Oh, what, you're back again? Great, here's the next chapter! It includes some fluff, a new location, and more characters!

And they won't be thrown into a fight this time, honest. Enjoy!

...

[Chesnaught]

I stared down at the blue droplet pendant in my hand. Apparently, Lucario had dropped it while we fought outside, and Weavile managed to find it for me while searching the ground. Greninja ran over to me, waving the green seed jewel he bought for me.

"Machamp found it!" Greninja excitedly cried and skidded over to me. "Here." He pinned the Miracle Seed onto my armor, wedging it into my breastplate.

"That's great, thank you; Weavile found yours for me." I grinned as Greninja lifted his tongue and I slipped the Mystic Water around his neck. Though his tongue covered most of it, the bottom of the pendant stuck out, secured in place. "Perfect."

"Thanks!" Weavile walked back over to us, along with a limping Delphox. "And thank you too, Weavile."

"You should thank your girly friend here." Weavile pointed to Delphox.

Fuming, the fire fox's ears lowered, as he grew rigid. "Girly?! I am not girly!"

"Seriously? You're wearing a dress."

"These are robes!"

"No it isn't. Your ninja friend has robes on."

"Mage's robes!"

"It still looks like a dress to me."

Delphox growled. "You have mages! They wear long robes like these!"

Blinking, Weavile shrugged. "Yeah, but even those aren't as puffed out as yours. And they're blue, not bright purple."

Grumbling still, Delphox flung his hands into the air. Machamp returned and watched in half curiosity, half amusement. He held up our pack and shook it a bit.

"Pretty sure that I got all I could find." He went over the list in his head for a moment. "Got a few tossed shuriken, though I don't think it's as many as you mentioned. And I got that dagger you brought up before, Chesnaught." He held up my stiletto, and after I nodded, put it away. "Got your sword in here too, though it's going to need a little sharpening; kind of worn down now. And that shield is dented quite a bit, Greninja."

"That's all right." Greninja glanced at me and we shared shrugs.

"Right, better it than you, huh?" Machamp laughed. "Well, unless you're missing anything else, I think we're all set to travel off to the Empire now! Bit of a walk, but we'll be there in a few hours. Still pretty early too, shouldn't be too bad, temperature wise that is." He led the way and walked off, with the rest of us following.

"Do you have to tell every southerner that?" Weavile questioned, though I couldn't tell if it was genuine curiosity or annoyance.

"Well, better safe than sorry, I'd imagine." He laughed again. "I don't suppose you folks have a lot of winter weather experience?"

"It doesn't exactly snow too often by us, but we've had some snowstorms before." I recalled a heavy one from one of the first years I started under Nidoking's employ.

"Some? Ha!" Machamp bounced the pack around, readjusting it. "It's going to be a rough adjustment for you lot then!" He turned to watch Delphox, who lagged behind a bit and limped with each step. Without warning, Machamp scooped the mage into his arms. "There you go!"

"H-Hey!" Delphox flailed and quickly wrapped his lower arms around the Empire knight, who laughed as the fox's face lit a rosy color. "P-Put me down!"

"No can do! You'll slow the whole group down with that limp!"

"But…I hate being manhandled…" Delphox muttered grumpily, sliding his hands away from Machamp.

"And now you look like a bride," Weavile observed.

"Shut up!"

"Will it get cold quickly?" I asked, already twitching as a gust passed us.

"Sure will," assured Machamp. "Brace yourselves!"

"How bad could it be?" Greninja wondered.

About an hour later, we got the answer. Traveling between the icy walls, with a constant cool breeze blowing, I shivered and held my arms together as my teeth chattered. Even as Greninja wrapped himself around me, I still shook from the steadily dropping temperatures.

Delphox lit a fireball on his wand and waved it around to warm us up a little bit, but this forced Weavile away from us. Trying to adjust, Machamp attempted to walk backwards and had Weavile guide him forward while Delphox continued to heat us up.

"Chesnaught, you look awful." Delphox raised a brow as he spun the fireball about. "Your eyes look like they're ready to burst out and you're either really blue or really pale at this point, nothing in between."

"T-Too much heat, too much c-cold, what do you expect?"

"We'll get you three some warmer clothes when we get there," Machamp promised.

"S-Super."

"So, if you don't mind my asking, what's your story?" Machamp scratched the back of his head with his one free arm. I tilted my head and he pointed at Greninja and I. "You two, that is. I've seen folks get close to warm up, but, ah…well, Greninja was pretty quick about using himself to help Chesnaught."

"Oh, well…" Greninja glanced up at me, unsure of answering.

"We're dating." I smiled and tugged Greninja into me, as if he could get closer.

"Ah, so you are!" Machamp chuckled. "Thought as much, with those gifts to each other you two wanted to find. Just wanted to make sure before assuming anything!"

He smiled warmly and we relaxed. Delphox rolled his eyes and fiddled with his wand, distracting himself.

"How long have you two been going out?"

"Uh…about two months now." Greninja nuzzled himself closer to me.

"Really? I would have guessed two years by how close you are already! Then again, maybe that's what should have signaled how short of time it's been!" He laughed heartily, though slowed when he heard our nervous response. "Ah, sorry. I think you two are pretty great together, and that's just from a first impression!"

"That's how first impressions should be." We jumped at Weavile's comment, which I had barely heard myself. "It's better to observe the couple after you actually know them."

"Eh…right." Machamp scratched at his head again. We continued to traverse the path as more snow banks began to appear. "How about you, Delphox?"

"Me? Single."

"Is that so? No lucky lords or ladies for you?"

"Not presently, no." Delphox's agitation seeped from his tone.

"Single life is fine," wrapped up an undeterred Machamp. "No one right now for me either." He paused and glanced behind him. "You're still single, right Weavile?"

"Yeah."

"There we go. But enough on that." He thought for a moment and then nodded. "What's the Grass Fields Kingdom like? You know, living there?"

"Warmer, for starters," deadpanned Delphox. Machamp laughed. "You laugh too much."

"Do you think so? Sorry about that." Machamp switched our pack from one hand to the other and shifted Delphox in his arms, who grumbled. "Sorry about that too! Gosh, you remind me of Alakazam."

"Alakazam?" Greninja tilted his head.

"An Em-Empire m-mage we m-met at the b-ball," I explained between shivers. "He l-left b-before you c-c-could m-meet him."

"Huh."

"Yep, he's a yellow fellow, long mustache, and…well, I think he'd rather do his own introduction." Machamp paused. "Or…reintroduction, I suppose."

His cheeks were a bit red as he bit his lip a little, but I wasn't sure if I should press him further on the matter. Quietly, I turned my head to watch the snowy walls grow higher around us, but still the cold air burst around us.

"What's the Empire like?" Greninja intervened. "I know we'll be there soon, but I was wondering if you could tell us more besides it being cold."

"Sure! There's a palace surrounded by a moat that eventually leads out into the sea. It's a pretty breath taking sight, besides from the chilly air." He let out a quick chuckle, but stopped just as quickly, remembering that Delphox had scolded him about it. "Anyway, it's also got the capital city around us below. And then there's the glaciers beyond that we'll need to explore for the prophet."

"Oh, that," Delphox cut in. "Tell us what you know regarding this prophet."

"Probably about what you know, or just a bit more, since they're fairly recent sightings. There's a white blur that people keep saying that they see, something that definitely isn't snow. We need him or her to pop up again, so we'll be able to learn more, but from the reports, the prophet seems to appear and disappear, usually only taking small food helpings, if anything."

"Other stuff, like bandages or blankets, went missing too," added Weavile.

"Right, forgot about that. That ghost takes food so often that I forget what else gets taken."

"Ghosts have no need to eat," argued Delphox. "Are you certain this isn't just a teleporter amongst your citizens?"

"Don't know a lot of those, besides Alakazam," mused Machamp. "And he hasn't been hoarding food or gaining much weight from what I can tell. I'm pretty sure I'd notice."

"Would you?"

"Y-Yes." Again, Machamp shifted the pack around his upper arms. "I know Alakazam almost better than anyone, besides himself."

"Anyone would notice," reinforced Weavile. "Plus, he's usually around the palace."

"That's right, that." Machamp nodded quickly. "If anyone else can Teleport around, then I'd say that was it for sure. But like I told you, we don't know anyone else that can pull it off."

"Fine, if you're sure." Delphox folded his arms, unconvinced, but relenting. Greninja and I shrugged to one another.

"Anyway, I thought I was asking you folks about your home!" Machamp shrugged his upper arms. "All I know from you is that it's warmer and grassier."

"Well, I've only been there for a bit over two months," Greninja mumbled. Machamp raised a brow, so he continued a little louder. "Uh, for the first week I was there, I was attracted to Chesnaught. So, I kind of pushed to date him really soon after."

"And a-after he s-saved my l-life from a p-poisoning," I shuddered in.

"Heroics are a good way to get started!" Machamp beamed.

Greninja blushed deeply and I kissed the top of his head. "A-Anyway, it's a pretty, um, vivacious place. There are lush grasslands and forests, a fresh river, busy little town, and all manner of folks to fill it. "

"Neat! Are they all close together? Empire's a little more widespread, I'd say."

"Oh, I…well, between the castle and the town, sure." Greninja scratched his hands, still clinging to me.

"There's more land, of course," added Delphox. "Those are more distanced."

"Ah, got it." Machamp nodded. "We have small villages that are around the northern regions too. We won't pass any on the way in, but maybe we'll stop by one. After all, the prophet seems to show up across the Empire."

"W-Why only around the E-Empire?"

"Don't know. He must live near us." Weavile clicked her claws together, a bit lost in thought.

"T-That would m-make s-s-sense."

"Greninja, try to squeeze your boyfriend a little tighter. Delphox's fireballs can't do all of the work." Machamp winked at him, to which he blushed again. My own cheeks were pretty heated, which I hadn't quite noticed until now. "I don't know which one of you two turns redder, but it's hilariously adorable either way!"

"Um…I'm pretty sure it's me." Greninja giggled as I grinned to him. Another gust of wind made me clutch him tightly and he laughed, rubbing my sides and puffing his breath against me. It wasn't quite warm anymore, but anything beat the air around us.

"How much further is it until we get there?" Delphox puffed out his cheeks. "Being carried around by a big muscular knight is degrading on my part."

"Nonsense!" Machamp shook his head. "You're injured, and I'm helping you. Nothing more to it than that, and anyone who thinks otherwise is a fool."

"He's actually complimenting you in an evasive manner," noted Weavile.

"Oh. Well thank you!"

"That's not…whatever, you're welcome." Delphox rolled his eyes, but smiled a little.

"We should be there in about another hour or so," calculated Weavile.

"Wow, really?" Machamp grinned. "We've made some pretty good time, then!"

We nodded as we continued along the trail, which was now almost completely covered in snow. As it continued to rise past my ankles, I quaked with every step forward.

[Greninja]

Around another wall of ice and snow, we pressed onward. The snow had risen up further along our legs as we shuffled along. Delphox and I were now shivering alongside Chesnaught as we further plowed through the path to the empire.

"H-How m-much f-f-further?" Delphox managed out.

"If I'm not mistaken, around this corner." Machamp carried him a ways forward, past a mound of snow. "Whoops, I was mistaken. Sorry about that."

Still holding Chesnaught, he quaked as my shoulders dropped. We sighed through our shudders and trudged after Machamp and Weavile.

"It's near the tallest tree," she reminded Machamp. "Then it's ahead from there."

"Ah, yes, that's it. Shouldn't be much further though!"

"T-That's what y-you t-told us almost an hour a-ago," chattered Delphox.

"Well, I promise I'm almost done lying about that." Machamp chuckled, to which Delphox hissed.

Already, we passed a fair number of trees, each covered with pine leaves and snow. They were spread apart from one another, so it would sometimes take a stretch of travel before we found the next cluster of trees.

As the snow began to rise even higher along our legs, we noticed some flakes fall around us.

"W-What?! Ok, I-I've had it!" Delphox lit up his staff and pointed it forward, over Machamp's shoulder. "W-Weavile, s-step aside."

Shrugging, Weavile shuffled away, undeterred by the snow already covering most of her legs. Delphox fired a stream of fire ahead of us, melting a good portion of the path. Once he stopped, however, the snow from the sides began to slide inward.

"H-Hurry up and l-let's go."

Weavile and Machamp surged ahead, with Chesnaught and I following them. Delphox held his stick staff up, waiting to launch another fire stream ahead.

"I-It'll be s-slush again—"

However, Machamp bounced around a bit and hurried forward, while Delphox yelped out. Weavile shrugged and followed him, leaving Chesnaught and I to do the same.

Rounding a corner, we gazed ahead in awe. Past the tallest pine tree, there was a large white glacier that stood between the land we were on now and the sea that surrounded it.

Nearest to the water was a large port, with piers that stretched out to the open glacial basin. One tier up from that were numerous shops and houses that lined along the circular ice plateau. Up another tier were more frozen, pale azure houses, along with long stretches of ice that lead further out along the glaciers that ran off into the distance, connecting back to the land on the sides of the glacier.

The level above that included buildings and structures that were more widespread, leaving some stretches of water, with falls that ran down to the bottom, around the port. Above that was another level of water that essentially formed its over moat and stream, with a large staircase that led up to the highest level. At the top was the palace itself, which was centered between the circular city boundaries.

This was the Iceberg Empire.

Awed, I stared quietly, admiring the well carved and crafted glacial city from even a distance. Glancing over, I noticed Delphox was also taken in studying the area, while Machamp proudly grinned as he observed our reactions.

"W-Wow, t-that's impress-impressive," shivered Chesnaught.

Though he mentioned so, he was paying closer attention to holding himself together. I hadn't realized that my arms had slip down his waist and that I had moved away from him. Quickly, I wrapped myself back around my boyfriend; I rubbed and puffed on him to warm him back up a bit.

"We should go." Weavile started walking down the path toward the empire.

"Oh, she's right, we need to get you three there already." Machamp lifted the pack and Delphox around, to which the fox whimpered. "You three need to be patched up and meet everyone still. Come on!"

Though our bodies were practically freezing, I managed to pull Chesnaught along with me as we chased the others toward the empire. As we made our way closer to the city, the snow decreased, but the path was completely frozen, or rather, made of ice. Both Chesnaught and I winced as we made our way down the trail, each step stinging from our bare feet sliding across the frigid walkway.

Somehow, Machamp and Weavile were able to walk across the ice with no problems. While she was an Ice Type, he wasn't, and had bare feet like us. The knight glanced back to see us struggling and frowned.

"Sorry about that. It's probably a total shock for the two of you right now, but we'll help you get used to it in time."

"H-How a-are y-y-you…?" Chesnaught's teeth chattered the rest of his question away.

"Who, me? I've practically grown up in the northern region, so I'm used to this frosty feeling!" Proving his point, Machamp skated around the ice a bit, spinning around while Delphox flailed in his lower arms. "Ha, see? Second nature for me!"

"Q-Quit it!"

"Ah, sorry Delphox!"

A painful amount of minutes later, we reached the capital city. Two short, pink and Fairy-like city folk wandered by, both undeterred by the cold climate themselves. I shook my head and helped Chesnaught forward as we made our way to the city's center, passing a few more buildings and unshaken citizens along the way.

Reaching the staircase, Weavile was the first one to step up them, moving quickly from one step to the next. Machamp carried Delphox up after her, with the two of us shivering as we trailed in tow. Each step was well carved, though I was watched the rushing waterfalls instead as we climbed up, watching it pour to the lower tiers.

At the top, we walked across a bridge that went over the moat, leading to the entrance of the massive ice crafted palace. It spanned across the upmost tier, much larger than the Grass Fields Castle was. Just by looking at the palace from a distance, one could tell there were multiple floors inside of it, each building up to the central tower itself, which must have been the highest point in the city.

"Beautiful, isn't it?" Machamp glanced back at us with a broad grin. "This is the Iceberg Palace."

"Name's obvious," muttered Weavile.

"F-From even h-here, it s-sure is b-breathtaking," I complimented. "T-The whole p-place is w-well c-crafted."

Making our way across the bridge, I hesitated a moment, thinking I noticed something swim by in the water below.

"No need to be nervous." I peeked up to notice Machamp had stopped for me. "That's probably another knight. Some of them work just as well in the water as they do on land. Sometimes, they just go for a swim in the ice waters out here."

"T-That's ins-sane," interjected Delphox.

"Yeah, I'm inclined to agree on that notion." Machamp laughed. "Personally, I prefer the hot springs around here! But, more on that later; we need to get you three to the Emperor already."

He turned as I nodded, and we moved to follow him. Again though, I stopped and stared at a shrouded figure in the distance. Barely, I thought I watched someone spin about and walk behind the palace, a long tail following the figure away. Quickly, I turned to Chesnaught, who seemed to have followed my gaze. He shook as he shrugged to me and we continued to follow the others under the overhang and into the palace.

Inside, the main hall was pretty spacious, as well as slightly warmer than outside. It was well decorated, with various designs on the rugs on the floors and ice sculptures lining the walls in the distance. Columns and archways filled in the space across the hall, though they did nothing to contract the weight of the room. Fading sunlight gleamed through windows higher above the room. The banners streamed spaciously across the room, hanging from walls and dangling from the ceiling high above us.

Studying the silver crest on one dark blue banner, I noticed that the bottom had a massive bird with strange hand-like wings on it, with a large orca-like creature over it. Two smaller pixies were on either side of the larger creatures. They appeared to be beneath a level of water, for there was a dragon with ice-like wings above waves between them. An ice golem stood in front of the dragon, while two other beasts were leaping on either side of the dragon, and closer to the water. One appeared to be a unicorn, while the other seemed similar to the creature on Nidoking's fountain. Finally, a smaller bird completed the banner, flying above the dragon, with a long tail and snowflakes descending from its wings.

"Detailed, huh?" Machamp laughed as he caught me gawking at the banner. "Designers and tailors tend to complain about every one of those creatures they need to include on them, so simpler crests either choose just a few of them, or otherwise just make use of snowflake and water droplet designs." He eyed my Mystic Water and nodded. "Similar to that pendant you're wearing."

"The crest is too busy," murmured Weavile. She took her bow from behind her back and inspected it, perhaps for wear from the earlier fight.

"Weavile, you would be the very last person to ask on such a matter."

Everyone spun about as a mage in blue robes appeared from behind a column. Weavile rolled her eyes as the yellow, mustached creature stepped forward.

"Alakazam!" Machamp took a step forward, but faltered a bit. Glancing at the mage, I glimpsed at a slight glare in his eyes, which was gone before I could blink.

"Just how long did fetching them need to take, Machamp?" The mage shook his head and folded his arms. "Honestly, the Emperor expected you back well before sunset."

"We had to fend off attackers that they faced." Machamp glanced to Weavile, who supportively nodded. "After that, we helped them grab their weapons."

"And no doubt you took your time, pausing to show them a view or a few." Alakazam tapped his head, to which Machamp shrugged his upper arms. "You realize your mind is an open book, right?"

"Well, it's always been that way for you." Machamp grinned as Alakazam's cheeks flushed a bit and he coughed to cover it up. "All the same, are you going to keep at me, or introduce yourself to our guests?"

"Chesnaught and Delphox, I've already met. Though, it is good to see them again." He strode over to me and held out a hand. "Greninja, however, is a new face, so hello. As you've heard, I am Alakazam."

Slowly, I took my hand from Chesnaught and shook Alakazam's. "Hi. Um…I guess you already know me?"

"Your boyfriend revealed just a bit when we last met."

"N-Not by ch-choice."

"Oh, it was certainly by choice." Alakazam chuckled and tapped his head again. "It was the information that you kept at the forefront of your mind, and therefore, the most willing bit you wished to share." He patted Chesnaught's shoulder. "Nothing to be ashamed of. Judging by your perspective, you two seem quite happy together."

My cheeks flared up and I turned to see Chesnaught blush too. Alakazam smiled, tugging a bit on his mustache.

"Yes, yes, that's enough embarrassing them." Delphox tapped his wand against his head, redirecting our attention to him.

"Onto you, then. Quite comfortable in Machamp's arms, are you?" Alakazam grinned at Delphox's flustered face as he pushed from the knight's arms, as Machamp carefully set him down. "Admittedly, they are firm and secure, so I can imagine how nice it feels." Machamp himself blushed deeply at the comment.

"Aw, am I about to interrupt a flirting spree?" A hollow and feminine voice from around us giggled. While Chesnaught, Delphox, and I whirled our heads about, Machamp relaxed while Alakazam held his head. Weavile shuddered as a white mage in lighter blue robes appeared from thin air behind her. Her face behind the white…mask…was a ghastly purple grin. "Judging by the looks on their horrified faces? Worth it!"

"Froslass, must you be so…you?" Weavile shoved the mage from behind her, as she floated from the archer's claws.

"Hee-hee! Weavile, honey, you need to let loose more." Froslass spun around and gently wrapped her arms around Weavile, who puffed out her cheeks in annoyance. "If you want, I can help you with that!"

"No thanks."

"Pfft. No fun."

"Naturally, my fellow mage needs no introduction." Alakazam held up a hand to gesture the specter. "All the same, meet Froslass, Grass Field folk."

"Hi there! I'm practically the spirit behind this whole palace! Literally!"

Froslass giggled as she floated up into the air and spun around. Gliding about, she disappeared from sight, and we gasped. Delphox yelped as she reappeared behind him, waving a single strand of his fur, plucked from the back of his head.

"Look at this cutie! Afraid of Ghosts, are you?"

"W-What? No!" Delphox swatted her hand and snatched his fur back. "This, however, is more painful than you could understand!"

"Hey, I totally understand! I practiced plucking hairs from Alakazam!"

"Yes…she did." Alakazam rubbed his mustache and guarded it as Froslass floated near him. "Don't even think about it."

"Too late!"

"Easy Froslass, you'll wear him out for the rest of the night at that rate." Machamp grinned as the ghostly mage rolled over to him and giggled, but dropped it once he noticed Alakazam glaring. "Uh, anyway, do either of you know if the Emperor is available?"

"Indeed he is, Sir Machamp."

Everyone pivoted to the opposite end of the hall, and bowed down. Checking with each other, Delphox and Chesnaught nodded and bowed with them. I blinked and watched a penguin figure walking down from the distance as Chesnaught dragged me down to bow as well.

In a minute, the dark blue penguin reached us. Slightly, I glanced up at his face, which held a stern expression and a golden trident in front of it. His icy blue eyes gazed down upon us and he suddenly smiled. He offered a wing forward to me and helped me back up.

"Allow me to formally welcome you to the Iceberg Empire. I am Emperor Empoleon, as you have undoubtedly guessed by now."

He nodded for Chesnaught and Delphox to rise as well. I smiled and waited for the others to stand as well, but they did not.

"Tell me, what are your names?"

"I'm Delphox of the Grass Fields Kingdom." The fox mage bowed lightly, tried to hide his wince, and stood back up, waving me to follow.

"Oh, sorry. My name is Greninja." I bowed again as well, and then looked as Chesnaught shivered again.

"M-My na-name is Ch-Chesnaught, y-your g-grace."

"Still too cold? You'll get used to it, in time." Empoleon chuckled, though slightly narrowed my eyes. "Nidoking sent fairly strong choices. One of his powerful mages and the celebrity couple."

"Celebrity?"

"Mm, I suppose not everyone in my Empire knows of you two, but I caught the north wind's buzz about a couple that came out two months back. A ninja and a knight." He studied us carefully and nodded. "Nidoking hasn't had many ninjas under his employ over the years, so it was a safe assumption that the two of you fit the bill."

"Why, yes, you are correct, your grace." Delphox smiled and laughed, answering for us.

"Think their relationship is funny, mage?"

"Huh? What? No! No, not at all!" Delphox quivered a bit and stepped back as the emperor glared at him.

"Delphox is one of our closest friends and supported us getting together," I intervened. "We're thankful to have him."

"Are you?" Again, Empoleon observed me, and then Chesnaught. "That's good. Nidoking always valued the strength behind relationships and his forces. I believe that Nidoqueen, may she rest peacefully, was the one who brought about that ideal for him. I suppose I can expect such from the two of you?

"Y-Yes, sir," we answered together.

"Good. There seems to be a wealthy flow of attraction between the two of you, so I expect great strength indeed." We blushed furiously at comment. "Come now, no need to feel embarrassed by that. Love brings out the best, right?" Slowly, we nodded. "Of course. Some of my men freely share interests with one another, from time to time. Builds bonds, which are always useful." Lightly, I tilted my head, confused by how at ease Empoleon was about that apparent fact. "Speaking of Nidoking, it's nice to hear that he's moved on, according to Alakazam."

"Oh, y-yes, he's b-b-betrothed to the g-general," managed Chesnaught.

"Splendid. And I suppose you three understand that you'll be staying here until further notice?"

"We do, sire." Delphox bowed his head, hiding a glint of sorrow.

"Very good. I'll need some time to assess how you three fit in and which of my men I should send to replace you three back with Nidoking." He tapped his sharp flippers together, and then shook his head. "But enough of that, I can worry about that later. I'm sure you're all quite curious about our prophet sightings?"

Chesnaught and I glanced at one another, unsure how to respond.

"Would you tell us more, sire?" Delphox cupped his hands together. "We're still a bit unaware or uninformed on every detail."

"Did Machamp tell you nothing?" He quickly turned back to the bowed knight, who shuddered under the emperor's gaze.

"He told us what he knew, which was everything he knew," Delphox defended. "We were wondering if you could provide us with more information? From the emperor's perspective, with additional reports that might have come in?"

"Ah, of course." Empoleon turned back and nodded. "Most describe the figure as a white blur, appearing and disappearing during late hours of the night. Food is reported stolen, sometimes other small objects, nothing ever in a great supply. What's curious is that we've set up several guard details to try capturing this supposed prophet, but he or she is…quite elusive."

"How so?" I bit my tongue, afraid that I might have interrupted too soon, but Empoleon took no notice.

"The figure will be able to know where guards are posted and appear in less populated locations, as if given advanced notice of where the additional troops are posted. More curiously, however, is that there was one instance that the prophet went to a heavily guarded area. According to what they told me, he or she was able to predict their movements and evade any attempts at arrest. No one was even able to get a proper visual description, beyond one guard claiming that he may have noticed a purple tail, but others were uncertain of that validity."

Each of us exchanged nervous expressions with one another, unnerved by the news.

"Lately, such reports have gone cold, so to speak." Empoleon rolled his eyes, but chuckled a bit as well. "However, we're holding out for the next report of the prophet surfacing. Hopefully, I can send my best soldiers to pitch in for the latest hunt. And I hope that you three will do what you can to contribute as well."

"We certainly will, your grace." Delphox shot us a glance as we nodded quickly.

"Excellent. I'll entrust this lot to help you three settle in." He gestured to the bowed group behind him and they quickly rose up. "Once they've helped you, get some rest and be prepared to begin training with my soldiers tomorrow. Best of luck, and I'll expect to hear great things from you three."

Before any of us could answer, he turned away and strolled back down the main hall, walking from the room and out of sight. We looked at one another, then at our new allies, and though we were told exactly, we were still unsure of what we were to truly expect next from this place.

...

Woo, new stuff! It's a lot like the old…and yet, not.

So, Machamp and Weavile weren't too fleshed out last time, and since we'll be seeing more of them, I wanted to include the beginning segment to help them out a bit. Not sure it really did them any additional justice, but at least they had a little more spotlight.

As for newcomers, meet the mages! Well, Alakazam popped up before in the fifth chapter, but now he'll actually be around. He has an interesting relationship with Machamp, which will unfold as the story continues. Froslass is the new mage, who is pretty playful, though perhaps…a little too much so. (Gardevoir would be excited to meet her!) Finally, there's Emperor Empoleon, who was the obvious choice to lead the Iceberg Empire. He seems pretty relaxed, but certainly knows how to command his troops, perhaps a little too well.

Hope you enjoyed the glimpse at the empire and the palace! There's more to go over, but it was nice adding in some descriptions. Hopefully, you can visualize it a bit; I did try to detail it enough, but I'm not sure if I did it justice on its first run. Also, yes, there were a bunch of Water and Ice Type legendaries on the crest, similar to the one back at Grass Fields, though far more crowded. Again, they probably won't show up in physical form, so it's just a cute cameo. As usual, I am awful at interior design, and particularly so with castles. Oh well!

And the mystery of the elusive prophet? Well, the plot had to catch up with us at some point, didn't it? More will unfold as the story continues, so expect more on that end too! Until then, that's it for this chapter. Comments and criticisms are helpful, so message or review me those if you'd like. I do really love to read them, and missed them from the last chapter, which had a quieter response. Maybe that's me though, and I'll just keep trying harder. Anyway, thank you yet again for reading!