were.

“Um, big, purple, slimy. And another one, blue, with a fin, here…” Owen held a hand to his chest to mimic Amia’s chest-fin.

“Oh,” Enet said, nodding.

“Are they okay?”

Enet shrugged. “Ran.”

“Oh,” Owen said. “So, they’re still somewhere in here. But it’s so complex, I dunno if…” He sighed. They were stronger than he was—they’d be okay. Hopefully they’ll find their way out. “How come you can’t come with me because I’m small? To my home?”

Enet glanced back, staring at Owen like he was stupid.

“What?” Owen said. “Our home is nice. You’ll be safe.”

“Need better father,” Enet said.

Owen blinked twice. “What?”

“Need big, strong dad.”

Owen’s arms dropped from their fin-pose on his chest. His heart skipped a beat. The flame on his tail flashed white. “W-wait! N-n-n-no, no, no—no! I wasn’t—that’s not—NO!” Wild Pokémon—why didn’t he realize it before? “I don’t want to be your mate! I want to be your friend! In… your… pack!”

“Pack?” Enet said, flicking her ears again. “Still too small.”

“Oh, come on!” Owen begged. What ego he had left was now smaller than he was. “Others in the—uh, pack are a lot bigger, though! And stronger! We’re Guardians, you know?”

Enet looked contemplative, but then stopped walking. They reached what appeared to be a dead end, but the cave had opened up into a small cavern. Owen recognized it as her home, though there wasn’t much to it. A few fruits and berries, a nest, a small collection of water in a hollowed-out Aspear berry, and mysterious bones. Owen eyed one of them, praying to Mew that those weren’t Charmander bones. It was hard to tell. No, don’t be silly—they couldn’t be! Charmander didn’t live in Nightshade. The darkness was just getting to him. Something about a Zoroark’s den made his flame’s glow a lot less impactful on the walls.

“Stronger?” Enet said, breaking Owen out of his trance.

“Yeah. And Star’s our friend, too,” Owen said.

“Star,” Enet said softly. “I miss Star…”

A full sentence! Owen thought. “She’s really nice, huh?” he said. “Actually… would you like me to try to summon her?”

Enet growled slightly.

“T-to… see her? Want to see her?”

Enet watched.

“I can bring her right here. Now.”

“You can?” Recollection flashed in her eyes. The Zoroark made a motion with her claws. To her chest, and then pushing her hands outward in a spreading motion. “Like…?”

“Y-yeah! I think! A summon!”

“Call… summon,” Enet said, nodding. “Yes. Summon.”

“Okay. Give me a second, yeah?” Owen sat down, crossed his legs, and closed his eyes. He channeled his aura and went inward, feeling for his Grass Orb. There. Star…? Star, are you there?

A few seconds passed.

She’s coming, Klent replied. She must be in another part of the realm.

Oh, okay. Thanks, Klent.

How are you doing, Owen? Klent went on. Feeling… small?

Not funny.

Don’t worry! Amelia chimed in. When you evolve, you’ll only be half her size!

You’re enjoying this, aren’t you?

The Jumpluff and Lilligant laughed to one another. Owen heard the chuckles from the other spirits, too, and his tail flashed white from embarrassment again. Despite this, the Charmander’s mouth twitched to a small smile. He never heard Amelia laugh like that before. Fine, fine. You win.

Eventually—Enet was running her claws through her hair to pass the time at this point—Owen heard Star’s voice. Yo. Found her?

Yeah. Enet wants to see you. She’s… a little… wild.

Yeah, she is, Star giggled. She’s got a wild personality, huh?

N-no, I mean, she’s literally a wild Pokémon. She can barely talk!

What? Star said. Again? …Hm… well… okay. You want me to come over?

Yeah.

Okay.

A pinkish mist blew from Owen’s chest, forming into a cloud that was barely discernable as a Mew-shaped nebula.

“I guess it’ll do,” Star said, looking at her paws. “Not bad, Owen. Manny must’ve boosted your power a lot.”

“Thanks,” Owen tittered. “Anyway, um… Enet, you—”

Enet swatted at Star, passing right through her.

“Hey!” Star said, swatting back. The mist made a small gust of wind that barely moved the Zoroark’s fur. “Stop that! I’m not something to smack around!”

Enet flinched and looked down.

The nebula floated in silence, spinning around the Zoroark to get a better look. “It’s been a while, huh?”

Enet nodded. “Long time…”

“You were isolated for so long, you must’ve… forgotten a lot that I taught you, huh?”

“Forgot?” Enet said.

Star sighed, but then looked at Owen. “A long time ago, the old Electric Guardian… kinda got sick of being Guardian. He just… gave up and withdrew into the Orb, leaving for the spirit world. In other words, uh, died. Enet came over after a while, and… touched the Orb, and then we met.”

“Yeah, I figured out that much,” Owen said. “But what happened after? You… taught her how to talk?”

“Pretty much,” Star said. “Taught a lot of things. I’m good with wild Pokémon. And sapient Pokémon. I mean, I’m good with pretty much all life. Y’know, comes with the position.”

“Yeah, right, right. But… Enet forgot?”

“Something must’ve happened to scare Enet off. She wasn’t the most experienced Mystic, and she must not’ve been able to meditate her way back into the spirit world. And then… I mean, time washes away quite a bit, y’know. She must’ve… regressed.”

Enet growled. “Big words.”

“I know, I know.” Star sighed. She looked to Owen. “Believe it or not, Enet never liked big words.”

“I… I believe it.”

Enet nodded.

“But I guess now we’re back together. Hey, Enet” Star said gently. “Do you want to come with us? It’s safer, and it’s a lot better than living here, I promise.”

“But…” Enet paused. “You said… to stay away.”

Star winced. “Y-yeah, I did,” she said. “But we had a change in plans. Now we can stay together. How about that, huh?” The misty Mew held out an incorporeal paw.

Enet stared at it, but then stood up. “Okay,” she said. She swatted at Star’s paw and turned around. “I need… time.”

“Oh, to get your things?”

“…She has things?” Owen blinked and leaned ti the left.

Enet circled around her little alcove and picked up two items. The first was a fresh-looking Sitrus Berry. The second was a shiny rock with flecks of something turquoise—some kind of lucky stone. However, Owen’s extensive knowledge of Dungeon texts recognized that it had no use in a Dungeon or in battle. It was just pretty.

Owen paused, thinking. That stone reminded him of something, but what was it?

“Hey, Enet,” he suddenly said. “I have a pretty stone, too.”

“You do?!” Enet said. “Show me!”

Owen giggled and dug through his bag. “Look!” he said, pulling out Nevren’s gift. “It’s a raw Eviolite for Pokémon like me. Apparently, it taps into the latent evolutionary energy that’s stored inside of us, and makes us stronger using that! It’s awesome! At least, that’s what I read about how it works.” Seeing that she didn’t understand what he said, he added, “It makes small Pokémon stronger!”

“Wow!” Enet said. “Then, you… super strong!”

“Aha ha… ha…”

“Uh,” Star pointed, “that’s not an Eviolite.”

“…It isn’t?” Owen said. “But I felt so much stronger…” And he read Dungeon texts. He knew what they looked like, and he certainly could feel the effects on his suppressed aura.

Star shook her head. “That’s an Everstone-Eviolite amalgam… thing.”

“Wh—But it doesn’t look like an Everstone at all!” Owen said. “Wait—Everstone…. But isn’t that what keeps me from evolving!?”

“Yeah, and yet you still evolved,” Star said. “…But then again, both times you evolved, you didn’t have your bag with you, right? You dropped it when you were running off in a fit the first time, and then the next time, you were fighting Azu unequipped. Huh.”

Owen stared at the stone, then at Star. She was right. But if that was the case, did that mean—

“S-so… so this is what’s keeping me from evolving?”

“Your aura must be getting to that point where even a reset won’t keep you down,” Star hummed.

Enet growled.

“Sorry, Enet. Owen goes crazy if he evolves. So, we keep him like a Charmander. But that might not last, looks like…”

“W-well, I’ll just… hang onto this,” he said, clutching the bag close. “I don’t wanna…”

Star smiled sadly. “Hey, don’t stress,” she said. “You’re still a Charmander. And you’re fine as a Charmeleon. And… I dunno. Maybe next time you’ll make it.”

Owen felt less sure.

“Well, anyway,” Star shrugged. “Let’s go back. I can sense Anam panicking at a dead end, and Amia is still lost. Let’s find them and head back, alright?”

“R-right.” Owen looked down at the Everstone-Eviolite. As he followed the Mew and Zoroark, he kept the bag clutched a little bit tighter to his chest.

<><><>​

“Aw, hello there. Welcome to Sugar ‘n Spice.”

The Salazzle leaned over the counter, eying her new customer. Sugar tilted her head at her odd silence.

It was an Espurr with three large, brown bags filled with fruits, meats, and other groceries and treats. Since her arms were so tiny, the bags merely floated behind her, leaving her tiny paws free to point and gesture. Not that she did. She instead stared at the air.

“Um… are you okay, Espurr?” Sugar asked. “Are you looking for Spice? She’s out doing Heart business today. Just me.”

Rim’s huge eyes stared at the wall behind Sugar.

The Salazzle shifted uncomfortably, but kept up her smile anyway. She couldn’t hide the nervousness.

Rim’s eyes glowed bright. Sugar flinched, readying for some sort of Psychic blast—oh, she knew it was rude, but Psychics always got her on edge.

Rim pointed a paw at the wall.

“Y—yes?” She nervously looked back. “Oh.”

The wall was the display of all the menu items they had—all the little sweets and snacks that made Sugar ‘n Spice one of the most popular treat stops in all of Kilo. Little symbols of light appeared on many of these menu items in units of five. Others went as high as twenty.

“Wow, talk about a big haul,” Sugar said. “You got it. Just give me some time to gather them all up!” She slipped inside the back room, memorizing the order.

Rim stood in place, closing her eyes. Her paws trembled against each other. She breathed slowly. In, out. Sigh. Breathe.

“Okay!”

The Espurr jolted and nodded at Sugar.

“Aw, hey, no need to be shy. I don’t bite, much.” She winked. “Anyway, that’ll be fifteen thousand. A bit pricey, but you ordered a lot. At least it’s a nice, even number.”

Six coins appeared in front of her—one black and shiny like obsidian, and five white, shimmering coins. “Ten, eleven, twelve… yep,” Sugar nodded. “That’ll be all. Thanks for your business!”

The boxes of treats floated over to Rim and slipped neatly inside the least full bag. She left; once she rounded the corner, Sugar deflated.

“Ugh…” She clutched her chest. It felt as if the wind had been taken out of her. “Creepy little thing.”

Just then, Spice entered the store, looking worse for wear, covered in small cuts and bruises.

“Oh, Spice,” Sugar said. “How’re you doing? Oof, you look rough. Why don’t you rest up in the back room?”

“I’ll do that,” Spice mumbled, tossing her bag behind the counter. It was quite light. Sugar knew that meant her team had to use quite a bit of their equipment during their mission—or they outright got ejected from a Dungeon. “That’s the last time I do anything down south. That place is savage. And creepy.”

“Creepy, huh? Sounds like you got near the Abyss.”

“Don’t even say the name,” Spice shivered. “I think I saw a demon. And even worse, it actually started off near Void Basin! We weren’t even given the right directions and got sent to the west, not east!” She tossed herself into the back room, moaning out a frustrated sigh into the pillows. “Stupid little outlaw… Should’ve known he’d misdirect into restricted territory.”

“Outlaw?” Sugar said.

Spice clawed her way back to the front room, sliding on a set of pillows across the marble flooring. She rolled onto her back. “Sugar, look at my chest. Do you see anything?”

“Aside from the usual?” Sugar asked, pointing to the awful lightning scar.

“Yes, do you see any slashes or gashes? I don’t know if scars can get scars, but that Aerodactyl did me in good.”

“Wait, Aerodactyl?” Sugar said. “You mean—”

“Yeah, him,” Spice growled. “With Anam and James gone doing who-knows-what, we’re getting a little careless. Nevren’s doing what he can, but we’re a little short staffed on leadership. Maybe we just weren’t as organized as we could’ve been, but the guy ran off. Our team was sent to chase him down, but you know what? He’s too clever! Wore us out by making false tracks east, and after warping to Void Basin and nearly going crazy, we retraced our steps and found his real tracks to the Chasm instead. Then, once we finally caught up with him, he tossed poor Leo straight into the crater.”

“Into the crater?” Sugar said. “Is he okay!?”

“Somehow,” Spice said. “We found him dazed and confused in a cloud of darkness further west. No clue how he got there. It’s a demon, I tell you! They tampered with his—something. He’s getting checked at the hospital now, just in case, but he says he just remembers falling, and then… not falling. And then whispers. And then… apparently a warm, fuzzy hug.” Spice shivered. “Ooh, just the thought is creepy.” She paused. “And speaking of creepy! That Espurr! Did you just sell her a bunch of chocolate?”

“Oh, Mew, she was so weird. Not a peep! She just pointed and put little numbers on each item she wanted. Gave me coins and left, but… I don’t want to discriminate, but that Psychic was… not settling well with my Poison half.”

Spice sighed. “I just don’t want to think about it,” she said. “It’s all back to my sensitivity. That Espurr, the Abyss… even those two Charmander that came in. Something was up with them.”

“What? You felt something from them, too? Wait—is this that same vibe you keep saying you feel from the Heart of Hearts? I mean, Anam is strange, but you always…”

“Yeah, that slimy purple wad, too,” Spice said. “They all feel… weird. I don’t like it. And I dunno if it was one or both of them, but those Charmander—cute, sure—gave me an odd feeling, too.”

“Weren’t those the same two you met back during the Nightshade inferno a year ago?” Sugar asked.

“Yeah, but… I don’t think I felt anything back then. Or maybe I was just too stressed to feel it.” She shook her head. “Whatever. I’m just gonna nap. That alright? I’ll help out when I’m rested.”

“Sure, Spice. Rest all you want.”

“Mn.” Spice pushed herself and her pillow-bed back to the back room. Her nightmares were filled with whispers and slime.

<><><>​

“Hey there, welcome to—oh, hey, Rim!”

A Smeargle waved his brush of a tail, tipped with black paint, at the Espurr, who gave him a little smile in return.

“Hello,” she whispered.

“Here you go,” Smeargle said, flashing a paper toward Rim, about as large as her head. “Look good to you?” he asked.

It was a realistic, colored painting of a blue Gardevoir. Rim nodded.

“You know, this one brings up some old legends down south. They say that there was once a Gardevoir whose talent for fire became so strong that her hair became the same color as blue embers. The hottest kind! Well, except for purple… and clear… erm…” Smeargle rubbed his brush under his chin thoughtfully, accidentally painting it blue. “Oh, right, sorry. Anyway, I’ll take the other half of your—oh.” The coins appeared in front of him. “Alright. Here you go.” He handed the paper over; it floated toward Rim and into her bag, slipped in neatly and carefully.

Another paper floated toward Smeargle—a handwritten note. “Oh, your next order? Same style, I take it.”

“Mm.”

“Right, right… huh… okay. Okay, yeah, I think I can do this one, easy. If you want it to be realistic, I think you’ll have to wait until tomorrow morning, though. Getting a little late.”

“Mm.”

“Okay, so, let me just reiterate. Looks like this time you want me to draw a Joltik… with little pink wings?”

“Mm.”

“How big? Like, as big as the Joltik? Or even bigger?”

Rim held her little paws out. “Joltik,” she said. Then, she increased the distance between her paws by a little.

“Oh, okay. A little bigger?”

“Mm.”

“You got it. Should be easy.”

Just then, something buzzed inside Rim’s bag—this one was wrapped around her neck, much smaller. A tiny, gray Badge slipped out.

“Rim,” the Badge said.

Rim glanced at Smeargle and gave a little nod, stepping outside. Smeargle went back to work without a second thought. A small pile of coins appeared in front of Smeargle again—the first half of his commission.

“Eon?” Rim asked, rounding the corner.

“Come back home and drop off your things. We found one—the Electric Guardian. Turns out she was in Nightshade all along after all. Zoroark are really clever, huh?”

“Zoroark…”

“Make sure you ready yourself for Signal Beam,” Eon said. “But… be careful. Owen’s there, too. And the Goodra. You should do this one… alone.”

“Owen…” Rim frowned. “Okay.” She slipped the communicator back into her bag. In a flash of light, she disappeared for home.

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 27 – Lakeside Chat​

Owen located his mother and boss without incident. They found Amia at a dead end; she had been running her hands along the walls in an effort to find hidden pathways. She just happened to not find the one that Owen found to get to Enet. The same could be said for Anam, who, while lost, was much easier to track down. He left a trail of slime wherever he went, likely because he was becoming progressively more frantic at being unable to find anybody. He was usually cleaner—though it wasn’t a very high bar.

Then, during their search, they ran across a patch of black fog running through the walls. It was like smoke, but it had no scent, and it was too dark to be simple fire smoke of the forest. It was ominous, in a way—looking at it gave a chill down Owen’s spine.

Enet hissed.

“Whoa, whoa, it’s okay, Enet,” Owen said, patting her thigh—he was too short to hold much else. “That’s just James! He’s one of the spirits for Anam, the Ghost Guardian.”

“Yeah, it’s fine,” Star said, floating ahead.

The Decidueye appeared from the shadows with a nod. “I apologize for frightening you.”

Enet growled.

“Use easy words, James,” Star said.

“…I beg your pardon?”

Enet snorted.

“Enet’s wild and isn’t exactly good with words,” Star explained. “So… talk with… small words.”

“Small words,” James repeated. “Hm. Okay. I will… try.”

“Where’s Anam?”

James turned around. “Ahead,” he said. “He is…” It looked as if James was struggling to find simple descriptors for his status. “…Lost. This place is… easy to get lost in.”

Enet stuck her nose up proudly.

“Guess she’s good at making this place confusing,” Owen said. “Right, Enet?”

The Zoroark nodded. “Very good. Lost easy.”

They continued through until they found fresher trails of slime. Owen grimaced slightly. “Does he always get like this when he’s lost?” he mumbled.

“When Anam panics… he does… become less tidy with himself,” James said.

“He’s gross?” Enet said.

“Not gross,” James said, puffing out his feathers slightly. “He’s a Goodra. He can’t help it.”

Owen slipped barely caught himself from getting a mouthful of Anam. The slime was definitely fresh.

“He is more goo than dra,” Amia giggled, gingerly stepping over the trail of goo.

“H-hello?! Is that you guys?” the helpless Goodra called.

“Oh! That’s him!” Amia said.

Curious, Enet picked up the pace and ran along the hall—but then slipped on some of the slime puddles in the dirt, tumbling to the ground.

“Enet!” Owen rushed to help, and the Zoroark growled at the floor.

“Gross,” she muttered.

“Yeah, a little gross, you…” Owen pulled his hand away from her. The slime was warm in the underground cave. A thick strand of connected his hand to her fur. “Ugh… Anam, seriously?”

“Oh, Arceus, I missed you guys!” Anam wailed. The messy thing ran toward them. Before they had time to protest, Anam picked Owen up, squishing the Charmander’s body against his chest. “It was so scary! You just vanished and I couldn’t see your auras!”

“Please… Mom… hebb…”

“Anam! Can you calm down?! Look what you’re doing to Owen!”

“Wh-what?!” Anam looked down. Owen’s head and shoulders were lodged inside his chest. The Charmander screamed panicked bubbles out through the base of Anam’s neck. “Oh, sorry!” Anam said, tugging him out by the torso.

Owen gasped for air. “Why are you like this!?”

“I—I just like it like that! I, um…” Anam looked down. He was dripping all over Enet, who irritably got up and tried to brush herself off.

“Stupid,” Enet muttered. “I’m gross.”

“I think it’s gonna take days to get this stuff out of my scales,” Owen mumbled, running a claw through the ridges of his arm. Each line gave a little glob of slime that dripped to the ground.

“Sorry…” Anam hid behind his antennae.

Amia sighed. “Why don’t we just take a visit to the river first and wash off?”

“River?” Owen said worriedly.

“Oh, Owen, just go to your Grass form and it won’t be so bad, hm?” Amia offered.

The though still startled him, even after what felt like a moon or two of dealing with his Grassy form. He nodded, and they set off.

<><><>​

It took a while. Eventually, they emerged from the cavern. They walked through the dark forest with their designated native leading the way. Enet sniffed the air, flicking her ears. “…Smell,” she said. “Water.”

“Water, huh?” Owen said. “So, a river? Is it… moving?”

“Mm…” Enet nodded. “Yes.”

“Cool!” Anam said. “Let’s go! Race you to—”

“Wait!” Amia shouted, almost a shriek. “C-can you let us wash up first? So… so the water doesn’t… get…”

“Oh,” Anam shrank back again. “Yeah… okay. Sorry…!”

“Oh, it’s okay,” Amia sighed, patting the Goodra’s shoulder. She winced when each pat left a trail of slime between her hand and his body. She tittered. “I—I’m going to head in!”

The water was hard to see in the darkness of Nightshade’s trees, their tops so thick and crowded that it indeed always looked like nighttime. If it wasn’t for Owen’s tail or their natural, Mystic glow, they would’ve been almost completely blind. Amia gently waved her hands in a forward motion, creating a sun-like orb above them, shining down. The river was clear and calm, perfect for washing off—though it was also bitterly cold.

“O-ohh…” Amia shivered. “I—I s-suppose if there isn’t m-much light… it would be quite cold!”

Owen dipped his foot in. Even as Grass, he could barely handle it. “C-can’t we… w-we use our Mystic power to stop feeling cold?”

“Oh! G-good idea,” Amia said. “Just f-focus, and…” She closed her eyes and breathed slowly, dulling her sense of temperature. “Uhn… that’s better.” She sighed. “But I do miss the cold, now, in a weird way.”

“I don’t,” Owen said, slipping into the water next. “Ahh… feeling clean again. Y’know, this water isn’t so bad now that I’m a Grass Type, compared to having my tail get doused. It reminds me of taking a bath with Passho Powder so the water doesn’t make me want to die.”

He gently lowered the flower inside and pulled his tail forward, inspecting the petals. He supposed they were quite pretty, even if the Fire in him didn’t like it. Perhaps it was beautiful in its own way. He wondered how he would fare if he was in Zena’s position, as the Water Guardian. What would his tail look like then?

What would Zena look like as a Grass Guardian? Distracted, Owen’s head filled with images of what he and the other Guardians would look like if they had different Orbs in them. Owen wouldn’t have minded the Dragon Orb. The Dark Orb also sounded interesting. What would he look like as a Dark Type? He glanced at Enet. Dark Types were always so cool—imagine, a Dark Charizard! Mm… Nightmander… no… that won’t work… how about… Gloomander? Twilizard! Owen’s mouth spread into a grin. “That’d be awesome…”

“What was that, dear?” Amia said.

Owen flinched. “Did I say something out loud?”

Amia giggled. “What were you thinking about?”

“Uh—nothing. Just what I’d look like as a Charizard and Grassy. Maybe my flower would get bigger?”

“Oh, that’d be so pretty,” Amia said, grinning.

She knows you’re lying, Star said from within Owen’s spirit realm.

Then I’m glad she isn’t pressing, Owen replied back.

C’mon, what’re you really thinking? I’m curious! What’s so awesome?

Nothing, nothing! Just, uh, you know. What I might look like if I had an Orb that wasn’t Grass. Like… Dragon, or Dark.

Star scoffed. What, the Types you think are cool?

N-no.

You’re a bad liar.

Enet jumped into the lake, splashing water in all directions. She shook out her fur underwater, and a little tingling ran across Owen and Amia’s bodies.

Owen couldn’t feel anything but a numbing, tingling pain. “E-Enet! W-w-watch o-out f-for y-your E-Electricity!”

“Huh?” Enet asked, shaking out her fur again. She ran her claws through the matted clumps, heaps of mud and grime sinking to the bottom of the river. Brown streaks trailed from any part of her that made contact with the water’s surface. She dunked her head in again, electrifying the other occupants once again.

“E-Enet!” Owen begged.

“O-oh, le-let her w-wash up, O-Owen,” Amia said. “Th-think of it a-as a little—th-therapy!”

“Bad—th-therapy!” Owen shook his head.

Anam giggled and plopped down a few feet downstream, sighing. Thankfully, the electricity faded after the third wave of shaking by Enet. The furry Pokémon tended to her mane with her claws next to get the rest of the mud and slime out of her. She pulled at the little bangle; Owen watched curiously. With a little squeeze, it snapped open, sending Enet’s fur in all directions behind her. She dipped into the water, freeing all the dirt from her deep mane, holding the bangle in her claws while she bathed.

Amia sat and enjoyed the river’s gentle current, not making an effort to wash. After all, she just bathed in intense fire or lava most of the time. Meanwhile, Anam rotated his body left and right, sending little ripples around him, giggling. Owen was positive that his body was swelling slightly from all the water he was absorbing.

Behind Anam, out of the water, James watched with a little, happy glint in his eye.

Owen relaxed and looked at the sky next. “It’s a little spooky,” he said, admiring the black forest. “But I kinda like it here, in a way, too, y’know? In… in a… it’s a cozy kind of darkness, I think. Uh…”

“You don’t have to force it, dear,” Amia said, giggling.

Enet surfaced again, looking significantly smaller now that the water weighed down her fur. Her eyes were covered and she giggled, trying to brush it away.

“You’re right at home in the dark, aren’t you, Enet?” Amia asked.

“Dark!” Enet kicked her legs until she was at the river’s edge.

Anam finally dipped his body further into the water, near the deeper center of the small river. He stopped once only his head was above the surface, enjoying the cool feeling that seeped into his slime. He sighed, looking a bit less solid, lounging. Owen briefly worried if Anam would wash away completely into the river.

“Anam,” Amia said, “I was chatting with Zena a few days ago. She told me that you reminded her of an old friend of hers. Did you know that?”

“Huh? She knew another Goodra?”

“No, no. Actually, she didn’t tell me what species she was—but it was an old friend from a long time ago,” Amia said. “Unfortunately, I don’t think she’s around anymore…”

“Oh… that’s too bad,” Anam said. “Oh! But what if her friend paid visits to the Water Orb?”

“Oh, that’s true!” Amia said. “You know, maybe that’s it! We could ask her,” she said.

“A-ask about a dead friend?” Owen said. “Isn’t that a little…?”

“Well, it isn’t as bad if they could’ve been visiting, right?” Amia said. “If they were friends, they definitely would have!”

“Oh, I guess so.” Owen wondered what sort of friend Zena would have known in the ocean. What sort of Pokémon was a water-dwelling, gooey creature, but not a Goodra?

Enet tilted her head.

“Oh, um,” Owen nodded at Enet. “One of our friends, Zena. She’s really pretty, um, a Milotic, and she was really lonely.”

“Lonely?” Enet repeated. “Guardian?”

“Yeah! The Water Guardian.”

Enet nodded. “I was… lonely,” she admitted. “A little…”

“I’d bet,” Owen said. He felt a presence calling on him from within; he focused and summoned Star as a pink cloud again.

“Yeah,” Star said. “Enet might’ve gone a little crazy for a while from the isolation. But I still don’t know why she… Enet,” Star said. “How come you forgot to meditate?”

Enet shook her head. “Got… scared.”

“Scared?” Star said. “That was a long time ago. You got scared and just couldn’t remember how to meditate? What scared you?”

Enet glanced away. “…Monster…”

Owen and Amia glanced at each other, then to Anam, and then at Star. The Ghost Guardian stopped his playful twirling to listen.

“Monster?” Star repeated. “You mean…”

“Someone with… weird… strong…” Enet made vague motions. “Chasing me…”

“Sounds like a mutant,” Owen said, glancing at his claws. “…So, they were around that far back? How long ago?”

“Enet went silent seasons ago,” Star said. “Enet, did they ever show up after that first time?”

Enet nodded.

“When was the last time?”

“Few days…”

“A few days ago? Okay, and before that?”

“Few days…”

“And… before that?”

Enet paused. Then, she shrugged.

“Ten days? Twenty?”

“Mnn… forty,” Enet said.

“Forty, huh,” Star said, nodding. “That’s kinda a weird gap, but then again…”

Suspicious, Owen said, “How much is forty, Enet?”

Enet held up seven claws—the six on her paws, and then lifted one of her feet for the seventh. “Ten,” she said.

Owen hummed, nodding. “So, seventy.”.

Enet flinched and went back to tending to her fur, mumbling something incomprehensible to herself.

Owen went on. “Sounds like they were quiet for a while, but then suddenly they started getting active again. D’you think the others have a story like that?”

“No, none of them do,” Star said. “But Enet wasn’t exactly well-hidden. She could’ve been wandering around her burrow being wild, and then she got spotted.”

“Hmm…” Owen sighed. “Well, Enet? Who is it that keeps scaring you, then? Do you remember anyone specifically? …Enet?” The Charmander turned back. Enet, despite being drenched, looked puffy, sparking with small arcs of electricity. Owen kicked his legs to slowly drift away, hoping he hadn’t upset her too much by correcting her math.

But then he followed her gaze, which was locked right onto something. She had the look of a wild Pokémon that was about to get into a fight.

“YOU!”

The voice came from behind Owen, right where Anam had been sitting. The location combined with the harsh tone was so startling that the Charmander could only stare with wide eyes to verify the source.

It was Anam. His eyes were fierce, staring in the same direction that Enet had faced. No. Those weren’t Anam’s eyes. And that wasn’t Anam’s voice. It was deeper and feminine. Where did James go? Owen’s eyes darted around—curse his lack of perception as a Charmander—and he spotted a black cloud in the trees behind them. It transformed back to James a split-second later. Motion in his peripheral vision drew his attention back to Anam—or whoever it was that now had control over his body.

A close inspection—now that she was moving to the shallower part of the river—revealed a slightly thinner Goodra. And solid. Her eyes and expression… The fierce hatred was something that Owen thought was physically impossible in Anam’s body. But that wasn’t Anam anymore, was it?

Black smoke enveloped Goodra’s right hand.

Owen followed the arm’s direction. There, just beyond the river’s edge, Owen saw a pair of huge, glowing, purple eyes in the trees.

Goodra fired a black sphere of mist from her hand into the trees, right toward those purple eyes. They vanished in a blink, but the black sphere detonated anyway. A sound—a combination of a deep, deep boom, a whistle like wind through a cave, and the shriek of some ethereal creature—shook Owen’s chest.

The tree that the wad of darkness hit exploded violently in a cloud of splinters and blackened leaves. The plume of pitch-dark smoke that followed seeped into adjacent trees, rotting them instantly. They collapsed under their own weight with thunderous creaks.

Amia was out of the water by now, head alight with fire, and with even more blue embers around her fists. Enet was nowhere to be seen.

“What?” Owen mumbled. “Where’s—”

Rim appeared behind them. Goodra immediately blasted a smaller, half-charged sphere of rot toward the Hunter. She disappeared in another flash. Amia jumped away, floating a few feet above the river. Standing on an invisible platform of her own Mystic power, but Owen was too slow—and too inexperienced—to think to do the same thing. He got caught up in the blast and shouted in surprise. The shockwave made his feet skid backward. Despite this, he could still stand.

He grunted, trying to bring his arms up to remain guarded, but something felt odd when he tried. Owen looked down out of reflex and gasped.

His hands were black. Scales fell off like dust, revealing dark, coagulated blood underneath. He didn’t feel anything. The flesh died so quickly that his body didn’t even realize what had happened.

“What—” Owen said, but then he was hit with an intense, yet dull pain in his wrists. His breathing quickened; desperately, he searched for his bag near the riverside before that pain became all he could think about.

Goodra searched for Rim, but she had vanished again, just like Enet had. Then, the Ghost Guardian caught a glimpse of Owen and his rotting hands. Her eyes flashed green. Suddenly, she clutched at her face, grunting.

“No—no, stop—I hurt Owen—stop—” It was Anam’s voice again. Then, it became feminine. “No! We have to find the Hunter! Owen will live!” Back to Anam. “Please—I can’t kill the forest—I can’t hurt them—stop—STOP!” He flailed his head. His horns thrashed, cutting the air.

“Here, Owen,” Amia said quickly, pulling out an Oran Berry for him. Owen reached out but then worried that if he tried to hold anything, his fingers might give way. Amia nodded and brought it to his mouth directly. With a chomp, he took down half of it and then bit at the remainder. He jerked his head back and opened wider, managing to toss the rest of the berry into his throat by some bestial nature deep in his mind.

Owen puffed a small ember toward Amia in thanks. The pain had clouded his mind so much that he was focused only on making it better. At least some small part of him still recognized the Oran as the key to healing. Warmth spread from his throat to his chest, and then into his hands. The dull pain gave way to a numbing tingling; color returned to his remaining scales, but it wasn’t enough to completely heal it. His hands trembled when the healing faded. It still felt bruised, and the scales were paler than the rest of him, like some sort of scar.

He looked back. “Anam?”

The Goodra was shaking, too, clutching at his chest with his arms, hugging himself. Eyes shut tight, black smoke swam beneath the surface of his skin like underwater currents. Slowly, the black underflow through his body died down, and Anam was back to his normal, lavender color.

“Thank you,” Anam said quietly to himself.

Owen sighed, but his hands were still trembling with a dull pain. What was that power?

A hissing crackle split the air further upstream. Something shrieked within the forest from that same direction.

“Enet!” Owen yelled. Without thinking, he ran toward the noise. Amia and Anam struggled to follow, but the thick forestry slowed them down. They couldn’t risk burning the forest away—it had barely recovered from the last one in another region—and Anam likely didn’t want to risk letting whatever it was that had possessed him before take control again.

That left Owen, transitioning into his Grassy form, to rescue Enet on his own.

 

[namohysip]

It may not seem like it, but I've been getting reviews in private for the past few chapters. So to those who have been doing that, thanks for reading and the feedback! Here's the next installment...

Chapter 28 – Evolution Gambit​

Owen passed by a tree that had been so badly twisted that the top was touching the ground. Light shined through the gap it left in the canopy, revealing the colorful, fungus-plagued ground he stepped over. His hands, still partly rotten from Anam’s strange death fog, felt like they were being constantly prodded with tiny Poison Stings.

“Enet!” Owen yelled.

Amia ran after him, followed by Anam, sluggishly squeezing through the forestry.

Another Psychic blast came his way and he rolled; a rock behind him twisted into rubble. “She means business, huh—?”

“Enet better be careful—where’d she run off to?!” Amia said. “Enet!” She tripped over a vine. “Oh, sh—sugar lumps—” She closed her eyes, scanning for Enet’s aura while she tried to stand.

“Wait! But why is she even using Psychic on Enet?” Owen said. “She’s Dark, soPsychic won’t exactly do all that much!”

James emerged from Anam’s body in a black cloud and followed Owen, leaving Anam and Amia behind. “She is trying to disrupt Enet’s illusions,” he said. “The light is something that Enet isn’t used to. It’s very likely that if this forest becomes too bright, she won’t be able to hide. Rim will likely then use another attack. We must hurry before—”

And just then, Rim sent a strange light directly at something in the shadows. Enet yelped in pain and scrambled into another bush. It must have missed because she wasn’t dead yet.

“Ngh—that’s not good,” James hissed, nearly a hoot. “That was Signal Beam—Enet isn’t going to handle a strike like that!” He spotted the Espurr in the trees. James immediately brought a wing forward and made a motion as if drawing from a string; a feather formed from black smoke, and he tugged on a string that appeared from the aether. A second later, he fired. It went straight for Rim. She vanished before it could connect, the feather piercing through the tree behind her.

“Ngh, it’s never that easy, is it?” James muttered. “We must hurry!”

“Okay,” Anam said, falling over another boulder. Countless forest mushrooms floated throughout Anam’s body from his constant tumbles.

More trees fell. Rim was locked onto Enet, no matter how much the wild Guardian tried to maneuver through the darkness.

“Help!” Enet finally cried.

That gave her away. Rim fired another Signal Beam.

“No!” Owen thought fast. His Ember wouldn’t block it, nor would any of his projectile strikes. They were all energy-based, and signal-beam might go right through it. But what if—

Owen opened his mouth and launched a vine from his throat. It extended out and he felt his stomach drain as foot after foot of the vine spilled from him, but then realized by some instinct that he was reaching the end of how far he’d be able to extend it. It wasn’t going to be enough.

And in that moment, Owen’s teeth burst with fire. With wits, instinct, and just a touch of desperate insanity, he chomped down on his own vine, simultaneously searing and cutting it while it was still being launched. It was fast enough that it kept some of its momentum, but the horrible, searing pain that surged through Owen made his vision fade halfway. His blood tasted like grass.

The tip narrowly intercepted the blast, and thankfully, the vine neutralized the attack completely. Owen, feeling significantly lighter, rushed toward where the blast had been aimed and found Enet cowering under a bush.

“Are you okay?” Owen asked.

Enet whimpered, holding her arm. It looked like she had been grazed by the previous attack. Fur was missing the skin beneath was partially charred.

“Just stay by me, okay?” he said. The Charmander immediately stared up at Rim, clenching his fist. His mind was racing with possible ideas on how to take her down—any way at all that could break through those defenses of hers, but she seemed so insurmountable. He couldn’t even get a scratch on her before, and Rhys didn’t stand a chance, either.

If he struggled against Rhys, then what chance did he have against Rim? At some point, strategy could only take him so far…. Her barrier was the first problem. He could feel it, even from where he was standing. If he got too close, he’d run into that bubble of force; projectiles of any kind would be affected the same way.

“I’m small, but I’m strong,” he said to Enet. “I promise.” Owen then looked up at Rim, waiting for her next move. He didn’t spot a single mutant yet—Rim must be going on her own this time. Perhaps she realized that sending her soldiers wasn’t going to do the trick for someone clever like Enet.

Rim’s lack of action unnerved Owen.

The Zoroark sniffed, but then nodded. “F-fight!”

“Yeah, I’ll try that,” Owen muttered. He straightened and stared at Rim. “…H-hey! You better… leave us alone!” he shouted.

He knew that Rim was calculating her next move. She had the luxury of time—she could wait as much as she wanted, and they wouldn’t be able to escape. But something just wasn’t right about this. There was that inkling in the back of his head again. That this wasn’t just some coincidence that Rim found them, no—that there was something else going on. None of this felt right. She could have blasted them by now. Why did she stop?

That didn’t matter. She also wasn’t leaving. He had to scare her off somehow. He needed a boost—and he really only knew one way to get that. He glanced worriedly at Enet, but then at Rim.

Two lines of thought clashed in Owen’s mind in the frantic silence. How did Rim find them now, of all times? And now, why was she stopping, after she was one blast away from killing Enet? What changed?

Something clicked in Owen’s mind. A haphazard answer to both questions.

He glanced down at his bag for a split second and then looked at Rim again. “Hey! You know what?!” He dug through his bag; Rim leaned forward curiously. Owen pulled out his Eviolite-Everstone amalgam. That was when Owen saw it—her eyes, those huge eyes, bulging out a tiny bit more.

Owen threw the stone behind him. It hit the ground softly and rolled on the grass, landing a few feet behind Enet.

“Now what?!” Owen shouted at the Espurr.

For several agonizing seconds, they were completely silent. Enet had her eyes locked on Rim. Unstable power coursed through Enet—if he moved too much, he might evolve right then. Amia and Anam were slowly catching up, struggling through the thick underbrush. Anam struggled the most and was far behind the Gardevoir; he tried flying over, but that just spattered him against a tree trunk that blended in perfectly with the darkness.

“Mn…” Rim finally hummed. She looked up, and then closed her eyes. A swirl of light enveloped her, and then she disappeared.

“Teleport,” Owen muttered. She was gone, but the tension didn’t fade. It was a hot, tight feeling in his chest. “Oh—” He held his head and a bright light surrounded him. “Oh, w-wait!” he said, but then felt the power of evolution take hold. It was too familiar for him. No Pokémon should have to experience more than two of these, and how many times had he gone through it? At least a hundred… This time, he was aware enough of the process to feel his body shift and change, bones lengthening, scales softening and hardening. It wasn’t painful, but the fear that accompanied the transformation made it much worse.

He saw black sparks fly out of his body. He never understood what those were. Normal evolutionary light had no such darkness. It always felt like a part of him was being unchained, like a weight lifted from his spirit. He didn’t like what he felt when that weight lifted. He focused—he had to stay calm. Stay calm. Don’t let it take over. He was Owen. He will remain as “Owen.”

When the light faded, he sighed softly and stared at his claws. Charmeleon again… But he still felt that power rushing through him. It was flowing, building, ready to burst. The tension just didn’t stop!

“H-help!” Owen shouted. “I—I think I’m—”

A light enveloped Owen again; Owen’s fear tripled. Would this be all he could remember? His last memory?

Amia readied a special aura strike. That’s when Owen realized what his choice would be. Lose his memories all over again, or lose himself forever.

Owen was trying to resist it—but it was just too strong. What if he just didn’t evolve? That would be so much easier. Just so he could be himself for a little while longer. But it was a futile battle. He couldn’t keep it bottled up.

Would this be it? Would he even be able to revert back with the help of others? His Mysticism was a lot stronger, after all. What if he didn’t go back? What if Amia’s seal didn’t work? What if he was crazy forever?

Blackness danced around his arms and chest. The last of whatever energy it was that sealed him away was rapidly fading.

Forgetting everything, Owen’s eyes squeezed shut and he screamed. His mind became a muddled mess of wordless fear. His very spirit struggled to hang on to what sense of identity it had left, some primal fear that he would disappear taking over. That “Owen” would—

The light suddenly stopped. Vanished. No black, no white. Just his red scales. Owen felt the energy sink away. Down. Deep down, sealed within.

And for some reason, he felt something hard and cold on his back. His heart threatened to burst from his chest. His legs felt like they’d give way at any moment. His arms trembled. Breathe, breathe, Owen thought, trying to steady himself. He thought back to his meditation.

The object on his back followed his spine and touched his right shoulder. He finally had enough composure to figure out what it was and brought his hand back to grab it. He found Enet’s paw instead.

The unexpected feeling startled him enough to shout, “Enet!”

Enet shoved the thing back against Owen. He finally grabbed it. Heavy and round, and a bit rough against his claws. He stared dumbly at the Eviolite-Everstone. His fire—which had been a fearful white—slowly settled down to its warm orange and red.

“You… need this?” Enet asked curiously, looking down at him. The Zoroark was still much larger.

“I… yeah,” Owen said. “I do need this. I… I guess it scared Rim off, though, so that’s good.”

Owen’s legs finally gave out. He collapsed to a kneel, putting his free hand to the ground.

Amia finally breathed. She rushed to his side to keep him from collapsing completely. “Oh, thank goodness,” she said. “Owen! Don’t do something so reckless! What if…”

“We would’ve died if… I mean…” Owen took a second to gather himself. “I’m just glad that I’m not crazy.”

“Yeah!” Anam said. “But… don’t throw it away again! You evolved so fast!”

“Mhm,” Owen said. “I think… if I ever throw that stone away again, I’ll evolve,” he said. “I’m… am I really that unstable?”

“Unstable isn’t the right… word,” Amia lied. “Maybe you’re… just…”

“It’s too much power to contain,” Star said, summoned by Anam this time—and therefore, she was only slightly transparent. “I… don’t really know what’ll happen if you…” she trailed off. “Owen, what did it feel like when you were evolving? Were you… angry? Or…”

“No,” Owen said. “When I was evolving… I just kept feeling afraid. I kept trying to remember who I was, and who was important to me… but…” Owen trembled. “I—I was just s-so…”

Something huge and warm wrapped around his body. He abruptly looked up and saw a Magmortar holding him firmly, pulling him close.

“Dad…”

“It’s okay, Owen,” Alex said. “It’s okay. It’s okay…”

“I thought I’d forget you…”

Star, still a pink nebula, spoke delicately. “…And did you?”

Owen shook his head. “I—I don’t know, Enet got to me before that happened.” He moved to a sitting position, still too mentally weak to stand. He rubbed his eyes with the back of the hand that held the stone. “So, I didn’t forget anything. I was just…” Owen’s voice caught in his throat. “I—c-can I talk later? I n-need a second. I’m f-fine. I just…”

“Hey, take all the time you need, buddy,” Star said, looking up. “I don’t think Rim’s gonna bother us for a while.”

Owen took the time to contain himself. During that silence, Anam settled next to a rock with James. The two of them helped pluck out mushrooms and other forest debris from Anam’s body, tossing them into a pile for the ferals to enjoy when they left.

Alex refused to let Owen go. He had his cannons wrapped in an X over Owen’s chest, and the Charmeleon happily sat in his lap without protest, occasionally leaning against the left one. Amia sat nearby, rubbing Owen’s shoulders. Every so often, the Charmeleon let out little whimpers, wiping his eyes. He refused to acknowledge that he was crying.

Enet prodded at Owen’s other shoulder. He glanced at the Zoroark. “Enet?”

“Gift.”

Enet had an Oran Berry in her paws—how she got it, Owen had no idea. She was so lithe and silent that he didn’t even realize she had left. The thought surprised him—he was usually so aware of his surroundings as a Charmeleon. Perhaps the shock, the distractions, and the fact that he had just evolved dulled it more than usual. His breathing eased at the theorizing.

She bumped the berry against his snout, narrowing her eyes. “Gift,” she repeated impatiently.

“Oh—sorry.” He took the berry, gulping to clear his throat of some invisible obstruction. He finished it in two bites. The warmth was concentrated in his belly and radiated out through the rest of him.

“Better?” Enet asked.

He wasn’t—he didn’t feel particularly injured from the fight. This was a mental wound. But Enet perhaps didn’t understand that, so he smiled. “A lot better.”

Enet stared at Owen with an unsatisfied frown. She squeezed under Alex’s arm—he protested weakly, but figured she didn’t mean any harm. She squished herself between the Magmortar’s right cannon and Owen’s body, wrapping her arms around him until he sank into her fur.

“Not better,” she said, snorting. “Hurt.”

“Enet,” Owen sputtered, “what’re you—"

Enet made a strange sound between a growl and a purr, shoving the thick, red hair on her head into Owen’s face. Owen winced—it was still a bit damp from the river and smelled of mud and mushrooms—but his position made it very difficult to fight against it.

“What’s she doing?” Amia said.

“Aww,” Star said, leaning forward in the air. “She’s trying to hide him in her fur like a little hatchling.”

“I’m—not a kid—” Owen protested, hand bursting out from the fur.

Enet growled and shoved Owen back inside. The Charmeleon relented in a huff, but after a few seconds in the darkness, he started to enjoy it. It insulated him like a warm blanket. His father’s solid body behind him, and the thought of everyone else around him, felt better than even the most persistent Protect.

Owen wasn’t sure how much time had passed, but at some point, Amia spoke up.

“Anam,” she said. “What… happened back there? At the lake?”

“Huh?”

“Your… your voice changed. I don’t know who it was, but it definitely wasn’t James. It was… it almost sounded feminine! Did one of your spirits possess you?”

“Mm…” Anam held the side of his arm. “They wanted me to attack Rim… but I knew it might’ve hurt you if I did… m-my power is really, really scary.”

A phantom pain dully prodded at Owen’s hands. They always heard that Anam was the strongest Heart, but they never saw him attack. The most they saw was that ‘fun’ sparring match against Roh when climbing Manny’s spire. And even then, that was just Anam’s raw power—not his Ghostly powers. Even on missions, when he went on them when no other Heart could accomplish some task, he usually just hugged his enemies into submission, or otherwise found some nonviolent way to subdue them. He always said his actual fighting would hurt them too much.

Owen believed him. Even now, it felt like his hands were tingling from some strange rot, even though that pain was gone. His very aura was still healing from the blast.

“I’ll be more careful,” Anam said quietly. “Sorry, Owen…. Does it still hurt?”

“No,” Owen lied. “But, uh, it goes away, right?”

Anam nodded. “You’ll be okay. Um—actually, let me help.”

He slowly stood up, picking out the last mushroom from his arm. Enet hissed and shrank away, wanting nothing to do with his slimy body. Owen moved forward and politely held out his hands.

Anam closed his eyes and waved a slimy finger over both, mumbling something under his breath. A little, golden light sparked from his finger toward Owen. His claws reflexively clenched from the burst of energy, but the pain went away instantly.

“There,” Anam said. “I’m sorry…”

Owen shook his head. “It’s okay,” he said. “You were trying to help scare Rim away. But I guess that wasn’t enough.” He sighed, looking into his bag again where he had placed his sealing stone. “But Rim ran away when I threw this away. Why did she run? What if… I’m strong enough to…?”

“As a mutant Charizard?” Star said. “I think you’ll beat her. Mmmaybe. That’s why she ran. But to be honest, Anam could’ve, too. Again, maybe. To be honest, she’s been getting stronger, too, with the whole Psychic Orb thing…” Star shook her head. “No telling. But one thing I’ll say is that you’d be way more mobile than Anam. That’s probably why she didn’t run away.”

“Hm.” He somehow doubted that, looking at Star carefully.

“What?” Star asked.

“I don’t think you’re right.” He looked down. “I’d just go crazy. I feel like there’s more to it. If I evolved completely… I wouldn’t be strong enough, would I? I’d just be undirected.”

Star said nothing, like she was trying to find her words.

“Good thinking on stopping that,” Alex spoke up, looking down at Owen with a wide grin.

“More like good thinking for Enet keeping me from going too far,” Owen replied, smiling at the Zoroark.

“I did good?” Enet asked.

Owen giggled. “Yes!” Finally finding the energy to get out from his father’s embrace, he stood up, tail burning as bright as the light in his eyes. He balled his claws into a fist. “Now—how about we go home? Wanna come with us, Enet?”

“Yeah!”

“Oh!” Anam said. “That’s right! Um, actually—let me go and tell Nevren!”

Thoughts rushed back to Owen in an instant. The other answer to the questions he’d asked himself during that tense silence against Rim. Nevren.

Anam found the communicator. “He should know that we got Enet safe and—”

“Wait,” Owen said. “Don’t tell him.”

“D… don’t?” Anam’s green eyes were wide. “Why?”

The Charmeleon hesitated.

“Owen?” Amia asked.

Owen looked at her. He saw recognition in her eyes. She understood. He was planning something or thinking about something troubling him. His incessant mental mapping must be playing in his favor. It was just a part of how he was created—how he was designed… but that was just for the surrounding area. It had nothing to do with logic. He didn’t have a talent for that, did he? What if he was just mistaken? Paranoid?

“…Never mind,” Owen said. “I just wanted to make sure Rim wasn’t still around, but I can’t sense her.”

“Oh, okay.” Anam nodded. “Good thing you did. That’d be bad if I told him we were fine and then she attacked!”

Owen glanced at Amia pleadingly. The Gardevoir nodded again, assuring him silently that she would ask for the real answer later.

“Nevren! We’re okay!” Anam reported to the communicator. “Rim tried to attack us, but Owen scared her off!”

“O-Owen did? How? Did—is he okay?” Nevren asked.

“Yeah! He evolved to a Charmeleon, but that’s it! He almost evolved into a Mutantzard, but then Enet stopped it! It was so cool!”

“Mutantzard…?” Owen grumbled. “Can we stop making combo-names of my species…? Grassmander, Charmelon, Florizard… isn’t that enough?”

“Char… melon,” Amia repeated. “Who told you that one?”

Owen’s face flushed. Nobody had. “Uh—Mispy did. But she probably doesn’t remember anymore.”

“Ah,” Nevren’s voice came from the communicator. “Very good. Return with Enet so we can have another Guardian on our side, safely.”

“Got it!” And with that, Anam shoved the communicator into his chest. “Let’s go!”

<><><>​

All of Hot Spot Village was having dinner together in the square—it wasn’t anything grand. Most of it was actually centered around those who had to eat—the three others that were part of Owen’s set, Demitri, Mispy, and Gahi. Owen, for the sake of nostalgia, got himself a small portion and excused himself to his room to unwind—nobody really protested, after what he went through. He made a glance at Zena and they briefly locked eyes. The Milotic nodded, quietly waiting in line to get a small portion for herself to enjoy. She’d follow him after.

In the square, with Valle as the glowing centerpiece as usual, Demitri hopped excitedly near Mispy.

“So, he scared off Rim by evolving, and threatening to evolve a second time?” Demitri said. “Now I really want to evolve! …But stay sane.” He rubbed at the smooth edge of his left tusk.

“Mm.” Mispy nodded, bobbing her leaf. “How much longer?” She nibbled on one of the mushrooms near Hot Spot. Amia had said they were edible, but not very tasty, but she didn’t mind. It was something to chew on, and it made her tongue glow.

“I’m not really sure,” Rhys said, crossing his arms. “Hrrmn… well. I suppose that—ngh!” Rhys abruptly turned around, feeling something brush against his back. Enet flinched and stepped away. “Ah—Enet, is it?”

The Zoroark stared at Rhys warily.

“I think she’s nervous about your, you know, Fighting aura, Rhys,” Amia said delicately.

“Ah, I see…” Rhys said. “I apologize, Enet. Would you like me to keep my distance?”

Enet nodded.

Rhys flinched. He usually got a polite ‘no, it’s okay’ response, but Enet just wanted him gone. “A-am I truly that intimidating?”

“Don’t use too many big words, Rhys,” Amia said. “She isn’t very good at speaking our language yet.”

Enet growled.

“I—I see,” Rhys said. “I’ll… I’ll just speak with my students.” He shuffled off.

“Poor guy.” Amia giggled. “Oh well. She’ll warm up… won’t you, Enet?”

Enet shrugged and eyed the food.

“Oh! D’you want to eat? Well—go, eat! You can!”

“I can?” Enet asked uncertainly. “But…”

“Oh, it’s for everyone! Please, Enet, go eat! It looks like some of us went out to gather some food for everyone, so it should be just fine.” Amia nodded. “Oh, that’s right!” She slapped her hands together. “Zena!”

“Y-yes?” Zena said, jumping at the sudden attention. She had been only seconds away from leaving for Owen. She had slithered around Valle, who commented something about Zena to be at an admiration distance than so close.

“The friend you mentioned to me,” Amia said. “The one that you said Anam reminded you of. What species was she?”

“Species,” Zena repeated, distancing from Valle, who murmured a thanks, despite the fact that Willow was now crawling over the Shiftry’s stone head. “Friend? What do you mean?” The Milotic blinked curiously, as if she didn’t know what Amia was talking about at all.

Amia blinked. “What?”

“You said something,” Zena said. “That Anam reminded me of someone?”

“…I did?”

Rhys, in the middle of walking away, stopped and glanced at the two. “Is something the matter?” he asked. “Amia, you were just asking Zena about a friend she mentioned—that Anam reminded her of.”

Zena and Amia both looked at Rhys dumbly. “What do you mean, dear?”

“I…” Rhys blinked. “…What? Do you not remember? Zena?”

“I do remember someone that Anam reminds me of,” Zena said. “But I can’t remember what she looked like… Are you sure you asked me about her?”

“I think I did,” Amia said.

Suddenly alarmed at the rapid forgetfulness of the two Guardians, Rhys said, “Are you two all right? Your memory problems are even more concerning than Team Alloy’s.”

Amia crossed her arms, pursing her lips. “Goodness, that’s confusing. It was during dinner some time ago. Oh, that’s right! You did tell me the species!” She said. “It was a Lugia!”

Rhys’ paws barely flashed with the blue flame of aura, but he masked it before anybody noticed. “Ah, I see,” he said. “That’s—quite an extraordinary Pokémon to be friends with, Zena. How in the world would you forget that? Have you met her recently?”

“I haven’t,” Zena said. “You’re right. I can’t believe I forgot about her. She was such a wonderful friend…. But I didn’t find her in the spirit world at all. Yes, now I remember.”

“How long have you been away, Zena? Perhaps she’s still around,” Amia said. “Ohh, we should go searching for her! A Lugia! That’d be hard to miss!”

“Hrm,” said Rhys. “Well, another time. It’s late.”

Amia nodded, but then spotted Enet scarfing down her meal. She giggled; seeing the wild Pokémon indulge warmed everyone’s spirits. With the dinner get-together lively, Amia took the opportunity to slip away and find Owen. “Oh, Zena?” She realized they were going in the same direction.

“Oh, I’m sorry,” Zena said, shrinking back. “I was going to eat with Owen. Is that a bother?”

“No, no, not at all! I’m glad he’s making new friends,” Amia said. “Please, come with me.”

Once inside her home, she summoned Alex, and then gently knocked on the wall of Owen’s room before stepping inside. He had already gotten the Charmeleon-ready bed from storage down the cavern hall. By his tableside was his meal, nearly finished, and in his hands was a comic from his personal collection. His tail helped to illuminate the pages.

“Owen, dear?”

“Oh, Mom, Dad,” Owen said. “Hey, uh… Sorry, I was just thinking. The noise gets distracting. Oh—Zena. Yeah, hey.” He placed the book on the side of his nest of leaves and grabbed his meal.

“Mm.” Zena gave a polite nod. “Are you feeling well?”

“Not really,” Owen said with a nervous titter. “I kinda almost died and also almost went crazy back there. I think I’m a little shaken up.” Owen held out his right hand to demonstrate. It still trembled. The stew in the Aspear bowl in his left hand shook as well. “I’ll be fine. To be honest… I don’t think I was in any danger against Rim… but Enet was. And… and when I almost evolved again…”

“All the way to Charizard?” Zena said worriedly. “Why, you left as a Charmander!”

Owen tapped at the bag around his shoulder. “Nevren gave me an Eviolite, but it was actually also an Everstone. When I tossed it away, I…”

“Oh.” Zena understood. “If you tossed it again…”

Owen nodded. “But… Rim barely tried to attack me. She was going after Enet, but not… me. I think that’s something that was bothering me, too. Why…”

“It’s okay,” Amia said. “You were very strong, Owen. And you’re safe now. I don’t know why that Hunter is acting the way she is, either, but… you should just relax.”

Owen relented, nodding. It was just going to get him more worked up.

Zena slithered closer to Owen and wrapped around his bed, holding her bowl of stew in her ribbons. She looked to the Charmeleon, then at his parents, almost as if asking for permission.

Without thinking, Owen leaned back, using Zena’s coils as a rest. “I definitely need a break,” he said. But he still seemed troubled, and he knew that the three with him would pick up on it.

“Owen, you wanted to say something before we headed back,” Alex said. “What was it? I saw from Amia’s eyes—it was like you…”

Owen nodded, but he stalled for time by finishing the last of his stew. “You can’t tell anybody else, okay?” Owen finally said. “Not yet. I don’t even know if I’m right or not, I just… it’s kinda just this feeling I got when I pieced things together in my head. The way everything is starting to slide into place and all that.”

“Slide into place,” Zena repeated.

“How Rim is getting to these places so fast, and how she just follows us so easily,” Owen said. “The way she reacted when I was evolving, and that stone that’s keeping me from evolving completely. All of that, and everything before… I think… I know what it might be.” He looked down at the stone in his hand—the gift he was given. “I don’t… know if Nevren’s being honest with us.”

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 29 – Honor and Loyalty​

The more Owen thought about it, the stranger it all felt. Nevren’s actions seemed friendly, but the peculiar things that he did from time to time, specifically with him, made him suspicious. The gift that he was given to suppress his evolution, right before he became Mystic? Right before the traditional suppression methods wouldn’t have been enough? Then there was Nevren’s entire past in creating them.

And then, most of all—and what made Owen still scratch his scaly head—what exactly was that vision he had on the mountain, during his trial to become a Heart? Nevren had tried to attack him back then, but it was all a dream. It was, right? He wasn’t hurting at all when it was over, and he knew he’d dealt a horrible blow onto Nevren, too. So, what was that all about? Was it really the altitude? Or was it a Psychic vision that Nevren gave him, perhaps to test out his skills? That could have been it.

Owen tried to explain this to Zena, Amia, and Alex, and while Zena nodded at every word, Amia and Alex seemed less sure.

“Are you sure that you aren’t just a little worn out?” Amia said. “To be honest, all I want to do is rest for the night. Don’t you? Nevren may have not told you that the stone would keep you from evolving because then you’d try to evolve—and that’s just not a good idea right now… right? Why don’t you just rest?”

“But it seems suspicious, don’t you think?” Zena pushed.

“Nevren’s gift is the only reason Owen is still with us,” Alex said with a frown. “For that alone, I think we owe him quite a bit.”

“He could have been honest with Owen,” Zena said, growling. “Star is still not telling us everything, and to be honest, if Star ever tells us to do something questionable, I won’t follow.”

“None of us will, dear,” Amia said. “But think of it this way. If Nevren told Owen that it was an Everstone… and that he wasn’t supposed to evolve… how do you suppose he would react? Owen, who wanted nothing more than to evolve?”

Both Zena and Owen flinched. The Charmeleon gulped, turning his head to focus on his stash of books in the back alcove of the room. “I guess I could be a little tired,” Owen said. “But… I don’t know. I still don’t know.”

“Just… just don’t throw away that stone, okay?” Alex begged. “Getting too far away from it just might evolve you, and we can’t have that. Not yet.”

“Because I’ll go crazy?”

“Well… yes?” Amia said delicately. “I think we all agree that we might not be ready for that. You still need some time to meditate.”

Owen fiddled with his claws again. Then, he looked up at Zena, and then Amia and Alex. The first thing they’d asked him when he almost evolved was what he was thinking, and if he felt angry. Or perhaps if he felt violent? But he didn’t feel either of those things. He felt afraid. He thought about nothing but those he knew. He didn’t feel some sort of insanity creeping in on him, did he? Sure, there was a pressure, but that wasn’t the same. Right?

“But do I?” he said. “What if I’ve been ready this whole time, and this stone is holding me back?”

“Now, Owen, let’s not—”

“What if I got rid of it and evolved when I was calmer? I bet I’d be fine after that,” Owen said. “Then I could take on Rim and the other Hunters, no problem. It’d all be over. I bet I’d even rescue all of the other Guardians that are lost and afraid… I could’ve saved Cara and Forrest.”

Owen still remembered how terrified the Lopunny in particular had looked. That could’ve been any of them. That could’ve been Zena if the Hunters got to her first. With a fire in his chest, Owen glanced at the Milotic, then at his parents.

“So why don’t I try it?”

“Because, dear,” Amia said in a slow, yet frantic tone, “don’t you think you’re jumping to conclusions? The last time you evolved, you still went—”

“I went crazy, but I was stressed! Attacked by Azu! What happened after that? When I won? Was I still angry?”

“I… I mean.” Amia stumbled over her words. “Not… not really, but… but you were shaking, and shivering—and I know that you were trying your hardest to keep it together. You weren’t ready, even after the fight was over. I… it’s just not good yet, okay? Even if Nevren might not be totally honest with us—maybe you evolving isn’t good for either of us.”

Owen flinched. “I… I mean…” He turned away. “I guess that’s a possible answer…”

“I don’t want to risk it yet,” Amia said. “Can you just wait a little while longer? We—we’ll try evolving you later. When we can be sure we’ll turn you back… if it doesn’t work out.”

The Charmeleon huffed. “Okay,” he relented. “…But I get to stay as a Charizard for a little while, okay? If I’m not attacking anybody, then it should be just fine, right?”

“Yes… okay, Owen… I know you want to do it, and we can’t force you to not evolve, so… let’s just schedule a time for it to happen, alright? Will that be okay?”

“…Two days,” Owen said. “I want to try evolving in two days. And this counts as the first day.”

Amia sighed, but Owen held firm. She really trapped herself with that one. “Not… three days?”

“Two days,” Owen said, prodding at his remaining food. He dumped the rest into his mouth and stood up to put the bowl away.

Zena frowned. “Can’t you wait a little longer, Owen?” the Water Guardian asked. “We still don’t know for sure. And I don’t want to lose you.”

Some of the wind under Owen’s nonexistent wings faded, but he didn’t answer directly. Instead, he said, “If I feel like I can handle it, then I’m going to try.”

Alex watched his son go, and then shook his head. “…He’s certainly going through that rebellious phase… again… isn’t he?”

Amia rubbed her head. “He’s probably remembering all the other times he went through it,” she said. “Ohh,, he trapped me in my own argument!”

“You could have just said three days,” Alex said.

“Then he would have just tossed his stone today,” Amia said, pouting. “But… I can’t blame him. You have to look at it from his perspective—he doesn’t even know who he really is, in a way. And now he wants to claim it.”

Zena nodded. “I can’t imagine what that must feel like,” she told them. “Owen doesn’t know if who he is right now is real. Can you imagine? The idea that who you are is just… false. That the real you is sealed inside.” Zena tensed. “Owen… he’s… he’s not someone completely different, is he?”

“He might lose himself completely,” Alex said.

“We’ll fix it if that happens,” Amia said, glancing at her hands. “Just like always…”

“…But… but will it work?” Alex tried not to look too nervous.

Amia hesitated. “…I’m going to train,” she said. “Just that attack. Just the Suppression Aura. To make sure I can do it right, and do it strongly, to buy us some extra time.”

“Strong,” Alex said. “I think we’re all going to have to be strong for this—including Owen.”

Zena looked at Owen’s collection of books. “Amia,” she said. “Teach me the Suppression Aura, too.”

<><><>​

Outside, Owen stepped through the caves again, admiring the mushroom light. He looked at his pouch, and then took the stone out of it. He stared for a while. Rolled it in his claws. Dug into a small imperfection in the amalgam. Eviolite… why was he so gullible? Why did he just accept what Nevren said as the truth? He always seemed so trustworthy to him.

Was that just part of his latent instincts? Did his instincts naturally trust him, his creator? Or was he built to be a follower?

Owen stared at the stone again, holding it in a crushing grip. It was too strong to destroy that way. Owen wondered, what would happen if he tossed it into the lava? If he headed down to the flaming river and… got rid of it? Would he evolve right there? Would he feel perfectly normal? Would he remember everything, and take down the Hunters, just like that? Was it that easy? Could Nevren be holding him back this entire time, just with this gift?

Cara and Forrest were dead because they were too weak and too slow. Rim ran away when he threatened to evolve. And Rim attacked Rhys before, but when the others of Team Alloy evolved, she ran away, too!

They could have beaten her!

Owen clutched the stone a bit harder. His arm muscles felt hot. Hotter than the lava he bathed in.

The sound of something metallic tumbling to the ground echoed out of the cave. It startled Owen so much that he nearly dropped the amalgam. He faltered with it in the air and slipped it into the bag out of reflex.

Rhys cursed from his room in the cavern to the right.

For the briefest moment, Owen eyed the home with suspicion. He was a Hunter, too. But then, Owen recalled that Rhys had made a Promise to Zena that he’d abandon that position. He couldn’t kill another Guardian, let alone betray them. If anything… he could trust Rhys.

Hesitating, Owen walked into the ex-Hunter’s home and tapped the back of his claw against the wall. He passed the kitchen, went through the familiar hall, and turned to the right on the first entryway.

“Ah, hello, Owen,” Rhys said, a tinge of irritation in his voice, which Owen interpreted as toward the mess in front of him. It seemed that one of the shelves broke under the weight of another memento that Rhys had apparently found on the ground. A Dusk Stone from Nightshade Forest. What use would he ever have for that? Owen rolled his eyes. He probably thought it’d be ‘useful someday.’

Even with his clouded memories, that phrase associated with Rhys was very familiar. He had thousands of those moments. Some of them seemed more useless than the others, like the odd, metallic bracelet near the corner of the fallen shelves. One of Nevren’s prototype inventions. Nevren…

Owen dug through his bag and set down the Everstone-Eviolite. “Rhys?” he said. “Did you always know Nevren gave me this to keep me from evolving?”

Rhys dropped the Fire Stone he’d been holding.

Owen growled, tail flashing yellow. “You did.”

Rhys sighed. “You were evolving very quickly, Owen. It was an emotional strain on your mother. That goes double after you wound up becoming the Grass Guardian. It makes suppressing your true form… difficult.”

“Hm.” That much made sense. He could only imagine how hard it was for Amia and Alex to keep up with him, constantly worrying that he’d evolve in the wrong place at the wrong time…

Owen rubbed his head. “The sooner my memories are totally back, the better.” He paused, remembering why he’d approached in the first place. “Rhys, er—about Nevren, actually. I…” He hesitated, realizing that, if Rhys knew about it, and Rhys was no longer a Hunter, then the likelihood of Nevren still being a Hunter was slim to none.

He asked anyway, just to be sure. “Why do you trust Nevren? He’s so… blank. I can never get a read from him. And he used to be a Hunter, just like you. What makes you trust him?”

Owen had reminded himself of yet another reason to be wary of the Alakazam. His unreadable expressions. His lack of muscle movement. The only thing that had ever phased him in a meaningful way was when Rhys made that Promise—and only then, because of how significant it was to make it. If Nevren lied to him, Owen’s strange Perception ability would not work.

Another thought crossed his mind. What if it simply didn’t work on Nevren, specifically? How deep did his instincts go? Paranoia creeping in, he refocused on Rhys. His pause didn’t bode well.

Rhys looked at Owen, humming thoughtfully. Then, he sighed, and continued to arrange his items on the repaired shelf. “I promised Nevren that I would not tell you about the moment we shared.”

“Uhh—” Owen blushed.

“Not in that way,” Rhys hissed.

Owen waited for an alternative explanation.

Rhys sighed irritably. “A very long time ago, Nevren behaved as Anam’s strategist. A tactician, so to speak, during… an event. He was working in a mutual interest between the Hunters and the Hearts to stabilize the world during a chaotic era, before the Thousand Hearts established its roots across all of Kilo.”

Owen listened intently. A time when the Hearts weren’t around? How long ago could that have been?

“One day,” he said, “near the end of this chaos, Nevren approached me. And… he confessed to me that while he had been aligned with the Hunters for quite some time, something… changed in his worldview. It was when I was… gravely injured, resting in a hospital—this was before Anam’s blessings were widespread—and Anam saved my life by bringing me there. Nevren approached me then, while I was resting, and told me that he had an epiphany.”

“An epiphany?” Owen said. “Wait—so Nevren was still a Hunter?”

“We didn’t necessarily call ourselves that at the time,” Rhys admitted. “It was a different time. The Divine Dragons, we called ourselves. Frankly, I can’t recall why…. None of us are Dragons. I believe Eon came up with the term because it sounded cool…” Rhys rolled his eyes.

Calling oneself a Dragon, despite not being one, was something Owen felt he could relate to all too strongly.

Rhys went on. “But yes. And it was on that day of his epiphany… that I saw Nevren as the most emotional Pokémon I’d ever seen him. Now, it was nothing dramatic. He did not cry. He did not shout. Frankly, he did not do much than he usually did. But his eyes, Owen.” Rhys looked down at a small bag of marbles. “His eyes were alive with light. The light of a Heart. He said that the Hearts deserved the world.” Rhys pulled out a marble from the bag. A blue one, with a single, green circle on one side. “Ever since that day, I noticed that, while working with Anam, he seemed… somehow happier. Content. That’s the word. As if he knew what he wished to do with himself. Someone who knew his purpose.” Rhys chuckled. “I envy a Pokémon who knows such peace.”

Owen listened, but then hung his head in shame. He knew none of what Rhys was saying. Those memories were locked away so firmly that he knew it was tied to a point in time that Star had sealed for his own safety. Owen could feel it, even now. The blocks that Star put on his mind—the memories that were pressed up against them. It was a dull headache. But if Owen knew what Rhys had known, he wouldn’t have been suspicious of Nevren at all.

“He really just wants to help,” Owen said. “Oh, Mew. I feel bad just for thinking he was sabotaging us.”

“Sabotaging?”

Owen nodded. “Rim’s been catching up to us every time we talk with the communicators. Or, that’s kinda how I noticed it.”

“Rim is also the Psychic Guardian, unfortunately,” Rhys said. “And while I doubt that grants her the ability to see into the future, I suspect it heightens her perceptive range—and aura senses—significantly. We also know that they likely have a means of tracking Guardians as well.”

“Oh,” Owen said. “Right… I… forgot about that.”

The evidence fell apart. It was all circumstantial. Nevren was just trying to help with all of his inventions. He thought about how he had advanced the whole world with his technological marvels. Waypoints. Badges. Even those X-Ray Specs that Owen was grounded for life from using. He, along with James, managed almost everything to do with the Hearts’ inner organization, keeping all of Kilo safe.

He gave his whole life to the Association. And just because he gave him an evolution-suppressing stone, he thought he was a liar. When in the end, it was just so he could stay sane, and to help his parents cope.

“Hey, Owen!” Gahi shouted.

This broke the Charmeleon’s chain of thought. “Wh—what?”

“Let’s train! I wanna evolve like yeh got to!”

The levity was just what he needed. “Oh—okay,” Owen said. “Sure! Yeah…” He couldn’t deny the joy in battles, even if it was an instinct that he was born with. Perhaps he could forget about that for at least a little while.

“Thanks, Rhys,” Owen said.

Rhys smiled. “I would trust Nevren with my life, Owen. I’m sorry that we lied to you.”

Owen shook his head. “I get it,” he said, and then left.

In the hall, before meeting up with Gahi and the others, he looked down at the stone again. Carrying it around, hoping it would keep him sane, wasn’t going to cut it after a while. Maybe Amia had a point. Maybe evolving should wait until he was definitely, totally ready for it. But how else would he be able to ensure he’d have it with him? A dull headache pulsed through him, and he recalled in a previous life, an Aerodactyl stealing his bag, including the stone. It seemed a lot more believable that he’d lose it when it was the least convenient.

But how was he supposed to keep that from happening again? Owen pondered, tail-fire dimming to his deep concentration. And then, an idea came.

<><><>​

“Please… leave me be,” Valle said.

Enet tilted her head, sniffing at the feet of the stone Shiftry.

True to form, the Rock Guardian did not move.

“This is not something that I am used to,” Valle said. “Enet, Guardian of Electricity, this is too close.”

Enet tilted her head to the other side, pacing around Valle. “Not move?”

“I do not move. All is stillness.”

“But… I move.”

“I am the Guardian of Rock,” Valle said. “It is not my place to do such…” He trailed off.

“Can’t move?”

“I can, but I choose not to.”

“Why?”

Valle was silent. “It… is simply something that I have grown accustomed to.”

“But other Rock move,” Enet said, using her claw to pull at her lower right lip. She reached down and picked up a pebble, tossing it from one paw to the other.

Valle rumbled.

Enet stopped. “Not you? Because you crazy?”

“I—did not go crazy, as you call it,” Valle said. “I… built a tolerance to the solitude.”

“Solitude?”

“…Being alone.”

“Oh,” Enet nodded, sitting down. “Being alone… hurts.”

Valle took a few seconds to reply. “It… does. Yes. It did. But I grew used to it.”

Enet frowned and made her way back to the front of Valle. “But… not alone! So… move again!”

“Move, again?”

By now, a few others passing by were listening in on the conversation, wondering what Enet was trying. Most just let Valle do as he wanted, but now…

ADAM buzzed curiously. “Valle, do you wish to change your protocol?”

“I… am unsure,” Valle said. “I don’t know if I know how to move.”

“Move!” Enet waved her arms around. “Easy!”

“Easy,” Valle repeated uncertainly.

A distant explosion shook the caves, though the walls were too strong to risk the area collapsing.

“That must be the modified Pokémon fighting,” Valle said.

“Modi…?” Enet puffed out her cheeks. “Use easy words!”

“The Pokémon that become something strange when they evolve,” Valle said.

“Strange?” Enet asked. “Oh! Owen! And the other four…”

“…Three,” ADAM corrected.

Enet blinked and counted her claws, but then huffed and turned around. “Numbers dumb.”

“Numbers are everything,” ADAM replied.

Enet growled again. “Dumb.”

Valle was still as always, but he appeared to be observing their movements carefully. The unmoving Guardian spoke, “Are you… sure?”

“Sure?” Enet asked. “Huh?”

“About… movement,” Valle said. “Is it… safe to do?”

“Yes?” Enet asked, wiggling her arms. “Easy!”

Valle was silent again. “I can float… and I can slide,” he said. “But… I have not moved in a mountain’s age.”

Enet tilted her head. She clearly didn’t understand the analogy. “Age?”

“Do you plan to move, Valle? Are you certain that is the best choice?” ADAM asked.

“I don’t know,” Valle said. “…Stillness… I need stillness.”

“How come?” Enet asked.

Valle couldn’t answer.

“Move!” Enet encouraged, jumping once in the air. “Easy! Try… arm! Move arm!” She wiggled her right arm.

“My arm… yes. My arm. I could move my arm.” Though Valle didn’t move it yet. “That doesn’t sound very hard. The stillness… doesn’t need to be forever. Even other Rock Pokémon move. Mountains move, rarely… slowly… I can move. Can’t I?”

“Yeah,” Enet said. “I think so. Right?”

There was a long silence again. Enet shifted awkwardly, eventually losing interest, though ADAM remained, watching Valle closely.

“Do you intend to move?” ADAM asked.

“I… yes. I will.” Slowly, almost imperceptibly, one of Valle’s arms twitched. And then moved again, and then, by roughly a mere ten degrees, the arm changed its angle. And then it stopped. The nearby cavern walls trembled, like the skipping of a heartbeat. “That… is enough movement for a while.”

“Huh?” Enet looked back. “Oh! You moved! I think…” Enet tilted her head at the rocky Guardian.

“I did,” said Valle. “Thank you.”

“Yeah!” Enet said. But then, the Zoroark addressed ADAM. “You. Talk weird.”

ADAM buzzed in response. “Weird?”

“Yeah! Zzzz! What’s that?”

Adam twitched. “Zzzz? I am processing.”

“Processing?”

“Yes. I think. I must think. Sometimes things… puzzle me, and I require extra time to think.”

“Thinking, you zzz?” Enet asked.

ADAM buzzed again.

“That! What’s that?”

ADAM buzzed louder. “That is me thinking. I am annoyed.”

“Are you broken?” Enet asked.

“Far from broken! I am—optimal!” ADAM twitched furiously.

Enet giggled. “Funny words!”

“Aaaaaaa.” ADAM flew into a nearby building, perhaps to cool off his core units.

“Enet,” Valle said. “Why do you think ADAM is broken?”

“Huh?” Enet asked. “Not broken?”

“Well… he is certainly odd,” Valle replied. “But I attributed that to his species. Porygon-Z tend to behave… oddly. It is a wonder where they even came from. The rumor is they came from an ancient time of the mythical human.”

“Oh.” None of this meant anything to her. “He… smelled funny.” She sniffed the air. “Smell … of his, this,” she said, patting her chest.

“His… chest, had an odd smell.” Valle repeated.

“No,” Enet said. “The… this,” she said, pressing her claws deeper into her fur.

“His heart? …Does he have one?” Valle asked. “Ohh.” He recognized the frustrated look on her face. “You mean his aura. All of our auras are strange. I’m surprised that you perceive auras by smell, Enet.”

“You don’t?”

“No,” said Valle. “I see it with sight.”

This was foreign to the Zoroark.

“Well, in any case, perhaps he is just odd,” said Valle. “Now… Enet. Why don’t you see the others? I… must… be still, here.”

“You won’t move more?”

“Tch… I shall move in the future,” Valle said. “I promise.”

This was enough for the wild creature. “Okay.” And so, she bounded off.

<><><>​

Nevren sat in the middle of Anam’s office, sorting through records and papers. Anam was in another room of the Heart HQ, performing blessings on another batch of seeds, which required the withdrawal of all his spirits—including James—to perform with the most power and efficiency. That left the Alakazam alone to manage the paperwork.

“Hmm, interesting,” he said. “There are quite a few false alarms… a good handful of sightings in the Southern Ocean, but that’s likely due to the glowing moss that comes with the transition of summer to autumn. Still, perhaps it wouldn’t hurt to investigate further…”

“More reports, Elite Nevren!”

“Ah, thank you, put it on the desk!” Nevren called back, not even looking up. He sorted through more of the papers. “Ahh, I simply don’t have the time to look through every single one of these, do I? If only I could—hm, wait a moment. Why don’t I just—” Nevren paused, looking at a small, silver badge next to him. Unlike the communicator, this one had a blue, glowing gem in the middle. He reached toward it, but then stopped when the blue gem abruptly dimmed to a dead gray. “…How long have you been there?”

“Eep—!”

Nevren sighed and turned around. “Rim, you know it’s rude to eavesdrop. Come on, show yourself.”

The Espurr appeared in a warping bend of light.

“Well, I take it you know where the next few Orbs are, do you? I imagine you’ll be sending Elder to do his negotiating first. A futile effort, you know. They’re very unlikely to agree to anything of the sort, simply giving up their power willingly like that…”

Rim glanced away.

“Yes, yes, I suppose you always have a bit of hope that you won’t have to take it away violently, but, hrm…” Nevren sighed. “Well. I suppose I can’t stop you. I’ve already tried convincing you quite a few times, after all.” Nevren looked at the gray gem again. “Ah, speaking of which, could you vanish for a moment?”

Rim stared at Nevren curiously.

“Just for a moment.”

Rim obeyed, disappearing. A few seconds later, a Golem stepped into the office. “We have another report,” he said.

“Ah, good. You were sent to the Arachno Forest?”

“Yes, er—we were, but… we don’t think anybody should go there anymore.”

“Oh? Is it that dangerous?”

“Y-yes. Actually, about that, I’d… like to set up a mission for it.”

Nevren tilted his head. “A rescue mission? …Where is the rest of your team?”

The Golem winced.

“I see. I will set one up immediately.”

“Th-thank you.”

He left. Rim appeared shortly after.

“Rim, if it’s not a bother,” he said, “are the mutants responsible for that?”

Rim shook her head immediately.

“But did we not send quite a few of them there in the past? None returned. But their spirits never went into the aura sea, either—so it wasn’t as if they were killed. Hecto informed Eon as much, regardless of how uncooperative those Zygarde have been lately. Are you sure they don’t simply get lost in their battle modes there?”

Rim shook her head. “But… I can’t…”

“Hmm… well. Please, set up a team anyway in an attempt to rescue his Pokémon, Rim. Moderately strong mutants should do. Team of three? Be sure to set them to Scouting and not Battling.”

Rim nodded.

“Ah, and Rim,” Nevren said.

“Mm?”

“How many Orbs do you have at the moment? Which ones, between yourself and Eon?”

“…Psychic…” Rim said. “Flying, Ground…” She paused, but then nodded.

“Only three, hm?” he said. “You’re falling behind. At this rate, Owen will have you beaten for sure.”

Rim winced.

“No need to worry.” Nevren sighed. “After all, he didn’t align with Barky. Did you hear of that?”

“N-no…! What?”

“Yes! Quite surprising. Perhaps Rhys was right after all.” Nevren nodded, almost beaming. “Incredible, really. I’d go easy on him for that. Well, in any case, Frozen Oceanside may be a bit dangerous for them to handle, so I’d recommend gathering that Orb next. Ice Type, so be wary of being frozen. The Pokémon there is quite hostile toward Hunters. And Star. And Barky. Frankly everyone, quite cold in spirit.”

“Elder…”

“Elder?” Nevren said. “I’d honestly rather not. Regardless of his elemental attributes, he may become encased in ice immediately if he doesn’t convince her to side with us or relinquish her power. It isn’t as if that strategy worked before.”

“Eon said to…”

“Yes, but Eon is far from logical,” Nevren said. “It may be a gesture of good faith, but sending Elder is a waste of time and a risk to the poor Torkoal’s life. Let him rest.”

Rim stared with her big eyes.

Nevren shook his head.

Rim stared harder.

The Alakazam sighed. “Very well,” he relented. “Elder first. Remember, I don’t want to send Owen on risky missions. He isn’t strong enough yet. He and his friends need to live. A shame he already befriended the Zoroark, but I suppose it cannot be helped. I was hoping you’d kill her before that happened, like with Cara or Forrest.”

“Mm.” Rim nodded, but then eyed the Alakazam carefully. “Owen…”

“Hm? Owen?”

“Tried… to evolve…”

“Evolve…” Nevren frowned. “Yes, I heard. Is he ready?”

Rim bit at her lower lip.

“Hmm… Perhaps I should talk to him.”

“He might not… trust you…”

“Ah,” Nevren nodded. “I suppose he would be the first to worry. Well, aside from Rhys. I don’t think he fully trusts me, even now. He wouldn’t understand. Just like Eon and his emotions, Rhys lets his honor get in the way. Time is running out, hm? Third war or not, we must keep going. Still. Regarding Owen. What do you recommend?”

Rim tensed, shaking her head.

“Ah, sorry, sorry,” Nevren said. “I apologize. I’ll think it over myself—no need to be put on the spot, hm? Just ask Elder to speak to the Ice Guardian, and we can proceed from there. I believe her name is Ladder, but you might want to double-check. It has been a while since I heard the name. I will send Owen’s group to the Steel Guardian.”

Rim flinched. “S-Steel? But that’s…”

“I believe it is time,” Nevren said. “They will fail, but I think now is a good time for them to know about the Trinity. Besides, he is the least dangerous of the three. I won’t be sending them to Zero Isle, for one, or Dark Mist Swamp.” Nevren sorted through the papers. “…Thank you, Rim. That will be all. Ah, but do send a team to Arachno Forest on a rescue. Perhaps we’ll find another Guardian there.”

Rim nodded and vanished. Nevren looked down at the papers. The Badge on his desk had become blue during the middle of their conversation.

He briefly thought about Owen and how quickly he had befriended Guardians for nearly half of the Orbs. Fast friends with even the unruliest of them. The Fighter, the Fairy, and the feral in particular. Perhaps it was charisma or perhaps it was his unintimidating disposition. Or perhaps it was, despite everything, the hidden strength he possessed. The potential that surpassed even Nevren’s base design expectations. No, Nevren knew that this strength Owen possessed—perhaps not physical strength, but the strength of spirit, or the light he possessed. That wasn’t his design. That was something much greater.

“Owen,” Nevren said to himself, shaking his head. “You’re just like your father.”

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 30 – Remnants​

The evening transitioned into the night. Owen felt like he didn’t quite need to sleep. Perhaps he had finally become strong enough to no longer require it. Still, Demitri, Mispy, and Gahi did. When their training ended, Owen wandered the caverns, enjoying the usual, dim blue glow from gleaming mushrooms speckled along the dark walls.

Zena was training with Amia. She seemed awkward about it, simply telling Owen that she wanted to get better with aura-based powers. It took very little pressing for her to reveal that she, too, was learning the Suppression Aura that reset Owen countless times.

Owen just smiled. “You know, better safe than sorry.” Not like he intended to be reset again anyway if he could help it.

But that also meant Owen couldn’t stay near them while they trained, and he had to wander the caverns again. Should he sleep? He could. But he was too restless. He couldn’t get the look of Rim’s eyes out of his head, and, in hindsight, the feeling he had when he saw her. How in the world did he become so bold as to risk his very sanity to scare off Rim? Was he even strong enough to take her on in that state? He somehow doubted it. Rim commanded mutants.

So why did she run?

“You are in motion far too much.”

Owen, startled, looked to his right. He forgot about Valle. The Shiftry statue was right next to him, so still that he had mistaken it for part of the cave. “Sorry,” Owen finally said. “Just restless.”

Valle rumbled angrily. “Cease your movement. The night is when I can know peace.”

“Okay. I’ll just find somewhere else to rest. I should meditate.”

“Yes. You should.”

Owen sighed. He headed further along the giant cavern until he spotted more Guardians.

Earlier in the day, Willow and ADAM had assisted Enet in finding a home. She took a liking to the one a few homes down from Rhys’ side. It was easy to spot Enet’s abode because of the perpetual darkness that veiled the insides. Only her eyes—glowing—were visible when looking inside.

“Enet?” Owen whispered, but the glowing eyes said it all.

“Small,” Enet greeted.

“M-my name’s Owen.”

“Owen… Small Owen.” Enet said.

“Are you okay?” He could sense her tense muscles.

“Okay.”

“You aren’t scared or anything?” Owen asked.

Enet didn’t answer.

“Hey, it’s alright,” Owen said. “Friends. All friends.”

Enet let out a strange growl. It didn’t sound aggressive, but it wasn’t one of comfort, either.

Owen felt someone knocking inside his mind. Hello? Is someone calling me?

Yo, Star greeted. Are you checking on Enet?

Yeah. Is she alright?

She’s just antsy. New den and all that, and it’s not like it was totally up to her.

Oh, Owen said. Well, I guess I don’t wanna bother her.

No, no, actually, I think she trusts you more than anyone else here. Since Amia’s training Zena the Suppression Aura stuff, can you do me a favor and spend the night keeping her company? She’s not all that strong, so she’ll be asleep for most of it.

Owen nodded. It was better than irritating Valle, at least. Okay.

Great. While you do that, I’m gonna check up on some Guardians. I want to see if the Bug or Ice Guardians are up for anything. I think I know where the Ice Guardian is, but she’s a little cold toward me. Sorta a long story.

Like all the others. Owen rolled his eyes. I bet the Electric Guardian didn’t give up peacefully, either. I’m starting to think back, and there was a huge thunderstorm in Nightshade, like, a year or two ago. That wasn’t a normal storm, was it?

A-anyway, I gotta head off! Star said. I’m gonna hang up now.

Hang… up?

But she didn’t reply. So distracted by the conversation, Owen didn’t realize that Enet was mere inches from his face. He stifled a gasp and fell backward; Enet lunged forward and grabbed him just in time. Her paws were almost as big as his head.

“Okay?” Enet asked.

“Y-yes. I’m okay,” Owen said, pulling himself up. “Enet… would you like me to rest with you?”

Even in the dark, Owen was able to Perceive her muzzle scrunching up. “Better father.”

Owen tried not to sound exasperated. “Not like that. As… a pack. Friend.”

“Small pack.”

Why me?

But despite this, Enet turned around and curled up in the darkness. Owen sighed, shifting his body into his Grassy state. He had a habit of fighting in his dreams, and that always made the ethereal flame on his tail heat up. At least as a plant, he wouldn’t accidentally burn Enet.

While he didn’t rest, Owen spent the rest of the night meditating and calming his aura.

Owen’s thoughts returned to Star. Hey, Klent?

Hm? There was a pause, and then Klent answered, Oh, Owen. Are you feeling okay?

Star just left, if you’re looking for her, Amelia spoke up. When are you gonna come visit again?

Owen grinned. Sorry, I’m looking after Enet tonight. I was just thinking about… everything.

That’s quite a lot, Klent said. Owen… you know we’re a bit in-tune with your feelings, right? Being within your spirit, that is. We understand. We’ve been trying to get Star to tell us more, but she’s obviously bothered by it. And she knows if she tells us, we’ll tell you. And I suppose we don’t want to trigger anything.

I think I’ll evolve just fine, Owen said. I bet I can handle it now. Last time, I almost had it. And this time, I didn’t feel like I was going crazy at all. I was just scared. So… what if I—

You promised, two days, Klent said.

Owen rolled his eyes. Fine, fine, he relented. But when I evolve… and I’m normal… I want her to tell me what made me go crazy in the first place.

I’ll hold her to it.

<><><>​

Gahi’s kinda cute when he’s a Trapinch, Owen thought to himself. He had Gahi ensnared in a simple vine around his torso where his tiny legs and massive head couldn’t reach. He flailed and hissed and screamed in anger, but there was nothing the stubby Pokémon could do to break free from the relatively effortless hold.

“Lemme go!” Gahi shouted.

“Not until you say I win,” Owen hummed.

“It ain’t fair! Yer Mystic, yer evolved, nuh-uh!”

“To be fair, Gahi,” Demitri said from the sidelines, “you were the one who wanted to fight Owen one on one.”

Mispy nodded, nursing a cut on one of her vines. Demitri had clawed her pretty hard and her healing was taking extra time to repair the damage.

“I kinda remember always losing to you, Gahi,” Owen said. “At least, that’s sorta the feeling I get when I think about other times we’ve sparred. So, I dunno what to tell you. This feels like a great change. Are you gonna give up yet?”

“Not ‘til I’m passed out an’ broken!” Gahi replied defiantly.

The vines squeezed tighter around his body.

“Just give up,” Mispy said, sighing.

“Yeah, Mispy’s sick of healing you. Maybe this time she won’t do it,” Demitri teased. He tittered, glancing at Mispy. “Y-you’ll still heal him, right?” he whispered.

Mispy shrugged. “Can’t heal stupid.”

“I ain’t stupid! I’m determined! Rhys said so!”

“Hey, Rhys called me determined, too,” Owen mumbled.

Mispy glanced at Demitri, who just shrugged.

“Yeah, if Owen’s determined, then I’m not dumb!” Gahi said. “Now lemme down!”

“Not until you say you give up,” Owen said. “The win doesn’t even feel good if I knock you out, Gahi, You won’t be able to dodge anything I throw at you.”

“Mehh… fine.”

Owen sighed, dropping Gahi to the ground.

He immediately rushed for Owen. “I never said I gav—”

A Vine Trap erupted beneath Gahi, tearing through rocks to ensnare him for a second time. The crush was so intense that Gahi squeaked and cracked like wood, tiny legs flailing weakly.

“I know,” Owen said, smirking.

Gahi hissed but finally relented. “Okay, fine, fine… ya mrmff…”

“What was that?” Owen asked with a teasing lilt in his voice.

Mispy smacked Owen on the back of his head. He winced, expecting the blow, but still yelped at how hard she hit. “H-hey, I was just joking around!”

Owen helped free Gahi from the vines and Mispy patched him up with a gentle wave of healing energy. Demitri sighed and stretched, scratching at a nick in his tusks with a frown. “I messed up my tusk again,” he said. “I need to be more careful. These things don’t grow back, you know.”

“They do with Orans,” Owen said.

“I mean, yeah, but I don’t wanna waste resources,” Demitri said. “I’ll just wait a while.”

“Well, don’t wait too long,” Owen said. “If you let a wound settle in for too long, Orans don’t heal it. There’s this Salazzle, you know Spice? She got badly hurt during some outing and even though she took an Oran to heal the major stuff, it still left a scar behind because she didn’t take a second one to heal it completely, or something. Guess they had run out since it was a rough mission… Why else would an Oran not work, y’know?”

“You mean from Sugar ‘n Spice?” Demitri asked, unconsciously picking at the dent in his tusk again. Mispy wrapped a vine around his claw to pull it away, knowing he’d only make it worse.

“Yeah.”

Demitri flinched. “W-well, I still don’t want to waste it on a little chip. Maybe if we went on a Dungeon mission, I’ll use one along the way? Then I won’t feel so bad.”

“Oh, sure,” Owen said. “You guys can head on one if you like.”

Demitri and Mispy exchanged looks. “Well,” Demitri said, “we were actually thinking, and, um…”

“What?” Owen asked, returning to his Fiery form. He felt something in the back of his throat and coughed out a stray Bullet Seed.

“Can’t you come with us?” Demitri asked.

Owen tilted his head. “With you guys?”

“Yeah. I mean—we’re Team Alloy, right? And now that you know how you evolve, it should be totally safe for you to come with us. We’re still in our lowest forms. No way we’ll evolve all the way up on one mission.”

“It’s still dangerous to go out,” he said, sighing. “Rim could try to kill me.”

“What, like she did back in Nightshade?” Gahi said. “C’mon, she ran off when you just threatened ter evolve!”

“W-well, yeah, but—”

“It’s safe,” Mispy nodded.

“I’m still not sure, guys,” Owen said apologetically. “Rhys and Mom would kill me. And Dad would probably explode again.”

“Bah, he’s a spirit, he’ll come back,” Gahi said. “We’ll jus’ say we kidnapped ya.”

“Okay, first of all, I don’t think I want you guys getting in that much trouble—and two, you didn’t kidnap me!”

“How do you know?” Mispy asked.

As if on cue, Demitri and Gahi approached Owen on both sides. Mispy’s vines emerged from behind her shoulders.

“W-wait, wait, wait, wait!” Owen said, raising his arms.

They all lunged at him. Owen crossed his arms, forming a shield of gold light that bumped them all away. He grunted when Demitri hit it particularly hard, and for just a moment, he feared that the Axew would somehow break his Protect barrier.

“Okay,” Owen said, taking advantage of their brief dizziness. Mispy, who could have easily grabbed Owen after the barrier dropped, was patient enough to let him speak. “How about,” he continued, “after I fully evolve—which will be tomorrow, by the way, that’s when I plan to do this—we go out then. I bet if I can keep it together, we’ll go on a mission. How about that? Huh?”

“So tomorrow, we’re gonna go on a mission together,” Demitri said.

“If, uh, if they let me.”

“If yer a Charizard, they ain’t gonna stop you.” Gahi clicked his jaws confidently.

Owen twisted his mouth into a pensive frown. “I guess, but I’d feel kinda bad about taking advantage of my power like that,” he said. “I guess as a last resort.”

“We’re sorta on the verge of evolving anyway,” Demitri said. “I guess we should be careful, too.”

“Mmh.” Mispy nodded. “Fine.”

Rhys emerged from his home. “Ah, Owen!” he called.

“Huh?” Owen spun around. “What? Something happen?”

“Nevren just called via the communicator,” he said. “Come. I’m going to gather the others. Apparently, a Guardian has been found… but it is a strange location.”

<><><>​

“So, what’s so weird about it? Where on the map is it?” Owen asked.

Everybody had been gathered together in the center of Hot Spot to speak to Nevren through his communication badge.

“It’s a factory far off the coast,” Nevren said. “Far, far south, on an old island, in fact. Quite difficult to get to normally. Only Mystics can approach it—it’s protected by a special barrier set up by the Guardian within. We only spotted it from a distance and some Zoom Lenses and a team of flying scouts.”

“Factory,” Amia said. “I’ve heard that term before, but—what is it, again?”

“A facility that is built for the purpose of mass-producing something,” Nevren said. “We have something similar here, though not quite to the same level.” The communication device was quiet for a while after that. “…Hello?”

“Oh! Sorry, I thought you would say something,” Amia said. “I was just trying to figure out what this factory would be. But, um… What type is this Guardian?”

“Well, it’s a factory, so, Steel,” Nevren said. “He’s quite at home there, from what I’ve gathered.”

“How’d you gather that?” Owen asked suspiciously. “Did you visit there yourself?”

“I have,” Nevren said. “Though, not to any success. It was quite a long time ago, though I feel now is an appropriate time as any to try our luck with this one. I recommend… someone with a more effective set of techniques, yes?”

“Steel,” Owen repeated to himself, looking at the red scales on his arms.

“I can go.” Gahi shrugged. “Ground, eh? That’s real good against Steel.”

“I can, too,” Owen said. “Um… I guess Demitri and Mispy should stay back for this one, huh?”

The Axew and Chikorita wanted to protest, but they backed down shortly after. Owen figured they knew he had a point.

“Okay,” Demitri said, “but what should we do while you’re gone?”

“Spar!” Owen said, nodding. “Actually, y’know what? When I come back, I want to see you two as a Fraxure and Bayleef, okay?”

“D’you think we can get there so soon?” Demitri said, eyes brightening.

“Definitely,” Owen nodded. “I can feel it. I’m a Charmeleon already, after all, right?”

“Yeah, but you’re Mystic,” Demitri said.

“Well… either way, I think you’ll do it. Maybe spar with the other Mystics? The weaker ones, like Willow, or—”

“Weaker?!” Willow charged up for a Moonblast.

“I—I mean, th-th… the nicer ones! The nicer ones, who can go easy on them! R-right?”

“That’s better,” Willow huffed. The lunar sphere dissipated in a white-pink mist.

Owen sighed, holding his chest. At the very least, she was acting normally toward him. He thought she wouldn’t talk back to him again after that incident with Azu…

“If you’re going, Owen, then I should go, too,” Amia said. “And as the Fire Guardian, maybe I can help in fighting, too? I may not be the best fighter, but I’m still strong…”

“Okay, so that’s me, Mom, Gahi…” Owen frowned. “If I go crazy, d’you think that’ll be enough, Mom? If you make me a Charmander again?”

Amia flinched. “Y-you’re okay with that?”

Owen nodded. “I… I don’t want it, but it’s better than being crazy forever. But… if I evolve… can you make sure I’m crazy first?”

Amia nodded. “Of course! That’s what we were building toward this whole time!”

Rhys hummed worriedly. “Just in case,” he said, “I would like to accompany you as well. A team of four. My Fighting attacks will be effective.”

“That should be enough,” Nevren confirmed. “Now, hold out your maps. Do you see where Zero Isle Spiral is located?”

“No, um, is that…?” Amia unraveled their map.

“Start from Kilo Village, at the center of the map. Go south until you reach the ocean.”

“Oh, I know that spot!” Owen said. “Zena and I washed up there after we, uh, you know.”

“Hm, so we have a reference point,” Rhys said. “What then, Nevren?”

“You have to fly from there and head further south until you can see the archipelago with Zero Isle at the center. From that direction, you should head diagonally to the left—that is, southeast. You should see another landmass. That will be your location; if you search by aura, you will sense a powerful barrier blocking the way. Anybody too weak in the spiritual sense will be turned around in the opposite direction without realizing it. Mystics, by default, should be strong enough to pass through.”

“Eh, so what about me?” Gahi said, clicking his jaws. “I ain’t spiritual Mystic sparkly.”

“Your proximity should be enough. Perhaps ride on Owen’s back.”

“Wh-why me?” Owen said.

Gahi hummed. “I can do that.”

Owen sighed. “Okay, fine,” he said. “But, can I fly yet?”

“If you can’t fly, you can ride on me, dear,” Amia said.

“…Wait. Rhys? Can you fly for a long time?”

“To an extent,” Rhys said. “It may deplete my stamina a bit after some time, but, ah… I’m sure I will have time to rest once we arrive.”

“If you’re tired, you can always ride on me, dear,” Amia giggled. “I don’t mind.”

“I… shall… consider it.” Rhys turned his head away. “Though I would prefer not. I am not used to riding on the backs of others. They’re always too soft.”

“Soft?” Amia said. “You prefer… hard backs?”

“Er—yes. I suppose I do.”

“Yer weird,” Gahi said.

Zena quickly slithered over to Owen and gave him a reassuring nod. “Good luck, Owen.”

He smiled, returning the gesture. “Hey, how’s the Suppression Aura going?”

Zena winced. “Er, well—I’m getting better at it,” she said. “I’m sorry that I’m training at all for it…”

“I said it was fine,” Owen assured, shaking his head. “Okay. You guys ready?” He looked at Amia, Gahi, and Rhys. When they all nodded, they set off toward the exit of Hot Spot Cave.

<><><>​

It was only a few quick warps and walks from Hot Spot to Kilo Village to the south. They wound up taking the Waypoint to Void Forest, though they were sure to steer clear of the Dungeon itself.

Void Forest seemed quite… normal, considering the name. Tall trees dotted the landscape, leaving ample room to walk around. While the ground was grayish, and it was mostly dirt and fungus, it wasn’t something Owen would have labeled as void-like. Nothing like Void Basin to the southwest.

The lack of proper foliage was a bit unnerving, though.

“Usually don’t like taking trips or missions to the south,” Owen mumbled aloud.

“Don’t worry, dear. We’re flying right now,” Amia said. “Oh, that’s right. I suppose we should start giving you flying lessons. That shouldn’t be too hard.”

Owen’s heart fluttered in some trick-of-the-mind instinct. “F-fly?” he said, his mind trying to flex wings he did not yet have.

“Aww, Owen, I’m sorry,” Amia said, patting his shoulder. “I meant with your Mystic power. You remember us doing it before, right? Just try to mimic it. It’s a lot easier than you think, once you get started.”

“Okay, sure. Let me guess. It’s sorta like when I think to switch from Fire to Grass, except this time for flying?”

“Kind of! I think? The way Star taught it to me was like this. You feel gravity pulling at you… feel your own weight. And then, well… defy it! Sort of.” Amia levitated slightly in the air. “I suppose it’s not too different from Psychic kinesis after that. Push yourself in the direction you want.”

“I think I know how to describe that,” Owen said. “I had a lot of dreams like this. Where I was flying as a Charmander, just going over town and looking down.” A dumb smile spread across his face. “Uh—right. So, I guess like a dream, huh? Let me think…”

Owen felt weightless. He flailed his arms out of reflex; Rhys quickly held his back. “Now, now, hold still,” he said.

“Whoa,” Gahi said, churring. “His feet’re off the ground!”

Owen looked down. He was a foot in the air. “I—I’m doing it!”

“I’m going to let go, now,” Rhys said.

Once he did, Owen spun forward, upside-down after a few seconds. “Uh—wait—I’ve got this,” Owen said, righting himself. He overcompensated, shooting several more feet in the air. “W-wait! Wait—oh—this is really—uh—sudden!” He kicked in the air, but he was laughing at the same time. “I—I’m actually flying! Mom! I’m flying!”

“Yes, you are, dear,” Amia said, giggling. “Honestly, if I knew it’d make you this happy, I would’ve trained you with this earlier! But at least now you’re strong enough it’s not even hard to…Owen?”

He was flying in circles through the air, his ember a blazing blue.

“…Should we calm him down?” Rhys asked.

“Ohh, let him have his moment,” Amia said.

Gahi watched enviously, grumbling to himself about his “stupid big-headed body.”

Owen suddenly stopped his flying when he got high enough to see over the forest trees. He gulped, not realizing how close they were to the Chasm of the Void. It was always depicted as a big, black dot on the map, and was typically only restricted to Hearts to go near due to its ominous appearance. It was undoubtedly home to another Guardian, based on how anomalous it was, even by Dungeon standards. But it was also hard to approach, let alone enter.

It looked exactly as it did on the map. Black dot on the paper, a great, black crater in person. He couldn’t even see the crater’s walls. It was like a vat of pure, inky blackness. It vaguely reminded him of Enet’s home the night before. Hidden in plain sight. The fact that it was still around suggested that not even the Hunters could approach easily.

Owen landed. “Sorry about that,” he said, tittering. “Okay. Rhys, do you know how to fly?”

“Of course,” Rhys said. “Though, not in the traditional sense, as I said before. Let me make sure I still have the technique in me, so to speak…” Rhys held his arms firmly to his side. Then from both paws, aura energy burst downward in a steady stream. Wind blew in all directions away from the Lucario and he flew into the air. “I seem to have it covered!” he shouted down, secondary blasts coming from his feet.

“Oh,” Owen said, staring. “…He can do that.”

“It’s not very useful in Dungeons where you can’t fly,” Amia said, “and I imagine with his limbs occupied, he can’t fight in that state, either. And with Waypoints for quick travel to most places, well…”

Owen shrugged. “Let’s go.”

“Oy! Don’t go fergeting me!” Gahi chirped.

<><><>​

The horizon seemed to go on forever. It was an endless expanse of the blue ocean along a pale sky, speckled with white clouds. The only real detail they could see from this height was that of the clouds’ shadows cascading along the water below. Gahi clicked his jaws worriedly. “If y’drop me, I’m gonna kill yeh,” he said, clinging onto Owen’s back with the help of a few vines.

“Not if the fall kills you first,” Owen murmured, adjusting his arm-vines carefully. “Rhys, are you sure that isn’t too hard for you?”

The steady stream of aura energy made Owen think about Golurk and their propulsive abilities.

“I should be fine for quite a while,” Rhys said. “This aura energy is produced as quickly as I spend it with simple flight.”

“Oh, don’t lie, dear,” Amia said. “I can feel it depleting a tiny bit. Otherwise, you’d be flying like this all the time!”

“Ngh—perhaps by a negligible amount,” Rhys said.

Amia looked at their map, and then ahead. “I think that’s Zero Isle.”

Rhys nodded.

“Goodness…” Amia said. Their flying slowed down slightly, and they veered away from the archipelago—which appeared to be a spiral of beige sand and tiny, light trees in the middle of sky-colored saltwater. “Do you feel that?” she asked.

Owen felt a horrible tightness in his chest, like the sheer radiation of power was stopping his heart. “What is that? It’s… coming from…”

“Feel what?” Gahi asked.

“I guess only Mystics can feel it,” Amia said. “Rhys?”

“…We should keep clear of Zero Isle for a while,” said Rhys. “A powerful Guardian is there, and we are simply not ready.”

“Wait! A powerful Guardian? A friendly one?”

Rhys shook his head. “Not to us, no,” he said. “…Frankly, I’m not sure if the Steel one will be friendly, either.”

“How do you know?” Owen asked. “Did… did you try to attack the Zero Isle Guardian before? When you were a…”

Rhys shook his head. “No,” he said. “But I fought her predecessor, who was…” he shivered slightly. “It’s not something that I like to think about.”

Owen nodded. “Okay. But, what Orb is it of? Do you know anything about her?”

“Dragon, and yes, she’s very hostile. We’ll talk about this later,” Rhys said, pointing ahead. “That’s the island we’re looking for, is it not?”

At the horizon was a grayish structure sitting atop a black ground. The water nearby had a dark residue around it. Owen wasn’t sure what to think about the odd color—he certainly wouldn’t drink it.

“That’s… a factory?” Owen said, gulping. Nevren didn’t seem too concerned or alarmed when talking about this place, but now that he saw it with his own eyes, it seemed… ominous.

“Hm, it appears to be one, yes,” Rhys said. They lowered their altitude, heading for a firm trajectory right for the shore of this island, just beyond the dark water.

“What’s the weird… black stuff?”

“It may be remnants of decay,” Rhys said. “Factories tend to produce waste products like trash quite a bit. If it’s been here for such a long time, perhaps some of that product is simply leaking into the water…”

“That can’t be good,” Owen said.

“Well, it is a small factory in a large ocean. It shouldn’t be too bad… I imagine,” Rhys trailed off. “Hrm. Well, regardless, it doesn’t seem to be spreading beyond this point. Perhaps we can look into cleaning it up later.”

They landed in the sand. There was something that felt… dirty about it. Owen winced at the ground, lifting his foot. “That’s a weird feeling. It’s… heavy. No, not heavy, but…” He dug his toes into the dirt and lifted it up. The sand stuck together with some sort of tar. He didn’t sense any strange properties from it, even with his Perceive. But it certainly wasn’t sand he’d want to make a mini building out of.

“It feels like it’s more than just dirt and rock,” Amia nodded.

“We should wash in cleaner water when we return home,” said Rhys. “Particularly you, Gahi, since you aren’t Mystic.”

Gahi tilted his head down. “Ehh, I’ll stay on yer back fer now,” he said.

“W-wait, what?” Owen was already lugging the giant Ground and bug-like Pokémon on his back, holding his hands behind him. “G-Gahi! You’re a little bulky to be carried around like that!”

“I ain’t walkin’ on tainted ground! I got standards! Carry me!”

“Nngh… okay.” Owen sighed. “But give me a second to….” He carefully pulled Gahi around his body until the bug was in front of him; Owen kept his arms around Gahi’s abdomen, holding him gently against his chest.

Gahi leaned his head back, bumping it against the bottom of Owen’s neck. “Don’t squish me.”

“I won’t,” Owen said. “Let’s go. I’m gonna set you down once we’re on that solid ground, the… that’s a steel floor or something?”

“It appears to be a special kind of stone,” Rhys said. “It’s called concrete.”

“Concrete…” Owen said. “I thought that was just a word that meant ‘really solid’?”

“Yes. The word came from that material, I believe. Or the other way around… hmm. Now I’m not sure,” he said. “We usually just use Protect insulation to reinforce buildings.”

“Concrete… Like a Conkeldurr?”

“Somewhat, yes,” said Rhys.

Owen breathed slowly, conscious of every sound they made. It was too quiet here. It wasn’t a Dungeon. No labyrinthine environment set up around them, even upon entering the tall, gray, imposing structure. That somehow made it worse. The lifelessness left Owen searching for an inevitable specter in the walls or the ground. But then Owen remembered that the Ghost Guardian was Anam. His hands ached again.

Their steps began to have sound. Owen looked down, puzzled at the new noise. So familiar. The feeling of claws on concrete. He then looked up at the factory—less familiar. In fact, he’d never seen such a structure before. It was many stories high, taller than the giant heart in the southern point of Kilo Village. Owen nearly fell backward from craning his neck so far; eventually, he had to stop to look into the entrance.

It was too dark from the outside to tell what it was. There were only a few windows at the top of the large room, and they were small. He saw many strange structures inside of the factory; horizontal platforms that had little wheels and cylinders embedded into them, contraptions that looked like strange, new Steel Pokémon. It vaguely reminded him of Kilo Village’s more advanced technology that Nevren made. Owen had a vague, blurry memory of once visiting a printing press. Perhaps that’s what these contraptions reminded him of. Some of it looked quite shiny like it was being sustained and washed—not dusty. It must’ve been the Guardian.

The Guardian. Was he here? Where? He couldn’t sense any imposing aura yet, and there was still the feeling of being watched. The lack of sensation got to him again. He needed to feel something. If he at least knew how threatening this Guardian was, he could put himself at ease. But an unknown power—an undetectable power?

Gahi bumped his head against Owen’s chest. “Stop squeezin’.”

“Sorry.”

Amia hummed. “What… is this?”

On solid ground, Owen set Gahi down. The Trapinch tapped his head on the concrete. “This place ain’t too bad,” he said. “Good echo. I can tell where everything is here, heh…”

“Do you hear anybody else here?” Owen asked. “I can’t—my sense of my surroundings isn’t strong enough yet. I feel like if I was fully evolved, I’d be able to find the guy, but I can’t.”

A metallic clinking noise echoed in the depths of the factory. Owen felt a cold chill run up his spine. The first sound that didn’t come from them. “Th-that m-might’ve been—” And then he felt it.

The Steel Guardian finally revealed himself by aura. And that little bit released felt like a punch in the lungs. Even Amia rubbed at her arms out of reflex.

“What’re you guys freakin’ out about?” Gahi asked.

“It’s nothing to concern yourself with,” Rhys said.

Owen didn’t believe him.

“Guess that’s the Guardian,” Owen said. “But hey, on the bright side, w-we don’t have to deal with crazy Mods anymore! Oh, wait.” He felt another aura—it was weaker, but he also recognized it. “I think Hecto’s here, too…” he mumbled.

“What was that, dear?” Amia asked.

“Do you guys know Hecto? Star’s, uh…”

“Ah, yes, Hecto,” Rhys nodded. “If he’s here, then I imagine this will be a safer area, in a sense. Hecto is not very strong on his own. Perhaps we won’t have to fight, either. Let’s keep going.”

It eased Owen’s heart at least a little, but he still kept on his guard. Everything was foreign here. There could be traps, or any number of hostile spirits hidden away, even by aura. They walked through a narrower portion of the factory, next to some of the odd platforms nearby. Owen saw strange objects on top of these platforms, but he was too short to see what they were at a good angle. “What’re those?” Owen asked.

“What are what, dear?” Amia asked. “Oh! Those… things?” she asked, reaching out.

“Don’t touch them,” Rhys said quickly.

“O-oh?” Amia asked, flinching her hand away. “Okay. Are they… traps, or volatile Dungeon Orbs?”

“Yes, in a sense,” Rhys said. “Now, let’s keep going. Don’t touch anything that doesn’t look familiar; this is a remnant from another realm, and we can’t be sure how it will react to us.”

“That’s… a weird way of phrasing it, Rhys,” Owen said. “But—okay.”

“Eh?” Gahi looked up. “What’re yeh all talking about anyway? Weird li’l…” He trailed off. “What’s this orb yer talking? What’s it look like?”

“It kinda looks… I dunno. It’s kinda pretty, though. But it doesn’t look natural.” Owen shrugged.

“’Sup.” This voice wasn’t familiar.

Owen felt that shiver again and stared ahead. He saw a bipedal figure with muscled arms and a shiny body. Metallic, indicative of the Steel Orb’s influence. His voice had a ringing tinge to it, too.

“H-hey, uh…” Owen wasn’t really sure how to acknowledge it. He said without thinking, “A Machoke, the Steel Guardian?”

“Not as dumb as you being the Grass Guardian.”

That one stung.

“A-ah, um,” Amia quickly held up her hands, “H-hello! Um… what’s your name? I’m Gardevoir Amia, this is Charmeleon Owen, that’s Lu—”

“Brandon Rezz,” the metal Machoke replied. “I know who you guys are. Don’t worry.”

Owen blinked as if he was trying to piece together something in his head. “Rezz?” he asked. “What Pokémon is a Rezz? I thought you were a Machoke. And you said your name backward.”

“No, I’m a Machoke, sure,” Brandon said. “But my last name is Rezz.”

“…I don’t get it,” Owen said. “Brandon and Rezz both aren’t a species.”

“Where I’m from,” Brandon said, “everyone that talked was the same species. …Mostly. So, kinda stupid if we all had the same first name. So instead, we had unique last names that followed our family line. So, the same way you guys take the first names of your mother, the same species, I got my last name from my dad.”

“Oh,” Amia said. “That’s interesting! But—you came from a realm that was all Machoke? I don’t know which part of your story I want to ask about first!”

Brandon gave off the smallest smirk. “No,” he said. “Not Machoke.” He turned around, staring at the dull ceiling. “I only have this form because it’s close to what I used to be. I’m from the human world.”

“Oh! So… a Machoke… wait…”

“While I gave it up a long time ago,” Brandon said, “I used to be human.”

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 31 – Ancient Tradition​

Mispy tumbled through the air and slammed hard against the rocks. “Ugh!” She tumbled and rolled, eventually coming to a stop on her side. Her vines twitched weakly.

Demitri puffed, scratching his tusks with pride. “That’s a win for me,” he said, walking toward the fallen Chikorita. “Mispy? You alright?”

Mispy didn’t move.

“Aw, c’mon, Mispy, it wasn’t that bad.” The powerful Axew gulped. “R-right? Mispy?”

Still no response.

He quickened his pace, clenching his fists. He didn’t hit too hard, did he? “Mispy, I—”

She suddenly jumped to her feet, firing her pent-up Solar Beam. It was so fast and so sudden that Demitri had no time to dodge. He screamed in surprise and covered his face. The white, green-tinged light burned his scales and sent him flying several feet backwards, tumbling to the ground in the same way. The Axew coughed a plume of smoke when he finally stopped.

“That’s enough, now!” Zena shouted, slithering toward the dueling pair. “Please—I don’t want you two going all-out!”

“What’re you talking about?” Demitri asked, staggering to his feet. “If anything goes wrong, our Tiny Reviver Seeds will activate…”

“That’s—yes, but—that’s quite wasteful!”

“Anam makes tons of them,” Demitri said. “They’re not like regular Revivers. All they do is help you get enough energy to move again and restore the body a little bit, you know?”

“Did one activate just now?”

“No. Which means we didn’t push ourselves hard enough,” Demitri said, frowning.

“I—I think you push yourselves just fine!”

Mispy wobbled toward Demitri and wrapped her vines around him, channeling healing energy. She then rubbed along his body, scraping the ash off, exposing new, fresh scales. He smiled and nuzzled her.

“It’s just how we fight, Zena,” Demitri said calmly. “It’s okay. I think… that’s just part of how we are, I guess. That’s not so bad, right?” He tittered, but caught the Milotic’s worried eyes.

Something about her size and shadow cast over them, blocking the dim glow of the mushrooms, made them look more intimidating than she may have intended.

“Look,” Demitri went on, “if we can keep it under control, it’s okay, right? But we haven’t had a good fight in a while, and that sparring match we had with Owen left me feeling antsy.”

“Me, too,” Mispy lamented, prodding the ground with her right foreleg. She hesitated, but then looked up at Zena—her towering form compared to her Chikorita self was at least slightly intimidating. Her leaf bobbed to express her nervousness, pinned against the back of her neck.

Zena sighed, looking away. “Well, I suppose if you enjoy yourselves. Rhys told me to keep an eye on you two while the others trained, since I know the Suppression Aura, too, just in case…”

“Yeah…”

“Is something bothering you?” asked Zena.

Mispy prodded the rocks again, finding a loose pebble to toy with. “Are we… monsters?”

Zena hesitated for a second too long.

Mispy turned around.

“No, you aren’t,” Zena quickly amended. “You aren’t. You aren’t monsters, because creatures like those… wouldn’t be worried about something like that in the first place, don’t you think?”

Mispy wasn’t convinced, but she sighed, conceding. “I guess.”

“Hey,” Demitri said, patting her on the back. He huddled closer. “Rhys left us alone with Zena who barely knows the Suppression whatever. So…” He gently rubbed her back, just below the buds along her neck. “Don’t worry about it. We might’ve been created, but we’re still us.”

“Yeah…” Mispy smiled, brushing her leaf against his head. “Thanks.” There was a silence then, tranquility after a fight. The bruises still hurt, but it was a good, post-spar sort of pain that filled her with contentment and nostalgia. Forgotten nostalgia, probably, part of those memories sealed away.

…She felt it.

And then, a white light enveloped her.

“M-Mispy?” Demitri squeaked, staggering away.

Even though it was only her middle stage, Zena readied the Suppression Aura just in case, holding it between her ribbons. When the black sparks shot out, Demitri quickly dodged one of them, shivering at the residual feeling it gave off, like electricity.

“What even is that stuff?” he mumbled.

“Rhys said that it’s anti-evolution energy,” Zena said. “Apparently the Suppression Aura… is a key that makes your own auras synthesize that, reversing your evolutions. The act of evolving shakes off that aura.”

The light faded. Mispy, a Bayleef, opened one eye, looking down. She lifted her legs tentatively, then looked at Demitri.

“How do you feel?” Demitri said.

Mispy considered her answer. “Mm… normal.”

“Incorrect,” ADAM said, quietly observing from his home nearby. “Grass Type detected.”

Mispy giggled, as did Zena. Then, the newly evolved Bayleef wrapped her vines around Demitri. “Let’s evolve you next,” she said, and then hurled him into the wall.

<><><>​

“Humans?” Owen repeated, still trying to grasp the concept. “What do you mean, the human world? So, you used to be human?! But—but I thought humans were just mythical creatures!”

He had so many questions to ask. Was it true? Was Brandon the Steel Guardian because humans really were made of metal? Did they eat metal, too? Or did they eat stone? There were so many rumors about humans—there was no telling which ones were true. They were even more unknown than Mew and Arceus themselves—if Owen ignored the past moon or so, at least.

Brandon laughed. “No, they’re far from mythical,” he said. “If anything, they’re less impressive than Pokémon. They don’t know moves, and they can’t really stand up to a Pokémon in a fight unless they’re very highly trained. They cheat and use special tools instead. Tools like these.” He reached over to the platform and picked up one of the strange, red-white orbs.

Rhys quickly went on his guard.

The very fact that Rhys, of all of them, was on his guard put Owen on edge.

“Don’t worry, this one doesn’t work,” Brandon said, casually tossing the sphere up and down. “This factory hasn’t been used in ages. The stuff on this assembly line is basically useless.” He dropped the orb to the ground, where it split into multiple fragments.

Owen slowly relaxed, but couldn’t help but focus on his peculiar wording. The ones on the assembly line didn’t work? Then which ones did?

“So,” the Machoke went on. “I take it you’re here to have me join in your little games? Star’s little underlings against Arceus’ Trinity against Eon’s subjects.”

“Uh—hang on, what? To all of those things,” Owen said, holding a claw to his chest. “I’m not Star’s underling, and what’s this about a Trinity? And Eon, uh…”

Brandon eyed Owen curiously. “You mean you aren’t aligned with Star or Barky?” he said. “Or Eon?”

“Aligned? What?” Owen squinted at Brandon, but then remembered the Promise that Barky had asked of him, and the one that Star nearly had asked, too. He shook his head. “I’m just… I’m just trying to make things right,” he said. “I want to stop the Hunters from killing the Guardians so we can just relax. It’s too hard to live alone like they’ve been… I don’t want that. For anyone.”

The Machoke stopped surveying the walls and stared directly at Owen. He approached, his metallic feet making loud, clanging echoes across the abandoned factory. When Owen took a few steps back—and when Amia took a warning step forward—Brandon raised his arms with a smirk. He settled for where he stood, about five paces away.

Brandon hummed thoughtfully. “…You… you’re still a Charmeleon.”

“Y-yeah,” Owen said, holding his position with tensed muscles.

“Which means you can’t handle your true form yet. Like an awkward cocoon.”

“U-uh, I guess you could put it like that,” Owen said.

Brandon looked at Gahi next, kneeling down. “And you. You must’ve gone back to being a Trapinch, so you can’t handle it, either.”

“Yeah, what of it? I’m workin’ on it. Lay off.” Gahi clicked his jaws at Brandon. “I can evolve any time I want!”

“Oh?” Brandon said.

“Yeah, eh… just gimme a second and I bet I could.”

“So, if I have you evolve right now, you can handle being a Vibrava?”

“Yeah! Totally! …Yeah, Owen?” Gahi asked. “I ain’t crazy as a Vibrava?”

“What? You were fine,” Owen said. “Were—were we crazy as that before, too?”

He looked at Amia and Rhys; they both looked away. “Ngh—so you didn’t even tell me that? How come this guy knows more about me than I do?”

“Well, Arceus told me about it, mostly,” said Brandon. “We chat. You know, he can be a real gossip if you know how to ask questions the right way. I’m part of the Trinity. Steel, Poison, and Dragon Guardians happen to be under Arceus’ loyalty. And we’re all too strong for you, so I’d recommend you just head on back. Not even Rim wants to take me on.”

“You don’t feel all that strong,” Owen muttered.

“How about you come up to my face and say that?” Brandon smirked, looking like he wasn’t even offended.

“Maybe I will,” Owen said, flame brightening a bit.

“Ohh, look! You’re growing a spine!” Brandon clapped his hands together, creating a loud clang. “Aw, hey, I’m just kidding around. I get it, you’re still sealed away. Still. Don’t think you can take me on. I’m keeping you around because I like the chat and I haven’t had a good fight in decades. Do you know how boring it is meditating for years at a time? Very.”

“W-wait,” Amia said, “we didn’t come here to fight if we didn’t have to.”

“Oh?” Brandon said. “Then how come you brought two Fires, a Ground, and a Fighting type to the Steel Guardian’s place?” he asked. “C’mon, I’m not stupid.”

Rhys flinched. “We were—just being careful, in case you were hostile.”

“Aside from the pretty one, you brought a Hunter and two mutants to meet me. You’re lucky I didn’t kill you guys on the spot.”

“Pretty?” Amia blinked. “Oh, dear…”

“We’re sorry if our arrangement was suspicious. I should have considered that,” Rhys said formally. “But we truly do want to do this peacefully, and it’s only for the benefit of the Guardians. I would like to point out that I made a Promise to one of the other Guardians to never kill one of your kind again. I can assure you that I am, by divine contract, safe. Will you come with us?”

“No deal.” Brandon held up his hand. “I’m with Arceus on this one. Gathering the Orbs together is just asking for trouble, and I’d rather not stir the pot.”

“Did you make a Divine Promise to not come with us?” Owen asked.

“I made a Promise to keep myself away from the other Guardians,” he said. “It’s not a violation to allow them to approach me like this, but I’m not about to come with you guys. Got it?”

“But… but it’s not safe!” Owen said. “What if Rim gets even stronger? The Hunters already have three Orbs. What happens if they get more? At some point, won’t you be overpowered?”

“Maybe,” said Brandon, “but I think Arceus has a better chance at handling them than I would, if that happens.”

Owen thought about this. Arceus could handle an overwhelming power—he believed that much. He was the Creator, after all. He had witnessed his power firsthand; only Star could counter something like that. But if that was the case… “Then why doesn’t he just do that now?”

“What do you mean? They aren’t a threat to him yet, so why bother?”

“Yeah, but why bother letting even a minor threat grow? They could eventually take him down. Shouldn’t he just… I dunno… smite the people who are trying to overthrow him?”

“Well… maybe,” Brandon said. “Maybe he’s showing them mercy by giving them an opportunity to take it all back, or something.” He shrugged. “Or maybe Star gets in his way if he tries. She’s pretty shady, you know.”

Owen grumbled. He refused to admit he had a point, so he just snorted flames out his nostrils.

“Look,” Brandon said, “it’s not like I care all that much. I agree with him, so I’m gonna sit right here and keep things the way they are. It’s… the best thing to do.”

“The best? What’s that even mean?” Owen said.

“Ahem.”

Amia jumped in surprise and spun around. “Who—?”

“Hi, Hecto!” Owen waved. “I thought I sensed you. Uh… how come you’re here?”

The canid Zygarde made a soldier-like trot toward the group and gave a nod in greeting to Amia. “I am stationed here to keep a close watch on the factory and Brandon. The artifacts that are here cannot be tampered with. Destroying this place would risk releasing these objects into the ocean, which could then spread them essentially anywhere that has a shore. Therefore, it must be contained.”

“Okay, I get that,” Owen said, “but what is this? And why doesn’t Arceus just annihilate the factory? Like, he totally could do that if he wanted, right?”

Brandon shrugged. “Maybe,” he said. “Or maybe he’s saving it for a rainy day.”

“You’re the least helpful Guardian we’ve ever talked to,” Owen said.

“What, is being helpful my job?” Brandon said. “Then where’s my pay? Besides, I’m far from the least helpful. Didn’t the Fairy try to crush you?”

“Y-yeah, but she’s friendly now,” Owen said.

“She probably just thinks you’re a big toy, y’know.”

Owen’s eye twitched. “What’s your point?!”

“I dunno.” Brandon shrugged. “I haven’t been able to chat with folks that aren’t my spirits for a while. Talking with them gets kinda samey. Maybe I like chatting after all? Hah. If me a thousand years ago could say that…” He shook his head.

Hecto watched the exchange without changing his expression. When the idle chat died down, he said, “Brandon, perhaps you should explain to them what these mechanical spheres are.”

“Yeah, yeah.” The metal Machoke looked at the orbs on the production line and shook his head. “That’s the legacy of humans. Their ambition to be the strongest species in the world by doing nothing more than manipulating your kind. By capturing, controlling, and indoctrinating Pokémon to do their bidding. Their battles. Their wars…” Brandon tapped a finger on his crossed arm. “All of it in the name of human ego.”

He snorted. “I’ve been there. I’ve been a human. I know exactly what it’s like to be on top, how it feels to be in control—but I’ve also seen what it means to be on the bottom. And I’m not about to put this world through that by leaving this place unguarded.”

Owen stared. “How can… what’s made in this factory be able to do something like that? How can any single species be that powerful? Everything has a counter, doesn’t it? Like, if there was ever, uh, maybe a Rock Type uprising, I’d be in pretty big trouble…”

Brandon looked at Rhys. “Should I show him?”

“Ngh… I suppose Owen’s curiosity won’t let me say no,” Rhys said. “Amia, Gahi, Owen, I need one of you to go forward as a volunteer.”

“A—A volunteer?” Owen tensed, not ready for some dubious—

“I’ll do it,” Gahi said. He wobbled forward and looked up. “Okay, what’s this gonna be fer?”

Brandon looked up and waved his hand gently in the air; something fell down. It was another one of those orbs, though this one shined brighter, and looked a lot newer. “I kept these ones safe, but I guess it’d be good to get rid of one for this,” he said.

“That one’s a different color,” Amia observed. Instead of being red and white, this one was white on the bottom and black on the top, with yellow lines.

“Yeah, this one’s stronger. Just in case this guy puts up a fight. Trapinch…” Brandon hummed. “I’d say since he’s at his best, catching him would be a fifty-fifty shot with this. Maybe a little better. It’s been a while. You ready?”

“Sure. Go fer it. What’re yeh gonna do wi—”

The ball smacked Gahi on the head.

“Oy, what was tha—” The ball opened, and a light enveloped Gahi. In less than a second, the Trapinch was gone, and the ball fell to the ground, wiggling.

“Gahi?!” Owen and Amia said. Rhys lowered his head.

It shook a few times, violently, like someone was struggling inside. And then, the wiggling stopped, and there was a quiet click noise. Owen’s heart sank. “Wh-what… what happened?” he said, taking an uneasy step forward. “Gahi? A-are… are you in there?”

“He is,” Brandon said, approaching the sphere. “He’s probably disoriented right now. But he’s in there. It’s not easy to get out once it seals them. That’s what the click was.” He leaned down and picked the ball up. “Humans would capture Pokémon in these capsules. We called them Poké Balls for that reason. This one is an Ultra Ball—about twice as strong as the average Poké Ball, those red ones.” Brandon looked down at the little button, but didn’t press it. “Hey, Gahi? You hear me? Why don’t you try escaping, huh?” He held the ball flat on his palm. “I’d send you out the traditional way, but I want to show how hard it is for a new ‘wild Pokémon’ to escape these things.”

“Wild? But Gahi isn’t wild!” Owen said. “He’s a little weird, but that’s because he’s a mutant Pokémon, not wild!”

“Same difference. Any Pokémon not under the control of a human is considered wild,” Brandon said. The ball wiggled weakly. “That’s how the culture of humanity went. Sure, there were exceptions among them, but for the most part, you had to be under the dominion of a trainer to be considered not wild.”

The ball wiggled helplessly again.

“Guess Gahi can’t figure it out. Alright, Trapinch. Come on out!” Brandon tossed the ball; at the apex of its throw, it split open. A white light emerged, poured onto the ground, and solidified into Gahi.

Gahi wobbled a few steps and turned around. “Wh-what was that?” he mumbled. “Was… was weird. Felt real weird.”

“Weird, huh?” Brandon nodded. “To be honest, I dunno what it’s like.”

“It was kinda like I was just… floatin’ in there,” Gahi said. “Didn’t have a body. Felt… I dunno, weird. But I guess it was okay… felt kinda relaxed, eh…” He looked off. “I guess it was fine.”

“Yeah, it’s not bad, in itself,” Brandon said, but then looked at Gahi. “D’you wanna go back in?”

Gahi looked tempted.

“Wait! Gahi, maybe don’t?” Owen said. “We don’t know why that happened, but you shouldn’t just jump back into that thing! You disappeared! That’s—that’s crazy!”

Brandon nodded. “This is how wild Pokémon are tamed. They’re put in a stress-free, cozy environment. It’s not like we mistreat them. I’ll give humans credit for that much: the vast majority of trainers treat their Pokémon with respect and kindness, one way or another. And living in those Poké Balls, it’s like a little bliss to them, compared to having to tough it out in the wild. When they’re captured, they realize this. They’re pretty smart. They put it together that humans can take care of them. They can get stronger alongside humans. In return, they serve the human. In itself, it’s not a bad system.”

Brandon looked down. “I was a trainer. I had lots of Pokémon, all loyal to me, and I took care of them. They were my partners. …No. They are my Partners.” He gently tapped his metallic hand on his chest, making another clang. “My Pokémon are still with me, as my Steel spirits. So, I’m not going to deny that this technology made our lives better. But you know what? It can make lives a whole lot worse, too.”

Brandon crushed the Ultra Ball in his hand. It shattered and the fragments fell to the floor. Gahi flinched, as if his home had been destroyed right in front of him—but the feeling was fleeting. The Trapinch sank to the back of the group, wordless.

“Are you okay?” Owen asked quietly.

“Yeh, I’m fine,” Gahi said. “Jus’… weird, is all. That whole thing. But I dunno. I guess I prefer walking around normally.”

Owen watched Gahi for a bit longer, but then reached down. He picked him up; to Owen’s surprise, Gahi didn’t resist. In fact, he pressed his head against Owen’s chest again.

Brandon continued. “I don’t want someone taking advantage of this technology here, either.”

“Then… why not destroy the factory carefully?” Amia said. “If you don’t like this technology, why don’t you just…”

“Again, I dunno,” Brandon said. “Arceus said to guard it, not destroy it, so that’s what I’m doing. I’ll trust him on that one.” Brandon tapped his chin. “Well, no. That wasn’t the whole story. I had him slip one day that he wanted to save it for a crisis. Apparently, it’s been used before?” He shrugged. “Wasn’t around when that happened. Or it’s just been so long that I forgot. What year is it? You guys measure in kiloseconds still?”

Owen frowned. “Yeah, we do, but… our mission is to bring you with us,” he said. “If—if we can beat you, would you come with us?”

“Mmmm…” Brandon tapped his chin thoughtfully. “Well, I Promised Arceus. That being said, I bet if I sweet-talked him enough, we can revoke it together. You just have to prove yourself. You’re on good terms with the guy, right?”

Owen’s shoulders fell.

“Yeah, I figured,” Brandon said. “But I’m not gonna make it hopeless. If you impress me enough, I’ll maybe think about coming along with you guys eventually. But with all that said, I’ll fight you anyway. It’s in your blood, and you’ll feel like trash if you didn’t get some fighting in, right?”

Owen winced.

“Yeah!” Gahi said. His spirits were already back to normal. He squirmed until Owen let go, landing on the ground with a little thud. “That’s right, yeh got it! So, at leas’ fight us, eh?!” He looked up at Owen, bumping his massive head against the bottom of his knee. “Oy, you gonna fight?”

“Y-yeah! Of—of course!” Even if they weren’t going to bring him back, a fight sounded like fun regardless. “Fighting… battling… it’s the best!” he said. “Even if it’s in my instincts… it’s not like I’m hurting anyone!”

“Well, you kinda are.” Brandon shrugged. “But I know what you mean. But if I fought you, this wouldn’t be fair. And my Pokémon… they feel the same way you do, in a way. Even if they know, now, that they were raised to like battling… it doesn’t really leave you. And I guess if it’s okay, it doesn’t hurt to have a proper fight now and then. Heheh…” Brandon created an orb of aura energy from his palm. “I’ll teach you a tradition of the human world. It’s about our Pokémon battles when we aren’t fighting in wars or other pointless things like that. Okay?”

“A traditional human-world Pokémon battle?” Owen beamed. “Sure! Okay!”

There was a little glint in Brandon’s steely eyes. “Heh… alright.”

“Now, hold on.” Rhys stepped forward, his face twisted to a subtle snarl. “There’s no need for any of this.”

“H-huh?” Owen looked back. “What do you mean? It’s fine to do this, right? We can win him over!”

Rhys glared at Brandon. The Machoke smirked back.

“Right…?”

“We can’t leave, can we?” Rhys asked.

“You could try,” Brandon said.

The levity drained from the room like blood from an open wound. “Wait,” Owen said. “We can’t… leave?”

“Not until I get my fight,” Brandon said, nodding. “Besides, that’s what you wanted, right? C’mon, your instincts are screaming to fight me, aren’t they?”

“Nuh-no,” Owen said. “I’m in control of myself. I don’t feel a thing.”

“You know, for someone with Perceive, you’re a bad liar,” Brandon said. “Look, I’m not gonna be coy with you. Fight me and I’ll let you go.”

“Oh.” Well, when he phrased it like that… “Okay. I—I guess I can work with that.” It wasn’t as if they had a choice. He had a sinking feeling they didn’t want to fight Brandon seriously on his own turf.

Brandon nodded. “Arceus is telling me he wants to see you in action, and that’s all. Human’s honor, I won’t do anything more than that.”

“Human’s honor,” Rhys said with a bitter snort. “That hardly means anything.”

“What, and you have more, Hunter?”

“N-now, let’s not escalate things,” Amia said quickly.

Brandon rolled his metal eyes. “Whatever.” He then tossed the aura energy; it formed into four Pokémon that mirrored their appearances. “My Pokémon used to have forms of their own, but they’ve gotten used to other bodies. So, I think it’d be appropriate if they mimicked you guys, huh?”

“Oh, okay!” Amia said, quick to attempt to steer the tone of the factory in a positive direction. “I think that’s fair, but… you know, I think I’ll sit out, if you don’t plan to come with us. Why don’t we just have a battle between Gahi and Owen and their mirrors?”

The two Pokémon mimicking Rhys and Amia slumped their shoulders. “No fair!” the double of Rhys said.

Rhys flinched. It even sounded like him. And that childish tone…

Gahi opened his mouth, amused. “Heh. Wish our Rhys was fun like that.”

“I heard that.”

“Hey, hey,” Brandon defused, “y’know what, if that’s how you’re gonna be, why don’t you guys just fuse three-three on them, huh?” Brandon tossed two more spirits out; rather than form into steely bodies, they went into the backs of Owen and Gahi’s metallic doubles.

Owen blinked. “Fuse?” he said. “That’s… possible?”

Brandon stared at Owen, but then glanced at Rhys and Amia. They both looked away. “Uh, yeah,” Brandon said. “I mean—yeah, it’s uncommon, weird actually, but it’s definitely possible for Mystics, spirits—eh, just hold on.” Brandon gave a nod to the metal Lucario and Gardevoir. They melted into a puddle of metal. Then, the Owen and Gahi doppelgangers stepped onto one of the puddles each. The metal wrapped around them and clung tight, sinking into their bodies.

Owen felt a wave of power radiate from the two that remained. He took a reflexive step back. “W-wow…” he said. “That… that feels so… strong.”

“Fusion of this kind amplifies the aura, and therefore the power that is output by the Pokémon battling. So, to keep it fair”—Brandon held his hand parallel to the ground and lowered it; a strange field enveloped the metallic fighters—“I’m gonna suppress their power as if they’re just a single Pokémon each.”

Owen looked at Gahi, and then at his opponents. “Okay. So, we’ll fight on even terms. That’s fine. Gahi, you think you can take them on?”

“Heh, nobody’s better at being me than me. I’ll beat ‘em.”

“Hmph, we’ll see,” said Brandon. “You’ll see the true strength behind Pokémon and their trainers.” The Machoke swung his arm forward, “Alright, guys! I’m gonna call you by what species you are, so don’t get confused!”

“Right!” the two—six, technically—of them said. They both entered a battle stance.

Owen wondered why Brandon was agreeing to this fight. He sounded like the least committed Guardian ever for joining them. Even if he won, what would come of it? Not to mention Rhys and Amia simply sitting back for this. Were they conserving their energy in case Brandon attacked? That had to be it.

How thoughtful of them. That meant Owen wouldn’t have to worry as much. Besides, the fight was tempting. He just had to keep on his guard. Gahi was antsy, anyway. He deserved to blow off some steam.

“Good luck, dear,” Amia mumbled, stepping away with Rhys. She said quietly to him, “What does he mean by the true strength?”

“Hm… I believe I know what he is referring to,” Rhys said. “But we will have to see.”

Brandon eyed Rhys again. “So, you wanna be the referee for this?” he said. “Maybe the… Referhys?”

“Never say that again,” Rhys deadpanned.

Brandon shrugged. “Suit yourself. Alright. Guess I’ll call the start. Ready… begin!”

Owen and Gahi both opened with their usual moves—Owen with a plume of fire, and Gahi with a zig-zag dash shrouded in shadows.

“Trapinch, counter with Feint Attack! Charmeleon, Dragon Claw!”

The Steel Pokémon obeyed, rushing right for their respective opponents. Gahi, shrouded in darkness, slammed into his double with a powerful tackle, but his mirror did the exact same thing, and they bounced off of one another. Despite being made of metal, he seemed just as durable as Gahi; Brandon must have adjusted them to mimic their exact battle capabilities.

Meanwhile, a yellow-orange jet of fire from Owen hit its mark, but it didn’t leave a burn as Owen would have hoped. Charmeleon, meanwhile, slashed across Owen’s chest with claws coated in indigo flames.

“Ngh—” Owen tried to rush back, thinking about his next move. He didn’t hear Brandon’s next order in the rush of battle, but he had said something. “W-wait! Hello?”

Charmeleon sidestepped, moving away from the fight. Owen fired another orange Flamethrower to get his attention, but he missed, and Charmeleon didn’t care. Instead, both metal fighters went after Gahi, striking him from both sides with darkness and dragon fire.

With a shout and a curse, Gahi rolled on the hard concrete and struggled to stand up. Owen breathed another beam of dense flames toward them. Charmeleon countered with an orb of white light, softening the blow. Trapinch, meanwhile, formed a wad of mud in his mouth and fired at Owen, partially obscuring his vision. “W-wait! That’s not—”

Coordinated, Charmeleon pushed Owen back with another claw coated in dragon embers. Trapinch followed up with another Mud Slap, almost completely blocking Owen’s vision, now.

“Alright, he’s weak enough. Watch out for Gahi!” Brandon yelled. “Charmeleon, use Flash Cannon again! Trapinch, Iron Head!”

“Of course they’d know those.” Amia sighed. “Ohh, why is he losing?! Is Brandon cheating? They should be at a disadvantage, being Steel, shouldn’t they?”

“No,” Rhys said. “They are at a disadvantage… but Brandon isn’t cheating. Their powers are equal.”

Gahi groaned, rolling across the ground. He was done—he could barely get off from his back. Owen was stuck wiping mud off of his face.

“No matter how good you are at having a strategy,” Rhys said, “when you are in the heat of battle, it can be difficult to make the right decision. Owen, in his current state, isn’t able to strategize and battle at the same time without distance; he can buy time to do so… but Brandon needs no time. As an observer—as a trainer—he is able to guide his weapons, his partners, with a much clearer head. Fewer mistakes, and more knowledge of the field, augments his Pokémon’s power immeasurably.”

“Just being commanded makes them stronger?” Amia said.

“Not in and of itself,” Rhys said. “But it allows them to focus entirely on execution. There is no need to think about what to do next—if the bond with your trainer is at its best… you can put all of your trust into his commands and focus entirely on your next move, thinking in the present, and let your trainer think in the future. You stop thinking about what to do next, and you start thinking about what to do now. The focus it provides is, well… You see the results.”

Owen knelt to one knee after the third Dragon Claw, clutching at his chest. “Th-that’s not fair,” he said, hearing the explanation. “That’s three on two!”

“Hey, nothing’s stopping them from giving you commands,” Brandon teased. “Alright, guys! Let’s end thi—"

A white light enveloped Gahi. Both of Brandon’s Pokémon flinched in surprise.

“Oh?” said Brandon. “Well, would you look at that…. Hey, Trapinch. Mirror Gahi’s new bod’.”

The light faded just in time for Gahi to see his new, mirrored Vibrava opponent. His antennae twitched a few times, and he beat his wings tentatively. “Heh… finally,” he said, but it was less celebratory than Owen remembered. He knew why. Gahi probably figured he’d gone through this scene countless times before. Perhaps he was even remembering those moments. But that wasn’t important now—it looked like Gahi still had some fight left in him.

“Hah!” Gahi said. “C’mon, round two, let’s go!”

Brandon couldn’t help but laugh at Gahi’s enthusiasm. He then eyed Owen carefully. “…You know what,” Brandon said. “You’ve got even more power flowing through you, yet you aren’t evolving. What’s up with that?”

“I, uh, that, uh.” Owen clutched at the bag strapped to the side of his body. “That’s because of that stone I have. The Everstone? Oh, and it’s kinda an Eviolite amalgam, too, so I’m not too disadvantaged while I’m not evolved. That’s what Nevren said.”

“Oh, so that’s what’s keeping it down?” Brandon said. “Everstone… huh. Nevren…” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “That clever old geezer. Guess that thing is pretty good. I take it if that ever parts with you, you’ll evolve right away?”

“Yeah. So, I’d appreciate it if—”

“Charmeleon, Vibrava. Steal the bag.”

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 32 – Instincts​

“That’s off limits!” Amia cried. Her voice carried over the echoing factory, even as Owen stood in paralyzed horror. Was Brandon really ordering his Pokémon to steal his bag? His Everstone?

“Whaaat, scared he’ll go crazy?” Brandon teased. “C’mon, it’s time we put it to the test. What do you think, Hecto?”

“I have little information on Owen’s sanity if he evolves, one way or the other,” the canid Zygarde said. “He demonstrated restraint the last time he evolved against Azu, but he was still unstable.”

Gahi buzzed his wings angrily. “Well I’m not gonna let ya!” he said. “Owen’s gonna evolve on his own terms!”

“I’d love to see you try to stop that,” Brandon said, gesturing forward with a smug grin.

Amia immediately ran forward. She promptly slammed her face against an invisible barrier; it flashed white when she hit it. “What—”

Brandon smirked at her. “You said you’d let them fight on their own, right?”

Amia stared at Brandon in disbelief. Then, in a split-second of pure, fiery rage, she slammed her fist against the barrier. Fire enveloped her hands, spreading in five directions upon impact. The sudden heat made Rhys take two steps back.

“Whoa-ho, calm down!” Brandon said, keeping his hand up. “Owen’s in no danger, right? Let the guy fight. Charmeleon, Vibrava, take that bag at all costs!”

“Right!” They rushed toward Owen, completely ignoring Gahi. The metal Charmeleon went for the bag, while the Vibrava generated and hurled another volley of mud and sand toward his opponent. The Mud Slap missed, but the Charmeleon had already rushed for the bag.

A burst of fire exploded below—Owen had planted a Fire Trap in case they tried to get close, and he took advantage of the explosion to get some distance. If they were going to try to steal from him, then he just had to escape.

“Mom! Rhys—Gahi! We’re leaving!”

“Oh, no you don’t!” Brandon said. “Guys! Quick!”

Charmeleon’s steel body had a scorch mark on it from the Fire Trap, but he advanced anyway. He didn’t have to attack, after all; his mission was now to steal the bag. Vibrava launched another wad of mud just in time. Owen had grabbed his Badge, deciding that escape was a better idea but the Mud Slap blinded him, and he reflexively rubbed at his eyes. He heard another fiery explosion to his right; the metal Charmeleon shrieked but lurched forward and grabbed the bag.

“Let go!” Owen said, and the two reptiles—one metallic, one fiery—held fast on the fabric. Owen was trying to be careful and not tear it apart, but his metal counterpart was significantly rougher. “C-c’mon, this is expensive!” Owen begged, looking at the metallic claws tearing into the lip of the bag. “Nngh, that’s not—can you just stop?!” But he saw the bag tear, and as a reflex, he let go.

The metallic Charmeleon fell back with a loud clang, but the bag was in his arms. “Got it!”

“Finally,” Brandon said. The Charmeleon stood up. They watched Owen for the evolution to take place. Hecto, off to the side, stood expressionlessly, staring.

“No!” Amia cried. She huffed and slammed her fist on the barrier again, but it didn’t budge.

Rhys readied the Suppression Aura. “Amia,” he said lowly.

Amia gulped, readying the same technique.

Owen held his breath, looking at his hands. He looked back at Amia and Rhys and their Suppression Auras already swirling to reset him. All that talk about how he’d be ready, all that encouragement to pull through one more time. And it all faded the second things actually happened. So that’s how it was. Already prepared to take him down… So much for building him up.

How many times did they lie to him about this, too? No—that wasn’t fair. They were just being careful. He told them to be careful. He shouldn’t be mad at that. Maybe they really didn’t lie, right?

Owen looked at his hands, squeezing his claws together. He breathed slowly and deeply, eyes closed, and puffed out a steady ember from his throat. Meditate, calm the aura. Release the anger steadily; let the restlessness settle down to nothing.

Owen could tell that everyone was holding their breath. Even Gahi. The Charmeleon—still a Charmeleon, without any white and black light—looked at Brandon. “…You really wanted me to evolve,” he said. He swung his arms down, fists clenched in some sort of juvenile anger. “What’s wrong with you?!”

“What—of course I did!” Brandon waited a few more seconds. Exasperated, the Machoke raised his arms. “And why aren’t you!?”

“Because I knew something like this was gonna happen.” Owen growled, pacing in a small circle. “Enet might’ve tried to steal it as a prank, or maybe Willow, y’know, something like that. Or Mom would get impatient and take the bag away while I was asleep, see if I was calm when that happened? I don’t know! People get moody! What if one day I just happen to lose my stone, misplace it?” He glanced back at Amia, whose Suppression Aura dissipated from the shock. “So that stone isn’t in the bag anymore. It hasn’t been since this morning.”

Brandon squinted exaggeratedly. “Th—where is it, then? Or are you in total control of evolving, now?”

“Owen…?” Amia said. “Did… are you stable? In control?!”

Owen smiled sadly at his mother, shaking his head. “No. I’ll never know that until I actually evolve.”

“Okay, so, what, then?” Brandon asked.

Charmeleon, defeated, handed Owen his bag back, muttering a quiet apology for tearing it.

Owen smirked at Brandon, holding his hands to his hips proudly. “I ate it.”

Several seconds of silence filled the echoing factory.

Brandon’s arms dropped. “…WHAT?!”

“You ate it?! Owen! That’s dangerous!” Amia said. “You can’t swallow something that large! How did you—”

“I just grew in size a little, ate it, and shrank back down,” Owen said. “I guess I tried to simulate Growth from my Grass Orb, or something. I did it while I was on my morning stroll, thinking about ways to keep anyone from stealing my Everstone.”

“Okay, but, Owen,” Brandon said, “lemme… just… What exactly is the exit strategy for that? It’s probably stuck in your stomach. It’s way too big to go through the rest of your guts.”

“I ate it with that weird vine in me,” Owen said. “I dunno where it is, but it’s stored somewhere when I became a Grass Type. I feel fine. If I ever want it out again, I’ll just spit it back out.”

Gahi buzzed over to Owen and started poking at his stomach.

“Uh—Gahi,” Owen said quietly.

“Hang on, trying ter find it,” Gahi said, prodding at different parts of his belly. “Oy! There it is,” he said, prodding at just below his chest with one of his legs.

“Yep, that’s pretty stomach-regiony.” Brandon put a hand to his forehead, making another loud ringing noise. “Unbelievable. So much for testing your full form.”

“And I’d like it if you asked first!” Owen said, pointing at Brandon. “What if I went crazy and you couldn’t stop me?! I’d destroy this factory!”

“Aah, it’s not that easy to do,” he said. “I’m a lot stronger than you think, y’know.”

“Okay, sure, if you’re strong, maybe I can’t beat you, but what if I used these Poké Balls that were lying around, found a working one, and captured you? Then once you escape from it, I’d just attack you and throw another one at the same time. I’d just chip away until you got too tired to fight back!”

“O-Owen, that’s… a little elaborate. How long were you thinking about that?” Amia said worriedly. “A little, um…”

“…Huh,” Brandon said. “Didn’t actually think of that.” He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “I guess there’s a slim, slim chance that might make me flinch. I’d be more worried about those things getting out of here, though. Man, I forgot that’s your specialty, Owen.”

“What?” Owen said. “Specialty?”

“Yeah. I heard from Arceus all about you four—the ultimate mutants that Nevren and Rhys designed. The perfect team. Mispy, who was able to heal and sense those who were injured by aura—Gahi, whose speed could dodge attacks and deal ones that couldn’t be dodged—Demitri, whose attacks were so potent that not even Protect could block them—and then you, Owen, who knew how to come up with the best strategies on the fly, and who was aware of the whole battlefield at once.” The Machoke nodded. “Defense, agility, offense, and Perceive.” Brandon said. “Isn’t that right, Rhys?”

Owen’s heart was racing with some strange mixture of anxiety and anger. Even his abilities weren’t something he controlled? That Fire Trap that he spent so much time developing and planning—was that just what he always had? Was it all planned? His awareness of everyone’s body language, reading if they’d attack or not, where things were. Was it all…

“Ngh… yes,” Rhys admitted. “Those are their abilities.”

“That’s… my ability?” Owen said. “So—my whole thing about just knowing the flow of battle? That’s always been stronger as a Charmeleon… when I’m closer to—” Owen shook his head. “No. That’s just what I built up with practice. I read all those books to learn more about dungeon explorations, and my practice with that knowledge is what made me how I am! That’s not something I was supposed to know. I did that by myself! Because that’s what I liked doing, and what I wanted to do! It’s not some instinct! Is… is it?”

“Instinct… I wouldn’t call it that. Maybe your talent.” Brandon said. “By the way, hate to break it to you, but having an innate desire to do something? Kiiinda sounds like instinct. But hey, you honed it!”

“But it’s still something that I was born with.” Owen said lowly. “Or… no. Not born. Designed with. Is that it?” His voice broke. His claws dug into his palms. “I was designed to be like this. I didn’t… choose at all!”

“Owen,” Amia said softly. “It’s not like that. It’s okay. I mean, you still had to refine it! Right? Rhys?”

Rhys nodded hastily. “Y-yes, it isn’t as if you can be born with total knowledge of, say… what Dungeon Orbs are, or Seeds, or Berries. You had to learn those. You just had… a specialized mind for putting those pieces together, Owen. More than usual.”

This still didn’t sit right. The fiery Charmeleon went back to looking at his claws, but then at Brandon. “…And you’re not coming with us?”

“Nope,” Brandon said. “Sitting right here. I’ve got a factory to guard.”

“Right,” Owen said. “…Then I guess we’re just gonna go.”

“Owen? You aren’t going to… finish the fight?” Amia asked.

Brandon glared. “Hey, you still gotta evolve one way or the—” Brandon suddenly stopped talking, squinting at the ceiling as if it said something stupid. “Arceus is saying to just let you go.” He rolled his eyes. “Whatever. But for real, you aren’t fighting? What kind of mutant are you?”

Owen felt that heat in his heart—the temptation to fight. Or at least to yell back in defiance. He gritted his teeth. That was part of his design, too. He wanted nothing more to fight. Therefore, he answered. “No. I’m not in the mood.”

Hecto, who had been watching silently from the corner of the arena, turned his head at Owen. He said and did nothing else.

“I won’t stop you,” Brandon said. “Just don’t touch anything on your way out.”

“Thanks,” Owen said curtly. He headed for the exit, not even looking at Amia or Rhys. Instead, he glanced at Gahi. His tone softened. “Do you want to ride on my back again?”

“Eh—nah, I’ll just fly next to yeh. If I get tired, I’ll… go on.”

Owen nodded, then left. Amia tried talking to Owen, but the most response she got out of him was curt hums and silent nods. Rhys knew not to interact. He walked out of the factory, ignoring the clicking of his claws on concrete, and stepped out into the sand and onto the black, sandy shores.

At the edge of the shoreline, Owen scanned the blackened sand and dark water. He looked at his bag, irritated at the little rips on it from his metallic counterpart trying to pull it away. He snorted.

“I can’t believe I let them do that,” he said. “Should’ve just told them from the start that I wasn’t able to evolve… Now look, I probably have to get this thing sewed up, repaired, all that… Ugh!” Owen stomped his foot on the ground, splashing dark water and sand in the air. He protectively lifted the bag, narrowly avoiding getting it dirty again.

“Hey,” Gahi said.

Owen looked back. “It’s alright,” he said. “I just need to cool off, that’s all…”

“How come yer all mad?” Gahi asked.

Owen took off, so Gahi flew after him. As it turned out, Owen was too fast—Amia and Rhys trailed behind but knew to keep away. Gahi only kept up because of his natural speed.

“I guess I got a reminder,” Owen said. “Just—a reminder of what I am, is a way to put it.”

“Yer instincts, y’mean? Being good at solving problems? I mean, hey, rumor has it that humans were the same way.” Gahi buzzed further ahead so he could get a better look at Owen. “We all have instincts. I wouldn’t know how ter fly without’m.”

“I guess so,” Owen mumbled, then raised his voice over the wind. “But… but it feels different that I was designed instead of just… born like everyone else. I know Star may’ve started life and designed that, too, but I bet they changed a whole lot, generation to generation, from what she first made, right? But me, I’m… I feel… predicted.”

Gahi stared dumbly at Owen. The Charmeleon understood that this may have been too much. “I feel like I’m not me, I’m just… what someone wants me to be. And I’m just… being that, like I was supposed to. I feel like I didn’t… make any choices. No real ones. It was all predetermined, and I never really had a fork in the road, ever. I… did what everyone wanted me to do.”

“Eh.” Gahi looked uninterested. “I guess I c’n see that. Either way, sorta annoying that we’ve got these instincts that people don’t understand.”

“I don’t even want them,” Owen said. “Why couldn’t I just be a normal Charmander, or a Charizard, or whatever? Then I’d just… I dunno.”

“What would you do?” Gahi said.

Owen hesitated. He didn’t think that far ahead. Sure, it was a little nice to think about living a normal life, but how would that go? Would he even be strong enough to become a Heart if he wasn’t… who he was? After all, only the most talented fighters would become one. Everyone else had to take on normal jobs to get by. That wasn’t so bad, but…

“I think being like this is kinda cool,” Gahi went on.

“Cool…? You think it’s cool?” Owen repeated, glancing incredulously. “You think it’s cool that your whole destiny was predetermined by—by killers, and you were supposed to be their weapon? You like being nothing but a—but some sort of… muscle head?”

“I mean, kinda,” Gahi said. “I’d say I’m happy.”

Owen squinted at Gahi, but then looked forward. He didn’t respond. Gahi just didn’t understand yet. Maybe he would if he actually understood what it meant to remember.

<><><>​

The rest of the flight home was silent. He stared down at the ocean for a while, mulling over what Brandon said. Instinct? Talent? More like his design. He wondered if this was how the first Pokémon ever created felt like. Star made them to behave a certain way, didn’t she? He could feel her presence. She was trying to talk to him.

Well, he wasn’t in the mood.

They flew over the beaches. Owen saw the Chasm of the Void to the right: the great, black Abyss yawning toward the sky. Subconsciously, he veered away from it.

Far ahead was Kilo Village. If he flew a bit higher, he’d actually be able to see the tiny buildings within the crater. Owen sank lower in altitude, if only to get a change in scenery.

“Not too close, Owen!” Amia called. “You’re a flying Charmeleon!”

“Ngh.” He complied, but still looked down. They were like specks to him from this height, but he could still see the vague features of the Pokémon below, the sections for training, for food, for entertainment—and Anam’s Thousand Hearts. Even from this height, he saw the giant, heart-shaped building.

Owen wondered where he got the name from. Why a thousand, so specifically? It was a hefty number, after all. But then again, it was a good number for the size of the world.

“Owen, don’t you think we should just warp back home, dear?” Amia asked once again. Owen lost count of how many times she’d asked.

“You can,” Owen said. “I just want to fly.” That wasn’t entirely it. But he needed more time to think, and he knew that if he got home, they’d convince him to fall in line, like they always did.

Amia sighed, looking at Rhys. Really, they could have been home by now, before they even took off. But Owen had flown too far away for Rhys to use his Badge for warping back.

Eventually, Owen slowed down to pass his bag to the Gardevoir.

“Do you know how to repair this?” Owen asked her.

“Oh, um… I’m not very good with… fabrics,” Amia said.

“I can assist,” Rhys said. “Owen, why are you leaving this with me? We’re all going home.”

“I’m gonna fly on my own for a little bit.”

“Owen—you can’t do that,” Amia said. “What if a Hunter—”

“Don’t give me that,” Owen snapped, speaking lowly. His tail flashed blue, but then it dimmed to a weak red. “S-sorry,” he mumbled, looking away.

“Owen,” Amia said gently. “It’s dangerous.”

“Is it, though?” Owen said. “Think about it. Rim could’ve killed us at any time. I don’t even know where Eon is. And you know what? I don’t think I can beat her even if I fully evolved. She commands my kind. So, I think she just doesn’t want to hurt me!” He blew out a few embers that instantly dissipated in the wind. “And she can’t take me away, or she would’ve done that, too. So, you know what? I’m fine. I’ll be fine.” He stared at Rhys. “Isn’t that right?”

Before Rhys could answer, Gahi spoke up. “Ehh, I dunno if it’s safe to go out on yer own like that,” he said. “What if Rim shows up and does try something?”

“I’ll fight her.”

“Yeah, uh, maybe not,” Gahi said.

“She doesn’t want me to evolve,” Owen said. “If I try to fight, or I throw away my Everstone…”

“But what if she just kills you?” Gahi said. “Yer a threat now.”

“I don’t think she will,” Owen said. “I saw it in her. She doesn’t want to hurt me. Don’t you think so, Rhys?” Owen nodded. “Even back then, before I even became the Grass Guardian, she was just trying to scare me off. That was it, wasn’t it…? She doesn’t want to hurt… me. I don’t really know why yet, but… I think it’s because I used to be with them. Maybe she’d feel bad.”

Rhys made a sound that was a mixture between a pensive hum and a frustrated growl. “I suppose not,” he said. “She wouldn’t want to harm Gahi, either. But I want you home by sunset, understood? Minimize all interactions with her. Do not let her take your Everstone. Okay?”

“I won’t.”

“Yer gonna be okay?” Gahi asked, slowing until he was near Rhys and Amia.

“Yeah,” Owen said. “Besides, if Rim does show up…” he trailed off. “I want to… give her a piece of my mind. Even if she doesn’t want to hurt me, she’s still a Hunter. And…”

“Sunset, Owen,” Rhys said firmly.

“Please, dear,” Amia added.

Owen just huffed, but he gave a minute nod in reply. This was their compromise, was it? Always treating him like a kid. But maybe he deserved it. He spent so many lifetimes with memories in a fog that he never had the opportunity to grow up. He always forgot, over and over. Or was it just in his design to be juvenile? Owen wondered if even this spine that he grew, as Brandon put it, was another part of his nature.

Owen glanced at Amia’s worried eyes and his tail dimmed even further. “Maybe she won’t show up at all,” he said, feeling a lump in his throat. “I’ll… I’ll be back. Sunset. Or maybe earlier. I have my Badge.” He flashed it, even though the rest of his supplies were with Rhys. “If I run into any trouble, I’ll come right home. Besides,” Owen said, smiling slightly. “Star will keep an eye on me.”

This, it seemed, was enough. Amia reluctantly flashed the Badge in the air, and she and Rhys vanished with Gahi.

Owen drifted away from Kilo Village. He scanned the landscape and found a small clearing. Something about that location drew him toward it—he remembered this sight, from the skies. But the memory was too blurry to make out the details. But if it was familiar, then it was when he was a Charizard. He followed his vague memories to the ground.

Right when he landed, the memories struck him, like a punch from behind. The trees stood tall on all sides, and the ground had shin-high grass all over. Some parts of the grass seemed shorter than the rest, but for the most part, it was as if nothing had ever happened here. But it did.

Plant-like flesh squished between his claws. He felt intense heat from the back of his throat. He saw fearful, tiny eyes staring right at him under the moonlight. The flames overtook his vision after that. A feminine voice screamed and he looked up. A Lilligant. Owen rushed forward, gliding over the ground, sharp air swirling around his claws—

Rhys shouted desperately behind him. “Owen, STOP!”

“Stop,” Owen mumbled.

Someone within knocked on his mind. He jolted where he stood, staring at his arms. Trembling. His legs felt like jelly. He thought, for just a moment, he had wings. That brief second filled him with so much primal fear that he was positive he saw his chest physically throb with his heartbeat.

He closed his eyes, struggling to meditate. His chest felt like it was going to explode. Uneasy breaths slowed into a steady rhythm. His fire crackled like a Blast Seed. He swallowed something invisible, and then took a final breath.

He pushed the aura forward. The blue ember became a Jumpluff. “Klent…”

He floated gracefully down—he looked completely solid, like he was alive again. He was so light that he floated in the wind. His pom-poms behaved like flotation devices on the grass. “It’s been… quite a while,” Klent said.

“Yeah…”

Owen looked at his claws, then at his tail. Some of the grass was singed from the flame drooping too low. He breathed deep, red transitioning to green, the flower at the tip of his tail blooming into a brilliant crimson this time, contrasting against his green, leafy scales.

Owen tried to raise his left arm forward, but it felt numb. It didn’t respond. “…I’m sorry for…”

“It’s okay, Owen,” Klent eased. “It… it wasn’t you.”

“But—but wasn’t it exactly me?”

“Not the Owen I know.”

“Klent…”

A consistent, easy breeze blew past them. The petals of his tail shivered in the gust. The tall grass blew all in one direction, making a watery, whishing noise throughout the thin forest.

But it was him, wasn’t it? It was part of him. That horrible monster that was sealed away in his mind was as much Owen as the suppressed version talking now.

The Jumpluff turned away. “…As much as I say that I know you as someone else now, Owen… I don’t like being around here very much. There aren’t many good memories here. Very few…” He sighed. “I’ll be returning, now. Owen, will you be fine on your own?”

“Y-yeah. I just want to… take a walk.”

Klent nodded and evaporated into an aura ember. Owen walked down the path until the grass got shorter, away from the residual influence of the previous Grass Guardian. The Mystic side of him appreciated the scenery; the natural side of him preferred a hotter climate. He didn’t know what his ‘true’ side felt about this place. Perhaps it didn’t feel anything.

What was it like to feel nothing? Owen shivered. To lose all sense of self like that…

Once he was on a landscape with grass that only went up to the top of his claws, Owen felt the presence of someone powerful. The leaves on his body stiffened like fur and he slowed his pace. He could feel the anxieties of the spirits within him. Calm down, it’s alright, Owen thought to them.

He knew who it was. So, he wasn’t surprised when he saw an Espurr appear in front. He snorted and continued walking. He sensed no malice, but he also realized that it was going to be impossible to get anything out of her. As much as he wanted to have his questions answered, there was no point in talking.

There she was, the Hunter herself. What was her role in all this? Did she once command him? Did she want him back? He obviously wasn’t going to follow that. The Charmeleon stared at her with half a mind to…

Owen didn’t know what he wanted to do to her. There was a block in his thought process. Attack her? No. That didn’t feel… right. But—she was a killer. She killed Cara and Forrest. She forced Demitri, Mispy, and Gahi to evolve. She made them get reset. He never got to talk to Forrest. But Cara was terrified. But she also seemed relieved. Was she like Zena?

Rim had her gaze on the ground. Owen walked right past her. And then she turned around. With his cursed Perception, he knew she did. He walked for a few minutes; the Espurr never made a move. Instead, whenever he got too far away, she vanished and reappeared behind him, following without moving a muscle.

Realizing she wouldn’t stop this, he finally turned around. The Espurr still had her eyes on the ground. After a moment of quiet that was cut only by the wind, she took slow, hesitant steps toward him. Owen could tell that she was too nervous to speak—and his vague memories suggested that she wasn’t much to talk in general.

Who was Rim? Owen’s claws tapped against one another, fists clenching. Why did Owen feel so familiar with her? The memories were right there, but Star’s block prevented them from emerging. If only he could rip it away. He had to know. Rim, who was she? Was she Owen’s commander? What did she know about him? Why did she run?

Could she fix him?

Rim sat down. Owen watched her. The grass caressed her tiny legs and intertwined with her gray fur. The way she moved was delicate and deliberate. Her ears twitched when a breeze rustled the fur the wrong way.

He wondered if Rim missed him, or if he was just an asset to her that she was trying to get back. He really didn’t know. But her heart beat in an odd way. Her breathing was slow. It had nothing akin to a body preparing for battle. If anything, her spirit to fight was nonexistent. Rim wouldn’t be able to fight even if she tried; like Owen, she just wasn’t in the mood.

Who was Eon? It was such a familiar name. He felt so close. Yet, those memories were perhaps the most locked away. Were they good memories, or bad ones? Any time he thought back, his stomach twisted itself in knot after knot. He just wanted it to be over. He just wanted to know. He envied Gahi, so nonchalant about his missing past. But knowing him, he was just putting on a brave face. It probably bothered Gahi, too. But what could he do about it? Nothing.

But Owen could. As a Mystic, he could fix this himself.

Rim focused on the ground; The grass cut away. The dirt rose up and swirled into a flat, brown plane. Then, little figures rose up on the ground, and a grid formed a square in the middle, with a figure taking up each square on the two bottom and top edges of the grid. Half of them on Owen’s side, the other half on Rim’s.

Owen blinked. Chess. Chess! The memory crashed through the block, but it was the only one. A specific memory. If only he could have pulled out a few more.

He had played it all the time—it was a game that Nevren knew, though where he learned it, he had no idea. He didn’t know what half of the pieces were called anymore; he just knew what they could do by their shape. One of the pieces on Rim’s side jiggled and floated up, moving two spaces toward Owen.

Was this what she wanted to do? A game? The petals on his tail swayed rhythmically and he sat down in front of her. The grass felt nice against his leafy scales. Perhaps the fields weren’t so bad after all.

Owen intended to counter with the same move. He reached forward, but a barrier blocked his way. He let out a confused, reptilian chirp, looking at Rim. Those giant eyes stared wordlessly into his.

He retracted his hand and closed his eyes. He used his Mystic powers and slowly slid the pawn forward to mirror her move.

Rim smiled and made her next move.

Owen defeated Rim easily. He wasn’t sure how many moves it took for him to beat her, but he made them so quickly that Rim felt pressured to match his speed. Her mistakes were devastating. Owen looked down at Rim with a little smirk, but Rim beamed with her big eyes.

It unnerved him. He could read bodies, but he couldn’t read minds. All he could feel from Rim was a radiating, happy heartbeat, a satisfied puff of air from her tiny nose, the muscles of her face contorting into a rare, genuine smile.

It was contagious. For a moment, Owen stopped caring. A dumb smile crossed his scaly lips. And in that moment, his heart felt a little lighter, too.

Rim stood up; she walked around the board, toward Owen, and pushed at his side. Owen tilted his head; he scooted, but then Rim made a slightly more twisting motion, and Owen understood.

He spun until his tail faced the board. Rim sat back on the other side. Owen felt it again—that feeling of something moving. Rim made the same move as before. But he wasn’t sure about any of the other pieces. He knew that they would be in their original positions, but he couldn’t feel them yet. He had to focus… There. The pieces were all there, as were his. So, he focused on that one piece again and mirrored her move.

The game was slower, but it allowed Rim more time to think. She was harder to beat, but Owen soon knew the entire landscape of the board.

Even the wild Pokémon in the trees that were watching them. The plants that swayed with the wind. He sensed all of their movements. Even the hidden ones lounging in the bushes. The leaves loosening with the incoming autumn, starting their slow transition from green to red.

He had no idea he could expand himself like this, to feel the land as if it was his own body. Perception. Was this it? Was this what it felt like?

He never felt so… correct before. Was that the word? But this was his design. Wasn’t this what Rim wanted? But he wasn’t killing anybody. He wasn’t fighting. He was playing a game. And everything around him felt… peaceful. Could mutants know peace?

The game was over before he knew it, and with a final, decisive thump of the piece, Rim’s king was trapped in checkmate. Owen felt Rim’s smile when she stood up.

Yet, by the time Owen had turned around to face her, she was gone.

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 33 – Black Sparks​

Hot Spot Cave’s training area—deeper inside, beyond the residential buildings, but not near the lava—was awash with water, warming in the natural heat. Four Pokémon fought in the middle. Two were exhausted, collapsed on the ground. The other two waited patiently for their opponents to rise.

“I thought this would be harder,” Willow pouted.

“You have to remember,” Zena said, “they’re not Mystic. They may be mutants, but that’s sealed away, still. I doubt they’re taking this too seriously, either. We’re just sparring. Maybe they don’t want to hurt us or go too hard.”

Demitri gurgled in a puddle of Zena’s Hydro Pump. Mispy staggered to her feet, her leaf trembling.

“Well, at least we got Demitri to evolve,” Willow said, eying the Fraxure and Bayleef.

Demitri finally stood up, panting. “That’s… that’s right! So we’re… totally making progress,” he said. “Right, Mispy?”

“I might faint…” Mispy wheezed.

“If that’s the case, we should just take a break,” Zena said. “We don’t want to push you too hard anyway—not when it won’t be easy to subdue you in case… well…”

“In case we evolve?” Demitri asked, keeping his voice even.

Mispy nodded. “But… it doesn’t feel like we’ll evolve yet.”

“Yeah, the other times we evolved, it always sorta felt like there was this… pressure, or this heat, in our chest, you know? A power that wanted to get out—and I don’t feel that yet. So, we can probably go for a little while longer and be fine!”

“Demitri,” Zena said flatly, “you can barely stand.”

“I—I’ll figure it out!”

“Maybe let your head do some thinking instead of your muscles,” Willow said. “Turn off that battle-mode instinct!”

“I don’t think we can!” Demitri tittered, picking at his tusk. “But… but I guess we fought enough…”

“We didn’t,” Mispy sighed.

“Well, when will it be enough?” Zena asked.

Mispy wasn’t sure how to answer the question.

“…Let’s just rest,” the Milotic said. All of this fighting didn’t suit her, and it was uncanny how well they adapted to such brutal techniques.

She turned and slithered back to the main square. Willow hopped onto her back and climbed to the top of her head. Demitri and Mispy reluctantly followed.

Rhys, Amia, and Gahi appeared in the middle of the square. At first, Zena was relieved that they returned safely, but then panicked when they realized only three came back.

“W-where’s Owen?!” Willow said. “You lost Owen! You idiots! H-how could you—”

“Owen’s okay—he’s okay!” Amia said. “He just… wanted to go for a walk! Take the scenic way back! I’m sure he’s okay. It isn’t even dark out yet, okay? He should be back by lunch! Maybe late lunch… I told him before sunset, but I don’t see him taking that long.”

“And you listened?” Zena hissed, half-expecting steam to billow off of her head.

Willow was sparkling with angry, pink energy. “He could be hurt by the Hunters alone! What kind of a mother are you?!”

“Th-that’s not—! I didn’t mean to—he’s okay! H-he’s…” Amia sniffed.

Rhys tutted and stepped forward. “Willow, there is no strategic advantage to the Hunters striking Owen. He’s unstable, and if he evolves, it could mean the end for them. Owen isn’t aligned with Star or Ba—Arceus, and I believe they want to take advantage of that.” He crossed his arms. “To add, I do not believe the Hunters want to harm Owen to begin with.”

“What, they want to convince Owen to work for them? Hah!” Willow snorted. “…Why did Owen want to go on his own?”

Gahi’s wings buzzed to get their attention. “Eh, got a little moody when someone told him he’s good at solvin’ puzzles because that’s in his nature, the way he was designed.”

“Oh,” Willow said. Her sparks simmered down, turning into a pink mist. “Well… I guess that’s okay to be mad about.”

Manny stepped closer, overhearing the discussion. “He’s still having an identity crisis, eh?” he asked. “Bah, why can’t he be simple-minded like these three?”

“Simple-minded?” Mispy growled.

“E-ehh, maybe like, yeh don’t care as much?”

“That’s better,” Mispy said, shaking her leaf angrily. She eyed Demitri and softened her expression. “Is Owen… okay?”

Amia nodded, but there was some hesitance in her movements. “Well… I think he’ll be a little moody for a while. He always got wrapped up in his thoughts. I mean, maybe that’s part of how he was designed, but… that’s how we know him, right? So, it can’t be all bad. Besides, isn’t everyone born a little designed?”

“I dunno,” Gahi said dismissively. “Hey, so looks like yeh evolved! I bet I evolved first, though, heh.”

“We got to training pretty soon after you left,” Demitri said. “I think we evolved while you were still flying to the factory. Oh—and how’d that go?”

“Eh… I don’t wanna talk about it.” Gahi’s fluttering slowed. “Maybe later.”

“What, is everyone in a bad mood?” Willow said.

“It seems so,” Zena said. She nodded solemnly. “And you’re absolutely sure that Owen is okay?” she said.

Rhys nodded.

This still wasn’t enough for her. She had half a mind to go out and find him, but she wasn’t sure if the Hunters would feel the same way about her that they did about Owen. “Perhaps we can discuss this over dinner,” she said. “Manny, you mentioned that you were preparing something for the mutants?”

“Eh, yeah! Great stuff fer a post-fight meal, y’know. Builds up muscle. Real great protein. I’m gonna go finish it up; I’ve got it on a low simmer righ’ now. Aura burns real steadily if yeh got good control.”

The Lucario left. Rhys seemed skeptical that Manny was capable of slow burns.

“Make a plate for Owen, too,” Zena said. “Surely he’ll return by lunchtime…”

“But he doesn’t eat anymore,” Gahi said.

“I think he’ll appreciate it,” Zena countered. “Okay?”

“Ehh, alright, alright…” Gahi looked at Manny, who nodded while hauling out a pot of stew.

<><><>​

Thankfully, Owen returned during lunch, entering the cave the old-fashioned way. He was a little disappointed that he didn’t have to do the Hot Spot dance to open the path, but despite this, the Charmeleon had the smallest spring in his step.

Owen wondered how Deca was doing. Ever since he became a Charmeleon, he never got to see him. Then again, he hoped it would be a while. He couldn’t imagine the jealousy Deca would feel if Owen evolved, but he didn’t. He probably wouldn’t want to know about how much of a freak he was for eating an Everstone, too, after all that talk about wanting to evolve.

Amia spotted Owen first and was simultaneously perplexed and relieved at his brighter mood. “Owen, you’re back.”

“Hey, Mom.” He stood awkwardly in front of her, avoiding her eyes.

Amia waved her arm and summoned Alex, the aura swirling from a blue ember, to something that floated in the air, and then finally into a solid, Magmortar form. “Owen, we’re sorry if—”

“No, no,” Owen said. “That was stupid of me. I’m sorry I just flew off like that. I’m okay.”

He smiled at both of them. Alex nervously bumped his cannons together.

Owen abruptly moved forward to Alex, wrapping his arms as well as he could around the Magmortar’s huge frame. He turned his head to nod at Amia. “Thanks for dealing with me for all this time. For… how long has it been?”

“Oh, Owen…” Amia held her hand against the fin in her chest. “What’s gotten into you?”

Owen laughed, pulling away from Alex, but his father refused to let him go. His arms crossed behind Owen and held him in place. Owen complied, rolling his eyes with a smile.

“Um—how’s everyone doing?” Owen asked.

“Oh, just fine, Owen,” Amia said. “Did you have a good flight home?”

“Yeah,” Owen said.

“Rhys didn’t have time to repair your bag, but I’ll have it to you by tomorrow morning, okay?”

“Oh, yeah, uh—that’s okay,” he said. “Thanks.”

“Oy, Owen!” Gahi called. “We made a plate fer ya!” He waved one of his tiny legs at him in midair. Gahi hadn’t touched the ground in quite a while.

“F-for me?” Owen asked. “I don’t eat!”

“Yeah, but I bet food still tastes good, eh? Zena insisted.” Gahi said. “C’mon!”

“W-well, if you went through the trouble…”

Alex let Owen go, following him toward the square with Valle as the usual centerpiece. They walked over to the little picnic-like seating arrangement, seeing the one plate without someone next to it. Owen sat down between Gahi and Demitri, taking his first heaping spoonful. He smelled the smallest hint of Tamato Berry in the thick broth and had to swallow to keep the drool down.

Owen sensed something flying his way. He raised his free hand and caught a full Tamato from his right.

“Heh, Rhys told me yeh liked these,” Manny said.

Owen beamed, squeezing the ultra-spicy juice straight into the bowl, unnerving everybody.

“So, how’d your trip go?” Gahi asked. “Anybody yeh see er anything? Y’took a while, unless yeh just wandered.”

“Oh, I ran into Rim,” Owen said, eating the pulp and husk of the squeezed berry.

Amia and the others flinched, but they’d already been prompted that this was a possibility.

“She, um… she was nice,” Owen said tentatively. “We didn’t talk much, but she barely talks, so that’s not really any different. She played a game with me—chess, y’know what that is?”

“Huh… That sounds kinda familiar,” Demitri said. “Gahi?”

“Yeah, I think you played that before,” Gahi said, “when we were still with the Hunters. So, Rim just taught yeh how that game worked again?”

“It kinda came back to me,” Owen said, mixing the spicy juice into the broth with a claw. “But then she did something a little weird. She made me turn around and play it without looking. But I still beat her… I had to use my Mystic power to move the pieces, but… yeah. I still won.”

“Wow, you beat Rim without even looking?”

“At chess,” Owen emphasized. “I just… felt where the pieces were, that’s all.”

“Yeah, but that’s still pretty cool,” Demitri said. “Is that part of your Mystic power?”

“Maybe? But… I feel like I had that sort of power before. It’s familiar. So, I might’ve been able to do something like that before. Maybe without the telekinesis, though. I think she—” The memory hit him. “Th-that’s right! She’d tie a Pecha Scarf or something else lying around. She’d tie it over my eyes so I couldn’t see! I remember that…” Owen touched his chest. “Wow… we used to play that all the time.”

Rhys eyed Owen nervously. “That was a long time ago, Owen. Don’t think too fondly of those memories for now.”

“Y-yeah,” Owen looked off, deflating. “I know. She… she’s still hunting us down, even if she wants to keep me around. I won’t be going with her or anything. But, to be honest, I…” He trailed off. “…I feel a little better about me.”

Zena perked up. “About yourself,” she urged on.

Owen nodded. “Yeah. About who I’m supposed to be, and how I… kinda just am what I’m supposed to be. It’s okay. Because… I like it. It’s not bad. Like what Gahi said, y’know? And I can still choose the little things. Fighting who I am isn’t gonna help, if it’s just… ingrained. Like, you can’t stop yourself from feeling happy, or mad, right? It’s just… there.”

“That’s a good way to look at it,” Amia allowed. “But you don’t have to be defeated by that, either. After all, you’re still meditating to keep your… battle-heart in check, right?”

“Yeah. So, I can control it. But my personality—being all… quick-thinking… I think I want to keep that. I’m choosing to keep that part of my design.” The Charmeleon stood up. His bowl still wasn’t eaten, but he had come to a decision.

“Uh, Owen?” Demitri, still seated, craned his neck.

Owen’s body shifted from red to green. Then, he grew in size, followed by turning around to keep his face away from the others—it’d be rude otherwise. He tilted his head up and opened his mouth; the vine in his gut emerged, caressing the Everstone-Eviolite within. After grabbing it, he retracted the vine back into his gut and returned to his normal size and color. He turned around and placed the stone in his lap.

“Uhh—Owen,” Amia added shakily, “didn’t you promise to wait until tomorrow to do that?”

“It’s tomorrow somewhere,” Owen replied, digging into his stew. He tilted the whole bowl into his mouth, pausing only momentarily to savor the taste, and then set it on the ground. The Aspear material let out a hollow tok against the rocks.

Owen stood up and backed away. When he felt he had a safe enough distance from them, he tossed the stone to Rhys.

Enet’s fur puffed up. “Owen?” she asked.

“It’s okay,” Owen said. “I’m… ready.” He looked at Rhys, Zena, and Amia. “Get the Suppression Aura ready. Okay?”

He felt the heat swelling up rapidly. Wincing, he knew he wasn’t going to contain it much longer—there was no suppressing this evolution. “Th-that’s pretty strong…!”

He scanned the room—everyone that he knew. There was no way he’d forget them, and he wouldn’t forget himself. He couldn’t, not after all this. This was what his training was for. Owen closed his eyes and took a slow breath, held it, and let it out. “I’m okay,” he said again. “I’m gonna evolve, alright?”

“Take it slow, Owen,” Amia said. The entire square was silent. “If—if you can.”

Owen nodded. His heart slammed against his chest, vision clouding over. Thoughts became muddled. Owen steadied his breathing—it was all he could do—and meditated. Peace, calm. Control.

Please… not again, Owen begged his own instincts.

He could sense Zena’s hopeful eyes burning into him. Amia’s hands were clasped together. Alex was doing everything he could to keep from exploding. Enet was hiding behind Valle with Willow. ADAM was mumbling calculations.

“You’re just fine,” Zena whispered.

The light enveloped him, black bolts crackling all over.

<><><>​

Rim appeared behind Nevren in his office. “Disappear, please,” Nevren said.

Rim quickly vanished.

“A-Alakazam!” someone called.

“Hmm?” Nevren turned around to see a frantic-looking Golem. “Ah, yes. What’s wrong?”

“W-we spotted something in Arachno Forest, more of those—those mutant Pokémon! But… they were behaving strangely. So—even stranger compared to how those things usually are.”

“Strangely? In what way?” Nevren asked.

“They were… patrolling—they didn’t look like they were going to fight at all. But—but they were definitely those strange Pokémon.”

“I see. Thank you for the report. I’ll be sure to send an Elite team there shortly. You are dismissed for the day.”

“Y-yes. Um… and, Alakazam…? Where’s Goodra Anam?”

“Ah, he’s fine and performing another round of blessings. Not to worry. Perhaps I can see if he can make a public appearance tomorrow for morale, or an assembly.” Nevren nodded. “In any case, thank you. You may go.”

He left.

“…You may return, Rim.”

The Espurr appeared. Her eyes were a bit brighter than usual.

“How are things, Rim? You have visited me again.”

Rim nodded. “Owen…”

“Oh? I’ve been listening in on their little conversations. Owen is planning to evolve.”

“He’s… content.”

“That’s very good,” Nevren said. “He might be ready now. I didn’t quite expect that meeting with Brandon to go that way, but in the end, I suppose we’ve captured two Pidgey with one ball. Ah, hm. That’s impossible. I suppose I shouldn’t coin that saying.” Nevren tapped his spoon on the table. “They learned of Poké Balls, and that was the primary goal.” He nodded. “You didn’t have to see him, though, Rim. Why did you do so now? He still doesn’t trust you.”

“He… plays chess well,” Rim said.

Nevren returned to Rim a wry smile.

She giggled, but then disappeared.

“Ahh, Rim,” Nevren sighed. “Well, whatever makes her happy, I suppose.” He looked at the ceiling. “Such emotions are so perplexing.” The ceiling was very clean, aside from a few splotches when Anam must have raised his arm a little too excitedly. Dried slime. “…What is taking Anam so long?” He stepped out of the office and into the main lobby of the Heart. He followed the colorful path to the room next door and gently pushed it open.

“Ah,” Nevren said.

The supply room was filled with batches of seeds—most of them plain—all across the shelves. On another wall were plain scarves and simple berries. But what caught Nevren’s eyes was the long, stick-like object in the middle of the room, next to a Goodra slumped over.

“Interesting,” Nevren said aloud, approaching the stick. He picked it up, spinning it. “Are these not the Wands I’ve been designing?” He looked down at Anam, who was sleeping soundly. Nevren held the wand horizontally and squeezed tight, watching the operational end. Nothing emerged. Instead, a small blast of light shot out and evaporated from the opposite end. “Hm. It’s shooting out the wrong end.”

Nevren flipped the wand and held it properly, firing directly in front of him.

This time, it shot correctly, and therefore, right into Nevren’s chest.

“Urf…” Nevren’s eyes drooped instantly. “It fires… inconsistently. Must… make note… of…”

He collapsed next to Anam, snoring.

<><><>​

Black sparks flung off of Owen. Waves of power radiated from the center of the corrupted, evolutionary light. Amia and the ones closest to him had to step away. And then, finally, with a wave of heat, power, and sparkling pinpricks of black and white light, it all faded.

He had to remember.

He saw Amia’s smiling face, leaning against Alex in the middle of their home. They were laughing at something. Owen asked what was wrong. “Your face, dear. Feel your cheek.” There had been a bit of stew caught there. He always ate too quickly.

To Owen, it felt like he’d been standing for minutes. But he imagined that to the others, he was only there for a few short, tense seconds.

Zena’s huge form emerged from her small pool just inside her new Hot Spot home. She was asking curiously about the book Owen had in his hands. Did they read together before? How often? Zena was always so shy. She often refused to speak up, wanting to just slink into the pool and go unnoticed. He wanted to know more, but a new memory took its place.

Owen knew that Zena was a recent addition to his life, yet with how scrambled his memories were, it didn’t really matter. She was the first Guardian he’d rescued. He wouldn’t have it any other way.

With his lower half numb, he only heard the pummeling from Demitri against Aerodactyl. That overwhelming sense of relief combined with the overwhelming pain of all his wounds nearly made Owen dizzy.

Team Alloy… he lost so many memories of them. So many important memories. He wasn’t as close to them, even now, as he had been so long ago.

“Owen… will we ever see you again?” Demitri asked, sniffling.

“Don’t go,” Mispy begged.

“I… I have to,” Owen said. “We can’t stay together. If we all evolved together, and then…”

“It ain’t fair!” Gahi stomped his tiny, Trapinch foot on the ground. “I’ll… I’m comin’ with you!”

“Gahi… I have to go alone. If I evolved with any of you, it’d be… Rhys can handle you three. But not me. Not if—"

“I don’t care! We… this is all stupid!” Gahi sniffed. “This is… all…!”

“We don’t even know what’ll really happen. What if Rhys is lying?” Demitri said.

“We’ll be fine,” Mispy said.

“You will be,” Owen said. “That’s why I’m… going with Amia. She’s gonna be my ‘mom’ now. It’s better this way. I’m… sorry.”

“Are you ready?” Rhys asked.

Owen looked back. “I’m ready.”

“Wait!” Demitri said. “Will… will we ever see you again?! Owen, c’mon, we gotta at least visit!”

“We won’t remember each other,” Owen said, voice caught in his throat. “It won’t matter.”

“Then… then I’m gonna evolve until we can again,” Demitri said.

“Good!” Owen laughed, but by now his face was screwed up in a horrible, ugly wince. “I’ll d-do the same thing!”

Owen couldn’t look away from this memory, yet he was relieved when it finally faded, overtaken by another.

Owen held back his tears. Not in front of the others.

A Charmander stood before him, teary eyed and laughing. Everything hurt. He felt waterlogged. “They’re so proud of you, Owen,” he said. And a confused, thrilled heat swelled in his chest.

Owen hoped he could see Deca again.

Now the ground was below him. Claws outstretched, he plunged them into a Feraligatr. He taunted him. “Ha HA! Is that all you are capable—" But then he slashed through his body, and the Feraligatr dissolved. He kept chasing after the spirit, even in its ember form, ineffectual as it was.

How amazing was that fight? To finally sink his claws into something, to finally feel his attacks connect with their full power. The euphoria that overtook him when he got that first punch to his gut, or spewed hot flames toward his enemies. To truly exert himself, to not hold back and seal his true power away!

No. Stop. Control. Breathe. He was Owen. His name was Owen, son of Gardevoir Amia and Magmortar Alex. Friend, not killer, of Guardians.

Breathe. Slow.

“Owen… stop,” Amia’s pleading face glowed in the darkness of Manny’s old abode. “It’s okay. It’s over. Please…”

“Fight it, Owen!” Willow said. “You c-can do it! S-stop looking like that!”

“Fight it…” Owen mumbled aloud.

Everybody was watching him with bated breath. He could feel their tension. In fact, he even felt his own.

The new Pokémon beat his wings and the lights flew across the entire town square, bumping into the walls, fading, dissipating. Rhys held up an aura barrier to keep the blackness from hitting the rest of Team Alloy. In his other paw, a sphere of white Suppression Aura flickered.

Owen opened his eyes. He looked very much like a normal Charizard. He had orange scales and a beige front, a flame at the end of his tail, wings, and two horns on the back of his head. However, he was slimmer, and his wings were larger. His horns were sharper, and they were just barely hooked upward behind his head. He was built for evasion in the air and on the ground. Owen remembered that, now. But his memories were still sealed, gradually leaking through.

He blinked a few times. It felt like his vision was twice as powerful as it was before. It was like he could see every tiny detail ahead of him. And if he focused, it felt like he could sense everything beside him, and behind him, too. And above, and below. He felt like a Claydol. Eyes on all sides—though, not literally, he hoped. With a brief worry, he felt the sides of his head. No eyes. Good.

He breathed slowly; he felt that inner need to battle again. But he suppressed it, and he kept himself composed. It never went away… but maybe he could get used to it.

“Hey… guys,” he said, startled at his new voice. Deeper. That was going to take some time to get used to. Based on the startled looks from everyone else, he wasn’t the only one. “W-wow… Everyone looks a lot smaller now that I’ve evolved. H-heh…” He scratched the back of his head, taking a moment to feel the two horns behind him. So new, yet so familiar. “Wow,” Owen said again, looking at his claws, squeezing his hands.

“Are you… okay?” Amia asked, but Zena was already beaming.

“You’re… big!” Enet said, staring up. “Really big!”

“Y-yeah,” Owen said. “Thanks! I guess I’m not too small after all, huh?”

“Yeah!”

“So… so you aren’t gonna kill us?” Willow asked.

“W-was I really like that?” Owen said.

“Not really, but… you know…” Willow hesitated, glancing at Manny.

Aside from Zena, everyone had a sort of cautious optimism at seeing Owen, fully evolved, behave like a normal Pokémon. Owen figured that they were just trying not to startle him, and while he appreciated the thought, he was hoping for at least a few cheers, or perhaps buzzing fanfare from ADAM’s strange body.

“Nah, yeh were just scary good at fighting,” Manny said. “Good job at all that! Hey, how ‘bout we break the new body in, eh? Let’s have a rematch!”

“Y-you? I—I don’t know if I should,” Owen said. “I could barely stand up against Azu, and isn’t he your weakest?”

“Only by a li’l bit,” Manny said. “I dwarf ‘em all anyway. So yeh wanna go? One on one?”

“W-well…!” Owen looked pleadingly at Amia and Rhys.

Rhys sighed. “Very well. But if you feel yourself slipping, request to stop. Manny, you will respect that. Better we test Owen now than in a real battle.”

“I will,” Manny said, knocking a claw against his chest-spike. “Lucario’s Honor, eh?”

“Hm.”

Manny led the way to the training area; Owen marveled at how much smaller it seemed now that he was so much taller. “I’m still not used to it,” he said. “I don’t think I was ever this size before in these caves!”

“Are yer memories comin’ back yet?”

“A little,” Owen said. “But… I don’t want to think back to them yet. I just want to enjoy being like this for a while before I, um, reflect.”

Zena slithered up close to Owen on his right side, sizing him up, eyes following every part of him. At this size, they weren’t very awkward in comparison anymore. She was still larger, but not by much.

“How do I look?” Owen asked.

Zena flinched, turning away. “It… suits you. You look like a real dragon, now.”

Owen blushed. “A-aw, well, I’m still just a Fire-Flying. But thanks. Maybe I can practice flying with actual wings next.”

Gahi watched Owen walk, flying next to him with an envious growl. “I’m gonna evolve next,” he said. “Then we’re gonna fight. And then I’ll beat you. Then I’ll win!”

Owen laughed. “You know, sure,” he said. “A little sparring match after you evolve. It’s a deal.” He winked at him. “But you’ll have to evolve first.”

“Yer on,” Gahi hissed challengingly. Despite his tone, he smiled as well as a Vibrava could. Mispy rolled her eyes; Demitri just sighed. Gahi would never change, but Owen preferred that.

They stopped when they entered the sparring area again. The water from Demitri and Mispy training against Zena and Willow had evaporated, leaving the caves feeling a bit humid.

Manny spun on his feet. “Okay, y’ready?”

“I am.”

Manny went into his usual battle stance. Owen did the same. If one thing came back to him, it was his memories of battle. He closed his eyes and cleared his head of any interfering thoughts, then crouched down. His throat felt hot. His wings felt tingly, especially near the membrane. Why? He twitched them tentatively, seeing little embers forming along the membrane. He remembered.

Owen could sense Manny’s nervousness. The Lucario was giving a front of bravado, but Owen smelled that tinge of fear on him and the over-tense muscles of his arms and legs. Why would Manny volunteer to fight him, then? Perhaps he was trying to train him like he trained the other mutant Pokémon within his Orb.

The Lucario shifted his feet and opened with a blurry dash forward. The sudden, rapid movement wasn’t overwhelming anymore. Instead, Owen made a minute, calculated jump back, and then a second one. Manny continued anyway, aiming to ram into Owen with his momentum. He was interrupted by a fiery explosion beneath him. The Fire Trap was planted without Owen even stomping his foot.

“Bah—wh-y’think that’s enough ter get m—”

Owen spewed a gout of fire toward Manny right when the Trap fell. Manny roared and launched an all-out attack in close quarters, desperate to at least land some sort of blow to shake Owen’s composure, but all Owen had to do was close his wings, creating a golden Protect barrier. Through a gap between his wings, Owen stared at Manny’s surprised expression. He wondered why. It was genuine—he sensed that much. Manny fought mutants like him before—but then again… this was the first time he fought one with this much latent experience.

The Lucario jumped away. “Heh… okay, okay…” Manny said, shaking his head. “So yeh got some skills after all… Well, lookit that. And if that’s just you on yer own…”

“Are we done fighting?” Owen asked, going into a neutral stance.

Manny vanished from view for a split-second. Owen flinched and jumped forward, narrowly dodging an attack from the rear.

“Bah, yer too good fer a sneak attack,” Manny said, shrugging. “Guess I’ll just have ter do something that won’t miss.” He aimed an Aura Sphere at Owen and fired. Owen cloaked himself in his wings for a second time, blocking it, but it didn’t work the second time. The next Aura Sphere hit him square in the chest.

Owen grunted and stumbled back. Even if he was good at dodging like Gahi, he felt just as fragile—and Manny was no lightweight. He’d only be able to take a few more of those hits.

“If Fire Trap is yer signature, then I just won’t move!” Manny announced, and then planted his feet down, moving only his paws to aim at Owen.

“Ngh—!” Owen knew that he was right. If Manny didn’t move, he wouldn’t be able to activate any of his traps. He’d have to force a movement out of him. Owen knew just the way to do it. Concentrated, white, whirling gusts of wind swirled around his claws. When Manny fired his first Aura Sphere, Owen countered with a slash to the wind, a thin, whistling stream of white energy. The resulting strike, an Air Slash, countered the Aura Sphere. The explosion obscured Manny’s view just long enough for Owen to get near Manny; all he had to do was get close. Then, he jumped around and away from Manny and launched a second Air Slash while he was confused.

“What—”

The Air Slash exploded prematurely, right in front of Manny. The concentrated wind made a shockwave that knocked the Lucario off his feet. He flew through the air and looked down. “Bah—ain’t gonna work!” He fired another sphere at the ground; the Fire Trap triggered and erupted in smoke and embers, sending rocks in all directions. Owen used his wings to block the aftermath, but Manny landed right where the explosion happened. None of the other traps ignited.

Owen cursed. “Well if you’re gonna do that, then—” He fired another Air Slash, but Manny knew his game. He launched an Aura Sphere in return and then hopped in the air. He stepped on the Fire Trap, but then, with the power of Extreme Speed, outran the very ignition delay of the traps. It was like he’d disappeared where he’d stood. Before Owen had time to react, Manny was in front of him, too fast for Owen to use Protect this time. The blow was powerful, but not decisive; the Charizard grunted and stumbled away, clutching his chest. Manny held his paw up, aiming an Aura Sphere directly at Owen’s head.

The Charizard panted, glaring at the sphere. His senses waned—his vision was focused entirely on Manny. He wasn’t sure if this was just working with the heat of battle or losing himself to it. He had a lot of fight left in him—and he wanted to keep going. He saw an easy counter to stop Manny from launching an attack—at least, he thought he did. No. If he moved, Manny would just fire. If only he could rip into him. Air Slash did wonders. He wanted to see him on the ground. His mind ached for this fight.

No. Stop. Breathe.

He also didn’t want to become a Charmander again. Strategizing for something beyond the battle itself, he knew he had to surrender. He bowed his head and let his wings drop. Manny smirked, and the Sphere vanished. He leaned over and helped Owen up.

“Well, lookit you,” Manny said. “You actually stopped yerself.”

“Ugh, I think you broke something,” Owen mumbled, wincing at the pain near his core.

“Heh, maybe I overdid it a li’l,” he said. “We’ll get yeh a nice Oran Berry and it’ll heal yeh up right away. Maybe have Mispy take a look, too.”

“Yeah.”

But Owen, despite his loss, knew that he was still relearning his old abilities. More importantly, he knew something else—that he was put in peril… and didn’t lose control. He knew to hold back. His heart rate normalized; his easy breathing calmed his aura. The flame at the tip of his tail flared up with confidence. He was in control. This body was his.

A passing thought about Rim flashed in Owen’s mind. If it wasn’t for her, Owen knew he’d still be a Charmeleon, brooding about his origin. He’d be too afraid of being out of control of his own design. Now, he was ready to take full advantage of it.

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 34 – Rest and Recovery​

With the confirmation that Owen was stable in his fully evolved form, Amia was more than happy to take him to Kilo Village with Rhys and Zena to find some supplies to repair his bag. Anam, missing the warmth of the sun and the outdoors that the headquarters simply could not provide, tagged along with them with the intention of returning home. He heard that some of the Pokémon were wondering how he and James were doing, anyway.

At first, Owen was worried that his strange appearance might make the Kilo Villagers worried. After all, compared to a normal Charizard, his proportions were different—not to mention the pointed horns. But Amia assured him that it was fine.

“We’ll just say you’re a southern Charizard,” Amia said. “If a Vulpix can be icy and we pass it off as southern, there’s no way they’ll look twice if we say you’re from the south. Annexation was only a few decades ago, so I think we can afford that explanation.”

“And you’re with me!” Anam said. “They’ll know you’re safe.”

They appeared in the central Waypoint in a flash of light. They stepped off the central, colorful, gemlike-encrusted platform; Owen marveled at how properly sized everything was now that he was as tall as most of the others. “Wow,” he said. “I kinda feel like I fit in with the other Hearts, now. Everything’s at the right size.”

“Your size is much more fitting, now, Owen,” Zena commented. “I can almost talk to you at eye level, now.” Though, not quite. She still had to look down from her normal stance.

“That’s good,” Rhys said. “This is technically the first time you’ve ever come to Kilo Village in this form. We were very careful to make sure you didn’t before.”

“Yeah, I don’t have any memories coming back about here now that I’m a Charizard,” he said. “So that’s good—I didn’t accidentally, you know…”

“I will get the supplies for your bag, Owen,” Rhys said, and Owen was grateful for the change of topic. “Why don’t you and the others follow Anam to the Association to catch up with Nevren?”

“Oh, that’s a great idea! You know, Rhys, what if we gave Owen’s old Everstone to the rest of Team Alloy? That should prevent them from evolving. They can go on a little Mission together! Maybe with you as an escort? Or me.” Amia looked down at Owen, smiling.

“Or me,” Zena spoke up. “I wouldn’t mind, now that I also know the Suppression Aura if it’s needed.”

“You know, I haven’t gone on a normal mission in a while,” Owen said. “Feels like forever! Oh, but it’s already starting to get a little late in the afternoon…”

“It could always be a quick one,” Amia offered. “But we do need to make sure they don’t evolve near you. Not yet. So, if you do go, make sure they keep that Everstone near them.”

“…What do you mean, not yet?” Owen asked. “I thought I was over it. Isn’t it okay now? I can help calm them down if they aren’t ready!”

“No, that’s… that’s not it,” Amia said. “There’s still something we need to be careful about, Owen. Don’t you remember?”

“Remember? No, I’m… I mean, I’m still kinda remembering stuff.” He tittered, nervous. “I didn’t take the time to think back yet. But it feels like… there’s still stuff missing. So, I think it’s still coming back to me.”

“Hmm…” Amia bit at the inside of her cheek. “Well… if they ever evolve in front of you—don’t get too close to them, okay?”

Owen hummed uncertainly. “Don’t get… too close. Okay.” Perhaps the black sparks that erupted from them could set him off. He still had to be careful about stressful situations, now that he thought about it. He had to meditate often. Even now, he felt the itch for battle. He hoped that would go away soon.

The Charizard nodded, but then caught a few glances directed at him. In fact, he was catching a lot of things lately; his Perceive was stronger than ever. Every detail, inside and out, was starting to feel distracting in each and every building. Ten, twenty paces away? It was overwhelming, but he tuned it out with hidden, practiced ease. This was just how things were, now.

Thank goodness he lived away from Kilo Village. He’d never get sleep like this.

“Hey, look at you!” said a Golem that seemed vaguely familiar. Perhaps they had run into each other before his last reset. “Did you evolve? I never saw a Charizard before!”

“I have,” commented a nearby Noivern, “but you look more… slim! It’s interesting! Are you from a different part of the region? Maybe the south? I heard the Pokémon can be pretty different down there.”

“Yeah! I am! Must be why I look so different, ha… Southern, yeah.” Owen sighed. He passed as foreign. That was as much as he could hope for, he supposed. But then again, foreign wasn’t very far; as far as he knew, this was the only landmass in the whole world, beyond Zero Isle and that factory.

Suddenly, Owen spotted a few kids running over.

“Goodra Anam! You’re back!” said a little Pachirisu.

“Goodra, Goodra!” called a little Salandit riding atop a Salazzle’s head.

“Heart of Hearts Goodra—you’re…” Salazzle blinked. Owen recognized her—based on the lack of a scar—as Sugar. “What happened? Where have you been?”

“It’s okay!” Anam said. “I was on a big, big mission! But I’m back now, and it’s okay! I’ve been doing blessings and stuff, too! But I was all holed up in the office during that, so I guess I never walked in the sun for a while…”

“Were you, you know, successful?”

“I’m still doing it! But I had some time to come back, since we’re still looking around. Did Nevren tell you all about the artifacts we’re trying to gather?”

“Y-yes! In fact, my sister has been looking far and wide when missions are slow…” Sugar tilted her head so the Salandit on top didn’t fall during his shuffling. “But they’re running out of safe places to search.”

“Nearly lost my wing,” Noivern mumbled, looking away.

“Then they must be in the dangerous ones!” Anam said. “Don’t worry. We can handle those. But first, I need to see Nevren! Is he in my room?”

“He should be. A-and it’s good to see you again, Goodra!” Sugar gave a little nod. She looked up at the Salandit. “Come, Saffron. Let’s go home.”

“Thanks!” Anam giggled and waved. Then, he climbed the stairs and headed into the Heart Headquarters. Owen was careful to not slip on the slime on his way in.

“Wow, it’s a little cramped in here, isn’t it?” Owen said.

“Oh, it’s not so bad,” Amia dismissed. “I think you’re just too used to being so cute and small!”

“M-Mom…”

“Ohh, I’m sorry, dear. I couldn’t resist. But it’s so new to stand next to you and be shorter! Alex is so proud, dear. He wanted me to let you know.”

“Right…” Owen sighed. “Well, let’s just see what Nevren found for us. And I want to know if he knew that I could evolve and handle it or not.”

“He’s a bit difficult to read, dear. Don’t forget that he’s an Alakazam—I feel like he’ll only really let you to know the truth if he wants you to.”

“Comforting.” Owen snorted. “But I think my Perceive and stuff will make that a little hard for him.”

“If I sense he is trying to deceive you,” Zena said lowly, “I will be sure he stays hydrated.”

They entered the office Nevren was looking over some of the newer reports that came in. He didn’t even know who it was that visited this time. “Ah, more information? If you have a report, please leave it on the desk.”

“It’s me, Nevren!” Anam said. “Oh, and Owen! Look!”

Nevren finally raised his head. His eyes lifted. “Owen! You evolved!” he stepped away from the table, disappeared, and reappeared on the other side in a flash of Teleport. “My goodness, when did that happen?”

“Just today,” Owen said proudly, hands on his hips. “I’ve been feeling pretty good about it, if you ask me. A whole day earlier! Not even sunset.”

“Well, not sunset here,” said Amia. “It’s probably already quite late at Hot Spot Cave, and we just can’t tell since it’s underground.”

“Oh, yeah,” Owen nodded. “It’s crazy what a little warping around can do to time.”

“Well, the position of the sun,” Nevren said. “After all, if you move fast enough, you can outpace the time of day by the sun’s position. Or you could cut the day’s length in half. The planet isn’t very large, unfortunately.”

“Unfortunately?” Amia repeated. “What an odd word, Nevren. I think the planet is just fine!”

“Well, it’s a bit on the small side, wouldn’t you think?” Nevren said. “The living population can’t be more than a few million.”

“That’s—a very big number, Nevren! Honestly!” she giggled. “Such grand statements. The stars are too far away to think of other worlds.”

“Indeed, they are.” Nevren grinned. “Well! Owen, how are you enjoying your new body?”

“I love it,” Owen said. “I feel like I’m finally in the right scales. And the wings are really cool, too.” He flapped them lightly, careful not to blow at the many reports on the table. “But, about that…” He tried to keep the drop of his wings subtle, but his dim flame gave his feelings away. “Nevren, why did you… give me that stone?”

“The stone?” Nevren said. “Ahh… I imagine you figured it out by now—that I gave it to you because I was afraid the Suppression Aura wouldn’t be enough to contain you if you went berserk.”

“The—oh, right.” He glanced at Zena, then his mother.

“And the others, as they learn how to duplicate it,” Nevren said. “You understand. In case Demitri, Mispy, or Gahi lose themselves on their next evolution.”

“O-oh…” He reconsidered his planned questions, the wind stolen from his wings. “So… you were just making sure that…”

Nevren sighed, intertwining his fingers as he Teleported back to his desk in a sitting position. Several reports shuffled in front of him, which he filled out while only making passing glances

“There were three options,” he stated. “The first option was to continue your evolving over and over until you were finally stable enough to not reset. We have done that for a long time. You weren’t dangerous if we knew how to contain you. The second option would be what I did—keep your evolution suppressed outright, in case you became too powerful or too risky to put in your final form, even for a moment. With your Mystic powers, you were starting to resist the memory-loss effects of the Suppression Aura. If you went berserk, there was no telling whether you would be able to revert back. Then, we would have an Owen that was irreparably… damaged. So, we suppressed your aura until we were certain that you were stable enough to handle it.”

“I guess… hm,” Owen said. “Guess it’s a good thing I was stable, huh?”

“I could sense it,” Amia said, placing a hand on his shoulder—she had to reach up, now, and far. “Rhys could, too. The way your aura feels now, compared to the other times, is… different. You’re… stable. But—don’t push yourself too hard, okay? We still need to be careful.”

“Perhaps think about me or the others if you need to calm down,” Zena offered.

“I know,” Owen said. “I’ll even have my Mystic power help a little, right? Nevren?”

“Hmm, in theory, that could very well work,” he said. “Mystic power could calm the…” Nevren paused, considering this. “Hm, actually—would you mind if I wrote some notes down? Thank you for the visit, I appreciate it. But I need to consider a few things. Ah—and there’s a sighting in the Frozen Oceanside to the north. Undoubtedly Ice. Perhaps prepare a team tomorrow?”

“O-oh! Okay!” Amia said. “Thanks? And, er, good luck with the notes?”

Owen nodded. “Um, Nevren?” he said. “What was option three?”

“Hm? Three? Ah, yes—well, if we couldn’t suppress you, and you were berserk, we’d have to kill you.”

Zena tensed, and while Owen was still unfamiliar with her body type, he had a feeling she was only a few steps away from striking. He couldn’t blame her; Zena wasn’t familiar with how matter-of-fact Nevren was about… everything.

“O-oh, that’s… that’s good.” Owen tried to stay calm for Zena’s sake. “Well, um, thanks for the info.”

“Yes, I shall report to you my findings sometime tomorrow. Thank you.” He was already face-deep in his notes.

Owen slowly stepped out, hesitant to even make a sound. Amia gently reached up to hold his shoulder. He glanced back and tittered once they were outside. “I—guess I can’t blame him. He’s very… straightforward, and…”

“Utilitarian, perhaps.” Amia raised her shoulders in a casual, forced shrug. “A little too much. But that’s Nevren for you.”

“Perhaps he should be the Ice Guardian,” Zena mumbled.

Anam nodded. “I wouldn’t let him, though. I’d just… um… let you live in my Orb, or something! Like what Manny did! Except, um… maybe I’d find a way to not kill you when I did that. I think there’s a way. Umm…”

Owen decided to show Anam mercy. “At least I’m past that,” he said. “Glad I waited to evolve.”

“We should take a look at that Ice area, huh? I guess that’s one little disadvantage to evolving,” Owen said. “Now that I’m part Flying, I don’t have a total advantage against it. But hey, Fire, right?”

“Frozen Oceanside has a lot of Water Pokémon as well, Owen,” Amia said. “I think you should stay back for this one. No matter what form you take—your normal self or Grass—you won’t be in a good position. Why don’t you let us handle this one?”

Owen frowned. “Well—I mean, I guess so.”

“Don’t you worry,” Amia said. “I think we’ll have a great team! Well, I might stay behind, too. After our encounter with Brandon, maybe bringing the Fire Guardian to the Ice Guardian would give the wrong impression.”

“Are we sure it’s the Ice Guardian, though?” Owen said. “I mean, the Guardian could be throwing us off. What if it’s actually the Dark Guardian or something? Willow’s the Fairy Guardian but she lived in a field like where Klent lived. And Anam’s the Ghost Guardian but he lives in town! Well, lived. Now he’s with us. So…”

“I don’t like Ice,” Anam said. “It makes my goo all crackly and hard.”

“But as the Ghost Guardian, surely you would be able to handle that,” Rhys said.

Anam shook his head. “I think the others will be okay, right? I’ll… um… I’ll go on a scouting mission! Yeah. To one of the more dangerous places, like… um… oh! How about Dark Mist Swamp?”

“That’s… a very bad idea,” Rhys said. “Dark Mist Swamp has a poison so potent that not even Steel Types like myself can last in it.”

“Yeah, but did we ever bring a Mystic close enough to feel if one of us live there? We should try!”

“Oh, maybe I can—” Owen caught Amia’s look. “M-maybe I’ll… just… go on a mission today and train with the others at home tomorrow, or something.”

“That’s better,” Amia said, squeezing Owen’s shoulder.

With that, they gathered supplies for Owen’s bag—and stopped by Sugar ‘n Spice for some treats—and returned home. Anam ended up coming with them back to Hot Spot, saying that Nevren let him take a break from all the paperwork. The others assumed this meant giving Nevren a break from having Anam near paperwork.

Owen was slightly disappointed that he hadn’t run into Deca along the way.

<><><>​

“Hey, um, Zena?” Willow said from atop Owen’s head, seated right between his eyes.

“Hmm? Yes?” The Milotic asked, looking at the water deeper in the cave. She had come across it during one of her morning strolls in the caverns and had visited there every day since. It was warm, but still far enough from the magma that it was only like a nice bath, rather than something for cooking.

“Tell me more about that friend. Because I keep forgetting who it is. Anam reminded you?”

“Friend?” Owen asked. “I think I forgot about that, too.”

“I’m still really upset that I didn’t remember her until now,” Zena said, huffing. “How could I? She was wonderful, and I forgot in my isolation, I’m sure. But now that I’m training, maybe my head is starting to clear up.” She breathed slowly. “She was a Lugia. Her name was Emily. She was so strong… Now that I think about it, she had a lot of Mystic properties to her. Maybe she was, but I can’t remember it clearly. Then again, the Legends are supposed to be gods, in a sense, aren’t they?

“But it couldn’t have been Water… I remember I had it while she was still around. Maybe she still is alive…! Because, well…” She trailed off. “I haven’t seen her in my spirit world. Surely she’d visit.”

Owen dipped his claws into the warm water. It didn’t quite appeal to him in either of his forms. Too warm for his Grassy self, too wet for his Fiery self. “How come Anam reminded you of her?”

“I’m… not sure. I don’t remember,” Zena said. “I just need to clear my head more, I suppose. Maybe it was her personality. But Emily… I want to meet her again. I think I know where I can find her, if you’d like to come with me. And… hmm… I don’t really know who else.”

“Where would she be?”

“The ocean,” Zena said.

“…Okay…” Willow said. “And where in the ocean?”

“Anywhere,” Zena replied like it was obvious. “She’d know where you are. She always did… Yes, I remember now—she used to rescue Pokémon that were stranded in the ocean all the time! That was her… I suppose her talent. She was a healer, like Mispy.”

“And if she knew where everyone was, maybe she had some sort of Perception like I did,” Owen said, feeling a rare sense of kinship. “Wait, does that mean she was a mutant?”

“No, I don’t think so,” Zena said. “Oh—we just have to meet her.” The Milotic seemed excited, now. “Tomorrow. Let’s go to the beach tomorrow and find her!”

Owen grinned. “That sounds like a great idea!” Aside from the water.

“Okay!” Willow said.

“Owen?” someone called from behind.

He looked back and saw a Decidueye. “Oh, James!” Owen said. It had been so long, he nearly forgot about him. Between Anam being at the Heart Headquarters so often and keeping his spirits withdrawn, he hadn’t seen James in days. “How’re you doing?”

“Quite well,” James replied dutifully. “I was sent here to deliver a message: Mispy orders you to take them on a mission.”

“She orders me?” Owen asked.

“As the leader of Team Alloy, she said,” James clarified.

Owen’s tail flared up. “I thought I was the leader now, or something.”

“She takes it back.”

Zena giggled. “I thought Gahi would be the one most upset about you evolving first. I guess Mispy had it bottled up inside. You should really be careful, Owen.”

“I have, like, all the type advantages over her, now!” Owen protested.

“You’re free to dispute it,” James replied. “I am only relaying the message.”

Owen huffed. “Okay, okay,” he said. “Zena, do, uh, d’you want to come as our Suppressor, just in case? Five is a little unwieldy for a mission, but it should be okay. I mean, who’s gonna reprimand us, right? Anam knows why.”

Zena nodded. “I’d love to, Owen.”

<><><>​

“It’s kinda weird that they actually let us go,” Owen said, walking through Kilo Village under the late-noon sun. “But we made a promise that you wouldn’t evolve, so we’re going to take on a not-so-dangerous mission, alright? And make sure you stay close to that bag.”

“Right,” Demitri said. “And we’re safe from Rim, right?”

“If she doesn’t want to bother you, Owen,” Zena said, “then hopefully that will continue to be the case…”

“Mnn, I’m not so sure about that.” Owen crossed his arms. “But at least now I’ll be able to sense her way before she tries to attack!” He grinned, showing his teeth.

Zena flinched, and at first Owen wasn’t sure why.

“Are you okay?” Owen asked.

“Oh—yes, I’m fine.”

“Oh, okay. Sorry,” Owen said. “I’m still trying to get used to reading your kind of body language. I thought you were about to attack me or something!”

“Oh, not at all!” Zena said, but it was too quick.

Owen realized that Zena might have been wondering the same of him. Shaking that fear of mutants… Owen wondered if she’d be able to. And he couldn’t blame her if she didn’t.

“I was just surprised at how sharp your teeth looked,” Zena added, perhaps to fill the silence of the afternoon road.

“Sharp?” Owen ran his tongue along a few of them. “I guess they’re a little sharp.”

Gahi hovered on Demitri’s left, with Mispy on his right. Owen’s eyes lingered on the three. This was the first time that they would be going on a mission together as a full Team Alloy, including knowledge of what they used to be. ‘Team Alloy’ wasn’t complete, but it was close.

His heart fluttered—he barely knew them, at least with his current memories, yet it felt like he was catching up with old friends.

The pang of frustration he felt about those sealed memories was stifled when he spotted many other Hearts walking in and out of the main building. Owen wobbled where he stood, watching all of the bodies moving at once. Mispy jabbed at his back to snap to attention.

“You okay?” Mispy asked, the first to enter the headquarters.

“Yeah—sorry,” he said. “Got distracted.”

“Hey, look,” Demitri said. “Isn’t that the scarred Salazzle you were talking about? Spice?”

Indeed, it was. Spice was looking at the board, checking the notices with a Delphox standing next to her.

“Oh, goodness,” Zena said, quickly averting her eyes.

“Yeah, it looks pretty nasty,” Owen said. “But I heard that it doesn’t actually hurt. It just looks really bad.”

When Spice turned around, it was unmistakable. He winced at the sight of the scar.

Spice scoffed at him. “Like what you see?”

“Um—yes! No! Wait—no! I mean—it’s okay,” Owen said.

Demitri gave a polite bow. “Sorry. Owen knows you from your chocolate store.”

“Owen?” Spice looked at him, but then elbowed the Delphox, eyes wide. “Leo, look. That’s the Charmand—well, Charizard I was talking about. The one from the mission.” She tapped her chest. “Holy Mew! Congratulations on evolving, little guy!”

Not little. “Thanks!” Owen said, grinning. “We’re actually looking for a mission. Are, uh… huh. Slim pickings…” Or rather, no pickings. The board was devoid of missions. It happened from time to time, according to what Demitri had told Owen before, but it was always a disappointment. Then again, they were pretty late on grabbing them this time.

“Yeah, bit of a slow day, unfortunately,” Leo said. “I was thinking about just taking the day off to—”

There was still a mission on the board, just behind Leo. Owen was surprised that he was able to discern the ink on the paper without looking at it.

“Oh, don’t bother with that one,” Leo said. “It’s haunted.”

“Oh, stuff it,” Spice said, shaking her head. “Hey, do you want to take this one?” she asked. “Leo’s too much of a wimp to take it on.”

“Excuse me, I am not a wimp. I’ll have you know, as Team Alight’s leader, I’m the least wimpy of—Yowch!”

Spice whipped Leo on his backside with her tail.

“Here, Charizard,” Spice said, passing the mission posting.

Outlaw Aerodactyl recovery mission – research task – Void Forest.

“Research task?” Owen mumbled. “Wait, Aerodactyl…” Familiar. That species was incredibly familiar. But he couldn’t place why. He knew he’d be standing for the whole day if he didn’t move on. He continued to read.

Summer, moon 3, day 28. Outlaw Aerodactyl escaped custody and fled to Void Chasm, but then redirected to Void Forest, followed by relocating southwest to the Abyssal Borderlands. Follow his path and search for any signs of him, and arrest if possible. Otherwise, return after a thorough search. As per protocol, do not approach the Chasm of the Void. Do not enter the Abyss. Do not interact with southern anomalies. Do not touch dark clouds.

All the same, typical warnings for any mission to the southern area of Kilo. Owen considered it almost a routine disclaimer. “Sure, we’ll take it on.”

“Well, you heard them.” Leo sighed. “My hands are tied.”

Owen appreciated Leo’s generosity. “Alright, I guess we’ll get going!” he said. “You guys ready?”

“A simple recovery mission doesn’t sound too bad. This Aerodactyl… won’t be trouble, will he?”

“He won’t be around,” Spice said with a snort. “That mission statement is too hopeful. He’s long gone and fled someplace else, but maybe we can find a sign or two of what he took.”

“Okay, got it.” If that was the case, it was the perfect mission. Carefully pulling it off, he pulled out his bag and jotted down the request notes before placing it in the nearby ‘taken’ pile. Zena watched, fascinated, and asked a few questions about how the process worked. Owen answered leisurely, and showed Zena his notes about the mission statement that he’d copied.

“You write with scorch marks?” Zena asked as Owen led the way out of the headquarters.

“I guess I could buy ink, but if it’s just personal writing, why not just channel flames, you know?” Owen held up a claw, which shined with a tiny ember at the tip. He then returned to his notes, wondering if there was a way he could make this mission at least a little fun for his team.

“Owen, watch where you’re walking,” Demitri said. “You could trip down the stairs.”

“Huh?” Owen asked, glancing away from the paper. “No, it’s fine. I can see the stairs.” He supposed he could also read the mission statement without looking at it, but he wanted to feel normal. And looking at it that way was actually distracting.

Demitri stared incredulously. Mispy quickly wrapped a vine around Demitri, sensing his misstep. “Uff—sorry. Um, Owen? You aren’t even looking at the stairs.”

Zena, meanwhile, struggled with her serpentine body going along the steps, nearly rolling the whole way down when she lost her grip. Owen brushed his tail in front of her to stop one of those falls. She gave him a grateful smile.

“I know,” Owen said. “It’s fine. I’m getting better with this whole Perceive thing. I kinda practiced it all night in Enet’s den. No light, so I had to see in other ways. I can walk without seeing.”

“Oh.”

“Wish I had that,” Gahi mumbled.

Down the stairs and along Waypoint Road, Owen read out the signs and ignored the odd sense of nostalgia he had when crossing the W section. He stopped at its neighbor, searching for Void Forest, and then nodded at the others. “This is it. Let’s go.”

They passed over the Waypoint and took time to reacquaint themselves with their new surroundings, from the gray ground to the dead trees. Zena flinched at the sudden change in atmosphere, as well as the ominous, damp chill that ran through the ground. She silently inched closer to Owen, and he couldn’t blame her. The atmosphere must have been similar to the cave she used to live in.

“So… Creepy? Not creepy? What’s the verdict here?” Demitri asked.

“I’m going with creepy,” Owen said, sighing. “Let’s just go through. Be careful around here.” He read through the mission prompt’s more intricate details. “Lots of feral Ghosts that like to frighten you to feed on your panicked life energy, or something. They eat the flare that comes off of you when you panic. I actually read that they turn that flare into energy. Kinda cool, when you think about it.”

“Oh. Great,” Gahi said. “Spirit-nibblers.”

“So basically,” Demitri said, fiddling with his claws, “if we stay calm, they won’t be attracted to us?”

“Hope so.”

This was not the case. Right when they passed through the first distortion, with the Dungeon’s typical, structured walls rising above their heads, the atmosphere instantly intensified into one of chilling cold. Haunter in particular plagued this portion of the Dungeon, rising from the ground or walls. They attempted to claw at Owen and the others, but Team Alloy was smarter and sharper. Owen focused on his fire attacks here, figuring that they were the most familiar, and dispatched of them with ease. Gahi had an easy time swiping at them with his high speeds; Mispy kept any small damage from piling up.

Zena even managed to frighten a few of the feral Ghosts away by summoning her own Water spirits to fight alongside them. The team joked with one another about the Ghosts bring frightened by spirits. Owen was tempted to do the same, but he didn’t yet have the confidence to summon Klent or the others for battle on short notice.

Unfortunately, Demitri kept attracting more.

“Th-thuh-that was th-the last one, right?” Demitri said.

“Maybe, if you stopped getting scared!” Gahi hissed. “C’mon, thicken those scales! Oooo, I’m a big scary Ghost! I’m gonna eat yer aura!” The Vibrava opened his jaw as wide as it could go, chomping right next to Demitri. Owen had a feeling that it would have been more effective if he was still a Trapinch.

The Fraxure screamed anyway.

Owen absently wondered if this was offensive to Anam. He glanced at the mission paper’s prompts upon passing through the seventh segment.

Upon entering the Dungeon’s stable zone after the fifth segment, do not proceed. Aerodactyl did not enter the Dungeon depths, and instead exited via the left distortion. Per natural precautionary measures, do not sleep in the Dungeon stable zone.

“Don’t sleep? What?” Gahi said.

Owen summarized the rest. “Looks like sometimes, when sleeping here, explorers wake up in a completely different place, sometimes with a whole day missing from their memory. That’s… comforting.”

“Okay.” At this point, Demitri was a trembling wreck. “I’m done. Let’s go.”

“Can’t go yet, scalebag,” Gahi said. “We still gotta make that last trip ter the Abyssal whatevers.”

“Uh, Abyssal Borderlands.” Owen checked the top of the mission statement. “It’s not too far from here once we leave. C’mon.”

Demitri stuck close to Mispy’s side, practically brushing up against her scales. She leaned back against him, nibbling at her lower lip. “It’s okay,” she said quietly, though she wrapped her vines around him while they walked.

Gahi clicked his jaws. The cold atmosphere immediately let up. The Dungeon’s exit led them to another open field, this time lined with lifeless, tanned rocks. “At least we didn’t see any weird black clouds,” he said. “Maybe they’re just rumors that the Hearts are too spooked ter verify.”

They continued to walk, but then Demitri gulped. “Is that…?”

The Chasm of the Void. Approximately a fourth the length of Kilo Village, the giant crater looked like a pool of motionless, black ink. No matter what angle the sun hit it, the bottom was never visible, and whatever that black substance was didn’t reflect any light back. The ‘Abyss’ was that blackness.

“So, stay away from that,” Owen said to them. “Let’s just walk kinda close, look for anything out of the ordinary, and head back.”

“Aside from the big, black void right there?” Gahi said. “What kinda Dungeon anomaly is that supposed to be?!”

“It might actually just be a Guardian,” Owen said.

Yep, Star replied.

Owen jolted. “S-Star!” he said. Can you stop doing that?!

Sorry, sorry! I just caught word that you’re heading to that place. You know that’s a restricted area, right?

I mean, yeah, but we’re Hearts. We can go here. And that’s part of the mission.

Okay. But be careful, alright? Seriously, do not get close to that thing. The Dark Guardian is nice, but… I don’t know enough about him to feel safe about it. Guy’s weird.

“Is Owen okay?” Demitri said.

“Star,” Mispy said.

“Hmph.” Zena rolled her eyes. “It’s probably not that important.”

If you say so, Owen said dismissively.

Okay no, listen, I know you think I’m kinda shady and stuff, but seriously, do not get too close. I get bad vibes from the guy, just like Anam’s realm. I hate going there. Okay?

Owen’s hands ached at the thought of Anam’s Ghost Realm. “Let’s just be careful,” he told the others, beating his wings a few times to keep them limber.

“Let’s start searching for any clues of Aerodactyl,” Owen said.

“Can’t you just use your Perceive and get this done in, like, five seconds?” Demitri asked.

“That’s true, Owen. Why don’t you use this as a moment to get some practice in? We’ll check… er…” Zena paused. “If you can see everything around is, there isn’t much we can do to help, is there?”

“Well, it might be a little unpolished,” Owen said. “So, I’ll have you guys check out a few places that seem suspicious.” He looked at the mission statement again, like it was a thing he still had to do. He felt oddly restless. “It’s only this part of the Chasm that we have to check, so we don’t even have to walk around the whole thing.”

“Good,” Demitri said. Mispy nodded with him.

Owen closed his eyes and tried to put his power to use again. This time, he closed his eyes and tried to tune out his other senses, too—focusing entirely on his surroundings. He felt every detail. Every pebble and every leaf. He felt the rocks beneath the surface. The—

Owen slammed face-first into the ground.

“O-Owen!” Zena rushed toward him, pulling him up. “What happened?”

“Unghh, who pushed me?” Owen said, rubbing his bleeding snout.

Mispy approached to heal him, but then said, “You fell.”

“You did, Owen. You just… took a step and fell forward. Are you okay?”

“I think I tried sensing too hard,” Owen said. “I’ll… I’m gonna sit down next time.”

“Did you sense anything suspicious?” Zena asked.

Owen shook his head. He then looked at the Chasm and its infinite darkness, shivering. “One more check. Then let’s go.”

“No objections here,” Demitri said, hugging himself with his tiny arms.

Owen breathed slowly. It was a lot like meditating, now that he was in a sitting position. He flicked his huge tail and wrapped it in front of him to take up as little space as possible, and then concentrated. The rocks, the leaves, underground…

Then his senses touched upon the Chasm, and then into the Abyss.

Owen gulped, heart rate increasing. He kept going, just in case. Just a little further and he’d scan as much as he could without feeling overwhelmed again. He never scanned something this in depth before—that he could remember, at least—but it was for the mission. Maybe Aerodactyl dropped something in the Abyss?

It was just more and more darkness. It kept going. He didn’t know how far the bottom was, but with his powers still awakening, he couldn’t go very far. Then he felt something else. Arms? No. Not quite. But it was something. They were swirling inside, slithering in the inky blackness.

Then, suddenly, the slithering stopped. He saw eyes. They stared at him.

Hello.

Owen’s whole body lunged backwards and he broke out of his trance. “AUGH! M-Mispy!” He shook away the two huge vines that had wrapped around him.

“What are you doing?!” Mispy hissed.

“What’re you talking about?! I was Perceiving!”

“No!” Mispy said, thwacking him on the head with her left vine.

“Ow!” Owen snapped, smacking her vine away. “I think this whole leader thing is getting to your head!”

Mispy smacked him again. “Look!”

Zena had been trying to pull him away by the arm with her ribbons; he only now noticed.

“What?” Owen said, but then turned to the Abyss.

He was only a few steps away from falling in.

“Wait, when did I—”

“Let’s go,” Mispy said, pulling Owen back. “We’re leaving.”

“W-wait! I don’t think I finished scanning!”

“We aren’t gonna find anything, Owen,” Demitri said, shivering. “That’s what the mission said could’ve happened. Let’s just report back and go home; I’m done.”

“Yeah, I’m kinda bored, too,” Gahi said. “Finding a trace of Aero ain’t gonna do much now. Been so long, y’know?”

“But—”

“I’m leader,” Mispy said, searching for their Badge. “We’re done.”

Owen’s fire glowed challengingly, but he relented with a smoky huff. “Fine. I need some sleep, anyway. I think I’m losing it…”

Maybe Leo was right. This place was haunted.

Mispy found one of their Badges and pulled it out.

And what did you learn? Star quipped.

Owen ignored her.

“When we get home,” Owen said to the others, “I’m taking a nap.”

“Likewise,” Zena said.

The rest of Team Alloy agreed. In a flash of light, they vanished for Kilo Village.

Hello?

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 35 – The Hunters’ Leader​

Upon returning home, Owen felt exhausted. Despite not needing sleep, he wanted it. Zena offered for him to rest near the pond inside her home again, and he happily agreed, though he realized soon after that his bed might not be big enough for him. That gave him an idea. He was planning on visiting the Grass Realm while he slept—or was that technically meditating?—so he felt it’d only be appropriate if he switched to his Grassy form for the night. His tail curled around his body and his limbs slowly dissolved into a tapestry of vines. He then focused on his wings; they went from green and leafy to actual, thick leaves, which he used as blankets.

Then, his limb-vines twisted around the leaves of his tiny bed. He curled around his self-made nest and closed his eyes, though he could still sense Zena staring at him.

“Uh, is something wrong?” Owen asked.

“N-no, nothing.” Zena looked away. “I was just… interested in how you decided to sleep.”

“Oh. Uh, is it weird?” Owen looked up, resting his head on a clump of vines.

“…Yes. That’s a bit strange, Owen.”

“I mean, it’s no weirder than you becoming water and sleeping as the lake, right?”

“I… I suppose so,” Zena said. “You aren’t going to turn into a giant flower next, are you?”

“I don’t think I’ll try.”. He curled around again, readjusting his vines. Something about resting against a thick bed of vines felt familiar.

Slowly, he drifted off to sleep.

<><><>​

Nevren returned to Hot Spot Cave under the cover of darkness. Lit only by the mushroom glow, he tilted his head to the side and narrowly dodged a Moonblast.

“Sorry!” Willow called.

“Quite alright,” Nevren replied.

Willow skittered toward him; Nevren held out one of his spoons for her to land on. “Are you back from your boring paperwork?”

“Yes, though I fear there is still quite a backlog remaining,” Nevren said. “Is Anam resting in his home?”

“Yep! He was talking to himself.”

“Talking… to himself? Ah, you mean to his spirits.”

“Yeah. But I dunno what he was saying.”

“Well, thank you, Willow.” He lowered his spoon and she hopped off. “What are the others doing?”

“Mostly meditating. I saw Manny trying to summon someone, but he was too blurry to see. Everyone else is just being boring so the mortals can sleep.”

“Mortals. What a funny word for the mutants,” Nevren said. “Well, I will be going to Anam now.”

“You sleep with Anam?” Willow gasped. “I knew it!”

“Pardon?”

“Rhys is gonna be sooo upset!”

“…Pardon?”

“You two are mates, right?” Willow’s eyes shined with mischief. “You and Rhys? I thought you two were. But it’s you and Anam instead, huh? I didn’t think you’d be like that.”

Nevren stared at Willow.

“Are you the one that keeps sending Rhys love letters and Pecha berries? That’s what Demitri told me. He keeps getting them and sometimes he hugs a huuge pile of letters when he thinks nobody’s watching. You seem like you’d write a ton of letters!”

Nevren walked on. “I do not send Rhys letters. That is from an old, close friend of Rhys. They speak through telepathy, but I suppose they also enjoy physical correspondence.”

“Are they mates?” Willow asked, sparking. “Are you mad that Rhys is still in love with him? A secret admirer?”

“It’s hardly a secre—we are not mates. We never were. Rhys is with Elder.”

“Elder? That’s his name? Is he really old?” Willow hopped onto the bottom of Nevren’s mustache. “How come we never see him? Did they have a falling out? Do they have kids?”

“Two males cannot have children.”

“Not with that attitude!”

Before Nevren had a chance to reply, his bag suddenly beeped.

“What was that?” Willow asked.

“A message from the Hearts. I must take this. Please, some privacy.”

“Oh. Okay.” Willow hopped from his mustache and scuttled toward Enet’s home next. Upon hearing a low growl, she redirected herself to ADAM’s polished abode.

Nevren spun around and glanced at Valle in the center of town. He then turned back and went for the exit of Hot Spot, blinking once. With a simple Teleport, he was at the entrance again.

“Eon,” Nevren said into his communicator, “it is very late.”

“Actually, in your time zone, it’s very early.”

Nevren looked at the sky. Dark blue. “My word.”

“Nevren,” he said. “Do you still have that Waypoint set up in the Chasm?”

“That’s an ancient Waypoint, Eon, but yes, I do have it in my Badge, and it has been transferred into theirs. Do you intend to visit the Dark Guardian next with their help?”

“Later. I’m coming over first.”

“…What?” Nevren said. “Was the plan not to use the Guardian’s own shroud to mask your presence while taking it down? That was the plan.”

“Owen evolved, right?” Eon asked.

“Yes, he has. But—”

“Then I’m coming over.”

“Now, Eon, I warned you that it may happen early. He’s not ready for—”

“I’m coming over.”

“Eon, no. Patience. The rest of the Alloy has not evolved. Owen’s memories are still sealed, as are theirs. And, frankly, I’m not sure if—”

“I’ll just unleash them. It’ll work out!”

“Now, Eon, the likelihood that it will ‘work out’ is—”

The communicator buzzed.

“Eon? …Eon.”

No reply.

Nevren lowered his hand, sighing. “Eon,” he grumbled, pulling out his bag to stare at a little Badge with a blue, glowing diamond in the middle. “…No. It isn’t worth it,” he muttered, closing the bag. He then looked into Hot Spot. “I suppose I should warn them.”

<><><>​

The forest within Owen’s spirit was bright as ever, and the Charizard was happy to revisit the former Grass Guardian at night. While still ‘daytime’ within this realm, Owen was mentally exhausted and wanted a break. Owen looked at his hands. Orange. He hoped he was still Grassy in the real world or he’d be waking up with some serious neck pain.

“Klent?” Owen called. “Hey, Klent! How do I look, huh?”

The spirits witnessed the transformation from within, but they didn’t see him in person until just then. They recognized the form instantly—but were unnerved at how calm he was compared to their first encounter, so long ago.

“Owen,” Klent said. “You’re so… calm.” He floated a bit closer and prodded at his leg tentatively, nervously. The way Owen reacted was nothing like he’d imagined just days before.

“Calm, huh? I mean—I guess compared to how I used to be…” He rubbed his left horn nervously. “I’m sorry if me being here is bringing back any memories. I mean…”

The deceased Jumpluff shook his pompoms dismissively. “If anything, it’s helping,” he said gently. “That was a long time ago. It’s good to see the same thing, in a different way. Amelia is a bit nervous, of course, but…”

Owen felt her presence in the bushes and nodded. “It’s alright. I figure it’s gonna be the hardest for her. I’m gonna be leaving anyway—I wanted to see Star and Hecto. Have a few questions to ask.”

“Oh? About what?”

“Just some things I saw at the factory. And maybe whatever that was that happened down south.”

“Ahh.” Klent nodded. “Well. I’ll be seeing you.”

Owen nodded and walked straight ahead, following the rules of the spirit world. The bright forest he knew transitioned into trees with a blue, ethereal glow—Aether Forest, Star had called it. Owen thought back to his last time there—he was a Charizard then, too, wasn’t he? But a normal one. He knocked a claw against the sharp tip of his horns. He wasn’t quite normal this time, but… he preferred it this way.

Someone was nearby. From the walking pattern and softness of the steps, it was pretty obvious who it was. “Hecto? Are you there?”

“Yes.”

Owen sighed. “You’re pretty much everywhere, aren’t you?”

“Not precisely everywhere,” Hecto replied. “Are you here to see Star?”

“Yeah, actually. Um, is she in her cave and stuff? I can just walk that way if you want.”

“That will be fine. I imagine you are here to discuss our encounter in the abandoned factory. About Brandon, the humans, trainers, and their culture?”

“I mean—more or less, yeah,” Owen said. “Like, why Barky wants to keep that factory there when he can just destroy it whenever he wants through Brandon?”

“Brandon possibly doesn’t have the power necessary to destroy the factory in its entirety,” Hecto said. “I also imagine he wants to use it as leverage.”

“Leverage?” Owen said.

“It is more advantageous to have the ability to use those items rather than nobody use them at all, risky as it is.”

“Do you know why Brandon was sent from the human world?” Owen asked. “It seems crazy to think of a human that became a Pokémon at all. I mean—it’s crazy! I thought humans were just scary stories that Mom made up to keep me behaved. They’re real?”

“They are, though they are not very strong,” Hecto said. “You have little to fear of them. A Pokémon with the same equipment would be significantly more dangerous. Additionally, there are no humans in this world.”

Just like before, a short walk was all that was needed to reach their destination. Where the trees began to clear out, Owen saw the rocky mountainside of the cave through which he had first entered Star’s domain. “What’s that mountain called, anyway?”

“Star Mountain.”

“…Oh.”

He walked for a few more seconds when Hecto said nothing else.

“So, uh, you’re saying that there’s a whole other universe with humans in it?” Owen said. He ducked under a particularly low tree branch; his tipped horns grazed against the dark wood, surrounding them both in little blue mist.

“Hmm… yes,” Hecto said.

“Wow…” Owen nodded, entranced by the shimmering shower. “That’s pretty cool. Millions of humans, all in one place?”

Hecto didn’t say anything. Instead, he pointed out, “Ah, I believe Star is coming down now.”

“He-ey, Owen!” Star waved from the mouth of the cave. She hopped out and floated until she was in front of the Charizard, bumping his chest. “Ha ha—look at you! All evolved and sane at the same time! Took long enough, right?”

“No kidding.” Owen laughed, and was surprised at how genuine it felt. “Actually, I was a little worried for a few seconds, but I’m glad that it turned out okay after all. Um—Star, do you know if I can go insane again?”

“On your own? Probably not, maybe—okay, possibly? But, let’s play it safe, yeah? You might still lose it temporarily, and that might slip into another reset, so keep it steady. And… just keep an eye out for Gahi, Demitri, and Mispy, still. They might make you go crazy again, but don’t think too much about it yet.”

“That’s the second time someone told me that,” Owen said. “Thinking about what they used to be could send me over the edge, just like that?”

“I mean… maybe?” Star said. “Just try not to think too hard, okay? Besides, it’s probably still too blurry. I wouldn’t risk it.”

“Ugh, okay,” Owen muttered. He didn’t want to risk everything for a little curiosity. But maybe if he did a little peek?

“Hey, I know that look,” Star growled. “You already almost jumped into the Abyss like an idiot, so—”

“Okay, that’s not fair! I didn’t even realize it!”

“Well, be careful next time! We can’t afford to have you blacking out for a day or whatever that guy does.” She sighed, pinched her forehead, and then looked Owen over. “Anyway, whatever, I’m actually glad you came. Look at you, all grown up! I mean, you’ve been a grown up forever, but, I mean it more in a literal sense. I mean, even then, you were kinda like a confused teenager or maybe a young adult most of your life, but—”

Owen’s amused stare slowly turned into a glare.

“What I mean is, uh—you’re a little above average in height for a ‘Zard, huh?”

Owen took it with a resigned sigh. “Yeah, and good thing, too,” he said. “Last thing I wanted was to still be shorter than Enet after all that trouble she gave me for being small.”

The most minute of smirks appeared on Hecto’s face.

“Man, Owen,” Star said. “I didn’t think you’d be the sort to care about height! But you’re right. You’d think Charizard would be bigger in general, huh? But no, they’re a little on the small side for pseudo dragons.”

“…You take that back.” Hearing it from God hurt more than expected.

Star bumped her tiny fist on Owen’s chest. “Hey, let’s go someplace! What do you want to do, Owen? We should totally celebrate!”

“C-Celebrate? Where? How?”

Star flicked her tail; a dark blue portal appeared behind her. “C’mon! I wanna show you someplace fun. But I wanna invite the others. Zena’s sleeping, right? We should totally get her, too!”

Star tugged at Owen’s claw, and he followed. But Hecto didn’t move. “Uh, Hecto?” Star said. “You’re invited, too, y’know!”

“We may need to reschedule,” Hecto said.

Star stopped tugging. “What do you mean?”

“Owen should wake up.”

“Huh?” Owen asked. He felt a phantom sensation of someone pushing at his shoulder. He swatted gently at it, but then his whole body shook. “What’s…?” Little bubbles of golden light floated out of his body.

<><><>​

“Owen, you must wake up. Owen!” Rhys said.

“Muh—huh? What?”

“Owen, get up! We need to leave.”

“Uhh—”

Rhys tried to lift the Charizard. Owen dumbly stumbled around until finally shaking himself awake. He tripped over his own vines on the way, forgetting that he didn’t have proper legs to stand on. “What’s going on?” he said in a moan. “Is it morning? Just five more blinks…”

“Follow me. I don’t have time, just follow me.”

“Mrgh…” Owen sluggishly reformed his limbs, returned to his Fiery state, and walked behind him. Rhys urged Owen to go faster; grudgingly, he did.

Almost everybody was in the middle of town; Demitri and Mispy were being carried out by Azu and Roh, while Gahi sped over to Owen.

“Oy, Owen! Wake up!” he said. “We gotta run! Yer holdin’ us back!”

“What do you mean?! What’s going on?” Owen rubbed the sleep from his eyes.

Anam was fiddling around for his Badge; many others were doing the same. It looked like there was enough Badge power to bring everybody somewhere else. Owen felt something approaching, too. Now that he was more awake, he took the time to tune his aura to it. What was that…? It was an intense power, a bit away from the entrance to the cave. He couldn’t tell if it was stronger or weaker than what he’d felt from Zero Isle, but it was, at the very least, a lot closer—and a lot stronger than any other aura he’d felt before. Why did it also feel familiar? And he sensed someone else, too.

“Wait—I think I feel Rim.”

“Yes, you do,” Rhys said. “But don’t you also feel Eon?”

“Th-that’s Eon!?” Now he remembered. The leader of the Hunters—the one who told Rim where to go, told Nevren what to research, Rhys who to fight. He was here? Now?

“Why?” Owen asked. “Why’s he—”

“I don’t intend to find out,” Rhys said. “Let’s go! We have to move!”

Anam and the others raised their Badges.

<><><>​

If it wasn’t for Owen’s tail or Rhys’ aura, they’d be blind in their destination.

“Oh—goodness, how dark!” Amia waved her hand in front of her, but even her blue flames seemed inhibited by the thick atmosphere.

“This isn’t a normal sort of darkness,” Rhys said. “It feels like something more. Like our light is being… drawn away. I can barely see.”

“Oooh… I don’t like the dark all that much,” Anam said, shivering. “Especially the kind where even the light doesn’t help…”

Amia felt the ground. It was oddly soft, and had a lot of give, like thick grass. “What a strange material,” she said, standing back up. “I don’t know how to describe it, but… it doesn’t feel that good.”

“Feels fine ter me,” Gahi said, rubbing at the ground with one of his feet. “Dunno what it is, though.”

“It might not be a normal material,” said Rhys. “I’m sensing the presence of an Orb nearby. Anam—where did the Badges take us?”

“Ah, I can explain,” Nevren said through the communicator. “We may as well multitask. I instructed Anam to take you to where there were sightings of a strange aura in a cavern deep within the ground, far to the south. You’re in the depths of a place known as the Chasm of the Void. We set up a registry here quite some time ago but found nothing the first time.”

“Oh, no.” Owen looked around, but even his enhanced eyesight saw nothing. He had to work with his feelings instead; he sensed that they were in someplace quite expansive. He could fly quite a few body lengths into the air without any trouble. He also sensed that there was somebody watching them—but he had no idea where. It felt like everywhere… Perhaps that was literal.

He remembered the swirling things in the inky blackness, and the eyes that stared at him when he Perceived them for too long. But he didn’t sense any of that this time. Nothing was moving. The darkness felt frozen and tense.

Also frozen and tense was Anam, who was hastily looking left and right for something. Owen couldn’t tell what else he was doing, but he assumed it was because of Anam’s natural fear of all things dark and spooky.

Owen could relate. There was some primal fear bubbling inside of him at not being able to see light, not even the fire of his tail. True darkness to the Charmander line was practically a foreign concept. To be plunged into a place that he could not even see the light of his tail? Owen gulped, keeping it together for the sake of the others. Even in this complete darkness, he could still see with his Perceive. And he could still sense that there was a lot hidden away in this darkness, staring at them from all sides. Silent.

“Um—hello?” Owen called.

“Owen, what’s wrong?” Amia asked.

“I feel like… someone’s here, but I don’t know where, or… anything else.”

“So, just that they’re here,” Rhys said. “Hmm. That’s concerning. Excuse me—Guardian! Please reveal yourself! We mean you no harm—in fact, we would like to help you! So, if you could come with us…”

They were answered with silence.

“…A bit shy, don’t you think?” Amia said.

“Maybe… nervous,” Enet said. Owen figured she could relate—after all, with a party this large suddenly invading her home, she’d be afraid, too. And with how strong they were, well—for all they knew, this Guardian was plotting to run away. “We’re… too big.”

“Too big, hmm…” Rhys said.

“Too big? Oh! Then I can just shrink us down!” Willow said.

“N-no, no! We don’t need to do that, uhh—” Owen couldn’t tell where anybody was unless he concentrated on his Perception. They had to work with just voices. “How about we… have one of us move forward, and maybe try to interact with this Guardian, or something? I know they’re still watching—I can feel it. So, if something bad happens, I’ll know, but I think they’re just nervous. So… uh… I guess I’ll go.”

“Oh, I can go, dear,” Amia said, moving forward.

“Ngh—”

“S-sorry, Manny!”

“Eh?”

“Oh, you’re there? Then this must be Rhys.”

“Yes,” Rhys said. “Can you not see my aura?”

“No, I can’t. Can you see mine?”

“…No. I can’t.”

“Great,” Owen muttered, “so even our aura senses are being blocked. That’s kinda powerful.”

“What is… aura again?” Enet asked.

“Uh, the… I’ll explain later,” Owen said. “Guys? How far is everyone from everyone? Do we know? Uh—spread out your wings, or arms, or whatever, let’s try to figure out.”

After a lot of fumbling, Owen got an idea of how close everybody was. They were scattered randomly within their range of warping, perhaps a stone’s throw in diameter.

“Okay, uh… Zena, how about you slither forward a little, and try to talk to the Guardian?”

“Mm, okay. Is this forward?”

“No, uh—no, turn, turn, turn… okay, now go forward…”

Owen ‘watched’ Zena’s advance, and once she was ten paces—his paces, at least—away, he said, “Okay, stop! That should be fine enough, uhh… okay. Guardian? Are you there? Is it okay if you come out now?”

It was still quiet.

Owen sighed. “He must be really shy…” he said. “Or…” He still felt threatened, Owen theorized. He looked around, but no matter how much he did, he wouldn’t see. Swiveling his head around was just useless muscle memory. “Well, uh…” But then, he did sense something else. But he didn’t like what it was. “Uh oh.”

“What is it, dear?” Amia said.

“Y-you can’t feel it?” he asked.

“The darkness is dulling even our aura senses, Owen. Only you can sense what is here,” Rhys said. “What is it?”

“Hi.”

The voice was like ice on their spines. It was familiar and foreign; the sound was almost exactly like Rhys, but the tone was unmistakably unlike him.

“Who—who’s that?!” Anam said.

“Oh, me? I think you know who I am,” said a voice that sounded like Anam.

“Th-that’s not funny!” Anam pulled his tail around his body and gave it a tight squeeze, oozing fearful goo on the darkness below.

“Eon,” Rhys hissed. “Why are you here?”

Eon mimicked the sound of the last person he spoke to. “I’m here simply to say hello, perhaps investigate why you’re gathering the Orbs conveniently at the same time I am. Trying to stop me, I take it…”

In the dark, none of the group dared start a fight. They didn’t know where anybody was—and if Eon was mimicking voices, he could easily make them hit each other. Perhaps they could take him on if they were all grouped against him—he wasn’t that powerful, right?

“But… but why?” Amia said. “You’re the leader of the Hunters. So why are you doing this? Any of it, I mean? We just—want to live peacefully!”

“You can’t live peacefully and live together at the same time,” Eon said. The careless tone combined with Amia’s voice made Owen want to vomit.

In an effort to have Eon sound like anybody but his mother, Owen spoke up. “What do you mean, can’t have peace? Pokémon live in peace all the time together!”

“But not as a Guardian,” said Eon. “Not with the power we all have in play. Not with the powers that are playing with us.”

“Eh?” Manny said.

“Do you really think you’re fighting for yourselves and for your peace?” Eon said hastily. It almost sounded rehearsed.

“Uh—” Owen started, but was interrupted again.

“That you really think that gathering everyone together so you’ll be happy is what Star really wants? You never thought that perhaps she has another motive?”

“I mean—”

“She had centuries to bring you all together, and only now, when I make my move, does she try to gather you together. Isn’t that odd?”

“Wait!” Owen quickly said. “Star said that she made you guys, but then had a change of heart when you went crazy!”

“Oh, went crazy!” Eon said, raising his arms. “What a story! Truly, I’m the crazy one for trying to do precisely what I was asked to do. By the way, made us? No. She conscripted us. I was supposed to gather the Orbs for her, but then she gets a change of heart and wants to stop it all.”

“Yeah, because you killed them.”

“Are you sure?”

“Wh—yes? You killed us! I mean—no, not us, the Flying and Ground Guardians!”

“I did,” Eon said. “Or, I sent others to kill them, to take their Orbs. But I sent Elder first.”

“Elder,” Rhys said. “You still believe in that?”

“Of course,” Eon said.

“Who’s Elder?” Owen asked.

“Sounds old,” Gahi said.

“We’re all old,” Demitri mumbled. “Rhys? Who’s Elder?”

“He’s a Torkoal,” Rhys said. “He used to be the first person we’d send to a Guardian to negotiate whether we’d take the Orb or not from them. But… I thought you did away with that part of the plan.”

“Oh, no, I still try,” Eon said. “The Guardians just don’t listen when he speaks to them. I just sent him on a mission to the Frozen Oceanside, actually. I wouldn’t bother going there at this point—we might have a new Guardian on our side, after all.”

“Yer bluffing,” Gahi said.

Rhys growled, already in a battle stance. “You should leave, Eon. None of us can see anybody, and Owen can. You wouldn’t win in a fight here.”

“Oh, I’m sure I’ll put up a good fight… but I’m not here for that.”

Owen sensed Eon looking up. His body seemed almost impatient, like something—some aspect of his plan, that rehearsed speech, wasn’t going as he had hoped. Or perhaps he was waiting for something else to happen? Eon was tense about something. Owen struggled to figure out what sort of body he had, but it kept shifting and changing…

“It looks like this Guardian is docile after all. Given how foreboding the Abyss was, I was thinking we’d have to fight him together, you know.”

“Fight with you?” Zena said. “I’d sooner die to you.”

Eon huffed. “Guardian of the Dark Orb!” he said in Zena’s voice. “If you wish to speak with Elder, I will be sending him over in a few days. I’d suggest you don’t make any decisions until he comes, so you can hear all sides of the story.”

“All sides?” Owen asked. He felt Eon’s presence turn around. “W-wait! I’m—not gonna let you go! You’re going to answer my questions, and—”

“Do you… still not remember me?” Eon asked. “You… you evolved.”

“Star put a block on my memories so I didn’t go insane,” Owen said.

“What?”

Owen felt Eon’s body shaking. The Charizard smirked, putting it together. Eon was here to try to control him now that his memories were back. Was that what Rim was trying to do? No—that couldn’t be it. Rim… seemed genuinely happy that he was at peace during that chess game. But now, with Eon, learning that he was fully evolved, he was upset. This reaction wasn’t at all like the Espurr’s. Was Rim working with Eon anymore? Did she defect from him, too, just like Nevren and Rhys?

But that didn’t matter. All Owen knew was that he was fully evolved, and Eon was mad about it. It seemed pretty clear what that meant. “Yeah. So, you can’t control me, Eon.”

Fists clenched. Eon’s body took a slow step forward, trembling. Owen could see only the darkness, yet he felt the intense, mad stare. “Owen,” Eon said lowly. “Come here.”

“Yeah, sure!” Owen opened his mouth and blasted Eon with a Flamethrower; everybody ducked, feeling the heat, but Owen knew just where to aim. Eon couldn’t dodge well in the darkness; he bumped into somebody. They retaliated with an angry bite on his hand.

“Ngh—! You little feral!” he shook his hand and knocked Enet away. She yelped.

“D-don’t you hurt her!” Owen shouted. He swung his claws through the air, sending an Air Slash at Eon, suspecting that he was mimicking his form, based on the sound of his voice. He fired again; Eon didn’t feel like he was getting hurt at all. But he was being a nuisance—maybe he could buy some time for the others to escape. “E-Everyone! Try to get him! Maybe we can take his Orbs, or—something!”

Several attacks slammed into Eon from all sides, though most of them missed or only grazed him. Eon’s low, impatient growl in Owen’s voice shook the air. “You can certainly try,” he said. “Just like you’re trying to keep them in the dark, Rhys! Not anymore!”

A strange aura radiated off of Eon in a pulse. He recognized this aura—and he clutched at his head, feeling his senses slip away. He had to focus to keep calm. Breathe. Easy. Slow. It felt like the exact opposite of Rhys’ Suppression Aura. The radiant blast went past Owen, but it hit someone else. It had stopped prematurely against someone who had been flying blindly in the air. But that meant—

“Nggg…. Rrrr….”

Owen knew that growl. “Gahi! Gahi, stay calm! Stay—”

A white light coupled with black sparks illuminated the room, briefly cutting through the darkness.

“No!” Rhys fired a Suppression Aura, but it did nothing.

“There’s no resetting it this time, Rhys!” Eon shouted. “You can’t torture them anymore! I’ve fixed your mistakes; thank me later!”

The light faded; in a confined place like this, if Gahi lost it in a stressful situation… No, they might never get him back.

“Hang on!” Owen shouted.

He grabbed a Badge and ran toward the light. He thrust the Badge in the air—Eon shouted something, like for Owen to stop, but he didn’t listen—and the two of them, just himself and Gahi, vanished from the void.

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 36 – Team Alloy​

Owen squinted at the morning light. After being in the pitch-dark Chasm of the Void, anywhere else in the world was a strain on the eyes. He saw the brightest light in front of him, shining with the last remnants of the black sparks of anti-evolution energy.

“Gahi?”

The Badge had warped them to the outside of the Chasm in an emergency exit, though it was further away and further south than their previous visit. They were in a big, lime-green field of tall grass. He smelled ocean water—they must have also been close to the shore, though he couldn’t tell which direction it was.

Owen felt lighter. Reflexively, he clutched at the bag by his side, gasping. While the bag itself came with him, it felt as if the rapid exit had jostled most of his supplies onto the ground when he warped out. What did he even have left?

Even while he was checking his supplies, Gahi said nothing to him. Owen’s eyes finally adjusted to the light of the morning sun. Gahi, a mutant Flygon, was similarly slim as Owen was, but had scales with a blinding sheen. Even after the light of evolution completely faded, Gahi’s body reflected the sun well enough to make it hard to stare directly at him. It made sense—if Gahi’s entire specialty was agility and evasion, being hard to look at would add to the latter.

“Are you… are you okay?” Owen asked. But he knew the answer. He could feel it radiating from the explosively turbulent aura.

Gahi growled, arms shaking. His tail flicked to the left, and then the right. The little fan at the tip of his tail, razor-sharp, cut through the tall grass that surrounded them with ease. He had a crazed look behind the red goggle-like, natural headgear on his face. His wings stretched wide and angled themselves to the light, blinding Owen.

Owen squinted, realizing that Gahi’s instincts were taking over. He couldn’t let that happen. If he lost himself here, and he ran off, how would he catch him? What sort of havoc would he—no, what if he got mistaken for a mutant? It wouldn’t even be mistaken. He is a mutant. They could kill him.

“Gahi, take a breath. Can you do that? Can you… can you meditate, Gahi?”

Gahi huffed, bringing his trembling arms forward to stare at them. He clenched his fists the same way Owen did; the Charizard recognized this stance. He was trying to contain himself. He was still there. There was still a bit of him fighting to stay stable.

“Gahi, it’s okay. Everything’s okay. Can you talk? Can you hear me?”

He was still trembling, but there was a glimmer of recognition in his eyes. The mutated Flygon gave a shaky nod. Breathing. Eyes closed. Breath in, breath out. Owen watched Gahi’s aura nervously, but it looked like it wasn’t improving. It wasn’t completely unstable, but it wasn’t calm, either.

“Gahi?”

“Owen…” Gahi grunted, staring at Owen. It was hard to tell what was going through his head, but his eyes had a mixture of fleeting sanity and increasing fear.

But he spoke, so Owen replied. “Gahi! Good! You’re still—”

“Kill me…”

It was like the color left his scales. “What?”

Gahi staggered forward, glaring at him. “I can’t… think…” he said between breaths. His claws clenched, digging deep into his palms. “Hurry.”

“I’m not—I can’t—that’s—”

Owen saw the desperation in Gahi’s eyes. He could barely talk, yet those frantic, slit-pupils said it all. He wasn’t ready. Gahi wasn’t ready to be fully evolved, was he? It happened in such a stressful environment, by Eon’s hands, that he lost himself completely. His consciousness dangled precariously over a void larger than the Chasm itself.

But to kill him?

“Like Manny,” Gahi begged, taking another stumbling step. His wings suddenly jolted out, but then he flattened them against his back, grunting.

“Manny?” Owen repeated, but then thought about Azu and the others. Owen could seal Gahi in the Grass realm and calm him down. But that would mean—Owen’s stomach lurched at the idea.

“No, Gahi. I—”

His mind raced. What could he do? He staggered back, his bag bumping against his chest.

His bag!

“Wait! I have something,” Owen said frantically, looking down. An emergency exit was always an imperfect jump from whatever place he had been to—in fact, it was such an emergency that he hadn’t gone far from his starting position at all. If he could just stall, the others would be here in no time.

Why weren’t they already here?

Seconds, he only had seconds. He brushed his claws against each and every one, feeling the residual effects of the blessings. He was looking for one that tingled his claws. A Stun Seed, or a Petrify Orb. Either of those would do wonders.

But he didn’t feel a single one. He felt a great deal of soothing items, Heal Seeds and so on, but nothing to stop Gahi in his tracks. There wasn’t time to identify them specifically, but that’s all that was left inside. Seeds, and none of them useful for Gahi. No way to restrain him.

No. He couldn’t kill Gahi. Even if he’d be in the spirit world—he’d still be dead. There wasn’t coming back from that. Even Star, Creator, was stuck there.

“If you don’t kill me,” Gahi suddenly said, breaking through Owen’s thoughts. How much time had passed? It felt like an eternity, but Owen just realized it may have only been a few seconds.

“I can’t,” Owen said. “Just—"

Gahi suddenly lunged toward him. He had no guard. Owen saw three different ways that he could have killed Gahi right then. Air Slash on the throat. Flames to his face? Just cut off his air supply with nothing but fire. He could even let him come toward him and crush his neck with his claws. Did he have that kind of strength? Gahi was frail up close. Perhaps he did. And then, if Owen did that, Gahi would be incapacitated, and then Owen could finish the job while he was down. Simple flesh wounds were rarely enough; Gahi would walk it off. Maybe he could be quick about it.

But Owen refused to do any of them, yet his instincts made him attempt all three in some sick reflex. Fire erupted from his throat, blasting Gahi in the face. Cutting air circled around his claws. He reached toward Gahi’s no-guard approach and grabbed his throat with both hands. Dense air sliced through some of his scales, little green flecks dancing in the wind.

The burns weren’t the most effective against Gahi. He still stared at Owen through mad, wide eyes. When he was in Owen’s clutches, he instantly stopped, muscles tense.

Gahi was lucid. The insanity left his eyes, replaced by fear and tears. The Flygon’s arms twitched weakly, but Owen could sense from those muscles how badly he wanted to strike Owen back. It took everything in Gahi’s power to stay limp, waiting instead for Owen to end it.

Nevren’s voice echoed in Owen’s mind.

“If we couldn’t suppress you, and you were berserk, we’d have to kill you.”

Owen shook his head, vision blurry.

“I wanna be… me…” Gahi begged. “P-please… hurry… I can’t… think…”

Klent’s voice called out to Owen, but he couldn’t hear what he was saying. His thoughts were too muddled, too panicked. As far as Owen was concerned, it was just himself and Gahi. Someone that he barely knew, yet knew so much. Endless potential of memories that were only now returning to him, bit by bit.

The fire in his throat faded away. His tail dimmed to a somber, small ember. The cutting air around his claws dissipated slowly.

“I can’t, Gahi.”

No matter how Owen tried to rationalize it, killing Gahi wasn’t on the table. Even if he became a Grass spirit, Owen would be responsible for cutting off many opportunities for Gahi in the living world. He’d be tied to his Orb if he ever wanted to see the others. And a small worry in the back of his mind said that one day he won’t have access to that Orb anymore, or one day Gahi would resent him for taking away his autonomy as a living creature.

Owen would find a way. There had to be some way to fix Gahi. Even now, he was restrained against him. He had him where he wanted. If a Stun Seed didn’t work, he’d just hold Gahi in place like this.

Maybe with Rhys, Zena, and Amia, it would be enough. He’d be a Trapinch again. Sure, he’d be upset about it, since Owen would remain a Charizard—hopefully—but it was better than this.

Owen realized too late that Gahi’s sanity had slipped away again.

The Flygon roared, plunging his claws into Owen’s sides. His fighting spirit—some deep part of Owen’s instincts—flared up. Involuntarily, the fading wind around his claws returned and then doubled. A flash of fierce, fiery rage welled up in Owen. And that was all that was needed. In that second of lost control, the wind cut through Gahi’s neck, across his face, over his protected eyes, and down his shoulders. Owen let go, but the wind blasted Gahi backwards. The Flygon’s claws left deep gashes along Owen’s sides, but Owen’s own grip on Gahi’s neck hadn’t faded, either, further slicing into his flesh.

The Flygon crumpled, motionless at the end of his tumble.

The Charizard’s fire faded after the seconds’ long slip. He watched Gahi blindly clutch at his neck.

Owen screamed. His roar shook the ground even more than his stomps did; he ran toward Gahi, eyes wide. “Gahi, n-no! GAHI! H-hang on. Just hang on! The others will be here soon, they—”

Gahi reached up to Owen, claws digging into his shoulder. He dug a bit deeper, making Owen wince.

“J-just like that,” Owen said. “Just like that, Gahi. Keep fighting and it’ll be okay. I promise.”

The Flygon stared at Owen. He didn’t smile, but his eyes, behind the red lenses, looked peaceful. Like some simple plan formed by what was left of his mind had worked.

“You… you did that on purpose,” Owen whispered. “You knew I’d—if you just set my instincts off, I’d—you—why’d you have to be smart?!” Owen roared, his voice cracking at the end. The open air swallowed his wail and the gentle winds returned to him a jeering whisper. “You’re supposed to be an idiot! I’m the clever one! I’m supposed to be the one who thinks of every option! I’m supposed to see the way out! If you just let me think, I could’ve… I could’ve…”

Gahi smirked through it all.

Owen fell to his knees, reaching around to the back of Gahi’s head. “Why… of all the times to be smart… you actually chose now, to make the dumbest decision… you idiot… you idiot!” He pulled Gahi closer, uncaring of the crimson that stained his orange scales. “Just wait. Wait for the others. Mispy can heal you, okay?”

Gahi kept his grip firm on Owen. Whether it was his battle instincts or Gahi’s remnants telling him that he’d hang on, Owen didn’t know.

The pain Owen felt was just a reminder that Gahi was alive. He tried to cover his wounds with his hands, feeling the blood push against his scales with each beat of his heart. Even if he was fragile, a Pokémon wouldn’t die so easily, let alone a mutant.

“S-stay strong, Gahi. You’ve got this. Gahi?”

His grip was weakening.

“No, no no, not yet,” Owen said, holding him firmly. “Not yet. Hang on, okay?”

Gahi’s grip strengthened, but not fully. They locked eyes again, and Gahi gave him a confident little smile. Owen coughed out a sobbing laugh.

“Exactly,” he said. “Exactly…”

He was so strong. Gahi wasn’t fragile. He never would be. Gahi’s willpower was beyond comparison. The pain of Gahi clawing into him never felt so good. He pulled Gahi close, listening to his slow breaths. Steady, weakening, but there. Gahi might pass out, but maybe if they waited a little longer…

Gahi’s smile vanished when a golden light poured out of Owen’s bag and onto Gahi. The Flygon’s confidence and peace rapidly transitioned into panic and anger.

Owen looked at his bag again. Reviver Seed. Was that his last one? He rummaged through his equipment again, but didn’t feel a Reviver. But he did feel one that lacked any sort of blessing. One whose magic had been used up. And then he looked back at Gahi again. He wished he hadn’t.

He didn’t see Gahi die. But he saw all sense of self leave the Flygon’s eyes like a fading ember.

“Gahi?” Owen choked.

The Flygon stood up, staring at Owen. He mirrored the motion, yet had to step back from the shock. He was almost fully restored.

“Gahi, are you okay?” Finding his courage, Owen stepped forward again. “Are you calm? It’s okay. The others will be here soon. Medi—meditate! Meditate, Gahi!” Owen grasped onto that hope. “Remember that? Breathe in, breathe out. Close your eyes. Try it. Please…”

Owen saw a flash of recognition in those red eyes. And then they closed.

Just in case, Owen pressed his foot deeper into the ground, setting a Fire Trap. Then, he stepped away. Some strange dance of caution and trust.

“You’re okay,” Owen said. “You’re just fine.”

“Just fine,” Gahi repeated.

Owen let out a mixture of a sob and a laugh. “Yes! Yes, Gahi! Exactly!”

Gahi’s aura calmed. Owen sensed the flare die down to normal levels, but it stirred. He held his breath. He could hold it forever. The longer he could stall, the more likely it would be that the others would find them.

The aura suddenly erupted like a flame disturbed by a drop of water. The Flygon made a sort of short roar, almost like a grunt or a bark. Then, in an instant, Gahi went from standing away from Owen to being mere inches from him. Reflexively, the Charizard stumbled away, saved only because Gahi had stopped directly on top of a Fire Trap, potent enough to leave Gahi with a burn.

“Gahi! Calm down! You almost had it!” His words weren’t going through. Given how fast he was, there was no way Owen could run away. He was out of options. Gahi couldn’t run off, and he couldn’t let himself get killed, either.

He’d have to calm him down the old-fashioned way. “Okay, so if that’s what you want—then—fine!”

A classic battle, beating him down. He already did it once. How hard could it be to do it again? But he couldn’t deal with striking him lethally. His stomach twisted at the mere thought, so he already decided that this would be a sparring match.

He moved too quickly for Owen to keep track of. His Perceive struggled to pinpoint Gahi’s rapidly changing location, and he briefly wondered why Gahi was attacking him in the first place. Weren’t they supposed to work together as Guardian killers?

That’s it! Gahi just wanted to train! That had to be it. And training he would get. A small grin crept at the sides of the optimistic Charizard’s mouth and his wings stretched open.

Owen opened with a Flamethrower in a wide semicircle, sweeping his head across the lime grass. Gahi jumped and beat his wings once, going high into the air while embers and burned blades scattered below him. Some deep part of Owen, the Grassy part, flinched at the sight.

But Owen already planted his trap; the larger embers that floated above the grass sank into the ground, becoming Fire Traps. The entire field was covered in them. He hoped the remaining grass was lush enough to withstand the flames. There was no other way for Gahi to attack while on the ground, and as long as he stayed down there, too, he’d be just fine.

Wait. As a Flygon, didn’t Gahi know Earth Power?

The ground erupted beneath him, triggering the Fire Traps that he planted.

“Oh, come on!” Owen shouted over the explosions. He beat his wings; the Ground attack was easy to avoid, but the exploding Fire Traps were another story. Inconvenienced by his own traps—in the back of his mind, Owen had an inkling that there was a better way for him to use them.

Perhaps he could try something aerial instead; he had a few techniques in mind. He beat his wings again, at the same altitude as Gahi. Then, he loosened more embers from his wings, creating little, glowing orbs of fire in the air—floating Fire Traps. The little balls of light reminded him of the aura sea, but rather than cyan-silvery embers, they were a bright yellow. The technique came to him easily now that he was fully unleashed. It was perfect! There was no way—

Gahi sped through the traps and tackled Owen, hitting him with such velocity and moved through the air so quickly that the traps exploded too late. Flashes of fire burst behind him while Owen felt as if a few bones in his body broke from the impact.

Gahi growled and dug his claws into Owen’s shoulders.

“Gahi—stop!” Owen wheezed. The maneuver felt foreign. Gahi didn’t have the strength to grapple, usually, and he’d normally avoid it in combat.

Owen shook himself free, pushed away, and launched an Air Slash from his right arm, compressed air shrinking and expanding to force the Flygon out of the way. Gahi hissed back, finally taking a hit, but Owen was still at a disadvantage. He couldn’t take many more of those strikes. Now that Gahi was completely submerged in his battle mode, he wasn’t nearly as frail or prone to attacks.

And he was so fast—his traps didn’t have the time to activate. He moved unpredictably, no pattern to read, no way to guess where he’d go next. And even if he did have a plan, Gahi would take him out by then. Even with foresight, even with his Perceive, he didn’t have the speed to keep up with him.

That’s when a memory returned. Gahi and Owen had sparred like this all the time. He sparred with everyone—but except for a small handful of flukes… Owen lost against Gahi almost every time. He was just too fast. And the way this battle was going—

“Gahi! I give up!” Owen said. “You win! Okay? You win! Training over!”

Gahi halted in midair. His eyes were crazed, but the fact that he stopped—did that mean he got through? Is that all he wanted, just to win?

“Gahi?” Owen said.

The Flygon took another wingbeat forward. It was calmer than before, but with intent. Owen didn’t like it. He took an equivalent wingbeat back. “Hey, let’s talk, first, okay? Gahi? Can you hear me?”

Gahi puffed softly. “I win…”

“Yes! Yes, you win! You win, win, win—so, we can stop fighting, right? Is that okay?”

Every step that Owen took backwards was matched by an advance from Gahi. What was going on? Why was Gahi behaving so strangely? Why did he grab him? That wasn’t part of his normal strategy. In fact, now that he thought about it—when Gahi tried to grab him back then, it felt as if—

Gahi dashed right at Owen, grappling against him by the shoulders. And he felt it again—he knew what was going on, now. Memories rushed back, but he had no time to make heads or tails of it. Flashes of old images—Gahi right next to him, and then vanishing—intense power washing through his whole being—and then—and then… nothing.

“Gahi, STOP!” Owen pushed him away with an explosion of wind. Something strong tugged at his shoulder blade—he looked at the left one and saw that Gahi’s claws were inside of him, some strange light pouring out where they made contact. But when he pushed away, Gahi broke loose—and his body, to his horror, meshed itself back into a solid form, like he was made of some kind of loose clay.

Nevren—what twisted design did he create? And then Star’s words echoed.

“If you ever see Demitri, Mispy, or Gahi evolve to their mutant forms… Run.”

Gahi had flinched; Owen took advantage of this and fired another Air Slash, landing a direct blow. Gahi, dazed, spun around, clutching at his head. Owen’s best plan of action was to fly away right then—as far away as he could. But he couldn’t go straight into town—not when Gahi was like this. And he couldn’t go back into the Chasm, either; Gahi could rampage in the dark and hurt himself. He needed someplace open. Somewhere that he could possibly tire himself out. They were both mutants, after all—they had similar amounts of stamina.

The salty smell in the air gave him the clue he needed. The ocean! Owen beat his wings, muscles burning even more than his flames, and rapidly gained altitude. He saw the ocean once he was high enough and accelerated desperately. His heart raced; he could hear its beat over the wind. The adrenaline fogged his thoughts; that feeling of power from Gahi was addicting. A tiny, tiny part of him wanted to go back and let Gahi approach. And this made him beat his wings even faster, trying to outfly his own thoughts. Horror and defiance overtook his mind in a futile attempt to snuff out his instincts.

The ocean was below him. He had only seconds to relax; his Perception was at its maximum from the stress coupled with his Mystic power. He could sense every single creature below him in the water; every bystander and curious feral, and something else, too—something big, deep below. The dizzying, overwhelming amount of stuff in the open area made him falter. Yet he couldn’t turn it off.

He also felt a powerful presence behind him—Gahi—and several more emerging from the Chasm. They saw him—Rhys and the others were chasing after him right then. Finally! But he had to last until they caught up.

Gahi was hot on his tail—even at maximum speed, he was going to catch up in seconds. “No…! I…! There has to be a way…!” Owen slashed at the air behind him, sending another shockwave. Gahi dodged with ease, twisting in the air.

Five seconds away. Owen planted his Fire Traps in the air again and then an Air Slash to stop Gahi, but the pursuer flew all around the whole trap and barely lost even a second of time to it.

Three seconds. Owen, desperate, dove down, halving his distance from the water.

One second left. A thousand possibilities filled Owen’s mind. He sorted through countless scenarios and maneuvers with his one, precious second. Everything above and below, ahead and behind. An opening, a weakness, an exploit, an opportunity.

He found no way out but to beg. “Gahi, PLEASE!”

They collided; Gahi grabbed Owen’s shoulders again, and they were face to face, in a tailspin toward the ocean’s surface. “Gahi—we’ll go crazy—we can’t… We can’t!”

Gahi stared at Owen, and that’s when the Charizard realized it. He saw his eyes. A struggling light of sapience in pupils narrowed into slits. Wide, frightened eyes. Gahi didn’t want to, either. Yet it was also like staring into the eyes of a starved feral. He didn’t want to do it—but he had to. It was a compulsion—an instinct, a core need of his being. There was no logic. Gahi knew he couldn’t handle it. But his design was too strong—he wasn’t Mystic like Owen. He had no special power to fight his instincts. His mind was all he had, and that mind was the problem.

A memory of one of his old lives washed over him, as just a Charmander, chatting with Demitri and the others.

“Team Alloy. That’s a pretty cool name.”

And then he heard Demitri’s cheerful voice.

“Alakazam Nevren helped us come up with it! It’s really cool. Something about how stronger metals are made from weaker metals put together. It’s awesome!”

And so, Gahi shoved his head into Owen’s neck. Owen gasped, like the wind was knocked out of him; a hug and a squeeze that went straight to his core. Gahi’s head vanished into him, followed by his neck, and then the shoulders. The Flygon’s body was halfway inside of Owen’s chest. He helplessly grabbed Gahi’s sides and tried to pull him out, but it was like his body became quicksand. His vision blurred. And the worst part of it all, what made Owen more terrified and helpless than anything else—was that he loved it.

Gahi sank deeper and deeper until nothing was left. Owen’s body shifted and twisted into something new—a second set of wings, and all four had become angular like a Flygon’s, and a shiny, green body. The single flame at the end of his tail became three embers that resembled a Flygon’s fan. Owen’s head was filled with the crazed thoughts of a mutant. Gahi’s mind bumped against Owen’s, and that last, remaining part of the Charizard begged for Gahi to back out. But it was too late.

A new memory emerged, one that wasn’t Owen’s.

“Gahi,” Demitri said. “Do you think we’ll ever see Owen again? He seemed so sure, but…”

“’Course we will!” Gahi cheerfully replied, clicking his jaws. “If Owen says so, he’s right. That’s just how he is. I’m gonna trust him. Maybe it ain’t gonna be fer a while, but y’know what? We’ll be together again one day.”

Demitri and Mispy smiled, just slightly. If only out of faith, they nodded.

“Then even if we forget,” Mispy said, “we’ll wait.”

Owen felt something below him in the ocean. It was watching, but it was too far below the surface for him to tell what it was. A new memory—this one felt familiar, and Owen hoped it was his own—floated to the front of his thoughts.

“Is the monster gone?” Owen squeaked, peeking out from under his Rawst bed.

“All gone, dear,” Amia said, sighing. “Owen, come on out. See?”

A Magmortar stepped in.

“There’s no monster! This is just Alex, remember him? Your Dad?”

“No… It was a monster… I saw it! For real!”

Alex fidgeted, bumping his cannons together.

“Well, the monster is gone,” Amia said, gently holding Alex’s shoulder. She flinched at the fire, but then pushed through, as if she got used to it.

“Where’re my real parents?” Owen asked, puffing an ember in their general direction. “My Mom’s supposed to be a Charizard, right? Where’s my awesome Dragon mom?!”

“Owen, dear, they… first of all, Charizard isn’t… We found your egg out in the woods, remember? Ohh, you must have hit your head pretty hard to forget all this.”

“NO!” Owen shouted, pointing an accusatory claw at them. “I… I know what happened! You… took me away from them! You—” Owen suddenly stopped talking, eyes wide. “W-wait… wait, I… I remember, they… Gahi… and…”

Amia and Alex exchanged looks. A white aura enveloped Amia’s hands.

“Wait, no—I’ll stay quiet! I’ll—Please—! I don’t wanna forget! I wanna be me! Don’t make…”

He was fading. The memories were vivid, and then scrambled, and then gone. Frantic thoughts exploded through his and Gahi’s fused minds. He didn’t know what thoughts were his, Gahi’s, or both of theirs.

Soon after, they didn’t think of much at all.

<><><>​

“There!” Rhys shouted. “I see them! But…! N-no…! It… how did it happen so quickly?! Owen—He should have—!” Rhys shook his head. “We were only within the Chasm for seconds at most! How are they so far away?!”

Amia took in a sharp breath to steady herself. “We—we can still help! We just have to—we just need to…”

Demitri groaned, tugging at his tusks anxiously. “How can we keep up?! They’re so far away! We can’t fly! Even if I evolved, I can’t fly!”

Amia shook her head. “Oh, I’ll just—” She hesitated by some internal conflict, but then pushed her arms forward, summoning a single spirit. A Hydreigon. “Some of you get on him,” she instructed the others.

“H-hello,” Hydreigon said timidly, bumping his head-hands together. “I can carry two of you.”

Rhys helped to guide Enet onto him, hopping on right after. He couldn’t fight if he flew on his own and would have to use Amia’s spirit instead.

Zena slithered toward Demitri and Mispy and urged her to get onto her back next. “Let’s try to get close,” she said. “Maybe we can calm Gahi down that way, the three of us.”

“Right,” Demitri said.

With everything arranged, all of the Guardians, Rhys, Demitri, and Mispy lifted to the skies. Nevren wasn’t present, but a quick talk in the communicator indicated that he was at Kilo Village, coordinating with other Hearts to set up possible rescue operations.

Demitri pointed ahead from atop Zena’s back. “They’re falling. Are they… Did they stop fighting?”

“There’s just one…” Mispy said. But her leaf quivered at the power she felt radiating from the frantic aura.

“They fused together,” Rhys stated lowly, and he ignored Demitri and Mispy’s startled gasps. He saw the pair, now one, land in the water. “We don’t have a lot of time—we have to get there quickly and see what we can do. Try to split them apart—they must be adjusting, but if we take too long…!”

“Let’s speed up,” Anam said. “I’ll try to help as much as I can! Even if I need to…!” He didn’t want to finish.

“What should we expect?” Manny said. “I’ve seen fusion befer with spirits, but I dunno what these guys’re gonna be like. They’re at the edge o’ stability, right? All my spirits’re going crazy right now, Yen’s trying ter keep ‘em in check. I think this stuff is triggering some memories they lost.”

“They were pushed to their very limit,” Rhys said. “And a fusion of all four—I don’t know how we’d be able to handle it. Demitri, Mispy, I need you to be very careful—do you feel yourselves evolving?”

“I felt the Unleashing Aura a little, but…” Demitri shook his head. “I think—I’ll be okay.”

Mispy nodded. “But Gahi and…”

“We need to watch out for that. Owen’s Perception and Gahi’s speed means that they will both be fully aware of any of our advances, and fast enough to dodge them.”

“What—then how do you hit him?” Amia said. “How can we stop him!?”

“Simple,” Rhys said. “We have to generate an attack that they simply can’t avoid. Aura Sphere from two sides, or something that will overwhelm their lacking offenses. Focus on unavoidable strategies that overwhelm. Understood?!”

“Right!” They all said.

Zena looked down at a dark spot in the water, deep below. It moved oddly. “Hm?” she said. “Is that…”

“Um—what do we call them?” Willow asked, sitting atop Rhys’ head. “Gahi and Owen—what do we call them if they’re fused? Do they answer to something?”

“They’d probably answer to either name,” Rhys said.

“Gawen! Calm down!” Willow yelled. “Meditate!”

“I don’t think that’s something they’d pick,” Rhys muttered, readying a powerful Suppression Aura. “I wish it wouldn’t have to come to this—but they have to return to their lowest forms. We’ll have to start again. But hopefully it will be faster this time.” He fired while the fused Pokémon was still trying to get out of the water. It was a direct hit; Amia followed up with her own blast, which also hit.

Zena hesitated. “I’m sorry, Owen. Please don’t forget this time…” She ultimately joined the blast, combining her Suppressing force with the others.

All three blasts pierced, permeated, and enveloped the fused pair, but when it faded…

Nothing happened. The Flygon-Charizard amalgam stared up at the group.

“This,” Rhys said. “This is… the worst-case scenario.”

“Worst-case?” Anam repeated worriedly, a swirl of inky blackness forming on his cheek. He slapped it, clutching at the slime of his face, and the darkness faded.

Gawen, for a split second, vanished from view, leaving only a high trail of water where he had once been swimming.

“Behind us!” Rhys said, knowing this pattern. And indeed, he was there, high above and preparing a strike—a Flamethrower. Mispy immediately created a barrier of energy. Zena fired a Hydro Pump through the barrier to neutralize the blast, creating a wave of steam. This forced Gawen to fly to the right to dodge the plume.

“To the right!” Rhys barked, but then they vanished again. “Where did—” This wasn’t part of a pattern he was familiar with. He turned around and saw a flash of Gawen’s body, but that was it. Little pinpricks of light surrounded them, difficult to see under the rising sun. That’s when he realized— “We’re surrounded by his traps! Be careful!”

“How surrounded is surrounded?” Amia asked.

Manny spotted little pinpricks of energy scattered on all sides. “Pretty surrounded.” He clicked his tongue in thought. “I’ll fix it. Oy, Rhys. I want yeh ter just… throw as many Aura Spheres as yeh can, yeah?”

“Y-yes, of course. But the traps…”

“We’ll shield against it. Mispy!”

“Yes!”

“Keep yer Light Screen up!”

“Okay!”

Manny hopped over to Rhys and took his bag. “Yeh picked up what Owen dropped when he escaped, yeah?”

“Of course.”

Manny held out his paw; Rhys hastily tossed the bag over. Gawen was staring at them, waiting for them to make a move; with the Fire Traps in the way, it seemed that even Gawen couldn’t afford to come close.

“Knowing him, he planned fer this.” Manny rummaged through the bag. “Somehow. He’s gotta… hah! He totally did!”

“H-he did?” Rhys asked. He didn’t have time to be surprised. “What did he bring?”

Manny grabbed something from the bag—a Dungeon Orb of some kind. He thrust it in the air; Gawen hissed and blasted another plume of fire, but the Orb took effect right after. A shocking energy radiated out and the Charizard-Flygon fusion stopped in his place, frozen. Zena reflexively created an invisible platform just beneath Gawen to keep him from plummeting to the ground.

“Hah! It worked!” Manny said. “Well lookit that, can’t fight against a Petrify Orb, can yeh?!”

The fusion’s body twitched, small muscle movements indicating that they didn’t have much time.

“Uhh—I don’t think that’s working,” Anam said. “Owen’s Mystic power is undoing my blessings! He’ll move soon! I—” He suddenly clutched at his head. “No, please…” he begged to nobody in particular.

“Okay, what else did he pack… eh… Oran Berry, some Elixirs, eh… hah!” Manny tossed another item toward Gawen, encasing it in a small sphere of aura—it landed right in front of him and exploded in a fine, gray mist. The petrification ended, but Gawen retched and clutched at his throat, roaring in anguish.

“What did you do?!” Amia said, covering her mouth.

“Vile Seed,” Manny shouted. “We stand a chance! C’mon—we gotta get ‘im now, while his defenses’re shot!”

Rhys hesitated, but agreed. “I will do my best,” he said, and then aimed a paw right for Gawen.

The fusion spat a Flamethrower at the group, dodging nearly every attack that they threw toward him. Willow learned that Gawen was at least partially Ground Type, as her Electric attacks did next to nothing; she transitioned to Moonblasts, but they were too slow to hit the speed from Gahi’s half. Zena’s Hydro Pumps missed completely; Anam’s halfhearted Dragon Pulses grazed him once, but that was all. It looked like Anam would have fired more, but a fleck of darkness mixed in with one of the blasts of indigo fire made the Goodra clam up completely.

ADAM, thinking he was clever, fired a Hyper Beam right when Gawen dodged another strike, but the Flygon-Charizard brought his wings together and blocked it completely with a golden Protect. ADAM screeched, flailing in the air.

Valle had little that he could do in the air. Desperately, he made his second motion in centuries and threw his own arm like a rocket. It exploded, and a few of the rocks grazed Gawen enough to slow him down.

Rhys and Manny both fired Aura Spheres in an alternating rhythm. Impossible to evade, the spheres tracked him down, destroyed only if they collided with one of the many aerial traps; however, with the two Lucario firing, the fusion couldn’t get close without risking a hit from the harder attackers of the team. At first, it seemed like a stalemate, yet with nothing to do but dodge, it became clear that Gawen was at a disadvantage. Fatigue set in. Moves became sloppy and muscles responded less efficiently.

“He’s getting tired!” Amia announced. “We should get close to—to stop him!”

“Working on it!” Manny said. But the fusion refused to stop fighting; getting close would just get them both hurt.

Rhys looked at his paws—they were glowing a faint gold. “Ngh—” He suddenly stopped attacking.

“Eh?! Rhys? What’re yeh doing?” Manny said. “I need yeh ter attack!”

“I—I can’t,” he said. “If I go any further, I’ll risk losing my power. It’s as I said—I Promised not to kill another Guardian!”

“W-wait! Then that means Owen and Gahi—”

She turned to get a closer look. During the flurry, blood dripped toward the sea; every wingbeat Gawen made dropped a little bit more. Yet he kept fighting. Normally a Pokémon would stand down long before these kinds of injuries were sustained. Yet a mutant…

“N-no… Everyone! We need to stop!”

“Owen,” Zena breathed. She looked down again, spotting a great shadow in the ocean, exposed by the rising sun. Her eyes widened and recollection flashed in her eyes. “…We need to defeat him!” Zena announced. “Make sure that he hits the water!”

“What?!” Amia spun around, betrayed.

“Just do it—he won’t calm down otherwise! Make him hit the water!”

“Why would—”

Willow squeaked angrily. “Do you think we have time to talk?!”

“We have to stop—before he dies!” Amia said. “He’s bleeding! Any more and there won’t be an Owen or Gahi to talk to!”

“If we stop, he’s gonna attack, and there ain’t gonna be those two left in their heads anyway!” Manny said. “He’ll attack everyone! The whole town! Anybody—and he’ll be too fast ter catch up ter, too!”

“Hyper Beam charged at twenty five percent,” ADAM announced.

“Wait! Not yet!” Amia begged. “We can find another way!”

“We don’t have another way, Amia. Just trust me!” Zena shouted. “I think if we just shoot him down—”

Gawen dashed toward them but was beaten back by the shockwave of a neutralized Aura Sphere.

“But he’ll die in the water!” Amia said. “He’s still part Charizard, and—and if he becomes too weak, and he lands in water, the water shock will—”

“Hyper Beam at fifty percent.”

Gawen roared. In a last stand, he powered through Manny’s barrage of small Aura Spheres and slashed at Manny, exploding the air right in front of his face. The Lucario coughed and fell back into Anam, cushioned in the slime, but was unconscious. Anam’s paws were black.

“Please, no,” Anam said, pushing Manny away and onto Zena’s back. “Stop… go away…” The black fog around Anam’s paws intensified, but then shrank, sinking into Anam’s body as a swirl of black ooze just below the surface.

Rhys winced. “Amia, we… have to. He won’t stop.” He fired an Aura Sphere to keep Gawen slowed; his paws flashed dangerously. He couldn’t do another one.

“B-but… But there has to be…”

“Seventy five percent.”

“Wait—no! It’s—” Amia couldn’t find her words. Nevren’s remarks echoed in his mind.

Zena unleashed another beam of water. Gawen dodged it but stumbled afterward. An opening.

“Fully charged.”

Amia stared at Owen and Gahi’s fused form with wide eyes, like she wanted to take every detail of them that she could. There was nothing she could do to stop it. She had a mind to fly forward and take the blast herself—but the time for that had passed.

ADAM fired. This time, Gawen was too tired to dodge; the Beam of hot, orange energy hit him directly, frying the scales on his front, splitting around to burn his sides. Smoke from his cooked body rose in small streams. He fell straight toward the ocean. Amia immediately dove down; Demitri and Mispy urged Zena to do the same, and she complied. Her slender form made it easy to catch up to Gawen; the closer they got to the water, the stronger a new presence felt, and the darker the water became. Amia didn’t notice it; she was too focused on her son.

“Owen!” Amia shouted. “I’ve got you—M-Mispy! Mispy, please—heal him!”

He was still falling. The fall would kill him—Amia knew it. The water landing would be too harsh on his already broken body. He was seconds from hitting it. Amia accelerated to dangerous levels just to catch up. She got below Gawen and held her arms up, using her Mystic powers to slow his fall. Hydreigon burst into a cloud of blue embers, moving toward Amia even faster than before. That left Rhys and Enet free-falling, saved only by another platform created by Anam. Willow jumped off of Rhys’ head and sprouted her pink, fairy wings, speeding after the falling family.

“I’ll shrink them!” she said. “That’ll slow the fall, right?!” But she was too far away to use her Mystic power. She tried to fire anyway, but it dissipated long before it reached them.

Shortly after Hydreigon returned to Amia, a Magmortar emerged. Amia and Alex caught a look at Gawen’s face, burned as it was. For a second, Alex made eye contact with the fusion. He tried desperately to see even a small iota of Owen left in them.

“Owen,” Alex said.

Gawen let out a weak whimper.

Alex smiled and wheezed with a strange mixture of a laugh of relief and a cry of sorrow. “Owen, it’s okay! It’s okay!”

They were falling fast, but it was slowing. Maybe he’d survive after all, but they couldn’t avoid the water at their speeds. Alex pressed his body against the frightened amalgamation. Amia was too focused on slowing their fall without breaking Gawen’s body.

Zena’s slender form allowed her descent to be much faster. She glanced back at Demitri and Mispy. Without any time to explain, she just said, “You’re going to hit the water. Get ready.”

The Fraxure and Bayleef stared, wide-eyed, but had just as much time as Zena did to protest.

She didn’t bother trying to slow down; instead, she liquefied her body and slammed into the water. In seconds, the water turned rough and white, swirling upward, softened with bubbles and foam. Demitri and Mispy screamed, slamming into it next; they fell limbs-first, arms and legs bending in odd directions. The shock knocked them both unconscious.

“Owen, just hang on,” Alex begged. “We’ll get Mispy to heal you, and then we’ll find a way to calm you down. And then—“

They slammed into the foamy water, which wrapped around and cushioned the broken, bloodied amalgam. The three flames along his body extinguished in the water, emitting a steady stream of hot bubbles instead, though that stream was weakening rapidly. The currents that Zena became pushed them back to the surface.

“Are they okay?!” Willow screamed, landing on top of Amia’s head. “Wait! Demitri, Mispy!”

“I have them!” Zena shouted, briefly materializing her head to communicate.

While broken, Zena could still sense their auras were strong, and their bodies breathing—if only because she used her own power to empty their lungs. Zena’s gentle currents kept their heads above the water. Alex had dissolved from the strike, returning to Amia’s spirit realm. But with Mispy unconscious, she wasn’t going to be able to heal Gawen.

The Fire Guardian coughed out saltwater. She frantically held Owen in place. Suddenly, she felt a sharp pain in her side; the source was a set of claws digging into her. She followed it to Gawen, one of his eyes open, tearful and frightened and fading.

“Owen—it’s okay. It’s okay,” Amia said, but it sounded more like she was begging. She looked up. The rest of the group were still dots in the air struggling to catch up.

Zena rematerialized next to them, her body partway out of the ocean. “How is he?”

Amia shook her head. “He’s—he’s fading. His aura, it’s…”

Zena could feel it, too. Gawen’s aura was fading fast. The water and the stress and the blood—not to mention the sting of salt all over—was proving to be too much, even for them, or him, or it. Amia didn’t know what to call her son anymore, or what was left of him. Hot tears mixed with the ocean.

The Milotic coiled around Gawen’s body. It felt cold. The blood gave her prismatic scales a red tinge. She pressed her head against his, wrapping her ribbons around his shoulders and neck to feel his pulse. Weak.

Amia finally came to her senses. She held her hands against Owen’s chest, shutting her eyes. “Just… just a little… just a little…” she said desperately. Healing energy channeled pink light from her arms into Gawen.

“Owen? Gahi?” Amia said. “Do you feel that? Are you… okay?”

Gawen stared at Amia with a flickering light of recognition, red lenses obscured by droplets of reddening water. He tried to reach out to her. Amia immediately returned the favor—his grip was strong and savage, digging into her hands with intent to kill. And yet his eyes said something entirely different. The Gardevoir winced. She refused to let go.

The others were almost there. Just a little longer. They could keep him under control. Perhaps tie him up, wait for him to calm down—would he ever calm down? Was he like this forever? No—Amia refused to believe that possibility. She could still see Owen and Gahi inside the beast. They both had to be there.

Gawen refused to let go of Amia, either. But she was starting to wonder if it was because he wanted to kill her, or because he didn’t want to see her go away.

Amia looked back at Demitri and Mispy, still floating with Zena supporting them with her tail as a makeshift raft. The Fire Guardian held her free hand toward them, blasting another Heal Pulse toward each unconscious Pokémon. Mispy was the first to blink awake, dizzy, followed by Demitri seconds later. They groaned in pain. The Pulse wasn’t enough to repair their broken bones. Amia readied another, feeling weak from how much energy she had used. “Just a little… more…”

And then Gawen suddenly looked down, eyes wide. Amia and Zena followed his gaze, Willow struggling to stay atop Amia’s head.

A dark figure was just below them, approaching fast. Glowing, blue eyes locked on, unblinking. As big as the Heart Headquarters, no—even bigger. The closer it got, the bigger it seemed.

“Emily!” Zena shouted.

The water bulged beneath them. Something rose from the surface—something big. A head, first, white in color with blue markings near the eyes. This was followed by a long, white neck and shoulders; everything else was submerged within the water, but Zena knew exactly what it was: Lugia.

Lugia had appeared for only a few seconds. Amia had no time to react than to just widen her eyes as its great mouth closed around their entire, huddled group. Willow screamed, but in that final, unceremonious instant, the great behemoth’s jaws closed around them.

Zena, Gawen, Amia, Willow, Demitri, and Mispy, in that final moment, were gone, taken by the Lugia to the depths of the sea.

 

[namohysip]

Chapter 37 – Body, Mind, and Spirit​

The Grass Orb was silent.

Nobody dared move. The spirits didn’t speak—they could only stare, petrified, at what they thought would be the end of their cozy corner of eternity. He was laying there—Gahi and Owen, fused together as one.

The only one moving was Star. The Mew floated over his unconscious body, inspecting every part of it.

“They’re fused to the core,” Star mumbled to herself. “I don’t know if I can pull them apart without destroying everything we worked toward. It’d be from zero again…”

Gawen was unconscious. The battle itself was a strain on their body, the stress of the encounter on the mind, and the overexertion of their powers on the spirit. To be passed out in even the spirit world meant that they had fought to the very limit. To their fortune, that gave Star the opportunity to theorize on what she could do.

“What do you mean,” Klent finally said, “by fused to the core? From zero?”

“This happened before,” Star said, looking back. “When Demitri, Mispy, Gahi, and Owen all fused together for the first time, something went wrong. Nevren said they weren’t ready—or something just wasn’t calculated right. What do you expect? Four minds merging into one, seamlessly and without error? In your dreams. Even I would need a few tries…”

Klent moved forward, then stopped. “So… something went wrong to make them go berserk?”

“Yeah. And I’m trying to figure out why now. It’s probably something really small that propagates throughout the system. Like an illness that spreads through the body. Ngh… The way Nevren had me solve it before was by forcing them apart. But that’s like untying a knot by slicing it in half – you’re going to have damaged rope. To do it right… you need a way to untie them and still have their minds intact afterward. Then, they don’t have to heal the broken pieces of their selves…”

“I think I follow,” Klent said slowly. “But, how would you do it?”

Star hesitated, looking the fused aura over. She shook her head. “Just give me a second.”

“He’s eventually going to wake up, isn’t he?” Klent said worriedly.

“I know, I know—just—give me a second. I need to think.” She rubbed her head, squeezing her temple. “I have to see what their spirits look like.”

“Spirits? But we’re already—”

“No,” Star said. “Their literal spirit. Right now, this is a world of aura. But I have to… t-to open that up further.”

Klent’s eyes widened. “But that’s… Star, doesn’t that only happen beyond the aura sea? You don’t just pull a spirit from—”

“I have to,” Star said. “I just have to be careful.”

She breathed in, then out, and brought a tiny paw forward, glowing with golden light. It trembled, but she inched it closer to the scaly Pokémon’s chest. The shaking intensified and she jerked her hand away.

“I—I can do this! Stop staring at me!”

Klent flinched, as did the other spirits. They quickly looked down, shuffling where they stood.

“This isn’t hard at all,” Star said. “It’s trivial, even. What’s a single—I mean, what’re two souls to a Creator? This is child’s play.” She held her paw against his chest again, trying to keep it from shaking. “Just draw the spirit out. Just draw it out a little.”

A golden sphere emerged partway—just the top of the orb—from Gawen’s rising and falling chest. It swirled, two currents twisting and turning around themselves to make up the single, unstable ball of light. Star winced—almost gagged—and took another steady breath. But then she felt something almost break loose and gasped, shoving it back into him. His whole body jolted, but remained unconscious, and Star pulled her hand away.

“I—I can’t do it,” she said, hand trembling. “I c-can’t keep it together. Oh, God, why can’t I—this is supposed to be easy! I’m s-supposed to be a Creator! Why can’t I pull myself together when it actually matters?!” She shoved her hands to her sides, hitting the air. Nearby rocks and trees split apart, startling Klent and the others. She slammed her hands over her eyes next, breathing in sharply.

Zygarde Hecto cleared his throat behind her. “Star.”

“Not now,” Star said, sniffling.

“This is important.”

“I can’t do anything right now,” Star replied, shaking her head. “I have to fix Gahi and Owen. That’s all I can think about now, okay?”

Hecto nodded. “I understand.”

Klent, Amelia, and all of the other spirits all stared at something behind Star, eyes wide. The Mew eyed them all incredulously, but then spun around. “Ng—!”

Arceus stood before her, significantly smaller than usual. He was no larger than Gawen.

Countless tendrils of light emerged from Star’s back, but Arceus held up his right hoof, lowering his head.

“I know I cannot fight here,” he said.

“Y-yeah, that’s right,” Star growled. “Leave.”

“I would like to help.”

Star’s tendrils wavered. She did nothing when the other Creator stepped around her and toward Gawen. He gently placed his hoof on Gawen’s chest, the same as Star, and pulled back. The sphere emerged halfway from the aura, a semicircle atop his scales. Two tendrils of light emerged from Arceus’ back next, slowly moving toward the fused spirit. Star watched closely, ready to push him away if he tried anything out of the ordinary.

The unstable swirling slowed. One spirit collected against the first tendril and the other half of the current spiraled around the other. Then, slowly, the two tendrils retracted. The two smaller spheres slid toward one another again, spinning together in a gentle, steady vortex. Arceus pressed his hoof forward, pushing the fused orb back into Gawen. The glowing subsided and Arceus stepped away.

He looked at Star, who quickly turned her head away and down, glaring at a boulder that she had shattered.

“The rest is up to you.” Arceus tapped his left hind leg on the ground, creating a portal. “I know you do not want me around.” He spun and walked through, the circle disappearing moments later.

Star’s fist clenched, watching him go. “I could’ve…” She couldn’t find the words to finish. Star’s shoulders relaxed, though Klent and the other spirits were still tense.

“Star?” Klent asked. “What did he do?”

Star shook her head. “Barky’s just being a showoff.” Star forced a smile. “I could’ve done the same thing if I tried again.”

Klent frowned, rubbing his pom-poms together.

Amelia adjusted the flower atop her head. “What’s left?” the Lilligant asked. “It looked like their spirits were fused together the… right way this time. But how do you separate them now? Is there… a trick?”

Star steadied her breaths one last time, nodding. She went back to inspecting Gawen. “Everything about them has to do with their aura,” Star said. “Bodily fusions are easy to fix for me. It’s the aura and the spirit that’s hard to do. It’s like trying to separate red and blue from purple.”

Klent nodded. “Mm. Or salt from the sea. Something like that?”

“Kinda, but it’s equal parts salt and water,” Star said.

The Jumpluff shook his body in understanding, the top dandelion puff bobbing. “Well… what if you had a way to attract out one part, but not the other? If you make water evaporate, it’ll leave salt behind. I think that’s what Arceus did with their spirits, if what I saw was right. Would there be a way to… get Owen out, and leave Gahi behind, or the other way around?”

“I don’t… really know. That’s one thing we could do… or try…”

Hecto cleared his throat. “He’s awake.”

Gawen’s eyes opened, staring at the sky.

Star clenched her jaw. “Nobody move,” she said calmly.

It was a moment of serenity, but it was fleeting. Gawen’s eyes locked onto Star.

“Hey,” Star said. “You feeling alright?”

“He’s not moving,” Klent said.

“Oh, he’s trying,” Star stated. “I have him immobilized with Psychic. He’s pretty weak, so it’s easy to keep him down, uh, gently.” She floated closer. “Gahi, Owen… it’s okay. Take a breath. Meditate, alright? Just a little…” Star waved a glowing paw near Gawen’s cheek. He let out a slow growl, and then a huff.

“Gahi, this is the Grass Orb—a part of the spirit realm. Can you see it, in Owen’s memories? It’s safe here. Nice and calm.”

“Can you reason with him?”

“I think so,” Star said. “It’s different… this isn’t like the last time. I think because it’s just two of them, and the meditation—you know, the stuff Rhys did—I think that’s making it easier. They aren’t totally broken this time. That’s probably why Barks was able to fix him so easily, too. Maybe if we’re careful…”

There was another long, tense silence. Star was working on Gawen while he was still awake, prodding at his aura, searching for anything she could untangle. Every so often, she sighed, mumbling to herself. They weren’t sure what she meant for most of it. But eventually, she said something a bit more audibly. “This should help…”

A small spark of white energy pulsed through the fused creature. Star floated away and released her Psychic hold. A small shockwave warped the light around Gawen upon release. The forest spirits flinched. He was unsealed and free to move.

“Hey,” Star whispered. “On a scale of one to ten… how badly do you want to fight right now?”

The Flygon-Charizard amalgamation stared at Star, and then at all the others. He looked at the trees. “Nine,” he said. “Just ‘cause I know what… ten feels like.”

“S-Star! How did you—”

“Keep your voice down,” Star said serenely. “I couldn’t remove his instincts and I couldn’t tamper with his head at all… but I was able to lower his stress levels and the mechanisms that contribute to being in battle mode all the time. I helped him feel less aggressive. The aura mimics the body, and I did some brain stuff. As Creator, you kinda have to know that sorta thing. But he could easily slip back into it, so no sudden movements.”

Gawen looked down shamefully. “I’m… I’m just a monster,” he said. “I’ve always been one. I’ve just been… sealed away. ‘Til now.”

“Pretty much,” Star said. “But you’re my monster, okay?”

Gawen winced. “Y-yeah…”

“May I touch your shoulder?”

Gawen nodded.

Star gently floated toward him and did just as she had asked. It was a tiny paw compared to the dragon. “I can see my reflection,” Star said with a smile, looking at his scales. “The Gahi half of you really shines, huh?”

Gawen smiled slightly.

“…I’m really proud of how far you’ve come, Owen. Gahi. You never would have been this controlled in the past.”

“It’s so hard…”

“I know. I know. But it’s okay, and you’re doing it anyway. Just keep going, you two…”

“Two,” Gawen said. He rubbed at his head. “I… I don’t know… who I am…” His claws dug into his scales, voice rising.

“Shh, shh, it’s okay,” Star said in a whisper. “Let me help. Gahi… Gahi, is that name familiar to you?”

“Yeah… that’s… that’s me… that’s me, and also someone I know…”

“Mhm, that’s true. Part of you is Gahi. You were a Trapinch, and you always wanted to be the first one to evolve. Do you remember that?”

“I… I do. I was always jealous… because… because Owen…. He was always faster. And I hate… when people are faster. But… but Owen’s me, too… I didn’t know that Gahi was jealous… But I… but I liked me, too. Because we were family.”

Star nodded. She gently moved until she was sitting on their shoulder. “Owen, did you enjoy training with Gahi?”

“Yeah… I did. I liked training with me… with Gahi—Owen and Gahi, us, me…” He rubbed his forehead. “It… it hurts…”

“Shh, shh..” Star didn’t give the fusion time to take it all in. The gentle onslaught continued uninterrupted. “Owen… Amia raised you all on her own. Do you remember that?”

Gawen was quiet. He looked like he had a splitting headache. His eyes were shut tight, creases forming along his muzzle. Scales ground against one another with every fold of skin. Star rubbed his shoulders.

“I… I remember,” he finally said.

“Gahi, did you miss Owen?”

“I… I did… missed him a lot… missed‘m all the time…”

“Gahi, do you remember how you coped? What did you do?”

“…Slept in his bed… the Rawst Leaves… they smell a certain way… Owen smelled like Rawst all the time, ‘cause he slept in it fer… I slept in them, and Gahi was always annoyed at how they smelled… But then I started missing it, ‘cause even if it was annoying… I guess Gahi really liked it…” Gawen gulped, trying to hold down his nausea. “S-Star… m-my head… I… I can’t think about this.”

“It’s okay. Gahi, Owen, it’s okay. Keep thinking, okay?”

“I can’t…”

Star rubbed his shoulders more. “This is good, you two. Keep holding it through. You’ve got this. I’m going to keep going, and I’m not stopping. Owen, did Gahi ever win against you in chess?”

“Star… p-please, stop…”

“Gahi, did Owen ever beat you in a race?”

“Yer killing my head…” He was clutching his head so tightly that his claws were piercing his scales.

“Owen, do you remember when you tried to sleep like Gahi, underground?”

“I hated it…!”

“Gahi, have you ever read a single paper in your life?”

“I totally read a few! But Owen, he reads… everything he can… I…” His grip wavered; his whole body had tensed, and then relaxed.

Star blinked. “…Owen? Gahi? Hello?”

Their eyes were closed, but gently. There were no crease marks of stress; his aura felt… more serene. The gashes in his skull vanished away.

Klent, confused that Star was confused, stepped forward. “S-Star?”

“Star,” Hecto said, “is this not part of the procedure?”

“It, uh, no,” Star said. “Owen? Gahi?”

The fusion went half-limp, falling forward. Star had to really push to keep the creature from collapsing on top of her. “Ng—guys, c’mon!”

Gawen came to his senses, shaking his head. “S-sorry.” He sat up, but he looked dizzy. “I… I feel better,” he said. “I’m… I’m Owen, right now. Gahi’s resting.”

“Excuse me?” Star said. “That’s not—supposed to happen yet. Hello? Gahi?”

Owen was quiet, eyes closed. Gahi opened his eyes. “Yeah, what? I’m… feeling a li’l better.”

Gahi closed his eyes. The same body opened them again. “Star, I think… I think I’m feeling better. I think if we switch… it hurts less. I still… really… really want to fight… but at least I know who I am.”

Closed, opened. “I never saw yeh fight befer, Star. So, what, yeh think yer any good? Can you fight?”

“I—uh—I mean…”

Hecto spoke up. “Star, perhaps your methods were simply more effective than expected.”

“No, I’m pretty sure they had to go through a few more steps before finding a way like this. But maybe Owen’s just—smarter and figured it out on his own.”

“N-no, I don’t think I did. Star, I think you helped me. Heh, yeah, I figure yer real good and just didn’t think yeh could do it so easy. I—I mean, maybe that, because I didn’t get any ideas. It hurt a lot, so it was… y’know, was hard ter do the thinking, ‘specially when I was messing with Owen’s good thinkin’ parts.”

“Ugh, now my head’s starting to hurt,” Star said. “Okay, new rule. Pause before you switch control so I’m not listening to one voice two ways.”

“O-oh, um…” A pause. “Sorry fer that.” Another pause. “It came a little naturally.” Then, the fusion, with Owen in control, looked at his claws. “Actually, Star, um—I wanted to ask… a-and I don’t know if I want to know the answer, but… a-are… are we dead?”

“Uhh…” Star rubbed her ear. Her tail flicked as if she wasn’t completely sure. The three flames on Gawen’s tail flickered anxiously. Then, Star nodded. “No, you’re alive. But that’s actually making me wonder something…” Star observed the fusion making strange motions, such as brushing his tail pensively on the ground or pushing at a wall that wasn’t there. “…You okay there?”

“Everything feels… soft.”

“Uhh—”

Little specks of light leaked from the fusion’s body. “The air feels… soft. Does that make sense?”

“Not rea—”

The fusion vanished.

Klent blinked. “D… did they wake up?”

“Yeah. So at least they’re alive,” Star said.

“Will… what happened carry over to the real world?”

Star sighed. “Boy, I hope so. Let’s just watch and see.”

“Mm…” Klent, along with the other spirits, closed their eyes to tune into what their host was experiencing.

<><><>​

At first, he thought he was back in Hot Spot Cave. Everything around them had a dim, cyan glow, just like the mushrooms, or Aether Forest, or the aura sea. But everything felt too close—and too soft—to be the caverns. Owen tried to turn but was met with great resistance from a soft, solid wall. He felt like he was in some sort of crawl space; there was light ahead of him, so he pulled himself out of what he imagined was an alcove in the wall.

He heard the murmurs of a quiet conversation. “Ngh… ugh!” He was out and in an open area, though it was still very dim. “Finally!” he said. “Arceus, it felt like Anam in there…”

He turned around, realizing that was a very strange way to describe something, and inspected his surroundings. It looked like some sort of shiny, red wall with a cyan glow. He came from a crease in the wall, like dough that was folded over itself. The whole place was like this.

And then he recalled his previous moments of being conscious. Amia staring at him, the ocean rapidly advancing—and that Lugia. And then darkness, perhaps from the impact of where he had landed, but perhaps also because—

“Oh… oh, no. Nooo, no, no.” The fusion paced. Every step he made was squishy against the ground. “N-no, no, no, that’s not it,” he said. “Absolutely not. I ain’t gonna accept that. Ain’t no way I got ate. Th-that just isn’t how it works—this is—this is just a strange dream! ‘Cause this ain’t how bodies work—I’d be dead! Long dead! Some sea monster woulda made me lunch by now! Ain’t no way that… maybe I just escaped and…”

Owen’s half realized that there was an easy way to determine where he was. With great apprehension, he turned his attention to his Perceive.

He was in the center of something large. It had a giant, central chamber, and six offshoots that appeared to be moving. The one at the front of this chamber swiveled to the left and right subtly; the one in the rear twisted with the currents—he realized that this thing was underwater. And there were four more structures attached to the central chamber—two were shorter, and near the rear offshoot, and two were longer and beating hard against the water, propelling the entire structure forward. They were wing-like, yet also hand-like.

It was a Lugia without anything inside. No heart. No lungs. No real organs of any kind. “I… oh.” He wanted to collapse but didn’t want to know what the ground felt like. What his feet felt was enough. The fusion gagged and covered his mouth. “Why…?”

The murmuring returned. Gahi and Owen tried to gather themselves and turned toward the sound. At first, they were unfamiliar—and with newfound worry, he wondered how much his memories may have been shuffled by this incident—but soon, he could put a few of the voices to names.

“…That’s… Zena,” he said. “And Willow, and… is that—Demitri and Mispy? That is!” Pushing aside the circumstances, Gawen rushed toward the only familiar thing he had left. “Hey, guys!”

Zena perked up. They were all gathered nearby, opposite of the great chamber. “Owen? Er—Gahi? Both…?”

Amia recognized the tone. “Owen! Y-you’re… you’re okay! Oh, thank Arceus, I—” She sniffled; it seemed like she had it together until she finally saw him awake and sane. She ran toward him and tripped over her own feet; the fusion caught her.

“H-hey, Mom, it’s—it’s alright,” Owen said, rubbing her back. He realized how tall he was, now—even larger than he was as a Charizard. “I think Star helped us in the spirit world.”

“Us—so Gahi’s still…?”

“Yeah, I’m still here,” Gahi nodded. “It kinda hurts our head ter fight fer control at the same time, but if we swap like this, it ain’t so bad, and if we merge our heads, it ain’t too bad, either. Still weird, though, eh, so we’ll try’n keep it separate.”

“Oh, that’s… that’s interesting!” Amia said delicately. “But…”

“Interesting? That’s cool!” Willow piped up, hopping from Amia’s hair onto Gawen’s snout. She skittered forward until she was between his horns.

Owen grinned. “I think we can get better at being ‘as one’ too, but…” He looked at his claws. “I’d like it if we were two bodies again. I like being close to Gahi, but—maybe not this close…”

Gahi sighed. “Yeah, ain’t that something yeh’d expect outta Demitri an’ Mispy? But not us, I figure.”

Mispy huffed; Demitri rubbed at one of his tusks, avoiding eye contact.

“Oh, that’s… quite odd to hear two kinds of people from the same voice,” Amia said. “It’s almost like when Eon mimicked my voice—oooh, I still get shivers from that…”

“Eon seems really familiar, but…” Demitri frowned. “He’s a lot less friendly than I thought he’d be.”

“Don’t remind me,” Owen grumbled. “Um, so… I really, really don’t want to know… but I have to… Where are we?”

“We’re being carried by an old friend of mine,” Zena said. “Her name is Emily—she’s a Lugia. I didn’t think she’d still be alive, but… this is definitely her. I remember it all now.”

Gawen crossed his arms incredulously. “Your friend?” he said. “She… eats people.”

“Well, it’s not eating if you aren’t food, don’t you think?” Zena suggested.

“No, this is pretty strongly like eating,” Owen said, eying the walls suspiciously. “How does this even work? My Perceive is telling me Emily doesn’t have anything going on inside her. I don’t even know if she has blood. It’s like a Drifblim shaped itself into a Lugia. And how big is she, anyway?!”

“She’s really, really big,” Willow said. “I tried to shrink Emily so we could try to escape, but it just bounced off the walls and shrank us a little instead…”

Owen looked up at the fleshy ceiling with a grimace. This place reminded him of the Hot Spot training grounds in terms of size, though the ceilings were closer and it generally felt more claustrophobic. He had the vaguest of recollections of how big Emily was, and somehow she seemed bigger on the inside even after considering Willow’s power.

Zena hummed. “I don’t know why she’s like this, either. But she has a certain power about her. Can’t you feel it?”

“Yeah, but—it’s subtle. I felt it when I was—nghk… when I was lodged somewhere in the walls. Up against it I definitely felt something strong, but now that I’m just standing here? Not really… But her aura is strong. I can’t see anything outside.”

Owen scanned the group again and felt the presence of somebody hiding behind Zena’s tail. “Um? Who’s that?”

“Eep—!”

“Oh,” Zena lifted her tail, revealing—nothing. “That was Tanneth. She lives, er… with Emily. She’s a Vaporeon, but I think she’s still a little nervous about you, Owen, Gahi.”

“She is? How come?” Owen asked, feeling stupid seconds later.

“It’s okay, Tanneth,” Amia said. “This one’s friendly. A friend of ours, Star, must have helped them!”

“A-are you sure?” someone said beneath Mispy.

Owen and Gahi got a good look at Tanneth; it was indeed a Vaporeon, though she seemed to be partway inside the floor. Once again, it reminded them of Anam.

“Actually, um, Emily was the one who helped you,” Tanneth said. “She said that she felt your aura was in a lot of pain, so she healed you with a lot of her power.”

“My aura was in… pain?” Gawen said. “How? Y’mean like, I was ripping apart?”

Tanneth nodded. “Emily doesn’t like when Pokémon are hurt, but she can only heal others if they’re very, very close to her body. But she can heal anything!”

“Anything,” Owen repeated slowly. “But—but what if I went crazy? I’d’ve really hurt Emily, all the way in here!”

Tanneth shook her head. “Emily can’t get hurt. She’s really, really strong! …Defensively!”

“Defensively? So, she can’t attack? But Lugia are supposed to be really strong—I read that Lugia was supposed to know Aeroblast! That could rip anything to shreds!”

“Emily…. Now that I think about it, I don’t think she ever was that powerful,” Zena said. “She should be strong, but her Aeroblast… I think the worst it ever did was make little whirlpools for us to play in.” She looked up. “But maybe when she gets back to wherever her home is, we can talk more.”

“Still strange,” Owen said, crossing his arms thoughtfully. “But yeah, that sounds like a good idea. Actually, while we’re waiting, I… want to try something. Can you guys give me a little bit? I want to de-fuse…”

“You can do that?” Willow asked, tapping her leg on his left goggle.

“I think so,” Owen said.

“We better,” Gahi said.

“We’ll try,” Gawen said.

Reluctantly, Gawen sat down to meditate. Demitri and Mispy crept closer to get a better look at their sparring partner. Demitri tapped at his right tusk thoughtfully. “Wow… So that’s what it’s like to fuse together… And you’re sane, too! Who would’ve thought that a little healing energy would’ve helped, huh?”

“Star was helping, too,” Gawen said. “I think it was the healing that made it feel better, but… Star was the one that helped us actually separate. We just have to finish it off.”

Mispy inspected the flame at the end of Gawen’s tail—the three blade-like spires of fire. “What if you… went Grass Type?” Mispy theorized.

Owen’s half was intensely curious and distracted by the remark; Gahi’s half was just annoyed that they couldn’t concentrate in peace. The two conflicting thoughts were too much for the fusion and, in an instant, one head split off from the main one, turning irritably, “Shaddap, I’m trying ter concentrate!”

“Wah! T-two heads!” Tanneth squeaked.

“Eh?” Gahi looked down. He could move the right arm, but not the left. “Oy, lookit that!”

“Gahi! I can’t feel my right side!”

“Well, I can’t feel my left! C’mon, let’s just keep going!”

“Um—” Mispy, in an effort to help, wrapped her vines around their arms and pulled.

The two heads grunted in strain, but, thankfully, this was the correct approach. With a little tug and some concentration, the dragon and the pseudodragon split apart, their respective halves regenerating in a dim light. They tumbled to the ground with a series of plops and damp splashes.

“Ugh! Finally!” Owen said. He shook himself off and tried to ignore the empty feeling in his chest. “Glad to be me again. No offense or anything, Gahi, but I think you dumbed me down a few pegs…”

“Feh,” Gahi stuck his nose in the air. He paused as if something had dawned on him. “Hey, I ain’t crazy!” He looked at his claws. “How ‘bout that, eh?” And then he flexed his wings.

“I think we’re going to go a little crazy when we evolve,” Demitri said, looking at Mispy worriedly. “Um—when that happens, do you think you’ll be able to…”

“We’ll help,” Owen said. “We just have to beat you and then, um… help you straighten out after that. Maybe Emily can help!”

Just then, the ground shifted. “Earth—earthquake?” Owen said. “W-wait, we’re not on—”

The ground heaved, throwing them all backward. The entire area turned sideways, floors becoming walls. Owen and Gahi hit the new ground; Amia and Willow landed on top of Owen, followed by Demitri and Mispy atop Gahi, and lastly Zena, whose lengthy body pinned them all down.

They all groaned.

“Everyone okay?” Owen wheezed.

“I think I squished my webbers,” Willow whined.

Tanneth’s head stuck out of a nearby wall, giggling. “Hey, everyone! Emily’s gonna let you guys out, now!”

Owen’s expression darkened. “Please tell me she has a better way to—”

A giant wing-arm burst violently through the walls of the Lugia, presumably through her belly, fishing around her own insides like one would search for a snack in the dark. The wing was big enough to grab them all in one go. Without thinking, Owen shrieked, and they were pulled back to the outside world.