#nightshadedelphox

[thetakenpokemon]

Act 2 - Memories of Hatred

[Location: GoT HQ] [PoV: Asmund]

I loudly trudge through the hall, Pokemon of all kinds immediately stepping aside in order to avoid being in my direct path.

Normally I’d feel some sort of satisfaction when Pokemon dodge my approaching form, how their faces immediately twist into expressions of surprise and fear. But right now? I’m not feeling satisfied. In fact, I’m not feeling much of anything.

After stopping at the Great Oak Memorial, my thoughts have been all over the place. Memories and quashed feelings are threatening to break from their cage, a cage forged from anger.

‘Their judgement is for me to deliver, for THEY are the ones who have committed ATROCITIES against ME!’

My form stops, the words leaking into my mind like the contents of a barrel spilling out from the cracks.

‘ No… They have tormented me, starved me of food, and then…MURDERED me.’

Those words...

‘And they didn’t stop there, no…they imprisoned my soul into this body with the intentions of enslaving me. ‘

That rage...

“Now… I will ask this once, so listen…closely. You will bring your prisoners to me, for I will deliver the fate that they deserve. Fail to do this… …You should have a good idea.”

I remember it all.

...

...

...

The Delphox merely shakes her head, with a soft breath through her nose she takes a bold step towards me. “We will do no such thing.” She says firmly, her face unwavering.

“Then…” I hiss, loading a cannonball with a loud clack. “You shall suffer the same fate as the rest of them.”

The Pokemon before me draw their weapons and channel their power, preparing for the inevitable conflict.

But who are they to think that they can stand in my way? I have already killed so many other Pokemon, they are no different.

They...will fucking die like the rest.

“Wait.” The black and gray Delphox speaks again, her emerald green eyes shining in the torchlight. She extends a hand out to her companions, gesturing for them to back away. “I will handle this.”

The look of conflict in their eyes is almost as laughable as the fact that she thinks that she can take me on her own. The bitch is a Delphox, she can’t do shit to me. Fire and electricity washed harmlessly over my form, psychic power can’t even get a hold of me.

I will fucking crush her for thinking otherwise.

Her companions do as she urges, reluctantly backing away.

Ohhh there’s many ways I can end this. I could just shoot her with the cannonball I have loaded, but...it wouldn’t be as satisfying.

No...

I need to crush her, to have my fist cave in her skull and flatten her into nothing but paste and sharded bones.

I charge.

My vision is a blur, the sheer red from the burning inferno inside me fueling my actions. A loud roaring sound fills the air, and it only took me a moment to realize that this roar is coming from me. I raise my fist into the air before bringing it down upon her form, intending to brutally kill her just as I have killed all the others.

Yet the bitch had the audacity to not accept her fate. Instead she leaps to the side, causing my punch to instead strike the ground, instantly sending debris everywhere as a new crater is formed in the stone.

Upon landing, she lowers her form close to the ground and releases her staff, causing the wood to softly clatter onto the ground. Upon doing so, she stands back up and looks at me calmly. “There is no need to fight.” She says softly.

“Like you fucking have a choice!” I roar. Fuck the most satisfying way to kill, now I want her dead.

In one swift motion I aim my cannon and fire, launching the cannonball straight at her form with a loud clack. Yet again she dodges, this time by throwing herself to the ground, allowing the cannonball to sail over her form and crash into the distant wall of the cavern.

At the edge of my vision I see the other Pokemon beginning to approach me. “Stay back!” The Delphox shouts. “Do not interfere!”

Who does this fucking bitch think she’s doing?! Is she trying to set a message? To show that she can win while doing absolutely nothing?!

Who the fuck does she think she is?

Does she even REALIZE the shit I went through?

I suffered greatly at the hands of fucking Pokemon. They took away EVERYTHING that I am, leaving me in this fucking thing. This isn’t my original body anymore.

Realization is starting to dig its claws into my mind, the shock of all that has happened fading, leaving nothing but despair.

I shove it all back and lock it into a cage, allowing the inferno fueled by hate to contain it.

With a growl I start approaching the Delphox.

She sits up before resting her hands on her dress, her eyes possessing a look that I...can’t figure out.

As I get closer, she speaks up.

“What is your name?”

The words cause my rage to freeze, the desire to murder her being halted due to the sheer confusion I’m feeling.

Did...she seriously just ask me for me name? I’m... I’m trying to fucking kill her!

Fucking Pokemon, not realizing shit even when it’s directly in their face. They are so self-absorbed in their own sense of superiority that they overlook everything that isn’t about them.

They overlook the fact that everything they have came from Humans. They overlook the fact that we made guns as a way to compensate for what we lack. They overlook the fact that we made many things just so we’re not left in the dust.

Pokemon have it all. Strength, speed, stamina, durability, supernatural powers... If a Human were to fight a Pokemon, nearly every case would end with the Human severally beaten or even killed.

And this...fucking Delphox is no different. She is so egotistical that she thinks that she can just choose not to fight?!

It is about fucking time that Pokemon are shown that they’re not at the top anymore. By their own fucking volition they gave a Human the tools to fight them. I am a fucking Pokemon killing machine. Hell, seeing how these ruins were? I wouldn’t be fucking surprised if the people here made this thing SPECIFICALLY to fight and kill Pokemon.

If that’s the case? I intend to put it to full fucking use. My life is gone, but at least I get to avenge what I lost as well as every other Human who suffered at the hands of these freaks.

Upon reaching the Delphox I grab her, my hand easily being large enough to engulf her upper-torso as well as her neck. I effortlessly lift her up to my face, my glowing red eyes growing ever brighter.

“You don’t fucking deserve to know my name.” I hiss at her.

She’s completely at my mercy now. All it takes is one squeeze and she’ll pop like a grape, just like that fucking Gothitelle.

Yet for some fucking reason, she’s still just as calm as she was earlier.

And...it’s...fucking infuriating me to no end.

“I will not ask for it then.” She responds to me, her voice still as soft as it was earlier. Her eyes though still contain that same look as it did, and I still can’t fucking understand what it means.

Her voice becomes even softer. “I will never say that I will know what you’ve through. However I do understand that you have experienced pain and suffering like none other... It is unforgivable what they’ve done to you...”

She closes her eyes. “The damage that’s been done can never be healed, but...at least try to let us make up for what they have done to you, even if it won’t make everything right.” She lets out a breath. “It’s the least we can do.”

I know that look now.

Remorse.

She’s not looking at me with pity or conceit, she’s not trying to fight me because she thinks she’s above me. She...

...

Fuck this.

Fuck Pokemon.

Fuck...everything.

I want to kill her so, so bad. I want to crush her body with my hand and let her crumple into nothing but a pile of flesh and blood. I want her to die. I want her to fucking die!

But now I can’t, because I’d feel fucking GUILTY for doing it.

With a loud growl I release her from my grip, letting her form drop to the ground.

Why did all of this happen to me? What did I possibly do to deserve all of this?! Did I unwittingly do something that turned the whole universe against me? To make me experience pain, hopelessness, and then fucking take away everything that made me Human?

I thought that I was able to get even, to get some satisfaction in killing the ones who did this to me.

But now...? I can’t even finish it, because I’d feel fucking GUILTY.

The universe hates me, because it won’t even let me have that satisfaction.

What is there for me to even do now? I can’t go back to Progria because people will see me as some sort of Pokemon at best, or a dangerous threat at worst. I can’t stay in Evolutia, since I have nothing here to call my own, not including the fact that I fucking hate Pokemon.

So that’s it, huh? To just sit here and do nothing? To see if my body is capable of breaking down? Or will the universe not even let me have that, and I’d be forced to destroy myself until I’m guaranteed a safe passing?

For all I know I might just instead destroy my form enough to not be able to move anymore, yet I’d still be conscious, left to sit in a dark void for the rest of my life.

My...

My life is a living hell.

...

The Delphox is sitting up at this point, looking at me silently as my mind sinks deeper and deeper into a very dark place.

Yet...despite it all, one thing she said manages to prevent me from fulling falling in

“How can you help me?” I finally ask her, bitterness tainting my every word.

“We can give you a place to stay.” She answers immediately. “What you do there however is entirely up to you.”

If my face were capable of movement, I’d be narrowing my eyes. And yet despite what may be my better judgement, another question seeps out.

“What is it you fucking Pokemon do?”

For her credit, she looks completely unphased. “We protect others.” She responds calmly. “We are known as the Guardians of Twilight, a guild who fights dangerous threats to society and protect those who are incapable of protecting themselves.” She bows her head again. “However we don’t intend to push this onto you. If you so desire, you can stay with us until you find your way again.”

Find my way? Find my way?!

There is no direction I can take anymore. There’s no place for me in fucking society. How the fuck does she think that I’d be able to find some purpose for myself?!

Hell, seeing how I am right now? I doubt I can even fucking eat or drink anymore, so what purpose is there even for me?!

...

Yet...

She says they fight shit?

...

My body is a murder machine. After seeing how easily I killed so many Pokemon, I could probably just use it to kill things. I mean, what other purpose is there? It’s not like I can fucking paint with this shit.

...

To fight to protect...?

...

It’s not like I have anything left.

Fucking...Pokemon...

...

With the red glow in my eyes disappearing entirely, I finally speak again.

“...My name...

...is Asmund.”

The faintest of smiles form on her lips. “Greetings, Asmund. I am known as Nightshade, however...” She stands up, bowing to me. “...you may call me Jezebel.”

...

...

...

“Asmund?”

The voice breaks me from my thoughts, making me realize that I’m just staring into space. My body is still standing in the middle of this hallway of the GoT HQ, effectively creating a minor roadblock to all Pokemon trying to pass through.

I turn my gaze to the speaker, only to notice that it’s no other than Jezebel.

The Delphox looks slightly disheveled, her hair sticking in various directions despite the clear effort in trying to make it look decent. Her eyes are baggy and bloodshot, her form slightly sagging due to the result of clear sleep deprivation.

Yet despite it all, she’s looking at me with concern.

...

Fucking Pokemon...

“It’s nothing...” I mutter. “Just reminiscing, that’s all.”

She blinks at me before slowly nodding. “I see.. In that case, I won’t pry..” She simply says.

She’s...an often hard one to read, yet I’ve started to see the hints. She definitely wants to inquire about what’s going on in my head, but by having a sense of decency...she doesn’t. Instead she nods goodbye to me before walking past, making her way down the hall.

“Hey.” I speak up loudly, causing her to stop and look back at me with surprise and confusion.

She quickly got a hold of herself though, the reserved look returning. “Yes, Asmund?”

Honestly? The next words that came from my mouth were...painful, yet it would be even more painful to have them left unsaid.

“You’re pretty alright...for a Pokemon.”

She blinks again and again. Although she’s known for her reservedness, once she registers the words I said? An uncharacteristically wide smile spreads on her face.

Despite the overflowing joy she’s experiencing, she quickly recomposes herself and lets her grin return to a small yet respectful smile. “Thank you, Asmund. That means a lot to me.”

To her credit, she doesn’t look tired anymore.

“Yeah... Just don’t fucking let it go to your head.” I mutter before turning around, walking back the way I came.

I don’t say another word, nor do I look back. I just focus on the path ahead of me.

As I turn a corner, the words slowly leak out of my mouth as a quiet mumble.

“It’s the least I can do...”

[thetakenpokemon]

Act 2 - Contest Winner (or Loser?)

[PoV: Jezebel]

After downing my next shot of rum, I set the small glass back down onto the bar counter - right next to ten other glasses.

Even though that’s a LOT of extremely potent alcohol I’ve consumed within such a short amount of time, the most that I’m feeling is a strong burning in my stomach - as well as a similar feeling on my face. I’m probably blushing really hard from the rum. Thankfully, my fur is there to conceal it.

Elizabeth on the other hand? She’s barely able to sit straight in her seat, she’s currently wobbling all over the place. The only thing keeping her upright is her free hand having a vice-grip on the counter, her other hand holding her eleventh shot glass of rum - said liquid spilling from the uncoordinated movements of her arm.

Honestly? I’m actually very impressed that Elizabeth managed to last this long. Part of the reason why I’m very good at holding my own alcohol is because I’m a Fire-type, so the heat within me helps burn some of the alcohol before it enters my system. That and paired up with a liver of pure steel? I can keep drinking this stuff all throughout the night.

Elizabeth? She’s smaller than I am, so I guess the only thing that’s keeping her going is the fact that she’s used to drinking this much.

“I cannnn keep doooooing tees all...n...” The Lopunny slurs, her expression being that of a goofy smile. She didn’t finish the sentence though, since she practically chucks the rum into her mouth. She smacks her mouth, her tongue lolling out. “Seeeeee...? Steell...going....!”

The bartender gives her a concerned look before looking back at me, obviously rather hesitant on giving us another round of shots.

I roll my eyes before looking at him with a smirk. “Just one more shot for the both of us.” I tell him.

I have a feeling that this’ll be the straw that breaks the Camprupt’s back, since Elizabeth is barely holding on as it is.

He slowly nods his head and grabs two more shot glasses and fills them with the crystal clear yet extremely strong alcohol. He sets them down in front of me and the Lopunny before taking a step back and watching us at our ‘game’.

I grab my glass and look at Elizabeth, raising an eyebrow at her. “Number twelve.” I say before immediately downing it, the burning sensation being the same as the previous eleven.

Elizabeth immediately goes to grab her drink, but in her attempt to do so she immediately starts falling off her stool. I quickly extend an arm and catch her, preventing her from having a rather rough embrace with the wooden floor.

“Noooooo...” She whines. “I can...do eeeeeeeet!” She tries to sit up, yet even with my assistance she can’t get herself fully back onto her stool.

“I’d say that it’s over, Elizabeth.” I say to her,. my smirk widening.

Honestly? Even though I’ve won, it didn’t really feel as satisfying because of how effortless it was. Yeah I get to have her ‘do anything I want’ for an hour since that was the wager that was made, but if anything I don’t have much interest in that.

If anything? Teaching Elizabeth a lesson was the biggest motivator for me since she really needed to not go off the deep end. Right now? Obviously she’s way too drunk to realize her mistake, but at least I get to feel rather smug.

“Nononooooo!” She continues to complain. “I...ammmm...not dooone. Tere ees...steell...” At this point she’s really falling over, in which I now have to use both hands to keep her from stumbling off her stool like a ragdoll.

“It’s over, Elizabeth.” I repeat, trying contain a chuckle. When she doesn’t respond to this I instead give her a stern look, in which she somehow manages to meet with her own gaze before slumping.

“Fiiiine...” She sighs, her cheeks a deep shade of purple from the booze.

With a bit of effort I manage to pull her off her feet and get her to lean against the counter, in which I turn back to face the bartender.

Said individual is looking at the massive spread of empty shot-glasses with a look of immense respect. “Sheesh, ladies.” He exclaims with a shake of his head, chuckling. “You two hold your liquor far better than anyone I’ve ever met.”

I couldn’t help but give my own chuckle, smiling to myself. “We’re not any simple ladies, after all.”

He whistles. “No kidding. If you members of the Guardians of Twilight all have similar alcohol tolerance, this place will be out of drinks in a night if at least twenty of you were to visit at once.”

I fumble with my dress before pulling out my wallet, and after sifting through it I pull out a sizable amount of money that should pay for all of the alcohol - and provide an impressive tip. I set it down on the counter before giving him a nod of thanks.

The bartender grins and takes the money. “Much obliged.” He says before looking at Elizabeth. “Need help, or-?”

I shake my head, still chuckling. “No need, I will take her back.”

I stand up from my stool - the action causes my body to lose its balance slightly.

Hmm, perhaps the alcohol has more of an effect on me than I thought. That’d also explain why I’m also more loose with my emotions. Guess it really has been a while since I last drank...

Grabbing my staff that’s leaning against the counter, I clasp Elizabeth’s arm and pull her to my form.

“Lean on me.” I tell her. “I’ll support you as we head back to the guild HQ.”

She doesn’t respond - verbally at least, and together we slowly begin to make our way out of the club.

The moment we step outside I immediately feel myself get blasted with fresh air, the strong scent of sweat disappearing with the midnight breeze. The city itself is also relatively quieter compared to the club, so my ears feel very thankful as well.

As the two of us slowly make our way back, Elizabeth starts talking again.

“Nooo...” She whines once more. “I...do not waaant...to beee....your slaaaaave!”

The last word causes my body to freeze, the action making Elizabeth stumble forward before falling - and with her grip on her body, she ends up taking her with me.

The two of us fall flat onto the sidewalk, my staff releasing from my grip and clattering the ground. At this point my face is so flushed that people would probably actually see a noticeable shade of pink on my cheeks - despite the dark fur covering them.

“E-Elizabeth!” I shout indignantly. “Not in public!” I blink before immediately following up with: “And forget about the wager, I have no interest in-”

“Buuut eet was a beeeet!” The Lopunny retorts in her drunken stupor. “I ‘ave to do eeeeeeet!”

I grit my teeth. “Elizabeth-” I start to say, but she cuts me off again.

“What weell you ‘ave me...doooo?” She continues her drunken tirade. “Weell you ‘ave me...streep een publeec? Weell you ‘ave meeeee....chained to a bed so youuuu-”

I don’t even let her finish that sentence. “NONE OF THAT!” I shout frantically, my face full on burning now.

At this point we definitely have a lot of onlookers now. Gritting my teeth harder I get back to my feet and grab my staff, and once I have my balance I pull Elizabeth back to her feet.

“Not another word!” I hiss at her. “Let us get back, no more of this nonsense!!”

She looks at me with confusion. “Buuut thee wag-”

“No!” I growl at her. “No no no! No wager! Just stop talking!”

And so we continued the long trek back to the GoT HQ.

...

Where did she get THAT assumption?! 

---------------

Much to my chagrin, the journey back did not go smoothly at all. Elizabeth continued to go on and on about the ‘wager’, shouting and whining about all sorts of obscenities she thinks I will do to her. Even with my best attempts I just...could not...get her...to shut up.

I have half the mind to burn her on the spot and be done with it. And the worst part is that if I drank any more alcohol? I probably would’ve actually done it due to the sheer embarrassment I’m feeling.

I swear, who the FUCK does she think I am? With all of the shit she’s saying, people would think I’m some extremely kinky freak!

At this point we’re navigating the hallways of the HQ, and thank Arceus because there’s barely any people walking around this time of night. The few who do walk by us have expressions of confusion - or worse, smirks.

As we’re navigating, a thought suddenly strikes me.

I have...no idea on where Elizabeth stays. Obviously asking her is out of the question, because of the fact she failed to listen to a SINGLE word I said ever since we left the club.

“Shit.” I say aloud, the uncharacteristic word causing a nearby passerby to flinch. I turn and glare at them, my green eyes blazing. “What are you fucking looking at? Keep moving!” I half-shout at them, causing them to start sprinting off - and nearly tripping while doing so.

“-aaand once you are done weet te strap-on...” Elizabeth continues with her tirade, in which I start cringing even harder.

“BY THE GODS AND GODDESSES ABOVE, ELIZABETH!” I shout at her in anger. “I AM NOT GOING TO DO ANYTHING SEXUAL TO YOU! STOP TALKING LIKE I’M ABOUT TO FUCK YOU!”

Okay, normally I would be complimented on having insane composure. How I am the pinnacle of professionalism.

Me right now? A combination of alcohol as well as massive doses of irritation and embarrassment is apparently enough to take said reputation and shatter it completely and utterly.

“Buuut te wag-” Elizabeth starts for the umpteenth time.

“Fuck the wager!” I growl at her, my teeth flaring.

Her eyes widen as her flushed face grows even more red.

It took me a moment to realize my poor choice of words. With an even louder growl I start dragging her stumbling form with me.

You know what? Fuck it. I am not navigating these hallways to find her room, especially since there are many potential witnesses. I’m taking her to my room so she can sleep this whole shit off, and MAYBE I still have a chance to salvage what little I have left of my dignity.

Of course Elizabeth continues to babble as we make our way as quickly as physically possible to my room. My ears are definitely flat against my head now, my jaw clenching so hard that it’s actually hurting.

As we finally take the last turn, I feel relief fill my body as the door to my room comes into view.

FINALLY! My salvation!

As I approach the room with Elizabeth in tow, I rest my staff against the wall as I start fumbling my dress for my room-key.

Elizabeth starts mumbling in a confused tone, her words lost to me. As she watches me pull out my key and put it into the slot in the door, her eyes widen to the point where I swear they’re going to pop up.

Oh no, you little shit. This is NOT what you’re thinking of.

“You are sleeping in my room till you’re back to your normal self.” I growl, doing my best to prevent her from saying a SINGLE word. “Nothing is happening in here except you getting rest. Got it?”

I don’t let her respond. As soon as the door opens, I stash my key, grab my staff, and drag her into the room.

Ignoring the scattered papers around my ‘humble abode’ from my duty as temporary Night Hunter Leader, I pull Elizabeth towards my bed and practically throw her at it. Her body stumbles before falling on top of it, her voice becoming muffled as her face is against the sheets.

With a sigh of relief I walk over to my study and sit down at the chair next to my desk. I rest my elbows onto the paper-covered wooden surface, using my hands to cradle my head.

It’s over, Jezebel. It’s over, no one will hear that dirty rabbit anymore. You’re safe.

You have a plan of action. You can tell everyone who overheard Elizabeth that she was in a drunken stupor, and that you were helping her to her room. If they ask about your outbursts, you can claim that they must be mistaking and it was Elizabeth who was acting in such a way. That or they misheard due to lack of sleep, since it was late at night after all.

I feel myself smile.

Yeah, it’ll all work out. Everything is good, your reputation is-

“I...am ready.” I hear Elizabeth meekly say from the direction of my bed.

My body tenses, my eyes widening.

I don’t dare look behind me to see what the hell she means exactly by that. Ohhhh no. No no no.

Hell. Fucking. No.

I cross my arms onto my desk and let my head flop onto them, and thus I begin to scream in exasperation.

[thetakenpokemon]

[PoV: Asmund]

“A what?!” I growl at Minato, still trying to wrap my head around whatever the hell he said.

With the invitation still in the Seviper Hybrid’s claws he turns it so I could read its writing - not that I’ll bother. “It’s a beach party!” He repeats to me, excitement clear in his tone. “Someone in the guild received this invitation. They couldn’t go however, so they passed it around until it came to me.” He looks down and proceeds to read the list of activities on it. “I’ve never been to a beach party however, but the list of events look exciting!” He looks back up, his gaze becoming confused. “What are Tiki Masks and sand castles?”

A beach event. Of course. And I can only assume that Pokemon will be there too.

“Will they be involved?” I continue to growl. “Is this a Pokemon focused event?”

He blinks. “I...think so?” He says uncertainly before rereading the invitation again. “It doesn’t specifically say, but...I think it is?”

Yeah. Me being surrounded completely by Pokemon in a happy-go-lucky place? Hell no. No fucking thanks.

“Not. Fucking. Interested.” I hiss at him before stomping away.

I have to deal with Pokemon too much as it is. To go to a BEACH event of all things? If I had a normal stomach, I would’ve vomited already. There’s NO way they’ll catch me at a place like that, much less convince me.

[One Week Later]

“This is so exciting!” Minato exclaims gleefully, the invitation clasped in his claws. “I can’t wait to participate in all of these activities!” He turns and grins at me. “Thank you for coming, Asmund. I appreciate it.”

My response is to just stare into the space ahead of me. Still processing on how he managed to convince me to even come here.

“Please remember to behave, Asmund.” The voice of Jezebel speaks up. “I understand your dislike for these events, but please...at least try to keep control over your temper.”

I turn and glare at the dark Delphox. “Why are you here again?” I ask her in a clearly annoyed tone.

She coolly matches my gaze with her own. “Which answer do you prefer? The true or the false one?”

I clench my fist angrily. “Out with it.”

Jezebel rolls her eyes. “To keep an eye on you. We are more than aware that you have a history of causing trouble in public events such as these. So my reason here? To keep an eye on you as well as perform damage control if need be.”

Of course, that’s the reason why she’s here of all places. She’s not known to come to ‘beach parties’ as is.

I turn my disdainful glare to Pahaliah - said white Decidueye is currently giving me her own stinkeye. “Mine own reasons art the same, Asmund.” She says snidely. “Prithee behaveth, f'r all of our sakes. And if 't be true not, doth ‘t f'r Minato”

I turn and focus on the road ahead of me, resisting the desire to launch a tirade of insults at her. Sure I have difficulty understanding her as it is, but I can quite clearly make out what she’s saying to me right now.

Yeah...this is gonna be a long month...

As we walk over the last hill, the beach finally comes into view. Everything is visible. From the brightly colored umbrellas, to the sapphire blue sea, to the happy Pokemon who are building sandcastles and painting Tiki masks.

And it all looks absolutely disgusting.

Yup. Gonna be a very long month...

[Asmund, Silence, Nightshade, and Seraph have joined the Poke Beach Camp!]

[thetakenpokemon]

Act 2 - Deserved Break

[PoV: Jezebel]

I impassively watch my surroundings of the club, from the constantly changing colors of the flashing lights to the countless dancing party-goers - fueled on both adrenaline and alcohol.

With a flashy smile the bartender gives me my drink - a bright orange and red cocktail in a tall glass with thin straw. After tasting it, I give him a nod before focusing back on my surroundings.

I’m not very big on clubs. In fact...I find them rather distasteful. However this place serves the best cocktails, thus why I’m even here to begin with.

Glancing back at my drink I start stirring it absentmindedly with the straw, watching the ice swirl around.

I don’t drink alcohol much either, but this is more of a special occasion. Kaiser’s healthy enough to continue working as Night Hunter Branch leader, which means that I’m no longer needed to work in her stead.

I’m fine with working on paperwork, I’m very good at it after all. But managing the countless Night Hunter teams as well as assigning missions? No thank you, that’s a giant responsibility I have no interest in having. Keeping track of my own teammates is difficult enough already.

With my jaw clenching I immediately take a long drink from my cocktail, effectively draining half of it in one go. I feel the cool liquid flow into my stomach, the sugar from the mixers as well as the alcohol giving me a pleasant feeling.

It’s almost as if I’m trying to get myself drunk so that I can bang my head hard onto something, thus making me bed-ridden and forcing a lower-ranked person to take my job for me.

Who would even do that, I wonder?

“Oh? Do my own eyes fool me?” I hear a peculiar yet familiar voice speak to me, just barely audible over the loud music. “Ees tees Jezebel in a nightclub of all places?”

Hopping onto the empty stool beside me is no other than Elisabeth, in which said Lopunny/Vaporeon hybrid is grinning widely at me.

“I deed not tink you would be te type to be ‘ere, renard chéri~” She purrs. “What a pleasant surprise eendeed~”

Stirring my now half-empty glass, I look at her with a clearly unamused expression. “Elisabeth.” I say curtly before looking back at my drink.

From the corner of my eye I see her take her tri-corn hat off her head and set it down onto the bar counter. “I ‘ave been ‘ere many times, yet never ‘ave seen you ‘ere. I assume that tees ees a special occasion, no?” She nudges me with an elbow. “Hmm? Am I wrong?”

Feeling tempted to just take my drink and walk away, I instead let out a heavy breath through my nose.

‘Just answer her, Jezebel.’ I mentally tell myself. ‘You’re not here to be stressed out. Yes, Elisabeth of all people had to show up, but answering her will most likely make her stop bothering you.’

“Kaiser has now returned to her position as Night Hunter Branch leader.” I say in an almost bored tone. “So that means I’m no longer needed to work in her place.”

Looking at her, I see that her playful grin has turned to a small smile. “Was eet tat bad?” She asks.

I rub my temples. “Very.” I say lowly. “I have very little experience in working such a position, so managing all of you was...very stressful to say the least.” Letting out a sigh I rest my head in my arms. “I’m used to filing after-mission reports involving my team as well as the occasional interrogation, but keeping track of tens of dozens of teams all the while making sure they’re all okay? It’s...something else completely...”

I feel her pat my shoulder, in which I look up at her. “For what eet ees wort’, you deed a great job.” She assures me, still smiling. “You deed do tings rater deefferently compared to Kaiser, but you steell deed well!” She starts to laugh. “Een fact, tees does explain your rater grumpy atteetude whenever we needed to speak to you, renard chéri~”

I roll my eyes at this, but I found my irritation towards her fading away. “Yeah, I was...not in a good mood throughout the entire time I was in that position.” I focus on my drink again, letting out another sigh. “I do apologize however, it was very rude of me to act that way towards all of you.”

She shrugs her shoulders. “No ‘arm done, Jezebel! No ‘arm done at all!” The Lopunny nudges my shoulder, giving me a cheeky grin. “Eef you want to make tings even ‘owever, ‘ow about a keess on the leeps~?”

I don’t even miss a beat. “I’ll pass.” I say before draining the rest of my drink. With the cocktail glass empty I push it away, letting out a contented sigh of relief.

Elisabeth watched the whole thing, in which her cheeky grin becomes something more devilish. “Say...” She starts in a singsong tone. “I am feeling rater competeeteeve, so ‘ow about I challenge you to a leettle game~?”

I glance at her, once again unamused. “I assume this involves alcohol?” I ask, although I already knew the answer.

She nods slyly. “Oui, Jezebel~ ‘ow about you and I ‘ave a contest? To see who ‘as te strongest stomach~?”

I rest my cheek on my hand, letting out another breath through my nose. “So you’re requesting me participate in a drinking contest with you.” I state.

She nods her head. “Oui~”

My flat look intensifies. “You’re challenging a co-worker to a drinking contest.”

Elisabeth waggles her finger. “Ah ah! We do not work togeter, Jezebel! We are on deefferent teams, so we are not co-workers!”

I blink.

“We...both work for the Guardians of Twilight.” I say slowly, looking at her with bewilderment. “That means that we are co-workers. In fact, I was technically your boss at one point.”

She shrugs her shoulders. “Back when I was into piracy, te capitaine would drink wit te crew all te time! Een tees case, I see eet to be no deefferent~”

At this point I’ve decided to humor her. “Alright, so a drinking contest. Let’s say if I were to accept, what do you and I get out of this?”

Elisabeth leans towards me, her grin widening further. “To prove who ‘as te strongest stomach, deed I not already say tat~?” The Lopunny straightens herself, her grin turning into a smirk. “Altough...’ow about we...’up te stakes’, as one would say?” She starts tracing the brim of her hat with a finger. “Whoever weens not only shows tat tey ‘ave te strongest stomach, but also ‘as to do whatever te oter wishes for te next hour~?” A low purr comes from her. “Are you up to it? Or are you too afraid~?”

Heh, I should’ve expected as much. Elisabeth has a reputation of pulling stunts like this. This usually tends to involve her teammates, so it’s a little surprising to see that she’s trying to involve me of all people.

Although when I think about it, she’s probably just saying all of this just because she’s playing around. She tends to go overboard when it comes to messing with people, so this is something I wouldn’t put it past her.

...

Actually... This could provide me with an excellent opportunity...

I look at Elisabeth, the Lopunny still smirking at me. With a completely straight face I respond. “Very well, I accept.”

She lets out a laugh. “Ho ho ho! I knew you would not- WHA?!” At this point she’s realizing what I said, and all of her bravado turned into incoherent sputtering.

My face is still straight. “Did I stutter?” I say, this time leaning towards her. “You did challenge me after all. As leader of Purging Light, I need to represent my teammates.” I wave at the bartender. “Tender! Please bring the both of us a shot train of a strong rum.”

Elisabeth is looking at me uncertainly now. “A-Are you sure? I do not believe you are up to tees.” She starts grinning, albeit still looking confused. “I ‘ave outdrank all who contested wit me, after all!”

I watch as the bartender starts placing shot after shot before us. “I would never participate in something if I’m unsure about it.” I answer in a matter-of-fact tone. “There’s a reason why I’m where I am.” I grab the shot glass, looking her straight in the eyes. “You have one chance to back out, Elisabeth.”

She immediately grabs her shot, now smirking. “Ho! Me, Elisabeth Brasseur, te Fearsome Sapphire Beauty, back out from a drinking challenge? Vous devez faire erreur, Jezebel.” With that she immediately downs the shot, grinning like mad. “Te deed is done! Now let us see who weell last!”

Without hesitating I down my own, the burning liquid flowing down my throat. I can tell that this stuff is very potent, the bartender made an excellent choice. I never faltered from this and upon setting my shot down I grab another, holding it towards her. “The challenge is on.” I say.

Little does this Lopunny know that she already lost, since I have a secret weapon that no one knows about.

That weapon? It’s my insanely high alcohol tolerance~

[thetakenpokemon]

Act 2 - Calling Upon the Storm

[PoV: Jezebel]

When Penumbra informed me of Snakewulf’s findings, I immediately began looking through the possible teams to handle this. Currently we still lack information on what exactly this foe is, and even though Snakewulf plans to investigate further...I need to choose wisely. Waiting for more info is not an option, especially since there’s a great chance that an entire town is in danger.

Because of this...I had to look through the various teams to assign for this task, and after thinking it over...I made my decision.

And it wasn’t the only decision I made...

Standing before Kaiser’s (or more like mine at this point) desk are the three members of Midnight Storm; Elisabeth, Alicia, and Chevalier...also known as Corsair, Thunderclap, and Duskfall.

“I greatly appreciate you three accepting this mission, despite having finished one recently.” I thank them.

Alicia merely grins. “Come now, Jezebel. If an entire fillage is in danger, it vould be unacceptable if ve declined.”

"Oui, and eet also means extra pay for us as well~” Elisabeth hums, enjoying the thought of her paycheck increasing.

My eyes glance at Chevalier, said Gallade hybrid’s eyes immediately dart away to avoid locking his gaze with mine. In his hands is a bottle of red liquid that he’s sipping from, presumably blood due to his unique diet.

Looking back at the team, I feel my lips smile softly. “There is something else that I must inform you three, which is that you won’t be doing this alone.”

They perk up at this, with a mixture of surprise and confusion.

“Not alone? Do you not trust us to handle thees?” The Lopunny speaks up, her eyes betraying irritation.

I shake my head. “It’s not that, Elisabeth. The reason why is because that we’re unsure on what this threat is, and since we can’t wait to find out who you will be fighting...I’m staying on the safe side and sending others along with your team in order to guarantee that the situation will be handled without difficulty.”

The Incineroar rubs her chin. “Who is it that vill be joining us zen? Is it a Night Hunter team ve know?”

“Even better.” At this point I couldn’t contain it any longer as my smile becomes smug. “Due my team being unable to fully participate in normal missions due to me being in charge of Kaiser’s role, I’m sending two members of Purging Light to assist you.”

Just watching their eyes bug out is VERY satisfying.

“N-Night Wardens?” Chevalier stutters, finally speaking up for the first time since he’s arrived. “H-Helping us??”

I nod again. “Indeed, that way this mission will be handled smoothly just in case this foe turns out to be something far stronger than expected.”

“Who exactly vill be joining us?” Alicia questions me eagerly, which I gladly respond.

“It would be better if I show you.” I pick up my staff and cause the green flames to burn a bit brighter, signaling the two selected Night Wardens who were waiting behind the door to enter.

Upon opening the three members of Midnight Storm quickly turn to look back at their surprise teammates, the first member to enter being Minato.

“It’s a pleasure to see you all again.” The Nidoviper chuckles, giving a friendly wave as he slithers in. “I’ve been looking forward to working with you three for a long while, so I eagerly accepted when Jezebel gave me the opportunity.”

Elisabeth turns on her chair and crosses a leg, flashing a seductive smile. “I was hoping tat you would be one of them, I can eemageene the fun we weell be ‘aving once we are out tere~”

Minato didn’t really know how to respond to this, so he coughs awkwardly and averts his gaze. “I’m glad to see that you’re just as playful as ever...Elisabeth.”

She leans forward, slowly rubbing a hand across the surface of one of her legs. “Who said I was being playful, monsieur~?”

Alicia rolls her eyes and whacks the Lopunny on the back of the head, the sudden force nearly throwing her off her chair all the while knocking her hat off. “Hör auf damit.” She growls, giving Elisabeth a look of unamusement. “It is not vunny.”

In response Elisabeth gives her the stinkeye. “Says the keetty who ‘as no sense of ‘umor.” She retorts back, picking up her hat and placing it back firmly on her head.

Chevalier didn’t pay much attention to those two, since his gaze was focused on the door. “Wasn’t there supposed to be...another member?” He asks quietly.

Minato blinks and looks back at the door, his expression becoming one of exasperation. “Asmund?”

The name makes all three members of Midnight Storm freeze.

“A-A-Asmund?” Chevalier stutters, his whole body shaking with clear fear.

Not a second later the giant golem strides in, each step causing the room to shake. His expressionless gaze glares down at the Gallade hybrid. “Yeah, me.” He rumbles, daring the timid Pokemon to object. “Got a problem?”

He quickly shakes his head. “N-No! Not at a-all!”

I cock an eyebrow at Asmund. “Why didn’t you enter when you were called?”

The Golem merely shrugs, not bothering to actually give me a verbal answer...as expected

I end up sighing at his usual antics and look back at the rest of Midnight Storm, taking note of their unhappy expressions due to them now realizing that Asmund will be going with them. “Before anyone objects to my choices, I have chosen Minato and Asmund specifically for their abilities on handling extreme situations.” I speak up, giving a small nod to the golem. “Especially Asmund, his power and abilities is invaluable.”

Said golem merely snorts in response.

“Nevertheless,” I continue. “My decision is final, I have full confidence in the synergy you five will have...so prove me correct. I expect you all to gather what you need and leave by tomorrow afternoon, Rin and Ren will then teleport you all straight to Pearldom where Snakewulf will be hopefully there to debrief you all on what you need to do.”

“Understood.” Minato nods, Asmund merely stares at me silently.

I turn my gaze to the rest of Midnight Storm, who are looking uneasy. “Understood?” I press, my voice containing a faint edge.

They quickly nod, Chevalier being the first. “Understood.” They say in unison.

I clasp my hands together, my smile returning. “Good, you are dismissed.”

[thetakenpokemon]

Act 1 - Another Signature

[PoV: Jezebel]

I rub my head in hopes of easing the headache that’s beating itself into my mind, yet as expected it doesn’t help whatsoever.

At this point Kaiser should’ve taken over, but apparently while drunk she ended up accidentally hitting her head against a wall. Normally she’d just shrug it off since she’s a Garchomp after all, but when they went to check on her they found a large hole in the wall along with an incredibly nasty bruise located right on her forehead.

In a nutshell, she gets to lay in bed while recovering and I’m stuck with her work.

I’m a Night Warden for Arceus’ sake! I didn’t dabble too much into the affairs of the Night Hunters until recently!

My eyebrows furrow as a few choice curses escape my lips in soft mutters as I sign a few reports with my signatures, all typical ‘we killed this’ or ‘we drove this away’. Now technically that’s what the GoT does and I commend the members that completed their missions, but at the same time it’s just...very dull to read over report after report. That and it’s very hard on the eyes.

I feel my gaze drift over to the computer console on the desk, the primary device I use to check out online reports as well as communicate with various members via video communication.

I feel my lips curve slightly upon recalling my chat with Aster and her going over the details of their situation when they arrived to Woodwick. At least THAT was interesting, not to mention I’ve always held the highest regards for her out of all the Night Hunters.

The sound of the office door opens draws my attention, making my ears twitch before I glance up. Standing at now opened entrance is Penumbra, the leader of the Night Watchers.

“I guess knocking isn’t required when it comes to you?” I muse sarcastically, feeling my patience too thin and myself too tired to bother with professionalism.

The Luxray-Arcanine hybrid rolls her eyes. “The reason for me being here is to inform you that our presence is required.”

I cock an eyebrow. “Then why didn’t you inform me through the monitors? It would be much more efficient than simply coming here.”

Her eyes narrow slightly. “I was already in the area.” She answers dryly then shakes her head. “We can continue this conversation on the way, not to mention one of the reasons is that there’s a rumor of another hybrid out there.”

The bitterness from the constant paperwork quickly fades upon hearing this, my interest suddenly piqued. However this only lasted for a moment before I started looking at her with a deadpan expression. “Rumor?” I repeat irritably. “Why would my presence be required for a rumor?” I place my elbow on my desk and lean on my head, my interest quickly making its way to a corner so that it can die completely. “That’s your forte, if there’s a rumor then you send a Night Watcher to check it out. The only reason on why my presence would be needed is if there’s a confirmed sighting and we need to send out a team.”

She lets out a snort at this. “Now this is a new Jezebel, what happened to the one that priorities professionalism at all costs?”

“Murdered by never-ending paperwork.” I respond tiredly. “That and the fact that this is a job that was dumped onto me by Colossus.” I breath out deeply through my nose. “Completely out of nowhere, if I may add.”

Penumbra rubs her eyes with a paw. “Nevertheless...” She sighs. “Your presence is still required, since the rumor is only one of many things that Colossus wishes to discuss.”

With a heavy sigh of my own I force myself to stand, much to the dismay of my tired brain. “Fine, lead the way.” I mutter, grabbing my staff from the wall it’s leaning on.

“Coffee will be supplied.” The hybrid adds with a smirk, turning and walking out of the office

“Although I don’t normally drink coffee...” I say while rubbing my eyes. “...but this time I’ll make an exception.”

[thetakenpokemon]

Act 1 - The Rumor

[PoV: Jezebel]

As I thought, this ‘meeting’ didn’t hold anything of particular interest. The various topics primarily focused on our reports and how each branch is doing, in the end I didn’t really have to speak much since the Night Hunters have been relatively ‘inactive’ except for a select few groups, the Floral Triad included.

“Now, let us talk about this ‘rumor’ that I’ve heard about.” Colossus changes the topic, his gaze flicking between me and the Luxray-hybrid.

“I have no knowledge on this, so don’t look at me.” I mutter, the coffee having done nothing in improving my mood.

The Aggron chuckles. “I know this, Jessica. I have no intention of asking you about something you don’t know.”

My eyes twitch, but I don’t give him the satisfaction of me further reacting to his intentional mess-up of my name.

Penumbra clears her throat to gain both of our attentions, once we’re both looking at her (and in my case, with irritation) she starts speaking. “From what limited information we’ve obtained, there are rumors of an unusual hybrid detected within the eastern region of the country.” She points her paw at the map on the table, specifically in an area where there are three towns adjacent to one another. “The descriptions are vague and inconsistent, but we believe that there’s a high chance that this hybrid may be one of the rogues that escaped from the HWDP.”

Colossus nods his head. “Which is worthy of being investigated.”

She nods as well. “Because of the lack of proper information, we can’t risk sending a Night Hunter or Night Warden team only for it to be nothing. That is why I’ll be deploying a Night Watcher to gather information.”

I rub my forehead tiredly, still wondering why I’m even here to begin with.

“Thankfully...” Penumbra continues, her lips widening into a confident smile. “One of my best happens to be in the area already, so I will be sending him to check it out.”

Now this makes me pause. “Best?” I repeat, sitting a bit more straightly. “Are you talking about the Medicham?”

The Luxray blinks at this before quickly shaking her head. “Oh no, it’s not Hideyoshi. He may be very good at his work, but he doesn’t quite compare to who I’m speaking of.”

Doesn’t quite compare? I’ve heard a lot of very great things about Hideyoshi, so if he doesn’t compare to this individual...then does that technically make this particular Night Watcher her best?

Who exactly is she talking ab-

Wait...

I feel my eyes widen as I begin to gain an idea of who this Night Watcher is. “Are you talking about Him?” I ask her.

The Luxray nods her head, her smile widening even further. “Yes, him.”

At this point my exhaustion is gone completely. “Are you sure that’s wise?” I question, my eyes and voice filled with concern. “The area has a lot of civilization, how would you think they would react to his appearance?” I fold my hands on the table. “Due to this being rumors, he’ll need to go around and question people about this hybrid. So would they react very...negatively to his presence?”

“I’ve taken that into account, Jezebel.” Penumbra chuckles. “However you underestimate him, even though his appearance is both different and intimidating, he is very good in handling social situations.” She nods her head. “He also has been taking numerous opportunities to learn of the world around him, the vast amount of knowledge he has on cultures and customs is quite astounding, especially having gained it within the short span of time he’s been under my employ.”

Despite still feeling uncertain, I relent with a sigh. “Well, he is under your branch so I can only assume that you know what’s best for this situation.”

“Of course.” She chuckles again. “I have my full confidence in Snakewulf, since he has continuously impressed me on multiple levels in his performances.”

“Then it’s decided.” Colossus nods. “Contact Snakewulf as soon as possible, Penumbra. The faster we learn on whether these rumors are true or not, the faster we can react if need be.”

“I will do so immediately.” The Luxray says with a bow of her head.

“Good, meeting adjourned.” He finishes.

With that the two stand up and go their separate ways, leaving me sitting in the table with an expression a mixture of confusion and irritation.

From what I’ve gathered, I had no real reason to even participate in this ‘meeting’ except for just listening in. Yet at the same time I could just read any reports that they give me and still be informed...

I’m beginning to question if those two are simply doing this just to fuck with me.

[thetakenpokemon]

Let's see... I can't choose just one so... For Venya, outside of speaking with Ash, is there any situation at all where she would set her ego aside on her own? For both Nightshade and Jubei, how well do they handle outrage or anger? And how do they bring themselves back from it? And for Tetishuri, how does she handle herself in a state of fear, and what would bring her such an emotion?

(Hooo boy, here we go. (Since I plan to link this post to the RP blog later, I’m not gonna add a readmore due to there being difficulties when I delete the original. So I’ll be tagging this with ‘long post’ to help with those who want to keep their dashes clean!)

For Venya, she’ll ‘tone down’ her ego around those she knows very well personally as well as like them. However due to how she behaves it can be difficult for her to actually get to that level, since her ego acts as a sort of barrier in terms of interacting with others. Delilah is one of the few people that she has gotten to know personally as well as enjoy her company to the point where she completely abandons her pride in order to interact with her. So her liking someone is definitely a start, but it just needs to be constant interactions and visits for her to eventually ‘lower her guard’ and act bearable around the person in question.

Now for anger…

For Jezebel, she constantly tries to keep a calm and ‘professional’ image so, so even when extremely angry she tries to control her tone and prevent herself from acting rashly. The clearest way to see if she’s angry is in her eyes, since a glare is you need to see if she’s mad or not. But when pushed too far, her control on her tone would break and she’d make it very clear that you messed up through a loud and brutal beratement. At this point she’d have to basically verbally tear the person apart before she eventually calms herself, however she does recover faster if there are onlookers that she’s noticed.

Jubei is also a very calm individual like Nightshade, however instead of acting ‘professional’ she instead has a more ‘dignified’ behavior. Now unlike Jezebel who continuously tries to remain calm, Jubei won’t hesitate to make her discontent known if you mess up with her. She’ll start with scolding/lecturing you, but pushing too far would actually have her demand that you leave immediately. If her point is made clear, Jubei would quickly become ‘calm’ again (if not a bit annoyed at you). However if you’ve angered her enough that she wants you to leave her sight, then the only way she’ll calm down is if either you or she leaves.

And finally Tetishuri!

Now although Tetishuri shares the same behavior of keeping herself calm and level-headed like Jubei and Jezebel, hers is definitely more extreme to the point where she essentially keeps a ‘mask’ over herself. It’s extremely rare for others to see her express certain emotions (on certain levels too), fear being one of them.

When fearful, Tetishuri puts more effort into suppressing herself. Even in terrifying situations she’d keep a level head, doing her best to direct others if need be. However there does get to a point where if she she’s that terrified, cracks would form on her ‘mask’ and people would hear her voice cracking But in order to get to that point, it would require a life-or-death situation of those she cares deeply for and the chances of survival is very low.

[thetakenpokemon]

Interlude - Storm's Arrival

[PoV: ???]

Now don’t this place look rather lively!

All around me I notice that the GoT has far more energy than when my team and I first left, nearly every Pokemon is talking animatedly with barely contained excitement. A few however look rather downcast, which contrast greatly with the ethusiastic members.

Something must have happened here while we were gone, and it must’ve been good.

However as much as I wish to ask around on what went down, I have my priorities. First things first, I need to report to Kaiser.

I saunter down one of the numerous hallways of the GoT, my smile relaxed yet confident. I knew this building like the back of my paw, which is saying something since it’s far larger than many ‘mons give it credit for.

Eventually I spy the door to her office, with a paw I brush the coat I’m wearing a little bit before giving the door a sharp knock.

“Come in.” Came a voice.

…

Whoever said that…is definitely not Kaiser.

With my expression shifting to one of confusion, I slowly open it before stepping inside.

The first thing I see is not the Garchomp sitting at her desk, but instead a very tired looking black Delphox.

“Jezebel?” I say with surprise, my voice containing a very distinct accent that’s French in origin. “Where ees Kaiser?”

Immediately she slumps, her face hitting the desk with an audible ‘thump’. “Sit down, Elisabeth.” She mutters through the wood. “I’m currently taking Kaiser’s place, since she’s unavailable.”

“Una-” I begin to ask, but Jezebel stops me by raising her hand.

“I’m tired of answering this question.” She sighs, her head still not moving from the desk. “Just give me a verbal recap of Midnight Storm’s mission so we can get this over with.”

I look at her for a while, my eyes brimming with uncertainty.

“But you are a Night War-”

“I know.” She says flatly.

“You have never do-”

“Correct.” She cuts me off again.

“Ten why did tey assign you to-”

She raises her head, giving me an irritated glare. “Just…the report, Corsair.” She growls through gritted teeth.

I cross my arms over my chest with a huff.

Looks like someone hasn’t been having a good day.

[thetakenpokemon]

Act 1 - The Sighting

[PoV: Jubei]

The moment I heard us being called to Kaiser’s office, I wasted no time in gathering the other members of my team.

Kendra thankfully came to me on her own, however Venya was a bit more...difficult. She was reluctant to expose herself out in the open, but after I went as far as to threaten to use physical force...she eventually complied.

The walk to Kaiser’s office was relatively uneventful, although Venya did receive many looks they kept silent due to our expressions. Eventually we arrived at the door of said office, in a rather quick fashion as well thankfully. Upon knocking the door I hear a voice from within tell us to enter, however I couldn’t help but raise an eyebrow due to the fact that the voice didn’t sound like Kaiser.

When stepping in, it appears my assumption is in fact correct since sitting at the Garchomp’s desk is no other than Jezebel,

“Kaiser is currently unavailable and I’m taking her place until she returns.” She immediately says, the tiredness in her voice showing that she’s repeated this numerous times before. “I will not explain the details nor discuss further on the subject, since there are more important matters at hand.” She gestures to several chairs at the side of the room. “Grab yourselves a seat, once you’re all settled I’ll begin giving you the details on your mission.”

Despite having a few questions on Jezebel’s situation, I wisely chose to keep silent on it. Instead the three of us grabbed one of the chairs and sat down at the desk.

“Good...” The Delphox sighs, rubbing her forehead. “No questions about my position, let’s keep it that way.”

Seeing the three of us ready, she grabs one of the various papers that’s laying on her desk. “A few days ago I’ve had a meeting with Colossus and the Strike Team, more of on something that Jarvis discovered.” She pushes the papers towards us, allowing us to look. “Jarvis managed to obtain information on several HWDP Hybrids, specifically ones that broke out and escaped without any outside aid.”

“Escaped hybrids?” Kendra speaks aloud, looking over the text. “Like they’ve gone rogue?”

“In a way.” Jezebel admits. “However their situation is not quite that simple. These hybrids are supposedly very strong, and their motivations are unclear. With them out running around we fear that they might cause harm to others, that the possibility of the cruelty of the HWDP might have made them unstable.”

The Medicham winces at this, remembering said cruelties all too clearly. “Y-Yeah...” She mutters.

Seeing that the topic is rather sore for the Medicham, Jezebel clears her throat before carrying on in order not to linger. “Currently there has been no information on their locations at all...until recently.” Her eyes narrow. “Yesterday there has been a sighting of a unique Pokemon that fits the description of a HWDP hybrid, but what’s worrying is what it has been doing.”

She pushes another paper towards us, this one a brief report from some newsletter. “The Pokemon was located near a town called Woodwick, far-off from Human civilization and located within Greenbar Forest. What’s very concerning is that the Hybrid is dangerous, for there has been numerous reports of Pokemon being attacked by this Hybrid and end up seriously injured.”

“That is...concerning.” I say slowly.

“Indeed.” Jezebel nods. “But strangely there has been no fatalities, so even though this Pokemon is attacking others...we believe that it may be out of some sense of self-preservation. So even though this Pokemon is most certainly a threat, there’s a chance that it may be reasoned with.”

“So what is it you wish us to do then?” I ask, my expression hardening. “Do you wish for us to bring it in?”

The Delphox nods again. “Yes, this is going to be a retrieval mission. Your goal is to find this Hybrid and pacify it, either through persuasion...or force. Once you’ve secured it you’ll need to update us through our secured network, so that we may send in either Rin or Ren to teleport them back to one of our holding cells.”

“Understood, we will begin as quickly as possible.” I tell her, both Kendra and Venya nodding their heads in agreement. I can’t help but glance at the Mienshao however, since she has been unusually silent throughout the entire conversation.

“Good, I will have transportation ready for you once you’ve gathered your supplies.” The Delphox pulls out a tablet and begins typing on the glowing screen. “Thankfully Greenbar Forest is within this country and has roads that connect to it, so the drive itself is somewhat reasonable in terms of time. You’ll get there in about six hours, not including any sudden stops.” She looks up at us. “Any questions?”

I shake my head. “Currently I do not, but I will study the reports you’ve given me. However if something does come to mind, I will be sure to contact you through phone.”

She smiles at this. “Very well, you three are dismissed.”

With that the three of us stand up and leave the office, the reports in my hands.

“‘Bout time we got another mission, I was starting to feel a bit antsy.” Kendra stretches. “Sure I like to relax, but I need to keep moving. Simple workouts won’t do me much good when my body is just itching to fight something.”

“This might not turn into a fight, Kendra.” I remind her. “This hybrid has the possibility of being reasoned with, so if there’s an opportunity to end this before a fight even begins...then we will take it.”

She shrugs her shoulders. “Yeah yeah, but if a fight does go down...” A grin forms on her face. “Then I’ll be ready.”

“Ready? Hmph, I highly doubt you’ll be quite as ready as I am.” Venya chimes in haughtily, breaking her silence demeanor. “If this Hybrid proves to be unreasonable, then I will most certainly cut them down.” Her own eyes narrow, containing an almost dangeorus glint. “After that battle with...Tetishuri, I am feeling MORE than a little ‘miffed’. So if this Hybrid gives us ANY trouble, I will cut them down where they stand so that they’ll learn to cooperate with us in the future.”

Kendra raises an eyebrow. “Whoa girl, no chill?”

“Get your weapons and supplies.” I interject, cutting off any possibility of a confrontation. “We’ll meet at the departure station in one hour, then we will be off.”

Left with no room for argument, they both nod their heads before heading separate directions. Now left alone, I glance down at the reports in my hands.

Heh, looks like I need to both gather my own supplies and study this. Any knowledge on this Hybrid that I can obtain will be very crucial.

[thetakenpokemon]

Interlude - Return of the Strike Team

[PoV: Jezebel]

Although word spreads quickly within the GoT HQ, being the leader of Purging Light as well as a high-standing member gives me the benefit of learning things far faster than that of others.

Specifically the return of the Strike Team and the other teams that worked with them in the recent attack on a HWDP facility.

I was in my room working on some overdue paperwork before receiving a call from Colossus on my terminal, telling me to report to the ‘Meeting Hall’ immediately.

And so I dropped what I was doing and began making my way over, since if he’s calling for my presence immediately...then it must be very important.

...

Taking a quiet breath I push the door opens of the Meeting Hall, which is a large room containing a giant round table. Sitting at the table I immediately spy Colossus, however there are others accompanying him.

The Strike Team.

The first one that catches my eye at the table is Samantha, also known as Snowstorm. She’s a hybrid between a Salazzle, Aurorus, and Tyrantrum. Her body looks dinosaur in appearance, similar to that of a raptor. Her form is covered in shiny blue scales, her hands and feet ending in sharp claws and talons. On her back is a massive fin that glows with bright colors while her predatory blue eyes watch me as I enter the room.

The second is Godfrey, who goes by the alias of Paladin. Godfrey is a hybrid between that of a Bisharp, Rapidash, and Escavalier. The Bisharp and Rapidash genes have granted him the body that of an armored centaur, the style of said armor resembling that of a knight. The Escavalier genes however show itself by the gray color of his armor, the sharp lance ending on his left arm, and the metal plume poking out from his helmeted head.

The third member of the Strike Team is Jarvis, known for the name of Trojan in the field. He is a very special case of a hybrid, being a cross between a Porygon-Z and Rotom. What makes Jarvis unique is that his body is actually made of pure energy, due to this case he inhabits a mechanical body built in the likeness of a Porygon-Z, constructed by the HWDP themself before his eventual breakout. His frame is built of a bright white metal, his floating head and arms connected by tethers of blue energy. His head swivels at my direction, the two bright blue eyes of light locking onto my form.

And lastly, is the leader of the Strike Team.

Chimera.

Sitting right next to Colossus is his humanoid frame, his features just barely concealed by a blue cloak that covers his entire body. Between them all, he’s the most careful in keeping his appearance hidden. Although many of us already know what he really is, he still tends to keep himself covered out of pure habit.

Out of them all, they share one giant thing in common. They’re all artificial hybrids made by the HWDP, each of them considered elite in their capabilities and thus leading the attacks on the the facilities of the organization.

“Greetings Jezebel, it is very good to meet again.” Godfrey speaks out first, the centaur tapping his chest with the knuckles of his right hand in greeting.

I nod my head, my lips widening into a small smile. “To you as well, Godfrey.” I respond back before turning my head to the rest. “And the rest of you as well.”

“I see you haven’t changed your hair whatsoever.” Samantha muses playfully, picking at her large fangs with a claw. “If I had hair, I would most definitely be trying out different styles.” She rolls her reptilian eyes. “But if you want to be boring by dressing it in only one way, I won’t judge you.”

I give the reptile an amused look, however Jarvis cuts me off before I could prepare a witty retort.

“Could we perhaps hold the pleasantries for after the meeting?” He asks with a mild annoyed tone, the speakers built within him giving an almost computerized voice.

“Yes, my apologies.” I nod before taking a seat next to Chimera, said individual gives me a small nod of his own in greetings before turning his focus back to the table.

“Now that we’re all here...” Colossus says before gesturing to Chimera. “Even though you’ve already told me a good deal of it, would you care to repeat it for Jezebel?”

“Very well.” The cloaked hybrid responds, his voice sounding...off, as if there’s something more to it. Through the sleeves of his cloak I see his orange and blue hands clasp each other. “The result of the strike mission was an outstanding success, we infiltrated the facility and managed to take it down with only non-life threatening injuries sustained by our members.” Through the hood I see his glowing yellow eyes look at me. “Sadly however they’ve transported most of the hybrids out of the facility, most likely due to them suspecting us to target them. The few that remained were either not fully developed or wild and uncontrollable, so we put them down.”

I feel a frown form on my lips at this, but in the end I didn’t question their methods since I’m in no place to question them. With a gesture of my hand I urge him to continue.

However to my surprise, Chimera instead nods at Jarvis to take over.

“The main reason on why we’ve brought you here is to inform you of our discoveries.” The Porygon-Z tells me. “As always they’ve wiped their computers when we began the assault, making it impossible to retrieve any data on their experiments or whereabouts of other facilities.” He rests his metal hands onto the table, the digits tapping the metallic surface of the furniture. “However there was an error on their part, for on the body of one of their security staff we found a USB drive.”

Now this piqued my interest even more. “What did it contain?” I ask eagerly.

“Sadly not much.” Jarvis sighs. “However it did contain a very vital piece of information.” The glow in his eyes intensifies for a brief second. “Inside it was a report of a recent occurrence in one of their facilities, specifically of how several hybrids managed to break themselves out.”

I feel my jaw drop. “Break...themselves out?” I repeat slowly. “I thought their security measures prevented such a thing from ever occurring.”

Jarvis’ head bobs up and down. “That’s what we also believed, however the hybrids were very smart and...quite powerful. They waited for the right moment to break out, working together to fight through the security before eventually escaping.”

“So we have rogue hybrids out there?” I voice out, my tone filling with worry.

“Yes.” Chimera speaks up, his clasped hands gripping each other a bit more tightly. “The report left out on the specific details of what these hybrids are, but the information tells us that they were purposed to be soldiers. So they’re not some random experiment to see what works together.” He shakes his hooded head. “No, their genes were specifically chosen and spliced together in order to make them into what they are.”

That’s...definitely not good.

“And they’ve killed several of the Humans in those facilities in order to escape.” Jarvis adds. “To have killed them so efficiently when they’re armed with guns, it shows that they are very dangerous.” His blue eyes dim somewhat. “We have no idea on what their motivations are, but since they’ve broken themselves out and most likely have had no contact with civilization after their transformation...they will most likely be a great threat to the public.”

With my staff resting by my side I feel my grip tighten around it. “So with these hybrids out and about, we need to make it our priority to find them and hunt them down.” I say grimly, however a question comes to my mind. “How...do you intend to deal with them?”

"It depends.” Colossus chimes, his expression neutral. “To see that they’ve managed to free themselves without outside assistance, they are definitely not Feral Pokemon by far and perhaps could be reasoned with. So if we can manage to convince them to come quietly or incapacitate them, then we could try to bring them back here and try to rehabilitate them.”

With the way he’s spoken, there’s still more to the sentence.

“But if they’ve proven to be too much of a threat to everyone around them, then they will be killed instead.” I finish.

“Yes.” Colossus sighs, rubbing the side of his metal face with a hand. “It’s the last thing we want to do, but if they show any signs of being unable to be helped...then we’ll have no other choice but to remove them through extensive means.”

“However let us hope that it doesn’t come to that!” Godfrey says passionately, stomping the floor with one of his metal hooves. “If my brothers and sisters can be rescued, then we must take the chance.”

“I hear you.” Samantha nods in agreement. “The more victims of that hellhole we can save the better” She lets out an angry huff, causing a faint stream of mist to escape from her nostrils and cause frost to form on the surface of the table.

“However that requires us to locate them first.” Jarvis deadpans. “We’ve sent out word to Penumbra to inform Night Watchers to keep an eye out for any Hybrid activity in the meanwhile.”

“However if you do locate them, who do you intend to send?” I ask, turning my attention back to Colossus. “Are they dangerous enough to require a Night Warden team?”

The Aggron shakes his head. “Although they’re powerful hybrids, they’re definitely not on a level that requires a Night Warden team’s interference. Instead we’ll be sending some of the stronger Night Hunter teams.”

I blink once at this, then twice.

Night Hunters...? Then why...

“If the Night Wardens won’t be needed, then why isn’t Kaiser in this meeting?” I point out, feeling very confused. “And why did you call me?”

Samantha couldn’t help but laugh at this, increasing my confusion tenfold. “It’s because the Dragon drunk herself into a stupor!”

“Drunk herself into a stupor?” I repeat, my expression quickly shifting to a deadpan look as I already feeling a headache coming on. “I’m afraid to ask this, but...how and why?”

Kaiser is a very big Garchomp, because of this she should be able to hold her liquor incredibly well. But what really boggles my mind is why the leader of the Night Hunter branch would be so irresponsible.

Jarvis points a thumb at Colossus, his eyes dimming even more. “This guy is responsible for it.”

The Aggron raises his hands in defense. “Hey now! Even though we have our responsibilities, we’re allowed time to enjoy ourselves!” He defends himself. “Not to mention we had a bet on how much she could drink before she passed out.”

“Really now? Did you win this bet?” Godfrey asks, a wide grin on his face.

“Indeed I did!” The Aggron laughs. “When she wakes up she’'s definitely not gonna be in a very pleasant mood.”

I suppress the urge to facepalm. “You still didn’t answer the question as to why I’m here.” I grumble.

“To put it simply, you’ll be taking over for her until she’s fit to work again.” Colossus nods at me. “She won’t be in a working state for a little while since she did drink a very large amount.” He couldn’t help but snicker. “However even though she can hold her own, recovering from a hangover is a completely different story. It’ll take her a few days to properly recover from that fiasco.”

...

...

...

Wait...

...

I’m taking over for Kaiser.

...

So I’m in charge of the Night Hunter branch now?

...

...

...

You’ve got to be kidding me...

[thetakenpokemon]

Act 3 - Seeking to Feed the Taken Blade

[PoV: Zen’Ro]

I could feel my irritation growing the longer this fight continues, the prospect of ending my foes quickly and efficiently becoming more and more impossible.

Unlike the vast amount of Pokemon I’ve killed in the past, these six are trained to fight. They’re coordinated, disciplined, powerful...

That means...by slaying them, the power I will take from them will be far more than that of all  of my past offerings to the Deep.

My gaze turns to the snake creature in the back, before my eyes I watch the wound heal...the skin quickly closing in order to prevent any further bleeding.

Watching my efforts undone, I feel my anger and irritation increasing tenfold.

With a twisted roar I fire another laser with the full intention of destroying both the floating creature and the snake, but the four-armed quickly brings up another barrier in order to block my beam like the last time.

Infuriating.

I feel my senses blur before my surroundings change, signifying that I’ve been displaced once more. It took only a second for me to realize that I’m standing right beneath the bird creature.

Excellent.

Without wasting a second I leap up, slashing at her with my blade. She lets out a loud squawk and jumps away, just barely avoiding my attack. I hear her shout out something to the others, but her exact words are lost to me. Keeping my motions fluid I aim my claw at the direction she’s leaping for and fire a second beam.

I could only cackle internally when I watch it strike her dead in the stomach.

With a pained screech she tumbles out of the canopy and lands on the ground with a loud thump, the strong stench of scorched flesh and feathers fill the air as my gaze turns to her charred belly.

If I were to have charged the attack, it would’ve burned a hole clean through her. But instead I only took a fraction of my power in order to attack so swiftly, so for now...she’s lucky to have survived.

But not for long.

The second I landed on the ground I sprint for her, my bladed claw poised to strike down and end her. But through the corner of my eyes I see a flash of movement, with this newfound knowledge I quickly stop and leap right into the air.

Soaring beneath me is a mass of green fire, all directed from the fox creature. Despite the massive wave of flames missing I see it quickly twist into the air to head straight back for me.

Upon landing I aim my claw and fire another quick beam, this time at the fox creature. Her determined gaze immediately falters when she sees the laser heading for her and she dives to the side to avoid it. With her focus broken, the mass of fire quickly dissipates.

Just as I wanted.

When I was about to turn back to the bird creature I see the metal giant bullcharge me, followed by a distressed shout from the fox creature with what I assume is her telling him not to do such a thing.

I face him and wait, extending my bladed arm out. Once he closes the distance I leap to the side, all the while slashing at his body.

I strike true, the unnatural feeling of resistance pushes at my blade as it carves a new opening on the surface of his frame. Yet my blade doesn’t cut straight through, for the blue barrier that’s blazing around the area I’ve struck signifies that it’s the only thing preventing me from cleaving the giant in two.

Just as he runs past me, I see him position is hand at my direction...

...and then extend itself towards me faster than one could even blink.

I couldn’t even react to the piston-powered punch as it strikes me dead on the side, propelling me straight into the clearing. Upon hitting the ground I roll violently, slamming into tree stumps and fallen logs with enough force to brutally injure any normal creature of flesh.

But I’m no such creature.

I am far above them.

My body does in fact sport new injuries, but they aren’t hindering. To me they’re just something in the back of my mind, no pain...only a dull pulse that signifies that I’ve been hurt.

Nevertheless, this shows me that the giant is capable of extending his fist with sonic speed. Another surprise wasted, even if I was injured...the injury itself won’t provide any advantages to them.

By wasting another surprise, it means that I’ll be prepared for that attack in the future.

By being prepared, it means that the chances of them stopping me grow smaller and smaller.

And thus meaning victory grows closer and closer.

I feel the sudden sense of displacement again, but its temporary effects vanish as swiftly as it came. Quickly gathering my bearings I glance around to see that I’m standing up...and this time my location is at the left of the group several yards away.

The location itself isn’t too much of an advantage, but seeing that the bird creature is now down for the rest of the fight...they don’t have anything to call out my location immediately.

They’ll notice me in a second however, so I must act now.

Aiming my bladeless claw I lock onto the floating creature, with no warning I fire out another beam...my new goal to take out their healer.

I would’ve succeeded...but the four-armed creature seemed to have noticed me in time and makes a dive. Due to how swiftly he acted he managed to snatch her out of the air just as the beam sailed through the path where she once hovered, any later would’ve meant that he would’ve taken the blow instead.

Nevertheless even though I missed, they’re both on the ground. During this brief amount of time it means that they won’t be able to create any barriers to deflect my ranged attacks.

My gaze flicks to the Delphox who’s already standing again, her staff positioned in order to fire another blast of fire. But I don’t wait, I unleash a second beam in order to prevent her from striking me.

She avoided it by stepping to the side this time instead of leaping, however I quickly follow up on this attack. After firing the beam I charge them, my goal to rush her down and strike her with my blade.

But before I could close the distance...I feel the sense of displacement again...

...and then I find myself charging at them in the opposite direction.

This couldn’t have been more perfect.

With her backs to me I leap at the fox and stab forward, my blade striking her dead-on.

Her scream of pain was more than satisfying.

I would’ve pressed further in order to break through the barrier and spear right through her, but in the corner of my vision I see something swift moving right for me.

Pulling back I remove my blade from the fox’s back, causing her to stumble forward before collapsing. The second I move away from her I see a bladed tail stab at where I once stood, revealing it to be the snake creature again...but this time his injury is fully recovered.

That and an expression of sheer rage on his face.

He shouts something at me with a venomous tongue, but I ignore his words. Focusing on them will only distract me. The battle is all that matters.

I glance slightly to see the fox creature crawling away, her back sporting a nasty hole that’s bleeding profusely. I didn’t linger on her very long, since the snake creature strikes again.

Stepping aside from the bladed tail I slash sideways like I did the last time when he attacked me in the exact same fashion, but he pulls back quick enough to avoid it. He immediately darts around me before closing the distance, slashing forward with his bladed claws.

Bringing up my unbladed claw I parry the attack, the hard surface of my skin easily deflecting his sharp nails. In response I step back before stabbing forward with my sword, in which the creature twists itself to the side to avoid it.

He’s swift, very swift.

Yet once again I feel the sense of displacement surround me, teleporting me several feet to the snake creature’s right.

But is he swift enough?

I charge forward, firing a beam from my claw slightly to his right. I have no intention of actually hitting him this time, instead I aim to force him to move towards the direction I desire.

When he turned to me, all he saw was the beam heading for him...so he reacted by dodging in the opposite direction.

Right where I wanted him.

Leaping forward I slash down at the location where he’s moving, and my prediction is as flawless as I expected it to be. I strike him dead on the shoulder and my blade continues down his chest, leaving a massive wound opening in his body.

He opens his mouth to scream, but I don’t even allow him to do so. I kick him right in the stomach with one of my feet before stabbing forward with my blade again, this time striking his chest where his heart is located.

Pressing down on him I push harder, my blade sinking deeper and deeper into his flesh. He thrashes and tries to strike me with his tail, but I duck down to let it sail over my head.

Deeper and deeper my blade sinks, only seconds is left until I pierce through his heart...

Yet this never happened due to the sensation of four powerful hands grabbing me and yanking me off my prey, their crushing grip holding my arms and head still like vice.

I know well enough that it’s the four-armed creature, but the fact that it took such a bold move as to personally pin me down...I didn’t quite expect it from an individual who’s task is to maintain barriers.

He doesn’t try to crush me however, since despite him being an incredibly strong individual I doubt he’d be able to pierce my thick metal coat.

But he did something else entirely, something I never would've expected.

With a loud yell he uses all of his strength to toss me right into the air above him...

...Right into the path of a cannonball.

All I knew was that my body lurched violently before being launched into another tree, the impact not only shattering it but continue further right into another tree behind it.

The impact from the first tree severally cut down on my velocity and the second tree actually halted me.

I land on the ground hard, one glance down was enough to tell me that my chest has partially caved in.

Such a wound...I should be feeling immense agony, but instead...I feel no pain.

With no pain, it means that I can stand right back up without consequences.

The metal giant steps into view, his black eyes glowing a bright red. He shouts something, which I at first dismissed. However my curiosity got the better at me, so I looked back at his words to decipher them.

“WHAT IS THAT THING MADE OF?!”

Thing.

Now I remember why I’ve chosen to ignore their words.

Looking at my work I couldn’t help but feel immense satisfaction.

Three out of their six members are temporarily out.

Even if they possess a healer, I seriously doubt she’ll be able to take care of all of them in time. Now that they have lesser numbers, they can’t possibly keep me at bay now.

The giant is the only threat, but even he can’t hope to stop me from killing his teammates.

I’ve won.

The power of the Deep has proven itself once again.

Even when outnumbered by foes who possess excellent combat skills, I can still take them all on.

All I had to do was inflict one injury, then they’ll all fall apart.

Without numbers, they’re nothing.

I’ve won.

With this victory, it signifies that nothing can stop me.

Nothing.

Summoning my second blade, I raise the two swords of light menacingly. With a distorted laugh I charge at them, already feeling the taste of their power.

The four-armed creature and the healer tense, but the metal giant steps in front of them. He aims his cannon again, preparing to fire another cannonball if I can assume.

I prepare to dodge to the side and strike them at their flank, to deliver a blow that will end this fight once and for all...

...

...

...

But everything grows dark, leaving me in an empty void.

...

...

Wait...

What?!

I slow to a stop, looking around in frantic confusion.

“You seek to use the power of Sword Logic to slay the Darkness? To use the very Law of the Deep to destroy it?”

No...

“For a blade to raise against its owner is a crime great of its own, but to make a bold claim as to slay the smith who forged its perfect shape?”

I swiftly turn to the source, only to find myself looking up at His towering frame.

“Your indiscretion has shown me that you haven’t even come close to grasping the greater power of Sword Logic. Your words has shown me how true your impiety is, how your mockery of logic fooled you into a false sense of security.”

I wanted to scream in rage at Him, how he is interfering with my well-earned victory. I wanted to shout at him to cease with his words, how they mean nothing to me.

But he continues, his tone similar to that of an individual realizing that a fungus has been growing on their body and they’re explaining to another on how they plan to remove it.

“Yet despite your mockeries to the very Law I’ve crafted you in, the greatest of your failures is that you do not realize how long the path is to the goal you seek. You can’t gain enough power to fight the Deep, even if you surpass the might of Oryx himself. Yet even then, a meager world such as this will not grant enough offerings to even begin the path towards Ascendancy. You must lead a crusade against all inhabitants of the universe itself.”

Raising a three-clawed hand, he lets out a rumbling growl.

“You will fail, yet you do not realize this. You are blind, blind to the fate you’ve wrought upon yourself.”

Before I could react, his massive hand grasps my entire body.

“Witness the impossibility that you seek, so that you will finally sink into despair that is your reality.”

I feel my thoughts immediately halt...

...and then the visions began.

[thetakenpokemon]

Act 3 - The Death Toll Grows

[Location: Forest Near Richfield] [PoV: Silence]

When we first entered the forest, we prepared ourselves for the horror within. Both mentally...and physically.

We don’t know how far the creature is in this forest, so we brought our supplies with us in case that we needed to make a briefly temporary camp to rest.

But...the place...it unnerves me. There are no sounds of wildlife, as if all of the creatures within have fled...or died.

Being the one ahead of the group I carefully watch for any signs of the creature, whether it be marks made by it...or corpses of its killings.

By the great spirits, there are so many corpses... A trail of death, a path that leads us to where it’s heading.

At first we discovered the already rotting corpses of a Luxray and cubs, a Haxorus, and then a whole back of Mightyena... The sheer stench of it nearly made us all retch, all except for Asmund.

But we continued...and eventually we found the location where we could only assume was the battle of the creature against the team Ashen Blade. Trees sliced in two, needles embedded in the ground and tree bark, burnt grass from Firesword’s blades, I was confident that this was the place.

However...there was no sign of the creature, so we continued forward.

I tried not to dwell on the happenings, but the unnatural silence and the constant corpses...it’s sickening to both my stomach and my heart.

When we found the corpse of a Gothitelle and her child, we had to stop to fully grasp the reality of the situation. 

They were not feral Pokemon. They were travelers.

They possessed clothing, belongings, they must have been traveling to Richfield...but were caught unaware by the monster that roamed.

The frozen face of pure fear on the Gothorita’s face...it showed that this horror is absolutely merciless. It didn't even spare a defenseless child.

“Anata no tamashī ga heiwa ni nokorimasu yō ni.” I whisper to the two bodies, bowing my head in respect.

“This creature truly is a monster.” Seraph growls. “Absolutely unforgivable, we shall maketh ‘t payeth f'r its sins.” Her look becoming one of determination, she turns to the rest of us. “These bodies needeth to beest given a proper burial, f'r they deserve yond much respect”

Asmund lets out a sharp, almost mocking laugh. “Bury them? I agree, why don’t we waste our time with two corpses while we let the monster kill more people.” A He shakes his head in amusement. “Anything else?”

I look at the Decidueye, watching her expression grow ever more angered. “Thee dare fleer at the dead?” She hisses. “By Lord Arceus, thee has't gone too f-”

“Asmund is correct, Seraph” Nightshade sighs, making the Templar stop. Just as she begins to protest, the black Delphox shakes her head. “With every second that passes, the Scizor grows more distant. We need to keep going, we can’t afford to linger here.”

“Once we’ve defeated this creature, we can return to bury them.” The Chimecho adds, her sorrow-filled eyes turning to the mother and child. 

Seraph slumps her shoulders in defeat, nodding her head in acceptance. “Very well...”

I warily look at Asmund, expecting to see some sort of smug body-language. However even though his expression is completely unreadable, I can’t find any sort of satisfaction that I can sense from him.

I expected him to gloat to Seraph for that he’s correct, but perhaps...even he knows of the line that should not be crossed.

So we continued, leaving the bodies behind...

...

...However they were only the beginning...

[thetakenpokemon]

Act 3 - Fighting in the Shadows

[PoV: Nightshade]

The second the creature charged us, we acted.

Silence darts to the side in order to circle around. Seraph on the other hand leaps into the air with a flap of her wings, heading for the branches in the trees in order to gain a height advantage.

Benevolence backs up, the Machamp already having placed a Reflect shield over all but himself and Sinfonia. I stand with the two, also keeping myself out of direct conflict.

Asmund? He takes the front, putting himself between the charging monster and us.

Just as planned.

Channeling my power, the green flames of my staff burn more intensely. I thrust the staff forward, causing several long tendrils of fire snake out from my weapon. Through the air they streak around Asmund and strike the ground in front of him, immediately causing the ground to burn brightly.

With its path suddenly becoming a hazard zone the monster quickly changes its course to run around, but several arrows of light zip from the trees. Reacting quickly the Scizor halts itself and raises its blades, the white arrows fizzling into nonexistence upon contact with the weapons.

Asmund merely treads into the glowing green fire before him, his body shining with a red aura as his enchantments begin deflecting the heat from his form. Raising his cannon the four nozzles unleash a torrent of steam upon the creature, his goal to either fry it or force it back.

The creature chose the latter, leaping back with a distorted growl in order to avoid the vapor. Seraph launches several more arrows at the monster, forcing it to once again raise its swords to block them in order to preserve itself.

The fight has already begun and we already have it on the defensive, a welcome sign.

Waving my staff I direct the field of flames, causing it to spread towards the direction of the monster with unnatural speed. Already dealing with more and more arrows being fired from Seraph, the horror turns to run a different direction...

...But Silence takes the opportunity with its temporary distraction.

From the shadows the Nidoviper strikes, with a near-silent hiss he twists his body and stabs forward with his bladed tail.

The hit would’ve struck directly in the creature’s chest, but...it suddenly vanishes from sight.

“To the right! ‘T teleport'd to the right!” Seraph calls out, notifying us of the creature’s location.

I quickly turn to see that the monster has indeed teleported to a new location at the right of us, the action having given us no warning. But I notice that its blades are nowhere to be seen, instead its claws are shining with a brilliant white light.

It opens them and fires two white beams of energy, the lasers streaking through the air and heading for the trees where Seraph is located within. The Decidueye acts quickly, leaping from her branch and moving to an adjacent one as the lasers burn a hole clean through where she once stood.

With a growl of frustration it aims its claws at me and Benevolence, making it clear on what its next action will be.

Before I could even voice my concerns I see Hale dashing to the front and brings up his four palms, just as the lasers are fired a giant wall of green energy forms between him and the attack.

The surface of the Wide Guard ripples and shimmers upon being struck, but it doesn’t show any sign of yielding.

Seeing that its lasers are doing nothing, the monster ceases firing and summons its blades. But before it could take another action Seraph once again hails down with more arrows, in response the monster makes the decision to dodge and start running instead of standing in place.

From the corner of my eyes I see Silence lurking in the shadows, waiting for another opportune moment to strike it.

This battle...as intense as it is, it doesn’t feel quite as difficult compared to some of the ones in the past. This makes me even more on edge, for this creature is supposedly meant to be incredibly powerful...

...Yet we’ve managed to suppress it very well so far...

Tracking the monster with his cannon Asmund loads a cannonball with a loud clacking sound, before he could fire the creature vanishes for a second time.

“BEHIND THEE NIGHTSHADE!” Seraph screams from above.

As quickly as I could act I throw myself at the ground, just barely avoiding two blades slashing at the spot where I once stood.

Quickly twisting his body Asmund turns and fires a shot, forcing the Scizor to quickly leap to the side as the metal sphere causes one of the trees to explode into a shower of splinters upon impact.

Grabbing my staff off the ground I thrust it in the direction of the creature, the burning tip exploding outward in a cone of green fire. Instead of dodging as I expected it to, it vanishes from sight again.

Not hearing a call-out from the Decidueye I quickly pick myself up, feeling my calm threatening to break under the panic I’m feeling. “Location?!” I half-asked half-shouted.

“I see ‘t not!” She responds back through a loud growl, her head swiveling from left to right to pinpoint its location.

We’ve lost track of it...

That’s not good, not good at all.

I hear a loud hiss as Silence leaps from the shadows at the other side of the clearing, soon following his choice to head into our vision I see a large tree crashing down.

“It’s at my location!” He calls out to us, just as a single laser streaks out from the vegetation. Using his reptilian dexterity and flexibility he weaves to the side, the energy flying past him.

Stepping out of the darkness we see the Scizor again, this time only one of its claws containing the blade of light while the shines brilliantly with channeled energy.

This creature’s teleportation capabilities...

It has no tell.

No sign.

One second it’s in one location, the second it’s standing somewhere else. We can’t even predict it.

In order to keep my head leveled I bite the inside of my cheeks. This situation needs to be handled with great care, one screw-up and we will suffer dearly.

The ground I’ve set alight earlier has turned to nothing but smolders, since my concentration was broken when the creature attacked me I couldn’t focus my power into it in order to keep it burning.

Focus, Jezebel.

If you let the situation get out of hand, then the battle is over.

Time to switch to a different tactic.

“Seraph!” I call to her. “Fire one of your special arrows!”

“Very well!” She acknowledges. “Avert all of thy eyes!”

Doing as she ordered all of us except Asmund look away as she fires another arrow from the trees, this one with a tip that’s glowing far brighter than the rest. The Scizor expected her to fire the arrow right at it and thus raised its single blade, but instead the arrow wasn’t aimed to strike it...

...It was aimed for its feet.

Upon impact it explodes with a brilliant flash of light, even through the corners of my vision I feel it burn my eyes.

When it fades we all look to see that the Scizor is stumbling back, as if dazed.

This is the opportunity!

“Silence, now!” I order.

Without hesitation he springs at the creature with speed one would’ve never expected from a creature of his size, with serpentine grace he lashes out with his tail for a second time.

...But to all of our surprise and horror, the Scizor recovers far more quickly than any of us would’ve expected.

It steps to the side to avoid the strike and slashes down on Silence’s tail, although Hale’s barrier flashes to life to absorb the attack I see the weapon cut a deep wound into his flesh.

The Nidoviper clenches his jaws to prevent himself from screaming and quickly pulls back, avoiding a second swipe. Blood is now gushing from the open wound, covering the grass beneath him in its dark crimson liquid.

This is bad.

This is very bad.

Seraph quickly lets loose several more arrows in order to prevent the creature from closing the gap between itself and Silence. It responds to this by blocking said projectiles before unleashing another laser at her, forcing her to move from her position again.

During this time the Nidoviper quickly makes his way back to the safety of Benevolence and I, his face strained with visible pain.

“Give me the wound, I’ll fix it.” The Chimecho reassures him, her moon-shaped horn shining.

I turn my head away from Sinfonia activating her Heal Pulse, since my attention needs to be on the Scizor. The Decidueye alone won’t be able to keep him suppressed, so I need to assist her.

Channeling my power once again I send out several more tendrils of flames, burning the ground before us in order to prevent him from simply charging forward. With a loud clack followed by a ‘thoom’ Asmund fires a second cannonball, just barely missing the Scizor as he leaps to the side.

Despite the blow Asmund landed in the very beginning, we haven’t managed to hurt the creature once so far in this battle. Yet during this time it landed a blow on Silence, creating a deep wound.

Even though said injury is currently being mended, we can’t afford something like that happening again.

We need to find a way to strike this creature down quick, otherwise I fear what our chances will be if this battle drags on.

[thetakenpokemon]

Act 3 - Daybreak

[PoV: Sinfonia]

When the sun began to peak out from the horizon, all of us rose from our slumber. After shaking the sleep from our eyes and minds we packed up our supplies and headed out on the trail again without a moment wasted.

As we traverse down the path, I can’t help but eye Minato curiously.

‘He seems to look far better.’ I mention to Hale through our link.

‘Better?’ He asks, his head following my gaze and looking at the Nidoviper. ‘Well then, he does look better!’

Lately Hale and I have been worrying about Minato’s mental and emotional health, for all of these bodies we’ve been finding...he hasn’t been taking it well. If it were to have escalated further we would’ve taken him aside to talk, but for some reason...he seems to be far better now.

In fact, he’s actually smiling.

‘Perhaps rest truly does do wonders.’ Hale mentally chuckles.

‘Perhaps it does.’ I agree, feeling relieved to see Minato in a better mood.

With that we continued on in silence, only occasionally do we speak to each other when a peculiar thing arises to our attention.

Eventually we stumbled upon more bodies, several being Sawsbuck and Deerling...and then another Haxorus. These were far fresher compared to the previous bodies, seeing that they’ve only just began to decay.

Seeing all this death...especially of younglings, it is appalling...

The further we travel the more grim the air becomes, the air becoming somewhat tense due to the anticipation of the fact that we’ll eventually find the creature responsible.

Yet the bodies don’t end, for this monster seems to have left a trail of them. Every once in a while we’d find them, marking the location of the creature’s last kill. Minato would study the marks before pointing us in the direction of where the creature went, and so far...he hasn’t been wrong.

Hale and I watch him carefully, looking for any changes in his behavior. Although his smile has long since vanished since the bodies began appearing again, his eyes are the only thing that betray the sorrow he feels. His expression is very controlled, almost indifferent. Either he has taken control over his emotions, or he has stopped dwelling on these horrific deaths..

And another important detail I’ve noticed is that with each body we find, he would glance at Asmund before pushing forward...never looking back.

But when I looked at the Golurk himself? He’s unwavering, his attention not even lingering on these bodies. He would just give one look before focusing on his surroundings, surveying for threats I assume.

Did...Asmund have something to do with Minato’s change of behavior?

I considered bringing it up with Hale, but I decided against it. It wouldn’t do for me to jump to conclusions, so for now...I will wait and see.

...

Several hours later when the noon sun has risen high into the sky, we stumble upon the dead body of a Trevenant.

The surroundings...it is chaos. Trees and plants are bent in odd angles, a good deal of them having been sliced cleanly to pieces.

Trevenants are fearsome Pokemon, capable of controlling the forest around them to aid themselves in battle. In their natural environment, they are some of the most dangerous Pokemon out there.

Minato inspects its headless corpse carefully, his red eyes looking over the details of the wound. After a tense wait, he looks up at us with a grim expression.

“We are getting close.” He warns us, his tone hushed. “This Trevenant died yesterday at most, it’s...difficult to tell the process of decay on a Grass-type...but I feel very confident that its death is very recent.”

Jezebel’s grip on her staff tightens. “How far do you think it is?” She asks him.

His gaze drifts to the side. “Several hours I believe, however its movements are...sporadic. It could be much farther than that, or even shorter.” He shrugs his shoulders. “But if we are to keep after it, I believe strongly that we will encounter it today.”

Today.

I couldn’t help but shudder.

“Then let us push on.” Pahaliah says grimly. “If 't be true we shall encounter the beast the present day, then we must prepare ourselves.”

The black Delphox turns to Hale and I, her eyes hardening. “Once we find signs of the monster being close, we will need you to immediately place a Reflect shield on Asmund so he can go ahead of us.” Her gaze turns to the Golurk. “It is the only way we will truly know on what barrier would be able to absorb at least part of the creature’s damage.”

Asmund merely nods, choosing to stay silent.

“Understood, Nightshade” Hale nods as well, keeping his answer brief.

“Now let us continue.” The Jezebel tells us, turning to face the direction Minato is looking at. “We can’t waste anymore time, enough lives have been lost to this creature. We can’t allow it to take any more.”

[thetakenpokemon]

Act 3 - Entering Where the Darkness Grows Thick

[PoV: Silence]

Ever since I’ve told the others that the monster is near, all conversation has fallen to complete silence. None uttered a word, which may be for the best.

Ahead of the group, my red eyes flicking from one place to another...searching for any sort of detail.

I said I was confident that the creature went this direction, but now that the bodies have all but ceased...I feel uncertainty worming itself into my mind.

Was I...wrong?

...

Before the seeds of doubt fully took over, my vision darkens.

Caught off guard I quickly stop, frantically looking around. My surroundings, it looks as if something drained the light out of everything. The colors are muted, strange vapor waves around in my vision, dark shadows seem to crawl across the ground in unnatural ways.

Seeing the expressions of my companions, I’m not the only one that’s witnessing this.

Nightshade clutches her staff tightly, the green flames on the tip of the weapon barely managing to radiate light. “Band together.” She orders quietly, her teeth clenched together. “The reports said that the surroundings grow dark when the creature is very close.” Not missing a beat she turns to Hale, her expression growing very tense. “We must not waste time, place the barrier on Asmund.”

Nodding, he raises his two left fists and activates Reflect. Channeling the barrier he directs it to Asmund, creating a brilliant veil on the surface of the Golurk’s body that quickly fades to nothingness...hiding the fact that the barrier exists

I feel a pit grow in my stomach as Asmund silently takes the lead, creating distance between us and him. I know that we have a plan of action, but...

...this not only one of the greatest threats we’ve ever faced, but it’s also unnatural on a level beyond that of giant monstrous hybrids.

The five of us silently follow after Asmund, keeping ourselves at a far enough distance in order to not become detected. The Golurk himself isn’t even trying to make himself silent, for with every step he aims his feet at fallen branches and roots...creating lout snapping and crunching noises.

I’m not often affected by paranoia, but when one is surrounded in unnatural darkness filled with hazy air...it makes one very jumpy. Through the corners of my vision I can see movement, but when I quickly glance in that direction...I see nothing.

...I don’t like this.

I don’t like this at all.

Although I’m worried about my own safety and those of my companions, the one I’m most truly worried about is Asmund.

This plan...I don’t trust it

A creature capable of slicing through anything without any resistance? If Reflect doesn’t absorb any of the force, then he’ll be cleaved in two.

He’s suffered severe damage in the past, but nothing of such a scale as being cut into multiple pieces. Even if he’s capable of surviving from what would normally be a fatal injury to a creature of flesh, I still worry immensely over what may happen if the monster doesn’t simply stop there.

Being left in such an intense situation as this forces my mind to wander, despite all of my training from my clan...I’m finding it extremely difficult to control my emotions. If I don’t succeed in doing so, I might act in a way that could get us all killed.

Calm yourself, Minato Doku. Take controlled breaths, focus on what you must do...not the what-ifs.

Up ahead I barely missed Asmund raising a hand, signalling us to stop. In front of him I can see what looks like a clearing, however what’s inside it...I’m unable to tell.

But when he looked back at us and nods his head? That’s all that we needed to know.

The creature is here.

Continuing forward the Golurk steps from the trees, not missing a beat we quickly gather at the edge and watch...as well as keeping ourselves out of sight.

I can see the creature now in all of its glory.

...

The stories of terror...it doesn’t even begin to do it justice.

The muted details, the black and white color, the unnatural shimmer, the black mist that swirls around its head...

...The two blades of pulsing light...

... The glowing light in place of its face ...

...

Monster doesn’t even begin to describe it.

“Found the freak.” Asmund chuckles, opening and closing his hand. This is an obvious attempt to anger the creature, to make it engage him.

I could only watch with horror when his attempt succeeded, for the Scizor charges him faster than ANY of us could have anticipated. I nearly let out a loud yelp when it leaps and slashes at his chest with his blades of light, violent images of the machine falling into two pieces playing in my mind.

...

But it didn’t happen.

Instead Asmund stumbles back as if struck by a powerful force, but not without flaying out and managing to strike the Scizor’s side with a fist. The monster is sent flying into one of the trees, shattering the trunk.

Yet the slash did leave a mark on the Golurk’s chest, a clean slash right through the surface of his metal. He may have survived the blow, but if it were any of us that took it...then we would have an open wound on our bodies that would be bleeding profusely.

I quickly glance over to Hale to see that he’s already straining, massive drops of sweat trickle down the side of his head while his jaw clenches tightly. The blow Asmund took, whatever force it contains...it is strong enough to drain a massive amount of energy out of Hale in order to maintain that barrier.

“REFLECT!” Asmund shouts, driving us all out of our shock. “IT’S REFLECT!”

Nightshade lets out a sharp growl. “NOW!” She orders.

In a flash the five of us break out of our cover and leap into the clearing, our parts in the plan of action playing in our minds.

Much to my fears I see that the Scizor has already picked themselves up, apparently having shaken off a blow that would normally have either crippled or outright killed a normal creature.

To survive such a strike from Asmund, this monster is truly a force to be reckoned with.

“I AM ZEN’RO, THE DEFIANT BLADE!” The monster shouts, catching all of us completely off-guard.

It can talk?! This creature is not just a simple monster who can adapt to situations?

To be capable of speech, it shows that it’s not a normal Feral Pokemon in terms of intelligence...

...It’s like us.

That mere thought caused my spine to shiver, but that’s only the beginning. The creature’s voice in itself is nightmare fuel, for how its tone is distorted and twisted into something that one would imagine to be something that even demons fear.

“YOU ARE BUT OBSTACLES, BLOCKING ME FROM MY PATH TO BECOME TRUTH! YOU WILL ALL FALL TO MY BLADES LIKE THE REST!” It continues, its tone containing so much anger that I couldn’t help but balk.

I don’t know what it means by ‘path to become truth’, but I know that this isn’t a mere threat.

It’s a promise. A vow to destroy us.

With its declaration made the monster charges us, signifying that the battle has begun.