Avery's Pokemon

Umbreon

Name: Evangeline, or Eva

Gender: Female

Nature: Rash

Kirlia

Name: Lady

Gender: Female

Nature: Modest

Buneary

Name: Chastity

Gender: Female

Nature: Adamant

Furfrou

Name: N/A

Nature: Hardy

Gender: Male

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Breaking the Nightmare Pt. 2/2

I was in a dark, peaceful place. Stars glittered in the distant atmosphere. I laid under them, heart gently pattering in my chest as my eyes scoured the many constellations far above. A gentle serenity had embraced me, I wanted nothing more than to lie here for the rest of my life. No expectations, no judgment, no fear. The grass was so soft beneath my head, the gentle breeze brushing my skin. I couldn't tell you how long I've been here, or where here even is. I didn't care.

The grass crunched beside me. Company? Somehow, that surprised me. I thought I was alone in this place. I'd been so sure I was.

I turned, and a shiver of terror tore through my tranquil facade, an unmistakable fear gripping me for a moment. A man stood there in the darkness, white-haired and smiling. He was a "gentleman" type, suit and tie. He seemed familiar, but I couldn't place his face. He had such a remarkable one though, I was sure that if I'd seen him before I'd remember it. Even if my mind didn't, my body did, I tensed.

His icy blue eyes betrayed nothing as he sat down beside me in the grass, glancing around himself. He seemed impressed, and annoyed "That girl of yours is something special, Mr. Higgs. I almost had trouble finding this place. Though, that's to be expected considering what I've lost, what I'm feeling. The agony, the confusion, the desperation...the guilt. It's quite hard to focus."

I squinted my eyes at him. "What are you talking about?" He spoke to me like I was an old friend, about topics I knew nothing about and despite that I found myself agreeing with him. About how all those emotions are relentless, and torment you, I related to him. "I'm sorry, I don't...think I know you. Sorry man."

He stared at me as if I was nothing more than an annoying stain that he wanted to wipe clean, those inhuman, pale blue eyes ever burning.

"Unsurprising. That's why doing it here would be utterly unsatisfying. That's the thing, Mr. Higgs. My thoughts have been racing, my mind is trying to make sense of it all. I compare my mind to hers, I try to find a reason for all of this, an explanation, and I find nothing. I see you as you are now, and the thought of swallowing you sounds so...disgusting."

Yeah? Thanks, buddy. Being swallowed doesn't exactly sound fun either. What's he even talking about?

"You humans are like doe-eyed Mareep in this realm, truly vulnerable and… weak." The man chuckled. "That's why one must never go too far, never...kill here."

He gesticulated as he walked, beckoning this way and that while spearing me with those phantom-like eyes. "You can take a bite, you can take a few hungry gulps to slacken a desperate thirst...but to truly consume every nightmare, every dream, every wish or desire, every memory, the very essence of a human...it's abhorrent! She could have just ran! I might have even let her go, but then she had to do that to my love! Do you understand me, Mr. Higgs!? Just how much I've lost?!"

He was yelling now, his pale face crimson with rage.

"I raised her to be mine, she was perfect! This place was perfect! My own nest! A breeding ground of nightmares and carnal desires. We had a perfect symbiotic relationship and you've ruined it! That…" The man snarled in frustration, his hands buried in his hair. He was animalistic, primal, enraged. He terrified me, so I kept my lips shut.

"That bitch," he wailed pathetically," that bitch!"

I stayed silent. What could I possibly say with no context? I was at a loss for words.

Staring at me, all emotion suddenly left the seemingly insane man. I was seriously wacked out by this guy. One moment his stress level was a ten, the next a one, speaking calmly. Yet he spoke only gibberish. Apparently, he wasn't done yet.

The white-haired man sighed heavily. "Mr. Higgs I'll be frank. What she has done is unforgivable. There are unspoken rules among my kind. To kill a human...to devour them whole like that with such a cold, calculated joy. To be unfazed by it. That is something even I've never witnessed before. I am old, Mr. Higgs. Very old."

Someone had been killed? Who? My head was starting to ache.

"Well, it doesn't matter. You had no say in it, so I can hardly be angry with you. Nonetheless, an eye for an eye," He stood up, brushing his pants off. "I only came here to tell you...face to face, man to man. I've sentenced your Lady to death, in the waking world. And I'm going to take your body as my trophy. Someone must replace my lady. That's the only way I'll be satisfied. "

Lady?

Lady! My Kirlia! It was like a plug got pulled. All my memories, the good and the bad, started flooding into me. Awareness threatened to take siege, disrupting my peaceful dream cycle. The very ground trembled beneath me, everything flickering black and white, and blurring. Except him. Only he stayed entirely whole, staring at me as we drifted somewhere deeper, somewhere darker. The stars began to fade and fizzle out, an empty blackness spreading everywhere like a spilled liquid.

He was doing it. Him. Darkrai. The humanoid form smirked at my recognition, and began to flicker, and morph. I couldn't move or breathe. My heart started to hammer, threatening to break out of my chest cavity. Genuine fear gripped me, burying its fingers into my body, cold and wet. It slithered around inside me, taking away all my heat and hope. My eyes shot wide as I witnessed the transformation in front of me.

He grew large. Larger than anything I'd ever seen. I was nothing before him, something he could step on and crush. He was made entirely of deep dense shadow, true shadow. A ghostly thick, white mane of pseudo- hair gently fluttered in a foreign wind and his eyes were like two icy, empty pools of water staring into my very core, clutching me in huge black claws. He squeezed his fingers around me, the black swallowing me whole.I fell back into it, grabbing at my throat as all the oxygen left my body.

I was dying!

I sat up with a start. "Lady!"

I reached out desperately, panting, my entire body soaked with sweat. I was sure she'd be there beside me. That was just a dream. All that talk about consuming, and killing, and Darkrai. None of that was real. Lady had nothing to do with it. I didn't even want to think about or ponder what I'd just witnessed, any of it. What I'd been told couldn't be true, Lady was just sleeping peacefully next to me. Except she wasn't, Chastity was, her fluffy ears twitching frantically as she dreamed, seemingly caught in some kind of bad dream. That makes the two of us. Her body was warm and cozy against me, a stark contrast to the dream I'd just had which was cold and empty. I shivered, and stroked the silken fur that lay beneath my fingertips.

"Hey, wake up Chast."

I woke her up, shaking her body gently until her eyes finally flicked open. It was good to see my bunny, but where was Lady? She wasn't in the bed, or even in the room apparently. Eva was, the newly-turned umbreon curled up gently on the wooden floor, her soft black-furred chest gently rising and falling. Marissa was here too, also splayed out on the floor, deep asleep… but no Lady. My Kirlia was nowhere to be seen.

"Lady! Where are you?!" I yelled again, practically leaping off the bed and ripping open the bathroom door, searching. This time Eva woke up, her fanged mouth slowly opening with a yawn.

"Umbri?…" She whispered sleepily, her eyelids lifting.

"Lady's gone, Eva! And last night...I had...the weirdest dreams. Multiple ones… I...can't make sense of it all. I think something really bad happened."

I expected Eva to not understand. Instead, her eyes shot wide like saucers and she jumped up, looking around. "Umb Umbri!" She hissed, turning and walking towards the door, her fangs grit. She stared at it, then back at me.

My eyes widened. Lady...really left? What time was it? I glanced at the clock. It was only 2 AM! Why was Lady awake, and why was she up and about? Darkrai's words trickled into my mind, like ice water.

'What she has done is unforgivable.'

"Did something happen last night, Eva?" I questioned as I pulled on my golden shorts and headed to the door. Eva nodded urgently, pointing at her head, at Marissa, then at the door with one paw.

"Lady...did something to your heads and then left? Is that what you're telling me?" Eva nodded again and an almost snarl-like sound escaped her chest, followed by a long, frustrated hiss. Whatever happened last night, it pissed her off. The sleek-furred, slender umbreon immediately dashed through the seam in the doorway as I opened the door, wiping the fresh sleep from my eyes and walking out. I expected I'd have to go on some kind of search for Lady, but that wasn't the case. As I opened the door to start looking for her, Lady came sauntering down the hallway.

My heart hammered with relief. There she was. She was smiling like the happiest girl in the world, twirling sometimes, elegant and… very much alive.

I buried all my doubts about everything. For now, I was just happy she was here. If anything happened to my girls in this hellish mansion I'd never forgive myself. "Lady! Get over here, now!"

The Kirlia froze as she realized I'd caught her out and about at night. She faltered, and she almost seemed guilty for a moment. A split-second later her entire expression shifted again. She narrowed her eyes a little as she looked from me to Eva. Then back to me. Rinse and repeat. It seemed she thought Eva tattled. There was a tension in the air between them, something I'd never seen before. Eva had her claws dug into the ground, her teeth bared as she stared dead at the psychic-fairy type. She was angry as can be, the type of anger I hadn't seen in Eva since she and I first met. What had I missed last night? Lady seemed angry too, at first, then… she smiled.

If you could call it that. It was a smirk, smug and ugly, filled with a cold condescension that made my stomach turn. "Kirl, kirlia," She said smugly to Eva, who stared back in complete shock. Whatever she'd said, Eva hadn't expected it. Lady walked past me and back into the room like I hadn't even addressed her. Unacceptable!

"Lady, what the hell were you doing out there?" I demanded as I beckoned Eva back in, and slammed the door shut behind me.

Lady ignored my words. 'Get ready to leave because we need to, and soon, Master.'

"I...What?" I blinked. "Leave? As in right now?"

Lady stared at me, unblinking. 'Yes. Right now.'

I shook my head. "Lady, what the hell are you talking about? It's 2 in the morning! If Vanessa catches us trying to leave we'll be tossed in the basement and poisoned to death like that kid Luke, Lady!"

My Kirlia smiled, her red eyes glittering. 'Don't worry about that Master. Vanessa's taken care of.'

I froze. It was the way she said it. The pride, the hunger, the coldness. The Darkrai dreams crept back in their entirety. A cold, ugly feeling filled my stomach. Like lead. I shook my head, and I felt the bile start to rise in my throat. It was starting to click. "Lady," I whispered, "did you…"

I felt faint. I didn't want to ask the question. Lady waited patiently.

"Lady...did you kill Vanessa? Did you...eat her?" Lady's eyes widened, just a bit. She seemed surprised I knew the specifics. Then, she giggled, and her pale cheeks grew red. She stared at her feet, then bashfully up at me.

'Mhmm!'

No. This couldn't be real. Lady had killed someone? Killed a human being? Yet she was staring at me with such a sense of pride, so much happiness. She wanted me to give her a pat on the head, to praise her!

I moved before I could control myself. A high, shrill shriek of pain and the sound of a slap erupted in the air as one. Lady's cheek was stained red, her face violently cast aside from the force of my slap. Tears began to drip down her cheeks as she slowly, sadly, turned her gaze towards me. The guilt tore me apart, but I was so damn angry! How could she do this? Without my permission, and in general? How could she think this, any of this, was okay?! Brainwashing her sister Eva which shouldn't even be possible considering the type match-up, knocking out Marissa, walking out in the middle of the night, instigating a monster, killing someone! The list went on. I was disgusted, I was angry, I was sad, I was disappointed in myself. If I'd been stricter with her about her powers, if I'd treated her like a baby and actually watched over her as a real trainer does... I'm sure it wouldn't have turned out like this!

'Master…?'

I trembled. Lady walked closer, staring up at me with those soft, sad eyes.

'Master, why did you...hurt me?'

All the anger I'd had built up these past few weeks was swollen, black, and swirling around inside me right now. I'd hit Lady, and I didn't feel all that bad about it. It had to happen. Normally, doing something like that would make me feel torn up, but the only thing I felt guilty about was letting Lady turn out like this. Everyone I was supposed to take care of I let down. It was Zoey all over again, it was Amara! I couldn't keep anyone I cared about safe.

"Lady, don't talk to me right now!... I-I need some time to think."

She persisted, pleading with a desperate tone and stepping forward. 'Master… please don't be angry at me.'

"Without you in my head, Lady! Be quiet!" I glared at her.

She reached out and touched my hand. 'Master please don't be mad at me!' She repeated.

"That's just it! You don't feel bad about what you did. You just feel bad that I'm mad at you. Right?"

Lady blinked, and cocked her head. She stared right into my eyes. 'I don't regret it at all. I would do it again, master.'

I shuddered with dread. "That's the damn problem Lady, you murdered someone! You took someone's life away, forever and you feel no guilt!"

'Master! I did the right thing!'

"Lady," I snapped, "just shut the fuck up! Act like a normal Pokemon for once! You don't know shit, okay? You're a damn child! You don't know right from wrong. You're a baby, you have to be..."

She froze, then backed away. Eva seemed to let go of some of her anger, terrified by this heated moment between her family. She rubbed the side of her head against Lady's shoulder to comfort her. But Lady wanted none of that. She shoved Eva away with a burst of psychic power, almost violently, and glowered at the three of us as if we were the enemy.

Chastity observed all of this with a confused and anxious expression, and Marissa was starting to stir.

Lady stared back at me. Her expression was cold. 'I'm not a baby. What I did was right. Maybe I'll do it again, just to tease you~'

I knelt in front of my Kirlia, seizing her by the shoulders. "Lady, what is wrong with you? Do you understand the consequences of what you just did? You're going to mock me and act like this is a joke?"

She sighed, rolling her eyes and smiling. 'Fine. I'm sorry...master.' Her tone was mocking, condescending. My hands trembled on her fragile frame.

"You killed someone," I whispered again, "Lady, don't you get that?"

She seemed fed up, frustrated. She glared at me again, heat blistering in her ruby gaze. 'Master, I love you but you don't understand the way the world works. Rather than complain about what is right or wrong, we need to leave. Darkrai was going to kill me, so I ate Vanessa. It was a good decision, an adult decision. Despite your wish for me to be, I am not a baby, Master. I am a Pokemon, and a rapidly growing one. One day you'll realize that. And you'll come to understand that I probably saved your life. Vanessa was never going to let you go. I saw everything, her past and her plans for the future. You were never going to leave this place. Do you understand that, Master?'

Lady glared back at me. Lady has never, ever talked to me like that. I was startled into silence by this toxic display. To call me frightened would be an understatement. I looked away first. Eva turned her gaze to Lady.

"Umbri Umb!" She murmured, leaning close to once again nuzzle the Kirlia. Lady sneered at her.

"Kir kirlia kirl," she hissed coldly, smugly, raising a single dainty arm.

Eva flinched, casting a now betrayed and sad gaze aside, her expression agonized.

"What did you just say to her? Eva...are you okay?" My umbreon nodded, but her face was beyond sad.

Lady sighed, 'I just told her to stay out of my way. Her immaturity gets on my nerves, is that not alright, do I have to play nice?'

"You were the best of friends a day ago, a week ago, Lady!"

Lady nodded. 'I grew, Master. I understand how this all works now. Now get ready, Master. We don't have much time. Darkrai is a hallway away, I can feel him.'

As she said that the door burst open. Not gonna lie I almost shit my pants expecting Darkrai, but instead five familiar figures waited on the other side, Cam and Caleb were at the front. The rest of the group was made up of Cam's Froslass, Winter, Caleb's floatzel, and … a surskit. Who raced at me. Her strange, insectile legs clambered up my arm until she rested on my shoulder, where she hummed happily.

Something about her body language screamed "I'm yours now."

"Holy shit your Kirlia is a psycho, she kinda killed the shit out of Vanessa!" Cam exclaimed, showing me his camera. "Not gonna lie, I enjoyed watching that, is that wrong? Anyways, now she and my Froslass just have a lot more in common so don't look so crestfallen and broken apart man."

Caleb grinned and nodded, punching his fists together and booyahing. He put an arm around my shoulder and shook me violently. One of his hands casually slipped down to grip my ass. I just sighed, too low energy at this point to smack it away. "We're homefree dude! I don't know what the hell is going on other than 'Avery's kirlia merced Vanessa' , thank you Cam, so we gotta run before the next psycho bitch sex addict in the chain of command locks us, and this hell house, down. Let's free the Pokemon and leave!"

In response, a cold wind came bustling in and a haunting roar came from the hallway. It was a strange and chilling sound that made me shiver down to my very core. Darkrai was really here. He was going to try to take my body, and he was going to kill Lady because of what she'd done to Vanessa. At least that was his story. I was starting to calm down now, and I was starting to make sense of this entire mess. I don't know the full truth of what happened. Like her evolution, and like seemingly all of her other important growth lately, I'd missed Lady's murder.

"Lady, Eva, Chastity, Surskit," they all met my solemn gaze, even Lady. I tossed my last pokeball out and freed the one Pokemon I'd truly neglected. The furfrou panted as he was exposed to the presence of his trainer in a non heated state for the first time. His tongue dropped out of his mouth and he cocked his head at all of us."And Furfrou. Whatever the hell that Pokemon is, it's coming, and I'm pretty sure it wants to kill us all…"

Lady met my gaze hesitantly, and in that moment, I saw a hurt girl who'd been hit by her most important person, after a short lifetime of pain and separation from me. Despite everything, despite how much she seemed to have changed lately, I knew she was good, and kind. She was still the small little Ralts that I'd scooped up in the woods and immediately loved. That was the truth, right there, and once I really thought about it I found myself not being pissed at all. I loved her, Eva, and Chastity. Even Surskit. Furfrou was somewhat debatable, considering I didn't really plan to keep him around long. He was my gift for Juliet.

I wasn't scared anymore. Lady was right, maybe right and wrong could wait for now. We had to deal with a big bad Pokemon. I loved my family. Now I need to protect it. I beckoned at Eva, Lady, Sprite, and Chastity They climbed me- Eva on my left shoulder, Sprite on my other shoulder, and Chastity on my head. Lady sighed with relief as I tucked her into my chest. Much to my shock, as I embraced her, she began to cry. I kissed her forehead, then smiled at my entire crew, the humans included.

"We'll get through this together. All of us."

The roar of the Pokemon was right outside the room now. Cam stared at the door. "You know… I saw it on the camera but I really hoped it was a fever dream or a nightmare. But that's a damn darkrai, Avery."

"I know."

Caleb looked at each of us in turn. Then he gave me a thumbs up, and my ass a firm slap. "It was an honor to serve with you boys!"

"What the hell did Amara Harmon drag me into?!" An aggravated, shrill, voice blurted. Marissa was fully awake now, and she had both of her Pokemon free. I felt a wave of relief as I stared at her companions. A jigglypuff and Candy, her bratty Sylveon. Fairy types, type advantage against darkrai...right? Or whatever. We'd probably still die.

"Uh, a really dangerous Pokemon battle, I guess?"

He was here.

The door suddenly burst down. After a loud roar… everything exploded.

My vision went black as ringing filled my ears, as if someone shoved a dog whistle in my ear and blew in it. I was knocked to my ass. I didn't even have the means to pick myself back up, I have no clue as to what has happened. I was seeing four worried faces staring back at me. Two Lady's and Two Eva's. I rubbed my head, trying to focus. Chastity was, as usual, seemingly unfazed by all this if not mildly anxious. Sprite had her long, spindly legs wrapped around my neck, clinging to my chest for dear life. Furfrou lay askew a few feet away, but before I could get worried, he picked himself back up. Other than being dirty there was nothing that seemed wrong with him.

I couldn't speak for myself. Whatever had blasted us had done some serious damage, thanks to Vanessa's uniform. I was basically wearing nothing but a pair of golden panties with a +1 defense stat on them, they were freaking useless! My chest, legs, and arms had been hit by all kinds of stuff, various pieces of junk and furniture. I had a scrape on my right arm, blood dripping down my arm and fingers. The place that had been my "room" was just a miasma of broken furniture and building.

I heard the rest of the gang scream too, and as my vision began to come into focus, I saw everyone clutching their head. The building, gone. Or at least most of the section we were located in, which was somewhere in the middle of the mansion. Huge portions of the ceiling were missing - holes about 5 feet in diameter- The edges of which were crumbling slightly and the walls were no better tumbling down and slamming into the ground like a child tossing its toys. I managed to narrowly avoid some debris flown my way, clutching my Pokemon tight and blocking the rest with my body. I had to literally lift up Furfrou in my arms, who was panicking, squirming, and barking. I'd misplaced everyone's pokeballs in the explosion while scurrying away. Talk about the best trainer. When I looked up, my eyes widened.

The entire roof was about to come down! I shut my eyes, and pretty much all of us screamed as the building continued to collapse on top of us. I closed my eyes, praying for the best outcome. Reopening my eyes, I couldn't help but grin. We'd all survived, somehow.

My mouth fell agape when I realized I saw something shooting through the sky. Was that..a giant chunk of Vanessa's roof shooting away like a meteor? Well, that wasn't good. That's when I noticed Lady panting, her body coated with sweat as she laid a 12 x 4 wooden beam on the ground with her telekinesis. I realized what she'd just done. She'd saved everyone, and it seemed to take most of her strength. She seemed exhausted, and she was covered in dirt. She stared at me, panting. I picked her up, and held onto her tight.

I found Cam nearby, who was fiddling with his camera. He glanced at me. He still had his camera bag tossed over his back. "Hey man, can I get that strap from your bag, Lady got a little roughed up. Okay A lot roughed up," I admitted.

Cameron nodded, "Sure, not like I need it, the one in the bag was trashed in the blast. I can't imagine your poketch is in good condition either."

"Yeah, wherever that thing is. Thanks for the unpleasant thought."

Cam shrugged, brushing dirt off his bare chest. I didn't even want to think about the state mine was probably in, considering how much my body ached, itched, and burned right now. Cam was glancing at my body with a little worry, I didn't have time to worry about wounds. "No problem. Anyway man, you were closer. Did you see what happened?"

"Everything just happened. One moment I hear the roar, the next moment catastrophe." I turned my focus from him to strapping Lady securely to my back.

'T-thank you...m-m-m-'

"Shh, Lady, save it. Focus on gathering your energy okay? Sadly, we are going to need you again in a bit. So just close your eyes and get some rest."

'Okay. Master…...but he's almost here…' Her eyelids slid shut.

'Here." He took it off, and handed it my way.

A piece of rubble could be seen being lifted up from the corner of my eye rushing over, I found Caleb. He was in a lot worse of a condition than Cam was, but he was still relatively healthy. Big strips of his flesh, thankfully wounds more like scrapes, were all over his upper body which of course was bare. Thank you for one last punishment Vanessa, your uniforms suck.

"Suh! Good to see you're alive dude but I think you should get some cover, something's happening over there." Caleb pointed toward where the entrance of my now demolished room had been.

Rapidly, a giant form - Darkrai- began taking up the space where the building had previously been, filling in the gaps. The rest of the ceiling crumbled, thankfully falling to either side of us and not directly on top of us by some miracle. Now, a dark sky full of stars shimmered far overhead. Just like from my dream. The dark shape was colossal, at least a few stories high, and entirely black save a swathe of cloudy white mist on its head, a red scarf like anomaly on its shoulders, and a pair of unforgettable blue eyes.

"Holy shit! What the hell is that!?" Marissa screamed. Darkrai slowly snapped his head in the direction of the girl pulling his arm back and slowly swiped at her. Marissa however, having the I.Q of a pecha berry, stared at the figure that was reaching back and swiping down. Its claws raking into the ground and pulling out great heaps of concrete and stone. Darkrai roared at her, grinning with bloodlust. Somehow, she managed to leap out of the way, stumbling on her own feet like she was tripped by air, Candy could be seen lifting Marissa into the air smiling, Marissa happily thanked her Slyveon who simply dropped her on her ass abruptly, losing the smile in the process.

Cam stared "So he makes his appearance. That's a giant fucking Darkrai!"

"Why is it so big!?" Caleb whispered, "I'm not normally one to complain about a big boy but...that's a really, really big boy." He glanced at me, worried. "And it said your name. I could hear it mumbling. I really don't think it likes you mate!"

"Mr. Higgs," Darkrai grinned down at me, his shadowy jaw unhinged. "We meet again." He swept one humongous arm out, swinging right at me. An entire portion of the wall was taken down by it. I felt like a god. Despite all the extra weight, I somehow managed to duck under the night slash and literally ran as fast as I could. A wall of shadow appeared in front of me in one hallway, blocking my way, and various strange creatures, each with what looked like a unique serpentine-like physique came out of it, crunching down on my left leg. Pain shot through my body as I quickly pulled my leg out causing more damage to me than the crunch. Smart move by me, trying to tug a foot out of a fanged mouth. That being said, I quickly crushed the shadow serpent's skull with my left heel, making the shadow serpent dissipate though not the rest of the dark wall. Laughter was all that I could hear from him.

I could hear the others following my lead, scrambling after me but I was beginning to think leaving was a bad idea too. But we couldn't exactly stay put and get blasted either.

"Bonni! Use dazzling gleam!" Marissa's jigglypuff raced forward, with a look of intense concentration on her face. Shimmering pink light spilled out of her eyes, so bright I couldn't see straight for a second, and the entire wave of shadowy monsters screeched and withered away. We ran through now that there was an opening.

"What are those things?" Caleb whispered, his floatzel shot out a stream of clear liquid at the monsters, but it didn't seem to have much of an effect either. Whatever we were dealing with, it was not ordinary. Or we were just weak, either way we were kind of screwed.

"I don't know," Cam muttered, glancing at Winter. "She doesn't like it, that's for sure." The Froslass trilled in agreement.

Darkrai appeared, right in front of us. We skidded to a stop, nearly running into his shadowy face.

"I love your expressions, the sight of your hopelessness and fear as you run for your lives is truly delightful. You all seem so scared and hopeless, yet you keep running, it makes all of this so much more fun! That being said, I must answer your question boy. These "monsters" are fragments of dreams."

Darkrai began to pace back and forth placing his behemoth sized arms behind his back, folding his fingers, almost as if he was still the man in the suit from my dreams. "I was planning on building something beautiful here with Vanessa. But you had to come and ruin years upon years of careful planning and preparation. I would be able to gorge myself for millennia to come, feasting on the dreams of all the unfortunate and foolish here." Darkrai soon laughed at his own little jest at what I could assume would be "foolish mortals" "If you're wondering, , yes you're both types."

I glared up at him. I was seriously tired of taking it in the ass from life! Fuck this guy, he never shut up! He seriously liked the sound of his own voice. At least it was good to know Pokemon narcissist's exist. "Not really. but ok Darkrai, so you planned to rape her and break her childish mind?! How old was she even when you did that stuff, fourteen? Fifteen?"

"I don't need to explain myself or my methods to you, human."

"What's there to explain? You took control of Vanessa when she was just a child, you sick monster! And according to what you told me in my dream, thanks for crashing that by the way dickhead, you're an old ass man! So what, you're some kind of...creepy old pervert or something!?"

Darkrai hissed at me, showing a scary face. I was stricken with fear, as if my confidence had been forcibly drained out of me. He raised his arms, and a small sphere starting at about what I believed is 2 feet in diameter this void like energy began to grow above his head. My heart dropped thinking only slightly. Maybe I shouldn't have antagonized him.

"We need to mov-" Before I could even finish my sentence, a black form darted in my peripheral vision.

With a soft yipping noise, Eva tackled me full force. We both hit the wall that was barely holding onto its framework. Hitting the ground hard, the blast singed my hair as the now 4 foot diameter sphere shot right past us, cleaving a hole in everything it touched. Finally, it cleared the mansion and reached the edge of the barely visible forest. The dark sky was making it hard to really see everything though the weirdly bright moonlight helped somewhat. When it reached the edge of the forest it exploded. Darkrai wasn't satisfied just toppling the mansion?

My ears were ruptured with the sound of this massive explosion, and I watched in horror as an entire patch of forest lit up in black hellfire.

"You wanted a fire," Darkrai chuckled, "How about that one, ?"

I realized then and there he'd been playing a game with us, persian and pichu, and still was. He could kill us in a heartbeat and had just gone easy on us.

"Eva, are you okay?" She panted softly, staring at me with worried eyes. She leaned over and licked my lips, before nuzzling me and jumping up, baring her teeth and growling at Darkrai. Like she had a chance in hell. Even so, my heart swelled at the display of courage. "Chast, Sprite, Furfrou, are you all okay!"

I heard various sounds of confirmation all around. We'd all been split up. "Everybody, if you're hearing this- human or Pokemon, run like hell!" Out of the corner of my eye, I saw Salem's bright dyed hair appear, crawling through some rubble to get to us.

"Avery! Do you know what the hell's going on?" He froze when his eyes landed on the huge black form before us. "Man, what is that!?"

"Ah, a friend of . The adults are having a conversation. Leave."

Salem trembled. "It's scary as shit man, but if it's beefing with you I'll...I'll try to catch your back. Us golden short boys gotta stick together, especially now that the bitch is dead!" He tossed out his seviper.

In two seconds, I realized the ugly reality of this situation and I felt my hope and joy to be alive wither. Darkrai sighed, stared directly at Salem, and something...happened.

"A-AH-what are you-? Ah-AHHHH-AAHHHHHHHHHHH!" He screamed in pure, unadulterated fashion. His eyes were glazed and unseeing.

Darkrai laughed, and shot a violent, bursting dark pulse at the man. It sunk into him, roasting his skin. It smelled like meat was cooking, and I shook my head, terrified. I didn't want to see this sick display, but couldn't look away. Salem tensed up, his eyes began to spill out an ink like liquid. clutching his shaved head, screaming and throwing himself onto the floor, spasming wildly once he was down there like he had no control of his body. Or maybe he was trying to stop, drop, and roll, either way it didn't help.

"Get out, get out of me!"

Darkrai calmly spectated, and said only one thing: "Host insufficient."

Salem collapsed, dead. His body was a husk, withered, and devoid of all life, his eyes soulless. I backed away, shaking my head. What the hell? A fresh wall of shadows formed around the body, and hungry forms began snapping at their surroundings, and engulfed Salem's now struggling seviper. The creature didn't stand a chance, it didn't even have time to move and its pained screams were just as loud as Salems and there was nothing left of the two, no bones or a scrap of flesh. They were gone.

The darkrai stared at his hands, seemingly in shock. "Once upon a time, I was a sickly Darkrai, . I couldn't coexist with my family or friends, on that old rock... that cursed island. And once I was finally free of that place I was starved by an old ship captain. Rather than let me feed he took to the seas, and Vanessa gave me a way out, but I had to weaken her first. I'd never have been able to force my way into her with her willpower and guard up but now… I think I can do anything. Perhaps your Lady had the right idea, a pity she chose the wrong target."

"What happened to that being wrong? To killing in that fashion being against your moral code!?"

Was this what Lady had done to Vanessa? It was sickening.

Darkrai grinned, bursting into laughter. "Well, the situation's changed. And the power that what I just did has filled me with. To suck up the essence of something, to consume it in its entirety. It's...delicious. I...I thought merely killing Kirlia and taking hold of you was what I wanted. Now that I am...disconnected, from my original host. I've come to realize that...over these years the power I've saved up, that I've accumulated, is enough to kill…"

Darkrai smiled at each of us, a rag tag group of half-naked survivors who quite frankly had no clue what the hell was going on or why.

"That is to say, I have enough power to kill all of you, Mr. Higgs. So I think I will. That is what I need, for satisfaction. To consume."

"Well, shit," Caleb shouted from his spot behind a wall. "I think we're really fucked! And not in a good way, guys!"

Darkrai grinned, raising a fist. Another dark void began forming there, this one 6 feet in diameter compared to the others. I couldn't figure out a way to get out of this one alive… It seemed like he was done going easy on us.

"Umbri! Umb!" My starter yelled, leaping in front of me. Her fur was bristling, and there was an intense aura around her. She wasn't going down without a fight. All of Eva's golden rings were glowing.

"She's right. I have to fight too master! Eva says…'don't give up!''" Lady whispered in my head. I felt the strap snap, and my Kirlia took her place next to Eva. It seemed her energy reserve was at least partially refilled now. Marissa came to our side with Candy and Bonni.

I noticed Candy stood right next to Eva. She leaned down, and nuzzled Eva's neck, licking the fur on her tuft and nodding. Candy was Eva's mother...somehow I'd forgotten that. Or maybe I'd just completely written her out of Eva's life because of how my starter had been raised. Well, whatever had caused her to hurt her baby growing up apparently hadn't been of her own volition. Or maybe she'd changed lately too. Either way, Eva smiled with genuine joy and seemed even more determined.

"Sylv, Sylveon!" Candy hissed, snapping at her fellow fairy Pokemon, and Lady and Jigglypuff nodded.

The moon high above began to glow, far stronger than it did before. Faint moonlight embraced our entire group. It felt like my body was lighter, growing warmer and as I watched my wound's began to seal and heal. The trio of fairy type's were healing everybody!

Darkrai chuckled. "Pointless."

A second pitch-black ball began to glow above his head. Apparently he'd determined that just one wasn't enough to obliterate us, and had created a second one. Just how much was this monster capable of? The healing probably was moot, considering darkrai's big black balls of death were about to rain down on us.

"PERISH!"

They shot towards us. Eva jumped up in front of me, swiftly throwing up a wall of protection, but how could that save anything?

The first sphere somehow flicked out as it hit the protect but it didn't happen easily, it wasn't pretty. On TV, in league battles, protect blocked all damage probably because what was about to hit them wasn't...well, what I was currently dealing with. Eva simply couldn't maintain it. The meeting of the unstoppable force and the immovable object created a huge gust of air.

Marissa's jigglypuff, Sylveon, and Lady took care of the second one. They were chanting some unknown Pokemon language, and pink mist was caressing, embracing the huge sphere. It slowly fizzled away.

"Holy shit we survived!" Caleb exclaimed. Apparently Darkrai didn't like that one bit.

"Stop opposing me!" Darkrai roared. He thrust his hand forward, and a beam of darkness streamed from his hand like a black hydro pump. Caleb's eyes were like a deerling caught in the headlights. It all happened so fast one second Caleb is bracing himself for the impact, ready to die. The next an orange and blue flash jumped in front of him, smoke erupting as the howl of a floatzel was all I heard. The result was far worse than Seviper and Salem. The smoke slowly cleared, leaving a gruesome display in sight. Caleb and I both had the same emotion on our faces, misery and dread.

Floatzel was currently laying on his left side, and that's pretty much all that was left of him. At least that was intact. His ribs were puncturing through the left over skin, blood continued to pump through his heart which was slightly being shown. Floatzel's stomach acid was slowly seeping into the ground as Caleb ran to his partner, tears streaming down his face.

"Squirt! Come on buddy you're gonna get through this." Caleb was practically screaming, rushing over to my friend. Floatzel slowly reached up with his left hand placing it gently on Caleb's cheek giving a weak smile before gently placing a kiss on his lips and falling, entering his eternal slumber.

A very shrill sound erupted, some sort of intercom, it made my already aching head hurt like crazy. "Rough night everyone? Seems like it!" It ripped away all of our attention, even Darkrai. It distracted everyone except for Caleb who just sobbed, broken and terrified, holding his partner in his arms.

The sound of distant sirens suddenly filled the air, so many of them it even shocked Darkrai. Far in the sky I saw various twinkles of light and I heard the sound of propelling blades. Some kind of helicopter? I narrowed my eyes. Not a helicopter. Helicopters, flashing red and blue police colors. I felt a wave of relief.

A woman's voice spoke, somewhat deep, and with a brush and masculine tone. "My name is Zain Sloane, my people and I are currently approaching your coordinates, ETA: two minutes. I'll be frank. I'm not as secretive as the person I'm replacing but I'm a hell of a lot more dangerous. I am a member of Team Salvation, the creator of this mansion, and therefore an owner of everything under its roof. Those bound by a contract, this is an important announcement. You are not a person, you are an object. Property of Vanessa, now deceased, but your contract is not null and void because of that. You now belong to the next in line, me. If you attempt to leave the premises, Team Salvation will have no choice but to hunt each and every one of you down. This is not a threat, it is a promise. There is a copy of every contract that was made here, one for each of you. If you run, you will die. Or worse."

She wasn't done yet though.

"...I've been watching you for a while now, Darkrai. I know you intend to kill these humans, but I'm making a personal request that you cease that train of thought, immediately, for I have far more to offer. Come with me. If you don't, and government officials reach you first, I cannot promise your protection. Various police cruisers and Pokemon are enroute as well. They'll be here very soon. So...come, Darkrai. Now, or you will most likely die- you are not invincible. Far from it. For now."

Darkrai said, and did, nothing as the helicopters came closer. I had a feeling that if I moved too quickly, Darkrai would blast me to bits so I just stood there and hoped. I expected Darkrai to completely ignore the voice. To kill all of us, right here and now.

One of the chopper's floated down to us.

My blood went cold, as a humanoid figure hung out of the open port on the giant flying machine, clutching some kind of handle. I'd never seen a vehicle like that in person and it was terrifyingly loud, gusts of wind blasting all of us. "Zain Sloane" showed herself. It was the black woman from the camera's of the house, one of the Team Salvation Member's who'd been called by Vanessa and who had taken Amara.

She seemed to be made of pure muscle, wearing body armor and slacks. Gone were the strangely ceremonial robes she'd worn when she'd picked up Amara. Now, she was in a full body combat suit that displayed her bare arms which were freaking giant. "Come, Darkrai," Zain bellowed, "You want a host? You've found one!"

Darkrai gave me one last cold stare. "Goodbye, , I promise you we'll meet again." Then he leapt into the air, growing smaller and smaller until he was about my height. He flew into the helicopter and from there, he continued to stare at all of us.

Zain met my eyes and grinned, yelling, "Count yourself lucky kid! Guess money talks! You're on your own now!" What the hell did that mean? She turned away. "My work here's done, get this bird out of here!"

"Yes sir!" A deep voice bellowed back.

Zain's chopper took off, and three of the five police copter's pursued it. That was a big mistake on their part, Darkrai didn't plan to get caught. Dark voids appeared, engulfing them completely. The helicopters made painful, machine noises- metal crushing and crunching- and then exploded with a rush of fire, shooting off somewhere in the distance. The remaining helicopter pilots must have seen this because they began descending, somewhere beside the house I assumed.

I hoped I didn't run into them, I didn't have a way to explain why I was here and I didn't want to be in police custody when Team Salvation came looking for their "property", if they even did.

"Now's the time to run," I yelled to everyone, "Let's go!"

I saw Cam help Caleb, and thanked Arceus. I wasn't the kind of guy who could give that man the pep talk he probably needed. I gathered everyone and we all began the desperate run out of here. Fuck contracts, there was no way any of us were staying. I'd rather be hunted down by Team Salvation then stay alive and live this hell another day and be a slave.

We moved fast, great strides down various desolate, broken hallways. A pair of lights flooded the building in a spot where the walls were torn open, half intact. This was basically a door leading outside, specifically a road deep into some forest, this was freedm. But two obstacles stood in our way.

"Where do you think you're going, slaves?" It was two members of Team Salvation, a man and woman in white and black uniforms, snow camo military slacks with a dense, heavy jacket to match. Goggles hid their eyes, and the male's hair was slicked back. The woman beside him looked like his twin, except with longer hair in a braid. They each had a creepy smile, and a pair of unsettling Pokemon stood behind them.

They were...off. That was the only way to describe it. They didn't seem all that aggressive though, they just stood there staring at their trainers. I realized they were waiting for orders. Had they no will of their own?

"Sloan's orders made it clear, no runaway property. You belong to Team Salvation." The girl said.

So. There were two bug Pokemon, two losers, and a half intact wall with a huge chunk missing standing in between us and freedom?

Right.

"Chastity! Break that shit!" I ordered, pointing at the top of the remaining roof and wall. The two grunts glanced up at it, confused. Chastity yipped happily, as if happy she was finally able to do something, and she bunched her legs beneath her. She leapt into the air, her gigantic ears slamming into the building. The two grunts screamed in pain as the wall collapsed down on top of them, crushing them both. They didn't move, so...dead? Probably.

The bug Pokemon did the strangest thing when their trainers died. They didn't attack. They didn't do anything. They just stared at us. My group, all of us, carefully sidled around the two Pokemon that continued to gaze upon each of us with their dead, empty eyes. Were they machines? What the hell was wrong with them?

We all escaped outside.

"Hey, do any of you know how to drive? Seems like they left a surprise for us." Cam questioned. Apparently, those guys had rode here in style. A icy white car with black decals of what I assume was team salvation's sigel on the hood and the doors. it sat there, right outside the house, shining in the moonlight. Just how rich was Team Salvation exactly? Their little guy's drove cars? 90% of people, 93 now, if the news statistics were true, didn't own cars. Well, whatever.

"I know how to, I've driven before. Once in my life. For my old boss, I had to deliver a package." But that car was huge and cheap, one of the only ones in Hearthome. But this car was something special. It was a badass muscle car from one of the sport's mags Jack loved to read. "Get the fuck in. We're getting out of this place before Darkrai changes his mind."

Cam sat in the passenger seat with his Froslass. Eva, Lady, Chastity, Furfrou, and Sprite sat in the Pokemon compartment in the back half of the vehicle. Marissa managed to ball her pokemon. Caleb was pulled in by Marissa, who both sat in the backseat. It was an extremely tight fit.

I tried to figure out how to start the car, but there was no spot for keys and I had no control over what the buttons did. I figured out that I had to connect my Poketch to it. Which currently sat in Vanessa's room, probably broken.

"I-I can't get in," I whispered, "I need team Salvation clearance."

We were all gonna have to escape by foot, we couldn't waste more time in this dumb car. Marissa spoke up quickly. "Wait, um...let me."

I gaped at her as she leaned over me. She flushed.

"It's...complicated, Avery." She muttered. She typed in a passcode, scanned her fingerprint, and the car revved up. I was just about to leave when I saw a figure appear.

It was Dia. It was strange. She seemed so small and lifeless, staring at us from the shadow of a burning, broken wall. Alone. Had something happened to Noella? She looked into my eyes, and something terrifying flickered back. But I couldn't just leave her here, with these monsters. I quickly got out of the car.

"Dia, we're getting out of here, you need to move!"

The dark-skinned girl just stood there. When I approached, she stepped back into the shadow.

"What are you doing, Avery, let's go!" Cam yelled, "She probably shouldn't leave without her mom anyways dude!"

I ignored him. "Dia." I was closer to her now, and she stopped trying to back away from me. We were face to face, and she hadn't said a word. "C'mon." I offered her my hand.

A flash of red and black fur appeared.

Pain radiated in my throat. I clutched my neck, and realized… I glanced up. Dia was gone. In her place, a tall and slender creature was crouched, hissing. Its eyes were narrowed, hatred twisting its expression. Incredibly beautiful, perfect. Red Ebony, her pretty dark fur gleaming.

The next few seconds were unforgettable.

Red Ebony's soft, delicate muzzle opened displaying a row of white fangs. Then, she screeched. It was a mad, terrifying sound that caught me off guard. A second later, Red began to swing her paws. I couldn't move fast enough, I was exhausted. I was already injured, I didn't stand a chance. It felt like everything was moving so quickly...yet I was so slow. I fell to my knees.

The first few furious slashes hurt, but didn't break through my skin. Then, Red opened up my throat with her claws. great streams of thick red blood surging from my body. I felt sick. I heard someone, something, a lot of people? Screaming. Lady and Eva's face appeared, foggy and distant, a thousand miles away. Red Ebony was there too, smiling with satisfaction. She slipped away into the shadows, pursued I think, but...well, whatever. I was gone , dead anyways. I knew it. I felt my body being dragged, moved.

"Avery...oh arceus, oh...A-Avery! Don't die! Guys, I can drive everyone, I-I've done it once or twice we need to get him to a hospital!" Marissa's voice.

'I...I couldn't protect you. I've failed you. But...I'm finding help, Master. Real help. Please come, please come...' Lady's voice faded away.

Two pairs of red eyes, familiar and friendly beckoned me back to life but I just didn't have the strength. Lady, Eva...I'm sorry.

I faded away, closing my eyes.

"Critical condition- ruptured throat-"

Flashing lights, sounds echoing in and out. "Not long...life support failing-"

I was here in that black place again. The peaceful one, with the stars. Except this time, there was a huge staircase, light gleaming up ahead. Was this heaven? Seemed like it. It was nice here, quiet, and pretty. A good place to go.

As I took my first few steps a form appeared before me. It was familiar, alien and beautiful. Tall, slender, womanly. It was a bipedal Pokemon, standing on two long legs, a dress like body swaying gently. A familiar crimson horn was stuck through its chest. The Pokemon held its hand up, firmly planning its hand against my chest and pushing me backwards, down the step.

"You have a saying don't you, you humans? Something about not walking towards the light? Yet I always find your kind wandering toward it. Or maybe it's just you, Avery. Do you love life so little?"

Her words met unlistening ears, I was gaping at her. "L-Lady? You evolved again?"

"Is that what you call her?" The Gardevoir asked, gently.

"Her?"

"My daughter."

"You're Lady's mother…"

She smiled. Then she stepped closer. She wrapped her arms gently around me. It was a motherly embrace, and her sweet scent engulfed me. 'Yes. She called out to me, and I listened. Thank you for bringing her back to my life. It's nice to meet you. I wish the circumstances were better. You're dying, Avery.'

"I know," I whispered.

'Find the will to go on, or I'll find it for you. Otherwise, you won't make it. Do you hear it? Death around the corner? Your heart grows faint, your will to live ebbing. I can't give you life, I can only try to keep you on this side, and try to give you the strength to keep going. I can't allow my daughter's mate to die, even if my own mate insists it's for the best."

The truth was… I'm not sure I wanted to live. Red Ebony tore my throat apart with her teeth and claws. Would I ever get a rest? Would the suffering ever end? Bad luck hounded me wherever I went. Perhaps it'd be better if I died here. If Lady and Eva got adopted they'd probably be happier. Yes, after all, I'd hit Lady in rage. I was hardly worthy of either of them. Lady thought it was okay to murder, neither of them were free and exploring as Pokemon should with me.

But...that's because things hadn't changed yet. That's why I've been working my ass off, that's why I survived so much and tried so hard. So that I could have a life with them. Whether times were bad or good, I wanted to be by my Pokemons side. I want to live! I want to live, damn it!

"Pulse returned- zzz- eyes open- fjdbx he's alive!" Words echoed in the distance. I turned away from the light.

The Gardevoir smiled. "Here. Just to give you that final push."

I raised a brow, and went silent when the Gardevoir's slender, pale hands wrapped around my face. Her ruby eyes grew huge. No, they were just far closer now. Lady's mother was kissing me. I have no clue why, or how, or anything. All I can say...is it was amazing. I wrapped my arm around her waist, and tugged her close.

'Live,' her voice whispered in my head. 'Feel my body merge with yours, our heat shared, our heartbeat matched…' The gardevoir let out a stream of tinkling laughter, a lovely sound, and let me go. Or rather, she pushed me away. I was floating, weightless. I closed my eyes.

And then opened them.

"Avery? Avery!"

My vision was blurry. I blinked the blur away, rubbing at my eyes. Ouch! I winced, my throat throbbing with pain. A plump figure stared back at me. Had I actually died? Or was my mother really here? She was stroking my hand, the way she always did when I was sick as a kid. I was in some kind of hospital room.

"Where are my poke-" I gasped in shocked pain, my throat bursting alive with pure agony. My words were broken and incoherent.

"Don't try to talk baby, you need to heal." My mother whispered. "They're asleep. Right next to you. See? You've all had a hard time."

Lady, Eva, Furfrou, Chastity, and Sprite were all deep asleep. They laid together, soft and innocent, in a huge bed filled with pillows. It lay on the floor of my hospital room, a few feet away. "Your throat is in bad condition sweetheart, you're really hurt. You won't be able to speak for a week or so."

She worried her bottom lip, regarding me with a concerned eye.

I exhaled. It hurt to even breath. "Zoey…" I whispered.

She cocked her head. "What was that honey?"

"Zoey! Where's Zoey, mom!?" I didn't care about the pain! I wanted my sister. More than anything in the world.

My mother raised her brow. I expected her to not know. To make me pissed. But then she smiled and turned. "Zoey! Your brother wants to see you. I couldn't believe it. Tears filled my eyes as two figures appeared. Zoey practically tackled me, her dark haired "friend" Alice standing aside and simply staring at the exchange.

I winced in pain, but smiled as Zoey hugged me tight.

"I love you, I love, I'm so sorry!" She squealed, burying her face into my chest. I wrapped my arms around Zoey.

"Ow! Careful!"

"S-sorry!"

"I'm just...ARGH-" I grunted, "I love you. Where's...Juliet?"

Zoey nodded. "Well, about that...the thing is your girlfriend. She left, said something about her sister. She told me to give you...to give you this. She got it from a dangerous guy, big bro...they left together, from Solaceon town!"

She extended me a small rectangular paper, it appeared to be some kind of invitation, and a ticket. The invitation read:

You are formally invited to the S.S Amara

There were some symbols and words in kanji and below it:

Multi-regional Official P-Fanclub Meeting. Members only.

The date of this "meeting" was apparently two weeks from now. The S.S Amara, huh. Well, that probably wasn't a coincidence because the Team Salvation symbol on the invitation made it clear exactly what this was.

xxx

Note: Rip gameforge, 2021. I wrote this for you buddy. hope you're reading it, wherever you are.

ARC 2: THE MANSION END

ARC 3 START: The SS AMARA