Waking Dreams

by thewargod

Arron lost his reason to live, so when he's seemingly resurrected in a world thats the polar opposite of what he's used to, he sees it as a kind of sick joke. But as he slowly learns how to move on, a plot of retribution and vengeance millennia in the making rears its ugly head, and the implications are enough to send him in a downward spiral of regret and despair.

24. The Votive Games

Goh woke up in the Arms of Nelliel, who was asleep herself, softly snoring as she leaned against the jagged wall. He didn't know how he had gotten there, but what he did know is that it made him incredibly uncomfortable.

Surprisingly, her once frigid cold skin was warm from the heat of the coals from the fire and Goh's body heat, making her feel almost normal. He unwrapped her arms from around his body gently and stumbled backwards, bumping into Arron, who stood unmoving like a brick wall. He gave Goh a dirty look, causing him to shrink in embarrassment and trepidation, before sighing and shaking his head.

"So, you're awake."

Goh nodded. "How long was I asleep?" He said with a small voice, not trying to cause an issue.

Arron shrugged. "Measuring time here is impossible. A day could have passed or a month."

"That's disturbing."

Arron seemed unfazed. "Welcome to Hueco Mundo."

Goh looked away and back down at Neliel, who was still snoring peacefully. "You guys are dead, right? So why do you need to sleep? I thought the dead didn't need to sleep."

Arron shrugged again. "We don't need to sleep to survive. As to why we do it, we'll, we sleep for the same reason you humans meditate or do yoga or partake in any number of frivolous exercises; to relieve stress and promote health."

Goh scratched the back of his head. "But… you're dead. Why would health even matter?"

Arron sighed, not in a frustrated way, but rather in an exhausted way. "Don't be fooled by the stories of zombies and vampires you hear on the surface, those are highly inaccurate. In reality, the living and the dead emulate each other far more than people are comfortable with. Soul reapers, or at least the few soul reapers I've personally met, could easily pass off as human with a proper gigai and a quick brush up with modern vocabulary and customs, as can Quincies. So they require some form of sleep, although less of it, to function. Us Hollows on the other hand are more animalistic and primal: were less human and more like vampires that devour souls. Thus while sleep is a welcome privilege, we don't need it. All it does is help us recover from wounds naturally so as to not expend copious amounts of spirit energy on instant regeneration, amongst other things."

"Oh." Goh said simply, satisfied with the answer. He crossed his legs and sat down warming his hands by the dwindling embers in an attempt to make himself scarce. Arron seemed to notice his trepidation but didn't address it, instead choosing to sit back down at the other edge of the room in silence.

After a while, Goh's curiosity returned and he grew brave enough to question Arron again. "When will we be leaving?"

Arron shrugged and gestured to Neliel. "When she wakes up, and when the sandstorm dies out."

"But I thought you said she was staying here?"

Arron nodded. "We… talked while you were asleep. She insisted that she come and while I'd prefer her to stay here I can't stop her, she's her own woman."

Goh nodded. "But why did you want her to stay? She's very strong, she can defend herself."

Arron chuckled. "I'm not worried about her well-being, I'm worried about her level-headedness. I wouldn't be surprised if she decided to turn Szayelaporro inside out if he so much as laid a finger on you."

Goh decided not to picture that mental image, instead choosing to keep probing. 'Is he… that bad?"

This time, Arron snorted. "Anyone with a conscience would find his very existence deplorable. Personally, I think there's a special place in hell for people like him, but sadly fate had other plans."

"So he's evil." Go stated bluntly, "But I got the gist that most of the hollows in Hueco Mundo are. What's so special about this Szayelaporro guy?"

"His intelligence. He sees his actions as justified by his pursuit of knowledge. He wants to become more powerful in any way possible, not just consuming souls. He also finds torture incredibly entertaining."

Goh grimaced. "Well, that sounds like half the people in Hueco Mundo, at least as far as I've heard."

Arron harrumphed. "You don't know him like I do. You'll understand why everybody hates him soon enough."

Goh scowled. "Remind me again why you're dragging me to this mad scientist then? Especially if both you and Neliel hate him so much."

"Answers, we need answers and I have a feeling Szayelaporro has them. Nothing anomalous happens in Hueco Mundo without Szayelaporro knowing about it."

Except Goh already knew the answer, he just didn't want to tell Arron. Part of it was fear; he didn't know how Arron would act if he told him this entire world was just a dream.

On the other hand, he also possessed an insatiable curiosity. He wanted to know what this all meant, and with Arron's evolution, he now knew that this dream wasn't just a dream, it was some kind of precognitive vision. If he kept dreaming this dream, maybe he could learn more about Arron.

He couldn't explain any of this, not scientifically at least, but he was okay with that; what he was learning could help him understand Arron better, even discover why he acts the way he does.

"So, how long?" Goh asked.

Arron shrugged. "Until whenever Nelliel wakes up. It's not like I can predict the future."

Oh, the irony.

Arron sat down by the fire, legs close to his chest. His eyes were a bit glazed over, focused on the dancing white specks of ash dancing around like fireflies. Goh didn't speak, noticing something was off. The sight was uncanny: Arron had that same look in his eyes as the Arron Goh knew, when he would sit on the hilltop of Cerise park, watching the other pokemon with irritation and dejection, as if he was just waiting for his next task. This Arron looked the same way: lost and confused. Yet he wouldn't show it openly, he couldn't show it openly. Arron felt that he needed to project strength, so he remained gruff and closed off to the world.

Goh could relate in a way, in a much subtler, more shy way.

Goh took a glance at Nelliel again. "So… how'd you two meet. You guys don't seem that similar."

Arron was silent for a moment. Then he spoke up. "We were dealing with a mutual enemy. There's a palace in the distance, Las Noches, you might have seen it. A powerful Vasto Lorde, Barragan, resides there with his court. He sees himself as the king of all hollows, a bold statement."

Goh interrupted. "And he wants to impose his will on you?"

Arron gave him a look that Goh couldn't quite decipher, but continued. "In a way, yeah. He wants to unite all of the Vasto Lordes and Arrancar under his leadership, believing that they could keep the rest of Hueco Mundo in line. We run into his patrols a lot, they always present the same loaded choice: join or die."

"And you kill them?" Goh asked nervously.

"Yes." Arron responded plainly. "I have no love for anyone who bows to that upstart. Together, Nelliel and I could take him down, I have a lot more spiritual pressure than he does and Nelliel is roughly at three quarters of his, but his Respira and time warping abilities are a pain for me to counter, even with my Zanpakuto."

"What's Respira?"

Arron shrugged. "I don't know, some kind of black cloud that ages anything it touches. Imagine your body aging fifty years in two minutes and you have a good idea of how dangerous his power is. It takes a lot of Reiryoku to reverse the effects.

Goh didn't want to imagine it. He nodded and sighed, staring at the ground between his feet. "So, you met her while fighting him? Why stay together."

Arron seemed to become more uncomfortable by the minute. His response, however, caught Goh off guard. "I was lonely, and so was she. We kinda just ended up sticking together because we had nobody else to rely on, and we've hung around ever since."

"That's it?"

Arron slumped a little. "You're not going to let this go, are you?"

"I'd prefer not to."

Arron shook his head. "She reminds me of someone, someone I'm looking for."

Goh remembered the talk he had with Nelliel, but he decided to keep that a secret. "I understand. So what will you do when you find them?"

Arron didn't respond, his eyes becoming glazed over again as he stared at the cinders and ashes of the dying fire. Goh didn't push any further, noticing how lost he looked.

"Whoever you're looking for… I hope you find them."

Arron pursed his lips. "Thanks," he said quietly.

The fire had begun to wither out, causing the room to have an ethereal glow to it. The crystals on the cave glowed at just the right level of brightness, and the colors of the rooms changed to a cold and unfeeling blue. Arron's face in the light seemed almost ghoulish, his lips thin and scarred and his cheeks gaunt. He had deep bags under his sullen eyes and an almost cynical gaze, his eyebrows arched in irritation and exhaustion, like a man near the breaking point.

If Goh had to take a guess, Arron probably was near the breaking point. He was dead and trapped in this gelling, freezing desert for an eternity. What had he done to deserve a fate like

this? Goh realized that if this dream held any merit, then Arron was probably still in that very dark place. He seemed overwhelmed with grief and regret, like a man with nothing to lose. Goh had never seen anyone with that level of desperation before.

"You're gonna make it, right?"

The question seemed to startle Arron, his brief period of weakness stamped out and his standard blank, hostile frown taking its place as his mask. He turned away from Goh, pretending to examine his sword so as to not draw suspicion. But Goh already saw Arron's bleeding heart, even if the man didn't want to show it.

"You shouldn't be asking me if I'm okay," he practically snarled, his voice low and quiet. "We need to focus on getting you out of here, on keeping you safe."

"I don't know why you care about me all of a sudden. When Nelliel brought me here, you seemed content with throwing me to the wolves, like some stray cat your child brought in." Goh said it because he knew something was changing: Arron's sudden concern for his well-being wasn't natural, at least for this version of him, who didn't know him. "Why do you care so much now?"

Arron didn't respond, instead choosing to stand up and leave the Cave. "I need to… go." He said hastily before exiting. Goh just sat there, dropping another bundle of dry wood into the fire to kindle it again. The flames crackled and sputtered back to life, causing goh to lay back down and watch the shadows dance across the ceiling. Goh would have to wait patiently.

---

Arron had disappeared for hours, leaving Goh with his thoughts until Nelliel had woken up. She sat up and rubbed her eyes, yawning before blinking and looking around the room. "Where's Arron? He didn't leave without us, did he?"

Goh shrugged. "He left, alright, but I don't think he went to see Szayelaporro: what would be the point?"

Nelliel groaned. "He wouldn't just leave without telling me. What happened?"

Goh sighed. "Well, we were talking and I started asking a few questions…"

Nelliel pinched the bridge of her nose. "Goh, don't ask Arron about his past, he doesn't like to talk about it."

"I know, I just-"

Nelliel softened her voice, obviously realizing Goh wasn't attempting to annoy them. "I get that you're only trying to help, I really do, but there's no helping him. Arron's the type of man who'd rather wall out the rest of the world than open the gates and be honest with himself, and at the end of the day that's his choice and I have to respect that. He'll come around and then maybe he can start to let things go."

"Like the person he's looking for?"

Nelliel scoffed. "That's one thing he'll never stop looking for, and it's probably something he'll never find. You don't come to Hueco Mundo in groups, it's not feasible. The main reason we became hollows is because we wandered the earth and refused to move on, and eventually it ate away at us." She pointed at the hole in her chest for clarity. "Arron… he scares me. His mind and soul are broken, as if they're stitched together. He can't accept the reality that he'll never see his loved ones again here, and for some reason he has this strange idea in his head that I'd he finds whoever he's looking for that they're reunion will be all happy and joyful. It won't."

Those last two words sent shivers down his spine. Goh hadn't taken the time to consider that Nelliel might be the cynical one: it actually made sense, in a sickeningly ironic way. Nelliel was so kind and gentle because she'd learned to roll with the punches and treasure what she had, even if it was some nerdy preteen from another world. Arron, on the other hand, was so cold and distant because he couldn't leave his old life behind and move on.

Maybe that was why his Arron was so… broken.

"Nelliel, how long have you been down here?"

Nelliel sighed "Goh, you know time is hard to tell down here."

Goh didn't stop. "Yeah, but… have you ever gone back up there?"

Nelliel seemed to understand the meaning behind the words. "Yes, and I don't know exactly how long I've been down here. If I had to guess… It's been at least three hundred years, maybe four hundred. Why do you ask?"

"I just… I wanted to know how long ago Arron got here."

Nelliel shook her head. "I don't know exactly. He says he came here recently but that can't be true, he's an Arrancar: it can take Vasto Lordes decades, if not centuries to form, and it often takes Arrancar much longer. I was considered lucky: I became an Arrancar only recently, a few decades ago maybe. For him to have appeared and ascended the way he did… it's just unheard of. Even Szayelaporro agrees it's impossible."

Goh was silent. "So, what do you think really happened to him?"

Nelliel shrugged her shoulders hopelessly. "I don't know. All I know is that there is something very wrong with him. He genuinely believes he died so recently, despite all evidence pointing to the contrary, he's looking for someone he'll never find, and he'll never let go until he achieves his impossible goals. In fact, I don't even know how he became an Arrancar: the entire point of becoming an Arrancar is letting go of your past, breaking the shackles of your trauma and being reborn, in a manner of speaking, but Arron… he hasn't. It's what he is. He lives and breathes his trauma, and his endless quest for that person, as if this imaginary individual is going to give him some damn closure!"

Goh finally noticed that Nelliel lost her cool, and he could see a single lone tear streak down her face. "Nelliel, why are you so worried about him? He can take care of himself."

"I…" she started, choking, "I'm just scared that somebody will use that against him, or that it will eventually consume him. You don't know the other side of him, the happy side, the side that's at peace. It's rare, but it's there: I can see him smile clearly and he looks like a different man. He let's go of all of his baggage and I see him for what he is and he's beautiful. But then he remembers, and he becomes that moody, strung out, dejected… thing," Nelliel says with a fierce passion, as if the other 'side' of Arron wasn't even wasn't even human. "I just want him to let it all go and be happy again, be the man that I know he is. I miss that side of him, I almost never see it."

That sounded a lot like what Goh wanted, now that he thought about it. He wanted to help Arron, to heal him of whatever issues he had. Arron wasn't just some random pokemon, he was something more than what meets the eye, and he was going to have to reconcile with that, whether this dream of his was allegorical or literal.

But first… he had to finish what he started.

"Nelliel, do you love him?"

Nelliel sat there, frozen. "I… I don't know. I care about him, but I can't love him, not the way he is, not now."

Goh sighed. "I just wanted to know."

She gave him a pained look, and for the first time Goh realized he might have gone too far. "Goh, I don't want to talk about how I feel towards him. And it's not your business either. There are some questions that are inappropriate to ask, and right now that was one of them."

"I just-"

"I know, you wanted to know, and you didn't know that things like that can hurt. Just… just think before you ask one of us, no, anyone here something. There are some who aren't as forgiving."

"Ok." He whispered.

They sat in silence, Nelliel recollecting herself as Goh refused to meet eye contact. He hadn't meant to cause her to snap, but hebhad to know how to help Arron, and he had a feeling he knew where to start.

Rocks tumbled from the entrance again, and Arron emerged, covered in sand. He had the same neutral facade he always wore, with a dash of irritation on the side, and his sword himg from his ragged leather belt.

"Good, you're awake. The storm passed. Let's go."

---

Goh was worried that the moonlight was going to try and kill him again, but to his surprise he felt perfectly fine while he was following Arron through the vast desert, Nelliel at his side. It was strange not seeing a horizon, but beyond that the expanse was actually quite peaceful, serene even. The occasional dead tree would stick out of the sand, its wretched limbs swaying in the wind.

The sandstorm was gone, but the wind was still strong, blowing his greasy hair into his face. Goh didn't know why, but he retained the physical features he gained here over time, like exhaustion and his… inability to shower, so everything felt more taxing due to just how sweaty and tired he was. He didn't know why a dream had to be so realistic, but he had a feeling that the realism wouldn't end there, which had some concerning implications.

Both Nelliel and Arron seemed unaffected by the wind, In fact that looked relatively unbothered by anything. Arron was nonchalant and relaxed, his arms swinging as he climbed another dune before stopping sighing ever so slightly. That was Goh's first sign that something was about to go awry.

"Nelliel, get up here!"

Nelliel quickly pursued him until she reached the top, hanging onto the dead branch of a tree as if it was a bus railing. Arron pointed into the distance with a look that Goh would almost describe as annoyance. "You sense them too, right?"

Nelliel cursed under her breath and then they both locked eyes with Goh before Nelliel asked what seemed to be the obvious question. "What do we do with Goh?"

"Wait, slow down for a second, what do you mean 'what are you going to do with me'? What's going on?"

Arron looked back in the distance. "Multiple Adjuchas, all with high density spiritual pressure. And they're coming this way."

"Wait, Adjuchas… what does that mean?"

Nelliel shook her head. "I told you this in the cave, it's the evolution before Vasto Lorde. They're still very dangerous though."

"But… you guys can beat them, right? I mean, you guys are super strong, and you even said Arron was stronger than Barragan!"

Arron gave Nelliel a dirty look. "How much did you tell him?"

Nelliel pinched the bridge of her nose. "Now's not the time. They'll be here in a few minutes. What do you want to do?"

Arron pondered their options. "Keep him at a distance, I'll deal with the brunt of them."

Nelliel nodded before grabbing Goh and leaping, landing on the top of the tree with inhuman elegance. Arron unsheathed his double edged ninjaken and whipped it in front of him, eyes darting along the horizon. Goh could see the silhouettes in the distance, a cavalcade of larger-than-life creatures approaching rapidly. He couldn't make out the details, but they were massive, some the size of small buildings.

Goh started to sweat. "How can he beat them? They're huge!"

Nelliel didn't seem too alarmed. "You'll see in a bit. Just let him work his magic."

Faster than Goh could comprehend, the Adjuchas were already upon Arron, the sound of what felt like a thousand cicadas flapping their wings in cohesion as the first practically teleported in front of Arron like a Blur, it's massive reptilian maw slobbering. Arron pointed the edge of the blade at the creature before intercepting it in the abdomen, piercing its groin with the force of a cannon. It doubled over like a folding chair before Arron kicked it off and sent it tumbling down the dune, sand being shaken up into the air in clouds.

A second one, something resembling a large ape, charged and swung its massive fists, large protrusions shaped like the spikes on a morning star jutting from its knuckles. In a flash, Arron balanced himself on the side of its massive fist and lept over the swing effortlessly before impaling it through the skull in one elegant motion, causing it to go limp. Arron ripped out the blade with a grunt and slit the throat of the previous adjuchas, the large, semi-bipedal lizard Arron had impaled before. It stumbled backwards and grasped at its throat before Arron delivered the killing blow by impaling it through the eye socket, the blade sticking out of the back of its head. It still clawed at him until he pulled out the blade and jammed it into the creature's

neck and twisted it violently, ripping apart its spinal cord and brain stem with brutal efficiency. The creature collapsed onto its knees and then onto the ground, silent.

Arron proceeded to butcher the remaining stragglers, each of them less threatening than the last. A decapitated head here, a few broken limbs there. Two of the more human-sized Adjuchas charged at him at once, forcing Arron to improvise. He kicked the adjuchas he was fighting out of the way and snagged the ankle of one of the approaching attackers by stabbing his blade through the bones of its ankles and yanking it upward, tripping it and sending it sprawling, before lifting his blade and piercing it's gullet, severing the spinal cord. The second was swiftly kicked back a few feet before Arron took hold of its arm as it attempted to retaliate and judo flipped it over his shoulder and stabbed it in the lower neck, right around its vocal cords. It struggled silently until Arron put it to its misery by impaling its head.

All of this happened in a matter of thirty or so seconds, so quickly that Goh could barely register everything that Arron had done to incapacitate the swarm of enemies. Their Hierro was seemingly useless, their attacks, when they rarely made contact, bounced off of his skin with a flash of sparks like flint against steel. Every attacker was killed with brutal efficiency, with not a moment wasted. It was a far cry from the bloodthirsty berserker he had known Arron to be on the battlefield: This Arron was clean, quick and calculated in his actions.

Now there was only one left, the massive Adjuchas the size of a small home. It resembled a massive Gila monster, it's jaw dripping with multicolored drool. Arron wasn't impressed, but it let out a hissing laugh, like air being released from a popped tire.

"An impressive display," it said, "but you'll find that I'm much harder to kill."

Arron's expression remained unchanged. "The bigger they are, the harder they fall. But why don't you run back to Barragan, tell him once and for all to fuck off."

The lizard adjuchas only laughed harder. "Ahh, the words of a true coward. I will not return to my lord without slaying the both of you, and maybe he will find some use for the boy; I'm sure a living soul will be quite a treat for Barragan to toy with."

Nelliel held him tightly as Arron steadied his blade, his eyebrows angled downward. "I suppose I'll have to filet you then, lizard. For your sake, I hope you die before I begin to peel you apart."

The lizard hissed and belched a blast of greenish fire in Arron's direction. He didn't move or even attempt to defend, allowing the fire to engulf him. Goh wanted to yell, but he knew better; he'd seen Arron pull this bluff before.

As Goh suspected, Arron stood there unaffected by the flames, even his ragged clothes were unscathed. The lizard eyes him with surprise and then irritation. "It seems like I will have to kill you with force then. No matter."

The alligator adjuchas attempted to stomp on Arron, only for him to sidestep its massive foot and impale its ankle with his ninjaken. It hissed and attempted to lift him up, only for Arron to pull out the blade and leap away.

"You scatter and flee like a stinging insect! Stand still so I can crush you!"

Arron wasn't persuaded. "No, I believe I will continue to toy with you, El Odioso, unless you wish for me to end your pathetic life now."

The reptile, which Arron had named El Odioso (something Goh couldn't make heads or tails of, but it sounded somewhat like some of the languages spoken in Kalos and the neighboring regions) decided that Arron's choice was unacceptable. His beady eyes moved to Nelliel, and a perverse smile grew on his face. "If you will not stand against me then I will force your hand; Fuego Acido!"

El Odioso belched a massive bout of sickly green fire not towards Arron, but rather at Nelliel and Goh. Goh nearly jumped out of his skin, but Neither Nelliel nor Arron seemed very concerned. El Odioso seemed enthralled in a satisfied sort of way with his attack, that is until Nelliel set Goh down on a branch and balanced on the tree as if she was weightless… and ate the fire.

No, she didn't exactly eat it: she inhaled, absorbing the fire through her mouth and into her lungs. It should've burnt her from the inside out, but she didn't seem concerned at all, as if this was all second nature to her. He could feel the heat of the flames lick his skin as Nelliel contained it within her gullet before holding it down like it was bile.

El Odioso watched in surprise as Nelliel inhaled the last of his fire before exhaling again and releasing a condensed blast of greenish-purple flames back at him. Before he could react, he was engulfed by the heat and caustic fumes, the blast itself concealing at his feet before encircling him like a blazing whirlwind. Goh could hear his screams of agony as Nelliel exhaled the last of the fumes, coughing up acrid smoke and gagging. "Ugh, that tastes like rotting garlic and paprika."

Goh simply stared at her, dumbfounded at her ability to casually redirect a blast of fire by simply breathing it in. She stared back at him before lifting him back up and setting him on her shoulders. Goh didn't particularly like being treated like a child, but he doubted Nelliel was going to take no for an answer, so he didn't protest.

As the whirlwind died down, Goh could see what remained of El Odioso's body; his skin and scales were charred and peeling off, revealing his melting flesh underneath. His face was still in one piece, although it was largely unrecognizable. His legs were buried in a thin sheet of dirty grey glass that had crystallized from the sand due to the extreme heat, with miniscule puddles of poison bubbling like toxic waste in little ruts and crevices. His exposed flesh bubbled angrily like it was covered in hydrogen peroxide, the toxic substances eating away at his very being.

Despite his terrible injuries, however, it seemed that El Odioso was nowhere near wavering. "You wench! I'll tear you in two by your legs for that!"

Nelliel scoffed. "I'd like to see you try, I'll deep fry you a dozen more times over before you can even touch me."

He hissed at her response, only for Arron to clear his throat. "Now that you're done throwing a tantrum, I'll do as you ask. Just be careful what you wish for."

Despite the leftover heat and noxious clouds from the fiery blast, the air began to rapidly cool as frost surrounded Arron's feet in the form of small crystalline ice. He pointed his blade at El Odioso, and the sphere of ice growing at his ankles nearly doubled in radius, the ice crystals growing in size. Small portions broke off and extended from the base, snaking towards El Odioso like tentacles. El Odioso seemed to know what was going on, as he attempted to evade, only for Arron to snap his fingers. The Reptilian Adjuchas' front left leg burst open at the kneecap, sprouting massive ice crystals. El Odioso snarled and spat curses, but it's anger was quickly turning into fear.

"Usually this is the time where I would send you newline back to Barragan with your tail between your legs and a message for him to leave me the fuck alone, but not today; you threatened someone I care about, so that warrants a… special response."

Another kneecap erupted into ice shards, this time the back right, making it more and more difficult for Arron's prey to move. El Odioso frothed at the mouth as the streaks of ice finally reached him, lifting themselves from the ground like the limbs of a marionette and forcibly wrapping around El Odioso's body like the wicked tentacles of a massive squid. El Odioso struggled, but the ice wrapped around him tighter and tighter, a thin sheen of frost extending across his body and causing black and blue blisters to pop up around his bare flesh, like the world's worst case of frostbite.

"Even if you-" El Odioso started before screaming in agony as the tentacles began to stretch him in multiple different directions. "Even if you kill me… Barragan will subdue you! He is the true king of Hueco Mundo! All shall kneel before-"

El Odioso was interrupted when he was torn apart from multiple directions, first from his waist. His lower body was ripped off from his upper body, spilling his greasy black blood and slimy innards across the dirty glass of the dunes, his cries of agony and enraged monolog cut short and replaced with a series of croaks as his lungs were torn apart. Next his head, ripped off of his shoulders and tossed across the dunes absent-mindedly like a crushed coconut. The rest of the body slowly froze into ice before shattering and scattering into dust.

Arron wiped the blood off his sword with his thumb and forefinger, the ice evaporating and leaving the air cool and dry again. Nelliel seemed disappointed in Arron's gruesome display, but

Goh felt sick to his stomach; he thought Arron's actions at the tournament were reprehensible, but it seemed that Arron had actually been holding back after all.

Nelliel seemed to notice his revulsion but didn't mention anything, preferring to simply keep quiet. Arron's face was unreadable, but Goh didn't care about that either. There was no use in challenging Arron's violent tendencies; Goh had no power here, and he'd have to play by the rules of his protectors if he was going to further his goal of finding out more about Arron. Sometimes you have to make sacrifices in the name of the greater good.

"It seems Barragan isn't going to quit. We may have to confront him, especially if he catches wind of you. He isn't above taking hostages."

Goh was surprised by that. "Why would anyone take hostages? Isn't everyone else down here ruthless and heartless?"

Arron shrugged. "There are some who would die for those they fight alongside, even if it means risking their lives. As they say, the blood of the covenant is thicker than the water of the womb."

"Isn't that just about regular friendship?"

"Most people get it wrong. The covenant in that context is the line of battle, and the water of the womb is family ties. To some, there is no greater bond than shedding blood together."

Goh looked at him as if he was crazy. "That sounds kinda antithetical to how you described the denizens of Hueco Mundo earlier. Are they ruthless, sadistic nomads or fellow warriors?"

This time Nelliel responded. "A bit of both. Strength is everything here, for sure, but those who truly succeed in this pit are those who can gain the loyalty of others. Hollows aren't completely empty shells; our lack of true hearts make us desire purpose. And sometimes a savvy and powerful hollow can rise above the rest. Barragan was one of those powerful hollows, or so I've been told." Nelliel scowled when she mentioned his name, as if it reeked of a bitter taste. "Now, well he's become complacent, and most other Vasto Lordes treat him more like a nuisance or a sleeping giant than an actual threat. Because he stays glued to his throne unless he is confronted directly, nobody outside his posse of Adjuchas and Gillians actually has any real respect for him. To them, a true king leads by example."

Goh nodded. "So for other powerful hollows to respect him, he'd have to be in the thick of battle?"

"A lot." Arron added. "It doesn't matter who or how, as long as you fight and you win. That's how you gain followers here."

Goh pondered that for a moment as they continued to trek the dunes. "Why don't you guys have a lot of followers, then? I saw you fight, you're super tough! Imagine all the followers you'd have if you guys took the time to gather them."

Arron shook his head as they reached the top of another massive sand dune, revealing the city of Las Noches in all its glory. It was a series of what looked like cylindrical Babylonia-style huts surrounding a massive dome covered in spires, with huge supporting towers at the edges. Goh might have been imagining it, but he thought he could hear the sound of monastery bells in the distance, as if the denizens were being called to a service. Nelliel and Arron simply turned away from it and continued marching west, into a further expanse of desert.

"I don't want followers, they lie and scheme and plot your downfall at every turn. Barragan likes them because they inflate his ego and serve as his fists. Contrary to what we've said before, no ruler rules alone: it is inevitable that the ruler of Hueco Mundo will have to delegate, and thus the vicious cycle of overthrow continues. When Barragan delegates his underlings to fight for him, his underlings are the ones gaining respect, not the king, and eventually you reach a point where the only thing keeping the mob in line is fear. Barragan is good at instilling fear into the weak, but fear only goes so far. One day he will push an unspoken line and his rule will crumble underneath him."

Goh nodded. Arron didn't seem like someone who ever wanted to have others do his dirty work: he was and had always been a creature of action. Now Goh knew why: Arron simply wanted solitude. It seemed dumb at first, but the more he thought about it, the more it made sense: Arron was captured and forced to follow Goh on his adventure. While most pokemon seemed content with being captured, especially if they made the choice willingly, Arron neither had the opportunity to make that decision nor the foreknowledge of who would capture him, and thus he was now in a situation that he neither consented to nor particularly enjoyed.

That opened up a whole new can of worms that gave Goh a massive headache by simply attempting to unravel it all. Was Arron actually this intelligent and articulate in the real world? If so, that made Goh feel much more guilty than he had so before, and reinforced his belief that capturing every pokemon would be both inhumane and impractical.

Maybe that's why Arron was lashing out so much: Goh was taught from a young age that people capturing pokemon for their own devices was just how things worked. But now Goh understood just how severe the implications could be.

He would have to learn to make do with what he had, and train his team to be strong and independent, he didn't care if Korrina would be disapproving of it. He'd make them strong, if only to make Arron more comfortable. Maybe then that bond could grow a bit stronger as well.

"So, what do you want, then?"

Arron didn't answer, preferring to sheathed his blade and keep pushing forward into the dunes.

---

Goh didn't remember when he fell asleep, or if he even did fall asleep, but he woke back up in his bed in Shalour, sweat beading on his forehead. The early sunrise peered through the curtains, lighting up the room in a soft, orange glow. He stood up and pulled off his sweaty shirt before throwing it in his temporary hamper in the corner of the room. Ash still scored in his bed, Pikachu resting on his nappy hair. Goh simply rummaged through his bag for a change of clothes and turned on the shower, the hot water causing the room to steam.

He removed his clothes and stepped into the shower, sighing from the relief that the hot water gave his oddly sore muscles, as if he really had been walking through that desert. He almost felt as if his dreams and the real world were beginning to become intertwined: when he had begun to regard his Arron with the sullen and temperamental Tier Arron he had met in Hueco Mundo, he had lost his ability to separate the two: sure, they looked different, but beyond their physical disparities, they were the same person.

But the more and more he learned about the other Arron, the one that should have been a figment of his imagination but was too accurately depicted to be a fluke or a coincidence, along with the consistency of the dreams, led him to believe that something or someone was communicating things he may or may not have the right to know. Whether the dream sequences were allegorical or literal wasn't important anymore; what mattered was how he acted on his issues with them.

He leaned his head on the smooth tile and sighed again, letting the hot water trail down his back as he began to lose track of time, combing over everything he could remember. But dreams were fickle things: he could feel himself losing a grip on more and more of the finer details, and eventually everything became a blur of action, faces and the infinite sands.

He'd have to begin another drawing, but he had other priorities at the moment. He had to begin training.

He finished showering and dressed himself, brushing his teeth and flossing before stepping out of the bathroom and sliding his belt on and slipping his backpack over his shoulder. He saw raboot had slipped out of her pokeball and was swinging her feet at the edge of the bed, watching him expectantly.

He gestured to the door with his head and she hopped off the bed and followed close behind. Goh quietly unlocked the hotel door and slipped out into the hall and down the street.

The streets were bustling today: it was time for the first battle of the final sixteen, and most people knew that this was when the best battles took place. While the entire length of the tournament was broadcasted on television, the final sixteen was when the most people were in the Arena itself, the seats packed with fans eager to witness the most exciting battles. He had to be ready for anything, even if he was severely outmatched.

He heard the ripping of roller blades on concrete behind him and looked behind to see Korrina skating towards him, a concerned look on her face.

"Oh, hey Goh, me and May were looking for you and Ash. Have you seen him?"

"Last I checked he was still asleep, what's the issue?"

"There's no issue, just some commotion down at the docks. A corporate helicopter landed and everyone's making a fuss."

Goh scrunched his eyebrows in surprise. "Why would people be making a fuss over that? Shalour is a big city nestled on the coast, I figured you guys would have a lot of corporations here."

"I know, right? But no, Shalour has always been a neutral zone. You might get meetings here or even a few charity drives, but more often than not the big corporations avoid the city."

That didn't exactly answer his question. "Why is that? There's no law against having big corporations here, is there?"

Korrina shrugged as she skated circles around him. "Not that I know of. You want my guess? I think it's all the holidays. Shalour has, like, a bazillion of them, and most businesses are required to allow optional paid time off or time and a half for overtime during those holidays. Spring and Summer are the worst for them: that's when you get the Votive games, the Celebration of Spes, the Triumpho and a bunch of others. Some people joke that we get the entire month of June off alone. That doesn't count the Luperca and Saturna festivals that come before and after."

Now Goh was even more confused. "I've never heard of a single one of those holidays."

Korrina blew a raspberry. "I'm not surprised, a lot of the other Regions judge us for it. Let me guess, you're from Kanto."

Goh stopped walking and stared at her, flabbergasted by not only her correct deduction but how confident in it she was. "Uh… yeah. What does that have to do with anything?"

Korrina had a knowing smile on her face. "Oh, nothing. Just that Kanto, Johto and Hoenn control about sixty percent of all the corporations in the world, and those corporations don't like people who have lots of days off and great benefits, thus they like to breed hate from our way of life so that many people stay loyal and efficient. Thus, there's lots of prejudice that comes from people who live there, and with that comes a lot of ignorance."

Goh specifically remembered when he was much younger, his father used to let some of his frustrations slip. He was usually a pretty happy guy, but being a civil lawyer was pretty taxing on his health and his mood, and sometimes he'd curse or even just rant to himself when he thought no one was watching. He vaguely remembered his father occasionally spouting something about Kalosians being lazy, which at the time Goh thought was pretty funny. When his father noticed Goh had been listening, however, he'd immediately stop and focus on some other form of catharsis. Now Goh realized his father might have been mildly racist.

Wonderful, as if he didn't have enough issues with his father already.

"Huh, yeah I remember a few vague instances of that back in my hometown."

Korrina hummed knowingly. "Yep, I'm sure that people from Kanto are wonderful people, and they are very polite, but oftentimes they say a lot of things behind closed doors that people would find appalling."

Goh was silent for a moment before responding. "Well, in contrast wouldn't you guys find those same people from Kanto and Hoenn to be workaholics?"

"Well, yeah, but I don't judge you for it, do I?"

Goh Shook his head. "I'm not talking about you and me, Korrina, I'm talking about the Average person from Shalour and the Average person from Kanto. Don't you guys just judge each other's ways of life while pretending that you don't?"

Now it was Korrina's turn to be silent. "Yeah, I suppose we do."

Goh gestured to the hypocrisy. "I understand not liking how judgmental others are, but being judgmental back only widens the divide."

Korrina chuckled. "Well, as I was saying, it's not common for a corporate executive to land in Shalour, most of their business gets handled in Lumiose. So seeing a corporate helicopter land in the city carrying an executive is an uncommon occurrence."

Goh didn't see the point of the conversation. "Okay… and? Maybe the executive is just here on vacation or something. Why is this suddenly a huge deal?"

Korrina shrugged. "I don't know, all I know is that there's something off-putting about an executive from Galar landing in the city on such short notice. It's as if whoever sent them wanted the city to be unprepared for their presence. And what's even crazier is that last night I heard grandfather on the phone with them. They bought box seats for the rest of the tournament! And you know who it is?"

Goh shrugged. "Who?"

"Its Chairman Rose and Leon!"

Goh spun around d so quickly that he became dizzy. "What? What's Leon doing here?"

Korrina threw her hands in the air. "I don't know, but what's really important is that they're both here, that just doesn't happen. Leon usually travels alone and Chairman Rose almost never leaves Galar, so for both of them to be here for no reason is a big deal, and everyone is talking about it."

Goh thought about that for a moment. "Now I know why you wanted to tell Ash. Do you think that we should go wake him up?"

Goh thought about that for a minute. "Nah, let him sleep, if they bought box tickets then he'll be here for at least two more days. Besides, I need to train with my team."

Korrina snorted. "What, you're not going to rely on Arron again?"

Goh sighed irritatedly. "I'll probably have to, but I don't want that to become the new normal: I need to train my team and get them strong so I can have some kind of variety. Besides, what if I meet an enemy Arron can't beat? He's going to need someone to help him whether he likes it or not."

Korrina, to her credit, at least seemed to be taking him seriously. "That's fair, just make sure you're consistent with your training. You can't afford to just be 'good enough', you have to be as strong as possible."

"Yeah, I will, and thanks Korrina."

"For what?"

Goh shook his head. "Just take the gratitude and skate somewhere else."

Korrina rolled her eyes. "Sure, I will. But just remember who you're battling next: if you beat Clarence then you'll be in the final eight, battling me."

Goh perked up. "Wait, I'll be battling you?"

"Oh, absolutely, so make sure you win! I want to test Arron's limits."

Goh grinned. "We won't disappoint."

"That's the spirit. Well, I have a certain guy named Chuck to beat today, so wish me luck!"

"Y'know, I think I'd rather battle you than Chuck, so sure, whatever you want."

"Oh, just for that I'm going to make you swallow those words."

They were both silent for a second before losing their composure and breaking into a fit of giggles. "I swear, if you get beat by Chuck I'm going to be so disappointed, with all that big game you talk about."

Korrina gave him a soft smile. "Well, same goes for you: you have no reason to get beaten by Clarence of all people, especially after beating Kane."

The mention of Kane put a damper on Goh's attitude. Korrina seemed to notice instantly, and her smile morphed into a concerned frown as Goh's pained expression became clear to her. "Goh, are you alright? Look, I know that Kane mentioned some hurtful things, but don't listen to people like him! Kane has a superiority complex bigger than Lumiose City."

Goh shook his head. "It's not what he said, I'm dealing with that on my own. What really hurt me was that May didn't mention how outclassed I was. I had even run into her before the match and we even ended up talking about Kane, yet not once did she insinuate that I was going to be fighting the uphill battle that it turned out to be." Goh huffed in indignation before running his hands through his hair. "I'm sick of people lying to me, I just want them to be honest, even if the truth hurts."

Korrina nodded and placed a hand on his shoulder. "I understand what you mean, more than you could imagine." She quickly glanced at her Keystone, her lip curling ever so slightly into a sneer, as if she was imagining something distasteful or even painful. "I know what it feels like to be lied to, especially when the liar has the best of intentions, and it hurts. But sometimes the only thing you can do is make it clear that dishonesty isn't something you see as a good trait for a friend to have. Be honest with her and make her take you seriously."

Goh nodded before forcing away his frown. "Alright, enough of that depressing stuff. I'll see you after the battle, maybe we can celebrate after we both win."

Korrina nodded softly. "Yeah, but not at Grandad's place, he's been pretty on edge since Chairman Rose dropped in unexpectedly."

Goh lifted an eyebrow. "That's… concerning."

Korrina simply shrugged. "Hey, at this point it's par for the course. Maybe they know each other and Grandad is just surprised that the Chairman dropped without prior notice."

Goh shrugged. "Yeah, I guess so."

Korrina Was about to say something else when her Rotom phone buzzed. She pulled it out and her eyes widened. "I'm sorry, I have to go, Grandad is calling for me. I'll see you at the tournament!"

Then she took off like a speeding bullet, kicking up dust with her Rollerblade. Goh watched as her figure became smaller before pulling out Arron's pokeball and palming it. "Alright big guy, let's get to work."

---

Goh sat in the locker room, looking at his options for the upcoming battle. While training with Arron and the rest of his team, Goh had done some research on Clarence, including his registered team. It wasn't as broken as Kane's team was, but it was still formidable.

Clarence was the young man with the Serperior he had seen battling the Ninetails when he had first come to Shalour, and he had apparently made quite the first impression with his stunning victory against an enemy with a type advantage.

Clarence had also kept his cards close to his chest: his team was mostly unknown, so Goh had a sinking feeling Clarence was going to respond to Goh's choices and not the other way around, which made him nervous. While half of Goh's pokemon had the first type advantage, there was no telling what his full roster was and how well balanced it could be.

So, always being the one to over prepare, Goh combed through the footage of Clarence's previous battles to try and deduce the full makeup of his team. Surely he'd get some idea of what he was dealing with, and if not, then Goh could at least enter the Arena knowing he had done everything he could short of asking Clarence himself, who was apparently indisposed to revealing anything. Goh couldn't blame him, based on all the footage he had seen, the man enjoyed having the element of surprise.

In every single recorded battle between Clarence and his opponent in the tournament, Goh had observed that Clarence only used his Serperior, every single time. Even when at a severe type disadvantage, his Serperior was his first choice, as if he had complete faith in it's abilities to pick off whatever opponent he threw it at. That, or he preferred to use his Serperior first simply to force his opponent's hand and gain the advantage: If he always used his Serperior first, who had shown a certain degree of skill in dispatching enemies that had type advantages, then he could easily adapt to whoever his opponent decided to throw at him next.

The previous battle he had against another trainer exemplified that perfectly: he began with his Serperior as usual, and then when it won against the opponent's Frosmoth, he had free reign over who to choose next on top of a head start in the second round. And even if his Serperior lost, he could still choose any pokemon that was strong against his opponent's starting pokemon who would already be weakened. It was both a simple and brilliant strategy for anyone with a well-rounded team, which Clarence seemed to have. The battle ended with Clarence winning without even choosing a third pokemon, his Serperior having been able to take down both the opponent's Frosmoth and Pyroar (something that the announcers seemed flabbergasted over) Clarence was finally forced to switch to his Chandelure to finish the job against the opposing Beedrill.

So it seemed Goh was going to have to fight fire with fire.

His team was laid out in front of him, Arron hunched over, legs crossed and his back leaning against the concrete wall as he half-listened to Goh explain the plan to them. Raboot sat next to Goh on the steel bench, swinging her legs over the edge as she paid her full attention. Misdreavus and Sandile huddled together on Arron's lap, not really paying attention, and Scyther sat next to Arron, focused on Goh as he sharpened his razor claws mindlessly. At least some of them were taking this seriously.

"Alright, you're going first Scyther," Goh stated, catching the bug pokemon off guard with a pointed finger. "I'm sure he's going to use his Serperior first, so with your speed and your double type advantage we may just come out on top. Either way, we'll weaken it as much as possible." Scyther grumbled in acknowledgement, and Goh turned his finger to Arron. "That means you're second. It's your job to deal with what's left of number one and number two, depending on how well Scyther does. That being said, we know he's most likely going to counter you with his Chandelure, so prepare to use your frost and beam attacks against it. If not, we'll improvise, you're good at that."

Arron let out an indignant chuff, as if to say yeah, whatever. Goh rolled his eyes and pointed to Raboot. "Now, you are our last line of defense. If Arron falls, I'm going to need you to deal with number three. That means that you," Goh pointed at Arron, who didn't seem amused, "Need to deal with number two and number three if possible."

Arron was unresponsive, but didn't seem to object. Goh stood up and took a deep breath. "Alright, let's go win this battle."

---

In the warm midmorning sun, Goh and Clarence stood feet away from each other in the center of the Arena, beads of sweat rolling down the foreheads of the both of them as they sized each other up. Clarence's expression was positive but otherwise unreadable, with a small smile and a

neutral expression. Goh, on the other hand, was serious and tense, clenching his hands as he waited for Clarence to speak, yet he never did. So Goh decided to speak first, denying Clarence the opportunity to intimidate him. He wore a short-sleeved casual plaid button up and a pair of khaki shorts and sandals, as if he was planning to take a long walk on the beach, mojito in hand, after winning the match. Goh had to admit, he had a certain charm to him: his curly hair, while somewhat obnoxious on the surface, was at least well Kept, and his face was cleanly shaved. He looked like one of those jerk social media influencers who marketed their merchandise to young children. The fake stud in his right ear didn't help with that perception either.

"No hard feelings, but I'm going to win today, Clarence."

Clarence raised an eyebrow in a condescending fashion. "If you say so man, but to me actions speak louder than words."

Goh didn't respond, and Clarence simply turned around, walking to his edge of the Arena with his pokeball in hand. Goh did the same, reaching his edge before pulling out Scyther's pokeball gingerly as if it was a prized possession. Clarence tossed his pokeball into the air and, as expected, his gargantuan Serperior landed onto the ground, coiling into a massive, writhing ball as it peeked at Goh. Goh released Scyther wordlessly, who simply stood at the ready. The crowd cheered for blood as the two squared off, but before the battle could start, the announcer's microphone was tapped to gather the attention of the mass of people present for the first round of the finals.

Gurkinn stood on a large podium jutting out where the announcers usually sat to narrate, microphone in hand and wearing a light blue short-sleeved button up shirt and a pair of brown khakis tightened with a black belt. He had a bright smile on his face, but even from the ground, Goh could see that something was off. He seemed tense, as if he had the weight of the world on his shoulders. Korrina sat next to his chair, wearing a long, sleeveless white dress with subtle gold embroidery. He could see a small jeweled pendant on her neck and her long hair was tied into a loose but elegant braid with a ribbon of gold. Goh had a hard time recognizing her at first, but her platinum green eyes and shining blonde hair were unmistakable. She looked both stunning and nothing like the Korrina he knew, who always looked so casual (for a lack of a better term) compared to what she looked like now.

His apparent stress, however, didn't hinder Gurkinn from delivering a great speech. "Friends, Neighbors and Countrymen!" Gurkinn began, "Today is an Auspicious day! Today, we celebrate the beginning of the end! Today, we observe one of our most sacred events in honor of our rich and storied heritage; the Votive Games!"

The crowd cheered as the sun rose directly to the center of the sky, the exact moment of midday. Then Goh remembered what day it was: June 22nd, the Summer solstice, the longest day of the year. He had read that it was important to many cultures in the distant past, but he never thought that people would still celebrate it like this.

As the cheering subsided, Gurkinn continued. "But these games are a very special occasion for another reason, as we are honored by the presence of two esteemed guests. Chairman Rose of Wyndon and Hammerlocke, an important philanthropist and beneficent of both Pokemon battling and energy research, and Leon, champion of the Galar league have both graced us today with their presence!"

The crowd cheered again, although not as wildly as before. Gurkinn gestured to the both of them, and they stood, bowed and waved. As he stood, Chairman Rose stared down at Goh, his smile somewhat soiled by his analytically cold eyes examining Goh as if he was some kind of anomaly. The attention of it made Goh shiver, as if he could sense foul intentions, but as soon as Goh looked up again, the Chairman had focused his eyes on the crowd, waving to the many spectators.

Eventually, the commotion died down and Gurkinn held the attention of the audience again. He rolled his shoulders before lifting the microphone to his lips again with a strained smile. "Now, with great honor, I commence the Votive games with the most hopeful of blessings, so that our great city may be blessed with prosperity and peace for decades to come. May the meadows and hills blossom, the orchards and vineyards be fruitful and the rest of our year be bountiful and fulfilling."

Gurkinn paused for a moment before clearing his throat and peering down at Goh and Clarence. "And as for our finalists, may this be a climactic battle! In nomine victoriae te salutamus, o magni certatores! Begin the combat!"

The crowd went wild, and with the sound of trumpets the battle began. It was a far cry from the beginning of the battle festival, where everything felt modern and casual: This was a very sacred tradition, and it showed. The walls of the Arena, which were once simply bleached white plaster, were now decorated with mosaics depicting great battles of the past that Goh couldn't even begin to decipher, as well as imagery at both entrances that seemed very religious in nature: an bronze-skinned man holding the sun at the east door and a humanoid with great black wings holding the moon at the west. Goh realized that these as well as the mosaics were covered with the temporary plaster walls to prevent erosion, as he could tell they were incredibly old.

Clarence snapped his fingers, bringing Goh back to reality. "It is quite an impressive Arena, but you heard the old man; it's time to fight."

His Serperior uncoiled and flexed, its muscular abdomen preparing to leap at Scyther. To his credit, Scyther was unfazed, and simply followed his movements with keen precision. Sweat formed on Goh's brow as he waited for Clarence to make his first move.

In a flash, Clarence snapped his fingers, and Serperior perked up with absolute obedience, waiting for a response. "Serperior, use slam!"

In less than a second, Serperior coiled and uncoiled its body again, cracking Scyther with his tail like a whip at incomprehensible speeds, making a loud snap and sending Scyther tumbling across the field before landing on his feet. The exoskeleton on his side was shattered, only held together by the muscle and bone underneath, and dark orange blood dribbled from his abdomen and onto the dusty ground. Before he could respond, Serperior simply recoiled and formed a ball, staring Scyther down with complete focus.

"Scyther, use double team and X-scissor!" Goh shouted. Scyther grunted before taking off, ignoring the pain in his side and hovering over the ground at immense speeds. His body separated into several apparitions, each charging at Serperior with their claws angled for a killing blow.

"Serperior, use leaf storm!"

Serperior hissed in acknowledgement and shook his body, a massive cyclone of leaves erupting from the frills across it's body. They swept around him, moving faster and faster, until they formed into a blurred storm of razors. The diameter of the storm extended slowly, halting Scyther in his tracks as one of the apparitions got too close and was dissipated by the violent winds. The attack itself wouldn't have done much damage, but it would have negated his double team and made scyther much more vulnerable. But Goh would take the risk.

"Scyther, use a quick attack and a fury cutter."

Scyther lunged into the storm, the apparitions fading in the wind. Serperior hissed and uncoiled, striking at Scyther with his tail, but Scyther was able to duck under the swipe and land on his feet, leaping off the ground and impaling Serperior with both of his bladed appendages. Serperior hissed and growled, among his body onto the ground in an attempt to dislodge Scyther, but he simply lept of and swiped at Serperior's face with his fury cutter, drawing green blood that splattered across the ground, as well as a pathetic wail. Green blood gushed from Serperior's left eye as he coiled venomously, his fangs extended. Scyther attempted to fight offensively again, but Serperior lunged, wrapping around Scyther and squeezing, all the while sinking his fangs into Scyther's shoulder. Scyther struggled but to no avail; Serperior's strength simply outmatched his own. Serperior squeezed, causing Scyther to gasp for air and struggle violently against Serperior's musculature.

As Scyther began to still; Goh felt his stomach sink to his feet. If he lost this battle so early then Arron would be fighting an uphill battle, and he'd be forced to rely on him again. Goh couldn't have that, but it was looking like he didn't have a choice.

"Scyther, break free, I know you can do it!"

Clarence smirked. "You're tough for your age, kid, but your team just isn't up to the task."

As if on cue, just to spite Clarence, Scyther was able to rip one of his arms free and impale Serperior in his neck, causing Serperior to sputter and loosen his grip. Scyther freed himself and continued to assault Serperior with his claws, carving up the serpent pokemon with ruthless efficiency, somehow dodging when Serperior slammed his tail down at his location. Finally, with one violent swipe, Serperior struck down Scyther with a brutal blow, shattering even more pieces of his exoskeleton off and sending him down to the ground, landing on his head. Scyther attempted to get up, but Serperior slammed his tail down on him again and again, orange blood pooling around him. Clarence was calling for Serperior to stop, and Goh could vaguely remember screaming at Serperior to stop hurting Scyther to no avail.

"Dammit, Serperior, listen when I'm talking to you! He's down, don't fucking kill him!"

Clarence's cursing finally seemed to get Serperior's attention, as the snake's eyes widened in fear and surprise. Serperior backed away from Scyther's broken body, his abdomen practically flattened against the floor and orange blood everywhere: on ground, all over Serperior's tail, and even speckled on the beautiful mosaic walls. Scyther twitched and spasmed, one of his wings broken and bent and the other properly contained in his back.

To be fair, Serperior wasn't in great condition either. His body was covered in stab wounds and lacerations, all of them oozing chlorophyllic blood. His left eye was just a mushed mess of green flesh and dripping liquid that Goh could only guess was vitreous fluid, making him cringe slightly. Serperior was also heaving, coughing up blood with every breath and slowly coiling up into the ball, shaking from the trauma of the battle. Goh swallowed and pulled out Scyther's pokeball, looking down at his feet as to not become sick from the gore on the field.

That was, until he heard both the crowd and Clarence gasp. Goh looked up to see Scyther standing, his right leg shaking from it's injuries. He limped over to Serperior, who hissed violently at him and lunged, fangs expended. In a millisecond, Scyther extended his arm and cleaved into Serperior's neck again, causing blood to splatter on the ground and for Serperior to writhe in pain and shock. Scyther leapt upon the serpent, stabbing at it endlessly with a fury in his eyes he'd never really seen from the bug pokemon before, a completely merciless gaze clouded in red.

Serperior eventually just… stopped moving, the blood loss too great. Clarence watched in shock as Scyther brutalized his main pokemon before raising his hands in the air and crossing his arms into an X. "I submit the first round, I yield!"

-STOP! stop all fighting, contender Clarence yields to Goh, thus Goh wins the first round!- The announcer seemed breathless by the level of violence.

Scyther looked up at the announcer's booth before hopping off the still living body of Serperior and limping towards Goh with an unreadable expression on his face. Before Scyther reached him, however, he collapsed on the ground. Goh returned him to his ball as soon as possible and set it to stasis mode before palming it. Clarence had done the same, and a young woman in a nurse's outfit ran up to them, her reddish-purple hair bouncing in their braids as she took Serperior's ball from Clarence and then Scyther's ball from Goh.

"I'll take care of them, you two prepare for the next battle," she said with a small smile. Goh gulped and nodded, and Nurse Joy ran back to the lockers and supposedly to the medical wing underneath the Arena floor where equipment was set up to stabilize and begin the healing process before transporting the pokemon to the pokemon center for more rigorous treatment.

Clarence wasn't smiling anymore, instead his lips were strained and his eyebrows were arched downward. "So I think I underestimate your team. Don't worry, that won't happen again." He pulled out another pokeball and tossed it into the air. "People tend to think that Serperior is my strongest pokemon, but he isn't. I have a few more tricks up my sleeve, so you better give me all you got."

As Clarence prepared to throw his next ball, Goh noticed a slight glimmer on hisbwrist, a bracelet of pearls, and the centerpiece was a beautiful multicolored orb: a keystone.

"Go, Houndoom!"

A large and ferocious Houndoom landed on the ground gracefully in front of Clarence, who was smirking again. "Don't hold back, o want to fight you at your peak."

Goh nodded and pulled out Arron's pokeball. He was going to win this battle, and he was going to win this tournament. He had too, he needed to know that he could do it.

"Go, Arron!"

Arron fell to the ground, the floor of the stadium cracking under his immense weight. He placed one hand open-palmed onto the ground and held the other up, flexing his massive claws. He looked at the ground before sniffing it and growling, obviously snelling the spilt blood. It seemed to fuel him, as he began scraping his claws on the ground to sharpen them, leaving them to glimmer as he salivated over his foe, a guttural rumble emanating from his chest.. Goh had to remember that this wasn't the efficiently deadly assassin Goh had gotten to know in Hueco Mundo: this was a violent and bloodthirsty animal, one who'd stop at nothing to satisfy his hunger for bloodshed.

Goh would have to deal with that later. For now, it was do or die.

"Arron, use mach punch!"

Arron raced forward with the speed of a bullet on all fours before lunging and slamming his fist into the abdomen of the Houndoom, sending him flying into a rock across the stadium and crushing it into dust. The houndoom simply leapt back on his feet and snarled, his razor sharp

teeth flashing in the sun. Clarence chuckled at the display. "So you're ice type knows fighting type moves, that's interesting."

Goh wasn't amused. "He knows a lot of things."

Clarence raised an eyebrow. "Well, I guess we'll see whether any of that actually helps him. Houndoom, use fire fang!"

Goh grit his teeth. "Arron, lay your traps, break him!"

Arron seemed to know what to do, launching a cascade of icicles at houndoom, only for the agile dog pokemon to dodge them all and land on the ground between them, surrounded by spines of ice. Clarence rolled his eyes. "You think you've trapped my houndoom? Think again kid, neither of us are that stupid. Houndoom, use a flamethrower!"

An inferno erupted in Houndoom's maw, causing the entire stadium to heat up. But before he could expel the burst of flames at Arron, the icicles on the ground began to shake. Clarence's eyes widened, but before he could order houndoom to back away they ruptured, sending razor-sharp blades of ice in an inward cascade, all aiming towards houndoom. The houndoom, ever the improvisers, surrounded itself with it's own flamethrower to negate the blades of ice, but some still broke through. Houndoom yelped as hisbsode was pierced by one of the larger blades of ice, and another blade cleaved one of hisbhorns in half.

Hoping to take advantage of Houndoom's distraction, Arron lunged forward again, this time biting into Houndoom's side and leaving a messy wound that bled profusely. Houndoom fought back, engulfing Arron with a massive flamethrower. Luckily, Arron weathered it with only some nasty burns and charred bone armor. He picked houndoom up and slammed him into the ground with a grunt, sending him sprawling.

Clarence didn't seem too unnerved, and Goh thoughtbhe knew why: the Keystone on his wrist ensured that whatever pokemon he could mega-evolve would be a serious threat.

As if he had predicted it, Clarence held up his hand and pressed his index finger into the Keystone, causing it to glow. His smile only grew wider with each moment. "Houndoom, Mega-Evolve!"

Goh grit his teeth as a bright chromatic light engulfed houndoom and the ground below crumbled into fiery coals. His form grew twice its original size and his demonic features became more pronounced. Massive spines erupted from his front, and his horns grew huge and elongated, with the cleaved stub even growing back to its original size. The oozing wounds on it's side closed up almost immediately as it payed the ground and growled, smoke seeping from it's mouth and nostrils.

"Alright, Houndoom, use a flamethrower!"

Fire coagulated in Houndoom's jaw before being dispelled in a cataclysmic blast, Arron barely being able to dodge out of the way. Houndoom ran for Arron at blinding speeds before ramming into his chest and sending him backwards. Arron caught the ground with his claws and slowed his slide backwards before lunging forward again and whipping his claws at Houndoom; shredding his side and causing it to tumble across the ground for several feet. Arron then followed up with a mach punch that connected with a loud crack against Houndoom's bony frontal armor.

Houndoom regained his balance and landed on his feet, panting profusely as his bony armor crumbled. Arron wasn't in much better shape, his body covered in welts and his chest a nasty shade of purple. Arron ground his claws on the floor again, sneering at Houndoom with obvious contempt, and Houndoom returned the favor by snarling ferociously.

Clarence grit his teeth. "I'm not going to let up that easily! Houndoom, use flame charge!"

Houndoom howled and burst into flames, charging another ramming into Arron who attempted to catch the flaming dog pokemon with both hands to no avail. Arron was pushed back and burnt severely and tumbled backwards, and Houndoom fell back to the ground on his head in an almost comical fashion. The impact kicked up dust and debris into the air, partially concealing the battlefield and leaving only the silhouettes visible.

In a flash, Arron swiped at Houndoom, slamming him into the ground and causing it to crater before stomping on him with his massive foot. Houndoom whined in pain before Arron picked him up again and began to squeeze him in both hands, suffocating him with immense pressure. Houndoom struggled, even unleashing another flamethrower at point blank, but it only served to infuriate Arron more, who simply roared and squeezed harder. Eventually, Houndoom fell unconscious, causing Arron to release him and let out a guttural roar. Clarence seemed almost in denial that Houndoom was defeated, but It was clear it wasn't a clean fight: Arron was bruised, horrifically burnt, had multiple puncture wounds from Houndoom's horns and was starting to become fatigued.

Clarence regained his composure, and with it his trademark nonchalant look, but Goh could tell he was flustered that Goh had backed him into a corner. Despite this, Goh knew he still had something up his sleeve: he had to still have something up his sleeve. In all the videos Goh had watched, Clarence always found a way to even the odds, even when he was outmatched. He may have been reckless now, but Clarence wouldn't make that mistake with Goh again: he wouldn't have the luxury of Clarence's arrogance for much longer.

"So, it seems I'm going to have to use my trump card. It's a shame really: I was hoping to save it until the final four, but I can't afford to lose to you here."

Clarence picked up his last pokeball, a Great Ball, and rubbed it fondly. "I'm going to crush the rest of your team here, and then I'm going to win this tournament, odds be damned."

Clarence tossed his final pokeball into the air with renewed vigor. "Go, Heracross, show them what real strength looks like!"

Out from the pokeball spawned a large Heracross, her massive horn bulging from her head like a deadly weapon. She eyed Arron before scrunched her eyebrows and crouched, ready to charge. Arron didn't seem to take her seriously, letting out a series of gruff barks that Goh had quickly learned was his equivalent to laughing.

Goh wasn't laughing. A Heracross was already nothing to sneeze at: they routinely took down foes larger and stronger than them with smart tactics and leveraging their horn to use the weight of their foes against them. He had seen videos of them incapacitating ryhorns and charizards and using their wickidly strong forearms to strangle their foes.

Clarence wasn't joking when he said this was his trump card: while Houndoom may have been able to bring more destructive force to bear, Heracross was tougher, sturdier and meaner.

Then, just as things couldn't get any worse, Clarence held up his arm, pressing his finger into the Keystone. "Heracross, Mega Evolve."

Goh's stomach rose to his throat when the chromatic light engulfed Heracross. Her form nearly doubled in size to an eight foot tall monster, her claws and horn becoming even larger and more threatening. She became bulkier and sturdier, and her wings sprouted from her back with a quiet flip before buzzing. She slammed her fist into the ground, causing the earth to crack and eventually shatter, leaving the ground uneven and hazardous.

Clarence's smile was wicked again, as if he knew he already won. "Alright Heracross, use Close Combat!"

Despite her bulky size, Heracross was able to close the distance between her and Arron in breakneck speeds, slamming a fist into his chest so violently that Goh could audibly hear Arron's ribs crack and shatter. Arron grunted before striking back, slashing Heracross' exoskeleton and causing it to crack. She backed away and struck again, this time breaking Arron's nose and splattering his blood on the ground.

Arron let out a muffled growl before catching Heracross' arm when she attacked again and swinging her into the air and onto the ground with a sickening crack, her facial exoskeleton becoming warped and shattered and orange blood seeping from what remained of her facial plates. Then Arron punched her between the eyes, causing her to screech and pummel his broken nose.

Arron hissed and backed away, releasing a Cero that blanketed Heracross and caused her to slow even further, blood seeping from the right end of her face. She leapt forward, the Xerox

having shredded more of her Exoskeleton, and slammed into Arron before backing up and tossing him over her shoulder with her horn and onto the ground.

Arron snarled and pounced, slamming his outstretched fist into her abdomen and sending her sliding backwards. She regained her footing and blocked another punch before retaliating by tripping him and slamming both of her forearms down on his back. Arron hissed in pain and rolled away before returning to his feet, enraged and foaming at the mouth.

Clarence snapped his fingers. "Heracross, use aerial ace!"

Heracross leapt into the air and used her wings to glide towards Arron, ramming into him and puncturing his side with her horns. Arron hissed, being forced back before slamming into the wall, the mosaics somehow not crumbling to pieces. Arron growled and grabbed her horn, pulling it out of his side and swinging her around violently before slamming her into the mosaic wall with a loud crack, her exoskeleton giving way. She crumpled onto the ground, twitching and fidgeting as Arron regained his breath, copious amounts of dark blood pooling around him. He lifted himself up, swaying side to side as he approached Heracross. She stood up, what was left of her exoskeleton sagging as she lifted her arms weakly. She punched, and took it to the face before growling again and thrusting his arm through her abdomen, her eyes widening in shock.

Arron's arm was covered in orange blood and fragments of exoskeleton, his claws marred with bits of flesh and bone. Heracross stumbled backwards, falling dawn and gasping for air, her eyes bloodshot. Arron fell to the ground as well, balancing on his hands and knees as the adrenaline wore off and the soreness of his muscles took hold.

The Arena was silent, waiting for something to happen. Heracross still possessed her Mega-Evolution, meaning that she was still conscious, bit Arron was still standing, body broken and marred with punctures, lacerations and bruises, his bloodstained fur and bone plating more red than white. Goh rushed over to him despite the danger, and, fearing that Arron might succumb to his wounds. Clarence did the same for Heracross, sliding on his knees just as he reached her with tears streaming down his cheeks. Goh could hear his pained whispers. "It's okay, big girl, you did great."

Heracross moaned in pain but nuzzled him affectionately with her horn before finally releasing her Mega-Evolution and losing consciousness. Clarence returned her to her pokeball before standing back up, his eyes dry. The crowd cheered as Arron fell on his stomach, his eyes rolling into the back of his head out of pure exhaustion. Goh knelt down and wrapped his arms around his massive neck, hugging him and then returning him to his pokeball. Clarence was behind him,a. Defeated look on his face.

"You did it, I didn't think you could but I guess I underestimated just how dangerous that pokemon was."

Goh nodded weakly, his shirt drenched in sweat and his eyes stinging from the runoff of the beads on his forehead. "I don't know how he did it, I just knew he could."

"Then you have more faith in him then I could possibly imagine, and here I thought I was doing everything right. He just beat two Mega-Evolved pokemon, two of my strongest, back to back. No normal pokemon can do that.

Goh didn't respond. He isn't normal, he's something else, something very dangerous. But that didn't stop Goh from caring for him. He cradled the ball in his hands before returning it to his pack and standing up, facing Clarence. He held out his hand, and Goh took it, shaking it firmly. "I hope we meet again, there's no way I'm going to let this stand."

Goh chuckled a tired, exhausted chuckle. "Yeah? Then I'll make you eat those words."

Clarence laughed. "I can't wait."

Chairman Rose watched from his b Box Seat, the environment concealed from the outdoor weather and kept cool by ventilation systems. He sat in a plush beige chair that contrasted the pale blue of the walls and the fine decorations: the side tables, chinaware, drink cooler and countless paintings and sculptures, making it seem less like a premium arena seat and more like a miniature art museum mixed with his grandmother's house. In his hand was a glass of bubbling champagne, which he sipped occasionally as he watched the battle below intently.

Rose had to admit, the specimen in question was a sturdy and vigorous bastard, taking damage outlasting enemies that he couldn't imagine any other single pokemon achieving. It was a marvel, for sure, but he couldn't quite figure out how to harness its energy: it couldn't be used to heat water for a biothermal reactor, nor could he imagine how the attacks it harnessed could be used to directly produce energy. All he knew is that there were still some secrets he had to uncover before he could fully take advantage of the creature's biology.

Speaking of taking advantage… his informants were correct; the creature was under the control of a young boy no older than twelve. It seemed impossible, but the creature even seemed to follow the boy's- Goh's orders to a certain extent, albeit begrudgingly. And yet, he wasn't in any danger of the creature attacking him. It was almost protective of him in a sporadic way, as if he was fragile but still a nuisance.

Like an object, he thought. There was no way this creature held any kind of true love beyond possession. Goh was a useful tool to this creature, one that could provide sustenance, shelter and an alibi. The creature itself may have been heartless, but it wasn't foolish: there was

intelligence in those eyes, sentience even, the same kind of self-awareness Rose had seen in Subject Alpha. This was all simply a convenient ploy to grow stronger without consequences, and the boy was too naive to understand just how powerless he was.

Granted, Chairman Rose wasn't much better. He was absolutely going to use the boy for his own personal gain. The difference was that, whether he appreciated it or not, Goh would come out in one piece. And Rose saw potential in the boy as well, potential for another champion.

He glanced over at Leon. The young man was wearing something much more than his usual getup, a pair of dark jeans and a nice blue Polo. Rose approved, since while his competition outfit had a certain gravitas to it, Rose had to admit that it looked a bit queer, although not in a bad way… it was simply too flashy for him to look normal in. It was good for when he was putting on a show in front of the world, but for everyday life it was more of a hassle. Here, Leon looked, dare he say, normal.

As much as he appreciated Leon, Rose was at the end of his rope with him. He didn't want to replace him: both for practical and personal reasons, but if it came to it, Rose was not above machinating a fall from grace of some kind, one that would leave Leon with just enough wealth to live comfortably, but just cataclysmic enough for him to dissipate from the public consciousness. Rose would make him powerless, albeit safe and well taken care of: one last mercy for the boy who had done so much for him.

Rose would not be denied his goals.

Leon had been avoiding him as of late, going out of his way to remain isolated after their altercation in Hammerlocke. Rose couldn't blame him, their relationship was strained and crumbling at the seams. Their ethics and ideals were coming to a head, and one would have to give way.

He sipped his champagne again, removing his eyes from his once beloved puil. He would stay quiet for now, see if there could be a reason to have Leon see reason. If not, Rose would not hesitate to get rid of him.