If Void had possessed visible eyes, they would've been narrowed in concentration, but even so, it was obvious that she was carefully considering multiple possibilities for the way she was perched, unmoving and almost entirely silent save for an occasional question, on top of Knox's walls. Indeed, Arashi had plenty to tell her… and the Nihilego didn't protest it for a second.

"And… that brings us to here!" Arashi said cheerfully, perched against the wall with his hands behind his head, not a care in the world. "Adnea noticed your underlings kicking up a fuss, we thought we could win, and now I'm here!"

Void nodded, floating off of her place atop the Stakataka. "Good," she said, drifting down to the Greninja and gently brushing his face with the tip of one arm. "That what Void wanted hear. Void thank you for it."

"… MY, YOU CERTAINLY ARE A VALUABLE RESOURCE," Knox piped up, his booming voice echoing throughout the base's ground floor.

"He is, is he not?" Void nonchalantly replied, shooting her guard a glance for just a second. "Well, Void glad that Void talk to you before Void enact any of Void's plans, otherwise Void might lose Astrid again." She floated back up to Knox, propping herself up on her tendril-arms again while the rest of her cascaded out behind. "Void been planning on dropping Guzzlord on that town she in… then Void heard from Squad Fourteen-Five that when Sixty-O-Three try catch you all in wormhole, that Salamence and Orbeetle show up to save you, and Void reconsider. Void thought that, even if Guzzlord destroy entire town, Astrid obviously have other comrades than just you and Six-Seven, so you three use them and escape somehow… Maybe jump on big dragon's back and run away again, and that make Void angry if she lose Astrid again…"

Arashi chuckled. "To be honest, that's probably exactly what would've happened, but you could still drop a Guzzlord anyway! Adnea can't read Dark-types so she wouldn't see one coming!"

"That not issue- issue is that Guzzlord big and loud, so even if psychic not see one with mind, Void sure everyone else notice. Six-Seven notice, and Six-Seven probably say run because he know what Void use Guzzlord for."

Arashi deflated. "You're right, aha…!" he haplessly acquiesced.

"And you say that Orbeetle always keep watch? That she very smart?"

"She does, and she is! The smartest!"

"And that Scrafty not afraid of anything, and that Audino a very good shield and healer…?"

"Yes and yes! I would say they're the best, but obviously, that's you!"

"And that Azumarill very friendly, and that Fletchinder very aggressive?"

"That's right!"

"… And there other teams in the area like that, too. There a Blissey like an immoveable wall, there a Garchomp that love fighting, there a Ditto that already copy forms of Void's underlings, and there another Delphox that predict the future…? And your team friends with them…?"

"Exactly!" the Greninja affirmed, still upbeat as ever. "There's a lot of strong Pokémon out there! But your squads can handle them, right?"

"Of course," Void brushed it off. "That not what Void worried about. Void worried about Astrid escaping again, because Void know she probably try if Void set lots of Beasts loose on that town… Void not want take that chance. She slip away from Salem's underlings, she slip away from Salem, she slip away from Squad Fourteen-Five… Void tired of her slipping away."

"I would be too," Arashi said with a grin. "I don't want her to slip away, either! That's my best friend- she should be here with me and you!"

"That right," the Nihilego nonchalantly affirmed, rising up from her relaxed position with the tips of her arms touched together. "And Void have idea…"

She studied the off-worlder for a moment, but the white glow of a wormhole opening just by the entrance of the base caught their attention. Knox perked up with his blue glow turning red for a second, but the two figures that dropped down made him ease back up while Arashi couldn't help going utterly silent in apprehension. A certain cocky Pheromosa's claws clacked against the floor and a certain purple-eyed Delphox toted a dim vessel that apparently held a tired Cosmog. Void immediately turned to them and floated over, holding her arms out like a small child seeking a hug.

… And almost like a very petty child trying to hog all the attention of a parent, Remi darted straight past Salem and into Void's arms, shooting a look over their shoulder that only seemed to amuse the Delphox. "My goddess~!" Remi chirped, voice practically dripping in bliss but still tinged in bridled aggression if listened to closely.

"It nice see you, Remi," Void said, giving their head a little pat before letting go.

"That Guzzlord is back under control," Salem noted, albeit seeming to laugh at Remi with her eyes while she relayed the info. "She was screaming and trying to Crunch me, but we showed 'er who's boss.~"

At the mention, Remi started cackling. "Oh, it was beautiful!" they crowed with mirth, then imitating a higher-pitched but gravelly voice, kept on, "'Keep that filthy purple smoke away from me, you devil! This is all crazy! You're all crazy for going along with it! I won't stand for this, not for a second! Gwaaaah!'"

Salem too started cackling. "It was beautiful.~ Thankfully she seemed to understand how fucked she would've been if she didn't calm down, otherwise I'd have roasted her.~"

Arashi had to guess that the voice Remi was imitating had to belong to the Guzzlord in question, and that her experience must've been rather unpleasant. He knew that the Pheromosa was a comrade, but even so, he couldn't help being wary of them and the claws at the end of their limbs. Salem, on the other hand, made his eyes go wide in surprise- not of a fearful sort, but rather in an uncertain awe.

"You…!" Arashi gasped, eyeing the Delphox.

At that, Salem seemed to take notice of their new company, for her venom-shrouded eyes fell on him next and narrowed. She got a sly smirk as she said, "… You."

He wasn't sure what to think when she started snickering softly while practically staring straight through him, for even if she was a comrade, she wasn't someone to take lightly, nor was she as outwardly mild-mannered as her boss… but she said nothing. The look in her violet-tinted eyes might've insinuated that she wanted to try roasting him, but apparently, she didn't actually intend to.

"He not Astrid, but he help Void," the Nihilego noted nonchalantly, floating over to the purple-eyed Delphox and caressing her too. "And Void happy to hear that Void not have another angry Guzzlord try to mess with what belongs to Void. Void know Void always can count on you, Salem. You Void's favorite.~"

Salem chuckled with a smirk as Void floated around behind her, flattening out her host's ears to rest atop her head like an oversized bonnet. The Delphox certainly didn't seem to care, even seeming to revel in it, but Remi's eyes twitched in what looked like anger despite the smile still gracing their mouth. Arashi wasn't quite sure what to make of it- of course Void would want to be close to her host, but why Remi, one of the Nihilego's top underlings, would be mad about such, he had no idea. He wanted to ask if the Pheromosa was okay, but seeing as how aggressively they reacted to being questioned before, he decided not to.

"Necrozma and Solgaleo are still down, yeah?" Salem inquired, still smirking.

"That right, and Lunala still gone," Void replied. "Void have idea where she run off to, but it not matter much as long as Void have way of getting Ultra Necrozma… Once Necrozma wake up, Necrozma need light, so they fuse… and Void get what Void want. Void still not have Astrid… but Void get her too."

Salem snickered again, getting a rather smug look. "I like shy ones like Astrid. They just nod and say yes to whatever you tell them.~"

The Nihilego gave her a gentle pat on the side of her head. "Well, you do that for Void too, but you not shy."

More snickering from the Delphox followed. Remi held one hand out towards Salem, evidently trying their hardest not to look directly at her, and Salem wordlessly handed over the dulled Cosmog vessel. Arashi still wasn't sure what to think of such- Remi seemed fairly flustered at Salem over something, while Salem didn't have a care in the world at all. Knox still simply lurked behind them all, staying unmoving and quiet with only a few eyes peeking out from his stone stacks.

WHAM!

Nonetheless, Arashi couldn't help flinching again when Remi opened up the heavy metal doors with another kick, the vessel they toted giving the slightest of twitches. Void turned loose of her host and floated over to the open doors too with Knox keeping close to her, and Arashi likewise followed, curious to see what other creatures they were keeping stowed away to recover…

In the middle of the vessel-filled room was a hulking feline that probably shouldn't have looked so dull and grey from the way patches of his fur seemed to glow faintly like a lightbulb stuck under a blanket, and next to him was a pile of glassy black shards that faintly refracted light into tiny rainbows. Arashi got a funny look at seeing the shards, for his first impression of them was that they were a suit of armor for the bigger glowing Beast, but two of them possessed rather distinct hands that surely would be no use to a creature with paws, and one seemed to possess a face.

"Hey, weren't there two of them?" the Greninja inquired. "Solgaleo and Necrozma, right? I recognize Solgaleo, but don't you have Necrozma?"

"Void does," the Nihilego replied, gliding over to the shard pile and brushing them with her arms too. "This Necrozma. They look lot different when not fused."

"Just like we look a lot different when we're not fused," Salem added with a grin, strolling closer to both the pile and her symbiont.

A little metallic chuckle came from Void, and the tips of her tentacle arms clapped together in happiness. "That right!"

Arashi, on the other hand, blinked a few times, getting an awkward grin as he studied the shards. "… Oh," he said, sounding surprised. "Oh! I see it now! So these parts all fit together, right?"

"That right," Void affirmed. "Necrozma still unconscious, so parts not reassemble yet."

Remi, however, had different thoughts running through their head. "Holy hell, this brat never shuts up," they remarked, jumping over Solgaleo and striding over to an empty box that they shoved the dimmed vessel into.

"HE IS QUITE THE CONVERSATIONALIST," Knox concurred.

And again Arashi flinched, hesitant that the Pheromosa might 'put him in his place' again if he said another word. Salem too went back to snickering at their remark, rolling her eyes.

Void, on the other hand, had different thoughts. "Void not bothered- he new and he not know because he not from this world. Void easily forgive that." She floated over to Solgaleo next, crouching down on the floor to look straight at his closed eyes and gently touch his face. "Void see your light returning…~ It be beautiful sight- Void, Void's hosts, Void's emissaries, and Ultra Necrozma…~"

Arashi started grinning, captivated by the Nihilego's words. It did sound beautiful.

The hulking feline twitched just a tiny bit at both Void's voice and her touch, but neither he nor Necrozma were stirring, still in a state of pure fatigue. As long of a non-stop standoff as they'd been in, Arashi couldn't fault them for it, and apparently, neither could Void or her underlings. (Either that, or as seemed to be the case for Remi, the Nihilego's presence kept them from acting out if they could fault them for it.) Nonetheless, Void was apparently going to let the two unconscious ones recover in peace, for shortly thereafter, she backed away and floated back out of the room with Knox keeping close to her.

Salem, however, shot Remi an amused look, playfully twirling her wand in one hand. "If you wanna try to rip my face off again, go ahead," she said flippantly.

"If I didn't love Void more than I hated you, I would," the Pheromosa coldly replied.

"You sure that's the reason~? Last time you tried, I was still just an ordinary Delphox and I still beat you.~ All it takes is a single hit to fuck you up, and you can't touch me behind my flames."

Remi's face contorted with pure rage and their claws twitched as if they might try to rip into Salem's throat right then and there, and the shiver that went down their form indicated that they definitely wanted to. "You might be more useful than me, but she loved me first!" they hissed, trying to keep their voice low.

Salem chuckled, not caring in the slightest. "Remi, if I didn't love Void more than I'm annoyed at you, and if I didn't have at least some respect for you as a comrade, I'd kick your ass and shut you up for good. I've sent at least a dozen of your kind to an early grave already."

The Delphox turned and strode out of the door next, while Remi collapsed onto their hands and knees with a stifled hiss of despairing wrath. Arashi glanced at Salem, then at the Pheromosa, and darted over to the slumped one in concern.

"Just you wait…!" Remi hissed under their breath at the ground, pounding the floor with one hand. "When she starts using Astrid as her primary host instead of you, then you'll know how I feel…!"

"Remi?" Arashi inquired, kneeling down and gingerly reaching out. "Are you okay…?"

The way Remi's gaze jerked up to look him straight in the eyes and the way one set of their claws pointed at him made the Greninja tense up in fright, ready to run the other way if they came any closer. Remi's eyes were full of wrath, and precisely whom it was directed at, he couldn't tell.

"Don't you try to give me a hug or any of that shit, you filthy lesser species," the Pheromosa growled under their breath. "And let me give you another piece of advice- don't you ever talk to me the way that goddamned Delphox does, or I'll put you in your place."

Arashi couldn't help shuddering a bit at their aggression, but nonetheless he said with a hesitant, nervous smile, "D-don't worry, Remi."

At that, Remi started smirking again and picked themself up, and both they and Arashi scurried out of the vessel-filled room as well. A loud THUD sounded as the Pheromosa yanked the doors shut again.

"Come here to Void," Void called to them all, sprawling herself atop Knox again. "Void have idea."

The other three scurried over fairly quickly, Remi and Salem with intense grins on their faces. Arashi got a grin too, wanting to hear what she would say, for if they could get Astrid into Ultra Space, then Team Starstorm would be back in full swing and better than ever… which was all he wanted.

"Heh, are we gonna get that little leafy runt?" Salem inquired.

"Are we gonna give those dissenters hell~?" Remi chirped with mischievous glee.

"Of course," Void replied easily, giving a little wave with one arm. "And for that, Void need you all listen."

They certainly did exactly as she wanted and listened to every single word.

The next morning at the Coalition base, things were abuzz again. Adnea furiously scrawled out more calculations with Rush and Rozen close by for extra opinions on the schemes she drafted up, while Lazuli and Cinder had run off on a few errands. Dren was in his usual position, not particularly busy, and Astrid, Raijin, and Lunala couldn't exactly call themselves 'busy' either… but there was certainly a matter at hand for them to deal with. By some miracle, Astrid had actually managed to get some sleep the night before, and if there were no pressing expeditions that anyone was going on before their infiltration, then she had another excursion in mind when she woke up- evolving via wormhole energy flooding.

"I can't believe you're actually gonna do this," Raijin said haplessly, studying the Dartrix.

Astrid shook her head. "Frankly, I can't believe I'm doing this either, but for completely different reasons."

"I can," Lunala chuckled. "What I can't believe is that you don't want to swallow a Sleep Seed or have someone knock you out first."

"I'm not doing that," the Dartrix brushed it off softly, jumping down from her perch. "I'll evolve the same way that a bunch of those Naganadels under Void did, pain and everything. If we're about to go into a world that's utterly insane by my own standards, then I'd better start getting used to it."

Another laugh came from the starry-winged one. "Sheesh, and you're the same Dartrix that gets all nervous when someone you don't know looks in your general direction, ahaha! But you're okay with stuff like this!"

At that, the leafy avian couldn't help fluffing up and blushing beneath her feathers. "A-and you already kn-know that! N-no need to act all surprised!"

"Well, seeing it in action is different than seeing it from afar," Lunala replied.

Astrid almost wanted to pipe up that Lunala had said that same thing the night before when talking about observing her friendships with her comrades, but no, that wouldn't be productive, and she didn't particularly want to start doubting someone that was about to literally force an evolution by ripping holes in space. Getting a night to sleep on the underhanded revelation about the end of Team Starstorm hadn't made her any less perturbed by it, but seeing as she had to trust this ethereal being from another world, she tried not to dwell on it.

"And to start, we should probably go somewhere that's a little less cozy," the winged Beast noted, glancing around the basement again. "Not that there's anything wrong with this place! It'd just be better if we didn't have to worry about accidentally rearranging everything in here when I go to opening wormholes. I don't think anyone would be all that happy if one of those boxes got sucked into one and the contents got strewn around everywhere!"

Astrid figured that a box accidentally getting dumped out in only-the-gods-knew-where was the least of their problems, but nonetheless, she wasn't going to protest it.

"What about the roof?" Raijin suggested. "Dren wouldn't mind us messing around up there, surely."

"Well, he wouldn't mind, but Astrid would," Lunala said to the contrary, glancing to the Dartrix.

She fluffed up some more. "Y-yeah… I-I mean, everyone else in town would probably start noticing a lot of weird portals opening up there, and I'd really rather not be at the middle of a spectacle…"

Raijin twitched, tapping his fingers together. "Y-yeah, you're right," he acquiesced.

"How about that cave over by that one dungeon with a bunch of prehistoric critters in it?" Lunala mused. "That way we don't bother Adnea while she's doing all those calculations and plots that she's working, and we won't be out in the open."

"That works," Astrid softly affirmed with a little nod.

Lunala grinned. "Alright then, let's do this," she said as the air behind her started to glow and crack. "This one is number one!"

In moments, Lunala was folding her wings up playfully and vanishing inside of the wormhole that followed, and the leafy avian blinked for just a second.

"… Gods help me," Astrid remarked haplessly, shaking her head.

"Don't worry, I'll be your moral support," Raijin said, his tail wrapping around her for a second.

She sighed, looking up at her comrade. "… Thanks."

Moments later, both she and the Xurkitree jumped in, the basement quickly turning into a little blip and disappearing altogether on one end. They landed on the inside of the oddly carved cave in the slightly marshy surroundings, where Lunala already seemed fascinated by the strange etchings on the wall. In the absence of trouble-making Abomasnows and stray Tyrantrums trying to eat anything that moved, Astrid had to admit, it was almost peaceful. Nonetheless, she knew that likely, it wasn't going to stay peaceful for long once she started accumulating wormhole energy, but she tried not to think about it too much.

"Well, isn't this just fascinating," the starry-winged Beast remarked, grinning, then quickly piping up again, "But I shouldn't get distracted. Here's the second!"

Before Astrid hardly had time to take notice, the white glowing cracks spread out under her feet and a wormhole opened directly underneath her, which certainly caught her off guard. A hapless squawk escaped her beak, but she still didn't protest it, and moments later, she went crashing onto the ground… approximately two meters away from where she had been seconds before as both ends of the wormhole closed. She was almost surprised to see the same surroundings, thinking the principle somewhat ridiculous of ripping a hole in space just to move such a short distance, but obviously, that was not the actual purpose.

"Sheesh, you could've given her a little warning," Raijin noted, shooting Lunala a look.

The lunar Beast giggled. "Oh, come on, I thought she saw that coming!"

Astrid blinked. "Well, I'm definitely starting to feel something…"

It was true- she felt energized, perhaps like another Grass-type would before setting off a Solar Beam or Solar Blade, and her skin tingled a bit. It didn't feel bad, but that was likely to change, she figured.

"That's what we want," Lunala said, giving her a hapless grin. "Here's number three."

That time, it didn't startle her when the ground opened up again. Almost the moment she fell in, the tingling sensation became far more pronounced, as if her skin and feathers were being dissolved by acid without the outright burn of the acid, and it definitely wasn't pleasant. She gave a few flaps of her wings to keep steady when she landed back in the place she'd originally been in the cave, but trying to move only made it more unpleasant.

"O-okay, definitely not feeling good right now…" the Dartrix's voice trailed off. "But that's what we want… isn't it…?"

"It is, you poor thing," Lunala chuckled with pitying eyes.

"H-how does it feel…?" Raijin asked hesitantly, tapping his fingers together.

"L-like I just got dunked in a pool of acid but my nerve endings are too fried to register the burning," Astrid answered.

The Xurkitree gave a twitch of apprehension, clearly perturbed at the idea.

"Well, here's number four," Lunala said, opening another.

Again the glowing cracks spread out and opened underneath the leafy avian, but quickly she found that she'd rather just go sprawling on the ground than try to flap her wings to keep steady. If she hadn't felt a burn before, she certainly did then- and by the gods, was it awful. She felt like her skin would simply slither off of her body right then and there and half expected to see her form starting to melt if she looked, but no, she was still in one piece.

A pained, faint groan escaped her beak when she dropped on the cave floor in a different place, sprawling face-down on the rock and shivering in discomfort. "Ngh-…! A-ah, this is…!"

"Terrible," Lunala finished her thought. "But hey, judging by how you're feeling, we should be around halfway done."

Astrid almost wanted to ask if that meant that the stinging sensation would feel twice as bad as what she felt then, for if so, then she easily saw how getting KO'd beforehand or swallowing a Sleep Seed would be the preferable way to deal with it. Still, she wasn't going to wimp out… yet, at least.

Raijin darted over and knelt down next to her, very gently picking her up from her sprawled position. "You okay…?" he asked softly, carefully setting her back on her feet.

"I-I'll be fine…" the Dartrix choked out, halfway between a whisper and a growl (though she certainly wasn't trying to sound aggressive). "R-right…? This f-feels awful, but…"

"Don't worry; you'll live, even if it's feeling like you won't," Lunala assuaged her.

"G-good…" Astrid breathed faintly.

Raijin let go of her and gave her some space, and Lunala opened the fifth. Shortly thereafter, the Dartrix's eyes shot wide and she pressed her beak together in an attempt to stifle a hiss of pain, for she felt a sharp stinging sensation that seeped everywhere throughout her form. It was absolutely horrific, making her vision blur and making it impossible to keep herself steady. If a psychic glow from the lunar Beast hadn't enveloped her and set her down easy, she would've busted her head on the cave floor. Still, the leafy avian stumbled for a second and would've sprawled out again, but the Xurkitree darted over and swooped her up before she could.

"You look awful," Raijin noted, sounding almost pained himself.

Only a tiny squeak escaped Astrid's beak, for it stung to try forming words.

"She feels awful too," Lunala noted. "Just a few more, Astrid."

The Dartrix's eyes narrowed and she choked out, voice hardly above a whisper, "I-I c-can do this."

The heavy breath that left her beak moments later indicated that it was a struggle getting the words out. Raijin didn't put her down, and she didn't mind it much- she would've slumped into a feathery pile on the floor if he did, and though it obviously did nothing to make her feel better, a comrade's embrace was calming.

"Here's number six," Lunala said, opening another.

Both Astrid and Raijin fell into it, and no sooner had they entered it, the Dartrix's eyes turned into little pinpricks from the pain. Her beak fell open, little gasping sounds escaping as she tried her best to stifle them. She couldn't imagine the stinging getting much worse than it was, for she wanted to pass out and her eyelids fluttered as though she just might. The energy flooding sensation was easily worse than that of getting impaled in Luminous Cavern, and by far. One giant spike through her chest had felt awful, to be sure, but the new sensation felt like getting stabbed by a myriad of long, smaller spikes all at once.

"Good heavens, you're one tough little bird if you still haven't started screaming and crying yet," Lunala said softly as they dropped down from the closing wormhole not too far away again.

"I'm not sure whether it's impressive or disturbing," Raijin haplessly agreed, still clutching the leafy avian and studying her in concern. "I don't think I've ever seen you make this expression… It hurts just to look at you…"

A little whimpering sound escaped her. "F-feels like h-hell…" she shrilly gasped out, hardly audible.

"One more should do it," Lunala said, wearing a smile but her eyes still drooping at the sight of the Dartrix's discomfort. "You can take it, yeah?"

"M-m-hm…" Astrid tried to affirm, but little more than squeaks left her.

The seventh opened, and it took just a second to truly register the horrific feeling, but almost the second that Raijin landed not too far away from their original point with Astrid still clutched up, the leafy avian simply couldn't help the yell of pain that came ripping out of her beak.

"Gyaaaaah!" she shrieked, eyes clamping shut as hard as they could. "G-gods above…!"

"There we go!" Lunala exclaimed.

She felt Raijin let go of her, but she didn't go dropping on the ground straight away. She opened her eyes, and it was fairly easy to tell that her form had been reduced to light, much like had happened to both her and her partner on their first evolutions. However, when that light started to move and take a different shape than that of a Dartrix, she felt it, and it was not pleasant. She felt like she was melting, like she'd been reduced to plasma while still somehow being able to feel what was happening to her body. She wanted to scream in pain until her voice went hoarse, but it was impossible.

"Astrid…?" Raijin asked sheepishly, one hand still reached toward her as if to steady her while the rest of him looked like he was shrinking back from something frightening.

Her figure quickly grew larger and took a much less ovoid shape, two longer digitigrade legs touching the ground in place of her former stubbier ones while two much larger wings with feather 'fingers' at their ends spread out from her shoulders. A leafy hood covered her head, and a leafy tail draped down behind her. Perhaps 'soft and fluffy' could still apply, but it was definitely a more predatory form than a cutesy one like her previous ones had been. Lunala grinned at seeing it, while Raijin merely studied her as if doubting she was the same Astrid that he'd been clutching up moments before.

The stinging subsided when the glow did, replaced by a very permeating numbness as if her nerves had simply given up at trying to do their jobs. "A-ah…" she said softly, eyelids fluttering for a second.

Lunala floated closer, studying the Decidueye with a smile. "That form looks nice on you," she said amiably. "How do you feel?"

"… Bigger," Astrid replied rather simply, letting her wings drape down at her sides. "And numb and tired, if I'm being honest…"

"You look a lot different," Raijin mused, still looking her over. "A lot different… Do you like it…?"

"… Yeah," Astrid affirmed with a little nod. The edges of her beak curled up a bit in a smile. "I'm not as tiny and pathetic. You're not towering over me anymore, n-not that I minded it or anything, but… I definitely didn't wanna stay small forever."

"That's the first thing I thought of," the Xurkitree noted. "I don't think I can envelop you anymore like we did before when I'd go Discharging."

The Decidueye nodded, eyelids fluttering again even as she tried to hold them open. "And you're glowing too…" her voice trailed off as she studied her comrade in turn. "Not in the usual way, I mean…"

It was true- a faint red glow covered Raijin that she couldn't help but to notice.

"Well, I just jumped through two wormholes in rapid succession, so the residual energy is easily noticeable right now," he said. "Obviously it's a little different for me than it is for you."

"Ah…" Astrid took note of it, eyelids still fluttering.

She stumbled again, and Raijin reached out to keep her steady. Her eyelids felt heavy, while the rest of her still felt numb. Wormhole evolution was one hell of a method, that was for sure.

"Hey, you just got flooded with energy, but it's pretty common to feel burnt out afterwards and shut down, so to speak," Lunala piped up, taking note of her tired mannerisms. "Let's let you rest for a while and let your new body adjust, alright?"

Another subdued nod followed, for Astrid definitely wasn't protesting it. She was hardly conscious for it, but one way or another, the three of them made their way back to the basement via another wormhole, and almost the moment she jumped onto her perch again, she drifted off into a deep sleep. She looked like a proper raptor instead of just a fluffy oval while roosting on the branch, something that would've been intimidating had anyone stumbled across her out in a forest somewhere.

"… Sheesh, I was starting to get worried after the fourth…" Raijin softly mused, still studying the Decidueye. "She took that like a champ… If Arashi had seen that, he'd be gushing about how cool it was…"

Lunala chuckled, giving the Xurkitree a pat on the head with her bony fingers. "You're really attached to those two, aren't you…?"

"Well… yeah," Raijin answered, tapping his fingers together. "They're my friends… We care a lot about each other…"

Had he been looking, he would've noticed Lunala's expression twisting into a dismayed, awkward smile. "Well, I'm glad you've got that connection with someone," the lunar Beast said, slightly wrapping one wing around her emissary.

Raijin looked up at her. "Hey, Lunala, is everything okay?" he asked, shrinking up shyly. "It's probably none of my business, but Astrid was acting really strange last night after you and her talked. I might just be making stuff up and imagining things, but something seemed… off."

The moment the Xurkitree's gaze fell on her, Lunala's expression quickly went right back to being amiable and nonchalant, but she flinched for a second at the inquiry. "Oh, everything's fine, Raijin," she quickly answered. "There's nothing to worry about except for our infiltration."

He shrank up a bit more, still looking up at her. "You'd tell me if there was something, right…?"

"Of course I would! You're our emissary- things wouldn't work if me, Solgaleo, and Necrozma hid things from you, would they?"

"You're right," he quickly replied, shaking his head and easing up. "Forgive me, that was a dumb question. Even if you were, you'd have a reason, and I trust you."

He didn't dwell on it for too long, and instead turned back to the unconscious Decidueye, strolling over to her and carefully touching her chest as if to see if she still had a heartbeat. The second he turned his back, Lunala's countenance turned outright perturbed.

The words that left the starry-winged one's mouth were hardly audible even if one were listening for them directly. "Forgive me…"

Author's note: Hey, guys. I'm starting a new job soon and my training is going to have me busy most of the day for 2-3 weeks (or so it appears), so I'm likely going to be scarce until my schedule is finalized and I start my regular shifts. I'm not dead, just don't be surprised if it's longer than usual before I post the next chapter.