Chapter 2: The Masquerade
The three seated guests remained bound and fixated when the human – Lucian, as he was called – painted the floor with caramel coffee, while he screamed like he was getting possessed by a Ghost, and even a full half-a-minute after he nose-dived to the floor.
The Ninetails reacted first. Springing from underneath the glass table, he scurried hurriedly over to the human and nudged on one of his broad shoulders with the brunt of his muzzle.
No response.
Unable to resist the nagging urge, the Gardevoir was up next. Together, she and the Ninetails rolled the listless body onto its back. To protect his vulnerable neck, and to prevent the human from choking on any fluids, she cradled his head at a slight angle in her lap. His breathing was so soft that it seemed nonexistent. Pressing under his jawline, her slender fingers steadied after discovering the tiny tremors of a pulse.
Relieved that he was alive, a potent dose of regret simultaneously coursed her veins. Flowing purple hair, the chiseled jawline, his prominent dimples – he looked nothing like him and yet he, as male human, reminded her of him all the same. The eerily familiar scene made everything ten times worse.
"Our Fair Lady, is he dead?" Einstein's finely tuned virile voice echoed from across the spacious room.
"Let's hope not, my beloved," replied their Fair Lady.
Out of the corner of her eye the Gardevoir watched them approach, both of them pretty convincing police officers masquerading in those navy-blue costumes. "He's alive," she announced by means of telepathy, "just fainted."
When the Fair Lady stopped, so too did the clicking and clacking of her heels against the polished floor. "Be a dear and check him, Desiree."
Doing her bidding without question, Desiree the Gardevoir felt around the human's waist and thighs, searching for anything of interest. The bulge she found in one of his pajama pants pockets turned out to be his Holocaster.
"No Pokéballs?" Below her dark glasses, the Fair Lady gnashed her teeth in contemplation.
Still cradling the human's head in her lap, it was impractical for Desiree to be more thorough. Thus, Einstein was ordered to assist. Setting aside the burlap sack that seldom ever left his mighty grip, he squatted down and gave the human an additional pat-down.
To their Fair Lady's supplementary surprise, his search came up empty.
"…How bizarre," she murmured musingly. "Hmmm, we'd best conduct a cavity search. Desiree, I'll leave that to you."
Shock and awe enveloped the Fairy Pokémon's face before rapidly mellowing. This wasn't the most heinous act ever asked of her. Far from it, in fact. "As you wish," she said faithfully.
At that, the Fair Lady giggled mischievously. "Hold on…wait! That won't be necessary, dear sister. I do jest." She giggled again. "On a serious note, you're certain the Light bares nothing of interest? Perhaps you should double-check."
Having already reported her findings, or lack thereof, while the human had been out of the room brewing coffee, the Gardevoir nonetheless shut her eyes and listened intently with her mind once more. Pushing the Light to the edge of her limits, she hunted for the roaming thoughts of a furtive presence. In the span of a few minutes, all she could glean were the familiar feelings of Einstein, his focus concentrated intensely on something she left well alone, and those belonging to the Ninetails, which she respectfully avoided.
Eyes fluttering, the Gardevoir shook her head. "It's as I told you before," she glanced down at the blank face in her lap, "except for this human, we're alone in this place."
"You look paler than usual," the Fair Lady noted, senses sharp as knives. "Do you doubt your perception?"
"It's nothing, sister," the Gardevoir lied. "You know you don't have to worry about me."
"Good. Let's take a look around, shall we? We'll even take this poor fool with us." She grinned. "In fact, he can give us a tour!"
Einstein scooped Lucian off the floor and, to the Gardevoir's relief, out of her lap. To the weak and vulnerable, a gangly human like him might be considered imposing in stature. Draped over one of Einstein's chiseled shoulders, however, made him look no bigger than a Kirlia.
They wandered around for a bit. It was a sprawling mansion, with some rooms exhibiting a dense gothic opulence while others were severely lacking in décor, as if somewhere along the way of designing the home its owner lost her inspiration. Much to Einstein's bellowing amusement, their Fair Lady heckled the human with inquiries about the purpose of each room and their sundry furnishings.
Unconscious, Lucian never provided an answer.
Weaving their way around, they eventually came to an impressive spiral staircase. Highly detailed paintings of Pokémon sat suspended along the walls going up. Alakazam, Gengar, Hypno, Espeon, Venomoth, and a Mr. Mime with a rather voluptuous pair of breasts were amongst those who witnessed their ascent. These, Desiree surmised, were the creatures loyal to Sabrina. The only one that seemed out of place was the painting of a yellow mouse with blushing cheeks and furious dark eyes.
Exploring upstairs now, Desiree came to realization that the Ninetails had taken the reins. His tails swayed gently as he steered them deeper into the maze. Soon, they followed the swirling tails into a cluttered space with an unmade bed, a sprawling bookcase, and some kind of nerdy supercomputer which had been left turned on.
There was little doubt that this was Lucian's living quarters.
"Let's make the human comfortable," a small, withered voice said. It was first time all morning that the Ninetails had touched their minds with his thoughts. Despite his ancient age, he leapt up on the bed with a nimble grace. "Over here, Ditto," he whispered again by means of Psychic telepathy.
Einstein's physical reaction was near-instant. His face, which was immensely handsome for a human, dented. At any second it looked like he was going to burst into tears. "Don't call me that," he sniffled meekly.
"Alabaster!" Their Fair Lady's tone was a scolding one as she came to the Ditto's rescue. "You know he doesn't like it when you call him that…"
The Ninetails glared at the consolation unapologetically. "Deceiving others is a means to end, but to deceive thyself of thine own truth is to deny thyself of thine own potential. Thou knoweth this better than anyone, Lady Apollyon."
His candor rendered their Fair Lady momentarily speechless.
Motioning to the bed with his muzzle, "Prithee, Ditto, lay him here."
Obedient even while cracking like glass, Einstein lowered Lucian onto the bed.
"What's the point of this request?" The Fair Lady wanted to know. The gust from her throat was devoid of the playful mischief she occasionally reserved for them. "Not like he's awake to appreciate a pillow under his head. Or perhaps it's for the karma. Is that it? Well, now that you've got your good deed for the day, I say it's time we get this fool out of our hair. Einstein, a vacant Pokéball, please."
Still sniveling, the Ditto planted the burlap sack he was burdened to carry at his feet. It landed with a thud. After wiping his slushy nose with the sleeve of his uniform, he delved into the sack and procured a red and white sphere, of which he solemnly placed in the outstretched hand of their Fair Lady.
Preferring not to watch, Desiree looked away.
"Wait, my Lady," the Ninetails implored urgently, "He is not thine enemy."
"Of course he is!" she growled. "He's human filth. And not of the generic variant. Oh no, lest you forget this is the progeny of a Team Rocket captain."
The Ninetails remained stalwart in his opposition. "Humans art not inherently evil," he reasoned boldly. "Rid thyself of such baseness and save terrible vengeance for those who deserve it."
She gritted her teeth as if reconsidering, and then shook her head dismissively. "I won't waste our time babysitting him. His fate is sealed." She aimed the red and white spherical device it at the body lying like a corpse on the bed. "In this cage," she said, her sonorous voice surging, "you will rot!"
The Ninetails threw his emaciated quadruped frame over the human in an attempt to delay the casting of her hex. "Prithee, relent! Doth thee not sense it, Lady Apollyon? Or thee," his old eyes sprang elsewhere, "Princess?"
Desiree threw him a sympathetic look before her gaze converged with that of a foggy pair of glasses.
The Fair Lady frowned, as if taking notice. "Spare me the garrulous lecture, Alabaster," she said, her patience hanging by threads. "If you've caught wind of something I have not, share it and stop being such a sanctimonious old fox!"
Alabaster's muzzle turned and pointed to the quasi-corpse. "This human among us. The Flame breathing inside his heart. It shines bright with the Dark."
His words meant little to Desiree. For their Fair Lady, however, they had a catalytic impact. In an instant, she was stooping by the bed, her sharp nose parallel to Alabaster's elegant muzzle. Einstein quickly joined them. Curious, Desiree followed suit. For a time, no words passed between them, telepathic or otherwise. They just watched him lying there in supine position, a peaceful expression sewn onto his face. That is until, without warning, he grimaced and shuddered in his sleep before murmuring something she found wholly incomprehensible.
"I didn't get all of it," Einstein barked excitedly. "What'd he say? Something about death dying? What does that even mean?"
"Quiet!" their Fair Lady hissed before grabbing the Gardevoir around the arm above the fabric of her glove. Razor-sharp nails pinching against her flesh, it took everything Desiree had not to wince.
"Sister, his mind, I need you to try taking a peek. Do it, quickly now, sister!"
The Gardevoir did not hesitate. Placing her hand on the human's face, fingers fastening lightly over his spasming eyelids, she attempted to eat his dream.
Grimacing, she tried harder, but despite her best efforts she couldn't see anything. The harder she tried to traverse through the murk, the more it hurt. Unable to bear it any longer, she moaned outwardly before wrenching her hand away. In that moment of audible misery, her poise melted and with it, the levitation she exerted on her own body. Her feet hitting the floor, she would have fallen flat on her ass if not for Einstein who caught her around the waist.
Tears wetted her cheeks, which were left unchecked as she fought at the sudden globus sensation scraping at her throat. Blinking rapidly did little to improve her blurry vision. Her hearing, however, functioned properly.
"Did you see anything?" their Fair Lady asked pointedly.
"Yeah, my life, flashing before my eyes," Desiree replied with rays of indignation shining through.
"Forgive me," the Fair Lady said through an incongruous grin. "I had to know if his mind was ensconced by Dark."
Desiree squinted, eyes still raw. "So, you knew that would happen…sister?"
"Not exactly. If Ally was wrong about the human, you would have had yourself a delicious snack. But, it would seem he was right." She caressed a few of the Ninetails' elegant appendages. "You old fox! I should never have doubted your insight."
"What's so special about him?" Einstein asked, referring to the human. He sounded fascinated and at the same time, frustrated. As much as Desiree hated to admit it, she was too.
The Fair Lady's touch landed upon the bedridden body. When she touched him, his chest seemed to heave harder than before. "Let's just say that this is not your average human. The Dark embraces him for some reason." Her enduring grin widened. "I do wonder why, hehehe. Regardless, it would be foolish to believe we came here by mere happenstance. On the contrary, we were led here by a cosmic hand."
Einstein's mouth curved into the wide grin of a Ditto. "He guided us, didn't He?"
"There can no doubt, my beloved. For this grand discovery, let us express our gratitude to Him, our Great Redeemer, the Lord of Light and Dark."
Lady Apollyon bowed her head, as did Einstein whose shuddering excitement seemed to douse all internal turmoil and confusion. He did so enjoy participating in prayer. Desiree too bowed, though every so often she found herself stealing glances at the sleeping human.
You were defenseless, she thought, so how could you resist my Light? Why, why couldn't I invade your dream?
After extending their thanks to the Lord of Light and Dark, the four of them discussed strategy. The plan was simple enough. Sabrina wasn't at the Gym for suspicious reasons. Nonetheless, she had to return home eventually, and when she did, they would be waiting. As for Lucian, if the strange human awakened beforehand their masquerade would recommence, at least until his mother showed.
It was Desiree who, upon taking notice, informed the others. "I think he's waking up," she warned.
She was right. After a few short moments, the human's magenta eyes opened.
