Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Guiding Light (T)

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Firebrand

Posts: 194

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Guiding Light (T) Jan 18, 2019 15:41:17 GMT

Post by Firebrand on Jan 18, 2019 15:41:17 GMT

So here we really see Null come into the world with a bang. I could definitely see some aspects of that opening sequence from Mewtwo Strikes Back here, although with more of a magical witch doctor-y bent than a heavy sci-fi one, as is appropriate for a more low tech PMD setting. I wonder if Golem's use of alchemy is something you're going to explore later on, because that's something we haven't really seen in the fic yet, or even seen referenced, and it doesn't appear that there are any special pre-requisites to using it, aside from rigorous study. But if it's just going to be the handwave-y explanation of how Golem Frankensteined a new pokemon into existence, that works too. On the other hand, I do hope we get a little more info about how the whole life force and spirit world thing work at some point, because that's been mentioned a few times lately and it sort of sticks out to me every time. It's not like it's something that stands out to me as a plot hole or whatever, and I have a general nebulous sense of what the characters are talking about because I've read a lot of fantasy and manga, and it seems to take its notes from all of that. But I'm a slut for functional magic and I like knowing as many details as I can about how a magic system (or magical location, or supernatural property, etc.) in a setting as I can ^^;

Anywaaaay, Golem is a pretty colorful character who, like a lot of the members of your minor cast, manages to make a strong impression with very little "screen time" (actually, in this case, screen time is a pretty accurate term, in a metatextual sense...). The found-footage narrative of Null's creation works pretty well, and incorporating a Porygon2 as the camera and projector is a good loophole for the low tech nature of Horizon. Considering the amount of nods GL has to other franchises, Sonic specifically, I wasn't sure if Golem was a stand-in/homage to Dr. Eggman? I don't know too much about the guy, but from what I've gleaned second-hand is that he's a mad scientist who's got the same sort of bombastic bravado and confidence in their own genius that Golem has... plus they have the same kind of body type and mustache.

I was trying to figure out exactly how old Null was based on this, and I can't really figure out when his creation takes place. There's really nothing to preclude him having been in some kind of magical stasis for years (Decades? Centuries?), so maybe it doesn't matter, but I think it might be relevant to know exactly how long the winged heart organization has been active, or perhaps inactive. There's mention of Golem being driven to create Null because of Dark Matter, but having not played Super I don't actually know if that was Dark Matter's second coming after previously appearing way back in the past, or if this footage is from comparatively recently in the world's history. It seems pretty clear that Prisma/the Prism Virus has co-opted the winged heart symbol, or maybe reclaimed it from Golem's use, because it doesn't seem like it's explicitly connected to Necrozma in this context. Golem never refers to Necrozma by name, and he seems a little shaky on the details of how Necrozma appeared, leading me to believe that this is significantly past the time in prehistory that Nicky arrived in this world, long enough for Necrozma to have been lost to myth. It also makes me think that Shane's dream visions of Solgaleo and Lunala are a lot older than we were previously lead to believe, and the events of the Stargazing extra weren't all happening at the same time.

As a final note, it seems like Tessa hasn't had much to do lately, and her involvement in the story is just to air her emotional baggage every few paragraphs. Part of that is probably because she's been through an emotional wringer lately, and another part is because she's in the dark about a few major plot points that her teammates are keeping from her for her own good, and that means she sort of has to be on the outskirts of events/discussion relating to those things. But there's still the fact that she hasn't really had anything to do lately, aside from throwing around a few force palms in group action scenes, and she spends most of her time fretting about Null. It seems like most of her dialogue tags are cries, whines, gasps, etc., and most of them relate to Null taking hits. Sure, Null's her friend and she's concerned about him, but I keep thinking that of all the people on Team Radiance (heck, out of everyone in the Guild, probably), if anyone can take a beating and come back up swinging, it's probably Null.

I've seen some of the other excerpts you've posted from further down the line, and it seems like Tessa outgrows this eventually and grows into a little more confidence and self-assuredness, so I'm not too worried, and honestly what I'm reading now has been already written for a while. But at the beginning of the fic, Tessa was the one who kept a level head in a crisis and came up with solid, practical plans while Shane got his butt kicked. Now that Shane has more or less found his footing in Horizon and can start taking charge of battles on his own, it seems like Tessa has more and more been relegated to the sidelines while Shane and Null take the spotlight with their flashier attacks.

THE HALVARSAGA

THE AMAZING HAWLUCHA MAN

Ambyssin

Definitely a winter

Posts: 110

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Guiding Light (T) Feb 10, 2019 0:42:04 GMT

Post by Ambyssin on Feb 10, 2019 0:42:04 GMT

SPOILER: Click to show

{Firebrand}

Jan 18, 2019 15:41:17 GMT Firebrand said:

Had to compensate for the low-tech setting somehow. And this was how. XP

I wonder if Golem's use of alchemy is something you're going to explore later on, because that's something we haven't really seen in the fic yet, or even seen referenced, and it doesn't appear that there are any special pre-requisites to using it, aside from rigorous study. But if it's just going to be the handwave-y explanation of how Golem Frankensteined a new pokemon into existence, that works too.

As a concept, it'll be important going forward. The general "rules" will also come up, but that's much further down the road, I'm afraid.

On the other hand, I do hope we get a little more info about how the whole life force and spirit world thing work at some point, because that's been mentioned a few times lately and it sort of sticks out to me every time. It's not like it's something that stands out to me as a plot hole or whatever, and I have a general nebulous sense of what the characters are talking about because I've read a lot of fantasy and manga, and it seems to take its notes from all of that. But I'm a slut for functional magic and I like knowing as many details as I can about how a magic system (or magical location, or supernatural property, etc.) in a setting as I can ^^;

Again, this one's likely coming a lot further down. But it's quite integral to things, trust me.

Golem is a pretty colorful character who, like a lot of the members of your minor cast, manages to make a strong impression with very little "screen time" ... Considering the amount of nods GL has to other franchises, Sonic specifically, I wasn't sure if Golem was a stand-in/homage to Dr. Eggman? I don't know too much about the guy, but from what I've gleaned second-hand is that he's a mad scientist who's got the same sort of bombastic bravado and confidence in their own genius that Golem has... plus they have the same kind of body type and mustache.

Aha ha, that actually wasn't the intention! I was going for, well, Faba, the canon creator of Null! I suppose the obvious choice to use would've been Alakazam (since Faba owns one), but I thought it was so painfully obvious, it'd border on cliché to make an alakazam a mad scientist. The whole "Illustrious Golem" thing was a nod to Faba's constant insistent on being called "Branch Chief Faba."

Oof, yeah. That's the, uh, peril of not properly establishing how calendars would work in your universe. Dang it. >.<

There's mention of Golem being driven to create Null because of Dark Matter, but having not played Super I don't actually know if that was Dark Matter's second coming after previously appearing way back in the past, or if this footage is from comparatively recently in the world's history.

Super was Dark Matter's second try. The first time, it was stopped by Mew and a human, the former was reincarnated into the Super partner (Delphox, in this case) and the latter was returned to her world and brought back with no memories to make sure Dark Matter was beaten for good (Meganium for this fic).

It seems pretty clear that Prisma/the Prism Virus has co-opted the winged heart symbol, or maybe reclaimed it from Golem's use, because it doesn't seem like it's explicitly connected to Necrozma in this context. Golem never refers to Necrozma by name, and he seems a little shaky on the details of how Necrozma appeared, leading me to believe that this is significantly past the time in prehistory that Nicky arrived in this world, long enough for Necrozma to have been lost to myth. It also makes me think that Shane's dream visions of Solgaleo and Lunala are a lot older than we were previously lead to believe, and the events of the Stargazing extra weren't all happening at the same time.

Uh, well, just wait until the next proper chapter. You'll see.

Oof. Yeah I can, uh, see where you're coming from, there. I admit part of that was intentional. Since the events in episode 7 had, essentially, broken through her level-headed facade and now we're kind of seeing her depression play out. As far as the strength and flashiness factor go, that's also intentional... given what's going to be coming down the road. I can't speak too much about it. Thanks for reviewing, though, and sorry for the delayed response. ;~;

Apologies for the, uh, lack of progress. Between busy work hours and my health and mood trending downward, I haven't had the time to revise any chapters. So, in the interim, here's a piece for Valentine's Day.

Content advisory: this part has an early scene depicting physical abuse.

XxX

Bonus: Of a Feather

~Sky Tower~

Blustering winds rushed toward Latias. She formed a protective pink bubble, but the wind prevailed. It blew her back. She watched emerald bricks give way to a misty sky. Latias managed to steady herself. She brushed askew feathers out of her eyes.

"Pathetic."

Latias flinched. She cautiously floated back toward the roof of the tower, where Rayquaza sat coiled up, a scowl on his face. "You call that a Dragon Pulse? I barely felt a thing!" he spat. "This is a Dragon Pulse!" He tilted his head up, opened his mouth wide, and unleashed a gigantic blue beam with a dragon-like shape to it. Clouds split apart. Latias looked away.

"I… I'm trying my best. Please stop yelling me. I can't concentrate when you do that," Latias squeaked tucking her arms into her chest.

Rayquaza thumped his tail against the ground. "Grow a backbone! You're a dragon, for pity's sake!" He snorted tufts of dragonfire. "Our spirits burn brightest under pressure, so that's exactly what I'm doing. Otherwise, you won't learn." He shook his head. "Of course, we've been at this for weeks with no progress, so maybe you're just a lost cause."

"I… I…" Latias wilted. "I'm sorry. But every time you put me under pressure, I keep thinking back to…" She shuddered.

Wind blades grazed her right wing. Latias squealed in fright and shrank back. Rayquaza hovered into the air. "Listen to yourself. How utterly disgraceful!" he growled, serpentine body weaving around. "You are a dragon god! A lesser god, sure, but you still share a type with the most important immortals on the planet! But you…" He clenched his tiny fists. "You're besmirching us with your blatant cowardice!"

He slithered through the air, his golden eyes flashing red. "Running from Dark Matter. Trying to get help from Celebi — that worthless insult to Dialga's splendor — of all Pokémon," he said. "You're a disgrace to dragons the world over! I'm trying to salvage what little I can from such a waste of power." He uncoiled, stretching up so he towered over Latias. "Now, attack! I don't want any more excuses, only results!"

Air currents swirled around Rayquaza. Latias' wings drooped. Her heart was beating so fast it made her head hurt. She tried concentrating on her spirit, begging for some sort of spark to manifest. Latias thought about Rayquaza. If she could pull this off, maybe she could shut him up. Latias opened her mouth. Blue energy crackled in the back of her throat. She exhaled as hard as she could, but all that came out was a small blue beam. Rayquaza blew the beam apart with a single gust of wind.

Rayquaza turned his back to Latias. "This training was a mistake. You're unteachable. A total lost cause." He sank down toward the tower's roof. "Get out of my sight."

"W-Wait, Rayquaza, please…" Latias sped toward him. "I'm sorry! I know I'm not doing what you want, but I'll try harder! Please, I have to learn how to defend myself better."

"I told you to leave," Rayquaza growled.

"But—"

Rayquaza whirled around, eyes blazing. A fiery V had formed on his forehead. "Disobedient cur!" he snarled. Rayquaza rammed the V into Latias. An inferno scorched feathers off her body. She slammed up against a nearby pillar. Latias' eyes bugged out. Intense pain gripped her right wing, the likes of which she'd never experienced before. She spat up a mouthful of saliva, then screamed at the top of her lungs.

Latias crumpled to the ground. Her right wing lay useless at her side. The bones were shattered. Her paws trembled. The closest she could manage to normal breaths were panicked hiccups. Her heart beat became fast and thread. Tears filled her eyes, blurring the ugly, blistered patches of flesh where her feathers had burned off.

Rayquaza snaked around so he was at eye level with Latias. "Turn off the waterworks. There's no one around to feel sorry for you," he hissed. "Besides, you know recover. Heal yourself." He raised his head up. "When you're done, leave this place." Rayquaza spun his tail in a circle. The clouds surrounding the tower vanished, revealing the Air Continent far below. "I don't ever want to see your face here again. If I really need you, I'll send for you. But, let's face it, that won't happen."

His words barely reached Latias. Her ears were ringing. Searing light filled her vision. She tried to move, but white-hot pain flared up in her wing.

"Unbelievable. Look at you. We're Pokémon. We hit each other with attacks. It's been that way since the beginning. Quit this nonsense and begone!" Rayquaza barked.

With a muffled squeal of desperation, Latias drew on her psychic powers. She squeaked in pain multiple times as she hurriedly channeled energy into her wing. The mending process wasn't perfect. Her wing had awkward bends to it, but it was enough to snap her out of shock. She shakily rose to the air, only to sputter downward. Rayquaza grew further away while the mountains and forests of the Air Continent grew closer, though they were a mess of colored splotches in Latias' tearful vision.

Latias could barely keep herself flying straight. She knew she didn't have the strength to get back to the Water Continent in her state. Latias drifted down, wobbling as she struggled to keep her levitation up. She managed to find a tiny beach at the base of a rocky cliff. It was here she collapsed by the edge of the ocean, curling up into a ball. Sobs wracked her body.

No matter what she did, she couldn't stop thinking about Rayquaza. His harsh words. The fierce glare in his eyes. And the searing pain his V-Create left her in. Latias burst into a fresh round of tears, unwilling to move. She could feel Latios' presence in the back of his mind. There was an air of desperation trickling into her thoughts, but she couldn't muster the energy needed to activate her sight-sharing. She didn't think she even wanted to.

"Hey… hey! Good gracious, what happened to you?!"

Latias heard splashing, followed by the squelches of wet feet on the sand. She didn't have the strength to roll over. Even her ESP was too weak to pick up the life energy of her visitor. All she felt was the loss of warmth from something blocking the sun's rays against her back.

She squeaked when a wing draped over her. Her wing stung from salt water dripping onto her burns. Latias tried to scooch through the sand, but couldn't. In the process, she caught a glimpse of the newcomer.

"L-Lugia? What are…" Latias flinched. "P-Please pull your wing away."

Lugia did as instructed. He frowned. "You're Latias, right? What happened to you? This is not okay. You're an absolute mess! Can you move? How hurt are you?"

"Not so loud, please," Latias said, wincing. Lugia shrank back. "I… I'm okay. I already healed off the worst of it. I'm just… waiting until I've got enough strength back to use Recover again."

"Forgive me for being blunt, but I'm not sure I believe you," Lugia said, brow furrowing. He spread his wings out. "Were you attacked? Is there something dangerous lurking around the area?" Lugia glanced skyward. "If I remember right, we should be right under Sky Tower. I can fly up and get Rayquaza. He can—"

"No!" Latias shouted, loud enough to make Lugia hop back, fluttering his wings in surprise. "I… I mean… there's no danger. I've been… in the middle of this stupid training, that's all. It's supposed to strengthen my dragon-type attacks. But I didn't do it right, so it blew up in my face… literally."

"O-Oh. Um, okay," Lugia said, not buying Latias' claim but unsure if he should press any further.

"What are you even doing here, anyway? Don't you live in the Sea of Wonders?" Latias said, shifting about in the sand.

"Kyogre ordered me to come to the Air Continent and redistribute some of the ocean currents. It's, uh, a bit complicated to explain in depth," Lugia said. He realized his bad pun a moment later and laughed nervously, rubbing his neck with a wing. "A-Anyway, it's not so bad. I've got a second home of sorts in Silver Trench. Nobody can bug me there." He shook his head. "But that's not important. You need to get healed up. Why don't I fly you home?"

"P-Please don't," Latias said, a bit louder than she intended.

Lugia frowned. "Why not? You can't just stay here in your condition. There could be wild Pokémon lurking about and they won't have any qualms about going for wounded prey."

"I'm sorry. Really. I just… I can't go home right now," Latias said. Lugia prepared to reply, when Latias cut him off with, "I don't really want to talk about it."

"Okay." Sighing, Lugia turned toward the ocean. "If you're staying here, then so am I."

"Huh? B-But what about the currents?" Latias said, fiddling with some sand grains.

"I already finished redirecting them. I was on my way back to Silver Trench when I sensed your energy," Lugia said. "Look, I'm not forcing you to do or say anything, but what kind of god would I be if I left you out here in such a vulnerable state?"

Latias could tell his mind was set in stone. "Okay, but I might not be much for conversation."

"That's fine. Just rest up. Get your strength back. I'll make sure nothing bothers you," Lugia said. He waddled over toward Latias, then sat down in the sand beside her, draping his wings over his legs.

Latias shut her eyes and, before she knew it, she fell asleep. It was a dreamless slumber. One that ended when her eyes fluttered open to the sight of a half-moon's rippling reflection in the ocean. She felt sore, but it wasn't as bad as when she first arrived on the beach.

"Oh, good, you're up."

"You're still here?" Latias said, slowly lifting her head to find Lugia on her right. Three berries sat on his thigh. Latias couldn't make out what types they were.

"I said I'd stay with you." Lugia levitated the berries toward her. "Here. Figured you might be hungry."

She was famished. Latias wanted to devour the berries, but the burns on her neck made it hard. She took small, methodical bites instead. "Thanks," Latias whispered, rubbing juice from her feathers. She shakily hovered into the air.

"Hey, are you sure you should be doing that?" Lugia asked, getting to his feet. "Shouldn't you try using Recover, first?"

"It's easier when I'm floating," Latias replied. She closed her eyes and concentrated on her ESP. Latias pulled psychic energy from her spirit's core. She gently pushed it across her body. The blisters and burns faded. Her feathers grew back in. "Okay. Done." Latias wobbled in midair, but steadied herself. She lowered herself to the sand so she could catch her breath.

"You can go now. I'm all right," Latias said, waving a paw. "My brother's probably worried sick, so I really should be getting home."

"Are you kidding? That Recover looked like it took a lot out of you. I don't think you're in any fit state to be flying home." Lugia looked around. "Err, wherever that is."

Latias winced. He had a point. She also didn't want him to worry. "Well, like you said earlier, I can't stick around here forever." Latias scratched her right ear. "I suppose I could contact Latios and ask him to meet me here." She looked up. "He's not a huge fan of flying in the dark, though."

"I think you should do it, anyway. I'd offer to take you with me to Silver Trench, but…" Lugia gestured out toward the ocean. "I get the feeling you're not fancying a swim."

"A solid guess," Latias said, surprised there was a giggle in the back of her throat. Lugia smiled at her, happy he could offer a bit of levity. Latias sighed. "Okay, you're twisting my arm here, but I guess I can contact Latios."

In truth, she didn't want to open the mental link because she feared getting an earful from Latios. Nevertheless, she concentrated. Her head tingled. After a few seconds, she sensed a familiar presence in the back of her mind.

There you are, sis! Do you have any idea what time it is? I've been trying to get a hold of your for hours!

Latias winced. Latios somehow sounded even more panicked than she imagined. I'm sorry, big brother. I needed to take some time to myself, she said telepathically.

And you couldn't have told me that? I thought you were supposed to be training with Rayquaza. I was about to go to Sky Tower and get to the bottom of things before you called, Latios said.

Training left me too exhausted. I didn't have the strength to fly back home, let alone use our mental link, Latias said.

Did… did something happen during your training? Latios wondered.

Yes. Rayquaza and I had a… disagreement. We won't be working together anymore, Latias said, sidestepping the heart of the issue in the hopes her brother wouldn't pester her. I'm still resting up, so I was hoping you could come to me and help me fly home.

Is there something wrong, sis? You sound pretty out of it. What exactly was this "disagreement" about, anyway?

Latias tucked her head into her chest. I don't really want to talk about it right now. Are you willing to come find me in the Air Continent or not?

O-Of course, sis. I'm just worried about you, that's all. I mean, you were the one who was adamant about getting Rayquaza to help you in the first place, Latios said. His nervousness made Latias' mind tingle. Her feathers stood on end. Lugia noticed this, but remained silent. He pretended to preoccupy himself preening his feathers.

I appreciate the concern, but it's fine. Here, let me sight-share my location, Latias said, reaching deeper into her psychic reserves. Her eyes turned bright blue. I'm on the northwest coast of the Air Continent. Lugia's here, too. She turned to look at Lugia. He happened to be in the area and offered to keep me company.

Oh. That's, um, generous of him, Latios said, his energy receding somewhat from Latias' mind. She frowned, but didn't press the issue. Okay. I'll head over there, now.

Great. Latias released the mental link and exhaled. "Latios is on his way," she announced, stretching out and resting her head on a sand mound.

"That's good." Lugia brushed sand off his wings. He lay on his side, then clumsily rolled onto his back. "So, uh, if you don't mind me asking, what's the training about, huh?"

"Hmm?" Latias blinked. "Oh, uh, it's… a bit embarrassing, honestly." She traced a claw through the sand.

"I'm not here to judge or anything," Lugia said, propping his head up with his wing.

Latias squirmed. "Err, sorry. Your question was a bit… out of the blue. It's, uh, been a while since anyone's actually, y'know, taken an interest in my life," she said. "Besides Latios, of course."

"Ah." Lugia looked down. "My bad. Wasn't trying to make you uncomfortable. I just thought some small talk might help you relax a bit more." He frowned. "But I picked a sore subject, didn't I?" He shook his head. "Bet you can tell I don't get out much."

"I can relate," Latias said, then wondered if she should've kept that thought to herself. They lapsed into silence. Lugia kept glancing at Latias. She sensed his desire to help, but there was clear trepidation. Latias could tell Lugia was worried about upsetting her. Sighing, she curled her head and neck right so she could face Lugia.

"I've been training because of the whole, y'know, Dark Matter fiasco. Latios and I were the first of the gods turned to stone," Latias explained. "And we, well…" She shuddered. "We didn't hold up well in the Voidlands."

Lugia promptly got up. "Oh man. I'm so sorry! I really wasn't thinking when I asked." He smacked his forehead with his wing. "Wow, I must look like the biggest idiot in the world."

Latias didn't say anything to refute him. At the same time, she didn't protest when Lugia got up and approached her. He lay down on his belly beside her, tilting his head to make eye contact. "Are you and your brother, um, okay? Like, have you been holding up all right?" Lugia asked. When Latias didn't immediately respond, he added, "You don't have to answer that, if you don't want to."

"Relax. I'm… thinking, that's all," Latias said, heart fluttering from sensing Lugia's intentions were pure. "It's been… rough, to be honest. I keep replaying the moments before Yveltal turned big brother and me to stone over and over in my head. All I can think about is how… powerless I felt." Her ears drooped. "I wanted to make sure nothing like that could happen again… hence the training."

"But it doesn't seem to be going very well for you," Lugia pointed out. "Don't you think it might be better to try working with someone else?"

"I—" Latias stopped herself. "I tried. We both tried. Latios and I had joined Team Go-Getters for a time, but…" She shook her head. "They were so much better than us, despite not being gods. The missions they took were too stressful. So, we parted ways. I keep in touch with them, sure. But it's been… oh, gosh, a couple of decades, at least."

"Team Go-Getters…" Lugia tapped a wing-digit on the ground. "Wait. They're the ones who helped stop the natural disasters, right?" Latias nodded. "Ah, yeah. That was…" His voice trailed off. "Mom had to deal with out-of-control currents. All while her life force was fading."

Latias' eyes widened. "I'm sorry." She bit her lower lip, wanting to add something but fearing it sounded selfish. However, she ignored those worries, since this gave her the chance to bring up a similarity. "I can understand how you must've felt back then. Latios and I… our parents had passed about a month before the disasters started," she whispered. "We weren't hatchlings, per se, but we were young. I mean… we're still young. And I feel even more useless now than I did back then."

"That's why I think you ought to train with someone," Lugia said, inching his left wing toward her. "We may be gods, but we're still Pokémon. We grow fastest by battling one another, don't you think?" He rolled over onto his back. "Heck, I'm going to start training with Rayquaza soon. Want me to ask him if you can join?"

"No!" Latias shouted. Lugia flinched, startled by the volume. "I, uh… he's too scary for me. I don't really think I'd learn well working with him," she said, her voice so soft Lugia had to lean in to hear her.

"Ah. Yeah, he does give off a real intense vibe. But that's why I think I can learn a lot from him," Lugia said. "Still, I don't want to hang you out to dry or anything." He tapped a wing-digit against his belly. "Say, why don't we work together?" Lugia sat up, smiling. "Yeah. I can take some of the things I learn from Rayquaza and do them with you. Only, y'know, without his whole super-harsh demeanor thing."

"Y… you would really do that, for me?" Latias gasped. "Outside of today, we've barely interacted. We hardly know each other."

"That can change. I mean, we've already got some stuff in common. We're both psychic-types who lost our folks when the natural disasters hit. And we're young lesser gods worried about being able to make a different in the world," Lugia said. He extended his left wing toward Latias. "Personally, I'd really like to see you again under better circumstances. So, what do you say?"

Latias looked at Lugia's wing. She stuck her paw out and touched one of his wing-digits.

"I think I'd like that."

XxX

Lugia corkscrewed through the air, then shot a translucent, orange Aeroblast beam from his mouth. Latias squeaked in fright. She ascended. A relieved sigh escaped her lips when she strafed clear of the attack.

"Nice! I think that was a bit faster than last time," Lugia called, slowing down and hovering in pace with steady beats of his wings.

"You think so?" Latias asked.

"Well, I wasn't counting seconds or anything, but it sure seemed like it," Lugia replied, throwing in a chuckle for good measure. He flew up until he was level with Latias. "Okay, now let's try Dragon Pulse."

Latias shrank back, fiddling with her claws. "I… I don't know. It's just not clicking for me, Lugia," she whispered.

"Hey now." Lugia offered her a reassuring smile. "Remember, there's only one rule in Lugia's School of Basic Training: no using the c-word."

Latias tilted her head to the side. "Clicking?"

Lugia nearly fell out of the sky in disbelief. He frantically flapped to regain altitude. "Aha ha… ha… no, I meant 'can't,' but you didn't actually say it, did you?"

"Maybe you ought to get all that saltwater out of your head. It's clogging up your brain," Latias said, giggling.

"Okay, ouch. If you're going to burn me like that, then you'd better back it up with a nice, powerful Dragon Pulse." Lugia spread his wings wide, switching to telekinesis to levitate in place.

"I… I don't know," Latias mumbled.

"Don't psych yourself out before you're even tried it," Lugia said. He flew toward Latias. She flinched when he gently draped a wing over his neck. "Okay, so, how about a pointer? The key to maximizing an attack that comes from your throat isn't just to, like, breath out really hard, it's to let the energy concentrate. You've gotta feel a strong tingle in the back of your throat before you do anything," he explained. "I know. I can't actually use Dragon Pulse, but it works for me with my Aeroblasts."

He backed away from her and spread his wings out again. "Come on, hit me."

Latias' wings drooped. "Do I really have to?"

"If you don't, I'm going to go on the offensive again," Lugia threatened. Latias frowned. Sighing, Lugia tapped his chin in thought. "Surely we can come up with something to make this work. Hmm. Maybe you're having trouble because you don't want to hurt my gorgeous face." He grinned cheekily. "Pretend I'm someone you don't like, then. How about Rayquaza?"

Latias tensed. She flashed back to her last moments on Sky Tower, paralyzed in fear as Rayquaza charged her down, a V-Create flaring on his forehead. Her breath came in ragged gasps.

Lugia frowned. "Hey, Latias, you doing okay?"

"Gah! Stay back!" Latias shouted. She flung a pink Mist Ball, that sailed wildly to her right and exploded over the ocean in a burst of fog of fog. Latias doubled over, shivering.

"Hey!" Lugia flew over to Latias. "What happened? Your energy's fluctuating like crazy." He frowned. "Aw, man, did I upset you by bringing up Rayquaza." He covered his face with a wing. "Damn it, that was so stupid of me."

"It's fine," Latias said, her voice shaky. "I… I'll try the Dragon Pulse."

"You sure? We can call it a day, if you'd prefer," Lugia offered.

"I want to do it," Latias insisted, her expression sharpening. Lugia backed away, a worried look on his face. With a deep breath, Latias again imagined Rayquaza floating in place of Lugia. This time, a spark of anger flared in her belly. Per Lugia's instructions, she pushed that spark toward her throat. A tingle spread up toward the room of her mouth. Latias thought she was about to sneeze.

Instead, she exhaled. Not hard, but gently. Her eyes bulged as a large, blue, dragon-shaped beam zigzagged toward Lugia.

"Whoa!" He flapped his wings once, thinking it enough to push him out of the way. However, the Dragon Pulse struck his right wing. Lugia pulled his wing in. He dropped from the sky, landing in the water with a big splash.

"Ah! Lugia!" Latias squeaked. She raced down toward the water, only to screech to a halt when a sudden thought hit her. Latias' brow furrowed. She drew on her psionic sense and found Lugia's energy right under the surface of the water. Latias opened her eyes. The water had settled, so she could just make out Lugia's white feathers.

Calling on her telepathy, Latias said, You know, I can sense you down there. Whatever it is you're planning, I'm not falling for it. She floated higher in the air, crossing her arms despite Lugia not being able to see her.

The water spiraled below her. A twister sprang up from the depths of the oceans. Gasping in surprise, Latias backed away. She could see Lugia's glowing blue eyes looking back at her from within his Whirlpool. On instinct, Latias hurled a Mist Ball forward. She was so worried she had upset Lugia, she didn't notice how much larger this Mist Ball was compared to the others.

Lugia's Whirlpool bent right. The Mist Ball sailed past him. Latias shrank back. "I-I'm sorry I hit you Lugia! I wasn't expecting it to be that strong. P-Please, cut it out. You're scaring me!" she cried.

Instead of sending the Whirlpool into Latias, Lugia dispelled it. Water splattered her from above, drenching her feathers. Latias grunted her annoyance. Before she could say anything, Lugia closed the distance.

"That was your best Dragon Pulse yet!" he chirped, raising a wing. Latias stared back at him blankly, blinking rapidly to keep salt water out of her eyes.

"Wait. You're not upset?" she asked.

"Of course not! The Whirlpool was just a harmless trick," Lugia replied. "See, Rayquaza said that, when you're in a battle, you can't expect your foe to always play fair. You've got be ready for anything!"

Latias puffed her cheeks up. "You jerk, you nearly scared my spirit out of me," she growled, craning her neck to bite the tip of Lugia's wing.

"Yow! I-I'm sorry! I didn't mean to make you upset," Lugia said, wringing out his wing. "You knocked me into the water, so I wanted to get even." He bit his lip. "Besides, that Mist Ball you threw out was something else. I don't think I've ever seen you make one that big before." Lugia extended his right wing toward her again. "How about we call it a day. Truce?"

"Okay. Truce." Latias hovered forward and nudged Lugia's wing with her snout.

In response, Lugia enveloped her in a hug, then dove down into the water, taking a yowling Latias with her. He broke the surface a few seconds later. Lugia lay on his back, with Latias on his belly, and let the tide carry him in. Latias was too dumfounded to react. She lay there, dead silent, until they reached the shoreline and she slid into the sand.

"Sorry. Couldn't help myself," Lugia said, chuckling.

Pouting, Latias floated into the air and shook water off her feathers. "Ugh. Great. Now my feathers will be all sticky from the salt. Hope you're happy," she whined.

"Aww, c'mon. It's not so bad once you get used to it," Lugia said, flicking water off his wing in Latias' direction. She caught the droplets with her telekinesis and threw them into the sand. Lugia maintained his goofy grin, until Latias' pouting expression fell apart and she descended into a giggle fit.

"Stop making that face," she said between laughs.

"This face?" Lugia pointed a wing-digit at himself. "Sorry, I can't just turn this thing off. I'm just handsome all the time."

Latias laughed so hard she snorted. Her eyes widened and she tucked her head into her belly in embarrassment.

"See, you're laughing!" Lugia sat up, smiling. "I told you I could make training fun. It took a few months, sure, but we finally made it."

"I'd hardly call this training," Latias scoffed, having calmed down from her case of the giggles.

"Why not? We buffed up two of your attacks today," Lugia said. Latias prepared to retort, but Lugia held up a wing. "Lemme guess, you're gonna dismiss them as one-time things, aren't you?" He shook his head. "That's why we come back and do this again, tomorrow."

Latias' expression wilted.

"Something wrong?" Lugia asked, his smile fading.

"Tomorrow's not going to work for me. Actually, I'm not really sure when I'm going to be free these next couple of weeks," Latias said, tapping her claws together.

Lugia lumbered to his feet. "What do you mean by that? Did something happen to your brother?" he wondered.

"No. It's… um…" Latias winced. "It's personal."

"Latias, you're making me nervous, here. How am I supposed to respond to that?" Lugia said, voice ripe with worry. "I'm your friend, remember? If there's anything I can do to help—"

"Latios and I are joining the Expedition Society tomorrow," Latias announced, squeezing her eyes shut. When Lugia didn't respond, she added, "Y'know, the exploration group in Lively Town?"

"I thought being on a rescue team stressed you out," Lugia said, waddling toward her.

"It did, yes. But, well, Latios really wants to do it. He thinks it can help us both get stronger… and feel more fulfilled with our lives," Latias explained, running her claws through her damp feathers.

"If it's strength he's worried about, why don't you let him join us? I'm happy to work with him, too," Lugia offered.

"My brother's tired of living in isolation. He wants to be with other Pokémon. And I, um, kind of do, too," Latias said. "Why do you sound so worried about this?"

"Well, like I said, I don't want you to stress yourself out again. I just want you to be happy," Lugia said.

"And I want to support my brother. Besides, the team that recruited us, Team Gaia, are the ones who stopped Dark Matter. They've even got Hoopa on their team, so we're in familiar company, so to speak," Latias elaborated.

Lugia frowned. "Hoopa? Okay, now I'm definitely worried. I've heard he's a bit of a jerk. Mother always said to stay clear of him if I knew what was good for me."

"You're trying awfully hard to talk me out of this. Could you at least let me try and see how things go?" Latias said, her patience slowly wearing thin. "Latios explained my… delicate attitude and situation to Team Gaia. They seemed very supportive. I don't think I'm going to have any problems."

"I'm not trying to talk you out of it. I'm concerned, that's all. I don't want you to, like, get taken advantage of or anything," Lugia said, sticking his head up. "What if the Expedition Society's just going to use you to, I dunno, get more money or whatever it is normal 'mons need?"

"Uh, hello? I'm an empath, remember? Don't you think I would've been able to sense something like that?" Latias said, ears twitching. "Look, I do enjoy hanging out with you. I don't want that to stop. But I'm ready for some changes." She floated closer to Lugia. "You're the one who's given me the confidence to agree to do this. So, could you please just wish me luck and drop it. I promise… I'll come visit you at Sea Shrine the first chance I get."

Lugia shuffled backward, tucking in his wings. "I'm not, like, upset or anything. I'm only looking out for your best interests… because you're my friend."

Latias tensed. Her pupils dilated. Memories of Rayquaza towering over her bubbled to the surface.

Don't you dare question me. I'm doing what's best for you! Now, shut up and listen to me!

"No! You don't know my best interests! I do!" Latias shouted tucking in her head and shaking it.

Lugia took a hesitant step back. "Why are you shouting, Latias? All I said was—"

"Shut up! Don't tell me what to do!" Latias thrashed her head about. "I tried it your way and it didn't work, so let me do what I want!"

"What are you talking about, Latias?" Lugia asked, spreading his wings out and walking toward her. "You need to calm down. I can't understand you."

"I… I…" Latias picked her head up. She blinked a few times, then look down at Lugia. Her eyes watered.

"Latias, what's going on? Is there something you're not telling me?" Lugia said, brow furrowed.

"I-I'm sorry, Lugia. I just… spaced out," Latias said, trying to put the conversation to an end.

"That wasn't a space out. It was a freak out." Lugia extended a wing toward her. "It's okay. You can tell me what's wrong."

"N-No, I can't," Latias blubbered, tears trickling onto the sand below her.

Lugia frowned. "But I want to help."

Rayquaza again flickered into existence behind Lugia. He leered at Latias. Squealing, Latias hovered back.

"You can't help me! Nobody can help me!" Latias shouted. "I tried to get help. But Rayquaza… he…" Her voice trailed off.

Lugia tensed up. "Wait, what did Rayquaza do?"

Latias eyes widened. She hadn't intended to say that out loud. Latias glanced at Lugia, then sped off, tears streaming from her eyes.

"Latias, wait!" Lugia cried, but she was already too far away for him to catch up. His wing fell to his side and he bowed his head.

XxX

~Expedition Society Headquarters~

"And this is the room we've arranged for you two. I hope it's to your liking. If you ever need us, our room's at the other end of the hall."

Latios bobbed his head. "Thanks, Braixen. I'm sure will have no trouble settling in."

"Relax. Take your time. Mission requests have been on the slow side these past few days, so I don't think you'll need to be up at the crack of dawn to run anywhere," Braixen said. "Or, I guess, fly anywhere." He chuckled. Beside him, Bayleef rolled her eyes, then playfully slapped Braixen's shoulder with a vine. "Okay, okay, I admit it. That one was too corny," he said, rubbing his shoulder.

"I'll say. Hoopa could heat that joke over a nice campfire and have a big enough popcorn supply to last him all month," Hoopa said, spinning one of his rings around his thumb.

"Right. Anyway, we'll leave you two alone," Braixen said. "Although, doesn't really look like you've got any bags that need unpacking or anything."

"Actually, I was hoping to take another look at the Pokémon Nexus. Would you mind if I went upstairs?" Latios asked.

"Not at all. We can go with you. Right, Bayleef?" Braixen looked at Bayleef, who nodded.

"Meh. Not interested. And don't even think about asking Hoopa to help wake Jirachi up," Hoopa said, tossing his ring back onto his horn. He reclined in midair, resting his head against his hands.

"Dully noted, Hoopa," Braixen said, sighing and rubbed the bridge of his snout. He beckoned Latios to follow him down the hallway.

Latios paused and looked back at his sister. "Hey, sis, you coming?"

Latias, who was staring blankly at her new room's lone window, snapped to attention. "I, uh… I think I'm going to stay here," she said. Latias waved halfheartedly at her brother and floated inside the room. She floated toward a straw bed, ignoring the yellow and light-blue walls, small brown table, and a note with several sets of pawprints on it. Latias curled up on the straw bred, sighing.

"So, how long do you plan on keeping him in the dark?"

"Huh?" Latias picked her head up. Hoopa floated in front of her, laying on his side in midair with his head resting on his right hand.

"You've been staring at the ground and sighing this whole time. And your wings were drooping for most of the tour. Hoopa didn't think Latios was acting like there's anything wrong with you, so Hoopa figured he must not know." Hoopa turned over so he was lying on his belly. He tilted his head to the side. "Why are you bottling everything up, huh? You get in a fight with your boyfriend or something?"

"What? I don't— there's nobody like that in my life," Latias said. She turned away from Hoopa, but he hovered around.

"Oh? You and Latios aren't—"

Latias looked mortified. "We're twins. I thought you knew that already."

"Hoopa did. Doesn't stop some 'mons," Hoopa said, smirking. "You ever hear of Espeon and Umbreon? The Magnagate researchers? Hoopa's worked with them. Hoopa knows they're lovey-dovey." He tapped his hands together and made kissing noises.

"Well, it's not like that with me," Latias growled. She tried tucking her head under her ring, but one of Hoopa's ring portals appeared right in front of her face.

Hoopa grinned at Latias through his portal. "Oh, Hoopa gets it. You fought with your girlfriend, then."

Latias squealed and hovered into the air. "Quit it, Hoopa! I don't have a boyfriend. Or a girlfriend. Or friends. I'm just a nobody, okay? Leave me alone." She sank back onto the straw bed.

Hoopa pulled a paper plate out of a ring portal. It had a frowny face crudely drawn on it. Hoopa held it up in front of his face. "Not until Hoopa can turn that frown upside down." He rotated the plate around. Latias responded with an annoyed huff. She tucked her head under a wing again. Hoopa rubbed his brow and tossed the paper plate back into his ring. "Sheesh. Tough crowd," he whispered.

"Look. Hoopa doesn't want to see a fellow god down in the dumps in like this." Hoopa pulled a scroll out from a ring portal and unfurled it. He levitated it toward Latias. "You're an explorer now. And one of the rules we follow is that smiles go for miles!"

"I'm sorry, but I'm not going to talk about," Latias said, digging her head into the straw.

With an unamused look, Hoopa rolled up the scroll and stuffed it back in his ring. "You're really yanking Hoopa's horns here. If you're not going to let me help you, then I suppose I'll have to tell the others that you're feeling blue and need to be cheered up. Then you're really gonna get peppered with questions. Hoopa supposes he could read your mind, too, while he's at it." He shrugged.

Latias' head shot up. "You wouldn't!"

"Hoopa's bosses can tell you Hoopa is always serious," Hoopa said, puffing out his tiny chest and trying to wear a serious expression.

"Okay, fine." Latias figured the sooner she fessed up, the sooner Hoopa would be out of her feathers. "I did have a fight with a someone yesterday: Lugia. He's my—" She cut herself off. "He's been helping me train. I told him that I was joining the Expedition Society and we… had a difference of opinion about it."

"I can't stop thinking about it. I totally blew things out of proportion. I want to go apologize, but now that I'm here, I don't know when I'm going to have the time," Latias continued. "That's why I'm bummed. So, are we done here?"

"Yup! And don't you worry. Hoopa has a solution!" Hoopa declared.

Latias cocked her head in confusion. "I didn't ask you to help."

"Consider it Hoopa's welcoming gift." Hoopa winked at Latias, then tossed a ring portal open and flew into it, leaving Latias lying on her bed, a confused look on her face.

XxX

"Knock knock! Hoopagram!"

"Gah!" Latias shot up and bumped her head on the ceiling. "Ow, ow!" she squealed, drifting toward the ground and rubbing her head. "Nnnrgh… Hoopa, what was that for?" She spun around and found a ring portal in the doorway of her room. Hoopa's head was sticking out of it.

"Hoopa's got a special delivery," Hoopa said, chuckling.

"Of what?" Latias asked.

"Of you!"

Latias squeaked in surprise as a second ring portal opened up beside her and dragged her in. Her world went white for a split-second, then she found herself in the middle of a damp cave. Old, crumbling pillars surrounded her. A pool of water sat on a ledge across from her. Lugia stood on the ledge, shuffling nervously.

"Lugia?" Latias blinked. "I'm in the Sea Shrine, aren't I?" She glanced to her right and found Hoopa leaning against a pillar. "What did you do that for?"

"Because I asked him to," Lugia said. He hopped off his ledge and glided over to Latias. Lugia landed in front of her.

"Oh." Latias drifted back, tapping her claws together nervously. This was her first time seeing Lugia since their spat a few weeks ago, but the impromptu nature of the meeting left her at a loss for words. "I, uh—"

"Don't tell me you're sorry," Lugia cut in, holding up a wing. "You have nothing to apologize for." He looked down. "It was my fault things got out of hand the last time we were together."

Latias raised a skeptical eyebrow. This wasn't how she had expected things to go down. "Um… I'm not sure I follow," she said, opting to feign ignorance and see where Lugia was going.

"I know about what happened. What Rayquaza did to you," Lugia said, curling his tail around his right leg.

All Latias could manage to say in response was a raspy, "How?"

"Hoopa came to see me. He told me how badly our argument had made you feel. We talked for a bit… and he helped me realize that I totally missed the signs that Rayquaza had done something bad to you," Lugia explained, wincing. "I went to Sky Tower to train with him and, while I was there, I took a glimpse at his memories." His eyes narrowed. "I saw what he did to you and I—" He shook his head. "My blood boiled."

"I knew Rayquaza wasn't the nicest guy, but Mother always looked up to him and said I should, too. He's so powerful… I wanted to be strong, like him," Lugia continued, looking away in shame. "I never thought he could be such a total jackass. You have no idea how badly I wanted hurt him, but…" Lugia shut his eyes and bowed his head. "I mean, you've seen it first-hand. Rayquaza's too strong. I could never stand up to him."

Latias shuddered. Her mind filled with memories of that final training session and the pain it brought her. "I guess… now you know why I was so skittish when we trained together," Latias whispered, wings drooping.

"I'm so sorry I didn't realize it sooner," Lugia croaked.

"Don't be. I kept silent… because I knew you looked up to Rayquaza. I didn't want to ruin your perception of him," Latias admitted, shaking her head. "But I guess I only made things worse by doing that, huh?"

"Let's not focus on that. It's in the past," Lugia said, offering her a wing. Latias drifted backward. Lugia withdrew his wing, frowning.

"So, are you going to keep training with Rayquaza?" Latias asked.

Lugia shook his head. "I may not have stood up to him, per se, but I did tell him that I was done training with him. I, uh, lied and said I'd gotten what I'd wanted out of our sessions," he said.

"What happened when you told him that?" Latias wondered.

"He looked me dead in the eyes and said, 'Well, if you're happy spending the rest of your days in mediocrity, then I guess we're done here,'" Lugia replied, sighing. "Eventually, I'm going to have to work with him in some capacity. Y'know, to help keep the world safe. Doesn't mean I have to enjoy it, though."

"Right," Latias whispered, still fidgeting with her claws.

"Look, Latias, I'm really sorry I gave you so much flak over joining the Expedition Society." Lugia rubbed his neck. "The idea of living in a crowded town with a bunch of 'mons doesn't sit well with me… and I guess I projected that onto you." He exhaled loudly. "But, well, it sure would be a waste to lose you over something so silly. Even if I'm not the biggest fan of what you're doing, I want to support you."

"You really mean that?" Latias said, hovering toward Lugia.

"I do. I think you're kind, caring, and pretty funny, even when you don't intend to be," Lugia said, stepping forward. Latias lowered herself to Lugia's level. "I imagine this new job will keep you busy, but I'd love it if we could keep spending time together when you're free."

Latias heart rate picked up. She thought back to the day she encountered Lugia on the beach. How her heart fluttered when he took an interest in her, even though she dodged his questions. "I, um, would like to keep seeing you, too," she whispered.

Lugia smiled. "Nothing would make me happier." He turned to Hoopa and nodded. Hoopa opened up a ring portal beside Latias.

She looked skeptically at it. "O-Oh. Am I going back already?" she asked.

"Only if you want to," Lugia said. "Otherwise, I wanted to show you something."

Latias' heart beat even faster. She leaned in toward the portal, only to back away when it flashed white. A pair of goggles floated out, with red, tinted lenses and a silver-white band. They hovered in front of Latias.

"These are for me?" she said, reaching out and gently taking the goggles in her paws. As she turned them over, she found the Expedition Society's logo etched into the goggle frame.

"Yeah. Hoopa put me in touch with Jirachi." Nervous sweatdrops ran down Lugia's neck. "He, uh, did all the work, I guess. But I gave him Silver Wings to make the band." He lifted up his left wing and flapped it slowly. "Consider it a gift to help you make the most out of your time as an explorer."

Latias repeatedly turned the goggles over in her paws. She levitated them in front of her face. "Why goggles?" she asked.

"Well, you can fly pretty fast, but I imagine it must be hard to see where you're going. Plus, if you're looking to get stronger, then sooner or later you're going to give Mega Evolution a try. I figured the goggles could help you deal with the increased speeds Mega Evolution brings," Lugia said, shuffling about. "I know, it probably seems silly, but—"

Latias sped forward and embraced Lugia. It happened so quickly, he couldn't help but squawk.

Hoopa applauded them. "D'aww, how adorable. Hoopa gives his compliments to the happy couple."

"W-We're not a couple!" Latias stammered, backing away from Lugia. She dropped the goggles, but managed to catch them with her telekinesis. Latias slipped them around her neck. Her feathers prickled.

"We could be, though," Lugia said, drawing a wide-eyed look from Latias.

"Th… that's a bit impulsive, don't you think?" Latias said, trying to compose herself even though her mind was egging her on to agree with Lugia.

"Maybe it is," Lugia said, shrugging. "But what can I say? I love you. I love spending time with you. I want us to make memories together… when you're not off exploring, of course."

"I don't know. I'm… I don't think I'm ready for something like that. I've never given any thought to having a mate… and I have no idea how Latios would respond," Latias said, fidgeting with her new goggles.

"A mate? Oh, no, no, no." Lugia held up his wings and shook his head. "I'm not saying we have to take that leap. I'm certainly not ready for that." He took another step forward. His head was right in front of Latias'. "I'm talking about courtship, that's all. Y'know, hanging out together, except there's the option of, like, kissing or snuggling or something."

Lugia looked away. "I know you went through a lot with Rayquaza, so I can understand you'd be… hesitant. But I'm willing to take things at whatever speed works best for you," he said. "We're both still young by lesser god standards, right? We've got time. Time we can use to get to know each other even better. If it doesn't work out, I'm happy just being your friend. But if, in a few months or years, we're both comfortable enough to move things forward, then we can."

"So, uh, what do you say? Would you like to take a chance?" Lugia asked.

Latias considered his proposal. Though she was a bit nervous, she couldn't deny how much she enjoyed spending time with Lugia. And, if they took things slow, she could figure out how to fit him into her life while supporting the Expedition Society.

Satisfied, Latias leaned over and pecked the tip of Lugia's beak. "I would," she whispered, nuzzling his cheek with her own.

A warm smile spread across Lugia's face. He wrapped Latias up in an embrace and returned the nuzzle with one of his own.

"Regardless of how this turns out, I'll always try to have your back," he said.

XxX

I like to think this is lighter and softer than last year's Valentine's special. I hope it turned out all right.

Avatar by Jordy (https://toonirl.tumblr.com/), personal commission.

girl-like-substance

the seal will bite you if you give him half a chance

Posts: 527
Pronouns: xe/xem

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Guiding Light (T) Feb 15, 2019 23:53:16 GMT

Post by girl-like-substance on Feb 15, 2019 23:53:16 GMT

Aw, these two are cute. And damaged! But also cute. So there's a combination that always makes for an interesting story – in my eyes, anyway. You sort of know how it's going to end before it happens, of course; Latias' arc is a familiar one. There's a Bad Relationship (of one kind or another), out of which the protagonist stumbles into a Good Relationship, which has a rocky start owing to the lingering effects of the Bad Relationship, but which ultimately ends up being sweet and fulfilling. But it's to your credit that, despite us knowing what's going to happen, it's still satisfying to see Latias and Lugia get together in the end. (Minor spoiler for unposted chapters: also sorta heartbreaking given what's going on with Lugia in the story's present; I like how that's just sort of there in our heads without it ever being brought up here, so we're always like oh no things were going so well.)

And I think there's a hint of that understated darkness that marks a lot of passages in this fic, too: Lugia deciding to not quite burn his bridges with Rayquaza, because after all they're work colleagues. You're left wanting him to have gone further – Rayquaza handed out some pretty extreme abuse earlier – even as you see exactly why it was Lugia did what he did. People in this world have a habit of letting things go because it seems difficult to address them, or because it isn't their business, and there's a bit of that in Lugia still, even here. He is very definitely not perfect, in a way that makes you want him to be better. But he is what he is, and he's better than many people in this story.

I'm not sure we've really seen much of Rayquaza in the Guiding Light world before, but I sort of assumed he'd be kind of a jerk – hence my depiction of Unown-Rayquaza in my extravaganza fic – so it's neat I got that right. Not sure how, though. Perhaps there were some hints that Rayquaza wasn't particularly nice earlier? If there were, I guess I must have forgotten them. Of more interest is that Hoopa apparently has a heart, which, huh. If you'd asked me to guess, I probably wouldn't have said he had much more to him than like, childish tricksiness, but then, a recurring device in Guiding Light is people who appear to be cartoon characters but then suddenly turn around and reveal they have interiority, so I don't now why I'm surprised. :V

Anyway, typo round-up time!

Please stop yelling me.

Missing an 'at' here.

I've been trying to get a hold of your for hours!

That should be 'you', not 'your'.

"Aw, man, did I upset you by bringing up Rayquaza."

I feel like that should be a question mark, not a full stop.

"Dully noted, Hoopa," Braixen said, sighing and rubbed the bridge of his snout.

That should be 'duly', and there should be a comma after 'sighing'.

She tried tucking her head under her ring, but one of Hoopa's ring portals appeared right in front of her face.

I feel like that should be 'wing', not 'ring'. Unless I'm seriously misremembering Latias' anatomy.hoo

"I'm sorry, but I'm not going to talk about," Latias said, digging her head into the straw.

Missing an 'it' from the end of Latias' dialogue here.

I think that about does it! This was an interesting one. I'll be looking forward to what comes next!

Last Edit: Feb 15, 2019 23:54:51 GMT by girl-like-substance

GHOST TOWN | GO HOME
& assorted one-shots

Ambyssin

Definitely a winter

Posts: 110

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Guiding Light (T) Apr 16, 2019 21:54:23 GMT

Post by Ambyssin on Apr 16, 2019 21:54:23 GMT

Chapter 42: Astral Rebirth

Shane and Espeon stood silently in the middle of the tunnel. Porygon2's static bursts provided the only sounds in the whole lab area. Null had stopped struggling against the hexed chains. "Riolu?" Shane called, his voice sounding uneasy.

"Stay back! I… I need a second," Tessa said. Shane tensed up despite being far away from her. He knew how much Null meant to Tessa. The video must've devastated her. He imagined that, if their roles were reversed, he'd have blown up. Shane peered around the emera ore Tessa hid behind. She sat against the wall with her legs tucked in, head buried in her thighs, and her paws grabbing her aura feelers.

"What am I supposed to do? I know Null is really a good person deep down, but what if he loses control again?" she whimpered. "It was only dumb luck that he calmed down when I put him to sleep in Moonrise Marsh, wasn't it?"

Shane didn't have a straight answer for her. It was taking every ounce of his willpower not to dwell on Moonrise Marsh. "I think… Null will listen to you." His words lacked confidence, but they were better than nothing. "S-So, let's get back to freeing him."

"I... I..." Tessa curled into a tighter ball. "I want to help him, but I can't watch any more of that." She squeezed her eyes shut. "I'm sorry, Shane. It's... " Tessa took a deep breath. Though the video made her sick to her stomach, it certainly explained why Null told her he was hearing voices.

"I'm sorry. It just— this is a lot to swallow." Tessa rubbed her eyes. "The spirits… they're what made Null fly into a rage in Moonrise Marsh, aren't they?" She didn't wait for Shane to answer before continuing, "I'm so conflicted right now. Null's my friend. I want to believe in him. Help him, too." Tessa sucked in a breath. "But his mask is coming off. What if it breaks… and he flies into an uncontrollable rage? I don't want to lose him, but I'm not strong enough to save him if that happens."

Tessa grabbed her shoulders. "I need time to think. I can't let myself be useless again." She looked up at Shane. "So, please… give me some space."

Shane frowned. He opened his mouth to respond, when a fresh round of snarling rose up from the middle of the room. Their hearts skipped a beat.

"See? This is why… you shouldn't have trusted them!" Null shouted. His head banged against the wall. "They want… to keep the mask on. They don't… care about us. No one cares." Null coughed. "Kill the beast! Kill his friends! They used us! They must pay! Pay! Pay!" He resumed struggling against his chains.

Tessa stared wide-eyed in Null's direction. Shane stepped back from the emera ore, heart hammering against his chest. Null's outburst had left him at a complete loss for words. It had the same effect on Tessa, too.

"R… Riolu…"

Tessa stiffened. She lunged toward Shane and wrapped her arms around him, eliciting a surprised yip. "Hear that? I'll bet he's worried about losing control, too," she squealed. Tessa let go of Shane and lightly rapped her head. "C'mon, think! Think! I have to come up with something!"

Shane stayed silent. His gaze fell toward the ground, mind plagued by memories of cold, slimy swamp water suffocating him.

"Riolu… h-help. You're… my friend. I trust you… to help me," Null wheezed. "I trust you… to keep me… under control."

He bashed his head into a wall. The cavern shook. "Liar!" Null roared. "We're nothing to her! She works… for the beast! She must die! They must all die!"

Again, helmet struck steel. "Shut up!" Null's voice cracked. Shane's ears swiveled forward. "Get out… of my head. I won't… hurt my friends!" Null lurched forward. The chains dug into his hide. He howled in pain.

"You will hurt them. They are… nothing to us. We exist… to kill. We exist… to destroy," Null snarled. "Remember… what we were... created for."

Null scratched his claws against his chains. "… Riolu. I'm sorry," he whimpered. "I don't… remember… how any of that happened. Please. You have to… believe me. I don't… want to hurt… any of you…"

Tessa believed him, but couldn't come up with anything to say to comfort him. She worried about drawing another angry outburst. Still, staying silent wouldn't help, either. Swallowing her fear, Tessa stepped toward the pit.

"It's going… to be okay," she whispered. Tessa got onto her knees and forced a shaky smile onto her face. "We'll get you out of this. I promise…" She glanced back at Shane.

Shane got the message. Still, he held the same doubts Tessa did. The only reason he had managed to keep working with Null after Moonrise Marsh was because of their shared desire to help Tessa. If Tessa didn't know how to help Null, what could he possibly do?

"Hey, human. You better get over here! Something's wrong with Porygon2," Espeon called. Shane walked back to the tunnel to find Espeon staring up at the ceiling. Porygon2 had manifested another projection, but with the damage Tessa had done to him, it was heavily distorted.

"… is… fourteenth update," Golem declared. His rocky beard was missing several pieces. Multiple jagged scars ran across his body. "It… considerable work. But the failed prototype… imprisoned underground…"

Shane glanced down and noticed Porygon2 trembling each time the projection descended into static. "Ugh, we're not going to get anywhere like this. Hey, Espeon, give that Porygon2 a thwack on the head, will ya?"

Espeon raised an eyebrow.

"Look, I'm a human. I know a thing or two about fixing broken machines," he lied. Espeon did as instructed. To her surprise, the flickering projectiong steadied.

"After careful evaluation, I, the Illustrious Golem, have concluded that my first attempt failed because of an error in approach. It was entirely the fault of my late assistants! They didn't point me in the right direction. Instead of using the power of the void to tie a thousand spirits with hundreds of Unown, I should've found one spirit with tremendous will power!"

Golem scratched his side. "Yes. If I can harness a spirit with a strong will, it can control the power of the void without descending into madness! Better yet… I can try a different alchemical hex." He traced a pointed star in the air with his claw. "Namely, a hex that will use the power of the void as a base to combine power crystal energy with pure, raw light!"

He nodded to himself. "Such brilliant energy could not possibly be tainted." He raised a fist. "I'm sure of it. A strong will, combined with the sanctity of light energy, will yield a God Killer with a pure soul that I can properly control!"

The shot veered to the side to show off gray, lifeless emera ores. "These depleted power crystals will serve as the perfect framework for my new creation." He stroked his beard. "Of course, there is still the matter of finding a strong-willed spirit to turn into the God Killer." Golem paused to smirk at the camera. "But I think I know the solution. I will summon a human and make it the God Killer's core!"

Shane's tails ducked between his legs. "But I thought only gods could summon humans. He can't do that, can he?"

"That's… that's what I had figured. But he sure sounds confident," Espeon said.

"Plus, humans are easy to manipulate. After all, Mew forced one to fight Dark Matter. The way I see it, what I'm proposing is no different," Golem continued. "There is much prep work to be done. But I'm confident this will work."

The footage cut out, but quickly shifted to another scene. This time, a Growlithe sat atop the table, whimpering loudly. "What's going on?" he said. "This doesn't make any sense. I'm supposed to be dead. Did... did the pills do this? Oh, god... am I in a coma? Is this some crazy coma dream?"

"Quiet him, please," Golem ordered. A Claydol hovered behind Growlithe and pressed one of its floating limbs to the fire-type's snout. "Good. Now then." He turned back to the camera. "Though this may look like a normal Growlithe, it is, in fact, a human. I, the Illustrious Golem, brought him over from the human world. And it appears that, in the process, he acquired a body that is more natural to our world."

"It's no matter, however. His mind and spirit are human. His will is strong enough to wield the power of the void," Golem said. "All I need to do is entrap him in the empty power crystals using the proper alchemical runes, then let him incubate. The results will be exactly what I'm looking for."

Claydol floated back from the Growlithe and he immediately shouted, "Hey, I asked a question! Why isn't anyone answering me? What's going on here? Why am I Growlithe? This doesn't make any sense. I'm a human!" he barked. "Besides... I'm worthless. Just... send me back or whatever. I can't help you out with anything."

"Don't say such ridiculous things," Golem scoffed. Growlithe's tail fell between his legs and his whimpers intensified. Golem approached him. "Let me ask you something, human. How would you like the opportunity to be a hero?"

Growlithe lifted up his head, frowning. "Dude, do you realize how cheesy that sounds? What am I, five? I told you I'm not interested. Send me back. I don't want anything to do with any of you."

"Now, now, there's no need to get testy. I really mean it. With my help, you can become something truly special. You see…" Golem stroked what little remained of his beard. "You are our chosen one. Our savior. It is your destiny to become our protector and save us all from terrible calamities."

Growlithe's face scrunched up. "I don't believe you. You're lying to me. Just like everyone back home did. I'm not falling for it." He growled threateningly at Golem.

"Oh dear, it seems I picked a lousy human." Golem shook his head. "But fear not, boy! For I, the Illustrious Golem, am going to help you. Even if you don't believe me, I'll make you beloved by every Pokémon around the world!"

"And how exactly would you do that, huh? You're just a Golem. A weird, ridiculous Golem... with facial hair." Growlithe lowered his head, face contorting in anger. "I'm so sick and tired of everyone's lies. Just look me in the eyes and tell me the real reason I'm here, already! Looks like we're in a lab. So, what, am I gonna be your experiment? Man up and tell me!"

"My, my. You must've been through quite the ordeal in your world to act so hostile," Golem said. "But don't you fret. I'm a 'mon of my word. When I say I'm going to make you special, I mean it. You'll have so many friends, you won't even know what to do with yourself."

"God, you're still going on about that? No deal. I'm not working with you. You're just going to take advantage of me!" Growlithe said

Shane's brow furrowed. Growlithe's combative attitude felt familiar. The fur on the back of his neck stood on end. He tried to concentrate, but his thoughts were still jumbled up with unwanted flashbacks to Moonrise Marsh. He even heard Tessa consoling Null in the distance.

Epseon gulped. "They used a child. Dear gods, they brought a child here to experiment on?"

Back on the video, Golem sighed and shook his head disapprovingly. "Well, I tried to be reasonable." He turned to Claydol and whispered, "Do it."

One of the repaired lasers descended behind Growlithe, and a beam struck him in the back. Growlithe briefly hollered, before collapsing on his side. "Now then, it's time to get started," Golem said. He snapped his fingers. Claydol levitated Growlithe into the air. The shot turned to the right, where five depleted emera ores sat arranged in an upside-down pentagram. Claydol lowered Growlithe into the center of the structure. Golem's magnet whirred to life. He electrocuted the ground, tracing over the outline of the pentagram and then drawing in a circle around it.

"Now, for the runes." Golem approached the nearest crystal and traced a circle. He added a small semicircle on top of it, and then a tiny cross sticking out. "Mind," he said. The sigil alighted. Golem sidestepped to the second crystal and drew a circle with a horizontal bar running through it. "Body," he whispered. The second rune glowed.

Porygon2 followed him to the third crystal. Golem traced a triangle, with a cross protruding from its base. "Spirit," he said, lighting up the rune. Golem moved onto the fourth crystal and drew a circle with a dot in the center. "Sun," he said. The rune lit up. Finally, he walked to the last crystal and traced a crescent into it. "Moon."

He stepped back outside of the circle. The five runes flashed in unison. Their light spread out across the dead emera ores. One by one, the crystals melted into shining, bubbling piles of molten rock. The liquid ore swirled around, forming a circle around Growlithe's slumbering form. It progressively shrank in size, until the liquified ore swallowed Growlithe up whole. Golem turned and electrocuted a nearby cluster of emera ores. The crystals burst apart. Black chains surrounded the silver and gold bubble encasing Growlithe.

"And now, we wait for the void's power to cement itself," Goldem declared. Static overtook the projected screen again.

Shane cautiously approached Porygon2. But he froze when he heard an unseen voice say, "So, this guy's actually recording all of this? Am I, like, supposed to say something?"

Shane looked up at the ceiling and barked in fright. "What the–? What am I looking at?" He dropped to his belly, instinctively curling his forepaws up in an attempt to shield his face. Above him, the projection showed off a blinding light that seemed to fill the entire screen. Espeon stared utterly transfixed at the projection, noting the crystalline face staring Porygon2 down. It blinked its rainbow eyes and curved its beak into a warm smile.

"Huh. That thing's face looks a bit like Null's did without his helmet. I think it's the angles of the eyes and the beak," Espeon said.

"Now, now," Golem chided from offscreen. He stepped into the shot, blunting some of the light. "Do be careful. You're giving off an awful lot of light. You wouldn't want to blind poor Porygon2 over here, would you?"

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever." The glowing dimmed somewhat, allowing Shane and Espeon to see a large light dragon sticking out against the darkened world. Its head resembled a pointed star, with its multicolored eyes lacking pupils. Four ethereal wings sat folded against its crystalline chest. Its tail was made of crystal rings spaced out between segments of light. The dragon curled its tail around its crystalline legs.

"It's quite alright," Golem insisted. "I just need to give my progress report and then you can go practice channeling your energy."

"Fine," the dragon huffed. Shane realized the voice was similar to Growlithe's. "I've gotta ask, though… what happened to your moon? Does it just not exist?"

Golem sighed. "We've been over this already. Our world has no sun. And no moon. They were taken from us by selfish gods who you're here to save us from."

The dragon blinked. The yellow and green in his eyes expanded. His tail vibrated. "Well, can't we just bring them back?" he asked.

Golem's brow furrowed. "Of course not. There's no way to—"

The light dragon frowned. "I don't believe that." He looked up. "There's a fix. I can feel it… deep inside." A rainbow of colors swirling through his eyes. His chest flared with golden light, revealing a winged-heart carved around his central chest spike.

Golem's eyes widened as the dragon hovered into the air. "Now wait just a second. You are my creation, and I'm ordering you to cease this at on—"

An Ultra Wormhole opened behind the dragon. He vanished inside of it, leaving Golem standing there slack-jawed. "Ah! That can't be." Espeon backpedalled in surprise. "Those are just like the portals Lunala could make."

"They're the ones Zero used," Shane added. "But why– agh!"

The projection erupted in a brilliant flash of light. Shane and Espeon turned away, scrunching their faces in pain. He briefly wondered how Porygon2 held up through all of this in the past. But those thoughts went away when Claydol shouted, "Golem, look! The sun… daytime! It's back! It's back!"

Shane and Espeon turned around. Their jaws dropped. Claydol was right. The sun shined brilliantly from a bright-blue sky. And the light dragon had returned. He now floated in front of Golem. Claydol hovered up to him, cheering enthusiastically. Several other Pokémon streamed in after him.

"The sun's back! Our creation's saving us already!" a Druddigon cheered.

"We have light in our world once more!" a Bronzong bellowed.

"Praise be to our vaunted protector! Praise the Guiding Light!" a Clefable declared.

"Guiding Light! Guiding Light! Guiding Light!" they all shouted in unison.

The light dragon's tail thumped against the ground. Colors swirled around in his eyes. He opened his beak, looking like he wanted to say something, but all that came out was a joyful squawk.

Golem stroked his beard. "Remarkable. This is even more of a resounding success than I, the Illustrious Golem, could have predicted. Yes, this 'Guiding Light' shall protect us all. And I, as his creator, shall be revered for all eternity. Ho ho ho ho! This is truly a great day for Pokémon everywhere."

The dragon continued to bask in the praise of Golem's assistants until static cut the footage out. Shane jolted up and looked at Porygon2 "No, wait! Go back! That stuff looked important." He jumped next to Porygon2 and jostled its body. However, it shifted to a new recording. Enraged cries made Shane's ears twitch, then fold against his face. Espeon likewise grimaced and looked away.

"Let me out of here! You can't take my light from me! I'm doing good!" the light dragon roared. "I'm a good Pokémon! I have friends now!" He slammed up against an blue energy dome. It flashed brightly. "Zek! Latios! Xern! Please, help me! Help me!" Blue and purple expanded in his eyes, pushing the other colors to the peripheries.

"Silence!" Golem declared. Another bright flash exploded across the projection. Shane's pupils shrank and he stumbled back, rapidly blinking the stars out of his vision. "What were you thinking, making a new Solgaleo and Lunala? I didn't tell you to do that!"

The dragon release a blinding burst of light, but the barrier held firm. "I was doing it for my friends— for my mate! Something a bastard like you wouldn't understand!" he barked. "You're wrong about this world! It can function with gods! Let me go! I can show you! I can prove it! Please…" Shudders wracked his body. "Give me a chance!"

"Backstabbing cretin!" Golem shouted. The light dragon winced. "I created you to kill those contemptible gods. Not befriend them!" He shook his head. "And, did I just hear you say you had a mate?" Golem slammed a fist into a metal table. "You let them brainwash you!" He pointed an accusatory claw toward the dragon.

"No! Nobody brainwashed me! I saw the gods for what they are… well-meaning 'mons who need help!" The dragon released another series of blasts. Shane and Espeon looked away. Neither of them could say a word. They knew what they were watching disgusted them, but couldn't force themselves to stop.

"That's what you brought me here for. To help people." The dragon slammed into the energy dome and bounced off it. "I want to help! I deserve to be happy! I gave you all light! I brought your happiness back! It was me… me… me!"

Shane tensed. It was brief, but he saw the winged-heart carving flash red. Dark shadows had rippled through the dragon's eyes.

"I gave you permission to go out unsupervised… with the understanding you were faking winning over the gods' trust so you could destroy them!" Golem snarled. "I will not be made a fool of, human!"

Shane finally found his voice. "It's really true, then. The Horizon legends were wrong. Ho-Oh didn't make Solgaleo and Lunala. This 'Guiding Light' did."

Golem shook his head. "And you know what? I might have been willing to look past your transgression, but then you went and shared your life energy with those blasted Tapus!" He stomped his foot angrily.

"I was helping!" the dragon thundered. "You complained the gods did a bad job protecting the world, so I was giving them means to do a better job!" He trembled with rage. "If you'd let me out, I could show you exactly what my plan is. Please! I'm confident it will work!"

"Not a chance!" Golem huffed.

The dragon resumed struggling, roaring in anguish. He squeezed his eyes shut. "Xern? Xern?! Where are you? I need you! P… please! Save me!" His eyes shot open and he looked around. The golden glow began to fade from his head and tail. He shook his head "N… no. She can hear me. She's coming. She'll save me! I can't… I can't… be used… again!"

"Hmph. You've made a mockery of me. Perhaps some time without your precious light will do you some good, child," Golem scoffed. "Then, maybe you will understand the importance of the fate I've created for you. Now, Claydol, engage!"

The rune above the barrier glowed blue. The light dragon let out a hair-raising scream as energy erupted inside of the barrier. Shane and Espeon shut their eyes and looked away. The projection glowed so bright it made Porygon2 tremble. They sensed the bright flash die down and slowly opened their eyes. In the projection, they noticed the light dragon was gone. Dark black crystals littered the ground. A triangular prism sat outside the forcefield, filled with small patches of multicolored light. At the center of the pile of crystals lay Growlithe's colorless, unmoving body.

Golem's eyes widened. "What's going on here? What happened to the human?"

Suddenly, the triangular prism rose into the air. Black electricity crackled around it. "You… YoU!"

Shane's tails shot between his legs. There was a voice coming from somewhere, but it was incredibly distorted and hard to make out.

The prism twitched in midair. "No! P-Please, I—"

"I wArNED YoU! YoU CoST Us OUr LiGhT!"

One by one, the black crystals lying on the ground shot up toward the prism, slamming against it. What was one the light dragon's head became a torso around the prism. The tail rings formed into a head. Each leg attached itself to one of the dragon's lower wing bones. They forcibly inserted themselves into the beast's body, giving it two new arms. It flailed the arms about wildly. "N-nngh… you're wrong! I can fix this! I can—"

Golem staggered backwards. "This is impossible. I stripped you of your power. You shouldn't have any energy left! You should be a Growlithe again!" He looked toward Claydol. "Claydol, Where did this prism come from? Dispose of it, now!"

"Wait… prism?" Shane's eyes widened. "Oh my god!"

The light dragon's upper wing bones jammed themselves into the base of the black, crystalline beast. They dangled uselessly in midair. The beast bashed its face with its arms. "yOU hAd YoUR cHAnCE. I wIlL… I…" Its arms trembled. "VoId… TeR—"

"G-Golem, please!" the original voice shouted while the beast lurched away from Golem. "Give me back my light! Give me… back…"

The beast looked up and belted out a loud scream. Rainbow energy gathered around it. Claydol had managed to float behind the prism, but it detonated the energy it was gathering. The rainbow light burned Claydol and the comatose Growlithe into ashes and blew their remains away. Golem turned and tried to run, but the prism released another rainbow laser. Golem turned to dust before Shane's and Espeon's eyes.

"Light! Where is… my light? I need light!" the prism howled, the distortion fading from his voice. He swiveled about, looking around the empty lab.

"Human! Look, on the back of that thing's head!" Espy's tail ducked between her legs.

"It's that star pattern Zero had on her chest," Shane said.

"And Lunala was covered in black armor that looked exactly like this thing!" Espeon squeaked. Violent tremors racked her body, nearly causing her to faint.

"Heeheeheehee! Your friends… didn't come. Your precious Xern didn't come. You called them... and they didn't come. Everyone turned their backs on you. They used you, just like I said they would!" the beast shouted, hovering erratically. "It's time to forget about them. You don't need them. You don't need anyone! Not anymore!

"Give yourself up to the void and destroy them! Destroy everyone who hurt you!" The beast looked around. "I'll get us light. I will consume. I will destroy!"

He shot a burst of psychic energy above him, blowing apart the lab's roof. "I am Necrozma, Devourer of Light!" he shouted. Black crystals jutted out of the ground around him, spreading across the floor and racing up the walls. Necrozma flew into the air and looked down at Porygon2. "You. You have… light. I want your light. I must have your light!"

The shot grew smaller. Presumably a result of Porygon2 trying to flee. The gesture proved futile. Rainbow lasers streamed down everywhere. Porygon2 seemed to fall to the ground, because Necrozma disappeared from the shot. A furious roar sounded and a portal appeared from the ground.

"Hey, that's Solgaleo. And he's got Lunala with him," Shane said.

The rainbow lights in Necrozma's prism dimmed. He raked his claws across his face. "G-Guys! Puh… please! H-help me!"

Necrozma's arms flailed. His lights flared up. "No. You abandoned me! I gave you life… and this is how you repay me?" Necrozma drift offscreen and screeched. "No matter. You're filled with plenty of light. My light. And I'm going to take it back. Your light is mine! All light is mine!"

Solgaleo and Lunala darted out of the shot. More black crystals suddenly shot out of the ground, growing steadily closer to the camera. The shot rolled upward, offering Shane and Espeon a glimpse of Solgaleo and Lunala striking in unison. Another explosion of light emerged, and static filled up the projection.

"A single burst of light… gave the world its stardust," Espeon whispered. Her gaze fell to the ground. "It's true. All of it's true!" She started to hyperventilate. "Th… this is… I…"

Shane stumbled back from Porygon2, his heart hammering in his chest while his mind struggled to process everything. His hind paw struck something soft. He yipped and whirled around, ice particles forming in his mouth. But his attack faded when he saw a small doll lying on the ground. It was worn out and covered in dust.

"Are you alright, human? You look a bit shell-shocked," Espeon said, shakily walking toward him

"I found this doll," Shane whispered, beckoning Espeon over.

"It's a Pikachu," Espeon said. "Do you suppose it belonged to Growlithe?"

"I think so," Shane said. He looked down and his brow furrowed at the sight of some torn cloth attached to the doll's stomach. It felt oddly familiar, but he couldn't put his paw on it.

Espeon turned to face Porygon2. "You owe us an explanation. What were you thinking, trying to make Pokémon with alchemy?"

No… trust, Porygon2 muttered. Ruined… never… us. Protect ourselves… danger.

"And just what's that supposed to mean, huh?" Shane huffed.

In response to this, Porygon2's body stiffened. Power cells… drained. Cannot sustain life force.

Shane's eyes widened. He had gotten so engrossed in the video, he forgot the real reason behind freeing Porygon2 was to figure out how to stop the booby trap. And that opportunity was about slip away. "Whoa, hold up! You're not going out on us like that." He turned to face the other room. "Riolu! Get up. We need an oran berry in here, stat!" But his shouting proved a wasted gesture. Porygon2's eyes shut and its head slumped over against the rocks. Its body glowed bright-blue and burst into light particles that disappeared before Shane's eyes.

"Dang it! We need answers from him!" he hissed, slamming his forepaw on the ground.

"We forgot to ask him about the trap Null's stuck in," Espeon added. "Though, after what we just saw, I don't exactly blame Riolu for not wanting to help him out. That was… tough to stomach."

Shane frowned. "Yeah," he sighed. "You have no idea how tempted I am to ditch him and get out of here. But…" He took a deep breath. "We shouldn't do it. Because Tessa was right. None of this is Null's fault. She believes there's a way to fix him, so I'm going to trust her. Besides, if we just left him down here to rot… we'd be no better than Golem and his ilk."

Espeon grimaced. "I see your point."

Before either could say anything else, an explosion echoed from the main room, followed by a loud, throaty roar. Shane and Espeon abruptly turned around. "Do… do you smell smoke?" Espeon squeaked.

"Yeah. And did it get hotter in here all of a sudden or what?" Shane said.

They heard a scream. Their ears twitched and they exchanged panicked looks. They sprinted out of the tunnel and back into the main laboratory area, where they found Tessa hiding in the corner behind an inactive emera ore, shivering.

"What the— Entei? What are you doing here?" Espeon gasped, her tail falling between her legs at the sight of the fire-type god standing in front of the remains of the earlier cave-in.

"You! You collapsed the cave on us. You tried to kill us!" he roared, smoke billowing from his nostrils. Entei pointed his forepaw at Shane, whose eyes widened.

"That's not Entei… it's the Unown!" Shane cried. "Crap! How they heck did they survive that?"

"We'll make you pay. We'll burn you to ashes!" He stomped the ground with his forepaws. Molten fire erupted around him. Shane and Espeon had no escape from the Lava Plume. The flames washed across them, upending both of them and sending their scorched bodies rolling back to a stop by the emera ore that Tessa sat hidden behind.

Tessa roused herself from her stupified state. She grabbed a pair of oran berries from her bag and shoved them in her teammates' mouths. They managed to get back to their feet. Entei roared his fury. He shot forward, paws leave a trail of flames on the ground. Shane's tails scrunched up in a panic. "Ah, no! Move, move, move!" he shouted, shoving Espeon next to Tessa behind the emera ore.

He pivoted and screeched at Entei. Roar's sound waves stopped Entei in his tracks and sent him skidding back along the ground. "You will not escape. We will make you suffer as our kind have suffered," he snarled. More fire gathered around him. Shane squealed in terror and scrambled over toward a rock shard. He dove for cover just as the Lava Plume raced forward. He pressed himself against the rock and hugged it for dear life. Shane didn't see a way out of this. After all, he had to resort to causing a cave-in to beat the Unown-powered Golurk. What chance did he have against a copy of Entei?

Sweat pooled up under his fur as heat from Entei's attack raced around him. Shane looked over and spotted Espeon poking her head out from cover. Her eyes flashed blue, only for the glow to fade. She bit her lip. Espeon shot a pink Psybeam toward the ceiling, much to her relief. The drill apparatus detached from the wall and fell right onto Entei's head. His eyes shut and he staggered backward, howling in pain.

"There's your opening. Go!" Espeon shouted, charging forward. Shane leaped over the debris and sprinted toward Entei, a layer of water coating his tails. Tessa remained rooted to her spot, trembling in fear. She heard a roar of pain and looked up to see Espeon using another Psybeam to knock Entei toward Shane, who clubbed him with his Aqua Tails. Entei hissed as he stumbled backwards.

"Nice work, Espeon," Shane said. But any further celebration was cut short as a blue glow encased Entei.

"We will not submit. Not until we've destroyed you all," Entei snarled. He reared up on his hind legs. Blue light erupted around him. When the light faded, what landed on the ground was most definitely not Entei.

"It changed to Suicune?" Espeon gasped. "They can do that?"

"You saw the recordings for yourself," Shane said, dodging a blast of steaming-hot water from Suicune. "Get a bunch of these little guys together in a room and they can do all kinds of crazy stuff."

Espeon gathered purple energy above her head. But before she could throw the Shadow Ball forward, a gray Ice Beam struck her right in the muzzle. She recoiled and the Shadow Ball detonated prematurely. Smoke filled up the area.

"No, Espeon!" Shane cried, but found himself backpedaling to dodge Suicune, who had jumped between him and Espeon. He then saw a small blur rushing through the smoke. Tessa lunged for Suicune, electricity rippling across her fists. Suicune turned in time for Tessa to connect with her cheek. She howled in pain and fell onto her side. Tessa hit the ground and shot a panicked look at Shane.

"Look, the cave-in's cleared. We need to get out of here now," she said. She started to reach into her bag when the strap gave a violent lurch upward. Tessa yelped as her item bag hoisted her into the air. Her torso started to fall through the open strap and she looked down to see Suicune's eyes glowing. Suicune stood tall against a Psybeam from Esepeon. Her eyes flashed purple. Tessa felt a burning sensation race across her paw and looked up. She stared at her glowing item pouch before it burst into flames.

Suicune shifted back into Entei in the process. Tessa screamed as fire engulfed her body and she plummeted down to the ground. "Tessa!" Shane cried. He leaped into the air and wrapped himself around her. They both fell to the ground, rolling into a heap by a dead emera ore.

"One down. Two to go," Entei said. His eyes burned with anger. He lunged for Espeon. She raised up a pink barrier and Entei bounced off of it, though the contact made Espeon flinch and grit her teeth. She looked back and saw Shane standing over Tessa, looking despondently at his teammate. Her fur was charred from head to toe. She lay unmoving on the ground.

Flames enveloped Entei's body. Roaring, another Lava Plume exploded out from him. Espeon gritted her teeth and concentrated. A Psybeam flung Shane and the unconscious Tessa behind a large crystal. This left Espeon to take the Lava Plume by herself. She yelped in pain and her knees quivered. She fell to the ground, but before all her strength failed her, she managed to shoot a ball of light over her head. Morning Sun energy washed over her, erasing the burns in her fur and restoring her vitality.

"Stop it! You're not allowed to do that. You have to pay. You all have to pay!" Entei barked.

"You don't understand. We're not trying to hurt you," Espeon said. "We saw what happened to those Unown. How they got made into Null. That wasn't us!"

"You all let it happen! You are guilty!" Entei bellowed. In a flash of light, he transformed into Raikou.

He sent electricity surging forward, but a cloud of frosty air stalemated the attack. Shane charged in, his eyes flashing pink after Tessa's injuries had sparked a second wind. "Entei, Suicune, or Raikou. It doesn't matter how often you shift between them. You hurt my friend and you're going to pay!" he hissed, sending Extrasensory waves surging toward Raikou.

Raikou pivoted and fired his own Extrasensory ripples. The psychic waves collided in midair. A pink blast enveloped the area, followed by a fresh cloud of smoke. Another flash of light ensued and a gust of wind immediately dispelled the smog. Suicune spun around, a Hydro Pump gushing from her muzzle. In the midst of running, Shane had no means to dodge. The torrent swept him up and the force of the water blasted him directly into a wall with a sickening crunch.

"N-no…" he wheezed, the air rushing out of him. "This is… not fair…" He sank down onto the ground and his eyes slowly closed. Espeon hunched over in fright.

"That just leaves you," Suicune said, her voice far calmer and serene compared to Entei's. "And then we can properly dispose of the Abomination."

"You're making a mistake," Espeon said, shrinking back toward the wall. "We didn't have anything to do with Null's creation. We ended up here by complete accident."

"But you're associating with him," Suicune pointed out.

"Because he's part of Team Radiance," Espeon retorted. "You're blaming the wrong Pokémon. Null's as much a victim in this thing as you Unown are. Attacking him won't change anything. It's not going to bring back all the Unown that were used to make him. You'd need powerful alchemy to make that happen!"

"That's not true," Suicune growled. Her form shifted back to Entei. "The emera ores. He could've used them. He could've reversed the hexes. But he didn't. He's kept our kind bound together… suffering as that monstrosity! We will wipe him off the earth, so that our fellow Unown can pass to the spirit realm peacefully."

Espeon squealed in fright as she stared down an oncoming fireball. She dashed to the right, watching the fireball detonate into a wall of blue flames. Her eyes widened. If Entei's Sacred Fire connected with her, she wouldn't stand a chance of surviving the blow.

"Get back here!" Entei roared. He leaped forward, shifting to Raikou, and sprinted toward her. Electricity crackled across his body. Espeon channeled a tiny amount psychic energy and flicked her tail. A Psybeam fired out behind her, catching Raikou by surprise. He was forced to discharge the electricity he'd gathered to negate her attack. Espeon found herself standing next to the hole where Null was trapped.

"Null, you have to get out of there," Espeon begged. "I need your help. Riolu and Vulpix… they're… they're…"

Her eyes widened at the sight of a wall of electricity racing toward her. She dived into the hole, landing on the chained-up Null. The lightning surged over her. She sighed in relief. However, it didn't take long for her plan to backfire tremendously. She looked up to find Suicune glaring at her. Suicune opened her muzzle. Espeon yelped as torrential waters pummeled her and Null. Espeon's strength failed her. She went limp on top of Null. He glanced up at Suicune and resumed struggling against his chains.

"How does it feel to be bound up by a magical force, unable to break free no matter what you try?" Suicune asked, tone full of malice. " That is how our brothers and sisters felt in their last moments before they were turned into you." She tilted her head up. "And now, we'll bury you in a watery grave and toss your so-called friends in alongside you."

She pointed her head down. Null howled in pain from the onslaught of high-pressure water. His heart raced as water pooled up around him, quickly reaching his underbelly. Though Suicune strained to maintain her Hydro Pump, it eventually reached a point where Null was completely submerged. Espeon briefly floated along the surface, before the bag around her torso dragged her underwater.

Null resumed thrashing, grimacing as the chains rubbed up against his fur and scales. This wasn't fair. His friends didn't deserve this. None of this was their faults. It all went back to him. And Golem. All that "power of the void" nonsense had led to this. Espeon was about to drown. All because of him.

Let her drown. She is worthless.

The rising water blurred his vision. Null had to shut his eyes while he struggled against his chains. Yet, he found a single eye with a violet, reptilian iris staring back at him. The slit-like pupil expanded.

These so-called friends were never worth your time. Forget them. Embrace the powers bestowed upon you to break your restraints and dispose of these vermin.

Null's breathing grew heavy. Vermin? No, his friends weren't vermin. He thought back to the guild. Of how Tessa went up to him, offering to let him join her team. She wasn't coerced. It was all voluntarily. There was never any pressure.

He thought about the evenings spent talking to Tessa. She made him feel welcomed. It was the first time he thought he actually mattered. Null remembered how Tessa rushed to his defense against Sticky's accusations, then was there to stop him from flying off the handle at Shane. She could've— no, should've abandoned him after that, but she didn't.

Worthless memories. The eye staring back at him rippled. They will do you no good. You cannot have friends. You are a destroyer! Act like it!

But Null didn't want to hurt anyone. He hated the things he heard in Golem's recordings. He wanted his friends to be happy. And he wanted to be happy, too. Null lurched his head upward. It broke the surface of the water.

Suicune's brow furrowed. "Not backing down, are you? Fine. We'll flood this whole lab if we have to. Anything to ensure you do not leave here alive."

Anger burned deep inside of Null. The calming sensation that his Lunar Wing provided subsided.

Happiness means nothing. Only destruction matters. Accept it! Accept my power!

Null shook his head. He tried to block out the eye with thoughts of Shane offering to buy him TMs and sessions with Bruxish. By all accounts, Shane had no reason to go out of his way to help Null like that. Yet he did. And, even if it didn't amount to anything, Null appreciated the gesture.

He squirmed. His helmet brushed against the chains. The existing cracks widened… and a cacophony of voices rose up in his mind.

Weak!

Pathetic!

Good for nothing!

You should have killed Vulpix. We're going to die because of him!

We are supposed to be strong enough to destroy anything. Your spinelessness will cost us our life.

Get angry! Destroy the chains!

Kill the Unown! Kill Espeon, Riolu, and Vulpix!

You see? You have resisted far too long. It's time to accept your calling. Toss your emotions aside and destroy!

Null thrashed his head about. He flashed back to Azure Cape. Sitting there with Tessa, listening as she spilled her heart out to him. He remembered saying how Tessa matters to him, followed by her response...

If it's for you... I guess I can give it one more try.

He jerked his body forward. His head smacked against the wall. The mask's pressure faded slightly. The hisses and snarls in the back of his head grew louder. A chorus of voices chanted, "Destroy!" in unison.

Null shooks his head again. He thought of Shane. He'd almost given in to his instincts in Moonrise Marsh. And yet, things between him and Shane were turning around. Shane poured his heart out to Null after Tessa's breakdown. Shane gave him credit for Tessa's hatch day party… all for his friendship with Tessa. And, even before the Unown had showed up, Shane was willing to help save him.

His teammates cared about him.

They liked him.

And he liked them.

You are deluding yourself! Accept my power now!

Null refused. Nobody had to die. He could save his friends! If he could just dig deep… dig deep… dig deep.

You will fail on your own.

"That's it! I've… had… enough!"

Howling his fury, Null strained every muscle he could think of against his restraints. The chains squeezed his body and mask, but he refused to give in and relax.

His friends needed him.

Null squeezed his eyes shut, clinging to every pleasant memory he had made with Team Radiance.

Every hug Tessa had given him. Every smile he'd seen on Tessa. Shane inviting him into a group hug.

All of those moments cycled through Null's mind on an endless loop, blocking out all the voices and spurring on his struggle against the chains.

Before Suicune could muster up the energy to fire another Hydro Pump, Null tucked in his head. He tensed up his entire body, then jerked his head and neck upward. The chains strangled him. Null didn't care. All he could think about was Shane and Tessa lying up above… hurt and in desperate need of help. Just like his situation in Moonrise Marsh. Tessa had pulled him back from the brink of disaster. Now, he needed to save them. He had to save his friends.

Rocks crumbled. Metal snapped around him. The chains loosened. Water splashed across Null's eyes.

His mask was breaking.

Water flooded his vision, so Null shut his eyes even tighter and pushed against the ground with all his might.

"Tessa! Shane!"

The chains burst apart. Shards of metal flew upward. Yipping in fright, Suicune backpedaled.

Null leaped out of the hole. His stone helmet crumbled against the jagged remnants of the booby trap. Pitch-black blood trickled out of gashes the chains left in his body, splashing on the ground. Null landed beside the hole, panting heavily. Espeon's unconscious body slid off his back, landing in a puddle of black fluid. The Lunar Wing gently drifted down to land atop her torso.

Null locked up. A flood of sensations raced into his mind. Air brushed against the face he had forgotten. Dust tickled the tip of his metal beak, making it tingle. His field of vision had greatly expanded. The weight — the agonizing, crushing weight that had born down on his shoulders had vanished. He pointed his head skyward and opened his beak

What came out was a mixture of roars, shouts, howls, and angry caws.

The feathers around Null's face bristled. His head crest fanned out. Three white blades of solidified energy burst forth from the back of his crest, bathing his body in white light. The shabby-gray coloration of his tail instantly changed to match the white of his eyes.

His vision blurred. The cave vanished, along with Suicune. Suddenly, Null was staring down a Druddigon, thorny limbs and all. Then, in an instant, he found himself looking at a Prinplup with the smarmiest expression imaginable. The scene continued to shift from Persian to Turtonator to Chestnaught to Tyranitar. All of them sneering at him, silently judging him. Each scene— each memory from a past spirit made Null boil with rage.

When he managed to snap back to the present, Null reared up on his hind legs. Holographic swords encircled his body. His white aura intensified. Null dropped back to all-fours and sprinted forward, bulging muscles rippling with every step.

"That's impossible!" Suicune gasped. She got over her momentary shock and blasted a Hydro Pump right toward Null. But he strafed the massive water tunnel and lunged at Suicune.

"Nobody hurts my friends! You hear me? Nobody!" he cried. Null bludgeoned Suicune across the head with glowing talons. She staggered backwards in a daze. Her body distorted, giving Null a brief glance of a cluster of terrified Unown. However, Suicune restabilized. A soft, healing glow encased her body. The cuts Null inflicted vanished before his eyes.

Again, Null experienced a flashback. He was a Magikarp, flopping up and down while a haughty Milotic showered herself in the warm light of a Recover.

Null shook his head, dispelling the memory. He refused to let the Unown dismiss him. Null raised his head high and a ball of wind gathered at the tip of his crest. He thrust his head forward, hurtling Air Slash crescents toward Suicune. She got her legs tangled trying to weave through the attack. Several blades nicked her fur.

"Th-That power… where did you get such power?" Suicune whimpered. With a roar, she shifted into Raikou. She lunged for Null, lightning at the ready. He jumped into the air, hardening his head and face into steel. His Iron Head bashed Raikou's ribcage in.

Raikou buckled from the blow, barking in pain. But Null latched onto Raikou as he fell to the ground. The two Pokémon rolled across the laboratory floor, Null slashing at Raikou's hide with his talons and Raikou desperately biting down onto Null's neck with his massive fangs. Black blood splattered against Raikou's face. The blow brought the voices back, but they were incomprehensible. They only added to Null's swelling anger.

Both Pokémon broke off from one another. Null darted to his feet, gazing at the wound on his neck, while Raikou staggered back up, panting heavily. Null redid his Swords Dance ritual. The glow surrounding him grew so strong that Raikou was forced to look away.

"This isn't right," Raikou snarled. "You can't do this. You're making our brothers and sisters suffer. You must let me strike you down, so they can finally know peace!"

Null landed back on all-fours and glared at Raikou. For an instant, he saw Golem staring back at him, followed by purple eye. Null squeezed his eyes shut. "You think I wanted this? I never asked for this!" he shouted.

"There are thousands of voices screaming at me to kill you. To tear you to pieces!" He slammed a foreleg on the ground. "I have all these memories running through my head and I can't control them!"

He tensed. Null found himself standing over a Lopunny, watching it bleed out with an empty look in its eyes. Then he snapped to a cliffside just in time to kick a Luxray off and watch it fall into a dense cloud of fog, screaming like a banshee. A second later, he was in a dark, murky swamp, hearing the screams of Gastlys and Duskulls as they dissolved into nothingness.

With a startled gasp, Null returned to the present. His breathing was labored. He could faintly see the violet eye in his periphery. But, more importantly, Raikou still stood in front of him.

"I keep seeing horrible, painful deaths. Pokémon burnt alive or drowned or left in the middle of a dungeon, broken and bleeding!." Tears streamed down Null's face. "I don't want this! It's miserable! I'm in so much pain. My head still hurts…

He looked over at his limp teammates. "But even when I was at my lowest, my teammates were there to pick me back up. They believe in me! They support me in spite of all the hardships they've faced!"

Null crouched low to the ground. "I'm sorry about what happened to all those Unown. But I'm not about to let you do the same thing to my teammates… to my friends!" He howled in fury and raced forward. As he sprinted toward Raikou, the white glow enveloping him shifted to a golden aura.

Raikou staggered backward. His eyes widened as Null's aura encircled his chest and took the shape of a wheel-like object. Raikou shifted to Entei. He shot a massive fireball straight at Null, who sidestepped it. Null didn't even flinch when the Sacred Fire erupted behind him in a blue glaze. His golden wheel burst into balls of light that raced around Null's body, coalescing around his forelegs.

"N-No… stay back! Stay back!" Entei screamed as Null lunged for him. The glowing talons struck Entei's side, leaving trails of golden energy behind them. The force of the blow rocketed Entei back into the nearby wall. He struck it and exploded into two dozen Unown. They all fell to the ground, their tiny bodies twitching. Null landed in between them, panting heavily.

An Unown R managed to flip onto its back. "P-Please… don't do this," it sputtered. "We're sorry! We won't hurt your friends anymore."

"It's too late for that," Null hissed, slamming his talons against the metal floor. "You almost killed them! And you destroyed our quickest way out of here!"

Unown R teared up. "It was an honest mistake. I swear!"

"Then it's a mistake you're going to fix," Null ordered, running over to put his teammates onto his bloody back one-by-one. The voices were growing louder again. A heaviness gripped his chest. Null doubled over in pain. He had to keep fighting it. His friends weren't saved yet.

Trembling, Null tucked the Lunar Wing into his looplet. The voices faded, though he could still hear them murmuring about abandoning everyone. Panting hard, Null forced himself to stand tall and look at Unown R. "Rally your siblings and help me get out of these caves. After that, I'll be out of your guys' lives forever. I promise."

Unown R floated shakily into the air, nodding the top half of its body. "Of course! Of course! We'll get you out of here. Just please don't hurt us anymore!"

XxX

~Glyphic Falls~

Gallian landed on the rock pathway, wincing as the shock of the impact rattled his legs. Behind him, Toucannon landed in a puddle with an unceremonious fwump.

"Sk-rr-aww," it weakly cawed, raising one of its metallic wings upward. The limb fell to the ground, and the black crystals littering its body shattered. Toucannon's metal wings dissolved into thin air, along with the rest of its colors.

"Good riddance," Gallian scoffed, flicking his snout upward. His eyes returned to their normal coloration. He limped back over to his teammates.

"Captain, is that Toucannon—"

"Dead? Most likely," Luxeira said. "It appears that defeating it drained it of its life force."

Gallian's muzzle stiffened. "Does that happen to all the Pokémon who get infected by the Prism Virus?"

"It's not an unreasonable hypothesis," Sticky responded. "Now do you see the importance of sticking with us and wearing that harness?"

Gallian winced. "Whatever," he whispered.

Then a nearby portion of the cliff face exploded, sending rock shards flying forward, followed by a large cloud of smoke. "What the heck?" Gallian snarled, throwing a foreleg over his face. His scythe flickered with pink energy and he swiveled his head around. Psycho Cut blades raced into the smoke, dispelling it. He looked ahead and spotted Null running down the pathway, flanked by a few Unown.

Sticky gasped. "Captain, it's the Beast Killer! We need to give chase, or it'll get away."

Gallian narrowed his eyes and sprinted forward before either member of Team Paradox could stop him. However, to his utter shock, he failed to make up any ground with Null. In fact, Null had managed to widen the gap. Gallian jogged to a stop, flanks heaving. "But that… doesn't make sense," he panted. "That guy's… supposed to be slow."

Sticky and Luxeira caught up with him. Worry filled Sticky's expression. "If he's moving that fast, I fear he may have broken free of the restraining mask. Captain, did you get any energy signature readings?"

Luxeira shook her head. "No. I think we should just cut our losses and call it a day."

Gallian's eyes widened at this. "Call it a day? Are you kidding me? With those lying guild members wandering around and that freak free of its mask and running off with my sister?" He glared at them. "We're going after him. He's probably heading for the Observatory, so we can try to ambush him there."

"Rookie, stop. We could barely hold our own against the smattering of guild members we found earlier. There's no way we're going to take an unrestrained Beast Killer and whatever terrestrials are lingering at this 'Observatory' place."

Gallian's claws dug into the rocks. "But… that's… you…" He squeezed his eyes shut. "You know what? Forget this! I'm done with you guys. I'm done with all of this!" He stormed off down the path.

Sticky's eyes widened. "Gallian, wait! We can't keep the Prism Virus infection in check if you just leave. Stop!" He floated after Gallian, with Luxeira running along beside him.

XxX

~Aeon Observatory~

Primarina and Serperior lay on a cushion in the assembly area, tails coiled around one another. Serperior's head rested in Primarina's lap. He slowly stroked the leafy scales on her back.

"There, there, Serpy. Don't despair.
You'll reunite with Dragonair.
As far as friends go, she's a fantastic find.
I'm sure she has Team Captivate fresh on her mind!
Shooo-bee-do-doo.
Sha-zippity-doo-bop-bah-woo."

A loud thump jolted Primarina out of his song. He looked up at the ceiling. "Whoa. Vappy, you're not trying anything risqué up there, are you, babe?"

A frightened squeal echoed through the Observatory, followed by a panicked shout of, "Hey, wait a second. You can't just run through here like that. Stop! Thief!"

Primarina and Serperior uncoiled and sprang up, ready to meet whatever threat awaited them. But to their utter surprise, they saw a pair of chitinous forelegs appear on the railing. Null leaped over it and soared over the duo's heads. He struck the ground in front of them and sprinted off toward the infirmary, leaving them standing there in shock.

"Was that… Null?" Serperior asked.

Vaporeon ran down the stairs, his fins quivering. "Did… did you guys just see a big Pokémon run by here?"

Primarina pointed a flipper toward the infirmary and Vaporeon ran off down the hallway. He managed to make to make it halfway to his destination when he heard Comfey gasp, "Null, is that you? Your helmet… it's…"

"Gone, I know. But who cares about that? My friends are hurt. You've got to heal them up. I'm begging you!"

Vaporeon heard the thumping of multiple bodies hitting the floor. Comfey's startled gasps made him resume walking. "Good gracious. What happened to you all?" she said.

"We were attacked," Null said. "Please save them."

"I'll see what I can do. But don't you want to someone to tend to your injuries, too?" Comfey asked.

"N-No… I have to go," Null whimpered.

"Are you sure? Because—"

Vaporeon jolted stiff. Null sprinted toward him, only to turn his face away. Vaporeon frowned. "H-Hey, hold up. I just want to ta—"

"Get away from me!" Null cried. He tucked his head into his chest and ran right past Vaporeon, leaving him standing there with a confused expression plastered on his face.

Avatar by Jordy (https://toonirl.tumblr.com/), personal commission.

Firebrand

Posts: 194

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Guiding Light (T) Apr 17, 2019 16:36:17 GMT

Post by Firebrand on Apr 17, 2019 16:36:17 GMT

So if I'm understanding right, Nicky came into the pokemon world as a Growlithe, and then became Golem's second test subject and was turned into Necrozma. The transition from the scene where Golem initiates the experiment to where Necrozma is looking into the "camera" and talking wasn't as pronounced as the other scene changes Porygon2 did, so at first I was a little confused, thinking that Necrozma was observing Golem's second experiment on the Growlithe human, who would have been a new character. I managed to put it together pretty quick, but it probably would be clearer to make "The projection faded to static" its own paragraph. Makes sense that Nicky wasn't always a Necrozma though. I was wondering how he'd lucked out so much on the pokemon-change lottery, but to have been artificially made into the superpowered heavyweight he is now clears up a lot of that.

That aside, some interesting stuff going on here. It seems like the lightless black that Golem was talking about in the previous chapter wasn't Necrozma like I had assumed, despite some similarities I picked up on. Unless there was an earlier Necrozma, but that seems unlikely given the circumstances of Necrozma's creation. It's been a while since I read over the actual passage in question, so I'm willing to bet that if I were to reread the previous chapter, I'd understand where I made that leap of logic with regards to the heart-eye organization. But it is expressly laid out that the new Solgaleo and Lunala are creations made by Nicky, though it's not totally clear if they're the ones we've seen previously in the fic or if those are the more ancient ones who "abandoned" the world. It seems like the originals were created by Ho-oh, but these new ones are made by Necrozma, so I guess both storytelling traditions are right. The creation of Necrozma as the giant black prism thing was some good body horror, really driving home the fact that it's this tortured, incomplete being, and helps to explain some of its weird design in canon, and why no one in-story associates Necrozma with the pantheon of gods, since it seems like his time among them as an actual god was rather brief.

And Null evolves! Well, sort of, as much as that line can evolve. He breaks his helmet at least, which means he's Silvaly now. I know from some excerpts that the rest of the team evolves eventually, but I sorta doubt it'll happen in this episode. Maybe in the next one. Still, the fight against the Unown was really cool, and another good measuring stick for how powerful Shane has become with his new abilities, and how much control he has over them. It's probably not as much of one as, say, the Espy/Umbry fight or the subsequent one against Prisma, especially since the focus isn't really on him, but I still remember when he was a coward getting his ass handed to him by mooks, and squaring off against a tripartite legendary pokemon without is a far cry from that.

I'm not sure how far Glyphic Falls is from Aeon Town, to be honest. I think it's fairly close, probably one of the closer dungeons on Horizon (closer than Moonrise Marsh, Aurora Vale, etc.), so I guess it's not beyond reason to assume Silvaly could hotfoot it all the way back to guild infirmary, even if the guild does have a base camp at the falls themselves. And why wouldn't Comfey be on the expedition as medic in residence? Probably not that important, and there might be an explanation in an earlier chapter I've forgotten, but that stuck out to me, especially with Silvaly's outburst in the infirmary. I guess I chalk that up to him not really being in control of his new body yet and being afraid of hurting someone? That last little scene was a bit muddled, since most of it was told via dialogue, and the perspective jumped around a couple times in just a few lines.

THE HALVARSAGA

THE AMAZING HAWLUCHA MAN

Ambyssin

Definitely a winter

Posts: 110

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Guiding Light (T) Jun 10, 2019 23:21:58 GMT

Post by Ambyssin on Jun 10, 2019 23:21:58 GMT

Firebrand : Yeah, you've got the sequence of events pegged. Nicky showed up as a Growlithe, was turned into a light dragon, but lost his mind when the process was reversed (albeit not successfully). My bad about the bad pacing stuff. I'm still not quite up to snuff.

And speaking of that, you might've noticed I haven't posted anything here in a while. That's because, if I'm being honest, I just have not been able to find the time (or energy) to sit down and do revisions to these chapters. At this rate, I'll never post chapters to this site, so I've made the executive decision to go ahead and start putting chapters up here, again. This does mean there will likely be a noticeable dip in writing quality compared to the last few chapters. I hope you're willing to put up with it, but if not, I understand. Maybe if I ever finish the fic, I'll be able to go back and make the changes that I want to.

XxX

Chapter 43: Gaining a Full-Powered Ally

~Aeon Observatory~

"Nnngghh… nuh… no!"

Tessa's eyes shot open and she sat up on an infirmary bed, aura feelers tensed. Her eyes darted about the room in a panic. "What the–? Wait, this is the Observatory. But how did we even get here? The last thing I remember was…" Images quickly flashed through her mind. She recalled the footage of Null attacking his creators. Then the screams of the second experiment as he demanded the return of his light. And finally, the Unown-created Entei blasting her teammates with Lava Plume. Tessa shuddered and threw her paws up to shoulders. 'How did we make it out of the Catacombs?' She stiffened. 'Wait a second.' She looked around the room, noting Shane and Espeon sleeping soundly on their own beds. 'What happened to Null?'

"Oh, good. You're up," Comfey said, floating into the room. "Your team gave me quite the scare… again. I swear, each day you guys keep getting closer and closer to getting hurt in ways I can't fix. What happened to you, anyway?"

"I…" Tessa shivered. "I don't want to talk about it." Her ears folded against her head and she whined softly. "But how did we get back here? Do you know?"

"Null dropped you off."

Tessa's aura feelers swung upward. "H… he did?" she squeaked.

"Yeah, but he ran away before I could ask him what had happened. Also, his mask was gone," Comfey said. "I saw a lot of feathers, but he wouldn't show me his face. And he seemed… really upset. Like, he was practically on the verge of tears. I've never seen him so shaken up. Whatever happened to your team, it hit him hard."

Tessa looked down at her lap. She started fidgeting with her paws. 'He's free of his mask? But then that would mean that he's…' She shuddered. 'No. I can't think like that. He brought us back here, didn't he?' She looked over to the window and gulped. 'But… what if he did that with the last of his willpower? He probably ran off because he knew he would end up attacking everyone if he just stayed.' She squeezed her eyes shut and grabbed hold of the bedsheets. 'What have I done? I'm the one who pushed him to start taking missions. Everything that went wrong today… it's all on me. I made Null realize just how much of a monster he really is.'

"Espy!"

Tessa's ear twitched at a holler accompanied by a chorus of footsteps. Umbreon sprinted into the infirmary, followed closely behind by Latias, Magearna, and Togedemaru. He spotted Espeon and darted over to her, a worried look on his face. Espeon woke up and Umbreon immediately embraced her. "Oh, Espy! You're okay. Thank gods, you're okay!" he blubbered, rubbing his head against her shoulder.

"Oof! Easy, Umbry. I'm… really sore," Espeon groaned, prompting Umbreon to back away. Umbreon rubbed his eyes with a forepaw and gently nuzzled Espeon. "Umbry," she whispered, "my psychic powers. They're… they're damaged. I can only use Psybeams."

Umbreon's eyes widened. Comfrey floated over between the two of them. "I'm afraid there's nothing I can do about it," she said. "I can't seem to identify what's damaged, so I don't know how to treat this."

Espeon whined softly. "I understand."

Umbreon frowned. "Espy, I'm so sorry. I should've insisted on going with your group," he said. "If I'd been there, then maybe–"

Espeon placed a forepaw on Umbreon's muzzle, quieting him. She slowly shook her head. "It wouldn't have made a difference, Umbry."

Tessa noticed that Shane had also woken up. He studied the two Eeveelutions, biting his lower lip. Shane spotted her staring and hastily looked away, a flush forming on his face. "Just what ended up happening to you guys, huh?" Togedemaru wondered.

"We fell into the Catacombs," Shane explained.

"No duh," Togedemaru scoffed. "I'm talking specifics. We need details here."

In response to this, Espeon said, "You were right, Latias."

Latias' ears twitched. "What do you mean by that?"

"I… I… Null…" She shot a despondent look toward Shane. He stared back at her in confusion. She lowered her head. "Maybe it's just best if you see it for yourself."

Latias' snout stiffened. "You're letting me read your mind?"

"Yes. And project it for everyone else, too. I'm afraid words can't do this justice," Espeon said.

Tessa's eyes widened and her aura feelers tensed. "No, wait! Don't–"

But she wasn't fast enough on the draw. Latias' eyes glowed blue. In an instant, the entire room transformed into the cavern. Through Espeon's eyes, the assembled Pokémon watched as the events in the Catacombs played out like a video put on fast-forward. Tessa squealed in fright and lay back down on her bed. She threw the covers up over her body, trying to hide from the images.

The glow faded from Latias' eyes and the room returned to normal. Silence hung over the room. Latias eventually broke it by whispering, "So, Null's even more of an amalgamation than his appearance lets on. I can't believe it."

The Horizon legends… are incorrect? Magearna muttered, her mechanical eyes slowly blinking. She looked away from the group.

"Hey, Riolu, are you doing okay?" Umbreon wondered.

"No, I'm not okay!" Tessa whimpered from beneath the covers. "You saw it for yourselves. Null realized he's a savage beast. And that happened because I dragged him to the place that made him what he is now." She shivered violently. "The mask's gone, so he ran off! Because he knew he couldn't control himself. Now he's gone... and there's nothing I can do to bring him back!"

Shane's tails crinkled in fright. "His mask's gone? How? When? Why?" He looked about the room in a panic. "Where'd he run off to, then?"

"I'm not sure," Comfey said. "He dropped you three off and ran out of the guild."

"In-deed-illy-deed, babe!" Primarina said as he hopped into the room. "That big fella gave the ol' ticker a start when he came flying down the stairs, carrying you three on his back. He ran back out of the guild like the place was going up in smoke. He was really booking it, babe." He looked at Serperior, who nodded her agreement.

"I don't get it. Does that mean he's just gone… forever?" Shane asked. "You guys saw it for yourselves. None of this is his fault." His ears drooped. "I feel so awful for everything I've said to him. Am I really never gonna get the chance to apologize?"

"Um… guys?" Milotic said as she slithered into the room. She dropped a looplet, a silver explorer's badge, and the Lunar Wing to the floor. Shane's eyes widened in recognition. "Those are all Null's! But then that means…"

"… he's gone," Milotic confirmed. "And it doesn't look like he wants to come back."

Under her bed covers, Tessa winced. 'No. I really am right, then. Null's gone berserk again. And so, he left us all behind before the voices could drive him completely crazy.' She squeezed her eyes shut and pull the covers tight against her body.

"Comfey, if you wouldn't mind, I'd like to give these three a little boost," Latias offered, floating forward. Comfey nodded her approval. A pink glow encased Latias' body. She pointed a paw at Shane and shot a small, multicolored beam at him. It struck Shane, and he felt all his soreness and fatigue wash away. She repeated the gesture with Tessa, despite the fact that she still lay under the covers.

She then turned to Espeon, who stopped her, saying, "I can handle it myself, Latias." She sat up and bathed herself in the gentle glow of Morning Sun. Then she shook out her fur and hopped off of the bed. She stretched out her hind legs and tail, and then slowly walked up to Latias alongside Umbreon.

"So, now what do we do?" Shane asked, sliding off his bed. He looked over toward Tessa, and still saw a lump underneath white blankets.

"Well, I can sense the other guild members returning," Latias announced. "So, maybe we should take the opportunity to bring them up to speed on what's happened?"

"Oh… yeah. I guess so," Shane muttered. He took one last look back at Tessa and, seeing she had no intention of following him, trudged out of the infirmary. He found Metagross, Braviary, and the other guild members on the expedition waiting in the assembly area. Latias, Espeon, and Umbreon immediately went up to greet them.

Shane tried to follow them, only for a raggedy cloth to move in his path. "Ah! Mi-Mimikyu," Shane stammered, nearly toppling into the ghost.

"Oops. Sorry, Shane. I should've watched where I was walking," Mimikyu apologized. "Please don't get mad at me."

"It's fine, dude," Shane dismissed. "But I think I should go talk to the others." He tried to avoid letting Mimikyu see him glancing nervously at Metagross and Braviary.

"Right, right, of course." Mimikyu scuttled to the side. "I'm just glad you and your friends are okay. We got so worried when we heard what happened." His disguise's head fell forward. "But nobody would let me run off to try and help you."

"Well, it's in the past now," Shane said. "We'll talk later or something, okay?"

"Oh-okay," Mimikyu stammered, nodding slowly. Shane sidestepped the ghost-type and walked forward, joining the rest of the guild.

Understood, Metagross declared, nodding slowly. He locked eyes with Shane, who immediately stiffened.

"Did… did you guys cut the expedition short because of us?" Shane muttered, pawing guiltily at the ground.

Affirmative, Metagross replied. Fact: we found the information that we needed.

Shane's ears perked up. "Wait, you did? So, you know how to contact the Tapus?"

"I reckon we do," Braviary replied. "We managed to find some old runes in one of the caves we visited."

Magearna nodded. Yes, as the Guildmaster just relaytiated to me, there are two ways to gain access to a Tapu's temple. The first is to offer up a gift.

Shane gulped. "You mean… like a sacrifice?" He looked nervously at Metagross, who returned the look with his typical neutral expression.

Magearna shook her head. Gracious, no. Whatever would give you that idea?

"Err… nothing," Shane lied. "Forget I said anything. Continue."

The gift is a Tapumera, Magearna said. It's a special emera that you need to synthesize using very specific types of stardust, mixed together with a powerful spell.

Fact: I have memorized the necessary components. Fact: we have sufficient materials to make one Tapumera. Fact: I have dispatched Yungoos, Trapinch and Growlithe to locate ingredients to make more of them, Metagross announced.

"Does that mean you're going to need my help to make the emera, Magearna, dahling?" Bruxish asked. "I'm haaaaaaappy to lend a fin or two."

Yes, that would be most beneficiary, Magearna exclaimed. She turned back to Shane. There is another way, of course. And it's one that your team can take advantage of. She pointed an arm toward Shane's looplet. If you have a Naturia Looplet giftilated to you by one of the Tapus, you can request access to any of their temples, since they've judged you a worthy Pokémon.

Shane glanced down at his looplet. The embedded gemstone sparkled in the glow of the guild's light fixtures. "Which means that you guys are going to need me to help you find these temples," he said, looking cautiously at Braviary.

Correct, Metagross replied. Fact: time is needed to synthesize Tapumeras. Conclusion: you will return to Aurora Vale and attempt to locate the Temple of Mind. Fact: it is Tapu Lele's domain.

"And Zero thinks Tapu Lele is the one holding the Dawn Hourglass," Umbreon reminded Shane.

Shane's ears fell flat against his face. "Do we need to go right this second?" He glanced back toward the north hallway. "My teammates are not exactly in the right frame of mind to track down a Tapu."

Metagross gave Shane an unamused look. "Err, Guildmaster?" Braviary waved a wing in front of his face. "If'n I may? The sun's setting, and with the state that Aurora Vale's in, I imagine even the both of us would be hard-pressed to try and find the Temple of Mind in the dark. I think we need to take the time to rest up, so we're at our fighting best."

Shane sighed in relief. "Yeah. Not to mention, that gives you the time to synthesize enough Tapumeras to send guild members to the other temples," Latias added. "Even if the Prism Virus is currently after Tapu Lele, we really should try to warn the other Land Spirits about what's happened."

"Say, if you're a Legendary, why can't you just get the Tapus to open their temples, huh?" Togedemaru asked. "I thought all you gods were, like, tight-knit and stuff."

"O-Oh, well…" Latias fidgeted with her paws. "It's, um, it's not really that simple. I mean, I'm a Legendary, but… I'm not a god or anything. I'm more like, uh, a lesser Legendary, or something."

"So, what you're saying is, you don't deserve the title, huh?" Togedemaru scoffed. "Guess the Expedition Society isn't as worried about us as we thought."

"Hey!" Shane huffed, stepping in front of Togedemaru. "Lay off her. She's generously offering to help us. So what if she can't get the Tapus to open their temples? We'll take whatever help we can get."

"It's… it's okay…" Latias squeaked, waving Shane off. She looked at Togedemaru. "You have to understand that not all Legendaries are created equal. Some of us are much more like you. Our lifespans are finite, and we can't wield the same degree of raw power as gods. But, I still live here. And I want to do whatever I can to help."

"Actually, I think I could really use your help right now," Shane said. "We need to find Null. Comfey told us that he dropped us off at the guild and then ran away."

Latias stiffened. "But she also said his mask came off." She started to fidget with her flight goggles. "You… you do know that I'm the type of Pokémon that he was designed to kill, right?"

"I didn't say you needed to come with me," Shane elaborated. "You're a powerful psychic. And so are Metagross and Espeon. So–"

"Ahem, forgetting someone, daaaahling?"

Shane let out a nervous laugh. "Aha ha ha… and Bruxish, too. I'll bet if you four put your heads together, you'd be able to find Null."

Fact: my previous attempts to sense Null's life force have been unsuccessful, Metagross said, glaring at Shane.

"Because his mask was jamming your ESP," Shane retorted. "If he has no mask, you should be able to sense him, right? Please, just try it for me. I…" He looked down at the floor. "I don't want to lose my teammate like this. Not without trying to help him. Especially since he just saved my life."

"Okay," Latias said. "I'll do my best." Her face scrunched up as she concentrated. A tense silence gripped the room while Latias proceeded with her psychic scan. But to Shane's surprise, her facial features softened quickly. She wore a bewildered expression her face.

"Well?" he asked.

"I got something," she whispered. "It doesn't look like Null went very far. I sensed this peculiar energy in the forest on the outskirts of town."

Metagross shut his eyes at mention of this. He slowly nodded. "Peculiar in what way?" Braviary asked.

"It's um… it's kind of tough to explain," Latias mumbled. "But unlike aura reading, where things are seen in lay lines and blue flames of various intensities, sensing life forces involves swathes of color. I can usually tell what kind of Pokémon I'm sensing by the colors I visualize and how bright they are in my mind's eye." She frowned. "But Null's energy — if it is his — looks like a small, rainbow ball."

"That actually makes sense," Espeon piped up. "In the footage we saw, Null's creators said they wanted him to be able to change his typing at will. In which case, you'd expect his spirit to have a little bit of every type mingled together."

"Good enough for me," Shane said. "Where exactly did you think you sensed him?"

"Um, off to the west. Not too far off the path that leads to Sunrise Village, I suppose," Latias replied.

"Great. Then I'll go tell Tessa and we can take off after him," Shane said, jogging back down to the infirmary. His pace slowed to a trot as he saw Tessa still lay beneath the covers. Shane's muzzle stiffened. "Hey, uh, Tessa?" He scratched the back of his neck with a paw. "Um, we think we know where Null ran off to. So, I was, y'know, thinking that maybe we should go try to bring him back here… together."

He saw movement underneath the covers. "Forget it," Tessa mumbled, sliding away from her teammate.

Shane frowned. "But Null's your best friend," he reminded her. "He needs you right now."

"No, he doesn't," Tessa tersely replied. "I can't help him. There's nothing I can do. Don't you get it? He ran off because he knows he's going crazy. Look, he left all his stuff behind. And you saw that footage. He's… he's vicious without his mask! I was able to stop him back in Moonrise Marsh, but I don't think I could do it again. That's why I was trying to take some time to think back in the Catacombs. I needed to figure something out. But I couldn't. And now it's hopeless."

Shane's shoulders slumped. He took a deep breath, walked up to Tessa's bed, and yanked the covers off with his mouth. "Hey!" Tessa squealed, lunging for the covers. She managed to grab them before Shane could drop them to the floor. "I'm cold. Give those back," she growled, tugging on the bedsheets. Shane lurched forward, but maintained his grip. He dug his paws into the ground.

"No," he replied, linens muffling his voice. "He's our teammate. We can't just give up on him."

"Yes, we can," Tessa countered, giving the bedsheets another tug. Shane struck the edge of the bed and dropped the sheets. Tessa hoisted them back onto the bed and threw them up over her body. Shane's brow furrowed and he stomped over beside her. He jumped onto the bed and yanked the covers off once again. Tessa glared at him. "I said I'm not going," she barked.

"I can't believe you're acting like this," he said. "You're the one who's defended him all this time. You've stood by him while the rest of the guild gave him the cold shoulder." He lowered his head. "And while I bullied him."

"It's a little late to be forming a guilty conscience about all of this, don't you think?" Tessa huffed. "And none of that matters. Because… because he's not the Pokémon I grew close to. Not anymore. My friend's gone. He's buried deep underground… with his mask."

"But you're basing that off what you saw in the recordings," Shane claimed. "You don't know for a fact he isn't still the same Null you've grown so close to. What's wrong? Why have you suddenly turned against him like this?"

"Because I'm scared, okay?!" Tessa blurted out. She grabbed hold of a nearby pillow and squeezed it against her face. "And confused. I saw him eviscerate his creators. All that blood on his body just… just freaked me out." She started shivering. "I thought… I thought what he did in Moonrise Marsh was a fluke. A one-time issue. I wanted to think of a way to save him in the Catacombs, but it's not possible! He's gone berserk again and we don't have a plan to fix it. If we try to help him, I'm worried he'll attack me." She dug her face into the pillow. "So, go on. Say it. I'm a selfish coward. And a sucky friend. It's not going to make me change my mind."

But, rather than doing that, Shane lay down beside his partner. "Tessa," he whispered.

"Please don't call me that!" she squealed, making Shane wince.

"Riolu." He put a forepaw on her back and started to rub it. "I understand. This all scares me too. But, I still think we need to help him."

"How can you say that?" she blubbered. "He tried to kill you."

"I know. But I see now that it really wasn't his fault," Shane muttered. "Plus, he just saved my life. Both our lives, technically. Not to mention, he was there for both of us when we were at our worst after that disciplinary assignment." He gently lowered the pillow from Tessa's face and met her tearful gaze. "Now, Null's at his lowest point. Don't you think we owe it to him to try and help?" Tessa tensed up. Shane leaned in toward her. "Come on, Riolu. Do you mean to tell me that, after everything that's happened — after how you said you feel so lonely and unloved — you're really going to let your best friend walk out of your life?" He put a paw on her shoulder. "If your dad were still here, what would he do?"

Tessa squeezed her pillow harder. Shane held his breath, fearing he'd against stepped over the line. But, to his relief, Tessa slowly nodded. "You're right. Null never gave up on us. So, I need to try and get him back."

A smile crossed Shane's muzzle. "Then what are we waiting for? We've got a friend to help."

XxX

~Aeon Town~

"You know, it probably would've been a good idea to try and get a more specific location from Latias," Shane sighed, looking over at the forest. "Everything looks the same. Just trees and rocks, and more trees and rocks. Oh, and leaves. Lots of leaves."

Crunch!

Leaves crinkled and made Shane's ears twitch. "Look," he gasped, "over there." He pointed a forepaw forward, just in time for Tessa to see a blur dart between the trees. A nearby bush rustled.

"That's gotta be him. C'mon," Tessa said, running into the forest. Shane trotted after her, weaving his way through the tree roots. "Null. Null, it's us! Come on out. We just want to talk to you."

"Nuh… no!"

Tessa stopped and threw an arm up. Shane stopped right next to her. She pointed ahead of them. Shane spotted Null lying in the middle of the forest, head and neck buried in a thick bush. His torso and tail stuck out, like he was doing a poor ostrich imitation. "Null, pull your head out of there. You look ridiculous," Shane said.

"Go away," Null whimpered, trying to push himself deeper inside the bush, to no avail. "I can't control myself anymore." Shane noted that his voice sounded much higher-pitched now, but something still seemed to muffle his speech.

"We know, Null," Tessa whispered, stepping forward. The crinkling leaves caused Null to tense up.

"Please don't come closer!" he begged.

His body lurched violently. "What are you waiting for? There are no more restraints. Attack them! Destroy them!" Null dug his legs into the ground, shivering.

"We're not about to leave you out here, dude. You're our teammate," Shane said. "We're worried about you."

"Don't be. I'm not… strong enough… to stop them!" Null squawked, trying to push himself further into the bush. "I remember everything. The voices are so loud now. It's… it's taking every ounce of strength not to lash out. Please," he croaked, "save yourselves. Run away!"

He slashed through some of the bush's leaves and hissed, "No… stay! Stay and let us kill you. We want you dead, beast! We—"

Tessa stepped forward and shoved Null's Lunar Wing against his right flank. Null initially stiffened, before the rise and fall of his chest slowed. He slid down onto his stomach and, in the process, his head slid out of the bush. To Tessa's surprise, an oversized, raggedy towel sat atop Null's head, covering his face. "Feeling better?" Tessa whispered.

"A little," Null muttered.

"What's with the rag?" Shane asked. "If you're trying to do a Mimikyu impression, it's not really working." Tessa gave him an incredulous look. "Sorry. I thought I could lighten the mood a bit," he sighed. "Guess not."

"Why did you come for me?" Null mumbled. "You saw the footage." He took in a shuddering breath. "I'm no Pokémon. I'm a monster. A freak! I… I…" They watched Null dig his talons into the dirt. To their surprise, he let out a squeak, his voice cracking. "I don't want to be a killer. I don't want to hurt anyone." He lowered his head to the ground, brushing the rag against the soil. "But the voices… they're so awful. They're so angry." He brought his talons up against the rag. "I can't keep them at bay. Now that the mask's gone, I can't force them back anymore. The spirits inside me… they were not good Pokémon. Their memories… I can't get them out of my head." Null squeaked again. "I can't believe I'm saying this… but I wish I had the helmet back. I'd rather be in physical pain then have to deal with this."

"Don't say that," Tessa scolded, placing a paw on his hip. Null whined loudly. "Null, you're—" She abruptly cut herself off, making Null tense up. Tessa took in a deep breath, and continued, "Null, I have something I need to confess. At first… I didn't want to try and find you." Null winced and Shane shot Tessa a concerned look. "But," she said, rubbing his hind leg, "Shane reminded me of the good that you've done for me. You've done good for both of us. I'm sure you realize that."

"But I tried to kill you, Shane," Null blubbered.

"I know. That was— no, is still lingering in my mind," Shane said. "And, yeah, I do get very nervous around you. But after the stuff we saw down in the Catacombs, I realize I can't blame you for it. If I was in your situation, things would've probably gone the exact same way. And Riolu's right, you've been doing good as part of the guild. A monster wouldn't be there to comfort a miserable Riolu when she's suffering. A monster wouldn't have saved us from those Unown." He inched closer to Null. "You're a good Pokémon at heart, Null. And yes, I do mean Pokémon."

Null shuffled away from them. "You're just saying that to make me feel better. I'm not a real Pokémon and I never will be. I'm just a sorry mish-mash… a failed attempt at an Arceus clone." He shook his head. "Do the folks at the guild know?"

"Yes," Tessa replied glumly.

"Then it's worthless," Null said, pulling his forelegs up on top of his rag-covered head. "I can't go back there. How am I supposed to look any of them in the eye, huh?"

Tessa bit her lip and withdrew her paw. "W-Well… um… that is…" She failed to think of a response to him.

"Null," Shane spoke up. "I know this looks really bad. But, I want to share something with you." Null stopped squirming and turned his head to face Shane. His eyes glowed from beneath the rag. "It's, um, a quote. From something Pokémon-related back in the human world."

"But I thought Pokémon weren't real in your world?" Null whimpered.

"Err, yeah, I mean that's true, but…" Shane bit his lower lip. "Look, just hear me out, okay? I really think it applies to your situation."

"… fine," Null said. "What is it?"

Shane took a deep breath, and then recited off memory, "The circumstances of one's birth are irrelevant. It is what you do with the gift of life that determines who you are."

Silence fell over the trio. Tessa gave Shane a bewildered look, while Null appeared to shift his gaze to look at the ground. "Who said that?" he asked.

"Mewtwo," Shane replied. "In my world, he was created in a laboratory, as a clone of Mew. He was designed to be an incredibly powerful battler. Sound familiar?"

"Y… yes…" Null rasped.

"Now, I don't think the Mewtwo in this world has the same origin. But, I think what he said applies here," Shane said. "Are you really going to let Golem and his horrible flunkies dictate what you do with your life? Are you going to give into all the angry voices in your head?" Null met his gaze once again. "Or are you going to show the world that you're not just some tool? That you can rise above what you were created for… and become a force that inspires hope?" Shane stepped back and shook his head. "That… probably sounded really sappy, didn't it?" His ears folded against his head. "I'm sorry, guys. I'm not too good at motivational speeches."

To the duo's surprise, Null lumbered to his feet. The two of them thought they heard a soft whine and exchanged nervous looks. "You guys…" Null hiccuped. His teammates' ears twitched. He slowly pivoted around, facing them. "You really mean it? You want me to stay on the team, even after all that stuff you saw?"

Tessa stepped forward. Slowly, she brought her paw up to clasp the rag over Null's face. "You're our friend, Null. And you've gotten us through some really tough times. We're not about to let you slip through the cracks." Tessa gingerly pulled the rag away from Null's face, whispering, "Team Radiance needs you."

Null tucked his chin against his neck, allowing the rest of the rag to fall away. And, for the first time, Tessa and Shane were truly able to look their teammate right in the eyes. His silver, watery eyes. "I get it," he whispered. "It's like you guys said on Riolu's hatch day."

Shane picked up on Null's cue. He stuck a forepaw forward, saying "Through darkest night…"

Tessa added her paw and said, "… and brightest day…"

Null put his talons on top of his friends' paws and finished, "… Team Radiance always finds a way." He shut his eyes, tears streaming down them, and leaned forward. He brushed his torso up against his teammates and craned his head and neck down, nuzzling the two of them. Shane and Tessa both returned the embrace.

"Thank you," he whispered, "for everything." They kept the embrace for a moment, before Null stepped back. He bent down, picked up the Lunar Wing in his beak, and nestled it in the feathers on his chest plume.

"How are you feeling?" Shane asked.

Null a took a deep breath. "… okay," he replied. "I'm… I'm okay." He titled his head upward. Slowly, Null made his way out of the forest, with Shane and Tessa following him. He walked onto the grass and that sat down, craning his neck up toward the afternoon sun. Warm sunlight spilled over his face. Null sat there, humming as his tail swished back and forth through the grass.

"So, this is what it feels like," he said.

"What do you mean?" Tessa asked.

"Having the sun shining down on you. And soaking up the rays with your face," Null continued. "This is the first time I've ever felt something like this."

Shane cocked an eyebrow. "And?"

Null's beak opened in a smile. "I like it," he trilled. He flopped over onto his side and started rubbing his face against the grass. "It tickles!" he squeaked, rolling across the grass until he lay in front of Tessa's feet.

'Gee… how very, uh, dog,' Shane mused, keeping that thought to himself.

"You seem to be in better spirits," Tessa noted.

"I think I am," Null said, sitting back up. "I feel so much lighter. So… full of energy!" He sprang up to his feet, earning a confused look from Tessa.

"What are you doing?" she asked.

In response, Null reached out, and bopped the tip of Tessa's snout with his beak. Her eyes widened. "I've always wanted to do that," Null confessed, stifling a giggle. "Oh, by the way, I think the phrase is, 'tag, you're it!'"

"Wait, what?" Tessa gasped, but Null turned and sprinted away. "Hey… hey! You can't just call an impromptu game of tag like that. We've gotta agree on the rules first! Back me up here, Shane." She looked over to her side, only to see that Shane had turned tail and ran away from her, laughing. She narrowed her eyes. "Oh, so that's how it is, huh? Fine. I'm going for you first!" She stuck her arms out by her sides and sprinted after Shane.

Across the grass, Null trotted to a stop, watching Tessa close the gap as Shane reached a dead end. Shane tried to get around Tessa by faking going to his right and then juking left. But he got tripped up in the process. A triumphant Tessa stood over him. She knelt down and tapped him on the shoulder, saying, "Tag." She turned and ran away laughing. But Shane quickly got to his feet. He coated the grass in a layer of ice and slid onto his belly.

Null's eyes widened as Shane bowled into Tessa from behind, upending her and making her fall onto the grass. Shane spun to a stop by Null, his eyes swirling about in his sockets. "Oooooog. Did I get her?" he groaned.

"You sure did," Null said. He ran over to Tessa, his face ripe with worry. "Are you okay? That looked like it stung." He looked down at Tessa, but she didn't respond. "Riolu? Riolu?" Null called, leaning down to get a closer look. "Say something. Anything!"

A blue paw reached up and tapped edge of Null's beak. "Okay, how about, 'tag, you're it?'"

Null's jaw dropped and Tessa used the opportunity to roll away from him. She stumbled to her feet but didn't make it very far before Null playfully tackled her from behind. They rolled across the grass, bursting into laughter as they came to a stop. Shane shook his head at the sight. 'Who would've thought this would be how our day ended up?' A smile crept onto his lips as he watched Null nuzzle Tessa's cheek. 'But I'm glad they were able to work things out. They both seem so much happier. And Tessa could really use something positive in her life right now.'

"It looks like you're feeling much better, Null."

All three members of Team Radiance turned and stood at attention as Latias materialized behind them. Espeon and Umbreon also walked in from the nearby trail. "I hope you don't mind us interrupting. It was starting to get kind of late, and we were getting worried," Latias said.

"It's no big deal," Shane dismissed.

"How did she just appear like that?" Tessa gasped, her aura feelers pulsating wildly.

Both Shane and Latias opened their mouths in unison, only for Null to cut them off, saying, "Latias can use her down to turn invisible."

"How do you know that?" Shane and Latias asked simultaneously. Latias turned her confused look on Shane.

Null's brow furrowed. "I don't know. I just do," he replied. "Maybe it's because I, y'know…" He sheepishly picked at the dirt with his talons. "… needed to know that in order to kill her." Null noticed Latias' feathers prickle. "Buh-but that's not me. I don't want to do that stuff. I look okay to you, right?"

"Yes," Latias muttered. "And, um, you seem pretty lucid." Null nodded. "So, um, I have something here for you." Latias pulled the Memory Looplet out from her satchel.

Null's eyes widened in recognition. "Ah… that's my looplet! That's the one Golem made for me."

"I know," Latias said. "This is what Team Captivate found in the Nocturnus Catacombs. I took it back to the Expedition Society, where Mawile's been researching it extensively." She gently set the looplet on the ground. "Based on her investigating, she put this together." Latias pulled out the stack of pages and floated it over toward Team Radiance.

Shane glanced at the top page and his jaw dropped. "Everything You Always Wanted to Know About the RKS System (But Were Afraid to Ask)? Are you serious, here?"

"Very," Latias replied. "That's what Null's ability is called, according to the papers Mawile uncovered. Why, something wrong?"

"Nuh-no. Of course not!" Shane said. Blood rushed into his face and stepped away from his teammates. "So, what, you want to put the looplet on him and see what happens? Be my guest."

Null shot a nervous glance at the looplet. "Why didn't Team Captivate say anything to me about this?"

Latias scratched the back of her neck. "Ah, well, that's probably my fault. I may have intentionally made it a bit difficult for them to believe your, y'know, unique origins."

"Alternatively, they were just scared of how you'd react," Umbreon added. Tessa gave him a nasty look, to which Umbreon raised a forepaw up innocently. "What? I'm sure we were all thinking it."

"It's okay," Null said. He looked back down at the looplet. "Are you sure this is safe to try?"

"Well, not really," Latias conceded, drawing panicked expressions from the other Pokémon present. "But I have an idea," she hastily added, floating closer to Null. "If I could just see that Lunar Wing of yours for a second."

Null glanced at the feather, and then cautiously plucked it up with his beak and presented it to Latias. His tensed up and his talons dug into the dirt as Latias took the Lunar Wing and the Memory Looplet. She brought them close together and, to everyone's shock, breathed out a small, quick stream of dragonfire.

"Are you nuts?" Shane cried. "You're going to break them both!"

Latias ended the attack and encased the items in a psychic bubble with some lingering dragonfire. She shut her eyes and concentrated. The others looked on in confusion as the bubble's contents seemed to pulsate and swirl around. After a couple of minutes, Latias broke the bubble and dispelled the dragonfire. The looplet floated in the air, completely unharmed. However, the metal banding and Arceus-like wheel were now gold-plated. Latias levitated the Memory Looplet over to Null.

"What did you do?" he asked.

"I welded the Lunar Wing into the looplet," Latias explained. "From what I saw in Espeon's memories, you went berserk because of this thing. But the Lunar Wing has a calming effect on you. I figured that, if I could incorporate its psychic energy into the very essence of the looplet, you might be able to use it successfully."

Null blinked. "Right," he whispered. He lifted up his right foreleg. Latias took a deep breath and cautiously slid the Memory Looplet onto his limb. Null watched it move up and clamped his beak shut as it brushed against his fur. The moment it reached a point where it snugly surrounded his leg, his entire body went rigid.

Tessa's aura feelers shot into the air and she backed away. "Null? Are… are you okay?"

Latias' face blanched. "Come on, Null. It's okay. Deep breaths. You… you're alright." But she was starting to float away, readying herself for a hasty retreat.

Tessa abruptly leaped to Null's side. She put her paws against his leg and rubbed it. "It's going to be okay," she whispered.

"Guys, look," Shane said, pointing his forepaw at Null. "His eyes are changing color." Everyone looked up at Null's face, watching his irises shift from white to blue. And then again to red. And then again to green.

"Null, are you feeling alright?" Tessa asked. Null didn't respond. He remained still as his eyes cycled through multiple different colors. Everyone stood in silence, until Null's eyes regained their white coloration.

Then, to their surprise, Null declared in monotone, "Biolink established. RKS System online." He blinked a few times and then shook his head about. "Unnnngh… w-what happened?" he groaned, lowering his head and brushing his feathers with his talons.

"We were hoping you could tell us," Espeon said. "Your eyes were changing color there."

"They were?" Null gasped. He looked down at the Memory Looplet, and noticed the gems embedded in the golden wheel now sparkled with a rainbow glow.

"It's in the instructions," Umbreon exclaimed, looking down at the stack of papers. "Says here, 'The RKS System enables the God Killer to alter its typing as it sees fit. All it needs to do is think of which type it wants to assume. The Memory Looplet reads its thoughts, and uses the life energy stored in it to do the necessary type conversion. Certain energy-based parts of the God Killer's body will reflect the type changes.'"

Null looked down at the looplet. "Hmm… lemme try something, then." His brow furrowed and then, to everyone's surprise, a change occurred. His eyes, tail membrane, cheek bolts, and energy blades all turned a bright shade of blue.

"Whoa!" Shane jumped back. "Are you sure you should be doing that?"

In response to this. Null tensed up. The blue coloration across his body shifted to red. Null darted forward. Golden energy emerged around his torso in a wheel shape that matched the looplet. The energy raced around his body, until it gathered around his forelegs, where it suddenly erupted, setting his forelegs ablaze. Null raised his talons and slashed a nearby tree. Burning chunks of wood exploded out in all directions.

Everyone's eyes widened at the sight. Null looked down at his flaming talons. His tail started wagging. "I think I could get used to this," he chirped. "I mean, it's a little weird. When I change, I have all these memories of different fire-type Pokémon running around in my head. Like, I saw a Magcargo bathing in a lava bath. And a Pyroar pushing a Luxray off of a cliff." He shuddered. "But it's not like when the voices were there." He lowered his talons and tensed up again. But nothing happened, drawing a confused look from Null. "Hey, why can't I become a water-type again?"

Umbreon flipped through the pages and pressed a forepaw down on one, "According to this, if you change out of a certain type, there's a bit of a cooldown period before you can change back to it. Otherwise, you might overload the looplet."

Null nodded. "Is there anything else I should know?" he asked.

"Mawile managed to add emera slots into the looplet," Latias exclaimed. "There are only three of them. But hopefully you'll manage to put them to good use."

Null examined the notches in the looplet's band. "Well, we kind of lost a lot of our items, but we stored our emeras at Dhelmise Depot. I'm sure we can find a good combination," Tessa declared, giving her friend a reassuring smile.

"And I'll get these instructions back to the guild for your guys," Umbreon offered, "so you can look them over later." He and Espeon scooped the papers up and started to make their way back toward the road.

"Yeah, it's getting late. Probably best to start heading back," Latias declared, letting out a yawn. "I'm king of running on fumes here." She slowly floated off after Espeon and Umbreon.

"I guess we should follow them, huh?" Null said.

"Hang on. There's still one more thing we need to take care of," Shane said, drawing confused looks from his teammates. "You need a name," he said.

"A… name?" Null parroted.

"Of course," Shane replied. "You said it yourself. The Guildmaster just labeled you Null because he had no idea what you were supposed to be. But now we know. And you're free of that restraining mask. I don't think it's fair to keep going around calling you that. You deserve something better!"

Null blinked. "But, what should I call myself?"

Shane pursed his lips. While his idea sounded good, he clearly lacked the foresight to think up any ideas. "Um, well, I guess we'd need to have a quick brainstorming session." He started pacing back and forth. "How about Buddy? You look like a dog. In the human world, dogs are man's best friend. And you don't want to hurt people, so it sounds very friendly!"

Null shook his head. "Sorry, that seems rather silly."

"Okay, well there are lots of other great dog names. Like Rex, Baxter, Spot, Jackson, Archie, or my personal favorite, Barkley!" Shane grinned at his teammates, who stared back at him in surprise. "Err... I think I got carried away again."

"I'll say," Tessa said. "None of those sound like what you'd call a Pokémon."

"What about something cool, then? Like… like… Razorclaw!" Shane pointed at Null's talons. "Or how about–"

"What about Silvally?" Tessa offered.

Shane shot Tessa a confused look. "You can't be serious. Now that's a silly name. It kind of sounds like putty. Y'know, that slime-like stuff you can play around with?"

Tessa shrugged. "I mean, he looks pretty silver to me now that the mask is gone. And he wants to be the opposite of an enemy to all Legendaries, and that'd be an ally. So, yeah, I just kind of mashed them together." She scratched the back of her head. "I know it sounds stupid, but–"

"I like it!" their teammate chirped. "Yeah… Silvally. Silvally! Silvally!" he repeated the name several times, before proceeding to hop about in a circle, tail wagging excitedly. "That's me," he said, planting his forelegs in the ground and puffing his chest out.

'Talk about a 180 in personality,' Shane thought. "Okay then. Silvally it is."

"Alright!" he cheered. He looked at Tessa. "Hey, race you back to the Observatory." He started jogging in place.

A broad smile appeared on Tessa's face. "Oh, you're so going down!" she declared, and broke into a run.

"Hey, I never said 'go!'" Silvally cawed, and bounded after her.

"You never set any rules," Tessa called back with a laugh.

Shane watched the two of them round a bend in the forest to rejoin the road. 'They seem really happy now. Thank goodness.' But as he heard their footsteps retreat, his smile slowly started to fade. He looked down at the ground, and his ears and tail drooped. 'So, why do I have this awful, sinking feeling in my stomach about Silvally?' He started walking off toward the road, furrowing his brow as he tried to reason out the cause. 'He seems to be under control. And he's got the RKS System working, from what it looks like. What's the problem, then? Am I just being paranoid, like with Lycanroc?'

As he approached the edge of Aeon Town, he abruptly stopped. Distorted black cubes filled up his field of vision, erasing Aeon Town. Flames washed away the cubes and a pair of blue eyes appeared in the center, looking right back at Shane. A hole appeared in the wall of fire, showing a Dusknoir getting dragged through a wormhole by a pair of lanky green arms. The flames circled around the sight and vanished, leaving Shane standing atop the hill overlooking the town.

'Wait. An older, more-experienced Pokémon is working with two kids. He has lightning-fast reflexes and powerful attacks at his disposal. And he's been displaced from the time he's originally from…' His eyes widened and his muzzle fell agape. 'Oh my god, he's not just some random coincidence. I'll bet he's our Grovyle. And that means… no matter what we try, we're gonna lose him!'

Shane's legs locked up and his gaze fell back to the ground. The soil beneath him swirled around in circles, until he found himself staring at the armored face of Solgaleo's imposter.

"Heeheehee… yes, exactly! One by one, those fakers will disappear, until you realize that your one and only friend is me… Necrozma!"

Shane's heart skipped a beat. He slammed his eyes shut and sprinted down the hill, whimpering loudly.

End of Episode 9

Avatar by Jordy (https://toonirl.tumblr.com/), personal commission.

Firebrand

Posts: 194

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Guiding Light (T) Jun 14, 2019 15:12:42 GMT

Post by Firebrand on Jun 14, 2019 15:12:42 GMT

She stuck her arms out by her sides and sprinted after Shane.

So Tessa Naruto-runs, huh?

Nice to see this episode all wrapped up, and ending with the team back together again and getting along. The way the RKS system works is pretty inventive, and it's a good adaptation of a highly technological system to the setting's more magitek rules. The small note about Silvally getting a ring of golden light around him when he uses Multi-Attack is a nice touch, one that I'm pretty sure isn't present in the games (maybe it is in the anime, although when this was written had Silvally even shown up yet?)

At the start of the chapter, I felt like Tessa had picked up the whiney jerk ball that Shane has mostly put down. She got better by the end of the chapter, but I still feel like she's the weakest link on the team, and most of the time she's around she's just complicating things for other characters just for the sake of being difficult. Here's hoping she grows out of that a bit and goes back to being "the level headed one" in the next few chapters, especially since it's likely she'll be evolving (and possibly maturing along with that) in the next episode. I still remember there was a quick exchange saying that a Tapu could overload a Riolu's auric essence or something, and an aura overload would be a jumpstart to evolution for a Riolu.

Other than that, the only thing I really have to say is you did a pretty good job balancing all the characters talking in the beginning of the chapter. With everyone clustered around like that it can be tough to make the "staging" work, but it goes off pretty well here, even if most of the conversation is just a crash course for the reader on the necessary background for the next episode.

THE HALVARSAGA

THE AMAZING HAWLUCHA MAN

Ambyssin

Definitely a winter

Posts: 110

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Guiding Light (T) Jun 30, 2019 13:46:09 GMT

Post by Ambyssin on Jun 30, 2019 13:46:09 GMT

Firebrand : Of course she naruto-runs. It's, like, a species trait or something

The stuff you pointed out about Tessa's whining is something I wanted to address with revisions but, again, it was too much of a time sink for me to really give it the necessary elbow grease. Glad you liked the RKS System interpretation; in-game Multi-Attack's animation has orange lines circling Silvally, but I wanted to make the connection more blatant, so I had the attack start by resembling Arceus' golden wheel. Aside from that, your memory's pretty accurate about an alternate method for Tessa evolving. Espeon theorized that, if Tessa could pull off a Z-Move, it would overload her aura sense and trigger an evolution. But for that to happen, she needs a looplet from one of the Tapus... like the one Shane has. Thanks again for reviewing!

XxX

Bonus: Memories

The first thing I remembered was waking up. I was on a floor. It was cold. And dark. I was so confused. But I couldn't form the words needed to ask what was happening. Golem never gave me the time to. He descended on me with his assistants. He frightened me. I wanted to tell him to stop. I wanted to ask who I was. And why I was in such a strange room. But I was still trying to figure out how to get my body to work. It wasn't listening to me.

Nobody out there can understand how I felt. No Pokémon has ever had to deal with thinking they don't belong in their body. To feel like they want to burst out of their scales. But that's what it was like for me. In those first few moments, something simmered inside of me. Trying to claw its way through the flesh Golem had created for me. I wanted to scream. To shout. To tell them all to back off. But then he slipped that looplet onto my leg… and my world descended into chaos.

Suddenly, I wasn't me. I was a wild Manectric, stalking the cliffs of Aurora Vale. Launching myself at an unsuspecting Eevee and slaying it with my claws. Then, I was a Sharpedo, prowling through the Midnight Sea to pray on unsuspecting Magikarp. And then I became a Snorunt, looking up in terror as an avalanche descended upon me. A thousand memories flashed by in a matter of seconds. I now had hundreds of sets of parents. I was hundreds of Pokémon's mothers. I was hundreds of Pokémon's fathers. But none of the thoughts were pleasant. In some, I killed my own children, because they refused to listen to me. In other memories, I was the child, abandoned to the forces of nature for proving to be too weak to survive in a harsh Mystery Dungeon.

I had barely been alive – been me – for seconds, when Golem stripped me of my identity and replaced it with this dreadful surge of emotions. A thousand voices rose up and screamed at me. They filled my mind with rage, terror, hatred, and despair. They overwhelmed me. Searing pain gripped my head. I wanted to make it all stop. So, I gave in. I let the fury consume me and slaughtered Golem's assistants. "They deserved it," the voices said. "Look at what they had done to us. They'd stripped all of us of our freedom!" Initially, I didn't understand that. But after everything in the Catacombs, I realized what those voices meant. I finally knew why I always felt my scales crawl. And why this body never felt "right." Because it wasn't my body. It was a body that shouldn't have existed. I wish I could've known that when Golem restrained me. Maybe it would have given me some peace of mind.

Instead, I had to lie on his table, gripped by confusion, fear, and agony. The voices shouted the whole time he put on the mask. "Struggle," they said. "These restraints mean nothing to us. Destroy him. Kill our creator and go free!" But I couldn't break out. They blamed me. They tried to completely wrestle away my control. But, by that time, the mask was already on.

The battle in the Catacombs made me remember how painful the mask was when it was first attached. Its weight pressed down on my neck and shoulders. It crushed my face until I couldn't even feel it any more. I was suffocating, so I roared in pain. I still couldn't speak coherently, but I would've begged Golem to kill me. The agony was unbearable. The voices had gotten quiet, but I could still hear them. And they had only grown angrier. But there was nothing I could do. The pain continued to swell until darkness swallowed up my entire world.

Then there was nothing, until I woke up in the Observatory. Those memories? They had been sealed off. It was like I was coming to life a second time. But this time, there was a sense that something was missing. I was incomplete. There was this giant void in my mind. The entire time the mask was on, I imagined some sort of missing puzzle piece sitting in front of me. But, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn't reach it. In fact, the more I thought about it – the more I struggled – the further the piece drifted away. That became my reality. And, of course, there was the pain. The mask still weighed on me. It still suffocated me. And the voices were there. But they weren't making sense any more. I could pick out the occasional word…

Maim. Kill. Slaughter. Revenge.

… but I didn't understand why they were so hostile. It terrified me. The Pokémon who tended to me did so cautiously. I saw the fear in their eyes. I was different. And different was bad. Different was scary. I didn't know what to tell them. All I could think about was the voices. And the pain. I just wanted to make them stop. Shaking my head worked. And hitting the helmet – hard enough to dent the walls – that helped a bit, too. That freaked out the Pokémon I'd started living with. But I didn't care. Nobody really talked to me. Even once I figured out how to speak… I didn't have anything to say. So, for almost half a year I sat there in silence. Wondering who I was. Wondering how I ended up like this and why I hurt so much. But most of all… what had I done to deserve this?

That's when Riolu entered my life. Even though our first encounter was nothing special, it stuck with me. Even as the mask broke and all the voices came surging back into my mind, I remembered her. Those soft red eyes… filled with curiosity. But also holding a great sadness. And yet, I zeroed in on Shane at the time. Seeing him made the voices mad. "He's a mistake," they said. "We can sense it. He's a beast. You must kill him, before he kills us!"

I tried to ignore them. After all, I didn't expect that Shane and Riolu would show up at my sentry station. I wasn't prepared. I had to stretch my willpower to its limits to stop myself from pouncing on Shane and tearing him limb from limb. After that day, I had expected them both to give me the cold shoulder, just like everyone else in the guild. Heck, Shane took it a step further. He openly mocked me. Called me a freak. Those words hurt. But I didn't want to let him see that he was getting to me. If I did, I feared those voices would get so loud I'd lose control.

So, imagine how surprised I was when Riolu came up to me. She wanted to talk to me. She wanted to know about me. I thought she was screwing with me. But then she told me I should join her team. I was stunned. And scared. I hadn't spent any extended periods of time with other Pokémon. The closest I had come was with Trapinch. But he never said much to me when we were on sentry duty. The voices didn't care about him. That was good enough for me.

I'm still not one hundred percent sure why I agreed to Riolu's suggestion. Maybe it was to spite the voices? I vaguely recall them thinking Riolu was doing this to distract me and protect Shane. Which seemed pretty absurd. Or maybe I had actually gotten sick of being indoors? In hindsight, even that sounded ridiculous. No, I think the real reason was because I sensed something in Riolu. There was loneliness and emptiness inside her… just like me. I mean, yeah, she had Shane. But I didn't get the sense the two of them were close. It seemed like them working together was a matter of happenstance.

I must have latched onto that thought. Because I stayed with Team Radiance, even with the voices telling me to stop. Even with Shane taking whatever opportunities he could to take digs at me. Riolu kept me going. She was a beacon that drew me to her. When I talked to her, I actually felt like I was someone who mattered. Like I was meant to be at the guild. The idea of being an explorer didn't seem so alien to me anymore. That nagging sense of emptiness slowly started to close.

But then the Mellath Bog mission happened. I was a bit shaken up at the prospect of Shane and Riolu splitting up. Sure, I thought Shane kind of deserved it with the way he'd been acting. But a small part of me believed there was something off about it. When Riolu asked me to take part, I just wanted to make sure she and Shane stayed off each other's backs. Guilty doesn't even began to describe how I felt when I brought that mission crumbling down. Seeing that Poipole whipped the voices up into a frenzy. It must've been because of the Poipole that Golem used to make me. I lost all control. I attacked Shane. He almost drowned because of me. If it wasn't for Riolu, I would've done something horrible. Even then, I had destroyed the last of Shane's patience. I don't blame him for acting the way he did. I'll bet he was scared. And upset. I can't imagine I'd have acted all that much differently.

I could tell that the Mellath Bog mission ended in a bad way. I was worried about Riolu, so I followed her and Shane. I was blindsided by the turn things took at Riolu's old house. To say I was dumbfounded would be an understatement. The voices tried to seize on that. They wanted me to finish the job and take care of Shane. But I fought them off, for both Shane and Riolu. Because Riolu needed someone to be there for her. And Shane just needed someone to believe in him.

"You matter to me."

When I was trapped in those chains, I flashed back to the moment I said that to Riolu. Back on Azure Cape. Those words lingered in my head. They practically became tangible. I wanted to reach out and grab them. But the chains hurt so much, they made the voices come to life, seizing that memory and dragging it into the deepest, darkest abyss in the back of my mind.

Their collective anger bubbled up inside of me. But it still wasn't enough to break the chains. So, they turned their vitriol on me. It was like I was falling back into the dark place I had started at before I met Riolu. There was nothing I could do to stop myself from slipping… until the Unown showed up and I heard the cries of pain above me. That ignited a spark deep inside me.

I had finally found it. The missing piece of my mind.

I grabbed it tightly, refusing to let go. And then the chains crumbled, taking the mask with them. The lost memories all returned at once, including the ones from the spirits Golem had used to create me. For a brief instant, I thought I would pass out from shock. But then I saw Riolu and Shane. I saw how hurt they were. And I took the voices' anger and directed it toward the Unown. I got us out of the Catacombs. But the adrenaline burst had worn off. My control over the voices was fading. So, I ran. I ran and I didn't look back. But Riolu and Shane… they came for me anyway. They helped drive the voices back one final time. Thanks to them, I finally had an identity.

All of these thoughts ran through my head as Comfey tended to my wounds. She didn't say anything to me. Was it the black blood that threw her off? Or was it my face? It didn't matter to me. She finally gave me the okay to leave. My first inclination was to find Riolu. But, Comfey plopped a bar of soap on my back and pointed down the hallway. One look at the bloodstains on my fur told me she had the right idea. So, I plodded out of the infirmary and made for the showers.

They were empty, thankfully. It felt strange standing in them. Mostly because I had tended to avoid them my whole time at the guild. The mask made it too hard to shower properly. But it was gone now. Its remains buried deep underground, never to be seen again. I turned the handle. Hot water cascaded down my face. It felt so soothing. The steam loosened my muscles, while the water droplets pelted my feathers and fur. I looked down at the soap bar on the floor, and then glanced at my looplet.

Psychic.

A tingle ran down my spine. For a brief second, I vanished from the showers. Suddenly, I was a Gothitelle, levitating up a small soap bar to scrub a young Gothita's head while singing a lullaby about Lugia. I blinked and jumped back into the Observatory. I looked around in confusion. That memory wasn't like the others. It was… sweet. Heartwarming, even. I was astonished. Weren't the spirits inside me angry? And focused on all the bad things that had happened when they were alive? Why did I remember this?

I pushed that thought aside and concentrated. To my delight, the bar of soap fluttered into the air. I moved it onto my chest and started rubbing. The suds tickled my feathers. I let out a giggle. I liked this feeling! It made my fur prickle. I couldn't help but start humming. I must've stayed under that shower for a good twenty minutes. Thank the gods no one walked in on me. That… would've been really awkward.

I forced myself out of the shower and found a new sensation. My stomach gurgled. An invisible hand had taken hold of my insides and started wringing them out like a wet towel. At first, I was puzzled. But then more memories started surfacing. I became a Snover. Weary. Tired. And trying to drag myself up the Invern Mountains. I managed to crawl into a cave, where a friendly Vanillish lay against a wall. It had a trio of berries next to it. I perked up and went for the berries…

… except my beak only managed to snap up air. Because I wasn't actually a Snover anymore. But the message rang loud and clear. This was hunger. Riolu had told me about it. But, when the mask was on, it somehow blunted that feeling. Just like it killed all the feeling in my face. I shoved those thoughts away and marched down to the dining area. Steenee was in the kitchen. She was quite surprised to see me.

"Oh. Hi," she greeted, looking up. "Can I help you with something?"

"Um, when's dinner?" I asked.

She could tell I was a bit embarrassed. The psychic memories helped me see that. But, to her credit, Steenee smiled and told me, "I can whip something up quickly for you. I know it's been one crazy day for you and your teammates."

"I'd really like that," I said. Before I could really process what was happening, she popped out of the kitchen with a plate in hand.

"Here. Mixed berries with a nutmeg glaze," Steenee declared. "This is your first time eating a berry, right?" she asked. I nodded. "I figured. The glaze will help them go down smoother and settle your stomach. Go on, try it."

I leaned over and nibbled at the dish. Berry juice splattered against my beak. It wasn't all that much different from the shower. But the taste. Oh, gods, the taste! The sweet bits of fruit spread out across my tongue and took in every bit of the syrupy texture. My eyes widened. My tail wagged slowly. This was what food was like? I can't believe I'd gone so long without getting to experience it for myself!

… except that wasn't entirely true. I froze with my head hovering over the dish. And, just like that, I was a Rockruff, looking at a freshly-picked oran berry my Midday Lycanroc mother had scavenged for me. And then I became a Geodude, gripping mineral rocks in my hands, eager to scarf them down. I squeezed my eyes shut and returned to the present. Again, I was surprised. These seemed like pleasant memories. Had something changed? The voices… were they not angry anymore? I heard the faintest whispers in the back of my mind but couldn't make anything out.

"Is everything okay?" Steenee asked.

I turned and smiled at her. "Everything's fine," I chirped and gleefully dug into the rest of my dish. I probably should've eaten it slower. I could've savored it that way. But I didn't care. My mouth tingled for a good minute after I'd swallowed my last bite. I thanked Steenee and departed the dining area. The hunger was gone, but a fresh dose of sluggishness had taken its place. I had a strong urge to go curl up in a ball and fall asleep.

"Oh… hey."

Shane's voice snapped me to attention. "Were you looking for me?" I asked.

"No. I was napping in our room," Shane admitted, letting out a yawn. "Guess I must've lost track of time."

"Do you know where Riolu is?"

"She had gone downstairs to see Milotic," Shane said. "I think she's still down there. Want me to go get her? I don't mind getting yelled at for going into the veterans' quarters again. Odds are, Haunter's probably hiding in one of the walls."

I turned my head to the right. For a brief second, I saw a cloud of dark blue and purple floating in the middle of the wall. "Haunter, I see you in there," I said. It was a bit surprising, just being able to see a life force like that. But I wasn't all that bothered by it, strangely enough. I couldn't help but smirk when Haunter popped out of the wall, a disappointed look in his eyes.

"Great. Just we need. Another psychic killjoy," he grumbled, and floated off dejectedly. I turned back to Shane, who had a relieved look on his face.

"Thanks for that," he said. "but, uh, you never answered my question."

"Oh, right," I said. "No, it's fine. I don't want to disturb her. I was just curious." I started walking away, but Shane stepped into my path.

"Um… listen. Can I talk to you… f-for a second?" he stammered.

"Of course," I said.

"I, um… hang on," Shane said. He looked down at the floor and rubbed his forelegs together dejectedly. His mind was a fountain of nervousness, gushing all around him. That thought made me consider turning off the psychic memories. But, I ruled against it.

"Take your time," I said.

Shane took a deep breath. "I want to apologize. For the way I had treated you back when… y'know…" He awkwardly pawed at the ground. "Back when the mask was on."

"I see," I muttered. It was refreshing to hear that. I knew that I had tried to come up with reasons why Shane acted the way he did. But at the time, I wasn't sure how much I really believed them. "You know, some of that stuff was pretty hurtful."

"I had no idea how bad things were for you," Shane said.

There was more to it than that. I wanted him to admit it. "And?" I said, trying to coax what I wanted to hear out of him.

Shane's shoulders sagged. "And I guess I was being pretty selfish," he whispered. He didn't see me give an approving nod. That's exactly what I hoped he would say. "So, um, I want to say… thanks. For encouraging me to do better. And saving my life today, of course." He stuck his forepaw forward. "Friends?"

Sure, it was just a word. But hearing it made my heart flutter. I stuck my foreleg forward and pressed my claws against his paw. "Friends," I said. We both lowered our forelegs and stared at each other for a moment.

"Heh…" Shane whispered. He blinked a few times. "I'm, uh, gonna go see if I can get something to eat. Catch you later." He walked past me, heading for the dining area.

Having a metal beak made smiling pretty hard. I could curve it slightly. But I had to settle for opening my mouth. I couldn't help it. The joyful thumping of my heart. The prickling of my fur. The tingling in my hind legs. I liked it. The idea of being happy. When the day started, that seemed out of my reach. But somehow, I had found it. I was staring it in the eyes. It even seemed to be soothing all the spirits inside of me.

That's when I heard their voices. "Go outside," they whispered in unison. "Please… do it for us." There wasn't any malice to them. And it was a simple enough request. So, I climbed up the stairs, and made my way out through the main entrance. I stepped onto the grass and plodded toward the edge of the hill. I lay down and looked up into the sky.

The sun was setting. It had painted the sky a mix of yellow and orange. Warm sunlight spread across my face. I shut my eyes and let out a happy trill. The heat wrapped my face up like an invisible blanket. As it did, memories flashed through my mind. I saw the same sunset, but this time I was on a plateau, overlooking lava. I was a Charizard, with a pair of children climbing onto my back to get a better look. Laughter filled up my mind. It quickly disappeared, and instead I was a Swablu sitting on Mt. Freeze. Fluffy wings enveloped me, and I looked into the shimmering eyes of my Altaria mother…

"Shane said you wanted to see me?"

I blinked a few times and turned to see Riolu standing there behind me. "Not exactly. I was just curious where you were."

"Right," Riolu mumbled. There was trepidation in her voice and it made my scales crawl. I still needed to get used to the more sensitive hearing that came with losing the mask.

"You can join me, if you'd like," I offered, scooting to the side. There were a couple of seconds of silence, followed by the crinkling of paws on grass. Riolu sat down next to me. Her shoulder brushed against mine, tickling my fur. I clamped my beak shut to avoid chirping and startling Riolu.

"What are you doing out here, anyway?" Riolu asked.

"I wanted to see my first sunset," I said.

Riolu looked at me in shock. "Wait… that doesn't many any sense. You've been here for months. Surely, you must've seen plenty of sunsets."

"Not really," I said. "Actually, I never left the Observatory before I met you." I poked at some blades of grass. "My old bedroom didn't have any windows, so I never saw a sunset until now. I don't think it would've mattered much, anyway. The mask… it made it pretty hard to see anything that wasn't directly in front of me."

"I'm so sorry," Riolu whispered, leaning her head against my shoulder. A warmth surged inside of me. My heart fluttered again.

"Don't be. It's not your fault," I said. "I mean, technically the spirits have seen plenty of sunsets. But I wanted to experience one as me." I furrowed my brow. "That… probably didn't make much sense. Sorry."

"No, it's fine. I think I can understand," Riolu said. She sighed.

"What's bothering you?" I asked.

"Huh? N… nothing! I'm okay," Riolu said. She was lying, but I didn't want to make her uncomfortable. So, I quickly backed off.

"How's, uh, Milotic doing?" I asked instead.

"Not so hot," Riolu said. "I think she's taking Dragonair's departure pretty badly. She's blaming herself. Told me that if she had just stayed by Dragonair's side the whole night, maybe she would've stuck around."

"Maybe." I gave a little shrug. "I don't really think any of us could've possibly known what was going through Dragonair's mind yesterday. Well, except for Metagross, I suppose." Tessa shuddered, bristling my fur. "Yeah. The less said about him, the better," I added. Silence followed. Tessa's trepidation continued sounding through my head. I turned and looked at her. Her aura feelers kept twitching and rubbing up against my leg. My chest knotted up. I didn't want to upset her, but I hated seeing her conflicted like this.

"Riolu, I'm a psychic-type right now," I said. She looked up at me and her eyes widened in realization. "I can tell something's troubling you. Please… just talk to me," I begged. "I want to help."

Riolu slumped down. "I'm not really sure it's something you can fix. It's… complicated."

"Complicated is my life," I said, adding in a chuckle for good measure. "Try me."

"I was just thinking," Riolu whispered, "about what I saw in the Catacombs." She wrapped an arm around my knee. It was weird, feeling her fur brushing against my chitin. "It was hatred that drove Golem to do everything that he did, right?"

"Yeah."

"Well–" Riolu took a deep breath. "–Isn't it pretty much the same with Zero? She wants to destroy all the Legendaries. She has that same hatred Golem had. And, judging by Espeon's memories, it sounds like she might be related to the Guiding Light thing that Golem created. Umbreon seems to think it may have possessed Lunala somehow."

My chest tightened as yesterday's conversation with Shane sprang to mind. He was absolutely sure that Zero was Riolu's mom. And I believed him. I wanted to tell Riolu about it so badly. But seeing her sitting there next to me… trying to keep her composure… I just couldn't bring myself to do it. Instead, I said, "She's not going to succeed. Someone will find a way to stop the Prism Virus."

Riolu winced. "I guess so," she mumbled. "I just wish we didn't have to do this."

"Do what?"

"Y'know… fight the Prism Virus," she whispered. Riolu turned to the side. Her snout came to rest on my back and she let out a shaky breath. "After a year on my own – of feeling lonely all the time – I've finally found someone I can relate to. Someone who's filling the voids that my family left."

She was talking about me, of course. Though I also saw the faintest glimpses of Shane in her mind. Granted, it was only the Shane from the last couple of days. But he was still there. I didn't say anything. I couldn't figure out to respond. So, Riolu continued, "All I want to do is spend time with you. Relax. Maybe play games, like we did this afternoon. I want to go back to the fun times I had before my family started disappearing…"

Something wet dripped onto my fur. My heart sank.

"I want to recreate those nights on the beach with Gallian, gazing up at the stars, telling stories, and eating roasted marshmallows. I want to bring back the picnic lunches I had with Mom and Dad in Sunrise Village. B… but… I can't." Riolu shivered. "Instead, we wake up every morning, and our backs are put against the wall. Every day seems to bring new, terrifying things for us to deal with. And I just…" She sucked in a breath. "I just don't know how we can possibly make it through this stuff."

Her head flopped onto my back, making me grunt in surprise. "You've been the lone bright spot in all of this for me," she whispered, rubbing my back with a paw. "Shane's… getting there. I'm much more comfortable around him now. But you're still my best friend." She got choked up. "I almost lost you today. And not to the Prism Virus. To my own cowardice." Her snout brushed against my fur. "I don't want to fight the Prism Virus anymore. Because I don't want to lose you. I've lost everyone else. I need you in my life."

I shuffled to my right, giving me room to crane my head to my left. "Riolu," I whispered. I pulled psychic power up from my pool of spiritual energy. It rushed up my neck and settled at the tip of my beak. I leaned over and gently touched the tip of my beak to Riolu's forehead. Her ears stuck up and her aura feelers stiffened. She squeaked in surprise.

"W… what are you–?" she started, but then her eyelids slowly fluttered closed. I wrapped my upper body around her and squeezed her in a tight embrace.

"I'm not going anywhere," I said. "You're right. Golem did make me with hate in his heart. He wanted me to channel hate… and use it to kill. But that's not what I want. I have friends now. You and Shane… you make me happy. You've helped the voices remember the happy moments from their lives."

"I… I did?"

I nodded. "That's why I'm going to put a stop to the Prism Virus. I'm going to fight so that Pokémon of all shapes and sizes can know this feeling. This happiness. And it starts by taking out the Prism Virus," I said. "And when that's done… I promise, we'll spend a day together at the beach." I nudged the tip of her snout with my beak. "Just the two of us."

It took a moment for my comment to sink in. When it did, Riolu blinked the tears out of her eyes. A smile crept onto her muzzle. She rested her head against my shoulder and rubbed my back. "Thank you," she sniffled. "That would really mean a lot to me."

"You're worth it," I said.

"Oh… I'm interrupting something, aren't I?"

My head snapped around to see Shane standing behind us. I was surprised I didn't sense him coming, but I guess that meant I still needed practice with my new powers. Shane looked down and sheepishly poked at the grass with a forepaw. "Err… sorry… I didn't mean to bug you guys. I'll, um, go back inside."

He was halfway turned around when Riolu said, "Shane, do you want to join us? We're watching the sunset."

My eyes widened. I had considered making a similar offer, but figured Riolu wouldn't like that. Guess I wasn't the only one full of surprises. Shane turned back around, his tails wagging independently of each other. "Are you sure? I wouldn't want to intrude," he said.

"You're fine," Riolu said. "I think after the last couple of days, we could do with a quiet moment like this… as a team."

Shane's ears perked up and he walked over. He looked between me and Riolu. To my surprise, she scooched closer to me and patted the grass next to her. Shane smiled and sat down next to her. I lowered my head down to the grass. Riolu leaned over and rested against my shoulder. Shane looked awkwardly at the two of us, until Riolu extended a paw. Shane scooted closer and lay down on the grass. His head came to rest in Riolu's lap.

"I wish this moment could last forever," Shane sighed.

"Me too," Riolu said.

I nodded silently. Golem had created the God Killer to make his hateful wishes come true. But after today, I wasn't the God Killer anymore. I was Silvally. And I was going to fight to preserve happy memories like this one.

Last Edit: Jun 30, 2019 13:46:24 GMT by Ambyssin

Avatar by Jordy (https://toonirl.tumblr.com/), personal commission.

Ambyssin

Definitely a winter

Posts: 110

Pokémon Mystery Dungeon: Guiding Light (T) Jun 30, 2019 13:49:17 GMT

Post by Ambyssin on Jun 30, 2019 13:49:17 GMT

This bonus part is being posted somewhat out of order compared to the FFN version of the fic. It's not spoiling anything significant and it goes with this month's Rock the Block theme, so I made the executive decision to put it up early... even if it doesn't quite match the rest of the episode. Enjoy!

Content advisory: chapter contains some adult themes, but nothing is described in detail.

XxX

Bonus: Father & Son

~Aeon Observatory~

Knock! Knock! Knock!

Incineroar pushed his large, striped, wooden chair away from the small, circular table at the back of his office. He stood up and walked across the carpet, passing a hand-stitched quilt hanging up on the wall, baring the guild's insignia. Next to it sat a pair of fluffy black cushions, which matched up with the office's red carpet to resemble Incineroar's color scheme.

Knock! Knock! Knock!

He reached the office door just as the second set of knocks finished and swung the door open. Incineroar smiled at the Absol standing in front of the door with his gaze fixed on the ground. "Hiya, Gallian. What can I do you for, son?"

"You, um, asked to see me… Guildmaster," Gallian muttered, stealing nervous glances back at the assembly room.

"Oh-ho, right," Incineroar said, chuckling. "It wasn't anything urgent, kiddo. Just, y'know, wanted to check in on your first week here, that's all."

Gallian winced. "Ah… gotcha…" he whispered.

"Something bugging you, Gallian?" Incineroar wondered. He stepped to the side. "We can always talk in private, if you'd prefer."

"I don't want any special treatment, Guildmaster," Gallian said.

"Ha ha! There's nothing out of the ordinary about this, son," Incineroar said, giving Gallian a thumbs up. "I check on all my new recruits as they're settling in. And you're no different."

Gallian's expression brightened a bit. "O-Oh… uh… okay. In that case…" His voice trailed off and he walked into Incineroar's office. "… I guess privacy is better." Gallian stopped in the middle of the office and looked around. His attention fell on a shelf opposite Incineroar's quilt. It was lined with an assortment of different knickknacks. Gallian was particularly drawn to a porcelain Cresselia figurine, some wind chimes carved out of bamboo, and a pair of custom-sculpted clay bracelets.

"Geez, Guildmaster…"

"Come on now, kiddo. When we're alone like this, you can drop the formalities. 'Dad' will do just fine," Incineroar said, approaching one of the cushions on the floor. He sat down and patted the open cushion with his paw.

Gallian crept up to the free cushion and hesitantly sat on it. "R-Right… sorry, Dad." He looked back toward the shelf. "You, um, have a lot of stuff."

Incineroar grinned broadly. "Ah, noticed my little collection, did ya? I'm awfully proud of it!"

"A collection?" Gallian said, blinking in confusion.

"You bet! I've gotten a souvenir from every community I've visited, including the ones overseas," Incineroar said, winking at Gallian. "Like that Cresselia figurine. It was a gift from Team Poképals over at the Wigglytuff Guild."

"Wait, they gave that to you? I don't remember you mentioning that you when you told us about meeting them," Gallian said. "You've got to tell Tessa about this. Do you have any idea how floored Tessa would be? You know how much she idolizes them."

"Shh, keep your voice down," Incineroar said, putting a finger to his lips. "To be honest, I wanted to keep the figurine a surprise."

"Why's that?" Gallian asked.

"I was thinking of giving it to Tessa as a gift… y'know, for when she joins the guild," Incineroar said. "A little something to get her jazzed about exploring." He winked at Gallian again. "Can I trust you to keep it a secret?"

Gallian frowned. "Well… I guess so. I don't really like keeping things from Tessa, but I suppose it's okay in this instance. You'll make sure to let me see her reaction, right?"

"Of course!" Incineroar said. "Granted, it may still be a few years until Tessa feels she's ready to join us. I don't want to push her into doing this, even if she says she wants to."

"Yeah, I agree," Gallian said. "Just so you know, if she does join, I want to help her out as much as I can. I don't plan to get veteran status anytime soon."

Incineroar raised an eyebrow. "Oh?"

"Well… I think that I'd be most helpful to Tessa as an apprentice. That way, we could room together at the start," Gallian said.

"You don't have to do that, Gallian," Incineroar said. "I could always make some tweaks to the rooming rules."

Gallian shook his head. "I don't want you treating me special because you're my dad," he said. "It's more important that I earn my keep here… the old-fashioned way."

Incineroar smiled. "I think we're gonna make a heck of an explorer out of you, son," he proclaimed. Gallian's face reddened at this. Silence fell over the duo. "Hmm… right. I suppose that's enough friendly chit-chat." He sat up straight on his cushion. "What's on your mind son? Anything I can do to help?"

Gallian pawed at the corner of his cushion. "I'm… um… I don't really know, Dad."

Incineroar rubbed his chin. "Sounds like this is pretty serious." He adjusted his positioning so he was sitting cross-legged on his cushion. "Let's see if I can tease out what the problem is. How did your first few assignments go?"

"Fine, I guess," Gallian muttered.

"That's what I thought," Incineroar said. "I didn't see anything out of the ordinary in the paperwork Braviary gave me. And I trust Vaporeon's done a good job introducing you to everything?"

Gallian stiffened, biting his lower lip. "Yuh-yeah! He's been great," he squeaked, voice cracking. Gallian realized this happened and sank down against his cushion, burying his head in the soft fabric.

Concern spread across Incineroar's face. "Did something happen between you and Vaporeon, son?" He rubbed the bridge of his nose and took a deep breath. "Hold on… I didn't mean to sound so forceful there. What I should've asked was, 'Are you sure?' Because I'm here if you need me. You know that, right?"

Gallian nodded. "It's… really not what you think, Dad," he whispered. "Vaporeon's fine. The problem is me."

Incineroar's face scrunched up in confusion. "I'm not exactly sure what you mean by that, son."

"I… well… um…" Gallian stuttered. After stumbling to try and form up a sentence, he swiped at his cushion's edge in frustration. "I just can't stay focused around him, Dad! He's just… those sparkling scales… and that glitter on his crest… and his soft blue eyes… I just… uuuuurgh!" He buried his face in his cushion and shook it. "I'm sorry, Dad. I bet I sound like such an idiot…"

Incineroar took in Gallian's words, nodding slowly. "I see," he said. "Y'know, that's quite the bold claim. What would make you think you're sounding like an idiot?"

"Listen to me! I just said I think I like Vaporeon. Whenever I'm around him, I just can't stop thinking about him. He looks so good… it's hypnotizing! And… and that's a problem, isn't it?" Gallian picked his head up from the pillow, a frown on his face. "I'm a guy. Vaporeon's a guy. I'm not supposed to like him that way… right?"

"Whatever gave you that idea?" Incineroar asked.

"W-Well… all the couples I know are one guy and one girl. There's you and Mom… Primarina and Serperior… and Sylveon's mate was a guy too, right?" Gallian said. He shook his head. "I was hoping that maybe something was wrong… like I was sick. But Comfey checked me out and said everything was fine."

"Gallian…" Incineroar said.

"I don't want another reason for people to look at me funny," Gallian said. "I already get enough nervous looks just for being an Absol. But an Absol that isn't attracted to girls? That just screams 'messed up.' I mean… for all I know… this could all be from my egg getting abandoned in the snow. What if my head's all screwed up from the cold?"

Incineroar leaned over and draped an arm over Gallian, who flinched at the gesture. "Shhhhh… it's okay, kiddo. You're beating yourself up for no good reason," he said. "Gallian, I want you to look at me." He put his free hand under his son's chin and hoisted his head up so they were making eye contact. "There is nothing… I repeat… nothing wrong with being attracted to the same gender."

Gallian blinked in confusion. "I don't understand. Don't you need two Pokémon who are opposite genders to make an egg?"

"Not at all," Incineroar said. He pulled his hand back from Gallian's chin and proceeded to rub his son's back. "All this means… is that you're growing up."

"I thought I was finished growing," Gallian said.

"Maybe physically, yeah, but not emotionally," Incineroar elaborated. "You're making the transition from kid to mature adult. Those feelings of attraction? They're a natural part of that process. Let me ask you something: do you really love Vaporeon? Like… from the bottom of your heart?"

Gallian's tensed. "Um… maybe?"

"Well, what is it you like most about him?"

"His… uh… his looks," Gallian said, face growing hot.

Incineroar nodded. "Uh-huh. And is that it?"

Gallian's brow furrowed. "Now that you mention it… I guess so."

"Then it sounds to me like you've got yourself a crush," Incineroar said, offering up a reassuring grin. "And that's nothing to be ashamed of. Crushes are a normal part of growing up. Plenty of Pokémon have them."

"E-Even if the Pokémon's the same gender as you?" Gallian wondered.

"Heh…" Incineroar rubbed the bridge of his nose. "I guess it's about time the two of us had 'the talk.' I mean, your grandpa gave it to me not long after I had joined the guild, so it only seems right. Especially with what you've told me."

"What do you mean?"

Incineroar scooted his pillow across the carpet so he was facing Gallian. "I'm talking about love and mating." He paused until he saw a degree of understanding in Gallian's eyes. "See… what sets 'mons like you and me apart from mechanical 'mons like Metagross and Magearna is our ability to form a loving bond with someone we care deeply about and express that love through an intimate relationship."

Gallian pursed his lips. "Is that like the time I walked into your room and saw you in your bed, lying on top of Mo–"

Incineroar's face flushed and he threw a paw up over Gallian's muzzle. "Aha ha… ha… I guess you know a bit more about this than I thought." He took his paw off Gallian's snout and sat back. "Huh… guess your Mom's aura sense isn't always on if you could sneak in on us like that."

"Um… did I do something wrong?" Gallian asked.

"Err… it's in the past, son," Incineroar said, laughing awkwardly. "The point I was trying to make is that, now that you're getting older, you're going to start finding that you may have feelings about other Pokémon around you… regardless of what their gender is." He put a paw on Gallian's shoulder. "You see… when it coves to love… every 'mon has some degree of attraction for both guys and girls. Which one a 'mon prefers… well, it depends on a bunch of different things."

Gallian blinked slowly, taking his dad's explanation in. "So… there isn't anything wrong with me if I… um… like other guys?"

"Not in the slightest," Incineroar said.

"Then how come I've never seen any couples made up of two guys?" Gallian asked.

Incineroar rubbed his chin. "It's just a matter of you having not traveled around enough. Give it some time while you're in the guild. Heck… I'm pretty sure I know some mates who are the same gender. I've got a lot of acquaintances… it can be hard to keep track of them all sometimes."

Gallian's brow furrowed. "Mates," he repeated. "That's what you and Mom are, right? Is that different from love?"

"Oh… I forgot to explain that, didn't I?" Incineroar said, chuckling. "See, 'mate' is actually just slang. It's shorthand for 'soulmate.'" Gallian parroted the word at him. "Basically… when two Pokémon are convinced they want to spend the rest of their lives with each other… they mate with one another." Incineroar paused. "That's… um… what you saw your mother and I doing that one time."

"The–"

"Yes, yes, there's no need to say it out loud," Incineroar said, looking a bit flustered. "The point is… the act of mating binds two Pokémon together physically and spiritually. Breaking that bond is something..." His expression grew serious. "... it's something our society frowns on. It should only ever happen under extenuating circumstances."

Panic washed over Gallian's face. "W… what do you mean by that?"

"Well, I've read reports of Pokémon getting exiled from their villages for violating the sacred soulmate bond," Incineroar said.

Gallian's gaze fell to the floor. "And… and you're absolutely, positively sure I can have a mate who's a guy?"

Incineroar nodded.

"What about having an egg? How would that work?" Gallian asked.

"Eggs are made when two Pokémon combine their spiritual energy. Many of them choose to do that while mating, sure. Doesn't change the fact that, yes, you can have an egg if your mate's the same gender," Incineroar said. "Trust me. Your grandpa told all of this stuff to me back when I was a Torracat. I don't think he'd steer me wrong."

"Okay," Gallian whispered, taking a deep breath. "Okay. I… yeah. That… that sounds okay."

"Sounds to me like there's still something bothering you," Incineroar said.

"It's just… how am I supposed to know?" Gallian said, looking up at his dad. "Like, when will I know I really love another guy… versus just liking the way he looks?"

Incineroar rubbed his chin. "That's a bit more complicated, son. It depends a lot on what's going through your head. Even if I was a psychic, I doubt I could give you a straight answer."

Gallian frowned. "Well, what about you? How did you know that Mom was, y'know, the one for you?"

"I thought I already told you that story," Incineroar said.

"Could you just give me the main points?" Gallian asked, smiling meekly.

Incineroar playfully nudged Gallian in the side. "I suppose I can. Let me think for a second here." He shut his eyes and rested his head on his hand. "At first… I felt bad for your mom. I didn't think it was fair what was happening to her with the scavengers. But once we got her out of that situation and into the guild… I just noticed little things. Her smile… the way she looked at me… how she could make me laugh. But it grew from there. Seeing her out in the field... genuinely dedicated to helping others... it just made my heart flutter. The joy she expressed when other Pokémon thanked her always brought a smile to my face."

"Eventually, it got to a point where, every time I was around her, there was a tingle that would run down my spine. My heart would race and my palms would get all sweaty, too," Incineroar said. "And it didn't really have much to do with how your mother looked. It was just her thoughtful personality that ended up winning me over. I realized that, deep down, I could see myself making a life together with her."

He sighed. "Sorry, son. I'm not sure how helpful that was," Incineroar said. "I think, when it gets down to it, it's all about what your heart tells you." He reached out and tapped Gallian's sternum with a claw. "Listen to it… and I'm sure that you'll find the right guy."

Gallian slumped over. "That makes one of us," he said.

"C'mon, son. That sounds nothing like the Gallian I know," Incineroar said.

"I'm serious, Dad. What if… what if there isn't a guy out there for me," Gallian whispered. "I mean… I'm an Absol. No one's going to want to date me given the superstitions." He bowed his head solemnly. "Maybe… maybe there's a reason my egg was abandoned."

"Son, I want you to listen to me," Incineroar said, his voice growing stern. "You are a kind, sensitive Pokémon who wants nothing more than to help others. You're nothing like the stereotypes folks make about Absols." He scooched over and wrapped an arm around Gallian. "Any guy would be lucky to have you as his mate. And I'm not just saying that because I'm your dad. It's the truth."

Gallian sniffled. "You really mean that?"

"From the bottom of my heart," Incineroar said. "And I like to think I know a thing or two when it comes to relationships," he added, winking.

"Heh…" Gallian rubbed his head against his shoulder. "Thanks, Dad. I feel… a lot better now."

Incineroar leaned over and nuzzled Gallian's neck. "Don't mention it, kiddo. And you know that, if you ever want to talk, that you can drop by any time, right?"

Gallian nodded. "I do now." He paused. "Just... um... do me one little favor."

"What did you have in mind?"

"Um... could you please not tell Mom about any of this?" Gallian asked.

Incineroar frowned. "If that's really what you want, then my lips are sealed. Can I ask why, though?"

"It's just, well, from what I've seen so far... Mom is, like, a completely different Pokémon around the guild," Gallian whispered. "She seems really uptight and serious... it kind of scares me a bit."

"Oh... that!" Incineroar said, chuckling. "There's no need to worry about it. Your mom is a very headstrong Pokémon. When she gets focused on her work... she really gets focused. I can't fault her for the enthusiasm, really."

"R-Right..." Gallian squeaked. "But I've been getting nervous whenever I'm around her. I'm worried she might get upset if I tell her... y'know... that I want to date another guy."

Incineroar closed his eyes in pensive thought. "I can't think of any reason why your mom would get upset at that. But I can see that this is bugging you... so I won't say a word about this to her. Just understand that there's going to come a time when you'll have to tell her."

"I know," Gallian said, taking a deep breath. "I just want to wait for the right moment to do that. Maybe a time when we're back home and Mom isn't so focused on her work. I promise I'll tell her... just not right now."

"And you know I'm here to help if you need it, right?" Incineroar said.

"Yeah," Gallian whispered.

"Good. In that case…" Incineroar's voice trailed off as he got to his feet. "How about we grab some dinner and see what everyone else is up to?"

Gallian got up beside his dad. "Sounds good to me."

Last Edit: Jun 30, 2019 13:49:30 GMT by Ambyssin

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