Chapter 22: Breaking the Ice-Type
Bewear roared and flexed her arms skyward. A dark black aura encased both of them and she immediately slammed her fists to the ground. None of the guild members had any time to react. A black shockwave rippled across the ground, spearing Yungoos and Growlithe. Shane, being farthest away, was left best off, but still hollered from the attack rattling his bones.
"What the–? What sort of attack was that?" Shane gasped, forepaw placed on his chest.
"Br… Brutal Swing," Growlithe whimpered. "It catches you off guard, cause you think if you dodge the Pokémon's arms you're fine. But then the shockwave hits…"
Bewear gave the group no time to commiserate further. She stomped forward with her four, pointed legs. She raised her arms and flexed once again. This time each of her arms hardened into gigantic, bright-red hammers.
"Get back!" Shane hollered. Bewear thrust her arms downward once again. Yungoos rolled back along the ground, barely skirting Bewear's strikes. Growlithe had already gotten back to his feet, so he easily dodged the attack. He positioned himself behind Bewear and shot a stream of red-hot flames directly at her.
Fire washed across Bewear's back. Shane's eyes widened as the flames spread across Bewear's fur. Or, more specifically, what was left of her fur, as several patches along her body seemed to have been replaced with a tough, fibrous exoskeleton to match her legs.
"Oh, praise the gods! This sucker's still got Fluffy," Growlithe cheered. The victory was short lived, however. Growlithe recoiled in horror as Bewear spun her head and torso around without the use of her legs.
"Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" she shrieked. Bewear brought her arms, still encased in chitinous hammers, to her sides, and started to rotate her torso rapidly. Growlithe immediately backpedaled.
"This is bad. That's not supposed to be physically possible!" he panicked. Bewear roared and stomped forward. Her upper body whirled about; a living, towering top looking to pummel Growlithe into oblivion.
"We've got to draw him away!" Shane hollered.
"I ain't getting near dat t'ing," Yungoos said. "Youse can hit it from a distance, so do something!"
Shane nodded and opened his mouth. Chilled air raced forward, but the combination of residual flames from Growlithe's attack and Bewear's rapid spinning created a wall of heat that vaporized the attack before it could so much as tickle Bewear's massive paws.
Growlithe was now several yards away from his teammates, running along the trail and silently praying for Bewear to get dizzy. Yungoos and Shane slowly jogged forward, both of them too bewildered to properly think up anything to do.
"Wait, what the heck is Bewear's typing anyway?" Shane asked. "With arms like that it's gotta be fighting-type, right?"
"No duh, rookie!" Yungoos spat. "What'cha gonna tell me next? Da sky is blue? Dat yer face is ugly?"
Shane ignored that jab and tensed up his body, trying to call forth psychic energy from the deeper recesses of his mind. His eyes glowed pink and a set of familiar pink ripples raced ahead of him. The spinning Bewear had no defense against the psionic waves. They ensnared her and exploded. The force wasn't strong enough to knock Bewear to the ground, but the attack successfully disoriented her.
"Now! Go, go, go!" Shane hollered, sprinting forward. He didn't dare to look back at his enemy for fear of snapping her out of her stupor. Yungoos whizzed past him, making it to Growlithe first.
"Thanks for the save, guys," Growlithe said. "So, anyone have any ideas?"
"Yes!" Shane said.
"Absolutely not! Anyt'ing youse try to offer is gonna get us murdalized," Yungoos spat.
"Now's not the time for jokes or Magearna impressions. This is serious!" Shane hissed. He took a deep breath. 'Okay, Shane. Time to draw out your inner Pokémon trainer here. Strategize… strategize…'
Bewear snapped out of her confusion. She flexed her arms in front of her chest and unleashed another ear-splitting, "Kiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"
"Okay, Yungoos, you need to blind Bewear with Sand Attack," Shane ordered. "Growlithe, you and I stay together and hit Bewear. Use Flamethrower first to make its fur catch on fire. Then I'll use Extrasensory. If we're lucky, it'll turn your Flamethrower into a giant fireball that erupts on top of Bewear!"
Yungoos started to protest, but noticed Bewear raise up her arms once again. Black tendrils of energy encased her hands and she slammed them to the ground. The trio found themselves leaping up, barely dodging the shockwave that rippled out from Bewear's arms.
"Ah, forget it! We're already hosed! What've I godda lose here?" Yungoos groaned. He jumped forward and kicked at the ground repeatedly. Multiple plumes of dirt shot out, smearing across Bewear's face. Bewear hissed and staggered back. She kept switching between flexing and trying to wipe the dirt from her eyes.
"Now, Growlithe!" Shane ordered. Growlithe stepped forward and unleashed his fire breath. The flames struck Bewear's chest and quickly started to spread around her body. The dirt pockets on her face heated up, creating a loud sizzling sound that made Shane shiver.
"My turn," Shane said. He stood next to Growlithe and sent a quartet of psychic ripples forward. They trapped Bewear and burst around her. Only, instead of a small pink flash, this time a brilliant orange fireball swallowed up Bewear's hulking form. The guild members shielded their eyes from the rush of heat.
"Okay, if we weren't fighting for our lives, you'd have to admit that that is pretty cool," Growlithe chuckled.
"Actually, it's the exact opposite of cool," Shane quipped. "But it looks like it did the trick. Great work, you two! I knew we could pull this o–"
"Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!"
The triumphant look on Shane's face deflated. His ears and tail drooped. Not only was Bewear not down for the count, but that last combo seemed to have disposed of the remaining fur patches on her body. Her arms and torso were now a fully chitinous exoskeleton. A white, winged heart sat seared in her chest, with vicious horns point up toward her vein-filled neck. Strange luminescent fluid ran through the veins bulging out of Bewear's arms and neck.
"No! It's got that symbol that Espeon and Umbreon had," Shane gasped. "And look at that crystal sticking out of the center of the heart!"
"That's a black crystal. Just like what Lycanroc said Espeon and Umbreon were planting. But how did it even get in there?" Growlithe wondered.
"Nice going, gang! We just succeeded in making it mad!" Yungoos groaned.
"But… but we hit it with two super-effective attacks in tandem. That should've seriously weakened it," Shane squeaked. 'Just what does this Prism Virus thing do to these Pokémon?'
"Okay, don't panic too much guys," Shane said. "We just need to do the exact same thing and that oughta– oh my god!" His eyes widened at the sight of Bewear turning and scooping Milotic's unconscious body up off the ground.
"Hey, you put her down right now!" Growlithe barked. Bewear shrieked in rage and flexed with her free arm. The arm gripping Milotic reared back and swung forward.
"Duck!" Yungoos shouted, sprawling out on his belly. Growlithe dove toward the bushes. But Shane wasn't fast enough on the uptake. Milotic's cream-colored face collided with his head and neck.
Craaaack!
White-hot pain flared up on every square inch of Shane's body. His legs buckled and he crumpled to the ground.
"What… what just hit me?" Shane whimpered. He tried to blink the stars from his vision, but to little avail.
"It… uh… whipped you… with Milotic," Growlithe said in disbelief.
Bewear roared and brought her Milotic-wielding arm back. It whipped Milotic forward yet again. Still disoriented, Shane had no proper means of self-defense. Milotic's limp form hammered him across his back.
Craaaack!
A fresh wave of excruciating pain gripped Shane. Invisible needles stabbed him repeatedly from all over. Shane wailed in agony and his spotty vision quickly turned to nothing but bright light.
"Ahh… ahh…" Shane lay there, desperately gasping for air.
"He's gotten da wind knocked outta him! He's useless to us right now!" Yungoos hissed. "But how are we supposed to hit Bewear wit'out hitting Milotic?" Yungoos scampered forward. Bewear snarled viciously and lashed out with Milotic. Yungoos barely managed to skirt the strike, and continued running forward. He didn't even try to attack. "Now, Growlithe! While its back is turned!"
Growlithe recognized his opening. He curled up into a ball and doused his body in flames. Then he ran forward, his jaws igniting with wicks of fire. He bit down on one of Bewear's rear legs. Startled by the blow, she gasped and dropped Milotic to the ground. Growlithe quickly headbutted Milotic. She went rolling down the hill, safely away from Bewear.
However, Growlithe lacked the time to properly escape Bewear's reach. Her arms turned midnight-black and came thundering down right onto Growlithe. Bewear's fists pummeled him into the ground with far greater intensity than the shockwave he'd experienced previously. Growlithe's pained howl echoed through the forest.
Yungoos whirled around in a panic. Bewear raised her arms high and flexed triumphantly. Yungoos could just barely make out Growlithe between Bewear's legs. His fur stood on end as he noticed Growlithe's left hind leg bent at an angle it very clearly should not go at.
Shane got his second wind at the exact same time, only for his gut to squirm at the sight of his unconscious teammate. Worse yet, the black crystal embedded in Bewear's chest started crackling with black electricity.
"No! Get away from him!" Shane shouted. Even though every facet of his body screamed in protest, Shane called up his psychic powers. More psionic waves shot forward from his head, going straight for the crystal in Bewear's chest. The waves exploded in a flash of pink. The crystal rattled about in Bewear's chest. She screeched and flexed her arms back behind her in surprise.
Unlike the previous attacks, this one tripped Bewear up. Her hind legs gave out, sending her hulking form toppling over. "Aiiiyyyyyeeeeee!" Yungoos yelped as Bewear's form fell toward him. He scrambled backward, only to gasp in pain. Bewear's head struck his tail, pinning him down to the ground.
"Agh! No, no, no, no, no!" Yungoos panicked, desperately yanking his tail. It refused to budge from under Bewear's massive head. "C'mon, stupid tail. Is youse trying to get us both snapped like Growlithe's leg?"
Shane tried to go forward and attack again, but his legs seized up when he took a step forward. Burning pain shot down his back. He froze. 'Ow… owww! Why does this hurt so much? Did Bewear damage my spine?' His eyes widened at the thought.
Bewear started getting back up. Yungoos felt the pressure subside from his tail and scrambled forward. He managed about half a dozen steps before a burly, black arm shot forward and grabbed him by the tail. "Ahhhhh! No! Put me down! I don't taste good or nuttin'!" Yungoos hollered, flailing his limbs about. He found himself looking right into Bewear's glowing-red eyes.
"Kiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiii!" Bewear roared.
"Rookie!" Yungoos sobbed, thrashing about even faster. "Don't just stand there... do somethiiiiiiing! I don't wanna diiiiiiiiie!"
Bewear flexed her free arm. Yungoos watched it form up into a gigantic, glowing hammer. Bewear then released her grip and, before Yungoos could properly fall to the ground, spiked him down from on high with her solidified arm. The force propelled him into the ground, leaving an impact crater twice his size, with cracks reverberating all around the ground.
Shane seized up in pain yet again as he tried cry our for his guild mate. 'No... this is a disaster! We're all gonna die out here! It's not fair!'
Bewear rotated her torso to lock eyes with Shane. The life drained out of his face. The pain in his spine refused to subside. His legs remained locked in place, even as his brain desperately screamed for him to turn tail and run.
"Kiiiiiiiiiiiii!" Bewear shrieked. She rotated to the side, leaned down, and hefted up a rock three times Shane's size. Bewear hoisted the rock up and turned to face Shane. His heart hammered in his chest. Shane tried to take a step back, but his hind legs wouldn't move. The excruciating pain continued spilling out from his back. Shane's vision turned watery.
'This is it. I'm done for! And it's all because of stupid Lycanroc! All because nobody would listen to me! How could this go so spectacularly wrong? I'm trying to do the right thing. This shouldn't be happening!' Shane thought. 'All that work Solgaleo did to bring me here… it's all gonna be for nothing!'
Shane couldn't even close his eyes. He could only watch through his tearful vision as Bewear's arms started to move forward, preparing to hurl the boulder and crush every bone in his body.
Craaaaaaaaaaaaaash!
The boulder exploded into hundreds of rocky fragments. Bewear's arms thrust apart. She flexed them as she looked up in surprise to see Null land directly on her head. Bewear hissed in protest and reached toward her face.
'Null!' Shane gasped, unable to open his mouth and speak properly. The chimera leaped off Bewear, spun around, and sent a blades of air forward. They speared Bewear's chest crystal. She staggered backward, clutching at the crystal with one hand and flexing her free arm.
Null fell to the ground and worked quickly. He scooped Yungoos out of his crater and tossed him in Milotic's direction. Bewear roared her disapproval. Null ignored her and ran toward Growlithe. However, the bulky helmet clearly slowed him down. Bewear raised her arms high, transforming them into gigantic hammers yet again.
Shane tried opening his mouth to shout, but all that escaped was a dry cough. More pain shot across his back and, at last, his legs had had enough. He collapsed on the ground, body trembling in agony. He teared up again, so he failed to see Null barely dodge a pair of wild swings from Bewear's arms.
Null reached Growlithe and tossed him over by the other unconscious battlers. He turned and thrust his left foreleg at Bewear. Air crescents hurtled forward. They struck Bewear's left-front leg. The sharp air currents made her leg buckle. Bewear lost her balance and tumbled to the ground. In desperation, she reached out toward a tree to steady herself, but merely shattered the tree into splinters.
Bewear struck the ground with an audible thud. Null saw Shane lying on his side and approached. He shook his head about, letting out a raspy hiss. Null's talons scratched at the ground.
"… he's down…" Null whispered. "We can… dispose of him. We can… eliminate both of them." Null shook his head and staggered backward at this, hissing loudly.
"No! He's… part of... the guild. I don't…"
Null thrust his head to the side, roaring. "Do it! Destroy him! He's... a Beast! We must... kill all Beasts! It's why... we were made!" he suddenly shouted. He lumbered forward, gathering white energy in his talons. He raised his foreleg high…
… and struck his own helmet. Null stumbled to the side, lapsing into a coughing fit. He took a deep breath to calm himself and produced an oran berry from the pouch around his torso.
Shane didn't move, still whimpering in pain. Null stepped forward and planted a foreleg on Shane. Null rolled Shane onto his back, drawing a pained grimace, and shoved the berry into his open mouth. Shane's eyes widened, but the berry appeared to do the trick. He slowly rolled onto his stomach, coughing up a storm.
Bewear finally returned to her feet. She roar furiously and turned her attention on one of the forest's trees. Null heard the roar and immediately started clawing at this helmet.
"Null… what… how did you… get here?" Shane wheezed. He took a few shaky steps forward and gave a relieved sigh. A dull, throbbing ache still ran across his back, but at least he could move now.
Null only growled loudly in response. It echoed against his helmet, making Shane's skin crawl. He decided it best not to question the good turn of fortune. Instead, he turned back to Bewear, only for his heart to immediately start racing again. With another shriek, Bewear successfully uprooted an entire tree. A pair of Pikipek flew out from the branches, squawking in terror.
Bewear hefted the tree over her head, glaring at Shane and Null.
"It's… it's gonna throw that tree at us!" Shane realized, tails sticking straight up in panic. "What do we do?"
"… combine attacks…" Null hissed. Shane glanced at him and could see a sharp air current encasing his right foreleg.
'Right! Just like I did with Growlithe's Flamethrower,' he recalled. 'But can I really pull off an attack now? I couldn't even move before Null showed up.'
Bewear hurled the tree forward, giving Shane no further time for thought. He saw Null whip his foreleg around, shooting air blades forward. Shane grit his teeth and tensed every muscle in his body. He thrust his head forward and smiled as pink waves shot ahead of him.
They reached the tree seconds after Null's wind blades and exploded. Bursts of psychically-bolstered air currents exploded out in all directions. The tree shattered into harmless little splinters. But there was no time for celebration. Bewear lurched toward the duo with her four legs. She flexed her arms in front of her chest and they transformed into hammers once again.
Without even thinking, Shane opened his mouth, exhaling with all the force he could muster. A torrent of ice-cold frost raced forward. Aside from hitting Bewear, it made the ground slick. One of Bewear's forelegs planted down, only to kick up. Bewear hollered in surprise. Her arms' transformations faded and she toppled backward.
Null stepped forward and again gathered fragments of concentrated air in his right foreleg. He hurled the air crescents at the fallen Bewear. The blades struck Bewear's chest crystal. This time, the crystal shattered, scattering glassy, black fragments in all directions.
"KIIIIIIIIiiiiiiiiiiiiiii…" Bewear's shriek gradually diminished in volume. She reached a trembling arm up and gave one final flex before the arm collapsed to her side. Null and Shane looked on as light encased Bewear's body. She shrank down, her arms losing most of their ridiculous muscle mass. When the light faded, the exoskeleton was gone, replaced with black fur around her body and pink fur around her head.
Shane took a step toward Bewear, only to recoil as wisps of black electricity started racing around her body. "No!" Shane cried, realizing what was happening. The tendrils retreated toward the ground. And as they did, Bewear's colors melted away and spilled out on the ground around her.
Null thrashed his head about again, hissing loudly and clawing at his helmet. Shane switched between watching him and watching Bewear's colors evaporate into the air. When the multicolored steam faded, Bewear lay motionless on the ground.
"It's… it's gone…" Shane whispered. He glanced at Null, who was now scratching his helmet up against a tree. Shane's adrenaline rush, meanwhile, was fading fast. His vision grew fuzzy fuzzy. Something weighed down his limbs. 'This… this doesn't feel like a victory at all,' he thought, whimpering.
"… momma?"
A tiny squeak drew Shane's attention. Null didn't seem to notice. He remained next to the tree while Shane proceeded forward. He only made it a few steps before stopping. Stufful had walked out from behind Bewear. He sniffed at her torso.
"Momma?" Stufful squeaked again. He nudged Bewear's limp form with his muzzle. Bewear failed to move.
'No. C'mon, little guy, go away!' Shane thought. 'You shouldn't be looking at this.'
"Momma? Momma?" Stufful tried to shove Bewear with his forelegs, but to no avail. His eyes teared up. "Mommaaaaaaaaaa!" Stufful rubbed his face against Bewear's hide.
Shane's head throbbed. His vision flickered. 'This isn't right. I'm just supposed to fight upset wild Pokémon and move on. I can't deal with things like this. That Bewear was a mother! And now… now her kid… is all alone.'
"M-Momma…" Stufful lay down against her shoulder.
Shane took a step forward. "Hey, kid… you shouldn't stay out here. It's not safe for you."
Stufful got to his feet. He spun around, growling at Shane. "Get away! You… you and your friends hurt momma! You're… you're a bad person!"
"No, you don't understand. Your mom… she…" Shane started, but his voice trailed off. His legs started to shake. His head pounded. His vision failed him. The combination of mental and physical exhaustion proved too much for Shane to take. Overwhelmed by everything that had happened, Shane's eyes rolled back in his head and he collapsed to the ground.
Null managed to snap out of his stupor and saw Shane passed out in front of Stufful. He walked over toward Shane, but it wasn't long before Stufful spotted him. Stufful leaped in front of his mother, his legs trembling.
"Get away, you monster! I won't let you hurt my momma!" Stufful squealed.
Null coughed and shook his head. "I don't... want to hurt her. I just... want to help you. You can't stay out here... by yourself..."
"I'm... I'm not by myself. Momma's here with me, see?" Stufful whimpered.
"Kid... your mother's gone. You need to come... with me. I'm with the guild. We can keep you safe," Null said, but his rasping voice made Stufful's fur bristle. He glared tearfully at Null.
"No, I won't leave my momma! You... you go away! Or else!" he warned. Null sighed and scooped Shane off the ground.
"Suit yourself... kid."
~Aeon Observatory~
Tessa sprinted out from the sentry hallway. Trapinch scampered after her. "Wait up, Riolu!" he squeaked. "I can't run that fast!" She wasn't running for much longer, however. The second he entered the main assembly area, Trapinch skidded to a halt by Tessa's side. They both watched Metagross stomp toward the nursing wing. He levitated multiple Pokémon around him.
"Null!" Tessa called and ran over to him. She slowed her pace, noticing Yungoos and Growlithe draped over his back. "Wh… what happened?"
"… infected Bewear… tearing up Dewdrop Woods…" Null rasped. He turned away from Tessa and trudged along after Metagross.
"Oh man, Vulpix was right?" Trapinch gasped.
Tessa whirled on Trapinch. "Wait. Vulpix hasn't been in the nursing wing this whole time? You told me he got overheated and fainted!"
Trapinch's face blanched. "Aha ha… ha… did I say that? Oops. I must've gotten my wires crossed with another guild member."
Tessa clenched her fists. "What did that crazy idiot do this time?" Trapinch looked around nervously. "C'mon, Trapinch, spit it out!"
"Okay, okay!" Trapinch squeaked. "Vulpix came up to us saying he overhead Lycanroc tell Team Captivate to go to Dewdrop Woods and investigate reports of a Bewear going crazy. He thought Lycanroc was leading them into a trap. He convinced Growlithe and Yungoos to go with him and I covered his sentry spot." Trapinch flinched and looked away. "Please don't get mad at me. I just wanted to help."
Tessa relaxed her arms and paws. "Ugh, what was he thinking?" She stormed off toward the nursing wing. But the place was packed. She couldn't even get a glimpse of who was in there, because Lycanroc and Braviary filled up the entrance.
"… well, yeah, I did ask Team Captivate to go check the place out. Actually, Volcarona and Araquanid are the ones who reported Bewear to me. But I ain't got a clue what Snowy and the others were doing in the forest, mate. You'll have to ask one of them."
"I can't exactly do that right now, can I?" Braviary stated. "They're all totally out of it. Null, how'd ya even manage to get 'em all back here?"
"… Team Captivate… had Escape Orbs. Found their item pouch… and used one…" Null muttered.
"Mighty quick thinking on yer part, hoss," Braviary complimented. "Comfey, how are they looking over there?"
"Excuse me, Braviary, can I just get through to see my partner?" Tessa asked.
"Huh? Oh, sure." Braviary lifted a wing to let Tessa through. She stepped into the infirmary and found all of Team Captivate positioned on separate beds. Beside them lay Shane, Yungoos, Growlithe, and two large bugs Tessa didn't recognize. She assumed they were the Volcarona and Araquanid that Lycanroc had mentioned. Comfey floated between all of the beds.
"Well, Team Captivate's all healed up. Their injuries were fairly routine, all things considered," Comfey reported. "But these three are going to be a problem. I think I can heal Yungoos up with one round of Floral Healing. Let's see…" She floated down to Yungoos and draped her string of flowers across his body. A glow overtook them, bathing Yungoos in soft, pink light.
Yungoos' eyes fluttered opened. "Eh… huh?" He picked his head up. "Ayy, I ain't dead! Oh, t'ank da Tapus, I ain't dead!"
"Shhh!" Comfey released a cloud of light pink vapor around Yungoos. He breathed in the gas and sank back onto the bed. "You need to rest, and I need you to keep your voice down, okay?" Yungoos nodded slowly, letting out a yawn. "Good. Now then." Comfey turned to Growlithe. "That broken leg needs to be reset before I can try anything. Guildmaster, if I could borrow you for a moment?"
Affirmative. Metagross stepped forward. Comfey floated over to Growlithe's head. She started releasing a pink cloud around his face. Metagross' eyes flashed blue and Growlithe's leg abruptly snapped back in the proper direction. Growlithe's entire body tensed up and a whine escaped his muzzle. But he then breathed in the vapors and fell back to sleep.
Comfey floated down toward his hind leg and pointed a stubby arm at it. A set of small, glowing, green vines shot out and wrapped the limb up. "And there's a Synthesis cast for good measure. He'll need to stay off his leg for the next few days, but I think it'll heal properly."
"Good to hear," Braviary acknowledged. "What about Vulpix?"
Shane had woken up of his own accord, but he couldn't bring himself to meet anyone's gaze. He just stared transfixed at his pillow. Comfey floated over and inspected his spine with a furrowed brow.
"Vulpix, you have a massive bruise running down your back," she observed. "What happened?" Shane said nothing. He attempted to curl up into a ball, only to wince in pain. "Hey now, don't you move a muscle, mister," Comfey scolded. "You've clearly damaged your spine and any unnecessary movement could make it impossible for me to fix it properly."
"… he was… on his feet… when I found him…" Null rasped. "Used… an attack… too…"
Comfey's eyes went wide. "Good heavens!" she gasped. "I'd better get working right away." She floated over Shane and draped her flowers along his back. Tessa walked up toward his bed but Shane buried his face into the pillow. The soft glow of Comfey's Floral Healing spread out across his back. When it faded, only faint traces of the massive bruise remained.
"Now, I'll ask again. What happened?" Comfey said. "I need to know to determine my next move."
Shane glanced Tessa's stoic expression from the corner of his eyes. "Bewear… hit me in the back… with Milotic."
Everyone's attentions turned toward Milotic, who recoiled in shock. "I… I don't remember anything like that," she said.
"Because you were out cold. Bewear picked you up and wielded you like a whip," Shane reported. Milotic's eyes widened and her face flushed. Serperior's jaw hung open.
"Oh… oh my…" Milotic flummoxed. "I… I'm so sorry. This is really humiliating."
Tessa frowned and stepped back from Shane's bed. He turned to look at her. Tessa's aura feelers stood upright. 'That's odd. Vulpix's aura is way different than before.' She quickly moved out of the way to allow Comfey to circle Shane's bed.
"I'm overlaying your back with bands of Synthesis," she explained. "Their healing energies should be able to safely reach your spine. I don't want to risk any other treatment options. So, I'm going to need you to lie like that for at least the next day. Possibly more depending on how your body reacts to the treatment."
"… whatever. I deserve it," Shane whimpered. A knot tied up in Tessa's stomach.
'Vulpix fell into a pretty bad funk the last time we fought an infected Pokémon,' she recalled. 'But this seems even worse.' Her face then scrunched up. 'Wait, what am I thinking? He's right. None of this would've happened if he hadn't chosen to run off and try to play the hero again. Dang it, Vulpix! Why couldn't you just listen to me and not eavesdrop on Lycanroc? You're supposed to be my ticket to success and happiness, but that all goes out the window if you go out and get yourself killed!'
Her aura feelers tensed again. She stared down at the floor in an attempt to ignore them.
"Well, this turned into a right mess, eh?" Lycanroc sighed. "I'm sorry, sheilas. If I had really known what Bewear was like, I'd have never asked ya to get involved."
A growl drew the room's attention. Tessa briefly looked up from the floor to see Shane staring Lycanroc down. 'Oh no,' she thought. 'He can't seriously still be on Lycanroc's case, right? Even after all of this? Keep your mouth shut, Vulpix. Please! Things are bad enough already. You're going to make everything worse.'
But her mental prayers failed to reach Shane. "You… you planned this," he croaked. "You knew what Bewear was capable of, but you told Team Captivate to go to the woods anyway."
"It was an honest mistake, mate," Lycanroc growled. "And that don't explain how you ended up in the woods."
"You did it on purpose," Shane accused. "You told them about Bewear in the middle of the guild… so I would hear. You knew I had sentry duty. You… you set me up!"
"Funny," Braviary said, scratching his beak. "So, yer admitting you done abandoned yer station after I assigned you sentry duty as a punishment?"
Shane winced. "I… I had to! I only meant to go warn Team Captivate that they were heading into a trap. I didn't expect to actually run into Bewear. Everything got out of control, okay. And I'm sorry, but I needed to do it. Because… because Lycanroc's…"
This time Lycanroc growled. His crimson eyes narrowed and the usual smirk on his face turned into scornful frown. "What about me, mate? I already apologized. Yeah, I mucked things up real good, but I ain't about to stand here and let you drag my name through the mud. What makes you think yer so high and mighty, huh? Is it the human tidbit? Because if all this is an indication, yer more of a hindrance than a help to this place!"
Tessa tensed up, tucking her chin against her chest. Lycanroc's words sent a chill down her spine. 'That's… that's what I really think of Vulpix right now, isn't it? No... that's what I've always thought of him, isn't it?' She involuntarily flinch. She saw a Lucario stare back up at her from the floor, a disapproving look in its eyes.
'I latched onto the idea that Vulpix was a chosen one... and would elevate me if I stayed with him,' Tessa realized. 'No... no! You stupid, stupid idiot. You weren't supposed to get your hopes about all of this, remember? Look at what's happening! You were right... Vulpix is a total fluke! He's not special. He's nothing like my heroes. He's... he's a total failure.' Tessa's ears and aura feelers drooped. 'And that means... I'm not going to be special, either.'
Shane gnashed his teeth together, jolting Tessa upright. "I know you're a problem," he claimed, leering at Lycanroc. "I… I figured it out. In a dream."
Lycanroc's muzzle pulled back into a smirk. Everyone's eyes fell on him. Tessa buried her face in her paws. 'Oh, gods. Why, Vulpix? Out of all the ridiculous things you could possibly say, why that?'
"Hoss, do ya realize how absurd yer sounding right now?" Braviary scoffed. "Comfey, ya might wanna check his noggin'."
"I'm not crazy," Shane said. "It's the truth. I've… I've had visions in my dreams where Solgaleo talks to me. I think he's the reason that I'm here. Guildmaster, you can read my mind, right? Tell 'em!"
Fact: dreams are fabrications of your subconscious. Fact: excluding Legendaries, only Pokémon with access to Dream Mist can view the dreams of another Pokémon. Conclusion: I cannot validate your statements, Metagross declared.
Shane noticed the bewildered looks from his guild mates. "Don't look at me like that. I'm sure other humans brought to this world have experienced stuff like this. The story where Temporal Tower got saved? That human had visions in it. Dimensional Screams… that's what they were called, right?"
That is correct. But I still find the odds of your statement being true infinitesimally smallimal. Approximately sixty-four thousand to one, with generous rounding, Magearna stated. An incarnation of Solgaleo and Lunala have not been witnessified anywhere throughout the world in over two centuries. And my lieification sensors are detecting a 72.5 percent fluctuation in your vocal pitchitude, suggesting uncertainty with your own statements.
"Oh, come on. You totally just made that up. Pokémon don't have built in lie detectors," Shane hissed.
Your deflectifying of the issue only serves to further my point, Magearna countered.
"I'm not lying!" Shane whimpered. "He's contacted me several nights since I've gotten here. He told me that someone or something is trying to upset the world's balance between day and night. And he also told me…" Shane glanced at Tessa, who wore a big frown on her face, "that Tessa's brother, Gallian, is the Pokémon behind it." Shane hastily looked away.
Tessa took a step backwards, her paws balling up into fists and her arms trembling. 'No. How could he say something like that? That... that... that asshole!' The tremors intensified. 'He... he promised me a chance at fame and admiration. But all he's doing is earning me the exact opposite of that! I didn't need people looking down on me more than they already did. What have I done?' Tears welled up in her eyes. 'I... I never should have come here. This was a mistake. A huge mistake that's spiraling into the disastrous failure I feared it would be!'
"Don't you see? Lycanroc came in here insisting Espeon and Umbreon are to blame for everything. But they're not! They could be under Gallian's control, or maybe someone else's, but no one's doing any favors listening to Lycanroc," Shane stated, unaware of Tessa's growing restlessness. "He's here to drive wedges between everyone in the guild. And it's working."
Lycanroc's face contorted into a snarl again. "But, rookie," Yungoos muttered. "We did run into Espeon and Umbreon in the forest."
"Is that so? And what did they tell y'all?" Braviary asked.
"Lots! Namely, most of da stuff Lycanroc told us. Dey're usin' Entercards for evil. Dey wanna spread somet'ing called da Prism Virus and use it to kill all da Legendaries and make a world of endless night," Yungoos said.
Shane's ears drooped. "They… they must've been brainwashed into saying that…"
"Like dey was brainwashed into restraining Growlithe and me to get to youse?" Yungoos snarled.
Braviary narrowed his eyes at Shane, who abruptly tensed up. "Ya mind repeating that one?"
"Yeh," Yungoos growled. "Espeon and Umbreon were after him! Dey want Vulpix. And dey was willin' to hold Growlithe and me in a psychic bind to get him to give up dat dopey scarf and turn himself over to dem!"
Metagross' eyes flashed blue. Fact: Yungoos' statement is true, he announced. Murmurs rose up amongst the other guild members.
Shane squirmed about in his bed. "W-Wait… wait! You, uh, don't have all the context behind that!"
"Oh, is dat so? By all means, rookie, jump in if I'm leavin' somet'ing out," Yungoos spat.
Vrrrriiiiiiiiiing! Vrrrrriiiiiiiiiiiiing!
If I may interrupt your argumenticating for a moment? I appear to be receiving a call, Magearna announced. Origin signal is… Lively Town.
A hush fell over the room. Shane sat up, only to hiss in pain. Comfey floated down and pressed him back into a lying position. "Honestly, were you even paying attention to me?" she groaned.
"Well, best be giving 'em an answer, Mags," Braviary said.
Magearna nodded. Her stomach compartment opened up and a somewhat larger version of her Gear-Com appeared. She retracted one of her arms and out popped a small satellite dish.
Horizon Guild. Magearna speaking.
"Oh, uh, hi, Magearna," a very squeaky voice projected from the Gear-Com. "This is Dedenne. You're the one who called Latias, right?"
Shane's eyes widened. He opened his mouth to say something but received glares from several guild members, forcing him to hold his tongue.
Yes, that is correct, Magearna replied.
"Right. Latias has been a bit tied up. We've been running her and her brother ragged lately," Dedenne explained. "I don't know if any of you have noticed, but something's up with the moon. And it's been messing with a lot of the Mystery Dungeons around here. Latias has been out with Team Gaia investigating things."
Tessa's heart skipped the beat. 'Oh gods, is that true? I thought the moon seemed off the last time I ran into Espeon and Umbreon. Is there really something wrong with it?'
"Howdy, Dedenne. Braviary here," Braviary spoke up. "Any chance you could elaborate a smidge?"
"Oh, sure. Although Jirachi might be a better option for that one. Hold on…" Her voice trailed off and the faint sound of footsteps echoed through the speakers. It didn't take long for Dedenne to return. "He's asleep. And trust me, you don't want me waking him up. I can still do my best, though!" she said. "See, a couple of weeks back the moon went from being quarter-full to completely full in only a couple of nights. And it hasn't waned since."
"S-See?" Shane groaned. "What did I tell you? Balance between day and night is in trouble. Now do you believe me?"
"Pipe down, son," Braviary ordered. "Well, that is mighty concerning to hear, Dedenne. Matter of fact, we've been having some strange tidings here in Horizon, too."
Yes. Some odd weather-related phenomenon are occuspiring throughout the continent. I have been engaged in multiple confusion cycles trying to figure out a cause. Admittedly, the moon did not occur to me as a possibility, Magearna added.
"Yeah, it's been shining really bright too," Dedenne said. "Some of us are even having trouble sleeping at the Expedition Society. But, oh, I'm straying off subject, aren't I? Silly me! I'm supposed to be following up on that request you called us with."
Magearna's eyes whirred in their sockets. Were you able to look into the Pokémon Nexus, then?
"You know it," Dedenne replied. "And, um, I'm afraid I've got bad news."
Lycanroc's smirk reappeared. "Is that so?"
"We're familiar with Espeon and Umbreon. In fact, they've tagged along with Team Gaia on occasion to conduct their research," Dedenne explained. "They're honorary Expedition Society members, so they're registered in the Pokémon Nexus for sure. But we can't get a lock on their signal. Like… at all."
Shane felt Lycanroc's crimson gaze fall onto him. He squirmed in his bed, only for Comfey to throw a hand on him. He abruptly stopped and resumed staring at the floor.
"Latias said she can't sense any traces of their energies around here," Dedenne continued. "She went to Post Town and spoke with Virizon, Keldeo, and Emolga. Apparently, no one's seen them around town in weeks. And Keldeo told her that some sort of outside force has blocked his ability to synthesize Entercards."
I see. Well, thank you for the informatelligence, Magearna said. Sorry to have bothered you.
"It's no trouble at all," Dedenne chirped. "We're always happy to help out our friends across the ocean. Just give us a ring if you need anything."
Static erupted from Magearna's speaker and it withdrew into her stomach. "Well, I think we can all agree what's going on 'round here, mates," Lycanroc declared. "Espeon and Umbreon are using their Entercards to throw day and night out of whack. And they're messing up our continent as a result!"
Another chorus of murmurs erupted throughout the room.
"But what exactly is a Prism Virus?" Trapinch wondered. "I mean, I know a prism's a kind of shape."
"Yeah, but I've never heard of viruses," Serperior muttered. "Yo, Guildmaster. That ring any bells for you?"
Negative, Metagross responded. Fact: the human is familiar with that term.
Though he was still looking at the floor, Shane sensed everyone eyes falling on him again. "What, you can't tell me you guys really don't know what viruses are? C'mon, haven't you ever gotten sick?"
"You mean like a tummy ache?" Trapinch asked.
Shane glanced at Comfey. "I treat Pokémon for illnesses, but they're caused by things like getting poisoned or spending too much time in the heat or cold."
Shane sighed. "Okay then. A virus is a type of disease. From the human world… I guess." He tapped a paw against a chin. "How can I explain it? Viruses are, like, these little invisible enemies that can make you really sick. They invade your body and start using it to make more copies of themselves. And they, uh, well, if you can't cure them then they usually kill their hosts and move on to infect someone else."
"What?" "You're kidding!" "Is that what happened to those Mareanie?"
"But don't you see what this means? It's not Espeon's and Umbreon's faults!" Shane looked at Lycanroc. "If they're infected by a virus, then that's what's got control of them."
"And what if they're the ones responsible for making it, huh?" Lycanroc growled.
"How could they be?" Shane said. "You guys just said that you don't know what viruses are. So how would they, huh?"
Lycanroc rolled his eyes. "Seriously, mate? You answered that one already. Didn't you say something about them two helping stop the Bittercold?" Shane's muzzle stiffened while Lycanroc's faze fiercened. "That means those two have met a human before…"
"But the human had lost its memories," Shane pointed out.
"So? Espeon's a psychic. She could probably read the human's mind. Including its lost memories," Lycanroc scoffed.
"Why are you determined to tear the two of them down? If we can free them from the Prism Virus' control, then they could help us!" Shane insisted.
"And why are you so intent on putting them on a pedestal, mate?" Lycanroc growled. "Wait…" A smirk appeared on his muzzle. "Oh. Aha ha ha! I think I see what's going on here now." He crossed his arms. "Yer crushing on Espeon. Or maybe Umbreon. Hey, I ain't judging."
Shane's eyes widened. "What? Need I remind you I'm human?!"
"But you look like a Vulpix. So, you've got Vulpix instincts, mate," Lycanroc chuckled. "Look, hey, maybe we got off on the wrong foot here. I'm willing to live and let live if you just fess up and say you spat on my pride because you've got the hots for one of them." His smirk widened. "Or both of them."
"I do not," Shane snarled. "I'm mad at you. Because you're a nasty, awful, mean-spirited Pokémon. It's not my fault no one here wants to believe me!"
Enough.
Claaaaaaaang!
Metagross slammed a foreleg on the ground, silencing both of them. He turned to Shane.
Fact: you abandoned your post on impulse. Fact: appropriate action was to contact a high-ranking guild member about Bewear, Metagross stated. Fact: your actions served to place guild members in harm's way. Conclusion: when you are healed, you and your teammate will report to my office for proper disciplinary action.
Tessa went stiff as a board. "What?! I didn't even do anything this time!"
Fact: a team is held accountable for its collective actions. Fact: Braviary has repeatedly informed you of this, Metagross elaborated. He turned toward the rest of the guild members. Order: disband immediately and go about your business. Lycanroc, you are free to do as you wish.
"Thank you, mate," Lycanroc said. "Think I'll grab something to eat in town." He turned and strolled out of the room. The guild members followed shortly after him.
"R-Riolu…" Shane rasped, but Tessa turned around and stomped up to him.
"I cannot believe you!" she snarled. "You ignore me. You run off and nearly get yourself killed. And, when you were lucky enough to escape a Bewear by the skin of your teeth, you have the audacity to not only humiliate me in front of the whole guild, but to try and accuse my brother of masterminding everything?" Tears were in her eyes.
"I… I…"
"No! No more excuses! No more fake apologies! I'm done listening to you! The only thing I want to see or hear whenever I'm around you is complete and utter silence! Are we clear?"
Shane's lower lip trembled.
"Do I make myself clear?!"
Shane opened his mouth, but couldn't form up a response. Tessa turned and stormed out of the infirmary, howling in anger.
Comfey sighed and shook her head disapprovingly. She floated up and drew curtains in front of Shane's bed to give him some measure of privacy from the other Pokémon in the infirmary. Just before the curtains closed up, he saw Tessa burry her face in Null's left foreleg.
Shane pressed his face into his pillow. 'I don't understand. I've been trying to do the right thing since I got here. It worked for the other humans, didn't it? Why is everything going so wrong for me? No one in the guild trusts me. I can barely hold my own against enemies. And my partner…'
Shane sniffled. '… Tessa hates me now. She'd rather be around a walking jigsaw puzzle in a hideous mask. And Null's not even nice. Everything he does makes him look like a creep.' Tears pooled in his eyes. 'Who am I kidding? I don't have what it takes to be a chosen one. What was Solgaleo thinking bringing someone as useless as me here? Maybe Tessa was right… maybe I am here by mistake. In which case…'
His pillow grew damp. 'I'm never going to be a human again, am I? I'm gonna be stuck here… trapped in a Vulpix's body… in a place where everyone hates me!'
Shane lay there, letting those thoughts roll around in his head. His body's aches and pains eventually won out. He fell into a restless sleep.
Absorptive Aggressor, Ultra Bewear
Espeon and Umbreon have pumped Bewear full of life energy from a creature not of this world. The resulting increase in muscle mass has peaked Bewear's anger. Now, she will stop at nothing to tear Dewdrop Woods down. Her flexing behavior is evidence that her spirit has warped to such a tremendous degree, that she cannot realistically be called a normal Pokémon anymore. Is there any way to turn her back to normal?
Next time: Tessa attempts to take her mind off the day's events. In the process, she makes a few interesting discoveries.