MATURE: The Hero of Another Story

[AbraPunk]

Spoiler: rating note

I was debating rating this as Teen, but I spoke to a mod and they said it'd be a little closer to an M.

Spoiler: overall content warnings

Blood, gore, death. (Also strong language, if that's something you're bothered by.)

Spoiler: chapter content warnings

Same as overall content warnings.

Galar was often seen as a perfect starting region for many aspiring Pokémon trainers, thanks to its wide variety of Pokémon, and interesting league structure.

Its smallest town, Wedgehurst, was no different. Although there were no League matches to be held there, and not much in the way of Pokémon, most living in the region held it in regards as a great "first town". It was sparsely populated, as most had gone off on their Pokémon journeys.

Some hung around; mostly friends and family of the adventuring trainers.

However, there were yet others...

◇ ◇ ◇

In a house a bit farther away from the main portion of the town…

A Pokémon trainer sat on a couch, dozing off, while his team were out of their pokeballs and spread out across the main room.

"Er, if I may ask… should we move somewhere more private?" A Girafarig asked softly as he glanced over at a fight happening between a Gliscor and Toxicroak.

"Ah, you are aware that they mean no harm, my equine friend! We need not move from this spot," A Garchomp answered loudly. "As a matter of fact, I quite like the spot we are in now."

"...Okay."

There was a loud THUD as the Gliscor slammed the Toxicroak's head into a wall.

"Markab." A Venusaur said in a low voice.

The Gliscor, Markab, immediately tensed upon hearing his name called. "What?" He called in a quavery voice.

"You know what."

Markab laughed nervously. "Hehe… that was nothing, me an' froggy here was just messin' around," He nudged the dazed Toxicroak with a pincer. "Right?"

The Toxicroak dislodged his head from the hole in the wall. "Ugh, bastard! The hell did we tell ya 'bout roughhousing the rest of us?!"

The Gliscor did his best approximation of a shrug. "I dunno, what?"

"Don't do it, you bloody twat!" The Toxicroak yelled as he swatted at Markab.

The Gliscor smirked and glided out of reach. "Nyeh, piss off with all that, yeah? Ain't no fun when you can't even show everyone who's da boss 'round here."

The Venusaur glared at Markab, vines hanging in the air. "You'd best hope you're referring to me when you say 'da boss'."

"Nyeh heh... o' course."

The Girafarig exchanged a glance with the Garchomp as the two of them watched this confrontation.

"I told you."

"Ah, fret not. 'Tis a trivial matter, and it shall be resolved shortly."

"Still, I'd prefer if we… maybe moved." he said as he shuffled his hooves around.

"What are you guys talking about?" A snide Luxray said as he came over to the two, glancing between them.

"Oh, n-nothing."

The Luxray hissed and said, "I wasn't born yesterday, you know. You're not talking about nothing. That's impossible. So, come on, spit it out."

The Garchomp narrowed his eyes and glared at the Luxray. "What we discuss is none of your business. I should think that you would know such a thing, especially considering you've been part of this team for such a long time."

"Who asked you, scales?"

The Garchomp snarled and fully turned towards the Luxray, ready to pounce. The Girafarig put a hoof on the Garchomp's leg.

"Antares. Don't." He said as he shook his head.

The Luxray laughed mockingly. "Ah, the big dragon needs his boyfriend around to keep him in check."

Antares kept glaring at the Luxray.

The Girafarig took his hoof off of Antares's leg and shakily said, "N-No, that's… we're not together."

"Ha, sure you're not. I bet you're just saying that so-- hrk!" The Luxray's sentence was cut off as a thick vine came and wrapped itself around his neck.

"Vega. Leave them alone." The Venusaur rumbled as his vine dragged the Luxray away from the Girafarig and Antares.

"Ngh… fine." Vega muttered as the vine withdrew from his neck.

Antares glanced over at the Girafarig. "My apologies for the interruption."

"Huh? I don't know why you're apologizing, but… okay." He sighed as he glanced around the room, and gasped once he saw the clock. "Oh! It's almost time, let me wake up our trainer…"

He walked slowly over to the sleeping trainer and nudged him.

The trainer jolted awake, looking around before his gaze settled on Girafarig. He heaved out a sigh. "Damn, scared me. Thanks, Graffias." He chuckled as he patted the giraffe on the head.

He stretched and announced, "Alright, guys, today's gonna be easy. We're just doing some training later. Got that?"

His team each affirmed.

"Awesome. So, let's, uh…" He faltered as his gaze landed on the hole in the wall.

Markab pushed himself away from the Toxicroak, glancing off to the side.

"Heh, guess you guys were too worked up, huh?" He shrugged as he stood. "Polaris, you need some healing, or are you good?"

Polaris, the Toxicroak, shook his head. "Nah."

"Cool. Uh, what else… hey, Regulus, can you get the remote? Wanna see what's up with the rest of the region."

The Venusaur used his vine to grab the remote that lay in the far corner of the room, managing to press the power button as well.

The television turned on to show a news report about a legendary Pokémon being spotted in Wyndon.

It showed a crowd of people around the exterior of Wyndon Stadium. Champion Leon and his prized Charizard were there, too, waving to the crowd. Leon beckoned the legendary pokemon to come forward.

A stag-like pokemon strode into frame, each step measured and precise. It possessed an air of regality that demanded awe and respect.

The trainer gasped and said, "Cobalion! Dude, that's awesome…" and then fell into awed silence as he continued watching the news report.

Antares wasn't paying attention to it, though, because on the news ticker, there was something horrible.

{MASS DESTRUCTION IN KANTO, HOENN; DEATH TOLL ESTIMATED IN THE MILLIONS}

He turned to Graffias, whose eyes were firmly locked on the ticker headline. The giraffe was trembling as he kept looking.

Antares looked for anything else, but that was the only headline. It kept repeating. Over and over.

He finally looked back up to the news report, and saw that the Champion was trying to talk to Cobalion.

It seemed to be going well, though Antares knew it was a one-way conversation. Humans did not understand Pokémon. They never did.

But despite that, Leon talked, on and on, about the region and the culture and…

Cobalion said five words. "Silence. Humanity's end has come."

Antares shook as he quickly glanced around at the rest of the team.

Regulus grumbled "What.", while Vega's and Markab's jaws dropped. Polaris twisted his face in confusion; and Graffias…

Graffias was as still as a Zen Darmanitan, eyes wide and watery. "No…"

The trainer, however, remained oblivious.

The mighty stag reared up, and slashed at the Champion. Leon's head separated from his body. Blood sprayed onto his Charizard, and onto Cobalion. A small pool was already forming where his head had landed.

The crowd screamed and dispersed, and the trainer likewise yelled in shock.

"Oh, shit!"

The camera remained where it was, though, likely as a result of the cameraman running off without it.

As a result, the broadcast still showed the following moments.

Leon's Charizard roared in fury and grief, before spewing a massive stream of flames from its maw.

Cobalion was unfazed, though, and galloped through the stream, ramming its antlers into the Charizard's stomach, getting drenched in blood, then slashing to the side, effectively disemboweling its opponent.

The great lizard fell, dead, and Cobalion trotted off-screen.

The news ticker displayed the same headline as earlier.

Antares tore his gaze away from the screen. He slowly turned to look at everyone else.

Most everyone was frozen in shock. Graffias, though, was staring at the wall, trembling.

The giraffe suddenly whipped his head around, a terrified light in his eyes. "E-Everyone stay where you are!" He galloped over to where everyone else was gathered, and concentrated Psychic energy into manifesting a large barrier around the group.

Seconds later, the entire world seemed to quake, as a deep rumbling filled the silent air. Antares stumbled briefly under the intensity of the ground's shuddering, but quickly righted himself. He could distantly hear the sounds of various objects crashing to the floor as the earthquake continued.

Then it was over as abruptly as it had begun. Silence once again. Almost everyone remained exactly where they were, still too stunned from the murders they had seen to do much of anything else.

Graffias just shook his head, eyes wide. "That wasn't it."

There was only the faintest woosh of air, then everything around the barrier was blown away in a massive explosion, flames consuming whatever had remained standing.

It only took a simple glance outside to figure out what was going on.

A titanic white dragon was soaring through the sky, dropping massive fireballs and flamethrowers upon the surrounding area.

Antares' breath hitched in his throat as he stared out at the destruction, and the one causing it. A Pokémon only known through myths, one who was said to appear only to those who would wish for, and work towards, a world of truth.

"Reshiram." He whispered, both in awe and in fear simultaneously.

The mythical dragon's flight path abruptly changed course, so that it was now heading straight towards the group.

Graffias whimpered, and squeaked out in a trembling voice, "M-My barrier won't be able to protect us from anything else… we're gonna have to run."

Antares stared at the white dragon of myth as it rapidly descended from the skies. He was only vaguely aware of Regulus trying his best to relay what was going on to the trainer.

Then came Graffias' slightly less shaky voice, "O-Okay… one… two… run!"

On his word, everyone scattered, getting out of the destroyed house however they could. Antares settled for simply flying over the rubble.

Everyone regrouped just outside, only seconds before Reshiram itself landed in front of them, shaking the earth to its core upon impact.

"...Abandon your 'trainer', and you all shall be spared."

Silence... for only a few moments.

Markab spat on the floor before saying, "Th'fuck you just say to us?! Y'think we're fuckin' fools, eh? We ain't leavin' Zach here, no fuckin' way in hell."

Regulus glared at Markab, then turned an equally icy gaze to Reshiram. "Apologies for the crude language. We will not be leaving our trainer," He crouched slightly, vines hanging in the air. "And you are mistaken if you think we will surrender to you."

Reshiram's piercing blue eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "Very well. Perish, then, like the mindless slaves you are."

Flames burst forth from all directions, smothering the air in smoke and darkness.

Antares could no longer see any of the sky nor sun, but was still able to see everything on the ground quite clearly. He looked around to see that everyone had scattered and were all now trying their best to fight off Reshiram.

All except Vega, who'd gone running as fast as he could. He'd almost made it to where the smoke might have cleared up when he was struck by a beam of blue-orange energy. The Luxray stopped dead in his tracks, and fell to the ground in two halves, entrails spilling out.

Antares gaped at the sight. He'd… just watched someone die. He hadn't even really considered Vega a friend, but seeing such a gruesome thing done to anyone…

Reshiram turned to Regulus next.

The Venusaur snarled as he looked up at his certain death, his vines thrashing in the air. The bulbous tips of his vines glowed purple, and both of them wrapped around one of Reshiram's legs, burrowing deep beneath her scales and fur. She roared as the toxins worked their way through her blood.

Polaris came running, leaping and stabbing his poisonous claws into the legendary Pokémon's other leg. He stayed latched on for a solid few seconds, before dramatically leaping off, doing flips in the air, leaving two holes in the legendary's leg that his poison now leaked out of. He landed next to Regulus and exhaled deeply, bouncing on his toes. "Bloody tough one, this is."

The legendary dragon stared down at them, collecting a mass of fire within her maw, before opening her mouth and spewing flames directly at the two of them. Polaris was quick enough to be able to flip out of the way. Regulus was not. He stood his ground and did not let out even a grunt as he was consumed by the flames. When the flames died down, nothing recognizable remained of the stalwart Venusaur.

Antares, deciding he'd seen two deaths too many, flew up to Reshiram's neck from behind, and grabbed on to her scales, sinking his claws and fangs deep into her neck, drawing out mass amounts of golden blood. The legendary Pokémon lurched, and then Antares found himself within the middle of a blazing inferno. Thankfully, he was resistant to the divine flames, thanks to his Dragon-typing.

Despite the crucible of flame, he clung on, wanting nothing more than to have Reshiram dead. Antares was doused in her blood by now, horribly warm and sticky and disgusting. He blinked it out of his eyes, and continued his feral assault.

Elsewhere, Graffias was bombarding the legendary Pokémon with whatever he could find within the remains of burned homes. His trainer hid behind him, with Markab also nearby.

The Gliscor hissed. "I'm goin' at 'em. Don't ya try n' stop me, y'hear?"

Graffias' concentration was broken, the pink glow of Psychic energy around his horns fading away. "Wh-What?! No, you can't! You'll die!"

Markab smirked. "Heh, yeah. Ain't no better way I can go out."

Polaris ran up to the small group, panting. "Shit, we're alright for now. I saw Antares distracting her, but who knows how much time that ballsy bastard'll buy us."

Markab clicked his pincers, then gave a lopsided smile to Polaris. "I was plannin' on goin' up next… after ol' scaly bites the dust, o' course. I mean, he's a tough bastard, f'sure, but… no chance for him livin'. Anyways, y'think ya'd wanna come with? One last little bit o' fun…?"

Polaris stared at the Gliscor for a few seconds, before sighing and offering his own resigned smile. "Why the hell not." He glanced over at where Antares was still savagely attacking Reshiram. "Hmm. Maybe if we go now, we might be able to take her out? I mean, fuck's sake, she's pouring more blood from her neck than any of us have in our whole bodies."

"...Y'might be right with that! Fuckin' hell, ya genius! C'mon, then!" Markab sped off, taking to the skies, Polaris following on foot.

Graffias trembled as he watched them go. He knew he couldn't have stopped them if he'd tried. They wouldn't have listened. He turned to his trainer, who'd been rendered speechless this entire time. "I know you don't understand me... I'm so sorry." He turned to watch the rest of the carnage.

Markab soared high, roughly level with Reshiram's head. He fired off a few razor-sharp solidified blades of air. They did little more than annoy the legendary Pokémon, judging by how her eyes snapped towards him and narrowed. He turned to gain more distance, when he was hit by something massive, sending him crashing to the ground. He attempted to get up, but caught sight of a massive shadow looming over him; he knew this was the end. The Gliscor locked eyes with Polaris, who was watching in horror, knowing there was nothing he could do. Markab gave his only friend one last smile. "Heh… thanks for all the fun times."

Reshiram's foot came down upon the Gliscor, crushing and splattering him against the ground.

Polaris fell to his knees, unable to take his eyes off of the puddle of blood that used to be his friend. He didn't move even when one of Reshiram's wings came down, scooping him up within the massive claws that rested atop it. Even as the legendary Pokémon's maw opened, he didn't resist. All he could muster was a weak "Just do it already." before his top half was severed from his bottom half by Reshiram's fangs.

Antares had slowed his attack by now, his energy far too low for such a fight. He still weakly clung on to Reshiram's scales, a fine layer of fur matted with her own blood. Reluctantly, he released his grip and flew away, so high up that the air was much clearer than it was below. He needed this breather. Antares was so absorbed in his own thoughts that he didn't notice the sky rapidly darkening with storm clouds until a clap of thunder startled him out of his musings. He looked around to find the entire sky dark.

"This… should not be possible. How…?" Lightning struck again, and with it the booming thunder. Antares shook his head. He needed to get back in there and save whoever was left. He flew in a loop a few times, mostly to burn off the blood that still stuck to him. Once he was satisfied, he dove back down to where all of the death and destruction was.

Graffias was powerless in Reshiram's grasp. Even as he thrashed and squirmed, he knew there was no escaping. The trainer had died only a few minutes ago, the fire's smoke flooding his lungs and suffocating him. Thus, Graffias was the only survivor… him and Antares, wherever he was.

Antares breached the smoke line and saw Graffias within the legendary Pokémon's hold. He flew even faster, hoping he could make it in time--

Graffias choked as a horrible pressure was put on his neck. It felt as though all his vertebrae would be shattered at any moment. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught sight of Antares desperately trying to reach him. The Girafarig managed a weak smile, and rasped out, "I'm sorry."

Antares watched Reshiram flick her wing, and with it Graffias' neck bent in a completely wrong direction, the cracking of his bones audible.

Antares had failed to save anyone. That much was obvious. The town, possibly the region, and maybe even all regions lay in ruin. However, there was always hope. He still had hope that he could do something good. He could kill the legendary Pokémon that caused all of this death. Yes, that would do it.

He turned his gaze towards Reshiram, seeing the blood flowing from her neck, and the poison infecting her legs, turning parts of them a deep purple. Antares was proud of what everyone had done, and now it was his job to finish this. He needed to be up higher, though; he might have been able to resist those flames for a long time, but even he had his limits. His innards burned as though a hot metal rod had been shoved through them.

Quickly, he dove towards Reshiram and slashed her across the face, drawing out more of that bizarre golden blood. He then ascended as rapidly as possible, and was almost relieved to hear Reshiram roaring amidst the deafening wingbeats that signaled her following him into the clearer air.

Once he was clear of the smoke, and he was able to clearly see the storm clouds, he stopped and waited. Reshiram appeared only seconds later, though Antares was pleased to take notice of how her wingbeats were slowing, and her eyes were dull. She was weak.

He rushed in to do as much damage as he could, but was enveloped by a massive fiery beam of blue-orange energy. It stung at his scales as though he were being stabbed by a million knives. He gritted his teeth and endured, firing a beam of his own once the attack stopped. It struck Reshiram directly, and she was sent backwards a few inches. The impact left a noticeable burn mark on her chest, but other than that, there appeared to be no major damage.

Antares moved in again, but was quickly consumed by another beam from Reshiram. He continued moving through the beam, slashing wildly at her once he was close enough. Reshiram returned the favor in kind, gouging deep claw marks across Antares' body, his own crimson blood flowing freely.

He was fully prepared to meet his end here. Perhaps he deserved it, for not doing enough to help everyone when he had every chance to--

Without any prior indication of just how weak she was, Reshiram fell, her body hurtling towards the earth. Before she hit the ground, a massive, swirling pillar of flame consumed her. When it cleared, she too was gone.

Antares could have stopped to ponder this, but he too swayed and fell from the sky, his injuries far too dire for any regular Pokémon to handle.

He knew nobody would save him, of course not, there was nobody left.

But something did. Antares was only inches above the ground, and yet he was suspended as though held up by an invisible force, which… perhaps he was.

Consciousness beginning to slip, he looked around as best as he could, and found only an Ampharos looking at him.

"Hm. How curious." They said before releasing Antares from whatever invisible force had been holding him.

They then proceeded to pick up Antares, which even with his barely-there conscious, knew a regular Ampharos should not have been able to do.

"...I suppose I should take this one to…" The Ampharos trailed off into muttering to himself, whatever it was Antares couldn't hear.

After a few seconds, the Ampharos glanced down at Antares. "You must be curious. About me, I mean." A small smile played on his mouth. "Well, you shouldn't worry about that right now."

As soon as he finished speaking, the ground rumbled; a deep, bone-shaking sound that might have indicated an earthquake. Clearly, that wasn't it, because Antares' mysterious savior did not care at all.

His savior walked forward, and suddenly was walking at an angle. Antares turned his head agonizingly slowly, and saw only a sloping path leading to darkness.

"Don't worry. You'll be safe. I've made sure of that."

Antares' strength finally gave out, and he fell into unconsciousness.

 

[InfiniteBakuphoon]

Hello there! I’m here to leave a little review for your fic! Actually, I’m specifically here because I noticed that you followed me a while back, which I apparently saw before but forgot about (probably because we’ve never really crossed paths here at Bulbagarden beforehand). Thus, when I saw that you posted something here at the Writers Workshop, I remembered you and took notice, so here I am, haha! And first chapters with relatively small word counts are always very appealing anyway, so that certainly helped in your favor, too. So with that little introduction out of the way, let’s go ahead and get right to it, shall we?

I suppose the first thing that I’ll comment on is that, after reading everything here, the overall concept as it’s being presented so far kind of reminds me of Poké Wars somewhat with its bloody, post-apocalyptic, Legendaries-turn-on-humans kind of thing. And I suppose that the next thing I’ll comment on is that, wow, absolutely no time is wasted establishing things here in this first chapter. Or in having things happen in this first chapter, at least. One where we get multiple main character deaths (including that of a major canon character), not one but two Legendary Pokémon appearances (and with vastly different depictions from those seen in canon, at that), an epic and consequential Pokémon battle with one of those said Legendaries, and a description of what basically amounts to the end of the world, again brought about by said Legendaries (with the implication of others being involved). A hell of a lot happens here in only 3,700 words!

Although it’s perhaps something of a harbinger for what this story is apparently going to really focus on that the most overwhelming thing for me was simply keeping track of everyone’s names! I mean, in what I’d guess is only one-fourth of those 3,700 words, we’re introduced to a full party of Pokémon with wildly different personalities who have clearly known each other for a very long time, even though we ourselves only really get a few moments with them. Moments that, again, were spent in no small part by me simply trying to figure out which Pokémon was who and who was which Pokémon, let alone figuring out whether I like them or not, or how I could relate to them. And especially considering what happens to them soon after, there’s certainly the risk of these characters kind of “flying by” the reader, so to speak, as it nearly did with me for at least this first portion of this chapter. I’m not sure if this is really something to fault you for or if it’s just a measured, necessary consequence of where this chapter ultimately goes narratively, one that I don’t have any ideas to handle any other way without causing another, arguably far worse problem: bloat in the form of an extended introduction for characters whom we, well… probably won’t be seeing a lot more of anyway given the events of this chapter, haha.

Speaking of which, I pretty much figured out after the first death that this chapter’s big battle was going to end with only one survivor, or possibly even no survivors. Indeed, it was mainly that last possibility that held the tension for me in this scene, even as it was fairly obvious that these characters who we were only just introduced to were not going to be long for the world. That said, I can also say that the sheer intensity of the battle plus the inherent emotional stakes involved in watching what amounts to a total party kill in increasingly dire and gruesome fashion also managed to hold my attention despite me not actually being attached to the characters themselves that much. Although again, it’s probably a necessary sin to handle the characters that way with the kind of story you seem to be heading towards here, and indeed it’s to your credit that I was able to care about their fates regardless. Again, I think that inherent emotional stakes are your friend here; unless they’re completely unlikable (which no one is here, certainly), no one wants to watch an entire party of characters die tragic, horrible deaths! And especially because, with what you’re able to establish with this party in a relatively small amount of time, there’s just enough to work with for the reader to perhaps relate their (admittedly kind of weird) camaraderie to something else that they may have a greater connection with, or at least have some kind of “sensitive” feeling about (that is, something that a story can exploit).

That said, I do think that there are some legitimate casualties to the approach that you’ve gone with here, or perhaps more so with your focus more on the Pokémon side of things than the human side. One example — probably the biggest one — is the party’s trainer, whose problem is best summed up by the fact that his death basically amounts to a quick, blink-and-you-miss it mention that he, um, choked and died all of a sudden and, whoops, time to get back to the big battle with Reshiram now. Given that these Pokémon are apparently so attached to their trainer that their loyalty is essentially the catalyst to both said battle and their own resultant deaths — as well as, by extension, what appears to be the entire plot of the story — said trainer’s somewhat unceremonious demise kind of felt… weird, I guess I’d call it. Like there was something that should’ve been there that simply wasn’t. And now that I’m thinking about it, we don’t even really see our sole survivor mourn him all that much. Granted, he doesn’t really get a chance to do anything after barely surviving an encounter with a Legendary and being taken away half-awake and then unconscious soon after, but perhaps he should, somewhere? We already see him kind of mourn the rest of his party as he’s battling, even to the point where he’s driven to avenge them, and where said drive arguably saves his own life. So why not have him spare a few thoughts for the entire reason why he’s battling in the first place, and perhaps have that drive him a little as well? Especially given how he didn’t even have a close connection with some members of his party and yet kind of mourned them anyway out of basic empathy. Just a few comments on what I’d argue is the biggest thing that stuck out at me narratively about this chapter.

The ending seems to go with the “getting found by a mysterious stranger with ambiguous intentions but who is probably at least somewhat good” approach that I suppose isn’t too uncommon for a story like this, but is perhaps slightly anticlimactic (or maybe even darkly hilarious, if you look at it in a certain way) given all that happened just a few moments before. I wouldn’t call it a bad direction to go in, though. It’s a standard mystery, but a classic one. Not to mention one with many narrative opportunities as our sole survivor, now alone, has the chance to process what just happened to him and the rest of his party (and his trainer; an opportunity to address the points I made above, perhaps?). I’m getting the impression that perhaps this is going to be a somewhat more personal story here given how, with everything that’s happened not just with our immediate characters but with those across the entire Pokémon world, there doesn’t really seem to be much hope for anything at this point. What do you do at the end of the world? What can you do? Unlike Poké Wars where there’s at least enough left of the world for some semblance of a survival plot, or at least something left to fight for if only the chance to see morning, it seems that the Legendaries here have gone for a more scorched earth policy — quite literally, in the case of Galar, at least — in their approach to the extermination of the human race, and apparently at least a decent chunk of the world’s Pokémon, too. It’s here where your story distinguishes itself, I think, and my advice to you would be to take as much advantage of that as you can, as there are again many wonderful narrative opportunities there, plus some equally exciting worldbuilding ones. I look forward to seeing where you decide to go with this, which I suppose is one of the greatest compliments that I — or any reader — can give a writer: “I want to see more!”. Good luck to you on wherever you indeed decide to go from here, and, again, I’ll be looking forward to seeing the results.

Now, as far as spelling and grammar goes, well… there’s not really much to say, really. I always love reviewing stories that have their spelling and grammar on point, because it makes things so much easier for me! And while I would generally prefer to read a good story with sub-standard spelling and grammar than a bad or boring story with perfect spelling and grammar, my real preference is to not have to choose at all, as a truly good story should have both good storytelling and a good hold on the technicals. Basically, no news is good news here, at least as far as glaring errors go. This isn’t something that’s as easily mastered or that can be taken for granted as much as one might think, so pat yourself on the back for that! You clearly know what you’re doing here.

As far as smaller, less critical errors go:

"...I suppose I should take this one to…" The Ampharos trailed off into muttering to himself, whatever it was Antares couldn't hear.

"to" should be "too".

I could also argue for semi-colons in some places, such as:

He knew nobody would save him, of course not, there was nobody left.

But a lot of the other ones are more arguable, and probably not really a big deal in the grand scheme of things.

There are also a few moments where words probably shouldn’t be capitalized after dialogue tags (and where commas should probably follow the last word spoken), such as:

"Hm. How curious." They said before releasing Antares from whatever invisible force had been holding him.

Which I’d instead suggest should be like this:

"Hm. How curious," they said before releasing Antares from whatever invisible force had been holding him.

Again, all mostly small, not very critical errors; certainly nothing that took me out the fic or anything (and believe me, serious errors like that would be very easy to ruin a fic by my standards). Others may have a more discerning, less forgivable eye than me, however, so do keep that in mind.

I have just one little comment style-wise, or kind of technical but also kind of style. In some of your paragraphs, I’ve noticed that you have a tendency to have prose and dialogue on the same line, which is different from what I’m used to doing where I almost always have them separate, with a few exceptions. An example with your approach:

Reshiram's piercing blue eyes narrowed ever so slightly. "Very well. Perish, then, like the mindless slaves you are."

If I were the one writing that, it would probably go like this instead:

Reshiram's piercing blue eyes narrowed ever so slightly.

"Very well. Perish, then, like the mindless slaves you are."

Even now, I’m not sure which of those two is considered “correct”, or if either one even is absolutely “correct” in every scenario. Certainly, even if one or the other is more “correct”, there are plenty of times where the rules can be broken (I’ve done it myself plenty of times with my approach, regardless of its “correctness” or lack thereof). But hey, the only reason why I’m even bringing this up is because it’s something that stood out to me as kind of a stalwart user of my own approach. I’m not sure if it would really be such a big deal for anyone else, but maybe it might be. It’s just something for you to consider, not any critical violation of the English language or anything like that. Again, it’s a credit to your skills with the written word that it’s this kind of thing that I’m bringing up, rather than a long list of misspelled words or flagrant grammatical mistakes or anything like that.

I hope that this review has helped you in at least some way. Again, good luck, and don’t be surprised if you see me here again, haha. You’ve got something good with this first chapter of your fic here, and I’m hopeful for its future.

 

[AbraPunk]

Spoiler: content warnings

Blood, slight gore

The Ampharos strode through the winding tunnels, with a concentrated sphere of pure electricity as his light source. Of course, now that he didn't have to be carrying someone around, it was much easier to move, or do anything, really.

After what could have been either minutes or hours, he finally reached his destination.

Ahead of him was an opening that led into a massive, spacious chamber, which was rounded-out, much like the rest of the tunnel network. In the center of the chamber, a massive black and green serpent sat with their back turned to the Ampharos, and as their scales gently pulsed, the room was tinted neon green.

The Ampharos dismissed his electricity sphere. It dissolved, and the energy that had been contained within it flowed into his body.

He steeled himself before he called out to the serpent, "Zygarde, I wish to speak with you."

There was no indication that he had been heard.

He sighed before trying again. "It concerns the one I brought into your realm some time ago."

Zygarde turned their head slightly, and their scales stopped glowing. "Have you come to inform us that you are removing him from our realm?"

"No."

"Then you have no reason for being here. Leave."

"That's not happening. Look, I know you don't like me, or… any of the others--"

"That is a severe understatement."

"I don't think the severity of your disdain for everyone else makes a difference. But alright, I'll make this quick, then. I've spent a lot of time thinking about this, but I've finally come up with a plan that'll get rid of Reshiram."

Zygarde fully turned to look at the Ampharos, and slithered towards him. "And what exactly does this 'plan' of yours entail?"

"It's simple. You might not like it, but you're going to be involved in this. First, you'll need to claim the mortal as your Champion--"

"We refuse."

The Ampharos paused for several seconds, then sighed deeply. He could already feel a spark of rage coursing through him.

"Listen. You hate everyone. That's all you ever talk about. So, wouldn't it be logical for you to want to help kill some of the others?"

"We 'hate' most, not all, of our fellow gods. You should learn the distinction. And if we are to eliminate others, we shall do so in our own way, and at our own discretion."

The Ampharos gritted his teeth.

Fuck this.

In a blinding flash of light, he shed his mortal disguise and now stood before Zygarde in his true divine form: a colossal, muscular black dragon. The air crackled and hummed with electricity, and bolts of lightning danced around him.

"How much of a fucking hypocrite do you have to be?" Zekrom growled, and jabbed a claw at Zygarde. "You're always going on about how much you hate all of the other gods, but now that I'm giving you a chance to kill one of them, you say it's not worth the effort?! Just what the hell do you think you're playing at, huh?!"

Zygarde was silent for several seconds. Finally, they answered, "We are not 'playing at' anything. You simply fail to comprehend our actions."

Zekrom snarled and lunged at Zygarde, then wrapped his claws around their neck and squeezed with as much might as possible.

"I'm not failing to comprehend anything. I see the truth, and I see you for what you are: nothing more than a selfish, pathetic excuse for a god. Understand this." He drew his arms in, and thus dragged Zygarde closer to him. "You will not squander my chance at freedom."

Zygarde was completely still, even as Zekrom's claws pierced their scales, causing droplets of their golden blood to seep out.

After a short while, there was a squelching noise, and a writhing tentacle covered in small barbs appeared behind Zygarde. It shot out and wrapped itself around Zekrom's neck. He hissed in pain as the barbs dug through his scales and made his own golden blood drip out.

Zygarde tilted their head slightly. "If your link to Reshiram did not prevent you from doing so, then we presume…?" Their layered, echoing voice was seemingly completely unaffected by the claws in their throat.

Zekrom grunted with the effort of speaking while being asphyxiated. "Would have been-- hrgh-- dead, thousands of years ago, yes."

Zygarde stared at Zekrom for several seconds. The tentacle that choked Zekrom released its grip on him, and withdrew back into Zygarde. In response, Zekrom took his claws away from Zygarde, and one of his hands flew to his own throat to apply pressure to the puncture wounds, as he took deep gulping breaths.

Another several seconds, perhaps closer to a minute, went by. "Is this why your plan requires our aid?" Zygarde inquired, completely unfazed by what had just happened.

Zekrom grunted in affirmation and removed his hand from his throat as the wounds gradually closed up.

"We did not allow you to elaborate upon your plan." Zygarde leaned forward almost imperceptibly. "We assume that you will leave us in peace after you explain it?"

"...Yes."

"Very well. Explain."

"My plan is this: You'll make the mortal your Champion, then he'll find Reshiram-- or you can find her for him-- and then, with your combined strength, you'll kill her."

"...Intriguing. Now, leave. We must think about this."

"And I'm glad to leave at this point." Zekrom huffed before he turned and walked away.

While on the way back to where the mortal lay unconscious, he shifted back into his own mortal form.

I don't think the mortal would take too well to a god being the first thing he sees when he wakes.

He paused mid-step.

...Come to think of it, he's been out for a long time. ...I suppose I can only hope he wakes up soon. He continued on his way.

◇ ◇ ◇

Several weeks later…

Zygarde sat in their chamber and contemplated what to do.

They would not be the one responsible for the mortal. Despite what Zekrom wished, Zygarde had no plans to work alongside anyone, whether mortal or god.

Though… perhaps they could pass the burden off to another… yes, that would do nicely. Zygarde would no longer have to put up with Zekrom's pestering, and Zekrom himself would get his plan fulfilled. An ideal situation for both of them.

Zygarde knew of two gods who would be most likely to accept the burden, for one reason or another.

They cleared their mind, and sent a mental summon to the two gods, which consisted of only four words: Come to the Council.

Zygarde teleported away to the Council realm.

Once they arrived, they were greeted with the familiar sight of a gleaming white and gold corridor, along with the opalescent sky that hung above the open hall.

They slithered through the passageway and passed through a set of open double doors, into the main chamber of the Council.

The room was massive, the ceiling being several times their own height. Twelve thrones were placed at the far end of the room, arranged in a wide semi-circle.

Only one throne was occupied: a simple throne, colored dark grey and silver. On it sat the Lord of Time, Dialga.

Zygarde moved across the room and stopped a respectable distance from where Dialga sat.

"We thank you for answering our summon."

Dialga grunted. "I don't exactly have anything else to do right now."

"...Understandable." They turned to look at one of the empty thrones. "The other is late."

"Oh? You called someone else?" He followed Zygarde's gaze to the vacant thrones. "Hmm. Whoever it is should know better than to disregard a summoning."

"We shall retrieve them, and we shall return shortly." Zygarde teleported away as soon as they'd finished speaking.

They found themself, again, in another realm.

This time, it was a realm consisting only of the fluorescent green outline of a circle against a void filled with countless distant stars and planets.

Zygarde knew how this realm played tricks on the mind, appearing much smaller than it truly was. Of course, it was only fitting that this realm was but a small taste of the Lord of Space's power.

They moved through the realm quickly, wasting no time on looking at the scenery.

Zygarde only stopped when they felt something slippery underneath their scales. They backed away slightly and stared at what they'd slithered over.

A splatter of silver blood. The blood of a lesser god.

They closely surveyed the area as they continued to move, albeit slower than before. Several large silver blood splatters were visible throughout the realm. Occasionally, they would find a droplet or two of golden blood mixed in.

After quite some time, they could finally see the shape of the Lord of Space in the distance.

Once Zygarde was close enough, they could see that the spilled blood was largely concentrated around this area.

"Palkia. We must speak to you regarding--"

Palkia whirled around, glaring at Zygarde in smoldering rage. "Oh, what? You're gonna tell me that I didn't answer your bullshit call? Yeah, yeah, I know I didn't, now fuck off."

Now that Palkia was facing them, Zygarde could see that his forearms were coated in silver blood, and additional blood was splattered across his face and torso.

Zygarde flicked their tail. "Yes, we were going to speak with you concerning your lack of appearance at the Council. However…" They leaned to the side, and could barely discern a corpse behind Palkia. "It would seem there are more pressing matters at hand."

Palkia snorted. "Oh, don't even ask me what all this shit is. I mean, you know what, I'll just show you, and I know you're gonna like it." He stepped aside from the corpse, revealing that it was the mangled body of Virizion.

Zygarde slithered closer to inspect the body, and found that all of Virizion's legs had been broken, as well as her midsection being torn apart, and her head had been ripped off. It lay nearby, with a few vertebrae poking out.

"Heheh… one down, yeah? Who fucking knows how many more to go." Palkia muttered seemingly to himself.

"...We did not see you as the type to so willingly take the life of one of your own kind."

"Don't get me wrong. Normally, I wouldn't dare do that. But, well, when you're one of the bastards that participated in humanity's extinction…" He shrugged with a smirk. "You get what you deserve, y'know? I think it's fair."

"...And how exactly did you deduce that Virizion had a part in humanity's extinction?"

"Oh, well, uh… I dunno, I just kinda… guessed. I mean, at least she admitted to it, so… y'know, I don't have the murder of an innocent on my conscience, heh."

"We see." Zygarde turned around to face Palkia. "We will again request that you come to the Council. There is a matter that we think you will be interested in."

Without waiting for a response, Zygarde went back to the Council realm.

They appeared exactly where they had left. Now it was only a matter of waiting.

Only a handful of seconds passed before Palkia appeared on his throne, having neglected to rid himself of the divine blood that coated his arms.

Dialga looked over to see who had just showed up, and scoffed. "Hmph. Out of all the other gods, it just had to be you."

Palkia glanced over, and had to do a double-take, before he snarled and glared at Dialga. "Why the fuck are you here?"

Zygarde could feel the tension in the air threatening to take a turn for the worse. On one side, the cold contempt from Dialga chilled the very atmosphere. On the other side, the fiery fury from Palkia superheated the air to a near-boiling point, in danger of exploding at any moment.

Of course, Zygarde knew nothing would happen… not here, at least. Arceus had made the Council so that a divine spell prevented any and all bloodshed within it. Naturally, any and every other possible location was free of this restriction.

Zygarde looked between the two gods; nearly every other god knew the two as being sworn nemeses for countless millennia. This was not the place to harbor such trivial hostilities.

"We have summoned you two to discuss something that another god has entrusted us with."

Palkia glanced over at Zygarde, skepticism shining in his eyes. "Okay, hang on," he said as he leaned forward and inadvertently smeared blood across his legs, "you're saying someone gave you the responsibility to do something? There's a lotta problems with that. First off, anyone going to you for help with their problems is about as likely as me and this guy," he said with a quick jab of his finger at Dialga, "actually getting along. So, basically zero-percent chance."

Dialga sighed. "For once, I agree with a statement you've made."

"You shut the hell up!" Palkia hissed at Dialga, before calming down and turning his attention back to Zygarde. "Anyways, like I was saying, I kinda don't really believe you, sorry."

Dialga muttered under his breath, "You claim to have multiple issues with Zygarde's statement, then only elaborate on one…? Idiot."

If Palkia heard Dialga's remark, he didn't show that he did. "But also, I have another question. Who even asked you about this… whatever it is?"

Zygarde waited for a split-second before answering, "Zekrom asked for our help. We suppose we should elaborate upon what this responsibility is. Essentially, we have been asked to make a mortal our Champion, and that mortal, with our help, shall go on to kill Reshiram."

Dialga tilted his head. "Hm. I'd been under the impression that Zekrom and Reshiram were… inseparable, in a way. Has something occurred to disrupt that?"

Palkia snorted. "Look at you, being the stupid one for once! I know you've been holed up in that weird castle of yours for, like, forever now, so you don't know what's going on, but don't worry, I'll explain it to you! Okay, so pretty much, the whole situation with Zekrom and Reshiram, as far as I know, is that they're kinda like you and me," he pointed back-and-forth between himself and Dialga, "except I guess they don't have the ability to actually kill each other, which, uh, that kinda sucks. And I think the reason why that is… is because, uh, I think when they used to be in that weird combined form, before humans showed up, I think something like that sort of stuck around, so they can't do anything to each other, even though they're separate now. So that's why Zekrom's trying to get Zygarde to do his dirty work for him!"

He clapped his hands together only once, and looked over at Zygarde. "Is that what's going on, or am I just stupid?"

Zygarde stared at Palkia for several seconds. "You are correct."

Palkia celebrated with a small fist pump, and a quiet "Yes!".

Dialga contemplated Zygarde carefully. "This is… intriguing, to an extent, but I must know why you're telling us this."

"We shall not be the one to handle this responsibility. We wish to pass it on to either of you."

Palkia stared at Zygarde, dumbfounded. "I… huh…?"

Dialga blinked in surprise. "That's… not an answer I had been expecting."

"We require your answers now."

Palkia's eyes darted around the room. "Um, uh, I mean… I guess I could, but then one thing would lead to another, and soon enough I'd probably have to deal with a very pissed off Zekrom, and, uh, I'd rather not…" He quickly teleported out of the chamber before anyone could react.

Dialga shifted slightly. "I refuse. Try doing your own work instead of wasting time on trying to pass it off to others." He, too, teleported away.

Zygarde stared at the empty thrones.

We suppose we have no choice. Fine.

They left the chamber, and returned to their own realm. Perhaps that mortal would be awake now… It had been a few months since Zekrom had first brought him…

◇ ◇ ◇

Antares awoke to a searing pain shooting through his leg, and a bitter chill in the air that made him shudder uncontrollably.

He eased his eyes open-- and saw absolutely nothing.

What? Have I been blinded…?! No, surely not!

Panic wrapping around his heart, he pushed himself off of the cold, stone-like ground. As soon as he stood uneasily, his leg gave out, and he stumbled forward into a wall.

He rested his head against the wall, hearing only the pounding of his heart and his trembling breaths.

I am in an unfamiliar location, currently experiencing great pain, and my sight may have been taken. Were I in better condition, I'd not be struggling so… though perhaps that's only obvious. As soon as I am able, I must investigate what has happened.

"Ah, you're finally awake."

Antares jumped slightly, and turned around, his dorsal fin scraping against the wall. He swallowed his fear and mustered his courage to yell out, "Who goes there?! Show yourself!"

Imbecile! You've no means of sight!

There was a brief moment of silence, followed by the stranger's confused muttering of, "You can't see me…?"

The environment suddenly lit up, as though a miniature sun had formed within it. Antares flinched and shielded his eyes. At least now he knew he wasn't blind.

"Oh, too bright… hold on." The light dimmed, and Antares slowly looked to see that the stranger was the Ampharos who'd saved him. In his paws, he held a cyan sphere, lightning encased within it, lighting up the surroundings.

"You! Why have you brought me here?" He demanded of the Ampharos.

His savior shrugged. "...Because it was the only safe place I could think of? You might want to try being grateful."

"Believe me, I am most grateful to you! I simply have far too many questions concerning my situation!"

"That's fair." He eyed Antares, noticing how the Garchomp struggled to stand up. "Hm. I guess that free healthcare did a number on you."

"What do you mean by that?"

The Ampharos pointed to Antares' leg. "Well, you had to be kept alive somehow. The methods were… unsavory."

Antares looked down at his leg to see a small circular scar on his thigh. "What did you do?!"

"Oh, it wasn't me. I guess you'll find out soon enough. Speaking of which, we should probably go." A small smirk grew on the Ampharos' face, before he said, "Do you need me to carry you, or can you walk on your own?"

Antares scowled. "Hngh… I can walk just fine, thank you."

"Alright, suit yourself." With that, the Ampharos turned and started walking into the darkness, leaving Antares to limp as fast as he could to keep up.

It was several minutes before the Ampharos led Antares into an absolutely gargantuan chamber within the confusing labyrinthine network of caves and tunnels.

Antares no longer had to limp, as it seemed his leg injury had only been temporary.

He took in the surroundings, seeing nothing in particular, besides its size, that suggested this chamber was any different from the countless others they'd walked through.

Antares was about to say something, but the Ampharos held his paw up in what was clearly a shushing gesture. He glanced back at Antares and whispered, "Let me handle this."

He stepped forward, and cleared his throat, before calling out, "Zygarde! He's awake!"

Antares had no time to ponder who, or what, this 'Zygarde' was, before the chamber was tinted with a green glow coming from a serpent that was just as massive as the room itself.

"It has taken long enough." They hissed, in an unnatural, echoing voice that sounded as though thousands of individual voices were all speaking over one another. It sent shivers down Antares' spine.

The Ampharos took a few steps away from Antares. "Sorry about that, but now that he's here…" he trailed off, and averted his gaze.

Antares looked back and forth between this 'Zygarde' and the Ampharos. "What is the meaning of this? What's about to happen?"

The Ampharos was silent, and so was Zygarde.

There was a nauseating squelching noise, as though flesh were being torn apart, and a writhing, slightly transparent tentacle came out of Zygarde's side. It shot out towards Antares, and wrapped around his arms, rendering him unable to resist whatever was about to happen.

He squirmed in its grasp. "Release me at once!"

It lifted him off the ground and held him there.

A second tentacle appeared and shot towards Antares, stopping only mere inches from his chest.

It began glowing until it was a sickly yellow, then pressed itself against Antares' chest, superheating his scales, burning both those and the skin underneath.

He grit his teeth to prevent himself from making any kind of noise.

Gods, this is far more painful than Reshiram's flames…

After about a minute of agonizing heat, the tentacle pulled away and withdrew into Zygarde. The other tentacle that had been holding Antares released him, unceremoniously dumping him onto the ground.

Antares glanced down at his chest. Some kind of symbol had been seared into his chest. Upon closer inspection, it was… just the letter Z.

He glared up at Zygarde. "What compelled you to do this?"

The Ampharos, who'd been looking away the entire time, coughed before responding, "Sorry you had to go through that. It's… well, neither of us can tell you right now, but you'll understand eventually. Just trust us on this."

Antares whirled around to face him, snarling. "What could possibly explain any of this?"

"We have a plan, alright? I know it's something you're going to want to go through with, and even on the off-chance you don't, well, it's already too late for you to back out."

Antares folded his arms, but quickly put them back down after a flash of pain shot through his new burn scar. "…I suppose I'll hear you out."

The Ampharos sighed in relief. "Good. Okay, so our plan is, simply put, this: you're going to go out into the world, and… you'll go kill Reshiram. Should be easy for you."

Antares had to take a few seconds to process this. He was going to be able to avenge everyone he had ever considered his friends and family?

He would be stupid to not agree with this.

"…I see! You have my apologies for being so aggressive, then."

"Don't worry about it." He paused awkwardly. "Do you think you'd be ready to go back out into the world right now?"

"Have I regained my full strength?"

The Ampharos shrugged, and looked towards Zygarde.

They stared down at Antares. "We have ensured that your strength has returned to normal levels, and has remained consistent since you arrived."

Antares nodded. "Very well, then, yes, I'm prepared to search for, and vanquish, Reshiram!"

The Ampharos nodded in response. "Great. Alright, then, guess I'll see you around! Good luck."

There was a brief feeling of weightlessness, as though Antares had just entered the vast reaches of space, and then a blinding flash of light… and he was no longer in the caves.

He found himself standing in a flat field, surrounded by trees. Blades of grass swayed gently in the breeze, and the sun shone overhead. It was… oddly calming.

Despite everything that had happened, Antares found himself relaxing a bit, the tension leaving his mind.

He found a small lake nearby, and sat near its bank, staring out across it.

So… he supposed this was his life now. His only goal was to hunt down and kill Reshiram, that foul wretch who had taken everything from him.

That might suffice for now… but after I achieve that, what will I do? What can I do? The world has been irrevocably changed. There is no place for one such as myself. Mayhaps I might simply become a nomad, wandering the land with no rhyme or reason.

He exhaled deeply and watched the water as it rippled with the wind.

As content as he would have been to simply sit here forever, and remain at peace, he knew that couldn't happen. He needed to keep moving forward, and for that to happen, he needed to get his revenge.

The sound of footsteps behind him snapped him out of his peaceful trance, and he quickly stood and turned to see who was approaching him.

It was a Blaziken, who didn't seem very hostile.

"Hi there!" The Blaziken waved as he got closer to Antares. "Don't think I've seen you around here before. Mind telling me where you're coming from?"

Antares eyed the stranger. They were exactly the same height as each other, so if it came down to a fight, it might be evenly matched…

"I apologize, but I don't recall where I've come from." That wasn't entirely a lie. He didn't know what the cave system had truly been, or even where it was.

The Blaziken tilted his head. "Huh, yeah, I get that. It's been a few months, everyone that's still alive is running in circles trying to get their collective shit together. I don't blame ya!"

"...Pardon me, a few months? A few months since… what, exactly?" Antares' stomach slowly constricted with dread, if his guess as to what the Blaziken was referring to was right…

"Uh. Since the Reset, buddy. Y'know, that thing where most of the gods came down to earth and stamped out the humans? That. I don't know if you've been livin' under a rock or what, heh, but you should've at least heard of it from someone you know!"

Antares stared at the Blaziken for several seconds, a million thoughts racing through his head at once.

He mentally chided himself, Stop. This is no time to get caught up in your grief. You must keep going, no matter what.

"...Ah. Unfortunately, I lost everyone I'd known when… that happened."

"Oh. Sorry." The Blaziken sure didn't sound very sorry.

"Do not apologize, it was not your fault."

"Yeah, I know that, just… I don't know, isn't that the thing most people say when they're upset or whatever?"

Antares shivered slightly, though he wasn't sure why. It wasn't cold… "In a way, yes, it is."

"Wait, so you know what the Reset was, because I guess you witnessed it first-hand… then why'd you ask me what it had been a few months since? You should've known that."

Antares put a claw to his chin. How should he construct this lie…? "I was… unconscious for several months, and I was aided by someone."

The Blaziken leaned in slightly, an odd glint in his eyes. "Who helped you?"

"Er… I can not say, for I do not know who they are."

"Hm. Alright." The Blaziken was clearly not satisfied with that answer. "Well, we don't have to be strangers! What's your name, bud? I'm Kai!" He put a hand out for a handshake.

Antares awkwardly slipped one of his claws into Kai's talons and shook. "My name is Antares. I suppose it's a pleasure to make your acquaintance, Kai."

"Heh, same to you, pal." Kai's eyes slid over to their weird handshake-- and stopped. "Say, what's that, uh, marking you got there?"

Antares took his claw back, letting it awkwardly drop to his side. "Erm… simply a burn that I received from an attack, long ago."

Kai's eyes had an almost predatory look to them. "So you say. I know burns, since, y'know, I'm a Fire-type an' all, and that looks too recent to be 'long ago'."

Antares gulped, and thought he noticed movement behind a tree out of the corner of his eye. There was nothing there when he glanced over to it, though. "My apologies, my memory has been--"

"That's no damn regular burn. That's a branding mark!" He hissed, and glared at Antares. "Who're you with, huh?"

"Who am I-- what?"

"Don't play stupid with me, you're with some god, and it sure as hell ain't Reshiram!"

Antares' blood froze.

Reshiram?

No, no, no, this wasn't happening. He had not just stumbled into a supporter of that… that villain! She who deserved nothing but death!

"I-I have no idea what you're talking about, really!" Antares took a step back, and watched as a Breloom stepped out from behind the tree he'd noticed movement from only a few moments ago.

Kai snarled. "If you aren't gonna talk, then we'll make you!" He turned to the Breloom. "Get him!"

Antares turned and prepared to fly away, but was struck with a cloud of pale white spores.

Sleeping spores! No--!

He quickly succumbed to the effects, and collapsed right there.

Kai and the Breloom stood over him, chuckling to themselves.

"The Father's gonna be real happy with this one." Kai muttered.

Antares fell into unconsciousness, not knowing what would happen to him.