Chapter 93 – In the shadows of the night

He was here…

The personification of Ashachu's nightmares was here.

Shadow, the Darkrai staring at them with that glaring red eye from out of the darkness.

Terror gripped Ashachu's heart like a fist made of ice. For a brief moment he was paralyzed. Rooted to the spot by terror, staring into that evil red eye, until he heard Hunter's terrified voice.

"Ash-Ashachu…"

Ashachu almost didn't recognize the sound of his best friend's voice. It was much higher than he had ever heard before. A cry of pure terror. He tore his eyes from Shadow and turned his head to see the Riolu visibly shaking beside him.

He could only think of one thing to say to him. "Run…"

Ashachu and Hunter turned tails and ran. Back along the beach, away from Shadow, a desperate bid to get back to their trainers.

A desperate bid in vain… From behind him Ashachu heard a cracking sound followed by a yelp.

"Ahhh. No no…It's got me."

He skidded to a halt and spun around and saw in horror, Hunter frozen up to his neck in a bock of ice. Shadow had clearly used ice beam from behind.

"Hunter…" Ashachu's instincts told him to run. To leave Hunter behind and to save himself. But he fought the urge. He couldn't leave his best friend behind. What sort of a Pokémon would he be if he did that? "hang on. I'll get you out."

He hardened his tail and prepared to strike the giant ice cube imprisoning his friend.

"It's got me. It's got me," Hunter repeated, terror flooding his little Riolu mind, making it impossible for him to think clearly. His breathing came sharp, shallow and fast.

Ashachu swung his tail, but before it could make contact with the ice, a claw grabbed him from behind – by the scruff of his neck – and lifted him off his feet and turned him around, away from Hunter.

And then he found himself staring at the terrifying visage of Shadow the Darkrai. The black shadowy form, the white plum rising from its head and the deep red eye. Ashachu's blood ran cold.

"Well then Hikari…"

Ashachu wasn't entirely sure how Shadow spoke as he didn't seem to have a visible mouth. But his his deep cold voice chilled him to the bone.

"I suppose I should commend your perseverance in the face of your annihilation…"

[Pokémon]

It had happened in a split second…

One moment Ash had been staring at Pikachu and Oshawott in the water. The next he couldn't see them at all. Everything had suddenly gone dark.

"Huh." He looked widely around and them up. The sun and the clouds and blue sky had disappeared to be replaced by an inky black void. He called out to his Pokémon, a deep sense of foreboding taking over him. "Pikachu. Oshawott. Geyser, Sniveon, Hikari, Axew…"

"Pika!"

"Osha."

He felt their little paws on his legs, then back and shoulders as the two climbed on to him, giving him a small sense of relief. He cried out to the other. "Jimmy! Cameron."

"What in the distortion world is going on," shouted Cameron. "Lucario where are you. I can't see a thing. What the fuck did I eat."

"It's suddenly gone dark," said Jimmy. "Typhlosion, Nova are you two okay?"

Then suddenly an orange light filled the dark void, giving enough light to giving the three trainers and their Pokémon enough to see their immediate surrounding. The source of the light, the flames on Typhlosion and Nova's back.

Ash, along with Pikachu and Oshawott, made their way out of the water and back onto the sand with the others. He was relieved to find Geyser and the others on the beach waiting for him.

"Seriously. What on earth is going on," Cameron asked again.

The answer came written in the sky…

Jimmy was the first to spot it. He clapped a hand to his mouth and gasped, "look, over there."

Ash looked where he was pointing, and his heart sank. Somewhere high in the sky and quite far away, an Ultra Wormhole. Quite small from this distance but unmistakable. Like a long circular tunnel to nowhere. As quickly as it appeared it vanished.

"W-what was that!"

The other two turned to Cameron. He had gone very pale.

"An Ultra wormhole," Ash replied, but Cameron shook his head.

"I know that, I meant coming out of it. Didn't you see it?"

"No," said Ash apprehensively.

"See what?" Asked Jimmy.

"Like a dark shadow. Just for a second. Like it was flying."

"Flying where."

"T-towards us."

Ash and Jimmy exchanged looks. And then, with a chilling feeling, Ash remembered.

"Ashachu," He said. "Ashachu and Hunter."

"They should be okay," said Cameron, though he didn't sound convinced. "They're with Hirosaki."

"We need to find them!"

[Pokémon]

"No. NOOOO! Leave him alone you big bully," Hunter screamed at the top of his lungs. "LEAVE ASHACHU ALONE!"

Although Hunter had not intended it to be so, shouting that name Ashachu aloud like that, may well have sealed his best friends fate.

When Shadow next spoke, his cold voice was laced with anger, "riddle me this Hikari. Why did this Riolu just refer to you as Ashachu."

Ashachu did not reply.

Shadows grip on his neck tightened causing Ashachu to wince in pain. "Did you hear. I want you to tell me why your lover here, one whom I presume knows you extremely well, referred to you as Ashachu."

When Ashachu still remained silent, he continued, his voice turning more menacing still, "I wonder, could it be because your name is indeed Ashachu and not Hikari as previous indicated. I should hope not. For that would make you a liar. A liar and a fraud whom impersonated the identity of my dear friend's son and used to cause trick Blade into befriending you…ANSWER ME!"

The last two words were uttered with such anger and venom that they made Ashachu recoil and let out a terrified squeal of "Pika Pikachu!" He wriggled, trying to get free from the claw holding him.

Shadow raised his other paw and wrapped it tightly around Ashachu's throat, cutting off his air. He spluttered and choked as he struggled to breath.

"Answer me! Tell if what I said is true. What is your name deceiver? Ashachu or Hikari."

"A-a-ashachu," Ashachu managed to gasp. "My n-name is a-ashachu."

"So, it is true then. You did lie to Blade. You did impersonate the son of my dear friend Raiee to form, on false pretenses, an emotional bond with Blade. For what purpose. For food. For sex. To lure him to the clutches of the humans who call themselves Team Rocket."

"N-no," Ashachu spluttered. "I-I didn't I…"

THWACK…

Shadow threw Ashachu to the ground, and he landed on his back in the sand. He opened his maw wide and breathed in a lungful of air. He tried to get to his paws and scurry away. Shadow raised his right paw and fired ice beam at him.

A beam of electric blue energy sprang from his paw and struck Ashachu in the chest and his entire upper torso became encased in Ice just like Hunter.

"Ahh…"

Ashachu cried out. He couldn't move. His arms were pinned to his side. All he could do was wiggle his legs and swing his tail. Worse the ice felt extremely tight, compressing and crushing his chest, making it difficult to breath. It felt as though an Aggron were sitting on his chest every time he drew breath.

Shadow descended upon him, his entire body lowering until the red eye was only inches from Ashachu's face. He placed a paw on the right-paw side of Ashachu's head, running a thumb over the sensitive red sack on his cheek.

"Do you see this, little lair," Shadow said softly. He held his free paw just above Ashachu's face. And in it he held a small curved white object like a talon or a claw. "Do you see this claw. This claw is all that remains of the last Pokémon who brought hurt and harm to my precious Blade!"

Ashachu felt a wave of nausea as he realized what Shadow was saying. That thing in his paw. It had come from another Pokémon. It was another Pokémon's claw. Another Pokémon whom Shadow had…Ashachu stopped himself. He didn't want to think about that.

"A vile creature. One whom liked a break things that didn't belong to him. So, I broke something of his. Something quite precious to him I'm sure."

He pressed the claw against Ashachu's cheek.

"For you see Hikari. Or perhaps I should call you Ashachu. Or just liar, for that what you are. You see those who take from others for their selfish ends deserve the same consideration from others. You took Blade from me. Worse you took Blade's liberty from him."

"N-no," gasped Ashachu. "I…"

"SILENCE. I don't wish to hear your sniveling or your excuses. Your actions have caused Blade suffering. You must own that. Now you shall lose something important to you."

He swiped the claw across Ashachu's cheek, slicing open the sensitive electric pouch.

Ashachu let out a cry of anguish, tears welling up in his eyes. "Piiiikaaaaaa!"

Shadow waited for a moment for the worst of the pain to subside and Ashachu to blink the tears away before saying, in his most menacing manner yet, "I think I shall cut off your tail."

Fear unlike anything he had experienced overtook Ashachu. It made him feel physically ill, like he was about to throw up.

"Y-you can't," he cried. "Not my tail. You can't do this. You…Ahhhh."

Ashachu felt the tip of the claw pierce him just above the base of his tail.

"I am doing this Hikari. And when I have removed your tail from your worthless body, maybe I shall move on to your foot paws. Then your arms and ears. I should be interested to see how much of you I can cut away before you expire."

"PLEASE…" Ashachu cried in anguish, but then stopped himself. There was no pity or mercy in this Pokémon. He had seen that. He closed his eyes, gritted his teeth and started to cry heavily as the claw ripped through his flesh.

"The owner of this claw begged me too. First for his life and then, eventually for the relief of death. I suspect I shall hear the same from you!"

Ashachu's screams filled the air. Of everything he had endured in his short little life, this had to be the worst. Cutting through the skin beneath his fur hurt. The claw in the muscle wasn't too bad.

But when Shadow pierced the spinal nerve, it felt as if his whole tail had been plunged into magma. Ashachu quickly begun to feel lightheaded and dizzy, and wondered he would pass out from blood loss soon. He kept his eyes closed, not wanting to see the horrific process.

"No. No you can't do this, stop it stop it stop it." Hunter started to cry hysterically as he was forced to watch this awful, cruel, sick mutilation of his best friend. Ashachu was going to be killed. Tortured to death. And there was nothing he could do.

And then Hunter saw something in the distance behind Shadow. A faint light in the otherwise pitch black, and the outline of a lizard like Pokémon. A Charmander. Not only that he could feel the waves of aura radiating from it.

"Pyre," he shouted, by the Charmander did not respond. "Help."

And when he didn't move, he screamed, "YOU COWARDLY, DEVIOUS PIECE OF SHIT. HELLLLLLLP US!"

[Pokémon]

Pyre watched the morbid scenes unfolding before him with great trepidation and anxiety. While Shadow had been his greatest friend, sticking by him though thick and thin, he could not deny this aspect of his personality troubled him deeply.

Shadow had always had a cruel streak. He was monstrous and cruel to his enemies. And he knew that the poor Pikachu didn't deserve this. He chewed his claws as heard the desperate cries of the Riolu along with the screams of the poor mouse.

He also knew there was little point in trying to intervene or talk Shadow down, and of course, knew better than to try.

"Poor kid," He mumbled to himself. "I tried to warn. I tried to warn your trainer, but would he listen." He sighed. "If you treat someone like a monster. You get a monster!"

[Pokémon]

Suddenly Ashachu felt the claw removed from whatever wound it had made in his tail, thought that only resulted in small relief from the pain. Ashachu heard a squeal, and then Shadow shout, "What are you doing here. Vile Human…" before being cut off.

He opened his eyes and raised his head to see what was going on. Shadow was floating a few feet away, his back turned to him. Surrounding him was a force field of some kind shaped like a cube. A red box of energy imprisoning the Darkrai inside.

Ashachu had seen it before. The laser cages which Team Rocket used to imprison Pokémon. For the first time, a flutter of hope entered his heart. Was the ordeal over.

"Pikachu?"

"Ashachu," said Hunter. "I think we're…

The hope quickly died when Ashachu and Hunter saw whom their saviors were.

"No. Oh Fuck no!"

A woman appeared from behind the cages. A woman with flaming orange hair dressed in a red dress and wearing a visor, a pair or electronic glasses over most of her face.

A woman ashachu had last seen when he had been only a Pichu…

"So young Aura Pikachu. We meet again." She raised her right hand and pointed some sort of device strapped to her wrist at Ashachu.

There was a flash of light, and Ashachu knew no more.

[Pokémon]

There was a single source of light at the end of the beach. Two bright spots of light in the distance, almost blinding Ash and Pikachu.

"What's that," he said pointing a head.

"It looks like," Jimmy begun but was cut off by the sound of an engine.

The lights begun to grow bigger as whatever they belonged to started to move towards them. They grew just big enough to allow Ash to see the outline of something behind before.

"Look out."

He felt a hand grab him and pull him to one side, causing him to trip and fall into the sand. Pikachu gripped his shoulder hard to prevent from falling off, his little claws digging painfully into his skin.

"Yah!"

"Pika!"

He looked up in time to see a vehicle roll by. A large four wheeled drive, whose large tires made quick work of the sand…

As it passed by health something deep in his heart.

"ASHACHU," he yelled jumping to his feet.

"PIKAKA," Pikachu shouted at the same time.

"What!" Shouted Cameron out of the dark.

"Ashachu! He's in there."

"How do you," he begun but Ash cut him off.

"I just know okay. We have to go after it!"

"We can't."

Ash felt Jimmy place a hand on his shoulder not occupied by Pikachu.

"We'll never be able to find it again in the dark. We should go to the Pokémon and get help!"

[Pokémon]

Meanwhile…

"It's so dark out, I can can barely see my own hands," Jessie exclaimed, half irritably half nervously.

It had been first light when Team Rocket had set out in their balloon from the Hoenn mainland for Mossdeep, in pursuit as always, of the twerps… Or just after first light, as it had taken the humans some time to locate and gather the hungover Meowth and Blade. The two Pokémon were fast asleep in the well of the basket.

But about halfway across the ocean, the sky had begun to grow dark, the blue slowly fading to an inky blackness, and eventually the sun had disappeared from view. Now they were flying in complete darkness. The only light available was from the burner on the balloon, and the lights of Mossdeep City far below.

"Who turned out the lights," added James.

"Noi." His Noibat let out a small whimper. Held in his arms, in buried it's face in Jame's chest, causing James to hug it closer to himself.

Jessie reached into their bag and pulled out a pair of binoculars. She held them to her eyes and started surveying the area (they were equipped with a night vision feature).

It only took her a moment to spot them…

"Hey James," she said, thrusting the binoculars at him.

"Jessie." He took them off her, one arm hanging on to Noibat.

"Check out who it is on the beach."

James put the binoculars to his eyes and looked around, though he was unable to locate the right part of the beach.

"What am I looking at?"

This irritated Jessie. She grabbed him by his hair and forced his head down in the direction she had been looking. "Down there! Look."

"NOI." Noibat gave a frightened squeak, jumping out of James arms and fluttered up to the railings to hang upside down.

"The fashion freaks."

"None other."

"Check it out Meowth… Meowth" James held the binoculars out for the scratch cat to take it. When he didn't, he looked around and noticed the cat sleeping on the floor against the wall of the basket. "Oh."

Jessie gave them an angry look and shouted, "HEY! Wake up you two!" before hitting Meowth over the head.

"Nya! My head." Meowth opened his eyes slowly and rubbed his head. He then noticed Jessie and glared at her. "What's the big idea."

"Nap time's over," said Jessie. "We've got work to do. Come look who's here."

Meowth got to his paws and took the binoculars off James. "So, Team Flare's back. And it looks like they've captured some Pokémon. Oh, hey is dat da twerp-y Pokémon. Twerp-a-choo."

"Fucking hell you guys are a noisy lot." Blade started to stir. Like Meowth he rubbed at his sore head. He sat up but remained sitting on the floor of the basket.

"And they appea' to 'ave bagged themselves a Darkrai and Latios too."

At the mention of the word Darkrai, Blade sprung to his feet and lent out of the basket to take a look. He didn't bother with the binoculars. Sneasel's have excellent night vision.

And what he saw made his stomach turn over…

The Darkrai was indeed Shadow. And he had been trapped in some sort of forcefield cage down on the beach below. The cage was being levitated into the back of a truck and there were four humans dressed in red outfits present.

"Shadow. No Shadow. Dear Arceus, this can't be happening."

Whomever they were they must be responsible for this. Blade wasn't there only captive either. Hikari was there too along with a Riolu and a Latios. A wave of despair and helplessness came over the Sneasel. Who could do this to Shadow?

"I say we steal dose Primo Pokémon from right under those fashion freaks fashionable noses and hand 'em right over to da boss," said Meowth a huge grin spreading over his face. "And when we do, he's gonna be so happy, he's gonna say, t'anks to Meowth and his friends Team Flare has been defeated once and for all and I 'ave these great Pokémon. I must give dem a big reward."

"We'll get promotions, and raises and briefcases," Jessie and James chanted happily in response to Meowth's plan, suggestion or whatever that was. Blade wasn't sure.

Their optimism at the situation was the opposite of the hollowness and fear he felt inside.

He had to help Shadow…

[Pokémon]

GNN BREAKING NEWS…

We interrupt your usual GNN broadcast for this emergency bulletin. I'm Chloe Talbot. Members of the terrorist organization Team Flare have taken siege of the Mossdeep Space Centre and taken personnel at the station hostage.

The leader of the Team Flare, a woman calling herself Aliana, but its not known if this is her real name, has allegedly sent secret demands to the government. While we can't confirm this, sources in the government have informed GNN that Aliana has threatened to murder the hostages if any attempts are made to retake the facility.

It's unclear what Team Flare wants however, although it is presumed to have something to do with the equipment or research at the space centre. For more we now go live to our correspondent in Mossdeep, Malva…

The Pokémon Centre was crowded, the lobby full of trainers and Pokémon with their eyes glued to the giant television screen on the wall. The unfolding events had everyone so transfixed that nobody acknowledged our heroes presence when they walked through the main door.

On the screen was an image of the permitted fence surrounding the Space Centre. Even in the dim light there was no mistaking the hair styles and red outfits of four people standing guard at the gate.

"Oh man you've got to be kidding me," Cameron groaned. "Not Team Flare."

"Hmmm." Lucario chose this point to sit down, cross legged on the floor. He closed his eyes and bowed his head meditation.

"Space Centre. Ashachu and the others must be there," said Ash. He clenched his fists a wave of anger coming over him. "C'mon."

He turned back to the exit, but Jimmy put a hand on his shoulder to stop.

"Wait Ash. You don't know that…"

"Chloe I'm standing here at the barrier the police have set up outside the Mossdeep Space Centre," said a purple haired reporter who'd appeared on the televisions screen. "As you can see it's suddenly gone dark here in Mossdeep City. The sky's turned completely black. We don't yet know if this this related to what is going on in the space centre."

"Ash is right," Lucario said darkly opening his eyes.

The three trainers and their Pokémon turned to look at him and Cameron said, "Lucario."

"Space Centre. I sense Hunter's aura in that general direction. Ashachu and Hirosaki's too…"

Ash punched his left palm with his right fist and hard expression crossing his right. "Right that's it. I'm not putting up with shit anymore. If they've done anything to Ashachu I'm going to fucking kill them."

"Pikachu," Pikachu growled his approval of Ash's words, sparks coming from his cheeks.

They turned and marched back out of the Pokémon centre. "Come on let's go."

"Pika Pika!"

[Pokémon]

"We meet again aura Pichu. For the last time. Hehe…Always wanted to say that someone."

"Pika?" Ashachu's vision and senses returned to him. He felt as though he were trapped in a large slab of concrete. He couldn't move his arms, legs, tail or anything below his neck.

He looked down and saw one of his paws. To his horror, it had gone gray in color and taken on the complexion of rock. Like a statue. Like he had been turned into, or at least encased inside, a stone statue of himself.

And then he noticed the face right in front of him. Or at least what was visible of her face behind the orange visor she wore over her eyes. The last time he had seen it, he'd been a Pichu and she'd been wiring him up to the Ultimate Weapon.

It was Aliana, Team Flare scientists…

"You," he whispered, half in fear and half accusatorially. "It's you."

"It's me," Aliana replied with an extremely sinister grin on the part of her face that was visible. "You remember."

"W-where am I. What's going on. Where's Hunter?" Ashachu looked wildly around. Wherever he was had some sort of canvas walls and ceiling. There where two other members of Team Flare, dressed in their red suits, sitting either side of Aliana on a bench.

He could hear the sound of an engine nearby and the floor seemed to be vibrating. He was in a car or truck of some kind that much he was able to work out. He spotted Hunter right beside him. The poor Riolu too had been turned to a stone statute, a deep look of fear etched onto his face.

"Hunter! What have you done to him? To us. Let us go!"

The evil grin on Aliana's face widened. "Hehe. Cute." She turned to the grunt beside her and nodded. The grunt lent forward pressed an instrument at hunter's feet. The stone encasing his from the neck upwards disappeared leaving his head free.

Like Ashachu, Hunter looked around to take in his surroundings, before glaring at Aliana and her fellow members of Team Flare and growling.

"Hunter," Ashachu called out to him.

"Ashachu." He turned his head to his friend and concerned filled his soft blue eye. "You okay buddy? Have they hurt you?" He snapped his head back to Aliana and growled at her, "If you've hurt one hair on my friends pointy ears, I'm gonna…"

Aliana laughed. "Do what little Riolu?" She asked sarcastically, interrupting his threat. "What can you do, trapped like that? Tell me what."

"I'd say his yips worse than his bite," said the grunt sitting beside Aliana in a deep gruff voice. The vehicle filled with the sound of their evil laughter, sending a chill down Ashachu's spine.

"I mean it," Hunter continued in spite of their laughter, though his voice had gone a few octanes higher. "If you don't let us go, you'll have to answer to my dads. And Ashachu's dads. And our friends!"

"Oh, I do hope so," said Aliana sinisterly. "I've been hoping to have a word with that boy. Tehe."

"I mean it," growled Hunter. "You flare fools are gonna be sorry."

"What do you want with us," Ashachu demanded, Aliana's implicit threat towards Ash making him feel bolder.

Any bold feelings however dispersed when Aliana gave him that same evil grin again.

"What do we want with you. Why young Aura Pikachu, we want the same thing with you that we wanted the last time. Your power."

Ashachu coxed his head. "My power." He was feeling very unnerved.

"You my little yellow friend are going to lead us to the promise land?"

Hunter glared at her. "What's that supposed to mean. The promise land? What in the distortion world are you talking about," he barked?

"This world is sick. It's overpopulated. Too many people and Pokémon are consuming too many resources too fast. Rapid industrialization is polluting the air and trapping heat in the atmosphere. The world will get hotter, people and Pokémon will starve and when desperation sets in so will war. Lysandre knew these things to be true. He envisioned to create a beautiful world by bringing the population back to a sustainable level using the Ultimate Weapon. But he also conceived of a contingency plan in case something went wrong with that. And once again Ashachu, your aura is a key to that contingency plan…"

Ashachu shook his head not believe what he was being told. "What in the world are you talking about," he gasped.

"English please," said Hunter sarcastically.

Aliana's mouth curled into a nasty smile. "Better yet. Why don't I show you! That way even your tiny Riolu brain might have some small understanding."

Ashachu sure didn't like the way she was smiling.

It was just then that the vehicle came to a stop. At once the two grunts and Aliana moved slid down the bench and out of the opening at the back. There was a noise from behind, indicating more member of Team Flare had been sitting behind them.

Then it was Ashachu and Hunter's turn to be unloaded. Their petrified bodies were attached to some sort of round platform underneath their feet, that was capable of floating into a few inches into the air and out the vehicle.

As the, whatever this was he was trapped in, floated into the open, Ashachu found himself assaulted by a blinding light. His eyes slowly adjusted as the platform landed on the ground beside Hunter and he was able to take in his new surroundings.

The vehicle they had traveling in was a Humvee, a large square truck with a soft top. Ashachu counted about six Team Flare grunts including Aliana milling around it. In addition to himself and Hunter Team Flare had captured three other Pokémon…

He and Hunter watched as they were slowly levitated out the Humvee, all encased in the same stone as material as they were, except with their entire bodies covered. The first was a Latios, whom with a pang Ashachu knew was…

"Hirosaki," Hunter whined, his voice reflecting how Ashachu was feeling. "No."

The second was a Charmander. Ashachu hoped he was imagining the shocked and fearful expression frozen on its face.

Hunter recognized him too. "They got Pyre too."

And the third made Ashachu gasp… "Shadow!"

The Darkrai, once formidable and sinister, reduced to this frozen gray lump of rock or metal on a circular platform. No longer the cruel dark Pokémon who had attempted to dock Ashachu's tail. Now he was Powerless…helpless!

If it weren't for the nature of the situation, Ashachu would have laughed.

"Aura Pichu. Riolu," said Aliana tearing Ashachu's attention away from Shadow and back to her. "Behold the salvation of Team Flare!"

Aliana raised her arm gesturing in the direction of the light.

And that's when Ashachu and Hunter saw it for the first time. Sitting on its launch pad, beside an orange gantry, illuminated by bright flood lights and towering high above them…

"…May I present to you the Space Shuttle Byzantium. The ark that will carry us to our beautiful new world…"

Ashachu had no idea what to think now. His heart was thumping heavily in his chest. What in the distortion world did Team Flare want with a space shuttle?

'Knowing them its nothing good,' he thought to himself.

"Captain," Aliana shouted to another man Ashachu hadn't seen until now. He was bald and unlike the others wore a white suit as opposed to red. He's apparently been the driver.

"Yes M'am."

"Get these Pokémon aboard."

Ashachu swallowed and looked at Hunter. The Riolu's face reflected exactly the way Ashachu was feeling…