Rio shot awake, a bright light blinding him, and a cold chill further waking him up. He couldn't remember what exactly happened, but he knew he was at the beach not too long ago... He looked around, seeing no sign of the shore, the taste of salt absent in the air, and the two Pokemon he was with at the time nowhere to be seen.
He was surrounded by a thick wall of trees, tightly compacted in a way that Rio felt imprisoned, and a sense of claustrophobia rose inside him. Everything had an irritating blue tint to it, but it wasn't unbearable at least. He went towards the treeline, trying to look between the trees, and saw only darkness.
"Where... am I?" he asked aloud, as if someone was there to hear him. The atmosphere was so still and quiet, almost tranquil if not for the wall trapping him there. After a while, however, the silence was starting to drive Rio insane. He only heard the static that accompanied the silence.
"You again? Back so soon?" A voice suddenly spoke from behind Rio. It sounded foreign and yet, familiar in a strange way. The Outlander turned towards the source, seeing a Lucario standing where he woke up earlier, a friendly grin on his snout. "Weren't expecting you back so soon, if you were gonna come back at all..." Rio's lack of a response must have said something to the jackal, since he cocked his head and his grin faltered. "What? You look like you've seen a ghost? You didn't forget me did you?"
"I-uh..." Rio could swear that he had never met this Lucario before, but a closeness towards the jackal convinced him otherwise. That, and the fact that the Lucario flat out asked if Rio had forgotten about him. Rio let out a nervous chuckle and admitted he couldn't recall. "Sorry... I think I did? Who are you?" he asked, hoping not to sound insulting.
"Eh, it doesn't matter. You're here and that's what counts!" the Lucario grinned and chuckled. "C'mon, I gotta show you something!"
The Lucario gestured behind him, revealing a wide opening that Rio knew he couldn't have missed. The parted trees were forced to reveal the suffocating darkness they tried so dearly to hide from the Outlander. As the jackal gestured for Rio to follow, a fearful moan escaped him, alerting the Lucario to Rio's hesitance.
"What's wrong? The dark isn't all that scary," the jackal assured Rio with a smile. "Besides, there's nowhere else to go, and I'd rather not spend that much time in this place."
"I-I don't know..." Rio knew that there wasn't much he could do here, but while the dark was unsettling, a sense of adventure started rising in the Outlander. The jackal grinned and extended a paw towards Rio.
"I think you do know, actually!" the jackal said, an infectious bravery emanating off of him. "I'll be with you the whole time, I promise," Rio cautiously looked at the paw, that bravery starting to get to him. He took hold of the Lucario's paw, the softness sending a pleasant sensation throughout Rio.
"Alright, let's go then," Rio said, putting his caution to the side. The Jackal smirked and chuckled.
"I thought I'd like you!" he told Rio, pulling the Outlander into the dark.
The trees pierced high into the darkness, much taller than Rio thought they could be after seeing the trees they left behind. It was humid, nearly unbearable, borderline suffocating. Rio couldn't see more than a few feet ahead of him, but the Lucario he held onto ran through the darkness with more confidence than anyone reasonably could in this situation.
"You're really slow, kid," the Jackal shot back, not turning his head for a moment. He maneuvered around some trees, climbing over a rock Rio didn't even know was there until the Outlander was dragged over it.
"I-It's kinda hard to see!" Rio replied, making sure not to let go of the Lucario's paw. "How can you see in this darkness?"
"Easy." The two stopped abruptly, causing Rio to run into the Lucario, but it hardly fazed him. He turned to Rio, his body gaining a faint blue glow, just enough to show that his eyes were shut. "I'd say something cliche about 'don't see with your eyes,' but I can't think of anything clever yet, hehe."
"Y-You're eyes have been shut this whole time?!" Rio exclaimed, quickly getting shushed by the jackal.
"Shhhhhh! We're not out of the clear yet!" the Lucario warned, pulling Rio along again. "You remember that fire I gave you last time?"
"What fi-" A sudden memory came back to Rio, of him and this Lucario talking about something, and the Lucario giving Rio a green flame. "I-I, yes! I remember now! You still didn't give me a name back then!"
"Shhhhhhhhhhhut up!" the Lucario shushed Rio again, stopping again. "Can you feel it?"
"...Faintly, but why is that important?" Rio answered, a faint heat rising within him.
"Focus on it," the jackal demanded. "Just... focus."
'Focus...' Rio closed his eyes and tried to focus on the heat of the flame within him. He could feel it rising, but every now and then it would waver and shrink. "It's... hard! I can't-"
"Rio..." the jackal said softly. "You got this... just..."
"Focus..."
Rio woke up on one of the rugs in Kora's house, sitting next to him was Zeke and Zen, and across from him was Diana. Diana and Zeke were talking about something, and Zen was only listening. Since he had just woken up, Rio couldn't quite hear everything they were saying, so he decided to get up and ask what they were talking about.
"H-Huh? When did I... What happened?" the Lucario asked, feeling a sharp pain in his right arm that pulsed through his body.
"Hm? Oh, you're up Rio!" Zeke smiled. "I was just saying that your ability is incredible, but you just have to focus on using it more. Zen thinks you absorbed the Dark Energy of his attack, which made you incredibly aggressive as a result."
"You... knocked me out," Zen had a disgusted look on his face, which was covered up fairly well with a bandage wrap. "I got too careless, and the boost you gained from my attack was astronomical in comparison to your earlier show of strength. Diana said not to exert myself too much, but..." Zen's aura sparked briefly as he stopped his rising anger. "It would have been favorable for me if someone didn't wait for me to awaken before bringing us here. I find it laughable that a Blaziken can't carry a Bisharp and a Lucario on his own."
"To be fair, I also got a bit roughed up in the fight! Whatever you fed him gave him a more than just a kick!" Zeke chuckled, holding his side and wincing.
"I'm not a dumbass!" Zen shouted, pounding his fist on the ground. "You weren't hit a single time, worm!"
"W-Worm?! That's no-"
"Alright, enough," Diana interrupted, sparks scattering into the air. "Whoever did what doesn't matter right now. I want answers, and if you both are going to bicker back and forth about meaningless dribble, I won't hesitate to shut both of you up, and let the grown-ups talk."
Zen and Zeke got quiet fast, neither wanting to further piss off the Zoroark Outlander. It was interesting for Rio to watch; the two were almost ready to brawl right then and there, but one warning from Diana and now they're obedient again. Zen cleared his throat and faced Diana.
"Right, of course. While I am sure that my attack did grant him the power to, surprise me, I took note of how similar his outburst was to how Kane and Eva described my own, and I'm almost entirely certain he went Berserk."
"Berserk... like when you fought them in the springs earlier?" Diana asked, the Bisharp catching onto what she might have been implying.
"Rio, did you eat any black berries today? It might've looked like a black Oran berry?" Zen asked, him and Diana both staring at Rio. The Lucario thought for a second before responding.
"Yeah, actually. It was at the bakery. They said that a weird berry plant started growing in their garden and asked me Kora and Minerva to try the pie recipe they used it in. The taste was amazing! It felt like everything I loved was mixed into the perfect berry just for me!" the Outlander smiled at the memory of the delicious berry and godlike pastry. Diana and Zen both froze, leaving Zeke and Rio puzzled.
"Y-you said..." Zen stuttered.
"You, Minerva, and my son ate a pie..." Diana stammered.
"With the black berry in it..?" the two finished, worry drenching both of their faces. Rio slowly nodded yes, wondering what it was they were going on about.
"I know you didn't know this, but the reason why Zen went berserk at the springs earlier was because he ate a black berry after he first fought you. He also said that he can't remember what happened after he ate the berry, so it might not be the berry itself that does it... but I see no other option." Diana said, holding her forehead.
"If the berry is the cause of me going berserk, then the last Pokémon you want to eat a pie made of it would be Kora and Minerva," Zen added, standing up slowly. Zeke and Rio both jumped to their feet as well.
"We have to find them, before something bad happens!" Diana exclaimed, grabbing Zeke and running out the door.
"If this gets too out of hand, you are the one that's going to fix it. You do realize that, right?" Zen asked Rio, the Outlander gave a nod.
"M-Me?!" Rio exclaimed. "I-I still don't know how to fight! I don't even remember fighting you, or beating you up!"
"That's a shame, because after you did this to me-" Zen clenched his fist tightly, more of his aura spiking with his subdued rage. "-I am not in the condition to exert myself, at least not unless entirely necessary. If the need to fight those two arises, you will fight them."
Rio gulped, nodding in spite of his fear of getting in a fight with one or possibly two Berserk Pokemon, but Zen felt more terrifying by comparison. It really helps that Rio has already fought Zen, and that the Bisharp is about three seconds away from ripping him to shreds right now.
Zen led Rio to the Bakery, on the way there the two planned to get the black berry plant removed from the bakers' garden and to remove any pastries that might have the berry in it.
"You sure this is what we should be doing? You don't think we should head to Minerva or Kora first?" Rio asked.
"No, I doubt that you were the only one training. Assuming either of your companions are with Jax or Nate, I'm sure we aren't currently needed. Besides, if we don't get this cursed berry out of circulation, who knows who else could eat it and go Berserk?" Zen replied, entering the bakery with Rio close behind him.
Ben jumped as the two bandage-wrapped Pokémon approached the counter, both with determined looks on their faces.
"Oh my, what happened to you two? You weren't fighting, were you?" Ben asked.
"That's not important. We need you to throw out anything you baked with that black berry you found in your garden," Zen said firmly.
"We also gotta get rid of the plant too! Whatever that berry is, it makes you go crazy and attack anyone around you!" Rio added, not making Ben anymore comfortable.
"The black berry? Oh no, Clara!" Ben quickly ran into the kitchen and was heard running down some stairs. Not wasting anytime, Zen hopped over the counter.
"I'll go and get the plant. You get rid of any pastries with the berry," Zen commanded, running through the kitchen and into the garden.
Rio nodded and started sorting through the pastries on the counter. The aroma of the forbidden pies were tempting, and the deceitful warmth of the tins they were in was almost enough to drive Rio mad as he got rid of them. He forced himself not to look, knowing that seeing the angelic gifts from the gods would shatter his will.
"I-I'm sorry..." he whispered as he threw the last pie in a bag and tied it off. With tears in his eyes, Rio stepped on the bag to crush it's contents, feeling like a wretched beast the entire time. Truly, this was a task too great for him, as he collapsed on the floor moments after...
The Bisharp was met with a surprisingly large garden, tall berry plants with plenty of fruit growing from their branches. A sweet scent lingered in the air, and the assorted colors of the berries helped create an extremely relaxing atmosphere. Without the time to sight see, however, Zen ventured deeper into the garden.
After what seemed like several minutes of walking, Zen noticed that something was wrong. He'd been walking in a straight line the entire time, he should have come to an open area outside the bakery by now. Come to think of it, some of the plants look very similar to the ones near the entrance. The Bisharp turned around, seeing nothing but more plants.
"This doesn't feel right," he said, running back the way he came. Zen ran and he ran, but he didn't seem to be going anywhere.
"What is this? What's going on here?" Zen tensed up, looking into the shadows of the garden for any sign of movement. He didn't get a response.
"Rio? Ben? Clara? Anyone?!" he shouted as loud as he could, but to no avail. The Bisharp sighed and held out both arms.
"Forgive me, Ben and Clara, but I can't afford to waste anymore time," Zen said, slashing through the plants near him. The Bisharp slashed through plant after plant, eventually cutting the entire garden to the ground. Much to his dismay, however, the plants grew back immediately after being cut.
"... Why must you destroy the plant, Zen?" A voice spoke from the greenery, surprising Zen.
"Who..?" The Bisharp looked for the source, but was unable to find it. "It is a danger, not only to those who eat it, but to those close to whoever eats it," he replied, keeping a watchful eye on everything around him.
"A danger? maybe at first, but you got stronger from it. Didn't you?" the voice asked. At first, Zen didn't respond, not knowing what the voice meant exactly. After some thought, Zen did remember feeling somewhat more powerful after he recovered from his fight under the berry's influence, and there was Rio who had eaten a pie with the berry within it and got unbelievably strong after absorbing a Dark Pulse.
"What exactly is the berry? And who are you that knows so much about it?" Zen questioned the voice.
"It's a Dark Berry. It only works on Dark Type Pokémon. It gives whatever Dark Type Pokémon that eats it a massive power boost, but also messes with their emotions. After they are subdued, though, some of the extra power will stay inside them," the voice explained. It sounded like it was moving around Zen, but there wasn't any sign of movement.
"That... There's no way that's natural. What did you do to make these berries?!" Zen shouted. The voice giggled.
"All I did was simply that. Make them. No need for such aggravation. I planted these berries for the greater good, just because you can't see it yet doesn't mean it isn't there." After that, the voice didn't speak again. Zen hoped that meant he could finally leave the garden. As the Dark-Steel Type turned to where he thought the Bakery was, he was met with the Dark Berry plant, with a singular berry left.
'The Dark Berry grants any Dark-Type Pokémon who eats it a massive power boost, at the cost of also boosting their emotions.' The words the voice spoke repeated in Zen's head as he approached the plant. A massive boost in power to any dark type...
The Outlander was worried about how long it was taking Zen to return. Rio was just about to head into the garden when he heard some commotion from outside. Peeking his head out the tent opening, Rio saw Kane towering over Kai and Mia. But... there was something off about him...
"Was that glow, thing... that strong on Zen..?" Rio asked, seeing the black flames that came off of Zen when he went Berserk, but there was a more controlled flame more tightly around Kane. He could feel both of them from here, the expansive, intimidating flame having a chaotic, malicious, and uncontrollable feel to it, and the more compact one being aggressive and proud, but there was some... sadness to it. Rio's train of thought was derailed when Kai's voice broke through it.
"S-stop it! Leaves us alone, o-or I'll go get Kora!" Kai yelled, standing guard in front of Mia.
"Kora? Don't make me laugh! I could beat him to a pulp without even trying!" Kane growled. "He and that runt he hangs out with ain't got nothin' on me now!"
"You won't get the chance to beat anyone!" Rio shouted, kicking Kane in the side. Unfortunately, the attack did practically nothing, leaving Rio wide open for a Brick Break to his attacking leg. The Scrafty grinned devilishly as he lifted the Lucario hit the ground, grabbing his leg and holding him up to his face.
"I got a whole gang of Pokémon worth beatin' up! I've been waiting to put you in your place, dog!" Kane laughed, letting go of Rio and kicking the Lucario in the stomach before he hit the ground. Rio slid across the dirt, stopping a few feet from the Bakery entrance.
'What the hell...' Rio thought to himself, picking himself up while his aura started to flare up, 'Was he always this strong?'
The jackal didn't have much time to think as Kane was turned back to the two smaller Pokémon. This time, he jammed his elbow into the Berserk Pokémon's back. The results were mostly the same, Kane not being affected, Rio getting a hefty blow to his body. Instead of being thrown away, Rio tried to attack Kane again, head butting the lizard as hard as possible, but getting himself more injured in the process
"Are you completely brain dead? HA!" Kane laughed, his dark aura flaring up even more. Before the jackal could react, Kane's fist was placed firmly into Rio's stomach, knocking all of the wind out of him. Rio fell to the ground. Despite how powerful the attack was, the Lucario didn't feel as hurt as he expected. Well, he was practically immobilized, but he wasn't dead so, yay?
"Not knocked out yet? You're kinda stubborn, fitting knowing the brats you're friends with," Kane spat, picking Rio up and hit him with another Brick Break, sending him back a few feet. As Rio got back on his feet, Kane was already approaching at an alarming speed.
"High Jump Kick!" the Scrafty jumped and slammed his knee directly into Rio's head, sending the Lucario into the Bakery. Hoping to keep the fight outside, Rio picked himself up again and got back out there. As fast as he could, the jackal made a sharp turn straight to Jax's Gym, hoping to god that's where Zeke and Diana were.
"Runnin' ain't an option for you, mutt!" Kane roared, getting right next to Rio and punching him in the jaw. The Lucario slammed his shoulder into Kane's side, getting grabbed in the process. Rio was thrown right where he needed to go, right into the gym, but he hit someone as he entered.
"What's the rush, rookie?" Jax asked, picking Rio off the ground. The Outlander didn't have a moment to respond as Kane already rushed in.
"You're just as pathetic as the cat! Can't even beat me without help, huh?" Kane mocked. Something in the air shifted. Rio felt that sense of danger rapidly incoming.
"I should've known that a friend to that worthless excuse for a 'Mon would attract useless scum like you," Kane continued, the pressure around them grew noticeably heavier. Rio and Jax turned slowly, seeing Kora standing at the entrance to the field.
"Say. That. Again." The fox snarled. Kane frowned, more darkness wrapping around his body.
"Here comes the Halfbred Brat, you upset now or something? Didn't seem so mad when I called that runt you follow blindly that earlier. In fact, you looked like you were about to run off cryin'!"
Somewhere in that sentence was the wrong thing to say, like, the absolute wrong thing to say. Rio instinctively ran to cover, pulling Jax with him. Kora raised his head, his eyes vacant and empty until they laid upon Kane. At that moment, they turned a deep red.
"Who the hell do you think you are..." Kora muttered, the ever-so oblivious Kane cracked his knuckles and laughed.
"I'm a real Pokémon! I don't need to surround myself with trash to make myself feel strong!" Kane ran towards Kora, ready to attack the Zoroark. Upon reaching Kora, unfortunately, Kane was stopped in his tracks by the fox's glare.
"You aren't a real anything. You're dead." Kora's own aura expanded and crept along the floor, pushing Kane back. Rio and Jax ran outside, leaving the two Berserk Pokémon to their battle.
"What's gotten into them?!" Jax shouted. "I've seen both their auras before, but whatever that is isn't either of them!"
"I'll try to keep this short, but there's a berry that makes you go berserk when you eat it, and we had a pie with that berry in it. Diana, Zeke, Zen and I were trying to find Kora and Minerva before someone got hurt, but unfortunately it seems Kane might get a lot more than just hurt!" Rio explained, something telling him to get down. As the Lucario pushed him and Jax to the ground, Kane came flying over them.
"..." Kora walked out the gym, his aura was so thick you almost couldn't see him in it. Kane caught himself before he landed, his face drenched in fear and his aura almost entirely gone. Rio could sense more regret and fear coming from Kane than he felt any emotion besides rage coming from Kora.
"WH-WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU?!" Kane screamed, not getting any response from Kora. The fox held up his palm, and a Dark Pulse instantly shot out at Kane. Going against his instinct, Rio got in front of Kane and blocked the attacks. Kora stared with empty, uncaring eyes.
"You have to calm down, Kora!" Rio shouted, getting silence from the fox.
"..." Kora launched himself forward and slammed his arm into Rio's. The Lucario was sent flying away, leaving the cowering Kane to Kora's fury. Before the Berserk Zoroark could attack, Jax managed to land a hefty punch on him.
"C'mon Kora, you're better than this!" Jax tried to convince his little buddy to calm down, but got the same result as Rio did. Kora approached Jax, pushing him back with just a paw back towards the gym. Kora turned to Kane, seeing again his friend standing in front of his target.
"I won't let you do this! Please, Kora! Stop this!" Rio shouted.
"..." Kora got down on all fours, his aura expanding even more than before. With blinding speed, Kora jumped over Rio and landed, claws first, onto Kane. Without hesitation, Kora slashed at Kane's chest. The Scrafty screamed in agony, trying to run but Kora had him pinned entirely. Before the fox could get another attack in, he was hit with a Dark Pulse coming from the Bakery.
"Zen? Zen!" Rio exclaimed, never having been so happy to see someone that beat him into the ground less than a day prior. Zen remained mostly silent, but his calculating gaze was enough for Rio.
"Dammit," Zen got himself ready to fight, black flames engulfing his body as well. Rio was scared at first, thinking he might have gone Berserk, but Zen wasn't lashing out like Kane was or Kora is. With Kora knocked on the ground, Rio regrouped with Zen and stood in a fighting stance.
"I hope you have a plan of some sort, because I sure as hell don't!" Rio admitted with a shaky voice.
"We just have to calm him down, or knock him out. Either works, really," Zen responded, flaring up his aura.
"Alright! I'll follow your lead!" Rio said, an excited heat rising within him. Kora got back up and faced Zen and Rio. With no warning, Kora jumped at the two opposing Pokémon with his claws primed and ready. Zen quickly slashed upwards, catching Kora off guard and hitting his shoulder. As the fox landed he pushed himself back with his other arm, aiming his body for Zen.
"..!" The fox was shoulder bashed by Rio. They hit the ground pretty hard, but it didn't seem to hurt Kora in the slightest. The mindless fox put both paws up, red and orange sparks flickering in front of them. Zen quickly pushed Rio to the side, readying a Dark Pulse to counter Kora's Incinerate.
"Hahhh!" The two attacks exploded upon hitting each other, pushing the two Dark Types back a few feet and pushing Rio to the ground. Before the dust settled, Kora jumped through the smoke, getting two slashes on Zen. The Bisharp's aura appeared more unstable after the attack; Rio felt Zen was starting to lose control.
"Leave him ALONE!" Rio shouted, ramming his head into Kora's. While the fox was somewhat dazed, Rio slammed his shoulder into Kora's chest as hard as he possibly could, knocking Kora to the ground. Zen quickly recovered and hit Kora with a powerful Dark Pulse. The thick aura around the Zoroark started to waver, a good sign to Rio that they were doing something!
"Nngggghhh..." Kora groaned, Rio gained a hopeful smile after hearing something finally come from his enraged friend. "Wh...what..? Wh..y?" the Dark Type groaned, holding his head.
"Kora, please! You have to stop!" Rio yelled.
"So... loud... shut, shut up..." Kora held his head, a fierce snarl on his snout. "Shut up..! Shut up! SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP SHUT UP! SHUT THE HELL UP!" The aura expanded dramatically, swallowing Kora whole in its darkness. A powerful pressure formed from the massive aura, pushing Rio and Zen away and causing the tents to shake. Unfortunately, Zen's own aura faded and he fell to a knee.
"Not yet! We can't give out now, body! Dammit!" Zen said, trying but failing to stand. Rio felt a whole lot more danger coming, not a single thing was going right then.
'What am I supposed to do? How do I stop this?!' Rio's mind was filled with worry and fear. Thankfully, the Lucario was soon joined by Nate and Minerva, both relieved to find Rio.
"What's happenin?! Where's Kora?" Minerva asked. Rio pointed at the large void of darkness.
"Kane started saying some terrible things to Kora and he just... exploded with this aura! I'm pretty sure it has something to do with the black berry pie we ate earlier," Rio explained.
"Actually, the Dark Berry only affects Dark-Types. Minerva should be fine. Once we knock him out or have him run out of energy, he should get back to normal," Zen added, panting heavily. The Bisharp's previous injuries and new ones finally caught up to him. "I can't... I can't fight anymore. You... have to stop him."
"How? You two got any ideas?" Nate asked, not getting a positive answer from Rio or Zen.
"..." Minerva looked at the well of darkness, knowing that her friend was in there, hurting. "I think I got somethin'."
"What is it?" Rio asked.
"Just, if this doesn't work, try not to hurt him too much, ok?" Minerva asked as she walked into the swirling darkness. Rio wanted to stop her, but something told him to trust her. He sat down beside Zen, crossing his fin- er, his paw fingers. Whatever they're called.
"Whatever you're doing, I hope it works..." Rio sighed.
The darkness was hot and suffocating, which was perfectly complimented by a swirling vortex of deafening static and other incomprehensible noises. Yet it wasn't enough to drive Minerva away. The ground didn't feel like grass and dirt, actually, it didn't feel like anything. For a while, she trudged forward, the pressure around her and the darkness being too dense for her to see but, suddenly, there he was.
A mass of crimson, red hair, a beacon in the darkness. Minerva pushed through the dark towards her friend.
"Kora!" she called out, grabbing his attention. He looked back at her and blinked, almost starring past her.
"...Huh?" he spoke, facing the Meowth. "..?"
Minerva grabbed his paw and pulled him towards the way she came. "C'mon! We gotta get outta here!" she said.
"Oh... Ok," the fox said blankly. "Where are we going?"
Minerva looked back up at the fox, wondering why he was acting so strange. He had a downtrodden look about him, his eyes fixed on Minerva but she couldn't tell if her could see her. "Are you alright?" Minerva asked.
"Um..." Kora shrugged. "I don't think so, I have some left on me too." he chuckled. Minerva snickered, but didn't let him hear it.
"Goddammit, ya actually had me goin', ya prick!" she laughed.
"Haha... yeah..." Kora smiled, as if his usual childish nature had finally returned to him. Although, he wasn't fully there, and Minerva could tell. Not knowing what exactly to say, she pulled Kora down and wrapped her arms around his neck.
"You're fine, Kora," she said softly. "We're gonna get outta this place and relax for a while, ok?"
"Ok, Minerva," Kora replied, returning the hug. "But maybe... I should rest a bit..."
"Sure, I gotcha. I can wait right here for ya."
Right after Minerva went into the swell of darkness, Zeke and Diana got to the scene, both worried about the swirling void.
"What's going on?" Zeke asked calmly.
"She just, went in. she's crazy," Zen spoke, staring still at the darkness before him.
"Who?" Diana questioned. No one answered, more distracted by the shrinking aura. It slowly grew smaller and smaller, bits of aura floating away into the wind like embers from a flame. It took a good minute before the aura dispersed entirely, leaving Minerva hugging a passed out Kora in its center. Rio was about to go and join the two, but his injuries hit him abruptly, making him fall on his chest.
"You did it. Whatever your plan was worked!" Rio exclaimed, unable to get himself up. Diana rushed over to her son, not knowing what happened but knew that he was hurt. The mother held her son, thanking Minerva, and lifted Kora up in her arms.
"We need to get rid of those berry plants, immediately. Zeke, Nate, I'll handle the plants. I, no, everyone needs you to train these kids to be as strong as possible. Whatever or whoever made these plants needs to be found ASAP," Diana stated, "Go find Jax as well, after I treat my son's wounds, we'll meet at the gym." Diana walked off onto the forest path leading to the houses.
"One more thing, Zen..." she looked sternly at the Bisharp. "They need you. I get that you have some sort of... complex, but as you can see, this is bigger than you. I would suggest you put your pride behind you, and cooperate with them," Diaina ordered. Zen couldn't find the strength to object, and even if he had, Diana wouldn't be so kind taking a "no" after this incident anyway. He figured it'd be best to do as she says.
"Hey Rio, wanna go over to the springs and get yourself fixed up? We can bring the metal head too if ya want," Minerva offered, helping Rio off the ground. She went over to the Bisharp and offered him her paw. With some hesitation, Zen raised his hand and rested it in the feline's paws.
"Can either of ya walk? I'm not gonna lie, the both of ya look like ya could pass out anytime." Neither of the heavily injured Pokémon could move all that much. Nate lifted the two and carried them over his shoulders. Zeke left to find the Machamp, and the others walked down to the hot springs.
The sun was setting, giving the sky an orange and pink hue that made the leaves seem to glow. No one had really spoken on the way to the springs, apart from Rio explaining what had happened. Upon reaching the springs, the first thing that caught everyone's attention was the Machamp inside the springs.
"Jax? When did you get over here?" Nate asked, putting Rio and Zen into the water.
"Kora did a lot more damage than I thought he did. I tried to get back up after he pushed me, but a whole lotta pain shot through my chest. I was thinking about getting someone to help Rio, but I thought this would make that a lot harder on me, the Machamp said.
"From the sounds of it, Rio wasn't exactly on the top of your priority list. I don't know if you noticed, but these two were fighting Kora while they were already beat up! You've handled much worse than sharp pains before, muscle head," Nate pouted, making the Machamp sink into the water a bit.
"N-no it's not like that at all! I'm serious, it was getting worse by the second I had to come here!" Jax attempted to defend himself. The Feraligtr sighed and went into the water. Rio and Zen floated aimlessly in the spring, both having their eyes closed and breathing softly, as if they were sleeping.
"I guess it's been a long day for everyone, huh?" Minerva said, enjoying the relaxing heat of the spring.
"If by long you mean painful, then yeah," Rio joked, trying to laugh but it came out strained.
"I've been beaten twice today..." Zen sighed. "Three if you count this morning..."
"Ain't somebody's feelin's hurt? Boo-hoo, get over it! Everyone loses sometime, ain't nobody got a perfect fightin' record." Minerva rolled her eyes.
"Except I did," Zen growled, not wanting to face the Meowth. "I haven't lost a fight in years... and now I've lost at least twice in a single day. How have I fallen..?"
Rio felt Zen's sadness and anger towards himself in his words, or rather, more than just his words. He wanted to console him, but couldn't find the right thing to say. Maybe leaving him be would work out better than trying to connect with him. There was something about Zen that told Rio not to get too close right now, maybe some hostility?
The group left the springs and started walking towards Diana's house. Jax and Nate split off for the gym and the other three went inside to check up on Kora.
Kora sat in front of the fire with no bandages or anything. He was, unsurprisingly, totally fine. Kora turned his head to see who walked in, redirecting his eyes back to the fire once he saw who it was. Silently, Rio and Minerva sat on either side of Kora.
"I'm sorry," Kora muttered, not looking at either of his friends.
"It's alright dude. It's not like you could have stopped yourself. Besides, Kane kinda deserved it," Rio said, putting his paw on the Kora's shoulder. Zen eventually sat opposite to the three.
"Why's he with us?" Kora was exhausted from the battle prior, making his tone weak and uninterested, but he was actually sort of pleased to see Zen.
"He helped hold ya off 'till I got there. If it weren't for him, you'd have blasted Rio and the rest of the Square to dust," Minerva said. Kora looked directly at Zen with a bit of surprise on his face.
"Then I guess I owe you one. Never thought of you as someone that would help me of all Pokémon," Kora admitted with a friendly smile. Zen stared at Kora for a moment, looking at Minerva and Rio before shutting his eyes and crossing his arms.
"Hmph. You don't owe me anything. I only did what I was needed for, nothing more," the Bisharp replied, letting out a sigh and laying on his back. It was safe to say this day didn't end exactly how he wanted.
'It's a bit too late for regret now. I have a job to do now, by the order of Diana.' He thought to himself. 'This Outlander and his companions... Right now I surpass them marginally, but...' For a moment, black strands of aura rose from Zen's body, then quickly dispersed. 'No, I will not allow them to reach me. I must remain stronger than them, I will always be stronger than them...'
After half an hour passes, everyone but Kora falls asleep. The fox was lost in his thoughts and the dance of the flames before him. It's not like he hasn't heard insults about Minerva before, and even with the effect of the berries, why did he blow up so much? What is he going to do if it happens again? What if he hurts his friends? More than he already did?
His expression fell as he stared at the orange and yellow flames rise and fall, at the beck and call of whatever breeze came in the room. The fire was warm, but some part of Kora felt cold. 'No, I can do this...' He told himself, looking over at the curled-up Minerva beside him and the now-snoring Rio leaning on his shoulder, and his smile returned. 'We're a team, we'll get through it together... Right?'
Kora sighed, not wanting to think about this anymore. He put on a smile and tried to doze off, expecting tomorrow to be full of training, but hoped that it wouldn't have all this added excitement. 'Tomorrow's problems for tomorrow's me,' he thought before finally falling into a warm slumber.