Off in the distance, the sky started turning shades of orange and purple as the daylight started to leave, and perhaps a large band of expeditioners out running around at that time would've been odd, but that definitely wasn't stopping the Coalition and the Gnarly Brigade.
"This is just gnarly!" came a happy exclamation from a snickering Honchkrow.
"Two hell-raising missions in one day- it doesn't get much better than this," another gnarly Scizor matter-of-factly concurred whilst trailing along next to him, his pincers tapping together as if they were hungry mouths waiting to chomp on something.
Lazuli giggled. "Isn't it exciting~?! One of Salem's underlings, ahaha!"
A hearty shout of agreement came from the Gnarly Brigade, which the Azumarill joined in on and Rush snickered at.
It was definitely a big entourage, one that anyone in their right mind wouldn't dream of starting trouble with… but even if some company not in their right mind wanted to do such, they were ready. Several metallic clangs had already sounded out through the area from a certain three members of the Gnarly Brigade- Shar bumping Azra's fists or Seth's pincers with her claws, or Seth and Azra bumping their own metallic appendages with each other. Riven had no shortage of ghastly cackles to make, and though Polly was easily the quietest of the bunch as she perched on one of Shar's head protuberances, she smirked and snickered quite often. The Garchomp's team was definitely a boisterous bunch, and if someone hadn't known otherwise on seeing them, probably would've assumed they were a bunch of thugs and no-gooders themselves rather than an expedition team.
"Hey, tone it down for a second, you lot," Adnea chimed in, flat as usual. "There's a faction group less than a kilometer away and we don't need to go getting in fights with them yet if they hear us."
Instantly, they shut up, though the Chatot perched on Shar's head did snicker just a little bit.
"Speakin' of crazies, can ya get a read on that jumpy Pheromosa?" Rush inquired, glancing at the researcher.
"I can't," she replied. "Though they have slowed down for the time being and are sticking around another equally hard-to-read presence. The memories of the wild ones I can see indicate a Stakataka… but I can't see any identification because of their surroundings being so dense with greenery."
She got a few looks from the rest of the entourage.
"Oh?" Shar inquired. "A Stakataka and Pheromosa?"
"Seems that way," Adnea affirmed. "Now, perhaps there are other Stakataka-Pheromosa duos running around, but the simple fact that Raijin mentioned Void's top underlings belonging to those two species is what concerns me. That would be… troubling, to say the least."
Rush smirked. "Now wouldn't that be something," he remarked, crossing his arms.
"Something gnarly," Shar concurred.
Both the Garchomp and Scrafty exchanged grins, and Shar held out one of her claws which Rush gently bumped with one of his fists.
"Tch! I'll burn them both down!" Cinder declared, eyes narrowing. He got a gleefully mischievous look from Riven, who held one wing slightly outwards that the Fletchinder bumped with the tip of one of his own in something of a high-five, though Cinder himself was straight-faced the entire time in spite of the gesture.
"Say, ya want someone to go scout it out so we can tell for sure?" Shar asked of the Orbeetle. "We got Polly."
"We sure do!" Polly concurred, giving a happy flap of her wings. "Even better if they've never seen a Chatot in the flesh before! I can do this!"
"Go ahead," Adnea affirmed.
Shar reached up and hooked one claw around the strap of Polly's eyepatch, and with a bob of her head, the Chatot removed it. A little snicker came from the avian before she flapped her wings and took off into the distance, leaving them all behind.
"That act of hers," Lazuli giggled, watching Polly leave.
"Well, not all of us have a ridiculously capable psychic at our disposal to scout things out, Big Blue," Azra jested, giving the Azumarill a playful nudge with one armored hand.
Lazuli giggled and gave the Aggron a nudge in return, to which he gave her yet another little shove with more strength behind it. She smirked and returned the gesture once more, though her comparatively small arms hardly did a thing against the hulking ironclad figure.
Soon, the Chatot was vanishing from their view into a grove of trees.
. . . . .
Further away in that grove of trees, though, a certain Pheromosa apparently couldn't stop smirking as they leaned against their Stakataka comrade while perching on the cool grass, impatiently tapping the ground that their claws rested on. It was quiet, save for an occasional chirp from a Pidgey or Spearow or the skittering of a Seedot scurrying off to someplace else. A giant gray wall looked utterly out of place among all the deep green and leafy surroundings, and Remi's paleness was rather striking against it too, but apparently the wild ones could tell easily enough that they were troublesome company to be avoided for how still and silent their surroundings were. To anyone else, it would've been a nice setting for watching the sun set, but the Beasts definitely didn't have that on their minds.
"Oh, this is just beautiful," Remi snickered, crossing their arms and grinning to themself. "An entourage, just like we expected."
Indeed, through the X-Ray Specs situated over their eyes, quite a few figures could be made out in the distance, though a certain Dartrix, Frogadier, and Xurkitree weren't among them. No, those ones were further ahead and slightly west, closer to reaching a certain Golisopod than the others. That was fine- if Team Starstorm's comrades had set out too to watch their backs, then the two Beasts had no issue jumping into the fray with them. Remi couldn't help the huge grin that spread across their face, a devilish look of pure mischief.
"I can't wait to raise some hell, hehehe!" the Pheromosa remarked, jittering with laughter.
"WE EXPECTED NO LESS OF YOU, COMRADE," Knox replied.
At the loudness of his voice, several avians in the nearby trees further away from them let out squawks and flew off hurriedly, startled by the volume.
A single one of Knox's blocks turned outwards that had been facing inwards. "Ah. So our collective voice is startling." It turned back inwards, and another turned outwards. "This world is so, so quiet."
Remi snickered some more. "Pffft, if I was a collective like you, I'd go shouting on purpose just to piss everyone off!"
Knox apparently wasn't going to consider such. Another of his blocks on the top flipped outwards, peering up at one avian in particular that apparently was more interested in the source of the loud voice than frightened by it, seeing as she was hopping closer. A Chatot flitted down towards them both, eyeing them curiously, and Remi too took notice of the smaller winged figure traipsing about in the branches.
"If I was a collective like you, I'd go shouting on purpose just to piss everyone off!" the bird repeated, mimicking Remi's voice perfectly.
That certainly piqued Remi's interest, and they jumped to their feet while flicking up their glasses to gleefully study the Chatot. "Oooh! I know what this one is! It's a Chatot, a Flying- and Normal-type that's only good for repeating sounds and nothing else!"
Of course, Polly had other thoughts than what Remi was saying, but nonetheless, she repeated back perfectly while flitting closer, "A Flying- and Normal-type that's only good for repeating sounds and nothing else!"
Remi snickered, looking as amused as could be and taking a few steps closer to the little avian. "Oh, that is adorable.~ Hey, useless native, let me teach you a good phrase!"
"Hey, useless native, let me teach you a good phrase!"
The Chatot jumped from the trees and down onto Knox, which the Stakataka shook slightly at in apparent discomfort. Remi held a claw up, which Polly jumped down onto next, the Pheromosa snickering all the while with a playful grin. The way she nonchalantly preened at her feathers and tilted her head to the side while making a subdued chattering sound almost perfectly gave off the impression of a wild Chatot that was simply inspecting some new company.
"Okay, repeat after me," Remi said with a laugh. "Fuck this world and everyone in it.~"
"Fuck this world and everyone in it.~"
The Pheromosa cackled in amusement, and Polly shortly mimicked their laughter perfectly as well, which only made them more mischievously gleeful.
"Okay, okay, here's another one," Remi kept on. "Praise be to our new goddess, Void.~"
"Praise be to our new goddess, Void.~"
"This is fantastic!" Remi laughed, giving the Stakataka a glance. "Knox, I like this one!" They looked back to Polly. "Fuck Necrozma, too! And fuck Six-Seven! And even Astrid, while we're at it! Fuck 'em all!"
"Fuck Necrozma, too! And fuck Six-Seven! And even Astrid, while we're at it! Fuck 'em all! Fuck this world and everyone in it.~ Praise be to our new goddess, Void.~"
The Pheromosa cackled some more, their eyes glittering with bliss. "Heh! Why can't all the natives be like this?! Then I'd have more fun talking with them than kicking their asses!"
"Why can't all the natives be like this?!"
"Yes, you stupid wild avian, yes! You might not be good for jack shit else, but if you can sing Void's praises, I won't splatter you across the ground!"
"Yes, you stupid wild avian, yes!"
A few of Knox's components flipped outwards and made little giggling sounds too, which Polly likewise imitated. Still, for the fun they were having, a slightly dismayed cry left Remi when the Chatot flitted her wings again and took back to the trees, fluffing and hopping around like absolutely nothing was amiss.
"Hey!" the Pheromosa cried. "Who said you could leave?!"
"Who said you could leave?!" Polly repeated, preening one wing.
Remi's eyes narrowed though their mouth was still curled in a smirk. They crossed their arms and peered up at the avian in indignation, a small snarl of displeasure following.
The Chatot still repeated one phrase as she turned around and gave a few flaps of her wings and a wag of her tail. "Fuck this world and everyone in it.~"
"Get your ass down here, Chatot!" Remi fussed, their expression turning annoyed. "I wanna take you home! Void would have fun playing with you!"
Polly glanced backwards and eyed the two Beasts for a second, then spread her wings and took off while filling the air with imitations of Remi's laughter. The Pheromosa snarled again and an Ice Beam started taking form at the tips of their claws, but gently, one of Knox's rocky limbs reached out and gave them a nudge that made them pause.
"Don't work yourself up too much, comrade," one block said as it flipped. "There are surely plenty of other Chatots out there. We can have as many as we want once this world is under our control."
Remi snarled again, but acquiesced. "… You're right," they chuckled, going back to looking playful and mischievous as they flipped their glasses back over their eyes. "No use kicking an inconsequential ass.~ Azure's handling the human; I'll save my wrath for the rest.~" A mischievous snicker escaped the stick-thin Beast as they dug their claws into a close by tree trunk, waiting to sink them into something else… something else a little livelier. "Let's go tell 'em hi.~"
Knox wasn't disagreeing.
. . . . .
It took a little bit of dodging certain paths and redirecting at a few points under Adnea's guidance plus ducking down into some brush cover when a Celesteela flew overhead, but the Starstorm trio found Luminous Grotto eventually. (Avoiding unwanted company was certainly much easier with a smaller group, that was for sure, but even if they'd been the first to set off, they knew at least Dren could fly fast enough to catch up if anything went awry.) The surroundings were mostly forested and covered in fairly thick trees that blocked out much of the sunlight, but as seemed to be fairly common for the vicinity, it wasn't too hard to find craggy splotches of reddish stone and dusty tan earth. Still, when the shrubbery thinned out and gave way to a fairly large clearing of around fifty meters across, a little cave that seemed almost akin to a hill that someone had merely hollowed out told them they were in the right place. Bright green grass grew on the sides around it, and only the top was tinted grey for the stones making it up.
They shared a few glances, not approaching it just yet.
"… Okay, Arashi, you and I need to stick close to Raijin," Astrid noted, keeping her voice low. "And Raijin, you do your thing. The faster we can knock this guy out, the better, so let him have it the second you see him."
Her comrades nodded.
"While we're at it, Raijin, get the orb out, and Arashi, you hold it," she added. "Just in case we need to use it fast. We've got the advantage, but we shouldn't risk having those claws rip into anyone."
"Good idea," the Xurkitree concurred, fishing it out.
"You literally prepare for everything," Arashi jested, though he didn't protest.
"If Adnea was right and this is a ploy, then I'm not putting anything past him," the Dartrix brushed it off. "The last thing we need is for any of us to get First Impression'd into a wormhole, and if I were a Golisopod working for Salem, that's what I'd do."
Her comrades gave her a look, and Arashi turned visibly uncomfortable at the idea.
"… Okay, yeah, you two stay close to me so that doesn't happen," Raijin said quickly, his tail wrapping around them for a moment.
Arashi gave an awkward laugh, clutching the orb a bit tighter.
Nonetheless, they were shortly stalking over to the grotto's entrance, the Dartrix still scanning their surroundings for anything, anything out of the ordinary, though she didn't see anything.
Nothing was out of the ordinary on the inside, either. The simple fact that they were inside a cave made things grow dim further away from the entrance, but the air was still and quiet. The grass under their feet thinned out in favor of smooth stone, everything inside a cool grey color. Small little pillars stuck up from the ground, all of them with rounded tops and a few with cracks running down their sides, that looked somewhat natural but very conveniently placed in symmetrical order around the perimeter all the same. Yet, as plain and unremarkable as most of the interior would've otherwise been, something very quickly caught their eyes.
There was the Golisopod standing at the back of the cave, facing away from them and claws retracted out of view. He appeared to be studying a large, mostly orange and pinkish crystalline shard sticking out of the ground that Astrid easily recognized as being similar to the one in Luminous Cavern at Overgrown Crevice… another object to aid in evolution that would probably be gone soon by one method or another. The Dartrix instinctively fluffed out a bit at seeing him again, but at the same time, her eyes narrowed. She and her comrades knew what to expect, and it was fairly blatant which side had the advantage.
The second they all caught sight of the Golisopod, a nest of lightning bolts crackled in Raijin's hand, but at the same time, apparently Azure could tell he wasn't alone, for as soon as he heard the crackles, a burst of light came from something he held in his front forelimbs and a shield covered him- the effects of an All-Protect Orb. It spared him an electrical onslaught as he turned around to face them, claws extending outwards from their sheaths. Raijin planted all of his limbs on the ground around the two smaller figures and quickly became more akin to a sparking cage.
"Orb!" Astrid cried quickly, not wanting to take any chances in case their company went starting Rock Slides.
Arashi held it up and activated their own orb, a shield covering the Starstorm trio too. Azure's eyes narrowed, and Raijin eased up back to his bipedal stance with the orb keeping the Golisopod from touching them all.
"… Very clever," Azure said pointedly but nonchalantly, his claws retracting again. "You're a smart one, Astrid."
Astrid's eyes narrowed too, but she couldn't help fluffing out a bit. She was rather surprised to hear something of a growl escaping her partner, and a quick glance revealed a disgruntled look on his face as well.
"If you think for a second that those sparks are going to dissuade me, then you're dead wrong," the Golisopod mused matter-of-factly. "The act is over, Six-Seven. You didn't kill me the first time and I doubt you have any intentions to do so this time either."
"I don't want to, but if you think I won't or that I'm not capable, then you're dead wrong," the Xurkitree said otherwise.
The armored bug let out a gravelly-sounding chuckle, clicking two of his front claws together. He looked them all over inquisitively, still unfazed. "Well, if I can't sink my claws into anyone, I suppose I should ask a question or two," he said without a care. "Astrid… you know what you're up against, yes? You can't possibly hope to win."
Astrid's eyes narrowed some more.
"She's not terrible like you!" Arashi cried, unamused. "Lying down and surrendering to you and your comrades is awful!"
"I'm not joining you," the Dartrix asserted, soft as her voice may have been. "Necrozma told me to take charge of my own fate. That's what I'm doing, and it doesn't involve getting friendly with your side."
"Oh, Necrozma," Azure laughed some more. "They've been flickering for days now. Lunala's light is nearly dried up and Solgaleo is getting far too tired to guard them anymore. I guarantee you that blinding dragon would tell you to give up if they could."
"You're bluffing," Arashi shot back.
However, a certain Orbeetle's disembodied voice shortly added to the mix, sounding almost worried for once. *You three, don't let your guard down! We've got some troublesome company and he's planning on-! NO-!*
She went silent. The three of them definitely perked up, though, and shot each other some glances.
At about the same time, the floor underneath their feet started to shake, and all four of the ones inside the cave had trouble keeping their balance. Raijin grabbed one of the stone shards jutting up from the ground, and Astrid and Arashi both hopped on top of it just in case the ground decided to open up beneath them. Azure jabbed his claws into a pillar next to him as if he too weren't expecting such.
Still, the armored underling chuckled. "Ah, they must be having fun out there."
"Adnea?!" Arashi cried in alarm, glancing around as if the Orbeetle might materialize from the shadows when he called. "Who's there?! Are you guys alright?!"
No answer.
In any case, Azure's shield was starting to fade as the rumbles settled, and the Starstorm trio knew theirs would follow shortly after.
"That was an Earthquake; they probably got intercepted," Astrid piped up swiftly.
"Of course they did," Azure affirmed. "Between Remi and Knox, evasion is impossible."
At the mention of those names, the Starstorm trio froze. Raijin had mentioned those two… as Void's top underlings. Astrid's eyes went wide and Arashi looked surprised, but if the Xurkitree had possessed visible eyes himself, they would've been little pinpricks.
"R-Remi and Knox…?!" Raijin said, dripping with unease.
"He's bluffing," Arashi chimed in, though judging from his expression and the uncertainty in his own voice, he was clearly just trying to be optimistic and didn't entirely believe the words leaving his mouth.
Azure's shield went down. "I'm not bluffing. Salem is cracking Necrozma's shields as we speak and Remi and Knox are here to make sure we get who we want with no interruptions. Your time is up, Team Starstorm."
Their shield dropped too.
. . . . .
"Adnea?!" Lazuli cried in surprise, giving the Orbeetle a glance.
Hypnosis hadn't gone well at all. Mere moments after her eyes started to glow, Remi had launched an Ice Beam that was almost too fast to even see coming. The researcher wasn't answering to anyone, even with Rozen giving her a Heal Pulse in an attempt to restore some of her energy, but still she stayed limp on the ground with her eyes shut and a few ice crystals still clinging to her form. Dren curled his tail around them both while Rush, Lazuli, and Cinder looked ready to exchange blows, and the Gnarly Brigade wasn't too far behind either. All of the expeditioners were on guard, studying their extradimensional company for any move they might make, and the Pheromosa certainly had no qualms about making any while grinning and laughing, they all shortly found out.
Remi giggled to themself, smirking wildly behind their Stakataka comrade's Wide Guard. Polly's news had definitely surprised the expeditioners on her return, but all the same, the identifying marks on the Beasts told them all exactly who stood before them without any room for disbelief. Cracks split the ground in multiple places courtesy of Knox, but thankfully, they'd all managed to evade the fissures that threatened to swallow them.
"Hello there, lesser species!" Remi cheerfully exclaimed, giving a playful wave with one set of claws and tipping their X-Ray Specs up onto their head. "Mighty fine day for some ass-kicking, isn't it~?!"
The gold in their joints sparkled when hit by the light, and the hair-like wings draping off of their head had a lovely sheen… but clearly, underneath the outward beauty was a vicious mind. The way their claws twitched, just itching to rip into something, was cue enough. Even if there was only two, the expeditioners weren't taking their eyes off of the Beasts.
"Hey! I don't appreciate being called a lesser species, ya lesser species!" Riven shot back, smirking with pointed eyes himself.
"Get over yourself!" Cinder echoed the sentiments, glaring.
Remi giggled some more, crossing their arms and tilting their head to the side. "Oh, how cute, they're arguing.~ Y'know, normally, I'd tell you to address me as 'Remi' and with the 'they' pronoun, but I'm not sure how I feel about a bunch of inferior beings using the same name that Void calls me! That's just a little preposterous, no? So I'll tell ya what, you can just call me 'One,' okay~?" They pointed at their identifying mark with a playful wink, then made a gesture at the living rampart next to them. "And this here is Knox! He's real nice when he's not red, I swear~!"
Perhaps the expeditioners would've believed such… but seeing as the Stakataka's edges and eyes were red and had been ever since they laid eyes on the gigantic stone Beast, it wasn't like they had much of a reference point.
"GREETINGS, NATIVES," the Stakataka mused in a nonchalantly huge voice.
Rush growled, his fists balled up though a smirk was on his face. "Alright, you two, if ya want some ass-kicking, we'll be glad to give it to ya! I've been waiting to run into one of your kind, ehehe!"
"Bwahaha! I'm right behind ya!" Shar concurred, flashing her claws.
Remi didn't seem fazed at all even as Knox's shield fell, and Knox barely moved. Rather, the Pheromosa snickered a bit and strode towards them for a few steps, strutting with swaggering confidence that befitted royalty. Rozen preemptively put up several screens, and Cinder didn't waste time in breathing a Flamethrower, but Remi practically seemed to disappear for as fast as they moved, darting straight up to their shields and leaning down to look the Scrafty straight in the eyed.
Their smirk grew even wider, and their eyes turned into murderous little pinpricks. "Try me.~"
Rush was definitely intending to, for he drew his fist back and prepared to slam it into Remi's pretty face, but even faster, the Pheromosa held a single claw on each hand up against two of Rozen's screens. Rush's Brick Break probably would've knocked the beautiful Beast out right then and there, but Remi's, on the other hand, busted both screens to pieces with a tiny tap. Remi themself was pulling back before Rush's fist could connect, an Ice Beam forming at the tip of one claw that they pointed at Shar. The Garchomp probably would've been knocked out right then and there too, but thankfully, she could move fast enough to swerve aside and duck behind her Aggron comrade, who Remi's eyes fell on in turn. A swift Brick Breaking kick to Azra followed next with a loud CLANG, cracking and denting the armored plate on the arm he blocked with and getting a gravelly grunt of pain in return, but Azra still managed to brush it off for the time being even if he did look clearly bothered.
Knox put up a Wide Guard around both himself and his comrade before anyone could get any attacks on them, and Remi darted back to his side with more snickering.
"Hey! They've got your move, Rush!" Polly exclaimed.
"They sure do!" the Scrafty replied.
"That's fine; they can break all the screens they like, and I'll just make more," Rozen said with narrowing eyes.
"You do that," Remi laughed wildly, looking utterly crazed. "Nothing beats the sensation of things breaking.~ Cracking things under my feet feels awesome, bonus points if it's a skull.~ So go on, speak up now if you'd rather I just get it over with fast, otherwise I'm gonna enjoy myself.~"
The expeditioners all gave the Beasts some very pointed looks, indicating that they wouldn't let the duo run as wild as they might've liked.
. . . . .
Nothing was protecting the Golisopod from the Starstorm trio, but Raijin, on the other hand, stuck one arm around the two smaller figures on the rock next to him (albeit very carefully so as not to catch Arashi in particular with a stray spark). Bolts crackled in the Xurkitree's other hand, and Azure did look a bit unsettled… though oddly enough, his claws retracted back out of view and he didn't look so threatening. Still, all three of them knew outright that trying to talk things over was a moot point even if he wasn't going to turn those claws on them, and Raijin didn't back down. Astrid didn't want their Beast comrade to let up, and Arashi certainly didn't either. If such a blatant path to taking one of Salem's underlings out of commission was presenting itself, they weren't going to pass it up.
… However, even for the brightness that the Xurkitree's sparks gave off, something else added to the mix- a white glow emanating from behind them that became noticeable at almost the exact same time that Raijin started sparking. Astrid's eyes went huge and she glanced backwards to see the air cracking, indicative of a wormhole opening.
At that moment, she had the distinct feeling that she knew what Adnea had been trying to tell them of Azure's plan, and she didn't like it. She didn't like it one bit.
Her eyes went wide. "NO-!"
Arashi gave a startled jolt and Raijin twitched too, but at the same time that their Beast comrade Discharged a flurry of bolts at Azure, the Golisopod practically seemed to vanish as he rushed them in a First Impression. Of course he couldn't escape Raijin's attack, but even with the cry of utter agony that left the armored bug's mouth, his attack landed, though it wasn't at all in the same method that he'd used it in Lake Lucent. He didn't go impaling anyone with his claws, there was no blood or gruesome injuries, just his heavy back arms slamming all three of the Starstorm trio in an effort to tackle them into the wormhole that opened up.
Astrid flailed her limbs and screeched in pure horror, trying her hardest to flap her wings as fast as she could in some effort to escape the ethereal white portal's grasp.
"WHA-!" Arashi cried, his eyes huge too.
"No…!" Raijin too voiced his fear.
Her flapping gave her at least some manner to resist, but between the hard slam from Azure and the wormhole trying to suck her in… Her wings practically turned into a blur as she tried her hardest to escape. Raijin's arm that had been curled around her and Arashi quickly curled around the rock they'd been perched on instead to keep him in place, which was a much more difficult feat than it would've otherwise been if there hadn't been Azure's momentum trying to drag them all backwards. Arashi reached outwards as if somehow that might help him.
In moments, something became fairly clear- they were definitely inside the wormhole, only Raijin's arm curled around the rock staying outside. Azure was completely unconscious and definitely wasn't going to fight it either way, but Raijin's tail shot up in an attempt to latch onto Astrid and Arashi again and keep them from following along.
"Gyah…!" the Xurkitree cried, his grip shaking.
Astrid took hold of the Beast's tail with one of her feet, then quickly turned to look at her partner. He didn't have wings, he couldn't try to fly out, so he was a bit more out of reach than she was… and looking absolutely petrified at the realization.
She reached out with one wing in an attempt to give him something to grab hold of, and it worked for just a split second while Raijin tried to yank them all out. His fingertips clutched the tips of her feathers… but it was too late, he couldn't get a firm hold in time. Her beak dropped open and she gasped in horror when she realized what was happening, and Arashi wasn't too far behind in following suit. His mouth opened, but before he could so much as gasp, the wormhole closed with both he and Azure still in it.
Astrid froze as the gaping hole in the air closed and the inside of the grotto went back to how it normally was, immediately crashing down onto the floor with a gaping beak and wide eyes. Raijin collapsed onto his knees (or at least, the closest thing he had to them), head drooping and both arms going limp at his sides.
The Dartrix didn't say a word, only staring blankly at the place the wormhole had closed and not even bothering to move from her messy sprawling position.
Her comrade's gaze drifted to her. "You…" the Xurkitree mused, sounding relieved. "Arashi…? Where's-…"
He looked around some more, taking notice of the fact that there were only two of them left in the area instead of three.
"He's…" Astrid breathed, voice barely audible.
The both of them stared at where the wormhole had closed.
"… No," Raijin said in horror, picking himself back up off the ground. "No. No. No! NO!"
Another slightly drawn-out, distorted cry of 'NO!' finally snapped Astrid out of her trance for as anguished as her comrade sounded. He didn't need facial expressions to convey the torment going through his mind, for Astrid picked up on it very, very easily. She too picked herself up, though her eyes stayed huge all the same and her feathers fluffed out as far as they would go. The pure apprehension made her eyes get misty, try as she might to keep it together.
Nonetheless, she turned to her comrade. "W-we need to move now, d-don't we…?"
He nodded. "We can't help him now. We've gotta get out of here now."
She whimpered, giving one last glance at the place the wormhole had closed.
He was gone, out of their reach, beyond where any of them could go in their current state. Someone had to have opened the wormhole for Azure, and someone on that other side of it would surely notice that a certain human-turned-Pokémon wasn't where she was supposed to be after Azure's maneuver… She didn't even want to think about it. Tons of unpleasant thoughts raced through her head about what would happen when they realized she wasn't there, what would happen once they realized she was still in the same place Azure had come from, what would happen to her partner…
But she couldn't think about that at the time. Her wings felt almost foreign and robotic as she flapped them, for she didn't want to leave the place her friend had disappeared, but she had to. She went flapping and Raijin went sprinting out, moving as fast as they possibly could to put as much distance between themselves and the grotto as was possible.
. . . . .
Megalo Tower 0F- Base
"Agh-!" Arashi yelped as he hit the cold, glassy ground.
Azure crashed down next to him, not making a sound in his unconscious state but still sparking from Raijin's hit with singe marks on his skin and armor. The Frogadier barely had time to register what had just happened, but a very uncharacteristic look of fright was plastered on his face. The ground he stared at wasn't that of the cave he'd just been in- no, it was completely different. The air felt oddly thick, as if he could swim through it if he tried, and his own expression of fright was reflected back at him from the glassy sheen of the floor.
Something else was faintly reflected on that glassy floor too not far away, and he froze at the realization. It was a pale blue, frail-looking figure gently swaying like a flower in the breeze with her tentacle arms expectantly touched together…
His gaze slowly drifted up to look at her. Void paused, a little shiver travelling along her form.
Arashi snapped back to alertness, jumping up with very haphazard movements in his hesitance but with his eyes locked on the Nihilego. Another hulking figure was behind her, several red-glowing eyes studying him from what looked like a myriad of bricks coalesced into a giant moving rampart with 'UB08A-4302' marked on one in the front. Two more similar figures stood next to the entryway outside, further outside were more figures in a few groups that definitely weren't native to his world, and on the ground next to Void were several glowing vessels that Arashi recognized as holding Cosmogs or Cosmoems… But the most striking thing was how dim everything was, illuminated only from the cool glow of several crystalline pieces embedded in some plant-like rocks. Even so, that dimness seemed to be flickering ever-so-slightly, like some gigantic lightbulb was slowly burning out far away…
"… You…!" Arashi breathed, looking wide-eyed at the Nihilego and backing away slowly.
"Void is Void," she said simply, in a tone that perhaps Arashi would've deemed as sweet and friendly coming from literally anyone else. "And you…"
She floated closer. Arashi scurried backwards, his eyes darting around as if somehow he'd find his friends if he just looked for them. Even if he knew he should've been glad that Astrid and Raijin weren't there before Void along with him… he didn't like it one bit. He spit a Water Pulse at her, hoping that maybe it would keep her from getting any closer, but a Wide Guard from the Stakataka went up that nullified his efforts. His heart sank in his chest, and a jolt of fear went through his body when he felt a wall behind him that kept him from backing away any further.
"Void know who you are," the Nihilego said gently, floating closer and sinking downwards to be more at Arashi's eye level. Her tentacle legs touched the ground, and for a second, she might've looked similar to a young human female if the Frogadier had any knowledge of what one looked like. "But Void not see Astrid," Void mused, still sounding sweetly metallic but clearly annoyed nonetheless. "Or Six-Seven. But Azure clearly look attacked, and it not hard for Void to see by who…"
A terrified, very awkward smile graced his face, and the words that left his mouth shortly thereafter were a stammering mess of apprehension. "H-hey there, Void…! H-how about we talk this over and- Yiah-!"
One of her hands shot out and curled around Arashi's neck, taking a purplish hue as poison started to drip. It stung like a swarm of angry Beedrills, and Arashi instinctively went to try prying her off, but all the same, it almost seemed like his body wouldn't listen. His panicked thoughts blurred, and his movements came to an abrupt halt even if his countenance was still one of fright.
"So you tell Void what happened," the Nihilego said, sounding less sweet and more like a screech. "Salem where Void wants, but Astrid not. Void not want be mad, Void want be nice and understand, but from what Void see… Who should Void be mad at? At Void's own self, Azure, Six-Seven, Astrid, or you?"
Her grip tightened, and it was clear she was mad about something. If her form hadn't been so frail, glassy, and gelatinous, Arashi probably would've been gasping for air… but the sting of her touch had him gasping plenty enough.
"A-Arceus above…!" the Frogadier cried faintly. "E-er…! N-Necrozma…! Yiah…!"
"If you want pray, you talk to Void," Void said pointedly. "But how it is now, Void probably not give answer you want."
That much was painfully obvious. He could feel her poison seeping in through his skin, and he didn't like it. He didn't like it at all.
Author's note: Okay, just gonna chime in here for a second. In this chapter and the ones coming, there's a lot of POV shifts, so that's why I'm utilizing '. . . . .' to break it up a little instead of just jumping into the next paragraph. I tried using '-' but for whatever reason, FFN just doesn't want to let me keep it when I try putting it into my documents, and I was already using a horizontal line to break off my ANs and indicate a jump in time. I didn't want it to be too ambiguous if I used the same thing.
I also haven't decided when just yet, but either after the next chapter or the one that comes after that one, I'm gonna go back and do some editing on the earlier parts of this story, just to catch some stray typos or an odd punctuation mark here and there or make some areas flow better. And speaking of the next few chapters, I finished drafting up 46 yesterday and got started on 47, and hoooooo boy, was I laughing evilly all along the way, hehehe. (Heck, the 47th might be where I start out by putting a legit content warning, but we'll see.) This is where 'endgame' shenanigans start, so I hope y'all enjoy.
