Wild Pokémon: Through the Glass

by ThePrinceOfPuddles

In a region without trainers or gangs, the tides of hate and blood continue to recede. Kala the Ampharos, former war commander of the East Side gang, is living an almost normal life, but her friend Umbra isn't. She soon finds that getting to know him isn't as simple as she thought, and the life of a war survivor is a lonely one…

Hey, everybody! It's me. You know, the guy who said he'd never write another story here. Yeah, the constant bombardment of glowing reviews for Wild Pokémon inspired me to create another story featuring two characters whom I never really got a chance to flesh out fully. I personally believe that what readers think of any story is more important than official canon, so take from this story what you will. This is just a short little fanfic about the aftermath of my real story, which people are still viewing to this day. (Thanks so much for that, by the way.) Lastly, since the current cover art was thrown together in less than five minutes with MS paint, I'm just going to come clean; in the future, if any of you draws more fanart for Wild Pokemon, feel free to PM me and let me see it. Anyway, please enjoy. Chao!

---

Wild Pokémon: Through the Glass

Torkoal had finally made it. Days and weeks of grueling, slow-moving travel had paid off. At last, the old tortoise stood before the gates of the Pokémon community village that so many refugees were flocking to these days. The town was every bit as beautiful and proud as he'd imagined, a perfect blend of hand-made homes and pure nature. Even the trees and foliage complemented the town marvelously. The strong iron gates looked as though they'd been set up recently, and their symmetry and construction was a testament to how effective Pokémon could truly be on their own.

Torkoal hauled his enormous sack of healing items behind him, eager to join this community of free and prosperous Pokémon. At last, he would have a nice and pleasant home to return to each day, unlike how he'd lived under Houndoom's law in the West Side. He still shuddered at the mere thought of his days of endless servitude back at the West Side capital, surrounded by murderous agents and commanders who would just as soon have killed him as looked at him.

Arriving at the gates, Torkoal spotted an Umbreon atop the nearby guard post. The sentry obviously hadn't noticed him yet, evidenced by the rather relaxed position he was in, and so Torkoal cleared his throat and called up to him.

"Hello, good sir! Pardon my intrusion, but might I have a moment of your time?"

The sentry Umbreon didn't respond, probably distracted by something. Torkoal stepped a bit closer, shouting the same thing again, a little louder this time. Finally, the sentry stirred, stretched himself out, and glanced down at him. Torkoal's old heart nearly stopped when he got a good look at this particular Umbreon. It can't be, he thought. It's impossible…but there's no mistaking it! It must be him!

Umbra, who'd been enjoying a nice midmorning nap, stared in confusion at the Torkoal lugging the huge sack in front of his gates. The tortoise was merely staring back at him, his eyes wide with terror, and he even seemed to be shivering a little. Puzzled, Umbra leaned over the guard post for a closer look.

"Hey, there, gramps!" he called. "Looking for a place to stay? Or are you too stunned by my charming good looks to even speak?"

The Torkoal remained completely silent, his mouth agape. Umbra blinked.

"Apparently the latter," he muttered to himself.

"Please, sir!" the Torkoal suddenly called. "Don't hurt me! I-I've served faithfully for decades! Have mercy!"

Completely taken aback, Umbra studied the old tortoise for a few moments. Eventually, his own eyes widened as he realized just what was going on here. The items this Torkoal carried had West Side markings. That meant—

"What's going on over here?" a familiar voice suddenly called.

Umbra turned and saw Kala the Ampharos approaching the gates, obviously having heard Torkoal's shouting. He quickly forced a smile.

"Well, the scenery around here just improved big time!" he said cheerfully.

Ignoring his comment, Kala climbed up the sentry post and looked down at the Torkoal at the gates.

"Is everything okay, sir?" she asked.

"Oh, uh, yes, everything's fine," he said quickly, his eyes nervously darting between her and Umbra.

Kala briefly glanced at Umbra, who put on a look of complete confusion and innocence. She then looked back at the Torkoal.

"Well, sir, if you're looking for a place to stay, you're more than welcome to join our community," she said. "As long as they're willing to help out and do their part, everyone is welcome here."

"Oh, yes, of course, madam," he called back. "And I must say, your town must be a lovely place to live if you have someone so…um…competent guarding your gates."

Once again, Kala glanced at Umbra, his expression still the picture of bewilderment. When she looked back at the Torkoal, she shrugged in confusion.

"Well, then, would you like to come in?" she asked.

"Oh, no, madam," Torkoal said quickly. "I mean, I would, but…well, I wasn't expecting…uh, what I meant to say is…the West Side, I…"

At the mention of the West Side, Kala's eyes widened. Umbra mimicked the expression. However, much to both his and Torkoal's surprise, Kala suddenly leapt away from the post and carefully climbed down the wall until she was outside the gates. She then walked over to the quivering old tortoise and knelt down next to him, putting her hand on his shell to comfort him.

"Sir, you don't have to worry about the West Side anymore," she said softly. "I know what it must be like to live in fear of the gangs, but they're long gone. It's been over a year since the East and West Sides were wiped out by the trainers, and no trace of them is left. Whatever it is that you're afraid of, I promise you that it's not here."

While Torkoal's body continued to quiver a little, his eyes showed signs of relief at her words.

"Thank you, madam," he said, looking the Electric Pokémon up and down. "Well…perhaps I will stay here, then, if it's all the same to you."

Kala smiled. "Glad to hear it. Why don't you let me help you with that great big item sack of yours, and I'll call someone over to help you get settled in?"

"You have my gratitude, miss…uh…"

"Just call me Kala."

With a smile and a nod, Torkoal stepped closer to the gates, which Umbra soon opened for him. Kala began struggling to help pull the ridiculously large item sack, wondering how on earth the old Fire Pokémon had lugged it all this way. However, she also noticed that Torkoal still remained very edgy as he passed by Umbra, refusing to even make eye contact with the Dark type.

Just as Kala was getting too tired to even move the sack anymore, she thankfully noticed Sparks the Galvantula nearby, one of the more recent community members to join their town. Kala quickly hailed her down, still struggling to move the sack.

"Hey—urk!—Sparks!" she called. "We have a new refugee. Would you mind—ow!—helping him get settled in?"

"Sure thing!" the yellow spider called happily.

Kala held in a sigh of relief as she set down the sack. Sparks quickly walked up to Torkoal, cheerfully greeting him and offering to help with his things. Kala smiled. Sparks was always eager to meet new friends, and she could already tell Torkoal would be fine in their village. However, Kala's smile faded as Sparks easily hefted Torkoal's gigantic item bag onto her back, her eight powerful legs easily supporting its weight as she led Torkoal through town.

"I've lost all confidence in my physical strength," Kala sighed.

"Don't worry," Umbra said, trotting up to her. "Muscles are irrelevant; it's the beauty that counts."

Once again ignoring his comment, Kala turned to him.

"Say, what was all that back there, anyway?"

"What was all that back there anyway," Umbra repeated, smiling.

"Very funny. But really, I'd like to know why Torkoal was so nervous around you."

Umbra sighed theatrically. "I get that everywhere I go, Kala. Not everyone can take seeing perfect manliness personified. It's a hard life."

Kala groaned. "Why do I ever bother to ask you anything?" she muttered, turning to walk away.

"Oh, you heard him, Kala," Umbra said, following her, his tone finally almost serious. "He probably got caught up in the gang wars, and his fear and paranoia got the better of him. I don't want to sound mean, but it's probably easy for a poor old Pokémon like that to get overcome by his nerves."

"Yeah, you're probably right," Kala said sadly as they walked through town. "You know, I never realized until lately just how much damage Luxray and Houndoom truly caused during their reign."

"The region is well rid of them," Umbra spat in agreement. "The trainers too, now that they've finally left to explore the new regions."

Kala smiled to herself. "You know, it's really a miracle how much progress we've made now that Pokémon trainers are no longer in Sinnoh. Just think; communities of free Pokémon are building towns like this one all over the region, renovating abandoned cities and finding new ways to free other Pokémon from their prisons in PC containment machines. I think that together, we might be able to turn this region back into something truly beautiful."

"Assuming the trainers don't come back," Umbra muttered.

"They won't. And if they do, they'll find it difficult to even set foot on our region again, let alone occupy it."

"I hope you're right. Anyway, though, I should get back to my post. Got a lot of scouting to catch up on."

"Fine, but please stay awake this time," Kala said. "We're not judging your sentry skills by how well you can see the back of your eyelids. Oh, and before you go, there was something I needed to ask you."

"Anything, gorgeous," Umbra replied, smiling. "What's the trouble?"

"Remember when we were tying the rope at the well, and you came over and made a knot that you said couldn't be undone?"

"Yeah?"

"Well, we tested the knot to see how tight it really was by trying to untie it, and, uh, the rope broke before we came close," Kala said sheepishly. "We were hoping you could tie another one for us."

"Absolutely, but in exchange, I get to take you out to dinner tonight."

"No."

"You take me?"

"No."

"How about a quick kiss, then?"

"No."

"Friendly hug?"

"N—well, maybe."

"Deal!" Umbra yelled happily, bolting toward the well as though she'd said yes to his other three requests.

Kala sighed as she watched him dashing out of sight. She would never understand Umbra. She could never quite tell when he was really being a doofus, or when he was just pretending to be to get a reaction out of people. Even now, she wondered how he'd managed to tie a knot stronger than the well's rope itself, and where he'd learned that trick. Kala had known Umbra for well over a year, and he was still a complete mystery to her.

Eventually, Kala merely threw up her arms and sighed, deciding that Umbra was just a very strange individual and left it at that. However, even as she went off to take her afternoon stroll through the village, a nagging doubt tugged at the back of her mind. The way that Torkoal had acted around Umbra was more than a little odd, and the terror behind his eyes had been all too real. Did Umbra really know nothing about it, or was that another one of his little acts?

Either way, it was an enigma, and one she decided was worth looking into.

---

After a few minutes of careful maneuvering and ignoring the complaints of the nearby workers, Umbra finally finished tying the unbreakable rope knot at the well.

"Alright, Whiplash," he called to the Aggron standing at the ready. "Do your thing!"

The powerful Steel type nodded, grabbing onto the crank and heaving until they drew fresh water. There were a few claps and cheers nearby, and Umbra spun around and did a theatrical bow.

"Thank you all, more than happy to be of service!" he said, grinning broadly.

Noticing the angry glare from the Aggron, Umbra smiled nervously and stepped aside. However, in truth, the spotlight didn't matter to him in the least; now that he'd completed his task, he had another excuse to mess with Kala. He loved verbally dueling with someone who was almost his equal, and she was becoming one of his favorite pastimes.

Still, he decided that he needed to be a little careful around her until that scene with Torkoal was totally forgotten. He was sure he'd played the fool well enough, but one never knew. Absol—and probably Ember now as well—were the only ones who knew even a part of his story, and no one knew the whole thing, and he was going to keep it that way.

Sighing contentedly as the warm rays of the sun bathed him from the hole in the clouds, Umbra trotted off into town to go find his lovely Ampharos. He was sure that by now she was probably guiding the village workers in their daily tasks, no-doubt in that calm, down-to-earth and yet incredibly efficient way she always did, a way that could only be seen from a former East Side commander.

As he strolled through the center of town, Umbra glanced around at the myriads of free Pokémon who now bustled through their peaceful village, their experiment in freedom. The sights were lovely, to be sure, but Umbra was far more interested in merely watching the people moving to and fro, going about their daily lives. What they thought of as typical and mundane he found fascinating and even a little heartwarming. He could've watched them for hours. It felt like looking through a glass into a separate world, but it was an interesting glass indeed.

As Umbra passed each one by, he smiled and nodded a greeting, and they did the same. Either everyone in this village was just really friendly, or the stand-up comedy acts he performed for them at night had earned him a good reputation. He walked up to the main shop keeper—an Ursaring who was also incredibly useful in reconstruction projects—and called out to him.

"Hey, Cliff!" he said cheerfully. "How's business?"

"Howdy, Umbra!" the burly Pokémon called back in his usual gravelly voice. "Long time no see. Here, on the house!"

Ursaring tossed him a Sitrus Berry, which he eagerly caught in his mouth.

"Fwank youf!" he said through his teeth before putting the berry away in his personal item sack. "Say, you haven't seen Kala anywhere, have you?"

"Oh, yeah actually," the shop keeper replied. "I think I spotted her at that old Trainer School we renovated. She might be helping out the other teachers there."

"Kay, thanks, buddy!" Umbra said, trotting off toward the school.

"Don't mention it!" Cliff called back before returning to his work.

Umbra briskly ran to the school area. Even now, he couldn't believe that their community had managed to turn a lousy old school house for humans—a place that never taught anything other than status effects in battle—into a place where young Pokémon could actually learn important things about life, their natural gifts, the environment, history, and survival in hard times.

As Umbra arrived at the remodeled school, he saw multitudes of child Pokémon running outside and playing with each other, undoubtedly in the middle of their recess. He felt a faint stirring in his heart as he watched them all enjoying themselves and practicing their early battle skills, which were mostly just Tackle, Scratch, or Growl. They all looked so happy, and he was glad they didn't ever have to know about what the region had been like years ago, under the rule of gangs and Pokémon trainers.

Umbra gazed around the schoolyard, hoping that Ember and Absol's daughter, Ruby, might be there, but then he remembered that she was probably still too young to attend. It was a pity; he always loved hearing her greet him happily and call him 'Uncle Umbra.' He decided he'd pay their family a visit later, but for now, he set his sights on finding Kala.

Suddenly, a Bronzong floated through the front door of the school and began ringing its bell-like body, the sound reverberating pleasantly through the fields. The children all dropped what they were doing and dashed toward the doors, most of them screaming and yelling in that cute-but-ridiculous way that kids always seemed to feel was necessary.

Out of the corner of his eye, Umbra noticed several adults walking together just outside the school. He saw the main and vice principals, Roserade and Altaria, as well as a few other teachers. But most importantly, he spotted Kala among them, no-doubt aiding in their planning of this year's curriculum. He was about to run up and join them, but then he decided that would be a little too nosy, even for him. Instead, he merely waved to her to get her attention, content to wait in the sun near the flowers until they were finished.

When Kala noticed him sitting there, she briefly waved back. She continued speaking with the teachers for another minute, eventually handing them a slip of paper before saying her goodbyes. When the others headed inside the school, Kala walked over toward him, smiling.

"Hey, Umbra," she said. "You know, I really missed you. I've just been saying to myself, 'it's been almost twenty minutes…'"

Taken aback, Umbra chuckled. "Beautiful and witty! Two of the twenty-eight traits I look for in a female."

Kala blinked. "What are the others? Wait, never mind, I don't want to know. So, are you here because you finished helping the guys out at the well, or do you just want to flirt invasively some more?"

"Both!" Umbra replied cheerfully.

"Uh huh, yeah. So, does that mean the rope is taken care of? I have to say, I'm a little surprised; you're usually a lot less…quick…to do any kind of work."

Umbra put on a wounded face. "How could you say that? I never stop to smell the roses when there are Pokémon in need! I have been smelling these chrysanthemums, though. You really should try it; they smell almost as lovely as you! Anyway, about my payment, I suppose we could negotiate on the hug—"

"Wait, you were smelling the flowers?" Kala asked, scowling. "You're kidding, right?"

"Huh? Uh…why would I be joking?"

"Well…I thought you had no sense of smell."

As the realization of his blunder dawned on Umbra, his eyes widened, though he quickly forced a neutral expression. He racked his brain for a comeback or a dismissal—anything to change the subject. Finally, he thought of the simplest way out.

"Okay, yeah, you got me," he said with a shrug. "It's just a figure of speech. I certainly wish I could've, though."

Kala raised an eyebrow. "Uh…okay. Anyway, I still have work to do, and I bet your stand-in at the sentry post is getting tired by now. Why don't you head back there, and we can 'negotiate' later, 'kay?"

"No problem, gorgeous!" Umbra replied jovially. "Stay perfect!"

Rolling her eyes, Kala turned and headed back into the village. Umbra walked off towards the town gate, but as soon as Kala was out of sight, his smile faded. Just how on earth had she known about his sense of smell? He hadn't told that to anyone except Ember and Absol. That meant that Kala must have asked them about him at some point. But why was she talking to people about him? And more importantly, why did she care enough to know more about him at all?

Clearly, he'd made the mistake of underestimating her. Had he laid on his goofy persona a little too thick and drawn her attention, or was she just that naturally curious? Either way, he had to make sure not to let anything else he did intrigue her. The thought of no longer subtly locking wits with her each day saddened him, but it had become too risky, so that would have to be the end of it.

---

Later that evening, under the beautiful orange and pink hues of the sunset, an exhausted but satisfied Kala was preparing to head home after a hard day's work. She just had to finish helping one of the teachers, an intelligent but inexperienced Froslass, plan tomorrow's curriculum on battle techniques for survival in the wild.

"So, you can really tell a Technical Machine's move just by its color?" Froslass asked.

"Well, not entirely," Kala replied. "I can tell its type by the color, and whether it's physical or special by its markings. Human handwriting is hard to decipher, but you can also use their numbers too."

"So, what's this one?" Froslass asked, holding up a grey disk with special-stat markings. Kala examined the number carefully.

"Uh…that one's Explosion," Kala said hesitantly. "You probably don't want any of the children to learn that one."

Froslass's eyes widened, and Kala knew she was imagining how much pain and destruction the kids could cause if they learned that move.

"Oookay," Froslass said, clearing her throat. "Moving on. Um, I think I get most of it, but I'm having a little trouble with these Ground-type TMs. I mean, they all look alike, and they're almost all physical, so…"

Kala mentally sighed, knowing they would probably be there for a while. While Froslass fished around in her item bag for the TMs, Kala couldn't help gazing up at the sky, which was being slowly painted a deep shade of red as the sun faded behind the hilltops. She loved helping fellow members of the community more than anything else, but right now, the only thing she could think about was her nice, soft bed. Without even knowing it, she began to drift off, her daydreams transforming into actual dreams.

"Uh, Kala? Hello?"

Startled, Kala opened her eyes and quickly looked back at Froslass.

"Sorry," she said, rubbing her eyes a little. "I'm just a bit tired. What were we on?"

"I just needed to know about these Ground TMs. Don't worry, there aren't too many left I haven't figured out. Which one is this?"

Froslass held out a light brown TM, and Kala scrutinized it with tired eyes, trying to see the numbers clearly. However, when she finally recognized the TM, her mind instantly became alert, a chill running down her spine that eclipsed her fatigue.

"That's, uh…it's…Sandstorm," she replied, trying to keep her voice level. "Yeah…that's, uh, what it is."

"Um, okay…?" Froslass muttered, eyeing her curiously.

However, try as she might to block them out, Kala's mind was suddenly flooded by gruesome images from her last days in the East Side. The Pokémon trainers had surrounded their entire city in Sandstorm, and she'd watched it buffet her soldiers, literally tearing skin from bone bit-by-bit as the trainers obliterated their defensive lines. All her bravest commanders—Hammer, Shortfuse, Larksong, all of them—had been killed by the Sandstorm. She felt herself involuntarily quivering as she imagined their screams of pain and cries for help that would never come.

"Kala? Are you okay?" Froslass asked.

Kala jumped a little. "Oh, yeah, I'm fine, sorry. What's next?"

"Err, I just needed to know about these last two," Froslass continued.

The Ice ghost held out another, and Kala recognized it immediately. Earthquake. Why, oh, why did she have to know about Ground TMs of all moves? The horrific sounds of buildings collapsing during the battle pounded in Kala's head as if she were still there, memories of the trainers opening nightmarish fissures in the earth, swallowing up her loyal comrades like a giant beast in the ground.

Kala sensed Froslass about to ask again, and she quickly said, "It's Earthquake. Can you just show me the last one?"

"Oh, here," Froslass replied, handing it to her.

In that moment, Kala decided that if Arceus was real, he must have hated her. She stared at the last TM for a long moment, remembering when she'd last used the move during the battle. Dig, both an attack and a lifeline, had been her only method of escape when the trainers had annihilated the last of her forces. Her throat constricted so tightly she nearly suffocated as she remembered how it had agonized her to abandon her army—or what was left of it—to their fate. There had been nothing else she could do, and the hopelessness of it had threatened to crush her heart to dust. It still did.

"Okay, Kala, really, what's wrong?" Froslass asked.

When Kala looked back at her to answer, her blood turned to ice. She no longer saw Froslass, but a masked Sandstorm trainer, her vicious Tyranitar roaring and preparing to use Earthquake. All around her, sand, smoke, fires and ruined buildings surrounded them, cries of pain echoing through the fields. Kala let out a scream and leapt back, nearly stumbling and falling to the ground.

"What are you doing?" the trainer asked in a nervous voice.

"GET BACK!" Kala shouted. "STAY AWAY FROM ME!"

The trainer continued to walk towards her, her black hair whipping in the wind, and Kala instinctively raised her hand, preparing to attack with Thunder. However, when the trainer cringed in fear and threw up her hands defensively, she forced herself not to launch the attack directly at her, which took every ounce of her willpower. She blinked several times, and suddenly, the trainer, the Tyranitar, and the ruined city was gone.

In its place was a terrified Froslass, holding up her tiny arms and weeping softly, the Thunder attack having missed her by but a few feet. All the guilt and shame in the world hit Kala right in the face as she realized what she'd almost done.

"I-I'm so sorry," she said, her voice slightly cracked. "I didn't know…I d-didn't mean to…you were…"

But before she could explain herself, Froslass flew off into the forest, probably to hide from her. Kala let out a long, anguished sigh and rubbed her hands across her face. This wasn't the first time her memories of the war had tormented her, and she was sure it wouldn't be the last either. She would give anything to just forget, to be truly free of the gang wars and its gruesome legacy of hatred, pain, and death.

Realizing that there was nothing else for her out there tonight, Kala slowly and sadly headed home, hoping that she could apologize to Froslass properly tomorrow. She wondered if Ember and Absol went through the same thing occasionally. The difference, she realized, was that they at least had each other. She had no one like that; no one else who knew what it was like, no one she could talk to about it, no one to comfort her during the worst of it.

And she knew she never would.

---

A few days later, life in the community continued as always, citizens and members peacefully going about their tasks with the vigor and good cheer that comes from such lovely weather. Kala, having put in a difficult morning's work, briefly relaxed under the shade of her favorite fir tree, a half-empty glass of berry juice at her side. She couldn't help reflecting on the past few days, enjoying the good memories and trying to find the silver lining in the bad.

Apologizing to Froslass hadn't been easy. Explaining her behavior had been even harder. She'd blamed the incident on lack of sleep and anxiety, which had at least seemed logical to Froslass. It had taken much convincing, but eventually, Froslass had forgiven her, though the Ice ghost still eyed her warily whenever she passed by the school. That part had hurt Kala the most; she was sure Froslass wasn't worried about herself, but about the children.

At least Froslass hadn't mentioned the incident to anyone else, so it was over, for now. Hopefully they could both forget about it eventually, but Kala knew she would have to learn how to control her trauma from the war, or she would always be a potential danger to others. If she ever hurt someone, she decided that she would leave the village and find a secluded home elsewhere.

Kala sighed and tried to push the thoughts out of her mind. She was supposed to be relaxing now, not torturing herself. Instead, she reminisced on all the fun she'd had with her friends when she was off duty. Well, most of her friends; she hadn't spoken to Umbra much in days. She frowned as she thought about him. Umbra hadn't been himself lately at all. He almost seemed to be avoiding her, and whenever they did speak, it was just to assign jobs and reports. There was none of his usual bad jokes or invasive flirting; he'd been treating her as even less than a stranger.

Whatever she'd done to upset him, it looked like she'd have to apologize for that too. She sighed again, wondering what it could possibly have been. He never took offense to insults; on the contrary, he'd laugh them right off and act they were compliments. In fact, he never took offense to anything. Kala began to wonder if this wasn't just another game or a trick he was playing on her. Either way, it was upsetting her far more than it should have, and she didn't know why.

"Excuse me, miss Kala?"

She jumped, opening her eyes and turning to face the speaker. It took her a moment to recognize the Torkoal she'd helped at the town gates, but when she did, she smiled pleasantly.

"Oh, hi, Torkoal!" she said. "You enjoying the village life?"

"More than you know, madam," he replied with a smile. "It's been absolutely wonderful. Everyone is so nice and polite, and the work isn't too bad even on these old bones."

"Glad to hear it. So, what brings you here?"

"Well, to tell you the truth, I was looking for you," Torkoal said. "I spoke to someone, and they said to speak to someone else, and eventually I found someone who said I could find you here."

Kala blinked. "Um, okay…any particular reason you were trying so hard to find me specifically?"

"Yes, madam. Oh, and if I made you uncomfortable, I am truly sorry. You see, miss Kala, everyone here has been most pleasant, but when I was paralyzed with fear at the gates, you showed me more kindness and understanding than anyone else ever has, save for miss Ember. So, when I found out that you were also a bit of an authority figure here as well, I realized that you were the best person to tell."

"Huh? Tell me what?"

Torkoal sighed and briefly looked away. "Someone in this village is not what he seems, madam."

At this, Kala stood up, giving him her full attention. Torkoal cleared his throat before continuing.

"This Pokémon is putting on a good act, but I recognized him the moment I saw him," the old tortious said gravely. "You see, madam, I used to work for the West Side for most of my life—which was not pleasant, let me tell you—and I once knew this Pokémon from my time there. He's far more dangerous than you know. In fact, he'll probably kill me for telling you this."

Kala was now truly unnerved. Torkoal wasn't speaking out of fear now, or anything else. She believed he was telling the truth, and she had a feeling of dread in her gut as to who he was talking about.

"Whoever it is, I'm sure we can protect you from him," she replied.

Torkoal chuckled sadly. "I deeply appreciate your kindness, miss Kala, but no one could protect me from him. However, I am more than happy to sacrifice my life if it means defending this free, peace-loving community of good Pokémon from him. My time would probably be up in a few years anyway; it doesn't really matter. But you need to know what you are up against, and if you'll forgive the pertinence of this, you need to know now."

Kala listened with wide eyes as Torkoal told her exactly who and what this Pokémon was. And when he was done, she could barely draw breath to reply.

"I thought he died in the gang wars?" she muttered.

Torkoal merely shook his head slowly.

---

About an hour later, Kala found herself standing on the porch outside Umbra's house, racking her brain as to how to deal with this issue. She had no idea what to say to him, or how he would respond. The irony of the situation almost made her smile; Umbra always seemed to leave people groping for words, even if he didn't say anything yet.

Kala suddenly realized that if anyone saw her standing in front of Umbra's home, she'd probably be mistaken for a stalker, so she gathered her courage and finally managed to knock on the door. There was a brief silence, so she knocked a little louder. She then listened carefully, though she heard nothing but silence.

Just as she was about to try again, she heard the faint noise of what had to be Umbra's footsteps. Kala tried to ignore the Butterfree in her belly as the knob twisted and the door creaked open, revealing the wiry Dark Pokémon.

Umbra stared at her for a moment, clearly surprised to see her. However, he soon grinned widely, a sight she'd actually missed.

"Whoa, did the sun come out, or is it just you?" he asked cheerfully.

It was all Kala could do not to return his smile. At least he was back to the flirting again. She might've taken more comfort in that, had she not known who he really was.

"Uh, hey, Umbra," she began awkwardly. "I…there was something I wanted to talk to you about. May I come in?"

"Sure! When are they expecting you back in heaven?" Umbra asked, standing aside.

Kala rolled her eyes and finally allowed herself to smile a little as she entered the house.

However, her smile immediately faded when she saw the living room.

"Welcome to my humble abode," Umbra said, bowing theatrically.

Very humble, Kala thought, though she said nothing.

The living room was absolutely bare. The only items of furniture were a table, two chairs, a clock, and a writing desk with an item bag sitting on top. In that moment, Kala felt truly worried, but also deeply sad. Umbra's house almost looked like…a prison, she thought.

"Please, sit down," Umbra offered. "You look tired, but I guess that's no surprise, since you've been running through my mind all day."

Kala nodded thanks and sat down at the table, Umbra sitting across from her. There was a brief silence, and Kala was worried she'd have to be the one to break it, but thankfully Umbra made the first move.

"So, what did you want to talk about, my darling?" he asked sweetly. "And might I say, you look even more lovely than—"

"Okay, Umbra, please," Kala interrupted with a sigh. "No more. I want to have a real, serious discussion with you. We both know you're not really flirting with me, anyway."

Umbra chuckled. "You sell yourself short, princess. But I digress, what urgent matter plagues you so, and what can I say to make it all better?"

"I know who you really are."

For a brief moment, Kala thought she saw a faint look of surprise on Umbra's features, but it vanished as quickly as it had appeared.

"You mean, you finally know I'm the strongest and most handsome Pokémon on the face of the earth?" he asked eagerly, leaning forward a little bit.

"Maybe not handsome, but you actually might almost be right about strongest," she replied hesitantly. "I know that you used to work for the West Side, and I know that your goofy attitude and ridiculous flirting are an act."

At this, Umbra's smile truly faded, and he didn't cover it up this time. He stared at her for a moment, looking as though someone had smacked him in the face with a wet Feebas.

"Where did you hear that?" he asked finally. "Was it Absol who told you?"

"Your real nickname isn't even Umbra," Kala continued as if she hadn't heard him. "Your name is Nightglade, but in the West Side you were known as 'Nightglade the Soulless.'"

The silence that followed engulfed the empty room like a living thing. Umbra and Kala held each other's gaze for a long time, and Kala found it surprisingly difficult not to look away. Umbra's eyes were like that of a statue; cold and unreadable. She actually felt a little intimidated of the diminutive Dark Pokémon.

"So, why are you telling me this?" he asked curtly, shattering the silence. "What do you want from me?"

Kala was genuinely startled by the question. Umbra's tone and demeanor were so matter-of-fact that it chilled her bones. She found herself groping for words again, unable to figure out why he was being so hostile.

"I-I don't understand," she found herself admitting.

"When you learned who I was, your first instinct must've been to tell the village leaders, Ferrothorn and Skarmory, and have me captured," Umbra replied. "Since you didn't, I can only assume you want to make some kind of bargain with me. So, what do you want?"

Kala's eyes widened as she realized what he meant. To her own surprise, it actually hurt her that he would think that was what she wanted.

"Umbra, I'm not here to blackmail you or threaten you in any way," she said quietly. "I don't think you're our enemy, and I don't think you're as bad a person as they said you were. I came by here because…I want to get to know you better. The real you."

Silence once again filled the room, and Kala waited patiently for Umbra's response. He scrutinized her for a long time before responding.

"You know, coming here and telling me this was a very stupid thing to do," he said calmly. "If you really know who I am, you should be terrified of me. Did you never once think that I might kill you to make sure you don't tell anyone my identity?"

"The thought had crossed my mind," Kala admitted. "But I know you won't do that. I don't believe you're a West Side leader at heart, any more than I'm still an East Side commander."

Umbra chuckled again, though there was very little humor behind it. "How you could've left the gang wars with any sense of trust in you is beyond me. So, what else do you think you know about me, or is my name all you were told?"

"Actually, I know a lot about Nightglade the Soulless," Kala said. "He—you—were one of the highest ranking commanders in the West Side, renowned for your apparent cruelty and nightmarishly efficient battle tactics. When our spies noticed any sort of pattern to your attacks, we were made to study and emulate them. I read up on nearly all your known maneuvers when I was with the East Side, though our forces never seemed to be prepared for your next move. Other East Side commanders eagerly awaited the chance to fight you, but I always dreaded the day when I might be called on to meet you in combat. You held the West Side front line the in East Side territory for four years. The only thing I never knew until now was that it was you, Umbra."

He nodded slowly. "So, even now, you don't feel any resentment towards me for the East Side lives I took? No feelings of revenge or anger? And even more importantly, you're willing to bet your life that I've changed and won't kill you here and now?"

Finding herself unable to reply as quickly as she'd hoped, Kala took a moment to consider his words. Had it really been wise to come here and tell him all this? She'd never considered Umbra a threat until now, and perhaps that was a mistake. However, she thought about all the stories Absol and Ember had told her about him, and how much he'd bravely helped them during their adventure, even to the point of nearly sacrificing himself to defend them. She didn't believe Umbra was the same person now that he was in the West Side, and she certainly didn't believe he was a murderer at heart. Finally, she met his eyes again.

"Yes," she said, satisfied by the confidence in her voice.

Umbra gazed at her for another moment, his expression finally softening a little.

"Well, as it just so happens, you're right; I won't kill you," he replied. "So, since you came all this way and want to talk, let's talk."

Kala breathed a silent sigh of relief, though now she was faced with another problem: she actually didn't really know what to talk with Umbra about. It had been difficult enough just getting this far, and now she had to figure out how to keep the conversation going before it became too awkward. His eyes never left hers, and it was clear she would have to be the one to break the silence.

"So, why is your home so…barren?" she began.

"If there's one thing we learned in the West Side, it's to never get too comfortable in your home," Umbra sighed. "We were in danger of being attacked at any time, so we always had to be ready to move, which is why we never furnished our living quarters with anything important. I guess it's just habit now."

"I can understand that," Kala replied sadly. "I still wake up in a cold sweat sometimes, thinking that we're under attack and I need to move as fast as I can. But, you know, we don't have to worry about that anymore. The gangs and trainers are gone from this region, and other than the occasional small band of raiders or thieves, we don't face any real danger."

"Maybe, but I can't get away from the gangs, even if they are destroyed. They're still with me, haunting me wherever I go. You think I'm no longer Nightglade the Soulless, but you're wrong. I am him every single day."

"That may be true," Kala said quietly. "But that doesn't mean you can't change."

Umbra smiled sadly. "You live in a fantasy world, Kala. People can't change, and certainly not me. I'm tainted forever, covered in the blood of my victims. Take my advice, Kala; stay away from me. I'm not a good guy, and I never will be."

Kala shook her head. "I don't think that's true, Umbra. You're like family to Ember and Absol, and even if some of it was an act, I've seen nothing in you but kindness and an eager desire to help others each day. I think people like you and I can change, even if it's hard."

Umbra laughed a little, briefly gazing out the nearby window.

"Whatever you say," he replied. "Speaking of which, though, there's something you should know. If you even mention my real identity here, you'll undoubtedly cause a panic, so if you really trust me, then I need you to promise you won't tell anyone who I am."

"All right, I promise," she said.

"Really, Kala, this is important. I don't want to hurt anyone, but if you tell people my identity, they'll come after me. It has to be a secret."

"Okay, okay, I already said I promise I won't tell."

"So, I have your word on that?"

Kala sighed in exasperation. "Yes, Umbra, I promise I won't tell anyone! What is it—"

Umbra held up his paw. "That's three times you promised," he said with a wink.

After a brief moment of confusion, a smile crept onto Kala's face as she realized the trick.

"Still the same old Umbra, even now," she said.

However, Kala suddenly noticed that Umbra was eyeing the nearby clock on the wall. When she followed his gaze, she saw that she was already running almost twenty minutes late for her shift at the school.

"Oh, crud, I gotta go," she said, standing up. "I mean, if that's okay…"

"Yeah, we've both got work to do," Umbra replied, standing up as well. "Thanks for coming by. It was an…interesting way to spend the morning."

Kala smiled and headed for the door. However, as she reached for the knob, she found herself hesitating.

"Hey, Umbra?" she said, turning around.

"Yeah?"

"Um…if you ever need anything, or if you just want to talk about it some more, feel free to come find me."

"You'll be the first to know," Umbra replied.

With that, Kala left the house, gently closing the door behind her. After that, she took a brief moment to let her nerves cool down. Umbra was right; it had been an interesting morning. Still, she hadn't expected her conversation with a former warlord to be so…normal. She also hadn't expected him to take everything so well. She guessed she'd never know what to expect with Umbra.

Then, remembering she was still incredibly late, Kala broke into a run toward the school, though she had no idea how she'd be able to get this conversation out of her mind and focus on her work now.

---

Kala'd had to get up early the next morning to help Scizor and Tropius gather supplies outside the city, which left her feeling a little groggy throughout the rest of her day going through the town streets. She occasionally debated trying to get a little more rest, but that would almost certainly mean she'd have that dream again, which dissuaded her from the idea.

Instead, Kala took every moment she could to stretch her bones and let the sun bathe her, waking her mind up naturally. For the most part, it worked, and she soon remembered that she needed to collect reports from the well, their medical district, and the main sentry post and deliver them to Skarmory. She decided she'd visit the sentry post first, since she wanted to check up on Umbra after yesterday's conversation.

As Kala walked down the main road leading to the gates, the events of yesterday almost seemed like a dream. Had she really had a conversation with Nightglade, former war champion of the West Side? If she'd told that to anyone else, they'd think she was insane. The even stranger thought that she was his friend made her smile. It looked like she wouldn't be able to tell the kids that if they didn't get to bed on time, Nightglade the Soulless would get them anymore.

A few minutes later, Kala arrived at the sentry post. She called Umbra's name, but received no answer. When she climbed up on a ledge to get a better view, she saw that Floatzel, the stand-in sentry, was in Umbra's place.

"Morning, Kala!" he said when he saw her.

"Hey, Floatzel," she began. "Uh, have you seen Umbra?"

Floatzel shrugged. "I haven't seen him all day. I'm just here because I found the sentry post empty. No rush, but if you could find him, it'd really make my day easier."

"Sure thing," she replied, climbing back down.

Floatzel returned his gaze outside the wall, and Kala tried to figure out where Umbra could be. No matter how strange he was, it wasn't like him to just shirk his duty. She felt a little worried, suspecting that their conversation yesterday might've changed something. She wanted to find him and apologize, but she didn't know where to look.

Suddenly, an idea struck. The shop keeper, Cliff, was good friends with Umbra, who visited his shop almost every day. Surely he must know where Umbra was. She quickly jogged through town, carefully avoiding the myriads of bustling Pokémon going about their business.

Upon arriving at the town store, she saw Cliff's massive, burly form through the window. When he came outside, she smiled pleasantly and waved to him.

"Ah, a customer!" he said, grinning. "Good morning! Anything you're looking for?"

"Sure, I'll take a Lemonade, if you have one," Kala replied, knowing that getting information would be much easier if she bought something.

"Coming right up!" he said, briefly heading inside.

The shop keeper soon returned with the drink, and Kala reached into her item bag for the money.

"So," she began casually. "I was just wondering, have you happened to see my friend Umbra around here? I heard he visits often."

"Oh, yeah," the Ursaring replied with a frown. "It's funny, he's dropped by every single day around this time without fail, but I haven't seen him anywhere today."

Now deeply worried, Kala quickly handed Ursaring the money and bolted back down the main road.

"Hey, you forgot your drink!" he called after her, but she paid him no heed.

Kala headed for Umbra's house, praying that he'd just slept in or was redecorating or something. On the way, whenever she saw someone Umbra usually talked to, she asked if they'd seen him, and they all replied with the same thing: they hadn't spotted him all day. Her anxiety grew with each negative response, and she ran until she was so tired she could barely walk.

Finally, she reached Umbra's house, and she quickly composed herself, sure that he was inside. Once she'd caught her breath, she knocked on the door. No answer. She waited a minute and then knocked again. Same thing. She walked around the house and looked through the windows, occasionally tapping on the glass. She saw and heard nothing. He wasn't home.

Panic began to overtake Kala now. Despite knowing how bad it would be if she got caught, she took a deep breath and then opened the door, stepping inside Umbra's house. She looked around. The living room was just as barren and empty as before, save for one thing.

There was a note on the wall next to the clock.

Normally, Kala would've at least stopped to consider whether to read a note in someone else's house or not, but right now, she was far too worried about Umbra to think about it. She immediately headed over and examined it.

To whoever finds this note first—and I know it'll probably be you, Kala—I'm leaving the village. Don't go into a panic or start one with anyone else, and don't come looking for me. Just tell everyone that I'm moving to another town or something. I'd tell you why, but I think you can figure that out on your own.

Take care, Umbra.

Kala read and reread the note over and over again, feeling a mix of anger, hurt, and betrayal as she examined each line, burning them into her memory. She realized that Umbra had merely been putting on an act yet again yesterday; he'd pretended to be calm and collected, but as soon as she'd left his house, he must've immediately begun planning to leave. He'd even lied to her before she left.

But why? Was it because he was worried she'd reveal his identity? Did he really trust her so little? That thought stung more than anything else. Did he really view her as an enemy after all this time? She'd been his friend for over a year, and he still didn't hesitate to leave when she finally started to really get to know him? She began to wonder if maybe their entire friendship had just been one big act to him. She felt a deep knot in the pit of her stomach as she contemplated that idea.

As Kala reread the note once again, tormenting herself with other various ideas about what Umbra thought of her, one line in particular stood out in her mind. Don't come looking for me. As she stared at that one sentence, she felt renewed anger building up in the pit of her stomach.

"Don't look for you, huh? Fat chance!" she spat, tearing up the note.

With that, Kala quickly looked around the house, trying to find anything that would give her a clue as to where Umbra would go. She noticed that the desk at the rear of the room no longer had Umbra's item bag on it, meaning that he obviously took it with him. Suddenly, she remembered that Ember and Absol had a map of the region that they'd used to get to this community in the first place, and when Ember first showed it to her, it was covered in notes and markings written by Umbra himself.

Feeling a rush of adrenaline, Kala ran back out of the house and down the block. She might actually be able to find Umbra, but she had to get that map. Maybe Ember and Absol could some with her and help her find him. She ran all the way down the rows of houses until she reached their home, quickly stepping up to the porch and knocking on the door. No answer.

"Not this again," Kala groaned.

She waited another minute before looking inside through the window. Ember and Absol weren't home, but they apparently hadn't pulled the same stunt as Umbra, as their item bags and supplies were still in the house. Obviously, they were just out for a stroll or taking Ruby to the beach or something fun.

"Do I dare?" Kala muttered to herself.

Then, remembering that Umbra might need help more than he knew, she came to a decision. She carefully opened the door, knowing that if Absol or Ember came home and found her, she could easily explain the situation. She looked around the living room, checking their item bags for the map, trying to ignore her guilt at looking through their personal items.

Finally, she found the map tucked away in Ember's old trainer bag. She hated the idea of stealing from Ember and Absol, but she had to find Umbra. In his current state, she was worried he might get into trouble or even hurt himself. Wherever he was, she had to talk some sense into him and bring him home. With that resolve, she examined the map.

Almost immediately, her palm met her face. The entire paper was covered in little marks and notes that were almost indecipherable. She squinted, trying to make out the various words and phrases and figure out what were the most likely places for Umbra to go. Eventually, a large ironworks a few dozen miles from the community caught her eye, and it was circled several times on the map. Large, bold letters read 'Umbra's Awesome Fortress' next to it. If that isn't the best candidate, then I'm a Finneon, Kala thought.

With that, Kala folded the map into her item bag and left the house, making sure to leave everything else as it was. The ironworks wasn't too far, but it wasn't close either. She'd need to pack as many supplies as she could before going, but even more important than that, she needed a means of transportation.

And she knew just who to get it from.

---

Tropius, the town's main supply gatherer and best flier, yawned loudly and curled up in the shade, getting ready for his midafternoon nap. He'd had a long, hard shift, but this made it all worth it—that, and the extra rations he would receive for carrying that Typhlosion for five miles on his back. He relaxed completely, listening to the wind and the leaves rustling, the sounds carrying him softly to sleep…

"Tropius…"

Oh, he was dreaming already. What a lovely voice, calling his name softly in the darkness…

"Tropius…"

The voice was even closer now, and he smiled, allowing it to sooth him into an even deeper sleep…

"Oh, to hell with this. WAKE UP ALREADY!"

Startled, Tropius jumped up, seeing that Ampharos—he was sure he'd heard her name was Kala-standing in front of him, a weird map in her left hand. He briefly stretched before glaring at her.

"Hey, I was catching some Z's here!" he said. "What do you want?"

Kala sighed. "I need a ride, Tropius. It's urgent. I'll pay you well, of course."

Tropius blinked as she opened the map, pointing to a large ironworks circled in black ink. He frowned; that would be a long flight, especially with a passenger, and he really just wanted to take a nap.

"Uh, I'm sorry, miss, it's not that I'm unwilling, it's just…well, it's been such a long shift, and I'm tired."

"I can get you a Sitrus Berry in your next set of rations if you help me."

Tropius's eyes widened. She knew how to speak his language. Still, he knew how to play his cards right. He faked another yawn and looked away.

"Please. One Sitrus Berry? I'm not going to fly twenty miles out for that."

"Two Sitrus Berries."

"Ha! Twice nothing is still nothing."

"Four."

"Is that your offer, or a joke?"

"That's my offer."

"That's a joke."

"I'll show you how to get all the Sitrus berries you'll ever need," Kala offered suddenly.

Tropius stared at her, not even concealing his surprise. He looked back and forth, making sure no one else was around before leaning in closer to her.

"Five Sitrus Berries?" he asked hopefully.

"Absolutely," Kala replied with a smile.

Grinning widely, Tropius turned around and spread his wings.

"Then hop on my back and let's go!" he bellowed. "Five Sitrus Berries…I'll be rich!"

Kala quickly climbed onto Tropius's back, and he took off at blinding speeds. Kala's gut clenched as soon as they got twenty feet off the ground. It was unpleasant to be flying that fast, but if it meant finding Umbra and bringing him to his senses, she'd deal with it. However, realizing that it would be a long flight and that she would have nothing to do in the meantime, Kala forced herself to relax, draping her arms over Tropius's sides and resting her head on his back.

All of a sudden, her body provided the answer to her anxiety. She found her eyelids drooping as Tropius carried her through the skies, and she soon realized that this exhausting afternoon of running around and worrying about Umbra, combined with how early she'd had to wake up in the first place, had left her dead tired. Despite her stress, her will to keep alert began to fade, and she soon drifted off, trusting that Tropius would wake her when they arrived.

---

"Kala…"

She stirred a little as she heard her name in the milky darkness, but she kept her eyes closed, not wanting to get up yet.

"Kala…"

Just a little while longer to rest…

"Oh, for crying out loud…GET UP!"

Kala jumped, falling off of Tropius's back. She looked up at the leafy dinosaur with bleary eyes, then tried to examine their surroundings. They were in a massive plain covered in flowers of all kinds, a beautiful lake only a few yards away.

"Whoa," Kala muttered, rubbing her eyes. "Are we here already?"

Tropius sighed. "Yeah, when your head clears, take a look to your left."

Kala slowly rose to an upright sitting position, her head aching a little. She glanced to her left, gasping when she saw an enormous black-and-grey building with broken windows and chipping paint. Umbra's ironworks was even larger and more intimidating than she'd imagined, though it looked like it had been abandoned for decades, which probably made it look scarier than it actually was.

Another thing Kala noticed was that they were several dozen meters away from the building. Kala looked back at Tropius in confusion.

"Why'd you land us so far away?" she asked.

"I would've taken us right to the entrance, but then…well, take a whiff of the air and then you'll know why I didn't go closer."

Kala leaned forward and smelled the air, and then immediately covered her nose, understanding why Tropius had steered clear.

"Sweet Suicune," she gasped. "What happened in there?"

"I know, right?" Tropius muttered. "Smells like a Groudon took a dump in there. And then died. Still want to go through with this?"

Kala sighed and tried to clear her mind. The smell was awful, but it was just another thing she'd have to get used to.

"Yes," she replied.

Kala took a long moment to stretch her stiff limbs, feeling a slight dizziness from suddenly being on the ground after flight. However, they hadn't been in the air that long, so it wasn't too bad. She then tried to shut the smell out of her mind, turning to Tropius.

"Can you wait here for me?" she asked. "There's someone inside I need to see, and then I'll need a ride back, of course. I shouldn't be more than an hour at most."

"An hour?" Tropius moaned. "What am I supposed to do in the meantime?"

Kala glanced around the fields. "I dunno, hunt, graze, take a bath in the lake, anything to keep yourself occupied. Anyway, thanks for the ride."

"Yeah, yeah, just make sure you pay me when we get back."

Kala nodded and began to head for the ironworks. However, she stopped, remembering something important.

"Oh, yeah, and Tropius?" she called, turning back to him. "If you don't hear from me in an hour…just wait longer."

Tropius waved his wing in acknowledgement before curling up under a tree to take a nap. Kala turned toward the ironworks, took a deep breath, and then pressed onwards. The smell only grew worse as she approached the factory, providing a stark contrast to the serene beauty of the plains surrounding it. All of Kala's years of training in the East Side had taught her how to deal with discomfort in all its forms, though, and she forced her mind to tune it out. It worked, to some extent—enough to avoid being driven crazy.

Kala wondered if Umbra really would've gone to a place like that to hide. She still didn't even really know if he had a sense of smell or not. Then she realized that Umbra had probably gone there precisely because it was unpleasant, and would keep others away. The thought saddened her, but also increased her resolve to bring him to his senses.

As Kala approached the factory, she noticed a faint rustling in the nearby trees surrounding the building. It was probably a bird Pokémon, she decided, though she still proceeded with extra caution and stayed in the shadows as she advanced further. She was only a few yards away from the entrance now…

Suddenly, a roar exploded from the trees, blasting Kala's eardrums and making her nearly jump out of her skin. She leapt behind a tree, crouching in the darkness, trying to cover her ears, though it did little to block out the horrible noise. As it seeped into her brain, she eventually recognized it as the roar of a Tyranitar.

All of a sudden, a dark, paralyzing panic gripped Kala, and she found it difficult to draw breath, let alone move. Images of Tyranitar destroying her army in the East Side entered her mind again, tearing her resolve to shreds. She dimly realized that if she didn't find a way to calm down, she could go into a panic attack, and it could very easily kill her.

Fortunately, the roaring stopped soon, and Kala sat there in the shadows, quivering violently and trying to find a peaceful place in her mind. She tried to imagine the soothing days in their community, the fun times she'd had with her friends, all the relaxing hours she'd spent under her favorite tree…

Wait a moment. The trees. Kala's mind went on the alert, pushing away the fear stealing over it. She swiftly peeked out from behind her cover, just like she'd been trained to do. An odd, brightly colored creature stood out among the pure green of the tree leaves, and she soon recognized it to be a Chatot.

Kala breathed a huge sigh of relief. She then began to laugh at herself. She'd been scared to death by an idiotic bird! With renewed vigor and even a little anger, Kala sprang out of the shadows marched up to the Chatot without fear.

The bird mimicked the Tyranitar's roar again, and while it did make Kala jump, it didn't paralyze her with fear. As soon as Chatot was done, she held up her arm and prepared to use Thunder Wave.

"You shut up right now, bird, or you'll be fried chicken before you know what hit you," she spat.

The Chatot stared at her for a moment, cocking its head to the side. It then opened its beak again.

"You can try begging, and depending on the mood I'm in, you might live," it growled.

Kala froze in fear again. She knew that voice; it belonged to a monster she never thought she'd hear from again. An even worse terror than before began to worm its way into her mind as the memory became clear.

The voice was that of Luxray, former leader, founder, and tyrant of the East Side, not to mention her boss.

Instinctively, Kala launched Thunder, a far more deadly attack than she'd intended. The move blasted Chatot from the trees, sending it screeching as it plummeted to the ground in a smoldering heap. However, its body soon melted away like liquid, and in its place, she recognized a Substitute.

As Kala stood there, trying to clear her mind and calm her rapid breathing, she realized that the Chatot Substitute had probably been placed there as a trap to ward off intruders. Had Umbra done this? How could he have pulled it off, and where had the bird learned to mimic Luxray's voice?

Either way, Kala forced it out of her mind. She realized that she would have to be extra careful from now on; Umbra couldn't be as bad as he thought he was, but he still had the cleverness of Nightglade the Soulless, and she realized he'd probably have plenty more traps like that laid out for intruders. With that, she cautiously approached the front entrance, sticking to the shadows and keeping her eyes peeled and moving.

Finally, Kala reached the door, and she was about to open it, but she quickly stopped, realizing how stupid that would be. The front door was the most obvious place to set a trap. She couldn't risk entering in such a blunt way. Instead, she scanned the building for some other means of entry. There were several broken windows, all of which were too high to reach, though they seemed the most promising method yet.

Suddenly, Kala noticed several old-looking wires hanging out of one of the lower windows, probably from some kind of decrepit machine inside. They were just low enough that she could reach, and if any of them were live, they couldn't shock or hurt her because of her Electric type. Coming to a decision and hoping they would support her weight, Kala got a running start, leapt up, and grabbed onto the wires.

Fortunately, the cords appeared to be strong, and they held her weight with no trouble. She felt that they were indeed live and deadly, though it was no more than a tickle to her. It was hard to scale such a smooth surface, but once again, her training came through, and she managed to steadily pull herself up and grab onto the ledge. She then carefully climbed through the window and into a room that was almost pitch-black.

Forcing herself to ignore the almost overpowering stench of the building's insides, she looked around, trying to squint and see in the blackness. Even when her eyes adjusted, everything was still too dark to see more than a few feet ahead of her, and she knew that would make her easy prey for more traps inside. But if she activated Flash, she risked alerting Umbra to her presence, and she knew he would probably flee the building, and she'd never find him again.

Instead, Kala proceeded as slowly and carefully as she could, using the occasional Thunder Wave to briefly light her way when turning a corner or climbing stairs. When she spotted the entrance to the building, she knew she'd been right to come in through the window; a tripwire was tied to the doorknob, and she saw that it would've activated a Max Repel spray, something that could drive off even the strongest Pokémon with its agonizing stench—not that the factory's smell was much better.

As Kala moved through the halls and corridors of the ironworks, she found herself occasionally stepping on some old or discarded item lying about. She began to notice that the entire building was loaded to the brim with items, potions, TMs, and other commodities that Umbra was probably hoarding in case of emergency. She sometimes even cut herself on sharper items, and after a few more minutes of wading through the piles of garbage, she had to stop to patch herself up with a Super Potion from her bag.

Oh, how Kala wanted to use Flash and just call out Umbra's name, hoping that he would come and talk to her, but she knew that if he'd run away and hidden once, he would do it again. Sighing, she continued her seemingly pointless trek through the abandoned ironworks.

"WHO DARES ENTER MY LAIR?!" a booming voice suddenly echoed through the building.

Kala froze in her tracks, realizing that she must've made too much noise stepping on the scattered items. She looked around frantically for the source of the voice, but she saw nothing.

"LEAVE NOW, INTERLOPER!" the voice roared. "OTHERWISE, ASK YOURSELF IF THIS IS REALLY WHERE YOU WANT TO DIE!"

It certainly isn't, Kala thought, though she said nothing. Now not only her nose but also her ears hurt, and she was worried that the speaker might start launching attacks at her from the darkness at any moment. She tried to search for cover, but she saw nothing to hide behind that would withstand even moderately powerful moves. Instead, she remained perfectly still and listened carefully, hoping that whoever it was had only heard her and couldn't see her.

"YOU HAVE THIRTY SECONDS TO LEAVE BEFORE I BEAT YOU WITHIN AN INCH OF YOUR LIFE AND STRING YOU UP BY YOUR INTESTINES!"

Despite her situation, Kala couldn't help but smile. Thirty seconds was a very liberal time limit; a bluff, meaning that he probably couldn't back that threat up if she didn't leave. However, she didn't want to listen to any more of that awful voice, so she quickly but quietly moved about the room, looking for some clue as to where that voice was coming from.

"GO AHEAD AND TAKE THE TIME TO CONSIDER MY OFFER, INTRUDER; YOU'VE GOT THE REST OF YOUR LIFE, AFTER ALL. TWENTY NINE…TWENTY EIGHT…TWENTY SEVEN…"

Despite the awful echo and distortion, the speaker began to sound oddly familiar to Kala. Once she picked up on the inflections, she finally realized that it was actually Umbra's voice bellowing at her! A huge rush of both relief and confusion swept over her. She was elated that Umbra really was definitely there after all, but how on earth was he magnifying his voice like that?

After another few moments of stumbling around, Kala bumped right into the answer—literally. She found a large electronic speaker hanging on one of the walls, probably used by the humans to communicate with each other while the ironworks was still operational. She then noticed a cord attached to the top of the speaker, and she decided to follow it back to its source, hoping that it would lead her to wherever Umbra was speaking from.

Kala sifted her way through the hallways, keeping her eye on the cord so as not to lose her way. She began seeing more and more speakers lining the walls and ceiling, all of them connected by the same cords, and she heard Umbra continuing to count down in a last-ditch effort to terrify whoever he thought was wandering through his 'fortress.'

Finally, Kala reached a large metal door, and all the rigged cords went through it.

"SIX…FIVE…FOUR…"

Kala braced herself, stepping up to the door and reaching for the knob. She slowly opened it and peered inside…

…and saw none other than Umbra himself at the back of the room.

He was facing away from her, shouting into a large microphone on a table.

"Three, two, one!" he bellowed, taking a breath before going on another rant.

Kala quickly but quietly closed the door behind her so the noise from the speakers wouldn't enter the room. She then stood there for a moment, collecting herself and trying to think of what to say. Eventually, she gathered her courage, took a deep breath, waited for a pause, and then made her move.

"Umbra?" she called.

Silence finally overtook the ironworks as Umbra stopped speaking. It was a long time before Umbra turned and faced her, and when he did, he had a look of utter shock and bewilderment on his face.

"Um, yeah, it's me," Kala muttered. "You, uh…might not want to string me up by my intestines."

Umbra continued to stare at her in silence, as if trying to wrap his head around her presence here. Finally, he spoke.

"What the hell are you doing here?" he asked, seeming more surprised than upset.

For some reason, that simple question infuriated Kala more than anything she'd been through that day.

"What do you think I'm doing here?" she shouted. "How could you just leave us like that after all this time? I was worried sick about you! I'm gonna have to pay Tropius five Sitrus Berries just for the ride over here and back, assuming he hasn't already left by now! If Ember and Absol found out you left, they'd be scared to death! What were you thinking?! Or were you even thinking at all?"

Umbra glanced at the map dangling from her item bag. "You stole from Ember and Absol?"

"Maybe you shouldn't have marked your favorite hiding spot on a map," Kala retorted, not letting him change the subject. "You know, I just don't get you, Umbra. But then again, what else is new? Just tell me why you would up and leave everyone you know like that. Was it because I found out you were Nightglade? I already promised I wouldn't tell anyone who you are! Do you think I'm a liar, or just completely untrustworthy?"

Umbra shook his head. "It doesn't matter whether you would have intentionally told anyone or not. You knew it, Torkoal knew it, and soon others would find out. I only had you promise not to tell anyone so that I'd have time to leave before that happened. My cover is blown, Kala. And as for the marking on the map, I'm just here for supplies, and then I'll disappear. You guys are better off without me anyway."

"How can you say that? You're one of us, Umbra! Why would you ever think we wouldn't want you around just because you used to work for the West Side?"

"It's a lot more complicated than that, Kala. If you knew what I was really like, you wouldn't want me around either."

"Really? Ember and Absol were both West Side agents at one point, and I was a commandant in the East Side. Hell, when everyone else in the chain of command was killed in the final battles, I was technically the leader of the East Side until it was destroyed by the humans. We all have blood on our hands, Umbra. You're not a monster just because you were taken in by Houndoom."

"No, I'm a monster because of who I am," Umbra replied. "Not all of us left the gang wars with our souls intact, Kala. You, Ember, and Absol may still have yours, but my old title is quite fitting."

Kala let out a long sigh. "Look, Umbra, I believe you when you say you've had a horrible past. But whatever you've been through, we can help you. You can still live a normal life, one that isn't an act. It's not too late to put it all behind you and start over."

"It's much too late for me, Kala," Umbra said. "Look, just leave me be. You came all this way looking for a fake personality you thought you were familiar with; you don't even know me."

"Why can't that change?" Kala asked quietly. "Why won't you let anyone else in? I want to know you, Umbra. Please, tell me what it is about your past that you can't accept."

Umbra scoffed and looked away. "Why do you care so much about my past? In fact, why do you care about me at all?"

"Because, despite what you believe, I consider you a close friend, even if I don't know everything about you. I just want to help you, Umbra. That's why I came all the way out here."

"You can't help me," Umbra spat. "No one can."

"How do you know that if you've never told anyone your past? Please, just let me try to help. That's all I want. Tell me what you went through, one war survivor to another."

"You said you considered me a friend," Umbra replied. "If I told you my past, you wouldn't feel that way anymore. You want to know why I don't take anything seriously, why I treat everything like a joke? Because my life is a joke, Kala! It would've been better if I'd never even been born. I've probably caused more pain, misery, and destruction than any one Pokémon ever has. If you still want to hear my past, fine, but by the time I'm done, you'll either want to attack me or run for your life, and you certainly won't want me back in the community."

"I'm willing to take that chance," Kala said softly but firmly.

The two silently held each other's gaze once more, Umbra's eyes cold and unwelcoming, Kala's determined yet empathetic. Both former soldiers communicated to each other with far more than just words, and Kala's desire to reach past Umbra's walls prevailed. The Dark Pokémon eventually lowered his gaze, shaking his head sadly.

"Alright, Kala," he said. "But there's nothing you can say or do to help me. Really, this is just going to waste your time and cause both of us unnecessary pain."

"I'd never consider it a waste of time to listen to a friend," Kala replied. "And as for pain, I've already got enough to last a lifetime."

"Heh, okay. You want the long version or the short?"

"Well…I guess you could start with the short and go from there."

"You did tear up the note I left, right?"

"How did you know I did that?"

Umbra sat down and took a deep breath.

"I'm pretty sure that's a yes, so we shouldn't be disturbed for a while. Anyway, since you came all this way, I won't disappoint my first guest," he began. "For me, everything started out inside a PC box with about a dozen other Eevee surrounding me. You see, I was born for the same reason that any competitive Pokémon is ever bred; to be forced to level grind, evolve, and spend the rest of my life battling. My trainer wanted me to evolve into an Espeon for their invaluable ability Magic Guard, and he wanted me on his tournament team as a defensive support. I don't know why he even bothered to give his Pokémon nicknames, since they came and went so fast, but my trainer named me Nightglade.

"The thing is, I wasn't alone. I mean, yes, I had my other teammates, but my trainer had also wanted a Vaporeon for a different team, since it has such excellent defensive stats in battle and great healing moves. He bred another Eevee with the right nature and Individual Values shortly after he began training me, and he eventually put her on the same team as me while he wandered around the region, finding us opponents to fight.

"I soon realized that, since she was bred from the same parents as me, this Eevee was my sister. Our trainer had named her Lily, and like every one of us, she'd been taken from her parents at birth to be used in battle, and she was beyond terrified. As I was technically her big brother, I took it upon myself to try to comfort her and give her support whenever possible.

"After a few months and several hundred battles, we became quite close, to say the least. I grew to love Lily not only as a sister, but as my best friend. Despite what her competitive stats said, she had a very timid nature and was dependent on me as a protector, but it never bothered me. Every night, when we were put in the PC chamber with the others, she would curl up next to me, and I'd whisper made-up secrets in her ear until she fell asleep. I helped her get used to our environment and the hard life of battling, and the love she returned to me helped me get through even my darkest days.

"But you see, while our trainer had read up on all the basics of competitive battling, as far as execution went, he was…well…incompetent. Actually, that's being too nice; he was a complete moron. When it came time for me to actually evolve into an Espeon—which meant leveling up at just the right time in the morning—he forgot about daylight savings time, and I ended up evolving into an Umbreon. In other words, all that work and all those long hours spent battling, learning moves, and growing stronger had been for absolutely nothing.

"As for Lily, our trainer had accidentally bred her with the ability Hydration instead of Water Absorb, and by the time he realized his mistake, she was useless as a competitive Pokémon. When he learned that, he didn't even bother wasting a Water Stone on her. To cut a long story short, he released us into the wild without a second thought. I, for one, was far more grateful for the chance of freedom than I was nervous, but my dear sister was even more afraid than ever. She had no idea what to do, where we were, or why we'd been sent away.

"For that matter, neither did I, but I made sure not to let her sense my uncertainty. I told her that we were on our own now, and that I would protect her as best I could, but that we would need to work together to survive in the wild. To my immense joy and relief, she promised to be strong for me and help in any way she could, and she never broke that promise.

"Together, we figured out how to hunt for food and find shelter from the cold. Sure, I did most of the hunting, since Lily's claws and teeth weren't big enough yet, but she was very helpful when it came to looking for safe spots to rest at night. And just like before, she'd sleep at my side, and I'd whisper secrets in her ear until she was dreaming.

"Ironically, early one morning while we were hunting, Lily evolved into a beautiful Espeon, the Pokémon our former trainer had always wanted. She was so overjoyed, and I couldn't have been more proud of her. From then on, she took even more responsibility and helped with the hunting, and we made a pretty good life for ourselves. The world was large and we were always uncertain, but somehow, we were happy.

"And then he came along.

"One day, a big, black bird Pokémon that looked like some kind of crow-vulture hybrid landed on a tree near us while we were out hunting. He introduced himself as Honchkrow, and he explained that he'd been monitoring us since the day of our release. He said that he and his gang, the West Side, were constantly scouring the region for promising recruits, and that if I joined their army, they could guarantee my survival in the wilderness.

"I asked him why he was referring to me instead of us. He said that Dark and\or Fire Pokémon were the generally favored types in the West Side, and that Lily was also still too weak to serve a useful purpose in their gang. I told him that I wouldn't even consider his offer if it meant leaving my sister behind, and to my surprise, he agreed without much of a fight.

"However, I still wasn't convinced that joining this gang was a wise idea. I was sure that Lily and I could survive on our own, and I told Honchkrow just that. He replied that under normal circumstances, I'd be right, but with the influence of a new group know as the East Side suddenly spreading out of control across the entire region, if we weren't part of one gang, we'd become a target of both.

"Taking into account Honchkrow's none-too-subtle threat, I asked him what he expected us to do. He asked that we merely follow him back to their capitol city and speak with their leader, Houndoom, and then, as he put it, 'everything would become clear.'

"I briefly talked it over with my sister alone, and while she was terrified at the very idea, she said she would trust me with whatever I decided. In that moment, I knew I'd do anything to guarantee her survival, even if it meant following along with this dubious gang. And so, I agreed to follow Honchkrow to their capitol, the abandoned Oreburgh city, and he led the two of us right through their gates and eventually into Houndoom's own chamber.

"To this day, it frightens me just how convincing Houndoom was when he spoke to us. He told us all about how most other members of the West Side had gone through the same tragedies that we had, and that here, everyone worked together for the common good. He told us about the evils of the East Side, and how the West Side's only cause was to drive back those wicked invaders and defend the region from Luxray. He said we'd be well cared for under his wing, and that we'd finally have a family to call our own."

"Houndoom spoke so kindly and sympathetically that he soon reached my poor sister, who was still so naïve about the way these things worked. Then again, I was fairly naïve as well, and while I didn't necessarily believe everything Houndoom said, it was enough to convince me. I said that I would join, but only on the condition that Lily was put in the safest position possible in their ranks. Houndoom said that since she knew many healing moves, she could be one of the medics in their capitol city, and I agreed wholeheartedly.

"And so, Lily and I joined up with the West Side. I was placed in training with the other military recruits, and my sister became a healer for their wounded soldiers. However, I soon realized that I'd made a mistake in insisting that we take separate stations in the army. Because of our ranks, my sister and I almost never saw each other unless I was injured or on the rare occasions when I was off duty. I think Houndoom had realized that we were more dependent on each other than we would be on him, and so he went out of his way to keep us apart whenever possible.

"My sister was relatively well cared for, but I'd forgotten that she needed more than just food and water; she also needed her big brother. Whenever I actually did see her, I'd usually find her alone in her quarters, crying softly. Of course, as soon as she saw me, she was filled with joy and happiness, her tears quickly wiped away. However, I could see how the days were wearing down on her, and it hurt me when I saw the pain behind her eyes, especially when I had to leave.

"But that was only the first of my worries. As a soldier in Houndoom's army, I quickly learned that our entire lives revolved around just one thing; killing. That sounds obvious, but these guys took it to a whole new level. As part of our training, we were required every day to fight with other recruits, and the one who fought hardest received the most food.

"The fights were brutal. There was very little safety, and Pokémon that were only knocked out were lucky. Many times, recruits were badly injured or even killed in the fights, but our instructors were pleased by these results; it meant that only the best of the best would move on in their army, not to mention there would be fewer mouths to feed.

"Every time I made friends with some other recruit, they would almost always be killed, sometimes by my own hand. However, even though I'd been badly trained by my former master, I was still tough enough to hold my own, especially since I still had perfect IVs, and I survived every fight of our training days, but not without a few scars. I don't mean physically—there were plenty of those, though—I mean that there was blood on my hands. I'd killed at least several recruits just to guarantee my own survival, and it tore at my conscience day and night. I tried to tell myself that I had no choice, that it was the only thing to do, but nothing made me feel better.

"Another thing I realized pretty quickly was that you couldn't even trust the food in the West Side. You see, as a somewhat-competitively trained Pokémon, I was used to the taste of all the items my trainer used to feed me, and I soon realized that they were mixing ground-up Rare Candies into our rations. I may have been stronger than most Pokémon there, but since my EV training and leveling were incomplete, I was susceptible to their effects, same as everyone else.

"It was a brilliant tactic. Rare Candies force the body to grow without actually developing real muscles, granting cheap, quick strength as opposed to hard stats, and so we were forced to fight as hard as we could to keep up with our own bodies. They'd level us up, and we had to battle each other constantly to provide the stats and strengths our systems lacked.

"Each day passed almost identically to the last, and I ended up killing dozens of my so-called comrades in arms, rising through the ranks and gaining a reputation of my own. And each day, I think just a little bit more of my conscience was erased, or at least buried down deeper within me, since I began to feel its effects less and less as I killed more and more."

Umbra took a brief pause here, as if collecting his thoughts. He looked at Kala, who had been listening intently to every word of the story, and he sighed forlornly.

"Just between you and me, Kala," he began. "Since we've both served our time in the gangs, tell me; if life is so precious and invaluable, why is it so goddamn fragile? Why was it made so easy to destroy?"

Kala pondered the question for a long moment, realizing how true the words were. It took very little to end a life, and so much more to keep it going.

"Maybe it's to remind us to treat it with care," she replied at length.

Umbra nodded slowly, seeming to accept that answer, though the anger and sorrow behind his eyes only deepened.

"Well, fat chance of treating anything with care in the West Side," he spat, continuing. "Anyway, I remember when we were sent into our first battle with them. After all our time training, we were constantly reminded that we were 'the best of the best,' or at least that the West Side had to offer. We were ready to plunge valiantly into battle against our vile, ruthless adversaries and help defend our righteous cause from their domination.

"The thing I learned very quickly was that, while Luxray himself and his highest commanders may have been as evil as Houndoom said, the hundreds of Pokémon they sent into battle weren't. Sure, many of them were competent and vicious in battle, but most of them were just like us; taken in by the same lies, just trying to survive or support their companions, scared to death and having no idea what to do.

"And here we were, slaughtering each other like it was a game.

"I know I've said it before, but killing changes you. Once you cross that line, there's no going back, and we kept crossing it over and over again. Yes, some people kill to protect themselves or their loved ones, but this was nothing like that. They say war is hell, but I'm sure even demons would fear what we did to each other out there. I kept trying to tell myself that it was for some greater good, but the endless screams and overpowering stench of blood was a strong counterargument.

"We did this day in and day out, and I survived each and every battle, more blood covering me every time. What became unbearable was when we were sent out to attack more than just the East Side. Houndoom started ordering us to kill their supporters, the small communities that grew around them, and anyone who had ever even been in contact with the East Side, voluntarily or not.

"We massacred dozens of small communities similar to the one you live in now. This wasn't even war; this was mass murder. But we just kept killing, and killing, and killing, and it never, ever stopped. I heard so many screams that I thought I would go deaf; no, I hoped I would, so I wouldn't have to hear it anymore. But I had no such luck.

"When I was in the wild with Lily, all I'd heard at night was her soft breathing and the gentle noises of nature.

"Now, all I ever heard at night were those screams.

"I soon learned that it had been almost as tough for my sister. The horrific bodies they'd sent in to her and the other medics were sights that no one her age should ever have to see. The awful injuries and infected wounds became more and more grotesque, and her superiors demanded that she heal every one of them that was thrown in front of her. And when she couldn't, they threatened to do the same to her.

"The worst part was that there was nothing I could do about it. I only heard these stories on the rare occasions when I was allowed to visit her, and by then, I had no idea whose head to send rolling. All I could do was hold her and try to tell her it would all be okay, even though I knew that was very unlikely.

"Days became months, and months became years. I got so used to killing that it didn't even feel wrong anymore, and life just became a routine of fighting, sitting and waiting for orders, and then fighting some more. Really, it was almost no different than my old life with my trainer. It wasn't even survival for me anymore; it was just following orders. As endless time went by, I slowly forgot about everything else. As much as it pains me to say it, I even began to forget about my dear sister.

"But she never forgot about me. When I stopped remembering to visit her, she actually snuck away from her quarters and night and came to see me. She eventually told me that she'd been going outside the gates of the city almost every day for the past few months whenever the guards changed shifts, and that she'd found a surviving community of wild Pokémon that were living freely and peacefully away from the gangs.

"Lily begged me to sneak away with her and come see them, saying that it would be the perfect place for us to live. I eventually relented and followed her, and she introduced me to all the friends she'd made there. She was right; it was a good community filled with nice, helpful and friendly people, and it would've been the perfect place for us to hide and life in peace.

"Except that I wasn't the same Umbreon I'd used to be. Not by a long shot. Whenever I spoke with someone, the conversation was more awkward than you could imagine, and I never knew what to say. My entire life from the moment I'd been born had been just endless fighting, save for the brief interlude when I was in the wild. When I talked to Lily's new friends, I had to force thoughts out of my mind about all the mistakes in their movements and posture that would allow me to kill them.

"I eventually told her that I needed to go back to the West Side, and the sadness in her eyes still haunts me to this day. She demanded to know why I wouldn't stay with her, and I couldn't explain what had changed within me that prevented it. We had our first fight then and there. I said things that I could never take back, things that probably broke her fragile heart.

"She told me what I already knew; that I'd changed, that I was acting like one of Houndoom's butchers, and that it was like I wasn't even her big brother anymore. Unlike me, though, she didn't say them in a cruel way or with intent to harm; her words only stung because I knew they were all true. Instead of apologizing or making amends, I merely told her that she was right, and then I turned around and left for the West Side, my home and my prison.

"I could've sworn I heard her crying in the distance as I went away.

"When Houndoom eventually found out that my sister had left his army, he was furious. He said that desertion would never be tolerated in his regime, and that she was to be hunted down and executed immediately. I expected him to send scouts and spies to scour the region for her. But Houndoom didn't send for any of his usual hunters.

"That cunning old bastard sent for me.

"He said that he knew she and I had been secretly meeting each other, and that he was certain I must know where she was. I tried to tell him I had no idea where she'd gone, but all my years of following orders unquestioningly made it difficult to lie convincingly to my commander-in-chief, and he saw through me like glass.

"He then told me that if I didn't find her before sundown, he would not only kill me, but when his own scouts found her, he would kill Lily in the most gruesome, agonizing way he could think of. With Houndoom's vast network of spies and observers, I knew he would eventually find her, and so I reluctantly agreed to get her, though I wasn't certain what I intended to do when I met up with her.

"I headed for the community she'd showed me, having vague thoughts of convincing her to come back with me, or to at least fake her death in some way. When I arrived, my sister saw me and immediately ran outside the gates to meet me, crying and hugging me tightly, saying she knew I'd come back. I only wish I'd come back for the reasons she thought I had.

"When I tried to explain why I'd come…something wrong happened. An image flashed into my mind of a dead East Side agent. I pushed it out of my head, trying to speak coherently to my sister. A second later, another image flashed through my brain, one of my previous attacks on a community just like this one. I tried to force it away, but I soon lost control of my thoughts, seeing only images of people I'd killed and all the ways I'd killed them.

"I began hearing the screams of my victims echoing through my mind, their blood splashed across my vision like a real thing. And through all the noises and visions and pain, I heard Houndoom's cruel voice ringing in my ears, his orders the only thing clear and coherent. I heard it again and again and again, and my body started moving against my will, but I couldn't even see what I was doing. I heard another voice screaming along with the others, and I just wanted everything to end, for the living nightmare to stop.

"Suddenly, everything grew silent. My vision cleared at last, and I was breathing hard and covered in sweat. I felt something cold and sticky on my paws. When I looked down at them, they were covered in blood. And when I saw my sister…"

Umbra's voice quivered, and he looked away for a moment, his eyes brimming with tears.

"…I could barely even recognize her corpse," he finished. "I…I'd beaten her to death without even realizing it. When I finally came to my senses and realized what I'd done, I let out a scream of my own, feeling a pain worse than anything I'd ever experienced in Houndoom's gang. I couldn't bear to look at her, and yet I couldn't tear my eyes away. When I tried to move, I felt something cold on my side and back. I looked at it, and I felt so sick I thought I would never stop throwing up.

"Her blood was all over my body, covering me completely. I tried desperately to clean it off, but I only ended up smearing it more. And then the full realization hit me: I was cleaning my own sister off of me!"

It was here that Umbra's voice completely broke, his eyes shut tightly as he struggled to choke back sobs. Kala had unconsciously been covering her mouth in horror and sadness while she listened to him, tears forming on the rim of her own eyes. She now fully understood why Umbra had fought so hard to keep his past a secret, and why he'd had so little mercy on himself.

A few moments later, Umbra looked back at Kala, his wet, red eyes narrowed at her.

"So, how do you like our new relationship?" he asked, briefly wiping his nose. "The whole opening up thing? Was it worth it?"

"I…I'm so sorry, Umbra," Kala said finally. "I had no idea…how did you ever cope with that?"

"I didn't," Umbra spat, his tone nearly breaking again as he held back another sob. "Her blood was just added to all the rest covering me, her voice joining the chorus of screams I heard at night. I'll never forget the looks on the faces of the other Pokémon when they saw me from inside the gates. They looked at me like what I am: a murdering monster who'd killed his own sister.

"As if all this wasn't enough, when I returned to the West Side, I soon received word that I'd been followed by Honchkrow to make sure I didn't disobey orders or defect. And since I was followed, they knew where the community was, and they soon destroyed it like all the others. Hundreds dead in less than an hour, and it was all my fault.

"There's nothing else left to tell, really. Without Lily, there wasn't anything in my life except for my next mission. And when killing is your life, you get very good at it. I became so skilled at planning and executing attacks, obliterating my enemies and efficiently demolishing cities and strongholds, that I soon rose through the ranks and became one of the highest commanders in the West Side, earning the title, 'Nightglade the Soulless.'

"It was given to me by Houndoom himself, obviously to terrify my enemies, as though my reputation didn't do that enough. I accepted it, because that was exactly who I was now. I was, am, and always will be Nightglade the Soulless."

As Umbra finished his tale, Kala looked at him, thinking that he appeared to be anything but the tyrannical Nightglade from the stories she'd heard. He was an almost pitiful figure, tears streaming down his cheeks and his nose running, sitting in the back of the darkened room surrounded by garbage. She couldn't think of a single thing to say that wouldn't sound like a contrived attempt to comfort him. However, one question still tugged at the back of her mind.

"But you left the West Side," she said quietly. "What happened then?"

Umbra scoffed. "What does it matter?"

"It has to matter, since it changed your life so drastically."

"Well, I never would've left on my own…I was too much of a living weapon for that. Let's just say I had a little help.

"About a year later, while I was giving orders to my own personal battalion at my new base, I received word from Arcanine that the West Side had gained two new promising recruits, and that they were to be placed in my regiment. When I met them, they seemed capable enough, though the killer instinct wasn't in their eyes yet. Clearly, they hadn't been through the worst the gang wars had to offer.

"But the one thing that struck me the most about these two were that they were actually mates, and I soon learned that they'd only joined up with the West Side to support each other during a famine. They loved and cared for each other just like my sister and I used to, and somewhere deep down inside me, I began to feel for them."

"Who were they?" Kala asked.

Umbra actually smiled a little. "It was Absol and his old mate, Elsa."

Kala's eyes widened. She knew Absol had used to work for the West Side, but she'd never known that he and Umbra had worked together in the same regiment.

"What happened?" she asked.

"Well, despite what my life had become, I decided that I never wanted to see anyone else go through the same nightmare that I had. Absol and Elsa's story had been almost the same as mine from minute one, and I wanted to make sure it had a happy ending. So, I tried to help them whenever I could, giving them easy assignments and making sure they were treated well.

"As you can imagine, I'd only really interacted with other soldiers and captains in my regiment for the past few years, and I'd learned how to manipulate them and keep order in the ranks. My best tactic was to act like a comedian and tell whatever witty jokes I'd either made up or heard from others, because if you only play the fool, then that's all they'll expect from you, and you'll have the upper hand.

"So, when Absol and Elsa wanted to thank me for my help and get to know me better, I found that I was almost incapable of making normal conversation, and I ended up acting like I did in front of all my other soldiers, playing comedian and telling bad jokes to make them feel at ease around me. Absol and Elsa laughed at them, but I think it was just because they were so relieved to hear even bad jokes after what they'd been through.

"Soon, Absol and Elsa came to consider me a close friend, and after talking with them enough, I eventually relearned the intricacies of making real conversation. But by then, they thought I was a comedian, so that was the persona I stuck to. To my surprise, I actually began to share their joys and sorrows, and it gave my wretched life some meaning. In a way, they helped me to forget the nightmares. At the very least, it gave me something to do besides killing."

"One day, Absol and Elsa decided that they needed to escape the West Side, since Elsa had become pregnant and their child wouldn't be safe here. By then, I had grown so close to them that it gave me the courage to do what I should have done a long time ago: leave the West Side as well. I told them that I would gladly come with them, and I meant it."

Umbra paused briefly again, his expression darkening.

"But just like the heartless old demon that he was, Houndoom tore Absol and Elsa apart too. I had to sit and watch the same tragedy play out once again, only this time it was the fault of the gangs.

"The rest is history. Absol and I both left the West Side, sick beyond all measure of the gangs, the wars, the famines, and the pain. We went our separate ways afterwards, and I ended up in this trash heap until Absol showed up again one day a few years later, along with Ember, who eventually led me to our community. It's funny, Absol always thought that I'd saved his life, but really, he saved mine as well."

With a long sigh, Umbra ended his tale. His expression was a mixture of regret, longing, and deep anguish. When his eyes met Kala's again and he finally spoke, his throat sounded hoarse and his tone filled with resignation.

"I'm a freak, Kala," he said finally. "I'm completely messed up. I killed the only person who mattered to me, and thousands of Pokémon who mattered to others, and I'm just a three-foot-tall fox Pokémon who weighs less than sixty pounds. After I left the gangs, I vowed never to kill anyone again, and I changed all my attacks to non-lethal defensive moves, but I can't ever escape who I am and what I did. You came all this way just to bring back a monster who has no place in your community."

"That's not true," Kala said at length.

"How can you possibly say that after everything I've told you?"

"Because you actually feel remorse for the wrongs you've done. Pokémon like Houndoom and Luxray are invulnerable to true regret, but I know you have a heart, Umbra. You proved that when you risked everything to help your friends, and when you vowed never to take another life."

Umbra scoffed. "You think that comes even close to making up for what I've done?"

"I know it doesn't," Kala replied. "Just as I know that I can't ever make up for what I've done in the past. But that doesn't mean that's all we are. We have more blood on our hands than can ever be washed away, but we can still change."

"Even now, I can already see every possible way I could kill you if I were in my prime," Umbra said. "Your stance and position leave you wide open to almost all of my old moves. Every day, I have to struggle not to see that whenever I look at people, which is why I have to stay as far away as possible from the community. If you really think I can change, you must have had it easy in the gang wars."

Kala nodded slowly. "Maybe I did. My time in the gangs wasn't anything like yours, but only because of one key difference: I actually believed everything Luxray told me from minute one. I considered him a great leader and his cause a righteous thing, and my only goal in life was to follow it. I was the perfect soldier, one who never disobeyed orders and fought out of pure loyalty.

"So, when the killing started, I never felt any guilt or remorse. Luxray taught us that other Pokémon were inferior and that the West Side was filled with the wicked and dissolute, and that they deserved their fate. We slaughtered our enemies without mercy, thinking it was a glorious victory every time. We were 'purifying the region,' as Luxray put it. And I actually enjoyed it.

"When I was promoted to Hunting Leader, I led assaults on enemy cities, helped capture slaves for labor in Cloyster's operations, and even assisted in killing Rypherior himself when Luxray attacked Mt. Coronet. I became every bit the monster you consider yourself. The only difference is that I never even knew it.

"It was only in our final battle, when Luxray and his second-in-command, Gunny, let our entire army be almost completely destroyed just to defeat the West Side more quickly, that I finally began to see his true nature. He didn't view his loyal soldiers as anything more than just pawns to be thrown away for the sake of war. And when our forces were wiped out by a surprise attack from the trainers, he abandoned us to our fate, completely shattering the illusion he'd cast.

"As I said before, once every other commander was gone, I was technically the new leader of the East Side, but only for the five minutes it took for the trainers to destroy us. Sometimes I still regret not staying and dying with them. All the terrified faces of my old friends and comrades made me realize just how horrible war truly was, and what I'd become under Luxray's rule.

"And once I saw through the lies and woke up to reality, the full weight of everything I'd ever done hit me all at once. All the Pokémon I'd killed, all the pain I'd caused, and all the atrocities I'd committed were suddenly revealed to me, without the veil of glory and patriotism covering it up. And this time, there was nothing to tell myself to make the pain go away."

Kala found herself shaking as she spoke the words. She noticed that Umbra was now looking at her, listening to her story. She met his gaze as calmly as she could.

"You know, I have a dream," she said. "It comes to me almost every night. I'm sitting at a huge table in the East Side mess hall, and all the other seats are filled with Pokémon who died because of me. Their black, lifeless eyes always stare right at me, into my soul, reminding me of what I did to them, and how much they suffered."

"What do they say?" Umbra asked.

"They don't say anything; they're all dead. But their eyes are more than enough to let me know how they must have felt when they died at my hand. The table never ends, and each night, I walk a little farther down, and I see more and more of them."

Umbra nodded slowly. "All I ever dream about anymore is my sister. But what causes me the most pain is that in my dream, her eyes are always so…forgiving. It's like she's trying to tell me that she doesn't hate me for what I did. But that's wrong. I shouldn't be forgiven. I can't be. She should hate me for what I did, and for what I've become."

"Your sister would never hate you, Umbra," Kala replied. "You never meant to hurt her. If anything, it's Houndoom's fault. You may think you're beyond hope, but you've changed. You're not evil."

Umbra slowly began to laugh. At least, that's what it sounded like, but Kala soon realized that he was actually weeping, a sight that pained her even more.

"Then…what am I?" he choked out between sobs. "It's always someone else's fault. 'I was just under orders!' All that blood…it never goes away. The pain w-won't stop. The nightmares are t-too much to live with. I just…I don't even know what to do anymore. I have no one…no one…"

Those were his last intelligible words. Umbra broke down completely, sobbing and trying uselessly to speak. Kala couldn't even bring herself to reply; the sorrow was becoming too much for her as well.

After another moment, Kala slowly stepped forward until she was face-to-face with Umbra, and then she knelt down and gently wrapped her arms around him, beginning to cry as well. Despite his obvious shock, she didn't push her away like she'd expected. He only looked up at her in complete confusion and bewilderment.

"I still owe you that hug, remember?" Kala choked out with a faint smile.

When recognition dawned on Umbra, he soon cried harder. Eventually, the last of his walls broke down, and he returned her embrace. Kala and Umbra spent the next few minutes in each other's arms, sobbing unbridled and sharing their pains. Their voices echoed softly through the stone walls of the ironworks as they poured out their sorrow, beginning to feel the first true solace they'd experienced in years.

When their sobs finally began to die down and their bodies stopped shaking, the two former gang commanders met each other's tearful gaze once more.

"Do you still…want me back in the community?" Umbra asked, sniffing slightly.

"Yes, I do," Kala replied earnestly, wiping her eyes. "It's where we both belong, Umbra. Our lives may never be totally normal again, but we can live in peace with the others and do real good. Let's leave the gang wars behind us."

"I…I'm scared, Kala. How can I go back? I'm not a normal Pokémon…I'll never be like the others again."

"You're not alone, Umbra. You have real friends in Ember and Absol. They consider you like family, and they'll always be there for you. And…I will too."

Umbra's bleary eyes widened. "You?"

Kala nodded. "I'm in the same position as you, even if I've been hiding it. We're kindred spirits, you and I; we need each other. Now that we really know one another, we can be there for each other whenever it gets hard. I'll help you in any way I can, and I hope you'll help me too."

"Y-Yes…I think you're right," Umbra said at length. "But, how should I act around others? I've just been playing the fool and manipulating people for so long…I don't really know what to be."

"I think people will like you for who you are more than for who you pretend to be," Kala replied. "You know how to talk seriously to people you're familiar with; all it'll take is a little practice, and you'll get used to it. Also…promise me you'll stop flirting with everything that moves."

Umbra smiled a little. "Yeah, I promise."

"Really, Umbra, that's important; I need your word."

"Okay, I said I promise."

"So, you'll definitely stop with that?"

Umbra sighed exasperatedly. "Yes, yes! I already said, I promise I'll stop! What is it with—"

Kala stopped him. "That's three times you promised," she said with a wink.

Understanding soon dawned on Umbra, and he and Kala shared a much-needed laugh, their sadness melting away.

"So…what do we do now?" Umbra asked finally.

Kala smiled. "Well, first, let's get out of this stink hole and go home. After that…we'll figure it out as we go."

Umbra nodded in agreement, and the two left the ironworks together, the beautiful sunlight shining down on them in greeting as soon as they stepped through the door. However, they soon noticed that Tropius was gone. Apparently, he'd grown tired of waiting for them. When Kala looked up at the sun, she didn't blame him; she'd been gone for almost three hours.

"Well, we're in for a long walk home," Kala said with a sigh.

"Yeah, but at least you won't have to pay him," Umbra said with a smile.

---

Days and weeks passed, and life returned to normal for Kala and Umbra. But what they'd experienced that day in the ironworks was something that would change them forever. They still went through pains and regrets from their time in the gang wars, but they found that they could turn to each other in times of need, and their lives were all the better for it.

Finally, Kala and Umbra were truly free of the gang wars.

And for the first time, they were happy.