Chapter 28
Plagued
Dusk Mines was no longer filled with the chaotic activity of its terror-stricken inhabitants. There were no more Pokémon running about with minds plagued by the thoughts of their wounded leader. No, everything was back to normal now. The various members of the northern Fellowship were once again treading through its passages, their minds at ease. Their leader was alive and had fully recovered. There was no longer a need for hysteria.
Even as Erebus Woods' atmosphere flowed through the many corridors of Dusk Mines, the organization held a distinct, calming aura.
At the moment, Chloe was leading the members of Team Vendetta to Yimitri's office. She hadn't said a single word since she told the children about the Sableye's request. The only time she had spoken after giving her announcement was to ask why Terron hadn't been wearing a helmet shortly before he put it back on. Even after she had received a quick answer, she didn't give much of a reply. As the Turtwig continued to escort the four, Terron only grew more and more curious about her. He had seen her before he went to Erebus Woods, and also just as he had escaped from the killer dungeon. Yet, he knew nothing about who she was.
"Hey um… you're Chloe, right?" Terron asked.
The Turtwig turned her head to him, blinking oddly.
"Yes, that's my name," she said. "But, I don't believe I told you that, I'm afraid. Sorry I never introduced myself to you properly when I saw you this morning. I didn't think I would be interacting with you four much."
"It's fine, but I have a question," Terron started to say. "I wanted to know who you are. Like, if you're on Yimtri's team or something."
"Not really. My liege has no such thing as a team, unlike your own Fellowship," Chloe replied. "He is the only leader of Dusk Mines. However, he does have assistants since the work he has can be too much for one Pokémon. I'm one of those assistants. I'm the one who escorts the criminals into Erebus Woods for lying to the Fellowship. I usually have someone to help to make sure the captives don't overwhelm me, but it's a shift rather than an actual duty for them. I'm also the one who accompanies my liege when he must go somewhere other than here."
"So that's why we saw you outside of Erebus Woods," Terron said. "Sounds like a tough job where you have to do all that."
"It's not really," Chloe shrugged. "I only have to escort criminals about once a week since we don't receive too many of them from both your Fellowship and this one. The only part of my responsibilities that can be frustrating at times are when I have to go with my liege across Shiron. There are times where I wish I didn't have to go due to the location being a rather unpleasant place, but I'm forced to."
"But you didn't go with Yimtri to Erebus Woods," Terron stated, growing confused. "I thought you had to go with him wherever he went."
The Turtwig cast him a glare. It wasn't filled with murderous intent, but it still struck unease into the Cubone. He wasn't sure whether she was intentionally trying to drive this feeling into him, or if it was simply Erebus's influence making her do this.
"No, I did not," she replied. "I don't go in there. I don't go inside any home of Erebus. Those are the only places I refuse to visit, no matter what anyone says. I don't want Erebus to increase the damage it's done to me. I'd rather not end up like my liege. It's a fate I do my best to avoid."
Terron frowned uncomfortably. Perhaps he should have avoided the statement. It was obviously a touchy subject to Chloe.
The Turtwig let out a sigh as her eyes softened. She shook her head as if to clear her clouded mind before looking away.
After several minutes of silence passed, Chloe brought the children to their destination. Once again, the three Houndoom guards were patrolling the metal door. They looked upon the five Pokémon with narrow eyes.
"Our liege wants to speak with the Aurora Town members," Chloe stated. "If you will, call upon a ghost so that we may go inside to speak with him."
One of the Houndoom nodded slowly before letting out a howl. It echoed through the corridor, traveling far into the reaches of the mines until it disappeared. Seconds later, a familiar Duskull flew out of a nearby wall and appeared before the Pokémon.
"Ah, it's Chloe and the west Fellowship members!" Rip cried pleasantly. "Wishing to go inside, are you?"
"Yes, our liege wants to speak with them," the Turtwig nodded. "We need you to get us inside. You can do that for us, can't you?"
"Why yes, of course I can," Rip smiled.
The three Houndoom stepped away from the door and went to its sides. Without further ado, the Duskull took the five through the makeshift door, one at a time. When all had entered the office, they found the Sableye leader sitting upon his chair, gazing at them expectantly. He wore an unnerving grin, but it wasn't nearly as menacing as the ones he gave while in Erebus Woods.
Terron felt himself having déjà vu at seeing Yimtri. This felt so much like when he first met the Sableye.
"And so, I see you children once more," Yimtri stated before bringing his gaze to the Duskull. "If you may, Rip, please give us time to speak in private."
"Of course, my liege," the Duskull nodded.
With a humble bow, Rip drifted into the wall and went out of sight. Yimtri slowly slid out of his chair and went around his desk. He stopped before the children, allowing them to see that he had truly recovered from his injuries completely. Not a single scratch was on him and his eyes shined with such vigor. It was as though his near-death experience never happened. The only sign that proved that the battle had actually happened was his Spell Cape. Zekra had torn new holes into it with her temporary Sableye claws.
As the Cubone looked upon that tattered cape, his eyes grew tremendously. It was only now that he realized how much the other, older tears in Yimtri's cape resembled the tears that Zekra made.
Those holes are from claw marks… they're not part of the cape's design. They're all from battles…
Before he could further ponder the implications of this, Terron saw Chloe leave Team Vendetta's side to join Yimtri's. She stood next to him, gazing at the children with a blank stare while Yimtri looked upon them with his usual smile.
The four children suddenly felt an anxious chill run down their spines. Though Yimtri no longer seemed overshadowed by his psychotic tendencies, seeing him once more with that smile was unnerving. They worried that at any second, he would suddenly turn and attack them. After all, Erebus's influence reached to the very place they stood in…
"I'm not going to kill you, children," Yimtri said as his smile immediately faded away. "You act as though you haven't left Erebus Woods."
"Well you said that Erebus still affects you here!" Zekra stated. "So it could happen!"
"That's only partially true," Yimtri replied calmly. "Erebus affects everyone near its vicinity, but it can't provoke us into hostility like it can in its domain… usually. Besides, that's what I have Chloe here for. She'll help bring me back if Erebus decides to exert its influence on me while I speak with you four. After all, I don't exactly want Erebus to corrupt my words. It has a much stronger hold on me now, thanks to my actions. It could make me do many unfortunate things much more easily now. But, the consequences of that can be lessened with Chloe here. She has the valuable ability to resist Erebus's influence since she avoids any direct contact with it and its homes. Yet, she'll still succumb to Erebus if you find the proper trigger."
"I'd rather not discuss that fact," Chloe frowned. "You know that as well, my liege."
"Yes, touchy little subject for you," Yimtri remarked. "Well, to bring you some solace, just remember that you could be far worse off. You could be like myself."
The Sableye grinned as he pat the Turtwig's head with a claw, much to her disapproval. The children stared at one another, finding the casualness of the grim subject to be awkward.
"Oh, that's right," Yimtri said, suddenly realizing something. "I almost forgot something from having all these distractions. Like recovering after nearly killing you four and having to calm my panic-stricken members once I awoke…"
Yimtri then went behind his desk before coming back with his satchel and two bone clubs. He tossed the bones to the Cubone, who managed to catch the weapons with ease.
"Those are some new clubs for you, Terron," Yimtri said. "I figured I'd give you them after breaking your other ones back in Erebus Woods. They're Gabite femurs if my memory of their skeletal structure is still accurate."
"Why do you have these bones…?" Terron asked reluctantly.
"We have a few members who also like to use bones for weapons," Yimtri said carelessly. "We keep a wide variety as well since many are very specific in what kind of bones they want. They come from the bodies we slaughter for our larder. We'd do the same for the criminal's bones whenever we visit Erebus Woods, but Erebus doesn't let us take any corpses out of its domain for some reason. Now, before I forget, it's time to give you the evolving stones I still possess…"
He dug his claw into the bag and searched through its contents until he pulled out the evolution stones Terron and Syn had collected with him. He tossed them to the children, and once they had caught them, the stones were stuffed into their own bag that was around Terron's person.
"Thanks for the evolution stones," Syn said. "We're sure our Fellowship will really like them."
"Yes, of course they will. Anyway, the four of you are probably wondering why I called you here," Yimtri said as he became more serious. "The answer to that question is simple: it's to discuss this entire Erebus incident. Don't mind Chloe here; everything we're going to speak of is already a part of her knowledge."
The team stared at the Sableye, their memories of the dungeon flowing through their minds. Mostly everything they had wanted to know had been answered after Yimtri finally succumbed to Erebus and tried to kill them. They understood why Dusk Mines and its members were so ominous, which had been their main question. What else was there to discuss now that the mystery had been solved?
"Thanks to Erebus overwhelming me and intensifying the psychotic aspect of my personality," Yimtri began to say, "I revealed the true nature of the dungeon it lives in and its effects on our Fellowship. Had I been given a choice, I never would have explained anything. I only intended for you to know that Erebus Woods is very different from other dungeons, just like every other Pokémon that's not a member of Dusk Mines finds out. I thought I could resist Erebus's influence, but I'm afraid having spent twenty years around it makes me very susceptible to its atmosphere. And so now… because of my foolish choice… you four and Vantis know everything."
"You're saying that us knowing this is a bad thing?" Terron asked. "Why did you have to keep it a secret in the first place?"
The Sableye's claws curled inward as his eyes flickered eerily. The Cubone visibly flinched at the sight.
"Because if the other Fellowships found out about the one known as Erebus that lives within Erebus Woods and its effects on us, especially the Pledge Mountain Fellowship, a number of unwanted consequences could happen," Yimtri answered with a grim scowl. "There are many outcomes I dread, but there's one in particular that I fear the most: that the other Fellowships might kill us."
The four were taken aback by the statement. Even Chloe grimaced at the reminder of such a possible outcome.
"K-Kill you?!" Syn gasped. "Why would they kill a fifth of their followers?!"
"Let's put it this way. Pretend that you're the leader of a group of merchants," Yimtri started to say. "All of your fellow merchants are functioning quite well and are fulfilling the roles you give them. Everyone's role is to go to a certain place and gather certain items found within. That way, you can sell them at the market the next day. All of the members get along and there is no strife between any of you. And then one day… after months and months of this… you notice that one of those members is acting strangely. The bloodthirsty tendencies he showed very little of are now completely taking over his personality. Though he still performs his assigned tasks admirably, his mind continues to succumb to insanity. You ask him what's happened to him, and he tells you that the place he visits makes him this way. You investigate the very place he speaks of and find that he's absolutely right. Though you can't feel your own sanity disappearing, you can tell that prolonged exposure to this environment will corrupt your well-being.
"So what do you do now? Well, first you think that you can simply send your deranged member to a different location so that he might continue to work for you. After all, once he's removed from that horrifying environment, he should no longer be affected by it and return to normal, right? So you try that. You give your suffering member a different location to scavenge for items. You hope he returns to his usual self."
A quiet, bitter laugh escaped Yimtri's mouth.
"But no… your member doesn't return to normal. Oh no! His descent into insanity only continues to grow! You ask him what's wrong, and he tells you that whatever was in the original environment won't go away. It's following him in every location. This being that lived within the environment won't leave him alone. He says it won't go away now that it has a firm hold on him! He can't escape it!"
The laughter became more hysteric. Chloe opened her mouth to prevent the Sableye's own descent into insanity, but he held up his hand to indicate that he was still well. The Turtwig let out a short breath, but didn't argue.
"So what do you do with this member of yours who's forever become a lunatic? There's no way he can recover. He's still your member, and he still acts like himself at times, but he's still gone. He's not the member you knew anymore. And not only that, but whenever he's having his psychotic outbursts, he's giving away all of the information you want to keep secret to the world. He's telling everyone things he really shouldn't. He's telling the world about how you scam your customers sometimes. How you give special discounts to those who truly don't deserve them. How you work with the Black Market. How you not only let criminals go free when you see them, but also pay them with illegal items! How there's a swarm of Pokémon-killing monsters flying all over Shiron, devouring everything in sight!
"So what do you do?! You can't let them keep living like this where they're ruining how you run things! No, you can't! You have to get rid of them! They're long gone anyway, so it doesn't matter! They're never going to get better! You have to kill them so that they'll stop talking! Even if they're one of your closest friends, they still need to die! You have to keep everything a secret! You have to get rid of those who threaten such a delicate matter! They can't live! They're not allowed to! They have to die!"
The four children each took a step back, cowering at the sudden screaming.
"Every one of them has to die! There can't be any survivors! Even the ones who still keep most of their sanity have to be eliminated! The secret of the Plagued Ones has to be kept! Even if we have to completely massacre a fifth of our members, we have to keep the secret safe! Every last one of those insane-"
"STOP IT!"
The children nearly jumped in the air at the yell. They brought their attention to the Turtwig to find that she was staring up at the Sableye with an intense glare. Not even an ounce of fear was visible in her eyes. It was only steely resolve.
"You're already losing yourself!" Chloe stated harshly. "Snap out of it!"
The laughter slowly, but steadily, began to cease. When all had become silent, Yimtri twisted his mouth into an agitated scowl. But, it didn't seem to be aimed for the team. It seemed to be directed to himself.
"Anyway, that's your answer. Sorry for getting carried away," Yimtri said, still repulsed by his previous words. "We can't tell the other Fellowships since they'll see their secrets being threatened and they'll kill us in order to keep those secrets safe. Which brings me to a favor I wish to ask of you four; never tell the other Fellowships of Erebus. Though it's in every dungeon… none of the other Fellowships see it. Erebus only seems to appear in Erebus Woods. That is, until you manage to escape Erebus Woods. Once you enter Erebus Woods and leave, you'll start hearing Erebus in the other Mystery Dungeons. It somehow marks you and follows you that way… but only if you've heard its voice while traveling through Erebus Woods. Which thankfully, we managed to avoid until now…"
The Sableye gave what was supposed to be a friendly grin despite it appearing terrifying to Terron.
"So, will you keep the knowledge of Erebus and its influence a secret?" Yimtri asked. "We would appreciate it if the other Fellowships didn't try to kill us."
"And if we refuse…?" Terron asked cautiously.
"Well, that truly depends," Yimtri said considerably. "We might just erase your memories of Erebus with the help of our resident Beheeyem. That's always an option we can manage, especially since we know how to do it to those who should be immune to psychic abilities, like little Zekra. Or we could use the Fellowship's favorite strategy of keeping secrets…"
Yimtri held up a claw that suddenly became ablaze with black shadows.
"And, I really don't want to resort to that option after I helped you escape Erebus Woods," he hissed. "No, I'd rather not do that to members of the Fellowship. But, I'll do it if you somehow resist the memory loss. Or I could always treat you like the criminals and toss you into Erebus Woods. So many options to choose from…"
"Also know that if you try to fight back, it won't just be my liege you have to deal with," Chloe said to the Cubone, taking a step forward. "The entire Dusk Mines Fellowship will stand against you. And if you end up telling the others about Erebus despite swearing to secrecy, we will hunt you down, even if we must chase you all over Shiron."
Terron grimaced as he felt the familiar wave of dread come over him. The two Dusk Mines inhabitants continued to give him such nerve-wracking glances, as if to drive the feeling deep into the Cubone's core.
"You guys really aren't any better than the other Fellowships…" the Cubone muttered under his breath. "All of you are taking such extremist measures to keep secrets…"
"At least we give you the choice of letting you live out the rest of your lives in blissful ignorance," Yimtri scoffed. "Now, what will you do? Do you intend to keep Erebus a secret? Or do we have to keep you quiet? The choice is yours."
Terron let out an irritated groan. Yimtri was bent on keeping the being known as Erebus a secret from the world, just as how the Fellowship was with the Plagued Ones. He was going to make sure that the secret stayed safe, no matter the cost. To protect himself and his members… he took such drastic and paranoid measures. The Cubone vaguely wondered if Erebus was making Yimtri filled with such paranoia.
"… fine, I won't tell anyone about Erebus," the Cubone said icily. "You have my word."
"And mine too," Zekra added in.
Syn and Impetus quickly nodded to support the group's oath to the Dusk Mines leader. The Sableye smiled, the tension leaving his eyes as the energy encasing his claws dissipated. Chloe resumed her place beside him and continued to look upon the children attentively.
"I'm glad you made that choice," Yimtri said somewhat pleasantly. "Do keep to your promise. Now both you children and Vantis have been convinced. Because you've made this choice, I'll answer any questions you have for me. I'm sure that you have many floating in your troubled minds right now, and I can ease those thoughts. Consider it as my appreciation for your choice."
"Alright, well, I've got a couple of questions," Zekra said, wasting no time in pondering since she already had her questions in mind. "First one is how you made everyone look like you. You know, how'd you make everyone hallucinate with that light?"
"Light… oh yes, the light from my eyes. That was a little something called 'Confuse Ray'," Yimtri said casually. "Or, an amplified version of it. It's supposed to simply confuse Pokémon and make them see their allies as enemies, yet keep their true form's voices. Yet, thanks to my Spell Cape's ability to make ghostly abilities such as Confuse Ray more powerful, the ray added the voice effect to make the hallucination more realistic. It's a very effective tactic I use while dealing with ambushes, which is why I no doubt used it on you five. Thankfully, Vantis was able to figure out what it was and prevented himself from falling for its tricks once more. Otherwise, I probably would have continued to use it and probably have killed you amongst the confusion."
"Wonderful…" Zekra deadpanned. "Well, at least I can use the technique the normal way whenever I take your form, and maybe even that Substitute power if possible… just seems kinda hard to do when I don't really get how it works."
"You'll understand if you keep practicing it," Yimtri replied. "Just don't practice too often since it drains your health every time you use it. Like the Deception Amulet. You'll wear out very quickly that way."
Zekra nodded as she made a mental note of the Sableye's words. A long frown started to form on her muzzle as her next question came to mind.
"So… you know Zev, huh?" Zekra asked, slowly losing the volume in her voice.
The Sableye slightly tilted his head to the side.
"You were talking about him during the battle," Zekra said. "You thought I was him when I took on his form… you know, Zeverous."
Yimtri's eyes somehow seemed to widen. His face paled as the realization struck him.
"You… you're his sister, aren't you, Zekra?" Yimtri asked quietly. "He mentioned he had one a number of times, but he never gave a name…"
Zekra, who was too stunned for words, could only nod in response. Impetus and Syn cast odd stares at the two Pokémon, not understanding the significance behind Zeverous other than his blood ties to Zekra. Terron, being able to comprehend the subject, remained silent. This was Zekra's time to find answers to one of her most sought-out questions. She didn't need any distractions.
"Yes, I know Zeverous," Yimtri confirmed. "He was one of my unofficial members in the late winter from two years ago."
"So you knew him before he disappeared…" Zekra realized.
"What?" Yimtri asked, not quite understanding what was going through her mind.
"Oh, uh nothing," Zekra dismissed. "What were you saying about Zev? He worked for you?"
"Yes, he did for a time. For three months, to be precise," Yimtri explained. "You see, thanks to his profession, he had a number of skills I found very valuable to the Fellowship. Though he focused on using one specific skill, he still had a plethora of other useful talents. He could effectively locate hidden treasures within minutes while it took others hours to find the exact same item. He was an ace in combat, even without using his illusion abilities. And when he did use the power of illusions with the combined power of that Deception Amulet, it was truly a spectacle to behold. Such an amazing Pokémon he was. So when given the chance, I hired him. I wanted to make him a member, but he would say that it wasn't part of his lifestyle to remain in one place. Still, I managed to make him work for me for those three months by giving him an immense amount of money he couldn't refuse."
Yimtri smiled pleasantly at the memories.
"And then what happened after those three months passed?" Zekra asked.
The light in Yimtri's eyes dimmed as a troubled frown replaced the smile. He glanced off to the side.
"Zeverous left and never returned," he answered. "I tried to convince him to stay, but he refused to keep working for me. He had discovered Erebus in the dungeon after two months of working with us and was desperate to get away from it. He finished his time with me, most likely out of dedication, but afterwards, he wanted nothing to do with us. So he ran away from Dusk Mines and Erebus, never to be seen again. When I saw you take Zeverous's form, I thought for a brief moment that you were really him and Erebus somehow captured him. Yet, as soon as you began to act suspicious, I realized you really weren't Zeverous. And from that point… I only pretended to think you were Zeverous since it was preventing you from attacking me. It made a decent distraction. Still, now that I really look at you, I can see how much of Zeverous you have in you. You have his eyes. You two truly are siblings."
Zekra let out a depressing sigh as she glanced down at the amulet tied around her neck. She put her paw through the loop and held out the necklace toward the Sableye.
"Is that why you gave me this?" she asked. "Did you give this to me because I reminded you so much of Zev?"
"Perhaps I did subconsciously, but no, that wasn't the intended reason," Yimtri replied as he brought his eyes back to Zekra. "That was given to you in case I became overwhelmed by Erebus. I had a feeling it would happen, so I gave you that to help protect yourself. Do keep the amulet, though. I don't need it, and Zeverous certainly isn't coming back to reclaim it. He refused to take it after I offered to it when he left after all…"
Zekra continued to wear a melancholy frown as the information about her brother became absorbed into her mind. She remained quiet, contemplating in something. Suddenly, she went forward and stopped in front of the Sableye. Chloe cast her a warning glare, in case Zekra chose to attack, but remained stationary beside the leader. Zekra didn't seem to notice Chloe as she looked up at the Sableye.
"So you don't know what's happened to him?" Zekra asked in despair. "You don't know if he's still alive or not?"
"No, I'm afraid not," Yimtri sighed. "No one's seen him, and we're not entirely sure whether he's still among the living or in the spirit world. I'm sorry that I had to be the one to inform you of this. I know that it's difficult to cope with lost family members."
The Sableye set a claw upon her furry head and gingerly caressed her scalp with his claws, somehow not puncturing her skin with their sharp points. Zekra cringed as she felt the Sableye's dreadful aura seep into her, but it quickly ceased after a second. She released a sigh.
"What kind of profession does Zev have?" the Zorua then asked. "He never told me the reason he traveled so much, but you sure seem to know. Can you tell me what it was? It's the last thing I'll ask about him."
Yimtri stared at Zekra in silence for a moment longer than what might have been necessary.
"He was a treasure hunter," he said dully. "He spent most of his days traveling Shiron, searching for rare and valuable items to sell. Whether they were in Mystery Dungeons or caverns lost to time, he would search wherever he could to find these items. I found him because he was searching for some sort of rare gem that was worth a fortune near Dusk Mines."
Zekra nodded. Yimtri released his claw from her head as the Zorua went back to her place beside her friends. There was a bittersweet glow in her eyes now that she had received answers to Zev's past whereabouts.
"Sooo, guess I'll ask a question that's been bugging me," Terron said, breaking the silence. "Why do you guys make other Fellowship members go into Erebus Woods when you can just send your own? I mean, you could probably spare more lives that way if you send experienced Pokémon into there who know what to expect… Is it because Erebus makes you guys do that?"
"Not necessarily," Yimtri said. "Erebus has nothing to do with making you go fetch your own evolving stones. No, we just do that because you'll have a much easier time finding your stones and escaping than my members would. We only go inside Erebus Woods if we have to, which is typically whenever we have to escort one of your teams into there or need the stones for our own reasons. We used to go inside Erebus Woods much more frequently, but we ceased that practice when we realized that Erebus was increasing its influence on us every time we went in there and made it very difficult to leave. You saw what happened when I went in there with you. Just imagine that happening to everyone, except their cases being much milder than my own. So, we avoid that by sending uncorrupted ones into Erebus Woods. It's a choice on our part, not Erebus's."
"Though, there are times when the influence makes us want to trap Pokémon into Erebus's domain," Chloe then said distastefully. "You've seen it. We're not immune to it."
Terron grit his teeth, suddenly remembering the criminals he had seen earlier. He said no more once.
"So, I believe that answers your question," Yimtri said as he clasped his hands together. "Any others?"
Terron thought for a moment. Yes, he actually did have more questions. Two more questions to be precise. But, just as he was figuring out how to phrase the questions, someone else started talking.
"Well… there's something I don't understand about when you were fighting us," Syn said uneasily.
"And that would be?" Yimtri asked as he put on his usual smile, as if finding these on-going questions to be very amusing.
Syn seemed to shrink on the spot and shifted around uncomfortably.
"When you attacked us, you put that darkness into my brain," the Snivy started to say, his voice barely above a whisper. "When you did that, I was taken to these woods and there were these eyes there. All of these eyes… they were watching me and telling me weird things. I can't remember what they said, but it was really creepy. And I couldn't escape, no matter how far I ran. It was only until Terron restored some of my health that I was able to get out of there. What did you do to me so that I ended up in such a weird place?"
"Yeah, the same thing happened to me too when you did that darkness thing," Zekra added. "It kinda felt like I died and went to some nightmare world…"
"I've honestly never understood why I do that to Pokémon I attack while corrupted by my bloodlust," Yimtri stated as he looked down upon his claws. "You're not the first ones to say that. Many others who I attacked said the very same things. And still, I don't know what it is. I'm not sure what happens to you. It's a question I've asked for so long, but have never found the answer to."
The Sableye set a claw against his head as he seemed to ponder more in the question.
"It kinda sounds like something the Plagued Ones would do to you…" Syn said quietly.
Everyone brought their disturbed gazes to the Snivy. They found he was staring at the Sableye, his eyes eerily vacant.
"What did you just say?" Yimtri gawked.
"What you did to Zekra and I sounds like something Plagued Ones would do when they get ahold of you," Syn clarified. "When someone gets attacked by Plagued Ones, it's safe to assume that something really weird happens to them when they die. Like having their spirits being taken to a world of darkness rather than the spirit world…"
Yimtri took a step back and frowned uncomfortably. He understood the accusation that Syn was making just as much as the others did.
"You're saying that I'm a Plagued One?" Yimtri asked dubiously. "Is that what you're truly trying to imply?"
"Well, after we defeated you, you did start giving off those wisps that Plagued Ones give off," Syn pointed out. "So-"
"You know that statement is completely absurd, don't you?" Yimtri snapped, suddenly growing defensive. "I'm not a Plagued One, I can assure you that. Though Plagued Ones have been revealed to be intelligent creatures by your Fellowship, they can't pretend to be normal Pokémon. I'm clearly a normal Sableye, even if I'm corrupted by Erebus's influence. Plagued Ones only have one form, which resembles a ghost in ways. Besides, I'm not massacring everything in sight. That's a notable trait of the Plagued Ones."
"Then maybe you're just turning into one…" Syn reasoned.
The Sableye flinched at the comment, and for just a moment, the team could see absolute terror flash in his eyes. The four slowly widened their eyes as the pieces started to come together in their mind. When Chloe saw this, she stepped in front of Yimtri. She glared sharply at the team.
"I wouldn't say that," she growled. "That's a very dire thing to accuse someone of."
"Maybe everyone here is turning into Plagued Ones…" Syn continued to say. "Maybe when you get trapped in Erebus Woods, you start turning into a Plagued One…"
Chloe scowled, but said nothing. She held her protective and unwavering stance.
"Yeah… it makes sense when I think about it," Zekra said. "I mean, the Plagued Ones… there's always so many of them. They have to be growing in numbers to do that. Maybe in order to do that… they do something to the ones they kill. Maybe they don't actually kill anyone. I mean, whenever they attack, they never leave any bodies. It's like the bodies disappear into thin air. Maybe… they just do something to their victims to turn them into Plagued Ones…"
"And King once told us that Plagued Ones might be the cause of Mystery Dungeons," Terron said. "So maybe this 'Erebus' is actually some kind of special Plagued One that lives in each dungeon. Maybe when the Plagued Ones attack in their swarms, they kidnap all of their victims and dump them into Mystery Dungeons. And then, once they're trapped in there… that special Plagued One starts turning the other Pokémon into their own kind over time. I think Erebus Woods is much more dangerous than the other dungeons because it might be the main base of the Plagued Ones, so it's the one that can turn Pokémon into Plagued Ones quickest. So maybe the influence it has here can make you turn into a Plagued Ones over time… even if you're not in the dungeon since it's so powerful. I mean… having your bloodlust overwhelm you sounds a lot like how the Plagued Ones act…"
"It would explain why the feral ones in the dungeons are more aggressive than they should be," Impetus stated. "We ferals do not crave violence. We only fight if we feel threatened or need flesh to fight off hunger. Feral ones in dungeons are not like us. They wish to kill everything in sight. I see it in their eyes. Plagued Ones are corrupting them. You are just like the feral ones. You live in the Plagued Ones' influence and your violent ways fill you. The atmosphere of here is the same one I feel within all dungeons. There is a resemblance. The feral ones might even be the ones the Plagued Ones trap, where its influence is slowly taking over them before they completely change. There are always so many of them."
"So yeah… when putting all of that together," Syn began to conclude, "it seems pretty clear that you guys are turning into Plagued Ones. But, you guys keep stalling that by escaping from Erebus Woods. But you still act like Plagued Ones outside of the dungeon because you're still in the middle of the transformation. You even said that you stopped going into the dungeon because it keeps gaining a firmer hold on you. So… every time you go into that dungeon… possibly any dungeon… this 'Erebus' is just continuing the process. It might even be continuing the process if you're just living right next to it. All of you are going to turn into-"
"SILENCE!"
Syn abruptly stopped talking and gulped.
The Sableye was gripping his head with his hands, digging the sharp claws into his brain. His body trembled, but none of the children could tell whether it was because he was enraged or utterly terrified.
"I've heard enough!" Yimtri cried. "Leave my office, now! That's an order from one of your Fellowship leaders!"
"You could stop the transformation, though!" Terron tried to reason. "If you just leave this area and go somewhere else-"
"GET OUT OF HERE!" Yimtri screamed, his eyes now burning with ethereal light. "GET OUT, NOW! AND DON'T YOU DARE MENTION THIS INFORMATION TO ANYONE!"
The four looked to Chloe for help, only to find that she was staring down the group with a glare completely consumed by disdain. She remained rooted to her spot in front of Yimtri, no longer serving her purpose of making sure Yimtri remained stable.
Becoming unnerved at what would happen if they didn't follow Yimtri's commands, the children rushed to the metal door. They loudly banged their fists into it as they cried out for someone to let them out. Not even a second later, Rip came drifting through the wall. He glanced at Yimtri for but a brief moment before looking back at the children with eyes wrought in unease.
He hurriedly pushed all four through the door at once, where they all tumbled out the other side an instant later. The Houndoom guards looked upon them questionably as the team got to their feet, gasping for breath. Rip sheepishly glanced at the children.
"Um… I think you should leave my liege alone for a while," the Duskull suggested. "I've never seen him so unhinged before… sooo I guess you four should relax for the rest of the day. We have this garden you can relax in if you want, but it's up to you. I'll just leave you alone… just… just ask me or someone else where the garden is if you want to visit."
Rip quickly drifted down the corridor, fading away into the darkness and leaving the sight of the four children. They took a moment to recollect themselves and process everything that had just happened. It all happened so quickly, like a blur…
"Don't even bother trying to go back in there," one of the Houndoom guards growled. "If the liege wants to speak to you, he'll come visit you. Otherwise, you will probably not see him again. We will make sure that you cannot reach him if he wishes for the lack of your presence."
The children were dismayed at this information, but nodded their heads in understanding. Seeing as how they couldn't stay near the office, the four began to walk away. They weren't sure whether they'd go to their room or to this garden Rip spoke of, but all that mattered right now was that they left the area surrounding Yimtri's office. The unblinking stares the Houndoom gave them were unnerving. Though, it was nowhere near as unnerving as the information the children had gathered about Dusk Mines.
So… everyone here is turning into Plagued Ones, or at least, by the looks of things they sure are. Terron reflected mentally. One of the Fellowships is becoming filled with their very enemies. But, hopefully we won't turn into them. I mean, I know we heard Erebus talking, but I don't feel like I have a bunch of violent thoughts in my head now. I'm not acting like a Plagued One. So, I should be safe.
An image of Zekra and Syn's lifeless bodies from the battle with Yimtri suddenly flashed into his mind. The moment he somehow sent their spirits to an unknown world.
But Zekra and Syn… I think they were getting turned into Plagued Ones back there. That's what Yimtri was really doing to us when Erebus practically controlled him; he was trying to plague all of us. He wasn't actually trying to kill us... maybe.
I know Zekra and Syn didn't get to finish the transformation, but they still started it. Will they continue to turn into Plagued Ones every time we enter a dungeon now that they've begun the process? Or will they remain normal Pokémon? What's going to happen to them…?
Terron took a moment to glance at the two he thought of. Syn was staring absently ahead of himself, as if unsure of how he was to react to the information they had gathered. He was simply in a nulling shock. Yet, he still seemed to be reality by the way he still seemed to have such vigor as he walked through the corridors.
Zekra, on the other hand, wasn't quite so. Her eyes were also distantly vacant like Syn's, yet Terron could see very distinct traces of depression and wrath within those eyes. She was no doubt having a horrible reaction to the Erebus information in her mind, especially to the potential truth that she might become a Plagued One in time. Though the details of such transformation were unclear, it was no doubt plaguing her entire mind. Terron could see that, even if she wasn't saying anything.
Terron sighed as he pat Zekra on the head in an attempt to comfort her. She had no reaction to such gesture. She didn't push the Cubone away, or give him an appreciative smile. There wasn't even a glimmer in her eyes. She was completely gone from reality.
I wish we could still talk to Yimtri about this so we can figure out if they're really turning into Plagued Ones, but he probably won't want to see us again.
Maybe we should tell the Fellowship about this, though. I mean… they need to know. But, if we do, everyone here is going to kill us. I don't want to live the life of a fugitive where every second of my life is in danger. But… if I don't tell anyone…
Before the Cubone could ponder in his troubled thoughts some more, he noticed someone leaving a room in the tunnel the children were walking through. It was a Weavile that wore a tattered red scarf around its neck.
Impetus and Terron immediately froze in place as a wave of memories overcame them. For just a moment, they could no longer feel their all-encompassing dread. Their minds were far too stunned to settle for one emotion. Even Zekra seemed to come out of her trance as soon as she saw the Weavile. Syn, being the only one who didn't understand the situation, looked up at them quizzically.
"What's the matter?" he asked. "You guys look like you've seen a ghost… I mean, a dead Pokémon's spirit."
Just then, Impetus shot forward and sent a well-placed kick into the Weavile's stomach. It went the Weavile flying into the wall, where Impetus was quick to follow up with another kick. However, the Weavile was able to see the attack coming and managed to roll out of the way.
It looked up at the Mienfoo in bewilderment, not understanding what had just happened. Yet, as it continued to gaze upon her, its eyes suddenly became grew larger than what seemed possible.
The rest of Team Vendetta quickly came in to ambush the Weavile. Terron and Zekra leapt at it, managing to tackle the ice-type into the ground as it remained distracted. Zekra sank her fangs into its arm while the Cubone stamped his foot into the Weavile's chest to keep him down.
"What are you guys doing?!" Syn asked in horror, being the only one who was not surrounding the Weavile.
"Yeah, what are you children doing?!" the Weavile asked.
"Don't play stupid with us!" Zekra quipped. "We know who you are! You're that Weavile that attacked us on Diamond Dust Mountain!"
"I have no idea what you children are ranting on about," the Weavile grimaced. "You're clearly mixing me up with another Weavile."
"That's highly unlikely," Impetus growled.
The Mienfoo gathered power in her paw, but just as she was going to press it into the Weavile's face, something violently yanked her away. Shortly after, Zekra and Terron were pulled away from the Weavile as well. They tumbled to the ground, where they found themselves surrounded by three Houndoom, maws brimming with flames. Standing behind the dogs was a small crowd of other Pokémon the team had never seen before. But, must notable of the Pokémon was Yimtri, who was right beside the Houndoom.
He seemed far more foreboding than he had been when the children last saw him moments ago.
"I don't know what kind of callous rules they allow in your Fellowship," Yimtri said, seething in bitter disdain, "but here, we don't exactly tolerate assaults on our members."
The children's eyes grew.
"M-Member?!" Zekra croaked. "You're joking!"
Terron glanced at the Weavile's claw to find that there was a peculiar mark engraved into his flesh. It appeared to be an inscription of a gem of sorts, three lines slashing through it in a similar fashion as seen on the Cubone's own Fellowship mark. He slowly brought his gaze to the Sableye, and for the first time, he also saw a mark on Yimtri's left claw. It was the very same symbol, the only difference being that Yimtri's mark held a pair of menacing eyes within the jeweled shape.
These marks were no doubt Fellowship marks. Though they held quite a difference from the Aurora Town marks, they were still the Fellowship symbols. They all had the same three lines within whatever symbol they chose. That was too much of a coincidence.
Zekra saw the marks not long after the Cubone did.
"But… but he attacked us!" Zekra pleaded. "This Weavile tried to kill us when we were exploring a mountain a few weeks ago!"
Yimtri's scowl only seemed to deepen. He brought his gaze over to the Weavile.
"Drae, these children claim to know you," he stated. "Do they seem familiar to you at all?"
The Weavile shook his head as he slowly rose to his feet.
"No, they don't, my liege," the one named Drae said solemnly. "Never seen these children until now. Perhaps they've mistaken me for another. After all, I'm not the only Weavile in the world."
Yimtri continued to keep his eyes glued to the Weavile's, saying nothing.
"Don't listen to him!" Zekra shouted irritably. "He's lying to you! He attacked us while we were at Diamond Dust Mountain because we saw him with this Aggron corpse! I don't know why he'd want to kill us over that, but he wanted to! He really tried to-"
"That's enough," Yimtri snapped, keeping his voice moderately low.
The Sableye approached the three children and gave each of them a cold and unsettling stare.
"I've heard enough out of you children," he said. "Obviously, there's been some kind of misunderstanding. I know for a fact that Drae would never even think about harming other Fellowship members. Maybe I might have believed you if you accidentally encountered him in a Mystery Dungeon where Erebus might have influenced him to attack, but no, you did not. You encountered him in an ordinary environment, where Erebus has no hostile control over us. Your story is nonsense. You did not encounter him. You no doubt met some other Weavile."
"But-"
"SILENCE!" Yimtri screeched, making the children leap back a few inches. "You children are going to be escorted to the gardens, where you can stay and rest your minds until you've regained your rationality. You will not harm any more members. Have I made myself clear?"
Grudgingly, the three nodded. The Sableye let out a snort as he motioned for a few of his members to come forward. After a small commotion, a Zangoose and Mismagius came forward and stopped before the children. Drae wandered away, disappearing out of sight while Yimtri and the others turned to leave in the opposite direction. As they went away, Syn emerged from within the crowd and hurriedly made his way back to his friends.
"Are you guys okay?" Syn asked worriedly.
"Yeah, we're fine," Terron said, still feeling bitter. "They didn't hurt us."
"Well that's a relief," Syn sighed. "But, what do you mean that Weavile attacked you? When did this hap-"
"Alright, no more stalling," the Zangoose cut in. "Come on, it's time to go out. You can talk about your little 'incident' there."
The Zangoose gently but firmly pushed the children forward with the blunt side of its claws. With a groan of irritation, the four began to walk down the tunnel and headed toward their destination, their escorts watching them carefully from behind.
After being directed through Dusk Mines' several lengthy passages, Team Vendetta was finally brought to another exit of the enclosed facility and into the gardens Yimtri spoke of. It was located somewhere behind the mountain the Fellowship was built into, based on what the Cubone could tell.
What lay before the children were an expansive sight of various trees and flowers, being very similar to a park rather than a garden. Every bit of vegetation was kept in perfect condition, and several empty baskets rested in the shade of the fruit-bearing vegetation. Various Pokémon were about the vicinity, in the sections of the garden where there were nothing but open fields. None of these Pokémon seemed to be here for any kind of punishment. In fact, all of them seemed rather peaceful as they strolled about or collected berries from the many trees for harvest.
"We'll let you come back inside after you stay out here for an hour," the Mismagius said. "Until then, feel free to do as you wish. We'll be waiting right here."
The four didn't say anything, choosing instead to go into the garden in silence. The sun was already starting to set over the horizon, casting its warm colors over the children. Yet, neither of them could actually feel the pleasantness of the disappearing light.
Only a couple of minutes passed before they spotted someone familiar lounging by a tree. It was Vantis, surrounded by several apple cores. Just like Yimtri, not a single injury was present upon him. When he noticed the team's presence, he sat up.
"Oh, hello there!" Vantis said cheerily. "I was looking for you guys back at our room, but you weren't there. So I just stayed here since it's a breath of nice air and a good place to relax."
"You aren't staying in the medical wing?" the Snivy asked as he and the others crowded around the Flygon.
"No, they released me a couple hours ago," Vantis said. "They got me healed up pretty quickly, though I had to stay there for a little while longer since Yimtri wanted to talk to me."
"Was it about how he wanted you to keep Erebus a secret?" Terron asked bitterly.
The Flygon frowned uncomfortably.
"Yeah, that was it," Vantis answered. "And I'm guessing he asked you guys too."
"We shouldn't have to keep this a secret," Terron spat. "The other Fellowships deserve to know. They should know that one of their divisions are going insane and turning into Plagued Ones."
"Wh…What?!" Vantis cried, his face losing all color. "What do you mean they're turning into Plagued Ones? Where'd you get that from?"
The Cubone and others went on to explain their theory to the Flygon, telling him all of their supporting evidence that lead to such an insidious theory. By the time they had finished, their leader was not well. It looked as though he was on the verge of fainting from the sheer horror.
"Well, that really does point to everyone here being turned into Plagued Ones," Vantis cringed. "Did you tell Yimtri this?"
"Yeah, we told him, alright," Zekra frowned. "He started yelling at us and kicked out of his office because of it. And now, he's so hostile toward us. I think he just realizes we have a point and just doesn't want to admit it."
"Or maybe he's acting that way so that you don't actually realize what's really going through his head," Vantis sighed.
"What do you mean?" Zekra asked curiously.
"Well, think about it," Vantis began to explain. "Imagine that you found out you're being turned into a bunch of monsters against your will. You can't do anything to stop it, and if any outsiders find out, they're going to kill you before you become that monster. Every day is now filled with worries that you're either going to finish the transformation, or someone is going to kill you. Either way, your days are ending, and there's nothing you can do about it. How would that make you feel?"
Zekra set her gaze to the grass in front of her paws.
"Scared," she answered hollowly.
"Exactly. And, you just can't go showing these feelings to everyone around you," Vantis continued. "You're the leader of a powerful organization. Everyone looks to you for guidance. If you start panicking, so will everyone else. Everyone's going to go crazy and your whole organization will fall into chaos. So, you have to put up a mask to keep everyone calm. You can't show weakness. Even if you have to show a completely different emotion to cover up the one you truly feel, it sometimes has to be done. It's part of being a leader. So, I'm sure he's just terrified, and is trying his best not to show it. Or maybe he's trying so hard to deny it, that another side of him shows when you mention it…"
Vantis glanced off to the side.
"Still… the more and more we talk about this, the more I begin to question whether we should keep Erebus a secret," he added. "I know they're doing it because they're scared, but…"
"Yeah, I don't know what to think either," Terron admitted. "If we don't tell the Fellowship, they might turn into Plagued Ones. I don't know how long it'll take, but it's going to happen. I mean, Yimtri's pretty unstable. He's probably going to become a Plagued Ones in a couple of months, or maybe in a few years since he seems to be avoiding Erebus Woods. And then we'd also have to hide the fact that maybe all Mystery Dungeons turn Pokémon into Plagued Ones if you get trapped in them long enough. That's something the Fellowship should really know. But, if we do tell the Fellowship… everyone here is going to try to kill us. They'll figure out a way to evade the other Fellowships somehow to get that done. I know they will. I don't want to die just yet. There's still so much I need to figure out. So which option do we choose…?"
Silence wafted through the group. No one had an answer for such a difficult decision.
"Let's just think about this later," Vantis finally said after a while. "We'll sleep on it and discuss it on our way home tomorrow."
Terron, Syn, and Impetus nodded.
Zekra, on the other hand, suddenly began to clench her paws quietly, tearing out a few blades of grass.
"Plagued Ones…" Zekra mumbled to herself in both irritation and despair. "I don't want to be a Plagued One… is that's what really going to happen to me…? I want to kill them… and now I'm becoming one…"
"What are you talking about?" Vantis asked curiously.
"I don't want to talk about it," Zekra said distastefully. "I don't."
"Oh… well okay," Vantis said awkwardly. "Well uhhh… how come you guys are here anyway? What brings you to the gardens?"
"Attacking some Weavile here named Drae," Zekra seethed. "I don't wanna talk about that either. Impetus, you wanna explain it to him?"
The Mienfoo nodded before speaking to the Flygon. Syn listened in as well, wanting to hear more about the actual incident with the Weavile known as Drae. As the three became immersed in the topic, Zekra cast her glance at the Cubone. The repulsive stare she once held was melting away into a much more melancholy one, taking her bitterness with it.
"Hey ummm, is it okay if you and I talk in private for a moment?" she asked.
"Yeah, that's fine," Terron said with a nod. "We can go to that tree over there."
Zekra rose to her feet, followed by the Cubone. The two walked a little ways before stopping at the tree the Cubone had spoken of. They could still see their teammates and Vantis from where they were, but could no longer hear them talking out of earshot.
"So thanks for coming here," Zekra said, bringing her eyes back to Terron. "I figured I'd talk to you later, but we could just do it now so I can stop thinking about that Plagued One thing..."
The Zorua's eyes became ablaze with her illusion light at the thought of the demons. She seemed ready for a violent slaughter, but thankfully for Terron, was quick to regain composure. She let out a sigh and shook her head.
"Ugh, sorry. Getting distracted," Zekra said hastily.
"It's fine, but what is it that you wanted to talk about?" Terron asked.
"Well, I wanted to thank you for staying with me," Zekra said as her voice became calm once more. "It means a lot, knowing that you're still my friend, even after the horrible thing I did to you. And now, because of that, I want to start over. I don't want to pretend you're Terron anymore. So, I was wondering if I could call you something else."
Terron stared into her eyes. He could see the honesty behind her request.
"You don't have to. I mean, everyone's going to call me Terron from now on since that's what we told everyone," Terron stated gently. "And, I don't mind taking your friend's name. It can be like I'm honoring him or something."
"Still, as long as I'm calling you 'Terron', I'm going to start thinking of my old Terron," Zekra replied. "I want to stop doing that. I can't pretend you're him anymore. He's gone, and I have to accept that. So… I want to call you by a different name, so I can do that. No one else has to call you by that name, but I'd like to so I can start being a better friend. It can be like a personal thing between us."
She smiled brightly.
"Well, like I said, I don't mind being called Terron," the Cubone said again. "But, if you really want to, you can call me something else. If it makes you happy, I won't mind. What name do you think you'll call me?"
The Zorua started to laugh awkwardly. She rubbed her head with a paw.
"I don't know," Zekra admitted. "I haven't thought of one yet."
"Well, you should probably get thinking of one then," Terron chuckled. "I can't wait to see what it'll be."
Nightfall had come upon Dusk Mines. It was now a couple of hours past midnight, and everyone was fast asleep. The only ones who remained awake were the few nocturnal Pokémon who guarded the many tunnels within, or the watchers who stayed outside. Even still, their numbers were not many.
The Shuppet night watchers floated high above the Fellowship's entrance, keeping alert with their bright eyes. Their eyes saw everything from their positions. No Pokémon were in sight, leaving only an empty world to behold.
Without warning, one of the Shuppet dissipated into the air. Understanding what was going on, the remaining Shuppet opened its mouth to let out a ghostly shriek. Before it could, however, it suddenly felt a horrifying darkness pierce into its transparent body. Its body abruptly burst into streams that soon disappeared into the wind. Not a single sound had been made.
The scarf-wearing Weavile hiding near the entrance of Dusk Mines cautiously crept out. He glanced up at where the Shuppet had once been, checking to make sure they had been obliterated. Not even a trace of them was left. Their forms would reappear in time, as he didn't kill them, but for now, they had been eliminated from existence. He released a relieved sigh before looking back at the open world before him. He walked toward it, no longer hiding the sounds of his footsteps. There was no longer any need to stay concealed. He had escaped Dusk Mines undetected.
"Going somewhere, Drae?"
The Weavile froze in place as a wave of panic overcame him. He knew that voice. He had known that voice for so long.
A light suddenly appeared against the exterior wall of the Fellowship. Drae reluctantly twisted his head back to find a Sableye, its eyes now alight with an otherworldly brightness. Those eyes were locked onto the Weavile.
"Don't you think it's a bit too late to be strolling about?" Yimtri asked. "It's the dead of night… where creatures are lurking in the shadows… watching you… waiting to strike…"
The Weavile said nothing, once again donning a stoic persona.
"You know… I really didn't want to believe those children," Yimtri started to say. "I'd like to think that my members are honest with me… just as how I am honest with them."
The Sableye took a step forward, met by Drae taking a step back.
"You really did attack those children, didn't you?" Yimtri asked powerfully. "That's why you're leaving now, isn't it? So that I won't be able to catch you after I find out the truth."
Even still, Drae said nothing. Yimtri raised a claw high into the air.
"So you won't talk," the Sableye scowled. "I figured so. Well then… I'm afraid that leaves me with only one other option."
Drae bolted in the opposite direction of the Sableye. He knew he could outrun the leader. His speed was unmatched to many. There was no need to fight his way out.
The Weavile only managed to cover a few feet of ground before a giant fireball impacted his side. Drae fell to the ground as the fire began to consume his arm. He hastily put out the scorching flames with his hand and looked around to see what had sent the attack.
Drae was no longer alone with Yimtri. He was now surrounded by about thirty Pokémon, their forms now made visible by the various Chandelure and their now-lit lights within the group. All formed a distant circle around the Weavile, crouched into hostile positions. The ghostly flames from the Chandelure all around them gave an eerie glow to their eyes.
"You really thought I'd come alone?" Yimtri asked incredulously. "Thought you could easily escape me? Sorry, but I'm more prepared than you might assume I am."
His raised claw became infused with dark spiritual power.
"We don't have to resort to this option. You still have time to change your mind," Yimtri offered. "Surrender and answer my questions, and all of this can be avoided. It's your choice."
Drae cast a glare to the Dusk Mines leader. It was filled with such malice and trepidation.
There was a flicker of motion from the Weavile, and before anyone understood what was happening, they found him far above their heads.
A powerful storm of ice shards rained down upon the Pokémon, their jagged ends glistening. Every Pokémon scattered out of the way, managing to mostly avoid the icicles. There were some that had been impaled by the shards, but their numbers were few. And even so, the attack had not been fatal to anyone.
Yimtri pointed his claw to the airborne Weavile.
"For those of you who have flames within your being, aim it at Drae!" the Sableye ordered. "We mustn't let him escape!"
With an affirmative nod, many Pokémon opened their maws and released streams of fire at Drae. They meshed together, forming a massive pillar of flames. When the Weavile saw this, he put his claws close together and sent a vortex of darkness at the oncoming attack. The two energies collided, creating a large cloud of black smoke. It blinded the vision of the many Pokémon, but none panicked. They became quiet and listened for the commands of their leader, who could see through the impenetrable shroud.
The Sableye glanced around for a brief moment, seeing through the haze as if it weren't even there. Seconds later, he spotted Drae landing behind a Raichu, ready to take off.
"Behind you, Raut!" Yimtri warned.
The Raichu's tail quickly became filled with a bright light as he smacked it into the Weavile. Yet, before it could make contact, Drae leapt out of the way and took off running. The others fired a wide range of attacks at him, but he managed to avoid all of them with his swift movement. He gave all of them a mocking smile as he headed for the nearby fields. He would escape very soon.
Suddenly, Drae's foot caught over something. Because he had been moving so fast, he was unable to keep his balance and proceeded to fall over onto his face. As dirt flew into his mouth, something jumped onto his back and fired multiple projectiles at the back of his head. Drae let out a groan as he swiveled his head around and released a breath of sleet at whoever was holding him down. The unknown Pokémon quickly jumped off his back, hissing in pain.
"Now! Pin him down!"
Just as Drae was to get up, ten Pokémon surrounded him and pressed him into the ground with their paws. He blew ice shards at all of them, but they refused to release their hold on him. They only grit their teeth as they tolerated the pain.
"All of you may now do as you please. But do not kill him."
A moment later, the rest of the group appeared, where everywhere then proceeded to bombard Drae with a variety of attacks. The Weavile let out a scream as just about every element impacted him.
When the attacks finally stopped, and the dust cleared, Drae looked up to find Yimtri standing before him. The leader's eyes flickered.
"You brought this upon yourself," the Sableye said before turning to a Scizor in the group. "Put him out."
"Yes, my liege."
Yimtri stepped out of the way as the Scizor took his place. It gazed upon the Weavile for a brief moment before raising its metallic claws into the air. Drae struggled against the ones pinning him down, but it was futile.
The Scizor sent a mighty blow to Drae's head, instantly rendering him unconscious. Still, the ones surrounding him did not let their guard down. They turned to their leader, waiting for his commands.
"Take him to one of the prison cells," Yimtri instructed. "Restrain him with any kind of metal binds we may have. That is all. Thank you, all of you, for helping me capture him. I could not have done this by myself. Each of your efforts made this possible. As a thanks, all of you are relieved from your usual duties tomorrow. You will be given a free day for your help."
Everyone around the Sableye thanked him for his generosity with cheery smiles. He returned it with a small smile of his own.
"Now, go take care of Drae and get your rest," Yimtri said. "I'll see all of you in the morning."
The members nodded as one of them carefully picked up the frail form of the Weavile. Once he was in tow, all of the members went back to the mine. Yimtri watched each of them disappear before glancing at a very peculiar sight. He could see that there were two blades of grass somehow tied together in a knot. The knot rested upon the ground, having been pulled out somehow. He chuckled at the sight before bringing his gaze over to the one who had made the knot: Chloe.
She was still with Yimtri, mostly because her front legs were coated in ice. Every time she moved even an inch with them, she would wince in pain. When the Sableye saw this, he let out a dispirited sigh.
"Do you need assistance?" he asked gently.
"No, I'm fine," Chloe said quickly. "I just need to wait a few moments, and the ice should melt away. All that needs to be done is let time pass by."
"If you insist," the Sableye replied. "But, thank you for using your Grass Knot. It greatly helped in Drae's downfall. Without that, I'm not sure how much longer we would have had to chase him."
"It's no problem," the Turtwig smiled.
The two waited patiently, keeping each other company until the ice had completely melted off of Chloe. Once that had been resolved, they then went back to the Fellowship and retired for the night.
The next morning, the entire team and Vantis were awake and ready to go back home. They had quite an eventful time at Dusk Mines, and they couldn't wait to return to the peacefulness of Aurora Town where there wasn't an Erebus Woods or a frightful atmosphere filling the halls. As soon as the children finished their breakfast, they would finally depart from the northern Fellowship. Vantis had finished his breakfast long before them and told them that he would wait for them outside. He had said something about wanting to get some fresh air, which Team Vendetta had no problems with.
As the children ate in a semi-circle without the Flygon, Terron still found that he still wasn't sure whether he would keep his oath to Yimtri or not. His sleep had offered him no answers, and judging by how no one else talked about it, he imagined the others didn't have any answers either.
Perhaps they could discuss it on their flight home, where no one would be able to hear their conversation.
Just then, the door to their guest room opened, and in came Yimtri. He no longer seemed unsettling as the children had seen him yesterday. Instead, he seemed composed and organized, like a true leader. Still, this didn't ease the four Pokémon. They immediately stopped eating and grew tense.
"It seems I came before you left," he spoke as he closed the door behind him. "And even better, Vantis isn't here. Perfect."
"What do you want?" Zekra asked, her bitterness from yesterday still as powerful as before.
"Why, to talk to you children," Yimtri answered. "Why else?"
Zekra didn't say anything. The four watched as he took a few steps forward before stopping in front of the children. The glow in his eyes darkened.
"I want to talk to you, specifically, about Drae," the Sableye then said. "I'd like to hear more about that incident you had with him."
"Why?" Terron asked. "I thought you didn't believe us."
"No, that was a lie I had to fabricate in order for me to catch Drae off-guard when he tried to escape," Yimtri explained. "Besides, why would you have any reason to lie about such a matter? Do you really believe that I'm so oblivious and closed-minded that I wouldn't even consider the possibility that you're telling the truth?"
"Wait… you captured him?" Terron then asked.
"Yes, yes I did," the Sableye smiled. "With the help of my fellow followers, that is. He's locked up in one of our prison cells right now and we plan on interrogating him later."
The four children were at a loss for words. The Weavile that had once tried to attack them was now being held somewhere in Dusk Mines, and soon to be questioned. The meaning behind every cryptic word he had been speaking was going to be found soon. The agitation in their hearts greatly reduced, but still managed to faintly linger around.
"Now, if you do not mind," Yimtri then said, "please, tell me what happened when you met him. Describe every little detail you can remember. It'll greatly help in trying to gain information out of him."
For the next few minutes, Zekra, Terron, and Impetus went on to tell of their encounter with the Weavile. They told him everything they could remember, ranging from the Aggron corpse to the strange obsession with his red scarf. Syn remained silent the whole time, nodding thoughtfully.
"Hmm, I see," the Sableye finally said after absorbing every bit of the story. "Yes, all of that is very interesting. I don't understand what all of it means, but when we find out, I'll be sure to let you children know. So yes, thank you for telling me this."
The children nodded, feeling a wave of relief pass through them. Their worries of ever encountering Drae again were now eliminated. As the Sableye started to leave, Terron suddenly remembered something.
"Oh, wait! There's something I wanted to ask you, Yimtri!" Terron called.
The leader came to a halt. He turned his head to the Cubone, gazing at him curiously.
"What is it?" he asked.
The Cubone grimaced as an uncomfortable feeling overcame him.
"I know you might not agree with our theory on Erebus, but you should still move away from Erebus Woods," Terron suggested weakly. "I mean, it's driving you guys insane. You can't deny that fact. So why don't you just go somewhere else? I'm sure you can just take little hikes to still visit Erebus Woods, but at least you won't be anywhere near Erebus's influence…"
The Sableye gave Terron a blank stare. There was simply no reaction from him. Terron was starting to feel frightened by his lack of emotion, but he wasn't sure if Yimtri intended to evoke that emotion.
"… we can't leave," Yimtri said after a time, his voice completely monotone. "Don't you remember my parable? Once you're in its grasp, you can't leave. It will follow you, no matter where you go. Every Mystery Dungeon around us suddenly becomes another Erebus Woods, and then immediately returns to normal once we leave. Even in places where dungeons don't exist, Erebus still appears and creates dungeons that disappear the second we leave the vicinity. We are forever trapped in its grasp."
He turned around to look directly at the Cubone.
"That is why we have never left here. It serves no purpose other than to make it more difficult to collect the evolving stones. You cannot help us, though you can certainly make things worse if you tell the other Fellowships of Erebus. Remember, you're sworn to secrecy."
Terron's grimace only further deepened.
"Now, go home, children," Yimtri finally said. "You no longer have a reason to be here. You will begin encountering Erebus in other Mystery Dungeons because you heard its voice, but all of you are untainted by its influence at the moment. You haven't spent enough time near it to start becoming like myself and my members. Though… you will start becoming just like us should you choose to venture into Mystery Dungeons of any sort from now on. All of you will. Do remember that."
The four cringed at the thought, feeling a dreadful chill wash over them. Though Yimtri wasn't saying it, they knew that he was implying that they were going to slowly become Plagued Ones should they explore dungeons anymore. It wasn't just Zekra and Syn who had this potential fate anymore. It was everyone on Team Vendetta and Vantis.
Yimtri once again began to walk away, choosing not to give them any sort of comfort.
"I have one last question," Terron said quietly, yet firmly.
The Sableye didn't give a reply, but he stopped by the doorway and seemed to wait for such a question.
"Why did you keep asking me those weird questions?" Terron asked. "Like, why Erebus or Yomi sounded so familiar. Why were you doing that?"
The Dusk Mines leader kept his back to the Cubone. He remained in front of the closed door.
"… … … That question will remain unanswered until the proper time comes."
Before Terron could say anything, Yimtri stepped into the door and went straight through it. He was now gone.
Half an hour later, Team Vendetta exited the Dusk Mines Fellowship, ready to depart. They found Vantis standing near the entrance, staring out into the vast field bathed in morning sunlight with a small smile. When he saw the children, his smile seemed to grow.
"Ah, looks like you kids are ready," Vantis noted. "Got the evolution stones?"
"Yep, we sure do," Terron said as he held up the bag around his person. "All seven of them."
"Awesome," Vantis cheered. "Well, shall we get going?"
"Yeah, time to go home," Zekra said with a bittersweet smile. "Let's go."
Without further ado, the Flygon crouched down and let the four climb onto his back. Though Terron felt somewhat nervous about flying so high into the air again, that was no longer his main concern right now. No, he had more important and dire worries on his mind right now. But most prominent of those worries was his choice in whether or not he would be keeping Dusk Mines' secret.
He would need to discuss that with the four as they went home.
As the group ascended into the sky, Terron saw someone standing outside of the Fellowship. He squinted his eyes to get a better look, and found that the one he saw was Yimtri. He was staring up at the group, specifically, at Terron. There was a strange glimmer of wistfulness in his eyes. The Cubone continued to stare at him oddly for as long as he could, until finally, the Sableye had become a mere dot in the vast landscape of Shiron.
The group of Aurora Town members disappeared far into the horizon, no longer in the sight of the Sableye. He let out a low sigh before sitting down, taking in the morning sun. So much had happened while those five had visited. It was difficult to believe that all the events of yesterday were brought forth by that Cubone. Such a tiny Pokémon was the catalyst to all the unexpected trials of the day. Yet, Yimtri realized that he was no different. He was only a mere Sableye, yet he was the chosen leader of the Dusk Mines Fellowship with hundreds of Pokémon to guide. He was the catalyst for all of the unfortunate events that had happened to them.
"You children are truly such bright Pokémon," he said. "You put the pieces of the puzzle together so efficiently…"
The Sableye frowned unpleasantly as he reflected upon the experiences he had with the five Pokémon.
"Oh, there you are. I was wondering where you were."
Yimtri turned his head to find Chloe standing near the entrance of Dusk Mines. She had her eyes set upon the Sableye and wore a faint smile.
"Hello," Yimtri said simply. "What brings you here?"
"I wanted to inform you that Drae regained consciousness a few moments ago," she reported. "The metal binds we put on him are holding him fast. I just thought I'd let you know that so you can interrogate whenever you feel like it."
"I'll probably get around to that later," Yimtri replied. "Perhaps I'll give him more time in the prison before I bother try talking to him."
"If you insist," Chloe said with a nod.
She turned and began to head back into the Fellowship.
"Chloe, do you think I made the right choice?" Yimtri suddenly asked.
The Turtwig stopped. She glanced over at the Sableye to find that he had his gaze to the open fields before the mines. With a sigh, she made her way to him before lying beside him. She looked into his distant eyes.
"What choice do you speak of?" she asked.
"Two choices, now that I think about it," Yimtri answered plainly. "If going into Erebus Woods with those five was actually worth my intention… and if it was right to give them death threats so they would keep our secret safe…"
Chloe grew a melancholy frown. Still, she kept her gaze on the Sableye and prevented her voice from filling with the sadness that welled up inside her.
"I really can't say," she replied. "It's true that I wish you hadn't made the choice of going into Erebus Woods, and that part of the situation we're in now is your fault. This whole thing might have been avoided had you sent someone else with those five, but that doesn't necessarily make it the wrong choice. I'm not really sure if there even was a purely 'right' or 'wrong' choice. Perhaps both choices held unwanted consequences and you simply picked the one with the most foreseeable penalties. There could have been much more horrendous consequences if you had chosen to stay here, for all we know, and we would never be able to see them until it was too late."
Yimtri let out a short chuckle.
"And the other choice I made?" he asked. "What do you think of that?"
Chloe thought for a moment.
"The death threat was inevitable," she said. "We couldn't take any chances. I know you gave them a reason to keep the secret safe, but I believe that they still needed extra convincing. Sometimes, you have to take drastic measures to get something done. Those children hold our lives in their hands. We couldn't afford to be gentle."
"I suppose so," the Sableye replied.
The Turtwig nodded and silence once again resumed. Yet, another troubling thought was quick to come to her mind.
"Those children know we're turning into Plagued Ones," Chloe stated grimly, visibly cringing at the thought.
The Sableye brought his gaze to her. He appeared hollow, lacking any kind of reaction.
"Are you worried that it'll motive them to tell their Fellowship about Erebus?" Chloe asked.
There was a long pause.
"Yes, I do," Yimtri replied, looking back to the fields. "Though, my main concern is not that. No, it's that they've reminded me of our inevitable fate. It's strange. None of this is anything new. We've known about this for years. Only once over those years, did I ever find my thoughts racked with this troubling subject. Yet, now that it's been brought up again… the buried dread rekindles. I can't help but wonder how much longer we have left, and… how much time it will take for Erebus to completely turn us into Plagued Ones from the outside of the dungeon now that I have been reminded of this…"
Chloe glanced at the ground. She had no words for this. Even she felt the unease upon being reminded of her potential fate.
"… did you ever find out what you needed from that child you were mentioning?" she asked curiously, deciding to get Yimtri off the depressing subject.
"I found some information, but not as much as I wished to obtain from him," the Sableye replied blankly. "The questions I still ask myself regarding him are still filled with vague answers. But, I have a feeling I'll be seeing him again. So perhaps then, I will finally get a true answer. Until then, all that can be done is to wait for that day."
"I see. Well then, I hope you find what you're looking for," Chloe nodded. "I'll help you if you need some."
"I'll remember that," Yimtri said. "But until then… we have other things that need to be accomplished. I can only hope we can do such things before we become Plagued Ones… or before the other Fellowships eliminate us."
The Sableye rested his head against the side of Chloe's shell, sighing deeply. Though Chloe felt the dreadful chill from his touch, she remained there with him. She wished for him to find comfort, and if this was all the comfort that could be offered, then she would provide it.
They rested together in silence, trying to allow their anxious thoughts to drift away into the summer breeze.
