Chapter 25

Liam awoke startled by the sounds of shattered glass. It wasn't a quick and delicate noise like a dropped wine glass or plate. It was a splintered cacophony indicating something much bigger and much more dangerous. His first thoughts as he jumped out of bed were on finding out what it was before remembering that he had company.

His panic increased as he stood in the doorway to the living room and surveyed the scene. The ground was covered in shards of glass like jagged snowflakes. The storm had come from a furious Honchkorw. Liam mistakenly believed he had attacked Amira only for a second. Than his eyes adjusted to the darkness; or rather finally registered that the darkness crouched over her sleeping form wasn't a shadow cast from some unknown light source but was instead an independent and sentient thing. He believed her description and yet at the same time, the creature looked nothing like her words. It was a shadow but it wasn't humane looking at all. If it was meant to resemble a human, it had gotten it horribly wrong. Its torso was too thick, its limbs were too skinny and far too long. It had no face to recall, just two glowing bog lights that acted as eyes. Each second longer he stared at this thing, the colder he became. A sensation of biting frost began to grow on his fingers. It brought with it a slow creeping feeling of mortal danger from imminent death.

The creature was no less angry than his attacker from having his work disturbed and retaliated against the Honchkrow. From its hands, it fired a ball of purple shadow. Pluto took flight to avoid it and returned the volley with payback. The creature hastily retreated out the now open window, and the raven after it.

Braving the shards of glass against his bare feet, Liam ran to Amira's side. He grabbed her shoulders and feeling her having gone cold, his heart tightened and feared for the worst. He at first gently tried to shake her awake. When it didn't work, he began to handle her more roughly, shouting her name all the while.

The noise of the fight had neither woken her nor the rest of her pokémon. Without the creature's presence to put them in a deep sleep, her team slowly began to wake up. It was Luxor who had woken first, being closest to the source of the noise. He shook his head and lifted himself up to stretch, pushing Amira up straight and into Liam's arms. Bonaparte followed suit with Aurora being the last to shake off the affects of the deep sleep they had been forced in to.

His shouting caught their attention and immediately pushed their attention away from the damaged room around them. Confused but no less alarmed, they stared wide-eyed as Amira was slow to awaken. Her mind was still dazed in her dream but her body responded without hesitance to her fight or flight response. She screamed as loud as she could and immediately started pounding him with her fist. Some part of her had been awake through it all. The creature's power had fused nightmares and reality together, making her waking moments indistinguishable from her dreaming. She was no longer able to tell whether the person over her, whether anything around her, was real or some warped illusion.

Liam grabbed her fist and held her down to avoid her harming herself more than him.

"It's me," he shouted. "Wake up! It's me!"

Despite his strength, she broke his hold and landed a punch directly to his face. His voice was unrecognizable. It only sounded to her ears like some slow and deeply warped gurgling. She only stopped her panicked fighting at the sounds of her pokémon calling to her. They had moved closer to her but at a careful distance. Her eyes were unfocused and covered by a soft blue film. Her movements were still cagey and hostile. Had she truly heard them calling her or did she stare at them only to see something more terrifying?

Amira softened her quick breathing and covered her eyes with her hands. She sat shaking and saying nothing. She had fallen deeper this time. Its powers were stronger than before and was taking longer to wear off. All she could do was stay still and try to force her mind back to this world from the one where it had been.

Liam broke the silence. Even though she was calming down, he still held his sense of urgency.

"Your pokédex, where is it?"

"In my bag..." she answered slowly.

After rummaging through it, he clenched it tight in his hands. He ran back to his room for only a moment and then towards the door.

"Wait, where are you going?"

"You stay here," he ordered. "I'll be back."

He took the stairs down the hotel by leaps. There was some thing, some monster on the loose and it had to be stopped. He thought it would have perhaps been better to leave this to someone with more battling experience. But although Amira may have held a champion rank in her home region, she was just another normal trainer here. And not only was he her caretaker for the moment, but regardless of it all, she was in no condition to fight either way.

He took a pokéball from his pocket and threw it in the air. Released from it was a large snowy owl with blue and red triangular marks all over its body.

'Togekiss, the Jubilee Pokemon. It shares many blessings with people who respect one another's rights and avoid needless strife.'

Togekiss was a graceful and elegant pokémon. It was rarely used for battles but it was still classified as a bird of prey. Its hunting prowess was comparable to Pluto's and those skills were exactly what he needed.

"Togekiss, find Honchkrow and the shadow it's chasing. Bring it down!"

Togekiss bowed to its trainer and took off to follow his orders. Liam ran after it, trying his best not to fall far behind. Instead of weaving between buildings and poles, Togekiss flew above them in order to take the most direct route in pursuit. The two had left clear markers of the route they had taken. The creature with its unusually cold air, its suffocating darkness, and the sense of dread it created, Liam was actively going against his natural instincts to run towards it and not away. Pluto likewise had not passed by undisturbed. His repeated attacks created high winds that pulled at vines, tore apart branches, knocked loose sign posts, and tore open windows and curtains of the buildings he passed. He gritted his teeth at seeing the damage; a tornado would have been kinder.

The creature was trying to flee the confines of the city for the open sea. Although once it reached port, Pluto only intensified his assault. Possessing a much larger body and wing span as a Honckrow than he had as a Murkrow, he could no longer perform quick maneuvers around tight spaces and narrow alleys as before. The wide openness of the ocean was a much more preferential battlefield and with his wings, he could manipulate the tides to his advantage.

They weren't too far out for Liam to spot them as he reached the end of the canal. He jumped the barrier and landed on the rocky shore just as Togekiss was closing in on the battle. There was no telling how Pluto would react to having his unasked for assistance but he didn't have time to think about it. All he hoped for was that the two pokémon would be enough to defeat it.

He took Amira's pokédex from his pocket and pointed it at the creature, "now let's find out what you are."

The pokédex steadily beeped as it tried to capture an image of its subject. The distance and its erratic movements made it harder but its camera was well equipped for the numerous strange situations that researchers, especially zoologist, often found themselves in. After a moment, its light flashed solid and it brought up what information it had available on the creature.

'Darkrai, the Pitch-Black Pokémon. Legend has it that on a moonless night, Darkrai will lure people to sleep and unleash nightmares upon them. However, it means no harm.'

Finding out its identity raised more questions than it answered. He vaguely remembered stories about Darkrai. They were told around a campfire on summer nights or in a dark room illuminated only by a flashlight. It being the source of nightmares was well known. If some lost wanderer got too close to its home, it would put them to sleep and have them wake up screaming. Darkrai would be long gone by then. Never had the stories mentioned it attacking the same person more than once. Nor had they ever mentioned abductions. Even though the nightmares in and of themselves may have been considered harmless, the state they left their victims in surely were not. He doubted that it was as passive as the pokédex would have him believe.

Darkrai launched one attack after another but Pluto, although drowsy, refused to fall asleep. His restlessness only acted to agitate him further as he viciously retaliated. Yet his attacks were clumsy and Darkrai dodged them with ease. Liam took advantage of Pluto as a distraction and called for Togekiss to attack with Aura Sphere. Togekiss brought its wings together and summoned a blue ball of energy. Darkrai saw the bright blue light headed his way but couldn't move fast enough. His body, which already appeared to be made of clouds and shadow, slowly disintegrated.

There was no time to wrongfully assume that it had been defeated. Before Liam could question where it had gone, he felt it before he saw it, just over his shoulder. A cold hand shoved against his back and a crimson veil of shadow overtook his eyes. He could feel himself falling forward. He expected to hit the ground, but found himself jolted awake once more. He was upright on his feet just exactly as he had been.

From the very moment he opened his eyes again, he knew something was wrong. He was on a dark street that greatly resembled Canalave City but was very obviously wrong. They were only slightly off in their resemblance but it was enough for him to recognize. The buildings were just a bit too dim. The alleys between them seemed too narrow. The streets itself, no matter in which direction he looked or how he strained his eyes, stretched on with no end in sight.

The second thing he noticed, that he should've realized first, was that he himself had changed. It was the only vivid thing that stood out against the night. A single sharp detail from an otherwise foggy memory.

A long white dress tied at the waist with a slender blue ribbon. The simplicity of its elegance made it one if his favorites. His short blonde hair was hidden under a long wig, curled and dyed a dark purple to compliment the dress. A fur stole his his broad shoulders. Opaque tights hid his legs. Padded lingerie gave him an ideally feminine shape. Makeup gave him an unnatural beauty.

It wasn't a disguise to hide that he was a man. It wasn't it a type of play for comedy or satire. Pokémon Contests in Sinnoh were open to all genders so he didn't need to dress as a woman at all. It was just that he enjoyed the ritual. Like painting or photography, he saw it as an art and a craft. It was another form of self-expression. But he knew not everyone was so open-minded.

"Hey, is that a chick or a dude?"

He immediately put one foot in front of the other and began walking away. He took in a deep breath of air, not too loud lest his discomfort be noticed and he gave himself away. He had to remain calm but more importantly, he had to keep moving.

"It's a woman, isn't it," said a second voice. "You can't really tell from behind though."

"Right? Hey, you!"

He walked faster yet the voices didn't get farther away. He knew this was the nightmare Darkrai had created for him. He had always been careful to avoid ending up in this situation, to not become a headline. He didn't attend contests that were held after dark. He didn't leave either his hotel or the contest hall in full dress. He went everywhere by car and never set foot on the streets at night. He never went anywhere without at least one offensive Pokémon. He never made eye contact. He never spoke up. His heart raced in his chest. He thought he had done everything right.

"Yo! Wait up. Just turn around!"

He reminded himself that he was physically stronger than them. He wasn't completely defenseless. He would be hurt more than likely, but he wouldn't die. He wouldn't let them kill him.

"We said stop!"

He jumped at the sudden sound. Broken glass, a beer bottle that had been thrown and ended up just at his feet. One step more and it would've hit him. But there were two. Where was the other?

"What're you scared for? You really are a dude? Turn around."

He balled his fists and slowly moved his feet into a position that would make it easier for him to duck. He slipped out of his heels and picked them up with one hand. If he ever needed a weapon. A hand grabbed him by the shoulder and tried to pull him back. He shoved it away from him and finally faced his pursuers.

He dropped his voice as deep as it would go, "what do you want?"

"Ha ha," the first last uncomfortably. "It is a man! Gross."

"That's disgusting," said the other in outrage. "You fa-!"

He didn't finish his taunting. He had already raised his bottle with the intention to smash it against his head. Liam had only a second to choose between shielding himself or fighting back. He brought his arm up in front of his face and braced himself. He had to think through it. What would happen after? Could he survive after all?

He was painfully awoken by a bright light and a sensation that made him scream aloud. He opened his eyes to find his resistance had made him accidentally punch Luxray right on the nose. Luxray roared back and shook off the stinging sensation. He bared his fangs and moved forward to retaliate but Amira shooed him away.

"Stop it," she told him while waving him off. "Are you okay?"

Liam turned over on his side. He felt the need to vomit but nothing came. At least it cleared his breathing. It was only a nightmare but it had left him shaken. It took him a while to answer.

She called to him again, rubbing his back, "Liam?"

"I'm fine," he answered shortly.

He sat up straight and looked around, piecing together what had happened. Despite being told to stay behind, Amira had rode after him on Ponyta. She had found him lying on the ground and had called Luxray to wake him up, likely by shocking him. Togekiss sat on a lamp post just behind them and stared at him with a worried expression. The seas were calm and there were no signs of either Darkrai or Pluto to be seen.

"Let's go back."

He was slow to stand, stumbling as he did and found himself leaning on her for support. Despite his actions in his dream, his body still had the effects of having fallen into a deep asleep. Once he had fully straightened up, he let her go.

She looked around and than finally to him for an answer, "but where's Pluto?"

He in turn looked to Togekiss. It shook its head and pointed towards the sea its wing.

"I don't know," he answered solemnly.

"We can't just leave him," she said frantically. "We have to go after him!"

"We don't know where he is!"

His shouted response made her flinch. He hadn't meant to yell. His exhaustion and his own fears were to blame for his foul mood. He knew he was wrong for taking it out on her.

"Let's go back first," he said in a softer tone. "Then we'll deal with this."

There was no relief waiting for him at the hotel as he had hoped. First, he had to explain to the manager why and how the windows had broken. No matter how he argued it, Darkrai's intrusion was not an acceptable answer without proof. Then he had to explain to the director why the company needed to reimburse the hotel for damages that had nothing to do with his assigned job. Lastly, they both had to file police reports about a rogue Pokémon whether they wanted to or not.

By the time they were finished, they wanted nothing more than to sleep but refused to close their eyes.

They were settled into a new room where Liam sat on the couch with Blissey tending to his feet. There was broken glass, splinters, and pebbles to be taken out. Salve had to be applied and open cuts to be cleaned before bandages could be put on. It would have been better, and wholly more appropriate, to be done in the bathroom or even the bedroom but he finally understood Amira's reluctance to being alone. They hadn't spoken a single word to each other in hours but the presence of another person was better than none. She sat by the window dividing her attention between looking out for Pluto and looking down at Darkrai's information in her Pokédex. What did she dream, he wondered. What nightmare had Darkrai made her see?

"He'll come back." He broke the silence to try and soothe her.

"He," she asked nervously.

"Your honchkrow. He'll come back. They're birds who'll return to a steady food source. You've obviously been feeding him all this time so of course he'll return."

"Oh..." She looked at him and gave a small nod then turned her eyes back to the window.

She secretly doubted that the issue was that simple. In truth, she was equally worried over whether Pluto would return just as much as the possibility that he wouldn't. He could hunt well enough on his own and didn't need her for food. He had reached his final evolution and no longer needed her for that either. He could return to Eterna Forest and unquestionably rule the area as the strongest Pokémon around. Pluto valued his independence and he had it now. His return depended on not what kept him fed but on what would make him happiest. Did she make him happy is what had her worried. If any of her Pokemon were given the choice, what would they choose? She looked down at her Pokédex and flipped through its entries until she got to Honchkrow. She asked herself how could she be a better trainer to him? To them all? And was it a change she was even capable of?

"Now to address the elephant in the room."

She whipped her head in his direction and stared intensely.

"An elephant!? You have one?"

"It's an expression," he corrected her irritantly. "Surely you aren't that literal. I mean about Darkrai. According to the Pokédex, it mostly acts in self-defense. Did you do anything to offend it?"

"I didn't," she answered angrily. "And it attacked me first! How can it be self-defense when I was sleeping!?"

"Mhmm..." he nodded in agreement and. "It's obviously tied to that old inn then. But why would it continue to come after you even after that? You didn't take something from there, did you? Like some cursed photo or antique jewelry?"

"Of course not! I know better than that! That's how people always die in horror movies!"

A memory suddenly struck her. She hadn't taken something from the inn but she did have something.

"Uhm... Does Darkrai stay just at the old inn or is it all abandoned houses," she asked carefully.

He narrowed his eyes and gritted his teeth. So she did have something after all.

"Whatever it is, put it back!"

"It's just this!"

She reached through her bag and rummaged around until she felt the hard stone slab. She pulled out one of the plaques she had found in the old mansion in Eterna City and handed it to him.

"I found it a long time ago. I've found others since then too so I don't think this is it. But is it?"

Liam held it and ran his fingers over the cuneiform. It looked like something that belonged in a museum. It gave off a creepy enough vibe that he wouldn't be surprised if this thing had attracted Darkrai.

"Do you know what it is," she asked. "I can't read it."

"Neither can I. What are you even carrying it for if you don't know what it is?"

She defended her decision with "I thought it might come in handy!"

"You picked up trash is what I think."

She snatched the plate back from him and held it tight in her arms.

"But," he held up a finger to stop her from pouting, "if it's worth anything, you could give the Oreburgh Museum a shot."

"Right, so we're going there next?"

"No," he answered flatly. "Work comes comes first."

"But you said-"

"Do it own your own time. Use the library here. Or ask the gym leader if you're that interested in old rocks."

She plopped down on the couch and stewed in her anger all the same. How helpfully unhelpful could one person be.

"If I get rid of this, then no more Darkrai? No more nightmares?"

"It's a possibility. The only sure solution is a Cresselia feather."

"A what feather?"

He grabbed her pokédex and typed in the name. It brought up a picture of a pink, yellow, and blue pastel colored swan bathed in a soft light.

'Those who sleep holding Cresselia's feather are assured of joyful dreams. It is said to represent the crescent moon.'

"Cresselia passes over this town around the same time every year, usually in the autumn. The town holds a festival and collects the feathers that fall from Cresselia as it flies over. The feathers are supposed to ward off bad dreams when you put them under your pillow. And before you ask, no we're not staying until then."

"Then we go and find Cresselia!"

"We're not doing that either."

"So you'd think it better if Darkrai follows us forever and we never sleep again?! You can die of sleep deprivation you know!"

"I think it'd be better if we finish our jobs and get out of this town as soon as possible. Since its been chased off, try and sleep while you can. Call your Pokémon out if you need them to stand guard. We start work first thing tomorrow. No more delays."

She let out a low growl but followed his advice. She lay on the floor huddled around her Pokémon but couldn't close her eyes. Instead she reached for her phone and stared at the dimly lit screen. All she could do once again was count down the hours until sunrise.

To her surprise, Liam didn't retreat to his room as usual. He walked to the balcony and let out his Togekiss. Perhaps it was to let it get fresh air or to have it keep guard. Then he returned to his seat on the couch and pulled out his laptop. Even as tired as he was, he didn't want to fall asleep either. He didn't want the chance of his nightmare picking up where he left off. For a dream, it had too much basis in reality. He would instead let his work take his mind off of it. Despite his words that they sleep, they both refused and awaited the morning in silence.