Wanderer
Disclaimer: I don't own Pokémon


Calem was up before dawn the next morning, too restless to get much sleep. Wulfric had put the group up at a local inn just next door to the Gym and advised them to spend the rest of that first afternoon in Snowbelle shopping for clothing appropriate for the arctic conditions in the White Mountains. What they'd brought with them would not do. Calem let Grace pick everything out for him and tacitly accepted whatever she decided on without a fuss. Having something so commonplace and menial to do was good for her, took her mind off Serena for just a couple precious hours. There was hope. Wulfric would help them. They would find Serena. And Calem would protect Grace so that Serena would have her mother back at the end of all this. Nothing else mattered.

It took Calem several minutes to dress in his snow pants, boots, and blue parka after struggling with the long underwear and thermal undergarments he wore under the snow gear. It felt like he'd added twenty pounds to his normal weight with everything on, but Wulfric had warned them about the sub-zero temperatures in the White Mountains this time of year and the chilling winds that could induce frost bite after just minutes of exposure. Aegislash had been dormant in the corner of the small room, and Calem now hoisted her onto his back securely. Klefki, for once relegated to his Pokéball, remained there along with Bisharp and Staraptor. Calem had no plans to subject any of them to the cold when there was no need. Once ready to go, all that was left of Calem's getup were the thick goggles that would shield him from sun and wind and snow. He wore them loose around his neck as he went downstairs to the hotel lobby to wait for the others.

Alain and Korrina were already there sipping coffee and chatting in hushed tones. Like Calem, they were also outfitted in thermal snow gear from head to toe. A small duffel bag sat on the floor in between them with a spare parka, pants, and boots for Serena, Grace's idea. They had no idea what state she'd be in when they found her, and Grace wanted to be prepared. Korrina noticed Calem coming down the stairs and smiled.

"Hey, get any sleep last night?" she asked.

"Does it matter?" he said as he joined them in the lobby by the crackling fireplace.

Calem could feel Alain's gaze on him, and he tried to ignore the crawly feeling in his scarred arms under the scrutiny.

"Grace just stepped out to get Wulfric," Alain said. "They should be back here soon."

"Here." Korrina handed Calem something wrapped up in tinfoil. "Breakfast. I know we're in a hurry to get going, but you should eat something. There's coffee and hot chocolate, too."

She poured him a cup of coffee without waiting to hear his answer, but Calem didn't argue and began to eat mechanically. He would need his strength for the road ahead, no doubt about it. This was the last leg of the journey. Soon, he would see Serena again and get her out safely. Soon, this would all be over.

As though sensing his thoughts, Aegislash's black ribbon feelers tightened their hold around his shoulders and neck, a silent reminder that she had his back through thick and thin.

The door to the lobby opened then and let in a gust of chilly wind from outside. Snow flurries fluttered through the threshold and melted on the hardwood floor under the fire's heat, and the clerk manning the front desk shivered visibly. Grace, Wulfric, and Imelda stepped inside, and Wulfric closed the door behind them. He carried a large pack on his broad shoulders, and unlike yesterday at the Gym, this time he was dressed properly for the weather in white camouflage. Grace caught Calem's eye as he wolfed down the rest of his breakfast, and she crossed the room to him.

"Everyone ready to go?" she asked, taking a minute to check over Calem's gear and make sure he was properly dressed.

"Yeah," Alain said. "Ready when you are."

Calem let Grace fuss as she checked his jacket and silently passed her the coffee Korrina had poured for him. She accepted it gratefully and took a few sips, letting the hot beverage warm her up a bit. Korrina watched them with mild interest.

"...and make sure any visitors talk to Anik," Wulfric was telling Imelda. "He's in charge while I'm gone. He knows what to do, so you listen to him, okay?"

"Yes, sir," Imelda said. "We'll see you back for Trivia Tuesday."

Wulfric looked truly saddened. "I'm afraid it's going to take a bit longer than a day. Darn it all, I had a good feeling about this week, too. Oh, well. But don't let my absence ruin the fun, all right?"

Imelda nodded and bit her lip. "Um, sir, please do be careful out there. Anik and the others and I will wait for you."

"Wulfric and Imelda packed us enough food for two weeks," Grace said between sips of coffee. "He says it should not take that long to find Serena, but just in case."

Calem noticed how her hands shook slightly as she gripped the coffee mug, and he laid his hand on her wrist without a word. She was startled at the contact, but he felt her relax a little bit in his hold.

"It won't take that long," Korrina said. "Grandpa told me that Wulfric led an expedition into the White Mountains years ago once when an avalanche buried a bunch of tourists skiing off resort. He found them and brought everyone back in a matter of days. Nobody knows those mountains like he does."

Grace seemed to take some comfort from Korrina's story and tried to smile. "Of course."

Were they dead or alive when he found them? Calem wanted to ask. But he stayed silent. He caught Alain's eye, and something in their shared look made him think Alain was having similar thoughts.

"Okay, gang," Wulfric bellowed. "Everybody ready to set off, then?"

The group gathered outside, and Imelda watched them from the path leading back to the Gym. She looked about ready to burst into tears as she waved.

"Good luck!" she called out.

Wulfric led the group west toward the edge of town on foot. Their snow boots and crampons crunched over the cobblestones and plowed snow in the streets. Calem lowered his goggles and marveled at how warm his clothes were. He hoped they would continue to keep him warm once they got up in altitude.

The trek to the edge of town was relatively short, and soon they had arrived on the outskirts where only a single packed trail led into the White Mountains. The sun was rising behind them, and the sky was clear and blue. Calem followed the side of the nearest snowy peak up and up, awed by the raw and brutal majesty of nature. Grey stone peeked out from under windblown snow higher up, and pine trees hardy enough to brave the cold grew along the mountain faces at lower altitudes. Harsh winds thousands of feet above blew snow from the mountainsides, swirls of powder white, beautiful but deadly. If an avalanche were triggered, there would be nowhere to run in this frozen desert.

"The path here leads into the heart of the mountains," Wulfric said. "But beyond a couple miles, it's all animal trails and unmarked passages. Easy to get lost forever in the white."

"Great," Alain said, obviously not feeling great about that at all.

"Do you know where Team Flare might be holding my daughter?" Grace asked. "Is there somewhere in the mountains they might go?"

Wulfric thought about that. "Can't say for sure, but there are tunnels that run through a whole maze under the mountains. Might be they're using them for that secret lab you mentioned. Anyway, we'll have a better idea once we're higher up."

Wulfric unclipped two of his four Pokéballs from his belt and tossed them out in front of him. Within the flash of light, two behemoth Pokémon materialized and shook the ground with their sudden weight. Calem gaped at their massive size and girth. He'd never seen Pokémon so large before.

A Mamoswine taller and older than any employed in the city for plowing towered about fifteen feet at the shoulder, and her long ivory tusks were sharpened to wicked points and capped with silver plating at the tips for extra attacking power. Her woolly brown hide was shaggy and thick and made Calem feel cold in his high tech snow gear by comparison.

But perhaps even more impressive was Wulfric's Avalugg. While only about seven feet tall, Avalugg boasted considerable girth and could have carried a busload of people on his back. His body was covered in plated white and blue scales dusted with ice crystals, and when it caught the sun's light, it sparkled like a living diamond. His breath came out misty and froze over the snow on the ground.

Wulfric carried two bundles under his arms, one of which he tossed up onto Avalugg's wide flat back. The other he handed to Korrina. It was a thick woven blanket.

"You two will ride Mamoswine. Throw this on her and stay warm," he said. "Grace, Calem, you're with me 'n Avalugg. Come on, now, I'll give ya a leg up."

Grace was frozen in her place, stunned at the sight of these two enormous Pokémon. Calem swallowed and moved first, allowing Wulfric to give him a boost onto Avalugg's back. It was surprisingly flat, but his hands slipped on the thin sheen of ice that covered Avalugg's scales. He fumbled for the blanket and did his best to unroll it while Wulfric hoisted Grace up by the waist. Calem gave her a hand up, and she stumbled on her rear on the blanket.

"What is this thing?" she whispered to Calem.

"Our ride, apparently," he said.

Alain and Korrina managed to get Mamoswine to kneel for them so Alain could boost Korrina onto her back, and she hauled him up after her like he weighed nothing. Wulfric used Avalugg's craggy back leg to climb up, and soon everybody was situated. Wulfric crawled to the front, where he could sit just behind Avalugg's head and direct the behemoth, while Grace and Calem sat back to back just behind him. If not for the blanket, Calem was sure he would literally freeze his ass off sitting on this mobile glacier for more than five minutes.

Korrina laughed suddenly as Mamoswine snorted and shook out her head. Alain sat behind her with his arms wrapped around her middle to hold on, the blanket pulled up over their legs. He whispered something to her, and she smiled wider. Calem's hands twitched uncomfortably as he watched them in that private moment, able to find some joy in each other despite the bleak situation, and his throat burned. Frowning, he looked away, not wanting to see them like that.

Serena's in trouble and they're flirting, he thought bitterly.

And yet, despite the simmering resentment their intimacy incited in him, he could not help but wonder what it must be like to feel what they felt. To have that shared connection with another person. Alain had done some awful things in his time, but somehow he'd found happiness with Korrina. It didn't seem fair. If Serena were here...

Calem began to shake as his thoughts muddled together like a thousand voices howling in his head, and he hugged his ruined arms around himself. Shame replaced his earlier resentment, but the jealousy lingered, ugly and selfish.

I don't deserve to even think about her like that. Not after the way it all went down.

"It's not your fault," Alain had insisted that night on the moors east of Laverre. "It's nobody's fault but Malva's what happened to Serena."

When this was all over, he would tell Serena everything. If they got to her in time, if she was still alive, he would tell her everything he'd been hiding from her so at least she would know, and he could learn to cherish their friendship for what it was as he once had. Never again would he take her presence in his life for granted. They had to find her alive and holding on. They had to.

Avalugg lurched as he climbed the mountain path, surefooted for such a large Pokémon. The ride was surprisingly smooth despite the incline. Mamoswine lumbered along behind them, and Korrina waved to Calem when she saw him looking. They passed the time in relative silence, with Wulfric concentrating on navigating and Alain and Korrina keeping an eye out behind them for any feral Pokémon or other threats.

After a few hours of slow progress, the winds began to pick up and the skies began to darken with the onset of clouds. Calem's nose burned with the cold despite the thick scarf he wore around his face and neck, and he rubbed it worriedly. Grace shivered behind him. Avalugg growled under them as he steadily climbed, the beaten path long lost to them and only Wulfric's knowledge of the terrain to guide them.

"Hey, that doesn't look good," Alain called out.

Calem followed his gaze to the sky, which was rapidly turning grey. No, it didn't look good at all. The temperature was dropping noticeably, and Grace shifted on Avalugg's back.

"Wulfric, it looks like a storm," she said.

"A storm," he repeated. "That's one way to put it."

He said nothing more, and they lapsed into silence once more as Avalugg trudged onward like he was oblivious to the plummeting temperatures. Calem and Grace huddled together unconsciously seeking extra warmth, but soon he became unable to control his shivering. His jaw ached as he clenched it hard enough to keep his teeth from chattering. He was suddenly very sleepy.

The winds picked up, howling, and sprayed the group with snow flurries loosened from the mountainside. The sunlight dulled to a filmy pale glow, obscured by the clouds, and not long after, the heavens began to rain down fat snowflakes. Which would have been beautiful if not for the winds that whipped them violently about and turned them to icy pinpricks on Calem's face. He tried to snuggle into his scarf and pulled his hat down, but no matter how covered he thought he was, he could still feel winter's bite. Mamoswine trumpeted behind him, agitated by the deteriorating weather, but Avalugg remained cool and unencumbered.

"Hey! We're gonna freeze in this!" Korrina shouted up to Calem's group.

"It's not much farther," Wulfric raised his voice to be heard over the tempest. "Hold onto your pantaloons, everybody."

A particularly strong wind made Grace and Calem lose their balance, and they stumbled over each other. Calem swore as he scrambled to stop the falling sensation and peered over Avalugg's side. Just a few inches away, the mountain face dropped off completely for a few hundred feet. He was too cold even to curse as vertigo made him nauseous.

"Avalugg!" Wulfric shouted. "Use Avalanche!"

Calem scrambled back toward Grace just as Avalugg shifted underneath him and stomped the ground with his clubby feet. The snow above and in front of them came loose and began to cascade down the mountain's face with increasing velocity and ferocity. Mamoswine trumpeted in distress, but the snow slide crashed down in front, safely missing the group. Calem stared in awe as the path before them opened up into the mouth of a cave. Avalugg trampled the dispersed snow and ice, clearing a path inside. Calem had to duck to keep his head from hitting the roof of the cavern, and Wulfric dismounted once inside. He helped Grace down, and then Calem after.

"We'll have to wait out the storm," Wulfric explained.

Mamoswine lumbered in after Avalugg, and Korrina jumped off her back gracefully like only a Bellatrix could. She gave Alain a hand down. Wulfric recalled both Mamoswine and Avalugg and headed deeper into the cave.

"This way," he said.

Calem followed, grateful to be leaving the howling winds behind. They hiked deep into the mountain through the natural caves, twisting and turning to the point where Calem wasn't sure he'd be able to find the entrance if he turned back. If Wulfric didn't know what he was doing, they would surely be lost in this labyrinth. Grace walk resolutely ahead of Calem, her head held high as she followed Wulfric without a word, trusting that he knew what he was doing. Calem hoped the Gym Leader wouldn't let her down.

"Here we are," Wulfric said at length.

They had arrived at a cavern large enough to house the entire group and then some. The remains of an old campfire sat in the middle of the cavern, charred and brittle. A small stack of wood sat to the left, assembled by whoever had been here last, apparently. Wulfric retrieved two fresh logs for the campfire and produced a small box of matches to get a fire started.

"So now what?" Alain asked. "It's too early to camp."

"Tell that to the storm," Wulfric said gruffly. "Unless you'd like to wander about snow blind, Titan."

Alain crossed his arms. "No, of course not."

Wulfric got the fire started, and Calem warmed his hands against the flames gratefully. He hadn't realized how much he'd been shaking thanks to the storm. Ice crystals dusted Wulfric's beard and mustache like tiny diamonds, glistening as they melted under the campfire's warmth.

"How long do storms out here last?" Korrina asked. "We'll need every minute we can afford to get to Serena."

"Hard to say," Wulfric said. "But we ought to rest here for at least a bit. These mountains will kill you without you even knowing it if you push too hard."

While Calem did not doubt that, he agreed with Korrina. Time was of the essence. Who knew what Serena was going through at this very moment? Maybe them wasting time here was sealing her fate without them even knowing it. He couldn't abide such a thought.

"Can't we navigate the tunnels or something?" Calem said.

"We could, but we'd be lost," Wulfric said. "The White Mountains're near impossible to navigate around winter unless you've got exact coordinates. The caves're impossible all year round. Steelix and Onix dug these caves years ago. They go all over the mountain range, and nobody's ever mapped them all out. You run into a Steelix out here, and that's the end o' you."

"But we can't waste any more time," Grace insisted. "We have to find Serena."

Wulfric looked genuinely abashed. "I understand, Grace. But in this storm, it's unsafe for us to keep searching. For now. I know you want to find your daughter, but we need to wait until the winds subside. Otherwise, we'll all be in trouble and we won't do Serena any good at all."

"Wulfric's right," Alain said. "I want to find Serena as fast as possible, too, but we're no good to her dead. Let's wait a few hours, and then we'll see what the situation is."

Grace did not look happy about this, but there was little choice in the matter. Calem did not want to run in to hostile Steelix and Onix down here with no escape. Unlike Alain and his Dragons, Calem could not coerce Steel-type Pokémon against their will to guarantee the group's safety. Only Titans could do that, he thought bitterly. He sat by the fire and hugged his knees to his chest, cursing his own limitations.

They rested for a few hours, eating and napping to replenish their strength. They'd been outside for hours without a break, and Calem did not realize how hungry he was. It would be dark outside by now, and in the distance the storm winds continued to howl. Grace tried to sleep, but she tossed and turned and shivered in her dreams, and Calem could not abide her silent suffering for long. He laid a gentle hand on her shoulder, and she jerked erratically into his touch before calming somewhat. He did not want to wake her, but he could imagine the nightmares that visited her now. He'd seen his fair share in recent weeks.

Korrina was also napping by the fire, but she did not stir as Grace had. Wulfric had his eyes closed and his arms crossed as he leaned against his pack, but Calem wondered if he was truly asleep. Something about Wulfric told of a hardened man who could not be caught off-guard by even the sneakiest of people. In any case, Calem didn't bother to test his theory.

Alain was awake and staring into the fire, his expression sullen as though deep in thought. Calem hesitated a moment and touched a hand to Aegislash's feelers wrapped around his shoulders. Aegislash was always there for him, always at his side, even now. She had not stirred during their hike, content to remain dormant until Calem needed her strength. He drew strength from her now, telling himself to just get over it. They were in this together, after all. They wanted the same thing. And Alain had promised to take care of Malva once and for all.

Calem scooted closer to where Alain was seated. "You seem pretty calm," he said.

Alain met Calem's eye through the fire. "Just thinking."

"About Malva?"

"It's hard not to."

Calem watched him a moment, but Alain settled his gaze back on the dancing flames and retreated into himself. Titans lie. That was what everybody said. Alain was supposed to be one of the good ones, someone on Calem's side, on Serena's side. But even so, it was easy to see why they said that about Titans, that you couldn't trust them, that they kept secrets. Alain was no exception, but the lies he told and the secrets he kept aligned with the group's goals. Did that matter? Calem wondered. There was so much he didn't know about Alain, that he didn't say. Did Serena know?

"Something on your mind, Calem?" Alain said.

Calem clenched his jaw. He'd been staring, lost in thought, and Alain had noticed. "Just thinking."

Alain chuckled, low and rich. Fire and mirth danced together in his blue eyes. "Touché."

Calem shook his head. "I still don't get it."

"Oh?"

"How you can disappear for years, then all of a sudden you can jump back in and risk your life like nothing's changed."

"You're asking how I can bring myself to drop everything and help a friend whose life is in trouble?" Alain said slowly.

"That's not—you know what I mean."

"I'm not sure I do. Why don't you help me out?"

Calem touched one of Aegislash's feelers, and it wrapped gently around his hand. The spectral sword's presence at his side was a reassurance he needed, if only to keep his cool and remember the bigger picture here.

"I mean," Calem began, careful to choose his words and keep his voice down. "I mean, you left a long time ago. Do you even remember Serena much?"

Alain gave him a weird look. "Do I... Calem, I wouldn't be here if I didn't remember my time with Serena."

"What do you remember?" Calem pressed.

Alain looked like he wanted to question Calem further, but thought better of it. "I..." Alain cut himself off as his gaze unfocused somewhere far away. "Brownies."

"What?"

"Serena loved brownies. I remember the first time she came to Sycamore's lab, she wandered outside of her room after her bedtime. She didn't like the food she'd been brought for dinner, and one of the night shift security guards caught her wandering the floor in her nightgown, lost. He tried to take her back to her room, it was like two in the morning, and I was just heading up to bed after finishing up some work. I convinced the guard to let me put her back to bed, and when she explained that she was hungry, I snuck her into the kitchen downstairs."

Alain laughed to himself as he remembered.

"I told her there was leftover food in the fridge, but she didn't want any of it. I didn't blame her, cafeteria fare doesn't make for good leftovers. So I asked her what she wanted to eat, and her eyes got really big, you know the way."

"I know," Calem said without thinking.

Alain was smiling softly. "She said she wanted brownies, but we didn't have any. And then I..." He trailed off and his smile faded. "I stayed up with her for the next two hours making brownies from scratch. We dirtied up the whole kitchen using like thirty different dishes, it was ridiculous. She spilled batter on her nightgown, and Tyrunt nearly ripped it trying to lick it all up. I never baked anything in my life before, but she wanted the brownies, and I... Well, I guess I wanted her to smile."

He looked up at Calem then like he'd only just seen him sitting there.

"I remember she was a lonely girl, and I wanted to make her smile. She was lonely and afraid like a kid that age should never be. I was like her. I knew what it felt like to be completely alone surrounded by people who don't understand or trust you." Alain leaned forward and held Calem's gaze. "Serena was alone for a long time, until she met you."

"Me? I... I mean, we were friends, but she was always talking about you. Every time she came back to the lab, it was Alain this and Alain that," Calem said.

"That's not how I remember it. I remember that I was busy doing fieldwork for Sycamore. More often than not, I'd miss a lot of time out of Serena's visits. But you were always there with her."

Calem shook his head. "No, that's not... I mean, yeah, we hung out a lot, but you—"

"Calem," Alain said gently. "I tried to spend time with Serena in between my work with Sycamore whenever I could, but you were the one who was there all the time. You were there for her in a way no one else was. Don't you remember that?"

Calem said nothing. He did remember the way Serena used to be, reticent and closed off and always by herself. She never confided in others, never opened up, and as a child, Calem hadn't minded that because he had plenty to say for the both of them. The first day he'd met Serena, he shared his deepest secret, how he was a Steel Adamantine with near unbreakable skin. Not even a knife could cut his skin when he was concentrating, just as he'd shown Serena. That was the first time he'd ever seen her smile, when she found out he was the same as her. That she wasn't the only one.

"What's Serena like now?" Alain asked.

"Now?"

"You're her best friend. You know her better than anyone. You risked your life to help her, so you must care about her a lot."

"Yeah, of course I do." Calem rubbed his arm where Malva's scars were hidden. "I'd do anything for Serena."

"Is she still lonely?"

Calem thought about that. She'd laughed a lot the last time he saw her in Vaniville Town, before all this. They had spent hours together just walking, talking, laughing about any silly thought that crossed their minds, just like they had in their first meeting years ago at Sycamore's lab. Even then, she'd smiled and laughed as they played swords on the terrace and nothing in the world mattered but the two of them. Every moment they could get, Serena and Calem spent it together.

"No," he said at length. "No, she..."

An image of Serena's smiling face the last time he'd seen her popped into his mind, those blue eyes full of wonder as she traced the invisible threads that connected them. Heartstrings, she called them, because they were manifestations of the heart that could never lie. And no matter where Calem went, she could always find him, just as the Fairies that loved her so much could always find her. She was never alone because the heartstrings connected them.

"All Fairies can see heartstrings. It's how they find me."

"She..." Calem said as the memories clouded his mind.

"She...what? Calem? Are you there?" Alain said.

"So when I take Klefki, you can always find me?"

"Klefki," Calem said, his thoughts racing. "Klefki!"

Grace stirred in her sleep as Calem raised his voice and opened her groggy eyes.

"Uh, what about Klefki?" Alain said.

Korrina rolled over, also woken by the conversation. "Hey, keep it down, guys?"

Calem was having trouble forming words, and he unzipped his parka to fish out Klefki's Pokéball. "No, it's Klefki!" he said.

"Calem?" Grace said. "What's going on?"

Calem ignored the others and released Klefki's Pokéball. The little Keychain Pokémon floated in the air, and the sound of tinkling keys echoed in the chamber. When he saw Calem, he jingled happily and swayed in front of him, wanting attention.

Korrina was fully awake now, and Alain had gotten to his feet. "Someone wanna tell me what's going on?" Korrina demanded.

"Klefki," Calem said to the little Pokémon. "Is Serena nearby?"

Alain and Korrina exchanged a look, and Grace stood next to Calem. "Serena? Calem, what're you—"

"Klefki, is she here? Is she close?" Calem continued.

Klefki swayed as though riding invisible waves, and Calem's heart raced as he drifted toward the entrance. He got up and followed him.

"Has he lost it?" Korrina hissed.

"No, I think it's something else," Alain said, following Calem.

They went to the mouth of the cav, where the storm was still blowing outside and blasting snow through the entrance. Klefki stopped abruptly and jingled in earnest like he wanted to go out. Calem broke into a smile for the first time since Serena's abduction.

"Klefki!" he said, smiling wide.

"Hey," Alain said. "What's going on?"

"Yeah, it's freezing over here," Korrina grumbled.

Korrina, Alain, and Grace had all followed him to the entrance. Grace was staring at him like she didn't recognize him smiling. Her eyes, eyes that matched Serena's, were glazed with unshed tears as she started to realize what was happening.

"It's the heartstrings," Calem said, overwhelmed by the urge to laugh. "Serena can see them because Fairies can see them."

"Okay, and?" Korrina said, shivering.

"She said she'd always be able to find me because she can follow the heartstrings," Calem said. "Klefki's a Fairy, too."

"Klefki can find Serena," Alain said, shocked.

"He can follow the heartstrings right to her," Calem said.

Grace choked on a sob and covered her mouth, but her smile was still plain to see.

"Oh my god," Korrina said. "That's..."

"That's how we find Serena," Calem said. He caught Alain's eye. "That's why she wanted us to share Klefki, so I could always have a way to find her. So she'd never be alone."

Grace was suddenly in Calem's face and hugged him fiercely. She was shaking as she cried, but she was laughing, too. Klefki, happy at all the attention he was getting, floated about their heads jingling.


Malva had not gotten much sleep thanks to food poisoning she'd suffered at dinner last night, and she was in a black mood today as a result. All she could keep down were saltine crackers and scotch, a faulty combination that only soured her mood even further. She wanted a good night's sleep. She wanted to get out of this godforsaken cave hideout and feel warm again. She wanted to feel Siebold's arms around her.

But Laevus had insisted she stay and see what he had accomplished. So Malva put off her return trip to Lumiose City by a few days. The trouble was, that had been two days ago, and Laevus had not emerged from his private room and lab yet to announce his grand success. When Malva tried to talk to him, he told her he was still working and that he was not to be disturbed, but that he would share his progress soon.

Well, fuck 'soon'. Malva was tired of waiting. She was tired of babysitting these two kids Laevus still kept locked up even though it appeared that he was through with them. She was tired. And speaking of the kids, the more useless of the two, the pleb boy, was crying again. Malva had almost forgotten he was still alive. Maybe she ought to put the poor boy out of his misery. Maybe then she could get some sleep.

Groaning, Malva got up from her desk in the small bedroom she was living out of and headed down the cavern hall to the kids' room. Pyroar had been napping on her bed and stretched out luxuriously when she heard her get up. The big cat padded along after her, and Darumaka rolled along next, not wanting to be left behind. Malva unlocked the door to the shared room and let herself inside, intending to stop the wailing with words or by force, whatever worked.

"It's okay, Trevor, just breathe," Serena soothed the younger boy.

Trevor was deathly pale and clammy with fever sweat. He was lying on his stomach on a cot, shirtless, and Serena was doing her best to clean the weeping wound on his back and wrap him in fresh bandages. She could not do much with just soapy water, though.

"What the hell is going on in here?" Malva grumbled.

Pyroar slinked past her into the room and growled at the foul stench of decaying flesh. Darumaka huddled behind Malva's ankles.

Serena had a haunted look in her eyes, the look of someone who had had just as rough a night as Malva. Bandages wrapped around her wrists and arms past the elbow, a token of Laevus's blood draws. Otherwise, Serena was physically unharmed if not gaunt and malnourished. Her hair was a mess and pulled back in a tangled ponytail, and she wore clothes a couple sizes too big for her courtesy of whatever spares were lying around the base. Trevor was sobbing on the cot, but he did his best to stifle his suffering now that Malva was here.

"I'm trying to clean his wounds, but I don't know anything about medicine," Serena stammered. "He woke up in a lot of pain, but all I could find was soap and water. He needs antibiotics or something."

Malva wished she hadn't left the bottle of scotch back in her room, cheap gasoline that it was, but at least it was something. The kid was sobbing and shivering, and it didn't look like he was going to shut up anytime soon. Cursing Laevus for whatever the fuck he'd done to the kid, she marched over to the cot to take a look.

Serena watched her carefully, those luminous blue eyes sharp and alert in spite of her obvious physical exhaustion. "Can you do anything for him?"

Malva scoffed and was about to tell the girl off when she got a good whiff of Trevor and recoiled. She covered her nose and mouth with a hand and took a step back, and her eyes watered. Cursing, she ripped off her tinted sunglasses and shoved them in a pocket to wipe her eyes.

"What the fuck," she said, shoving Serena aside.

In her weakened state, Serena didn't put up much of a fight and fell back. Malva overcame the initial shock and took a moment to study Trevor's injury. The hole where Laevus had embedded that Mega Stone shard or whatever the fuck it was had turned yellowish green with infection, and the edges of the flayed skin and muscle beneath had taken on a suspicious grey-brown color. Malva was no physician, but she'd had the basic field training all Flare Agents got, and she did not like what she was seeing.

"What's wrong with him?" Serena pressed.

"The wound is infected," Malva said more to herself than to Serena. "The flesh and muscle are necrotic there." She indicated the greyish tissue surrounded by swelling and infection. How long had the kid been like this? If he didn't get treatment, he'd die in a day, two at the most.

"What does that mean?" Serena pressed.

Malva crossed her arms. "He's dying."

Serena's jaw dropped. "No, no that can't happen. You have to do something."

"I'm not a doctor. And death would be a mercy after..." she trailed off. "It'll be over soon."

"S-Serena," Trevor said, barely a whisper.

Serena set her jaw and put a reassuring hand on Trevor's shoulder, careful not to touch any of the afflicted area. "I'm right here, Trevor. You'll be okay, I promise."

Malva snorted. "What did I say about making promises you can't keep? You're being cruel."

She half expected some angry retort, but Serena only looked at her with that hollow gaze she'd worn the last time they spoke and Serena accused her of loving her brother. And of hating him, too. Malva hated that look on this girl who didn't know her, didn't know a goddamned thing about her. She had no right to judge.

"Help him," Serena said.

Malva pressed her lips together in a thin line. "Are you deaf, Magus? This kid will be dead by tonight."

"No. Not if you help him. Malva, please."

Please.

She'd said please the last time, too. Pyroar did not want to get too close to the stench of death, but Darumaka was watching shyly at Malva's feet, curiously unbothered. What the hell did Malva care about some no-name pleb kid, anyway? Nothing, that's what. Nothing at all.

Trevor groaned, and Malva got a look at his face. So young. This kid couldn't be more than fifteen or sixteen, and he was skinny and small. The very definition of weak. The world would not even notice his passing. He was nothing. And yet, she'd helped him once before.

"I know you want to help," Serena said in that infuriating calm she had, like she was old and wise and not a twenty-something child.

"You don't know anything about me," Malva said.

"I know you're not a bad person," Serena insisted. "You hate this."

Malva moved so fast that Serena didn't know what hit her. She was smashed against the wall in an instant, Malva's hand around her throat. But Serena did not fight back even as she gasped for air.

"Go ahead," Malva spat. "Tell me something else I hate."

"Y-You hate," Serena gasped, "being wasted."

Malva squeezed Serena's neck, but not hard enough to choke her to death. Her thoughts were all over the place, and it was hard to pick out a coherent string of thoughts from the jumble. Words were little better.

"You hate what he's made you become," Serena said, barely audible.

It would be so easy. She could snap Serena's neck and be done with it, never think about it again. Laevus would be cross, but he'd have his blood bag intact either way, so it made no difference. And Malva would have another death on her hands. Who cared? She'd lost count a long time ago. Lysandre had a lot of requests.

Serena struggled to suck in a breath. "But you hate yourself the most."

Malva bared her teeth, and her fingers began to smoke where they gripped Serena. The girl squeezed her eyes shut to the pain, and tears prickled the edges. Furious and frustrated, Malva shoved her aside roughly before she could do any real damage. Serena's neck bore an angry red rash where Malva had touched her, the skin boiled and a little bloody, smoking. It would sting like a bitch, but the wound was nothing too serious. Serena coughed and shielded her throat, but she did her best to hold Malva's gaze anyway.

"You want to help him," she insisted, her voice hoarse and laced with pain. "You can help him."

"You're a piece of work," Malva said rudely. She glanced at Trevor's diseased back with disgust. "All I can do is give him more pain."

"But it could save him," Serena insisted, seemingly oblivious to her own hurts as she focused on Trevor's. "You can do it. Malva, please. It's okay to want to help him."

There was that goddamned 'please' again. Was she getting soft? Or was this girl, this Magus, doing it all? They were all dead, the Magi. They'd died out long ago, and she was the last as far as anyone knew. Who was she, really? Why did she know these things? Why didn't she use her knowledge to help herself instead of this worthless pleb boy?

"It's okay to be weak sometimes," Laevus's voice reminded her, so far away, so long ago. He probably didn't even remember saying that to her.

Well, Laevus wasn't fucking here.

Malva took a Pokéball from her pocket and released Delphox. The Psychic fox bared her teeth at the stench of death permeating the stagnant room, but she had a little more grace than Pyroar and remained where she stood next to Malva. Darumaka rolled out of her way and jumped up on the cot to be next to Serena. Right now, Malva did not give a shit about him being near her. It was the other kid that concerned her.

She kneeled down and took Trevor's chin in her hand. It was sticky and wet with sweat, and she had to fight to keep her expression neutral. "Kid, you want to live?"

Trevor's eyes were filled with tears, but he managed to nod. "Y-Yes," he rasped.

Malva searched his face for the lie, for the weakness his body betrayed, but she found none. Sixteen and brave. It was not something most could say knowing what was coming next. She had to give him credit.

"This will hurt," she said a little more gently.

Malva cracked her knuckles and nodded to Delphox, who began to pulse with blue telekinetic energy. She laid her bare hand over the infected wound on Trevor's back and dug her nails into the necrotic flesh. Heat seeped from her palm into his back, and Trevor began to howl in pain as the burning consumed him. It ate away at the rot, the muscle beneath, and bone beneath that. Trevor thrashed, but Delphox's Confusion held him down like invisible manacles.

Serena laid her hands on Trevor's head and whispered reassurances to him, but they fell upon deaf ears. Even so, she kept it up. Darumaka watched with rapt attention as he held his feet in his hands and rocked next to Serena. Malva's work was done fast. As soon as she had burned away the necrotic and rotting flesh, she withdrew. Trevor continued to sob and shake uncontrollably, but all that was left of the terrible wound in his back was a raw red sore, cauterized and no longer discharging. Smoke rose from the open sore, but that would dissipate soon enough. Malva dunked her hand in the soapy water and washed it thoroughly, then she tossed Serena the fresh roll of bandages.

"You handle the rest. I want to take a nap, and I better not hear any more crying coming from here," Malva said.

Serena had tears in her eyes and she was smiling when she looked at Malva. "I will," she said, breathless. "Malva, thank you."

"Whatever," Malva said dismissively.

She recalled Delphox and snatched Darumaka up in her arms, not trusting Serena with him. Darumaka squealed in protest, wanting to stay behind, but Malva held firm. Pyroar was happy to be leaving finally.

"Malva," Serena called.

"What?" Malva spat.

"You're a good person," she said.

Malva glared at her. Stupid girl, you're only here because of me. I'm not a good person.

But she said nothing and simply locked the door behind her, ready to try to sleep off whatever the fuck this was. Maybe she was drunk. If not, she wished she was. Back in her room, Malva lay back on the bed and Pyroar curled up next to her, radiating heat. Darumaka climbed onto the desk where Serena's Pokéballs were sitting in a dish collecting dust. Malva ran her fingers through Pyroar's long crest, and the big cat began to purr.

I'm not a good person, Malva thought angrily. She's an idiot.

Malva's breath hitched, and she curled up on her side. Pyroar was at her back as warm as a furnace, and if she closed her eyes, she could almost imagine it was Siebold sleeping at her back.

I'm not a good person.

He would be snoring softly, like he always did. Soft but not unpleasant, and he would smell of rosemary and candles and rain, nothing like this place. He would slip his arm over her waist, and smile when her skin burned him. He said it tickled.

I'm not a good person.

Trevor would live.


After the storm subsided, it took another two days to reach their destination. Grace could hardly feel her fingers and toes, try as she might to warm them under blankets of wool and fur. The sky was overcast with the threat of snow, and the wind was blistering and harsh as ever. But the cold no longer bothered her as adrenaline and fear and even a little hope became her fuel. Klefki could find Serena, Calem said. Klefki could see the heartstrings, those invisible threads Serena could see, too, the ones that always led her home whenever she snuck out to the woods. No matter how far she went. Grace could hardly believe it, but here they were at the mouth of a cave barricaded by enormous metal doors frozen shut. The very curse that had stolen Serena away and forever isolated Grace from her daughter had become the very thing that led Grace back to her.

"Is this it?" Alain said when Mamoswine and Avalugg stopped in front of the metal doors.

"Can't say I ever saw metal doors out in these mountains," Wulfric said. "Hey, little guy, you sure about this place?"

Klefki jingled excitedly, seemingly oblivious to the cold. His jeweled heart pulsated with a soft pink light.

"He's sure," Calem said. "Klefki can see heartstrings. They don't lie."

Klefki danced lazily around between Grace and Calem, pleased at all the attention and good feelings emanating from the humans around him. Could he really sense her emotions? This little Pokémon that had always unsettled her with his jingling, that hollow stare all of Serena's Fairies had, that Serena herself had whenever she knew Grace was hiding something, lying, holding back. Did she know all along?

"Thank you, Klefki," Grace said as Klefki hovered in front of her. She didn't know what else to say.

"Great, then let's knock, shall we?" Korrina slipped off of Mamoswine's back and landed in knee-deep snow.

The mountain path here was wide enough to accommodate large Pokémon or even transport vehicles. The sealed cave cut into the mountain, but there was no way of knowing how deep it went or where it came out.

"Oh, I don't know if they'll hear us knocking," Wulfric said.

"Then we'll knock loudly. Alain, you wanna do the honors?" Korrina held out a hand for him to jump down, and he joined her in the snow.

"Absolutely," he said, tossing out a Pokéball from his pocket.

Grace quailed at the sheer enormity of the monster that had been riding around in that tiny Pokéball all this time unbeknownst to her. Tyrantrum's flesh was a ruddy red, like the skin had been sloughed off and all that was left were bloody muscles. He was almost as big as Mamoswine, but where Mamoswine was a gentle giant, Tyrantrum was fear and violence given flesh. Grace had never seen teeth so big.

Mamoswine trumpeted in alarm, and Wulfric had to calm her down. Tyrantrum was salivating unabashedly, and Grace wondered if he wouldn't try to take a bite out of Mamoswine if given the chance. How could Alain keep such a creature around and under control?

Wulfric whistled appreciatively. "That's a big pet you've got there, Alain."

"He likes to cuddle," Alain quipped. "Tyrantrum, break down that door."

Tyrantrum growled, and Grace almost lost control of her bladder at the baleful sound. Tyrantrum lowered his huge flat head and charged at the door. The metal whined under the force of the impact, and an ugly dent warped the metal.

"Again," Alain commanded.

He rushed the door a second time, and then a third time, and by the fourth Head Smash, the frozen metal burst and Tyrantrum plowed on through the gaping hole. he turned around inside and shook out his head like a dog trying to get dry, like ramming solid steel had given him little more than a tickle. His great mane of primitive white feathers was heavy with frost and iron dust.

"Well, that's something you don't get to see every day," Wulfric said merrily. He recalled Mamoswine and Avalugg, but he was in no hurry to go through the now open cave. Instead, he sat down in the snow and rifled through his pack for pen and paper.

"What are you doing?" Grace asked him.

"Oh, just writing a letter to my brother. He'll be mighty interested to know about this place."

"Will he send reinforcements?" Calem asked, peering over Wulfric's shoulder at the chicken scratch he was hastily scrawling across the parchment.

"Oh yes, Remus is what you young people might call a worrywart. Always did have a cautious streak. When we left, he was already calling in the Snow Rangers and assembling rescue teams."

"Snow Rangers?" Grace said. "And they can help?"

"I do believe that's their job." Wulfric finished his letter after checking his PokéNav watch and jotting down the coordinates. "Although, you know, sometimes I wonder if a hundred Snow Rangers standing by to help out just the five of us might be a bit much."

"A-A hundred?" Calem said. "We could wipe out all of Team Flare here with that many!"

Wulfric got to his feet and pulled out a Pokéball from his jacket pocket. A squat Delibird landed in the snow at his feet and squawked indignantly. "Like I said, it's not safe coming up here in the winter, but now that we know exactly where we're going, well, my brother does like a bit of glory whenever he can get it. Come on now, Delibird, take this."

Wulfric handed Delibird the sealed note, and the red-feathered bird stuffed it among her enormously bushy tail feathers.

"Uh, is that safe?" Calem said. Klefki was fascinated with Delibird's fluffy tail and wanted to know where Wulfric's note had disappeared to.

"Hm? Oh, Delibird here's a master postwoman. She'll be fine. You get on back to Mayor Remus now, Delibird. And no unnecessary stops along the way, okay? I know you got plenty of food in your tail, so no getting greedy, now."

Delibird honked and took to the sky. Grace watched as the winds buffeted the delivery bird this way and that, and she felt a sinking feeling in the pit of her stomach. Help depended on some derpy bird that couldn't even fly straight. Wulfric's meaty hand on her shoulder startled her.

"I know she doesn't look like much, but Delibird's the best navigator in a snowstorm you ever saw," he said.

Grace nodded. "I suppose you would know best."

He smiled warmly. "Now then, let's go get your daughter back."

"Hey, guys?" Korrina said. "Looks like this cave goes in pretty deep. There's lights in the walls. I think we found our hideout."

"Great, let's go. Klefki, lead the way," Calem said, following Alain and Korrina into the cave.

Wulfric and Grace brought up the rear, and once inside, Grace had a sudden feeling of claustrophobia despite the cavern's enormity. She shivered and hugged herself, but Wulfric's wide frame next to her offered some comfort. He was a Gym Leader, maybe the strongest of them all in Kalos, and he was here to help.

"Thank you, Wulfric," she said, "for doing all this. I'm... I don't know what I would've done without your help."

"Well now, Grace, if you don't mind my saying so, I think you would've found a way to help Serena with or without my help."

"No I'm... I'm just a pleb. I can't do what you can do. I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for you and them."

He chuckled warmly. "Oh, I don't know about that. And besides, you're a lot stronger than you think. What's that they say about books and covers? I always liked that saying."

Grace thought of Delibird flying alone back to Snowbelle, such a small thing entrusted with such an important task, and Wulfric had every confidence in her. Grace bit her lip.

"I have a feeling the hardest part is still ahead," she confided in him. "And I'm afraid."

Wulfric smiled down at her. He had a warm and friendly face despite his nature. She had misjudged him when they first met, she realized. They all had. He was not cold at all. He just wanted to help.

"That's all right. I'm afraid, too. But you know something? I think when we have to face our fears, we find out who we really are. You're a mother who wants to help her daughter. No amount of fear can change that, all it can do is give you a reason to fight harder."

Tears stung Grace's eyes at his sincerity, and she rubbed them hastily so he wouldn't see. When Malva had shown up to kidnap Serena and Calem fought her alone, Grace could hardly move from the sidewalk. She had been so afraid, for Serena and for herself, that she could not even make herself move. Now, she had crossed a continent and joined forces with some of the strongest Pokémon trainers around, and she had braved the treacherous White Mountains. If someone had told her a month ago that this was where she would be, descending deeper into the mountain hideout of a mad scientist in search of her missing daughter, Grace would never have believed it.

"Yes," she said. "Yes, I want to believe that."

Korrina and her Pangoro were leading the march, and Alain and Heliolisk followed with Calem and Klefki. Heliolisk's Flash lit up the dark cave enough to see in front of them, but there was no substitute for the Dark-type Pangoro's night vision. His furry black coattails dragged on the stone floor behind it, a soft scraping sound that reminded Grace of Bugs scuttling. She felt like the walls had eyes and were watching her, but that was silly. It was just nerves. She dug around in her pocket for Rhyhorn's and Fletchling's Pokéballs anyway, just to hold onto something.

"Hey, up there," Korrina said. "Calem, I think Pangoro found something. Is this the right way?"

Calem jogged to catch up with Korrina, and Klefki followed. "What do you think, Klefki?"

"I don't see anything," Alain said, peering through the gloom.

They had come to a fork in the road with two branching tunnels. Pangoro wanted to go left, but Klefki floated right.

"It's that way," Calem said. "That's where Serena is."

"Yeah, but Pangoro found something," Korrina said. "I think we should check it out."

"What's going on?" Grace said.

"It looks like we're at a crossroads," Alain said. "Klefki says right, but Pangoro wants to go left."

"Then we should follow Klefki," Grace said. "He knows how to find Serena."

"I know, but Pangoro's eyes don't lie in the dark. I think we should check out whatever he found just to be safe. We weren't exactly subtle getting in here," Korrina said.

"Korrina's right," Alain said. "We have to assume Laevus and Malva know we're here. Which is why I think you should take Wulfric with you."

"Wait, what?" Korrina said.

"I'm happy to go, but I don't want to get in the middle of a lover's quarrel. It's bad luck," Wulfric said.

"I don't think we should split up," Calem said.

"If we don't, whatever or whoever's down that way," Alain indicated the left passage, "could sneak up on us. I can't think of anyone better than two Gym Leaders to shut down whatever's waiting down there."

Wulfric thought about that. "That sounds fine to me, I suppose."

Korrina sighed, clearly displeased. "Alain, are you sure? Without Wulfric and me, you'll have a lot on your plate." She glanced at Calem.

"Yeah, I'm sure. Calem and I will be fine, and Grace can take care of herself, clearly."

"And Malva?"

"Malva's Alain's problem," Calem said. "We agreed. I'm not gonna fly off the handle and go after her again, so you don't have to worry about me."

Korrina looked abashed. "Sorry, Calem, but I had to ask."

"I'm here for Serena, that's it," Calem said.

"If we run into Malva, I'll handle her," Alain said.

"And if I do?" Korrina said.

"Then I trust you to kick her ass for me."

Grace peered down the right path, unsure. If Serena was that way, that was where she was going. But she did not like the idea of splitting up, not one bit.

"This is one large hideout," Wulfric said. "I'll bet these passages all meet up again someplace, or I'll eat my left boot."

"Okay," Korrina said. "For the record, I don't like this, but I don't want this Laevus guy surprising us from behind, either. Go, and when Wulfric and I deal with whatever's down there, we'll look for you."

Soon, Grace was following Calem and Alain down the right passage with Klefki, and Wulfric and Korrina had disappeared down the left passage. Without Wulfric, Grace felt more exposed, vulnerable, but she told herself she just had to deal with it. Serena was here, so close. Alain also seemed more on edge, though she could not imagine why when he had that monstrous Tyrantrum to back him up.

"How much farther, Calem?" Grace asked.

"I think we're getting close. Klefki?" he said.

Klefki jingled as he floated ahead, and Grace wondered if that was a yes. They came to a set of metal doors, far smaller than the ones blocking the entrance, and Calem tried them.

"Locked," Calem said, reaching for a Pokéball. "Stand back."

Grace and Alain watched with Heliolisk in between them as Calem released Bisharp. She was of a height with Calem and looked more like a weapon of torture than any Pokémon.

"Calem likes his knives, huh?" Alain whispered to her.

"Tear down that door, Bisharp," Calem said.

Bisharp flew at the door, a flurry of razors and blades, and ripped into it like a turkey dinner. The metal ripped and whined like it was nothing but cloth, and soon there was nothing but a pile of shredded metal and iron dust where the door had once stood. Calem didn't wait and stepped over the debris to continue forward.

"I like them, too," Grace said to Alain as she hastily went after Calem.

Alain chuckled and followed with Heliolisk. The passage Klefki led them down opened up into a wide cavern several stories tall. Grace was no learned woman of science, but to her layman's eyes it looked like they had stumbled into a subterranean laboratory replete with all manner of fancy equipment whose names she probably couldn't pronounce. There were computers and microscopes, tables littered with documents, and what looked like some sophisticated medical equipment that reminded her of a hospital. On the far end, more passages led to other rooms, though none of these were blocked by locked doors. Above, thick glass created a roof for the cavern that opened up to the outside world above. It had started to snow at some point since the group entered the mountain, and flurries covered the glass in an undulating blanket of white.

"Only three? Where's the rest of you lapdogs?"

A woman entered the lab with two Flare Agents flanking her regaled in their trademark red outfits and sunglasses despite the dim cavern lighting. Grace went pale as she recognized the woman. She would never forget that face, that voice.

"Malva," Calem spat, reaching for Aegislash strapped to his back. The Ghost sword was immediately awake and floating, sword and shield hovering over Calem and connected to him only by the tattered black ribbons.

Malva, dressed for the bitter winter weather in a white parka, tipped her tinted sunglasses and squinted at Calem. "You look familiar... Have I tried to kill you before?"

Calem looked ready to return the favor, but Alain put his arm out to block Calem and positioned himself in between Malva and Calem.

"Malva," he said, approaching. Heliolisk hopped alongside him leaking static as she sensed a threat in Malva. "You're supposed to be dead."

Grace swallowed hard at the sight of a female Pyroar skulking around Malva and her guards. She looked hungry as she bared her teeth in a snarl.

"Wow," Malva said. "Alain, is that you? Now this is a surprise."

"Where's Serena?" Alain demanded.

"Is that what this is about?" Malva pulled out a small handful of Pokéballs from her jacket pocket and played with them in her slender hand. "Interesting... Does Lysandre know you're here? Or did he send you personally?"

Grace was having trouble following their conversation. What was this about Lysandre? Alain had said Malva and her brother Laevus had likely defected from Team Flare to pursue their own agenda here. And Alain himself had left Team Flare a long time ago. Didn't Malva know that?

Something's weird here.

"Oh no," Alain said, drawing out his remaining two Pokéballs. "I'm just here for you."

"Alain," Calem hissed.

"Go," Alain said. "Find Serena. I'll handle Malva."

"You'll handle me? Titan, you couldn't handle your own cock if it came with an instruction manual," Malva said. She nodded to her two Flare men, and they produced Pokéballs of their own and split up, intending to surround Grace's group.

Klefki and Bisharp boldly prepared to attack, the latter brandishing her bladed fists and the former jingling annoyingly. Aegislash remained eerily silent as her sharp blade reflected the light from the lamps hammered into the walls. Perhaps they remembered Malva and how she had killed their teammate, Escavalier, in their last encounter. Grace sure as hell remembered, but she also remembered the plan they had discussed and discreetly laid a hand on Calem's shoulder.

"Let Alain fight Malva. We have to get to Serena," she whispered.

"I think that might be a little harder than we originally thought," Calem said as he watched the Flare Agents Malva had brought with her. They began to release their Pokémon to fight the intruders.

The Flare Agent to the left, a middle-aged man swaddled in red and white, had a Swoobat, a male Meowstic, and a Diggersby. Swoobat took off flying, while Meowstic remained close to his trainer. Diggersby, a bulky rabbit Pokémon with enormous ears that functioned like industrial shovels, slapped his ears on the rock floor and broke through. The other Flare Agent, a much younger man in the same red and white winter gear as his colleagues, had a Swalot that filled the room with a fetid stench like old wet garbage and infection, and an Exploud that looked emaciated under his leathery skin save for his huge head and gaping mouth. Grace knew little about these Pokémon, but from the way Calem and his Pokémon were tense, even the normally exuberant Klefki, she was in no hurry to find out.

"This is between you and me, Malva," Alain said, ignoring her jibe. "You kidnapped an innocent girl from her home in the middle of the night. I'm here to pay you back for that."

Malva was no longer in a joking mood, and Grace shuddered at the look in her pretty eyes. Such a pretty face, she thought, so young and strong with the world at her feet. Why, then? Why go through all this? Why use her power to hurt little girls?

"I always hated Titans," Malva said. "Such self-serving liars. You're not here for the Magus, you're here for your own ego. Serena could be dead right now, and you'd still only care about fighting me. That's all you've ever cared about. I know you, Alain."

"No," Grace blurted out. "No, you're lying. My daughter's alive, I know it."

Malva looked genuinely surprised to see Grace here. "Well... I guess you'll find out for yourself. Guillaume, Marcel, take care of Mom and Prince Not-So-Charming over there. I don't want any distractions."

Guillaume and Marcel, the two Flare Agents working with Malva, began their attack. It quickly became apparent that they had worked together before because they coordinated their Pokémon's attacks without so much as a few words. Grace gasped and dug around her pockets for Fletchling's and Rhyhorns' Pokéballs.

But Calem was faster. Diggersby dug up the rocks he had crushed earlier with his ears and flung them at Calem, but Bisharp leaped into action, blades flying, and sliced right through them. But while Bisharp was distracted, Swalot belched out a Gunk Shot that went soaring clear across the cavern and separated into several smaller projectiles. A single drop of Swalot's poison could eat through flesh like acid, and Grace gasped.

It was Klefki that intervened without even a word of direction from Calem. The little Fairy shook his keys and conjured a mighty pink Crafty Shield that enveloped Grace and Calem like a bubble, and the Gunk Shot crashed against it and sloughed off the sides. Grace could hardly believe her eyes.

Heliolisk unleashed a Thunderbolt in the midst of the chaos, and Malva dashed out of the way. The Electric attack was drawn to a metal table and ricocheted off it to hit Exploud, but the dispersed attack was not enough to cripple him. The distraction was enough for Calem to release Staraptor, who took to the air with an angry squawk. Swoobat took off flying, afraid of the large raptor, and soon a vicious wind kicked up.

"You're not leaving here alive, Malva!" Alain shouted. "Not after what you've done!"

"We'll see about that," Malva said. "Noble Roar!"

Pyroar roared, but it was louder and fiercer than any roar Grace had ever heard, even from Serena's Rhydon. The sound hit her like lashes all over her body, crippling as it robbed her of coherent thought for a few seconds, and she fell to one knee. She lost track of the fight as she clutched her head, and the ground began to shake with the tremors of battle. When she looked up, Calem was fighting alongside his Pokémon and trying to get to Guillaume the Team Flare Agent, but Diggersby was throwing rocks, lab tables, and various scientific equipment at him. It was chaos, and Grace was caught right in the middle of it.

No, I have to find Serena. We can't waste time here!

"Calem!" she shouted, getting to her feet.

He moved fluidly and brought his sword hand down in a harsh arc. Aegislash moved accordingly and sliced a table clean in half with Sacred Sword. He heard Grace's call and searched for her.

"Find Serena!" he shouted. "I'll cover you!"

Before Grace had a moment to answer, a column of fire blasted just inches away and nearly fried her to a crisp. She fell forward on instinct, breathing hard and trembling in fear. Sweat beaded on her forehead, and the sleeve of her jacket had caught fire. She rolled to smother the flames before they could eat through the material to her flesh, horrified at the damage they'd caused to her thick parka in just mere seconds. This was really happening, she realized. They were fighting all around her, and she was stuck in the middle. There was no standing by on the sidewalk this time while Calem did all the work. She was in this now, had started all this. And Serena was counting on her.

I won't let you down, Serena.

Grace pulled herself up and broke into a run. Klefki was floating around Calem and looking for an opening to attack without compromising him.

"Klefki!" Grace shouted.

Klefki looked around, startled, and floated toward her.

"Find Serena," she said. "Take me to her."

Klefki jingled frantically and looked back at Calem fighting with his Pokémon. Above, Staraptor squawked and dug her talons into the stone wall, cracking it and barely missing Swoobat as the smaller Flyer Teleported away just out of reach.

"Please, Klefki," Grace pleaded with the odd Pokémon. "Please, help me."

"Go, now!" Calem shouted back at Grace. He'd managed to land a hit on Diggersby with Aegislash's Iron Head. The fat rabbit had a gaping wound in his belly and was spilling entrails all over the place, but still he beat the ground with his mighty ears and sent dangerous tremors through the cavern. Cracks ran up the walls, spider-thin but growing. Guillaume retreated with his Meowstic, a creepy black cat-like Pokémon with unblinking eyes.

"Klefki!" Grace said.

Klefki seemed to have made a decision and zoomed off toward one of the exits where Malva had come from, and Grace had to run to keep up. But Guillaume saw what she was doing and tried to stop her.

"Psychic!" he commanded Meowstic.

Meowstic's vacuous eyes turned white, and rippling energy rose off him like heat. Air and light and space seemed to bend as the invisible wave of Psychic energy careened toward Grace as she dashed for the exit. Klefki saw what was happening and turned back to protect Grace, but he was too slow. Grace didn't even have time to scream as she saw her life flash before her eyes.

But the pain never came. Calem jumped with all his strength and landed hard on the ground a few feet from Grace. Aesiglash came down hard and tore into the eerie Psychic wave with shadowy talons that seemed to cut through the very air. They took on a life of their own and reached for Meowstic, and the cat screeched in terror and fled. But he was not fast enough. One of the Shadow Claw's talons ripped into Meowstic and dashed him against the wall as though possessed. A sickly white smoke rose from where the spectral talon ripped into Meowstic, though there was no physical laceration. Meowstic jerked unnaturally and began to foam at the mouth.

"Go!" Calem said.

Grace was too horrified at the near brush with death to question him or what had just happened—how had he cut through an invisible attack like that? Klefki jingled loudly, trying to get Grace's attention, and she remembered herself. Calem could take care of himself. He was strong, Grace knew that, and she'd promised him she would stay alive for Serena's sake.

So she ran out of the lab before something else could attack her, Klefki hot on her heels, and the two of them wandered deeper into the mountain hideout. The sounds of battle echoed behind her, terrible and blood-curdling, but Calem was strong. Alain was strong. They had come too far to fail now.

"Lead the way, Klefki," Grace said. "I'm right behind you."

Klefki floated along, following a path only he could see, and Grace trusted that he knew where he was going.

I'm coming, Serena. Just hold on.


Korrina and Wulfric walked in silence with Pangoro leading the way. Neither wanted to break the silence, for neither knew what lay ahead. The passage was deathly silent, and their footsteps echoed painfully loudly against the walls. Or maybe it was just Korrina's imagination. She was nervous, she realized. Without Alain here, she was nervous. She could fight just as well without him, but she'd never realized how comforting his mere presence was.

"So, Gurkinn tells me you're a natural at Mega Evolution," Wulfric said casually.

"You talk to Grandpa?" Korrina said, genuinely surprised.

"Here and there. We old folk tend to keep tabs on each other."

Korrina smiled. "I wouldn't say I'm a natural. I can do it, if that's what you mean."

Wulfric chuckled. "Well, either you can do it or you can't. Not many can. It takes a very special bond between the Tamer and her Pokémon."

"Lucario and I have been Mega Evolving for a few years now. Grandpa says I still have a lot to learn," Korrina admitted.

"Good, good. The best thing you can do as a young person is recognize that there's always more to learn. You got years to do it. But me, I'm stuck with the way things are, and if they're not good, then I'm about as out o' luck as a gambler with two left feet."

Korrina made a face. "Wait, what? That doesn't make any sense."

"You know, a gambler with two left feet. He's got no money and he can't dance. If it was just one or the other, it wouldn't be half so unlucky, I tell you," Wulfric said.

Korrina bit back a laugh. "Sure, if you say so."

Pangoro growled suddenly, and Korrina froze. Wulfric, too, fell still and strained to listen.

"What is it, Pangoro?" Korrina whispered.

Pangoro lumbered on all fours, but his progress was slower and more cautious as he came upon whatever it was that had drawn his attention back at the fork. Korrina swallowed hard but bravely followed, a hand on Lucario's Pokéball and trying to mentally prepare herself for whatever, or whoever, was waiting up ahead.

What they found was another set of iron doors, but these were flung wide open. Someone had passed through here already. Wulfric sniffled.

"You smell that?" he said.

She did smell it. Sour and wet and coppery. It was coming from just beyond the doors. Korrina nodded and led Pangoro and Wulfric through the doors. What she found confirmed her suspicions. Dead bodies, both people and Pokémon, littered the cavern floor deeper into the passage. The last one she could see was a man flat on his stomach, but only his legs were visible around the bend in the passage. Korrina stepped gingerly over a Lickitung's corpse and bent down to examine it.

"It looks like he was torn apart," she said, observing the damage to the Pokémon's back. "Those are deep holes. Maybe horns."

Pangoro sniffed at a dead Furfrou and nudged the body with his nose, but the dog did not move.

Wulfric was more interested in the human bodies, and he squatted down next to the closest one. It was a woman dressed all in red. She had sunglasses on, but one lens was cracked and exposed her eye, frozen open and glazed with death.

"Whatever got them didn't care about making a mess," Korrina said.

"Hey, you said these guys were Team Flare, right?" Wulfric said as he studied the woman's body. "Why would they turn on their own?"

Korrina thought about that. "No, Alain said Malva and her brother Laevus probably defected from Team Flare. Sycamore said so, too."

"Then, did they keep the uniforms're something? Why is Team Flare here if those two called it quits? And look there." Wulfric pointed to the next body over. "They're all facing this way. Like they were trying to get out."

Korrina looked down the passageway and counted eleven human bodies. "That's a very good question."

Some noise was coming from up ahead around the corner, but Korrina couldn't make out what it was. She got up and walked closer, straining to listen, when she heard a scream followed by a dull thud. She froze in place, but there was no further screaming. Without hesitation, Korrina released Lucario. The jackal bared his teeth at the foul stench in the narrow corridor, and Pangoro rose on his hind legs at Lucario's sudden appearance. Wulfric joined her.

"Did you hear that?" Korrina whispered.

"Yes. I think it's time we go and meet this Team Flare gang," Wulfric said, tossing out a Pokéball of his own.

Abomasnow materialized in the flash of light, as tall as Pangoro and just as thick around. The temperature in the passageway dropped noticeably, and Korrina shivered. Abomasnow hissed, beak snapping, as he eyed Pangoro and Lucario, but Wulfric laid a hand on his lichen-encrusted belly, a silent reassurance.

"Well, I'm sure not getting any younger." Wulfric headed toward the bend in the passageway with Abomasnow, and Korrina had no choice but to follow.

When they came around the corner, the passage opened up into a larger room. There was a kitchen and a large dinner table in the center of the room, and an old TV with an adjustable antenna sat on a small stool in the corner in front of a folding chair. The man whose legs had been visible before turning the corner ended at the waist. His upper body had been ripped off, and intestines spilled onto the cavern floor freezing in congealed blood and shit. The rest of him was on the other side of the cavern bleeding out in the kitchen. The scream Korrina had heard had been a woman's, and she was currently suspended in midair in the clutches of a nightmarish Bug Korrina had only seen in pictures.

"Oh my god," Korrina said.

Mega Pinsir, having gained the ability to Fly upon Mega Evolving, hovered overhead with the Team Flare Agent caught between his massive pincers at the neck. From the way she was jerking erratically, her air supply was nearly cut off. Mega Pinsir snapped his pincers and popped off her head like a bottle cap, and her body fell to the floor with a wet smack. Her head rolled to a stop at Wulfric's feet, face frozen in a silent scream and bleeding all over Wulfric's fur-lined boots.

"What's this? More of you?" said an obese man wrapped up in a red and white parka bursting at the seams. He looked like an overstuffed sausage straining against its filmy packaging, and his beady eyes were narrow and suspicious. His balding head was sweaty, though the temperature in this room was well below comfortable.

He had a team of people with him, Team Flare Agents from the looks of them. A few had blood spatters on their jackets. Korrina suddenly understood what was going on. These had to be the defectors that had come with Malva and Laevus. The dead were dressed differently from them. So Team Flare had beaten her group here in pursuit of their betrayers, and from the looks of it, they had not succeeded in quelling the rebellion.

Mega Pinsir's buzzing was a loud droning, the sound Korrina had heard back in the cavern passage. He floated to the ground in between the fat man and Korrina and Wulfric.

"Are you Laevus?" Korrina demanded. Lucario growled next to her.

The fat man did not look pleased by her question. "I'll be asking the questions here. You don't look like Team Flare. Who are you?"

That has to be him, Korrina thought. But why does he have a Mega Pokémon?

She remembered what Sycamore had hypothesized, that perhaps Laevus had been studying a way for non-Tamers to use Mega Evolution, and all the blood drained from her face.

It couldn't be...

"Hello there," Wulfric said almost amiably. "Laevus, was it? Well, I'm Wulfric, Gym Leader of Snowbelle City, and I'm here looking for someone. Perhaps you've seen her?"

Laevus sputtered. "A Gym Leader? How did you find this place? What do you want?"

"Oh, well, I was just getting to that," Wulfric said with a smile. "I'm here looking for Serena. She's a nice girl, 'bout yea high." He cast a glance at Korrina and settled his hand at her shoulder, thought better of it, raised it a little higher, then sighed and let his hand drop. "Gosh, you know what, honestly, I'm not all that sure how tall she is. But I do know she's here somewhere, and she sure doesn't want to be. You know anything about that?"

Laevus looked at him like he'd sprouted antlers. "The Magus?" His double chins wriggled like fat maggots squirming under his skin. "She's mine. You can't have her, you...you thieves! You're here to steal my research, aren't you?!"

Korrina had heard enough. "It's over, Laevus. I'm Gym Leader Korrina of Shalour City. I see you have some goons here to do your dirty work for you, but it won't work against two Gym Leaders. Surrender peacefully, and we won't kill you."

Laevus gaped at her in shock. "How dare you speak to me like that! If Lysandre thinks he can send his little whores to do his dirty work, he's got another thing coming. Mega Pinsir! Show these two your power!"

Laevus raised his arm, and Mega Pinsir hissed in response. He lifted off the ground, a truly terrifying sight, and the barbed pincers on his head began to spin. The Flare Agents around Laevus looked to him for guidance.

"Sir, what should we do?" one of the men asked.

"Make sure the Magus is secure, you cretins!" Laevus said, spilling spittle on his chin. "Now!"

Two of the three ran off to do just that, and the other one remained ready to back up Laevus. He had a Pokémon of his own, a Gumshoos with frighteningly disproportionate jaws. Korrina was not in the mood for this bullshit.

"You're a skuff, right?" Korrina said. "How about I show you what a real Mega Evolved Pokémon can do?"

Laevus sputtered in fury at Korrina's blatant disrespect. "Attack! Kill her now!"

Korrina pulled up the sleeve of her jacket and sliced a thin cut into her palm with the tiny razor hidden in her sweatband. She quickly touched her bleeding hand to Lucario's back, and Lucario transformed. Taller, fiercer, and a hell of a lot stronger, Mega Lucario leaped into the air on powerful hind legs at Mega Pinsir, paws glowing as he conjured an Aura Sphere. The two Mega Pokémon collided in a brilliant explosion of light from Lucario's attack, the sound deafening. The battle began.