Shiloh had failed.
It didn't matter that she'd made it all the way through the Vainglory, even battling a little there. It didn't matter that she was completely out of her depth and still fought for her friend. For the first time in Shiloh's life, even her best wasn't enough.
Briar wasn't on the ship, and he hadn't ever been. No matter how fast they flew or how well she battled, there was no way to rescue him.
"Stay close to me, everyone." Lane gestured them all over, even Mirage. Even a pocket-sized security drone, which Shiloh could instantly identify even without seeing the changes it made. "This platform is hardened against teleports. Good thing Genesect made such big holes in the hull."
Shiloh floated there beside the others, holding still. During the rescue she had barely felt tiredness—now exhaustion hit her with full force. She hadn't just lost, but been utterly defeated. All she wanted now was somewhere dark to curl up and hide from the world.
The teleport did nothing to improve her mood. Instead of smooth and comfortable like the trip to Mewtwo's apartment, this one twisted her stomach in knots, sending her frozen and suffocating through a swirling vortex of stars and ever watching eyes.
Then she smelled life again, jungle heat and clouds of swirling humidity. She opened her eyes and found she was in a... cave? A sprawling underground space, with a ceiling far above. Sunlight shone through openings in the stone ceiling, illuminating a lake at the center.
She felt minds, but unlike the ones packed into the Vainglory. These were Pokémon, and not terribly complex ones either. Wild creatures, living blissful, ignorant lives.
Lane dropped to her knees, breathing heavily. Her skin went pale, drenched with glittering sweat. She aimed forward, then pressed the release on two pokeballs at once. Had they just been tricked, misled into leaving the airship without their targets?
A pair of kittens appeared on the mossy ground, one blue and one pink. They were both crouched defensively, looking up at someone who wasn't there. Shiloh felt their disorientation, met just as quickly by relief when they saw who was waiting for them.
Shiloh retreated from their reunion. She couldn't bring herself to share in their joy, when her own friend was still missing. The rest of her team had probably been auctioned off as well, marketed on illegal Pokémon sites. But none of that mattered anymore. What was ambition now?
She made it to the lake's edge without attracting much notice. There she found a branch wide enough to sit on, where she could collapse and pull her legs up close. The thick leaves and undergrowth made her feel almost safe there, a little room made just for her.
Until a gray figure appeared from the trees, his expression solemn. "This is why I sire no offspring," Mewtwo said. "Our world has no respect for innocence. It is a cruel and monstrous place. To love too deeply is to open yourself to more pain."
Shiloh did not argue the point. She was already crying—how had she not noticed? It was the tears boiling away as soon as they left her eyes, dissolved by the natural heat of her body.
"M-my best friend Briar—wasn't there. He wasn't legendary, wasn't strong like Mirage. They just s-sold him." She wiped her eyes on the back of her arm, but that didn't help. While Lane celebrated, her wounds were still raw.
She wasn't even sure why she bothered saying anything to Mewtwo. This Pokémon was even worse than Lane, a mysterious demigod with interests over whole continents. If anything he was worse, since at least being a mew gave Lane a playful streak. All Mewtwo had was bitterness.
"Then why are you here?" he asked. "Wherever it is you need to go, I can send you there. What adversary could stand against the spirit of victory?"
She thought of all the reasons she shouldn't go—but those harsh eyes showed no sign of sympathy. Mewtwo was not the kind of Pokémon to care for the reasons why she couldn't. "I don't—wait. I don't know where, but someone does." She looked up, searching for the humming of drone rotors. She found it hovering listlessly nearby, unmoving.
"Kit is not here," said another voice, closer. Mirage expressed simple thoughts the same way she always did, quiet but insistent. "Why?"
Now they were both watching Shiloh. "He wasn't there," she said. "But someone knows where. Rotom! Can you come over here, please?"
The drone buzzed its way over. This was far less rugged a model than the one Shiloh used for her own video production, made from mostly clear plastic and with only a small camera. Tucked away in the Vainglory that thing could get as much energy as it wanted from regular docking stations.
Using it would limit Rotom's stamina, and intelligence too. Shiloh still didn't understand how that part worked.
At least the drone could still fly over, and the Rotom could still speak. Its voice was weaker from feebler speakers. "I received an address. 112 Gracidea Way, Goldenrod City, Johto."
The specific location meant nothing to Shiloh of course, but she'd been to the city before. She held the Plain Badge, or she used to. Now that was lost along with all her human possessions, burned in the Nursery fire.
Lane approached through the jungle. She still looked human, but now held the two cowering kittens in her arms, as protectively as any parent. She watched Shiloh, but her expression was different this time.
"I don't know if we could've made it without you, Shiloh. I'm sorry your friend wasn't aboard."
There was no room to doubt her sincerity when her emotions were freely shared. "I have to find him," she said. "Briar has been with me from the beginning, before my name meant anything. I can't just pretend I don't know that they sold him. I have to get him back."
Lane nodded solemnly. "Can you do it alone? Pokémon and even some humans are changing, even beyond Orre. I can't turn away from all those lives to save one."
"She won't be." Mirage approached from opposite Mewtwo, keeping her distance from the powerful Pokémon. She kept from looking directly at them, as though doing so might provoke their anger. "I will go. Help. She might need my powers. Useful illusions."
Mirage might not be much of a fighter, which was to their advantage in the Plasma airship. But she was an expert with illusions, particularly those designed to fool humans. She was a member of Shiloh's film crew in her own right. "Yes. Mirage and I will do it. Once I get Briar back, I'll try to help you. If you think a victini without powers will help with Orre."
"Without powers?" asked an indignant voice from Lane's shoulder. Aspen, crawling out of the stolen lab coat to perch there, a little higher than Shiloh's head-level. "What would you call saving me? Or blowing up that big evil machine? I've never even seen a fire move like that. Have you, Mom?"
"Never," she agreed.
Mewtwo extended one hand, which glowed brilliant blue. The air ahead of them split open, revealing a grassy park—unlike the untamed wilderness of their current environment, the space through Mewtwo's portal was clearly just a park. The trees were regularly spaced, the bushes trimmed. There were no paths, only tiny bridges over the streams.
If Mewtwo wanted to send them anywhere they wouldn't attract immediate notice, a Pokémon Park wasn't a bad idea. A Sylveon wearing a heart-shaped collar stopped close to the portal, tilting her head to the side.
"Return to this place when you have found your friend," Mewtwo said. "Prove your courage and ingenuity, Victini. When you have succeeded, you may have something to offer. Don't imagine that city is less dangerous than the airbase you left, however. We are alike—so rare that many who see us will desire to take our power for themselves. Rely on the Pokémon you find for help, and always return what is given."
Shiloh looked to the side, waiting for the objections. "You're just going to let me go? Even though I could run to humans for help? I thought you didn't trust me."
"I didn't," Lane said. "I do now. Rescue your friend."
Shiloh floated through the portal. It would be too easy to second-guess herself, and surrender to her fear. But that wouldn't help Briar.
It didn't matter how determined Mirage was to rescue him, she could never do it alone. But together, they could work something out, just like all the great videos they'd put together over Shiloh's career.
I'm about to work together with a Pokémon. Good thing her old self couldn't see her now. And not just because that Pokémon champion would try to catch her.
Mirage was the first one through the portal, but she wasn't the only one. Rotom followed using that stolen drone, hovering through the air beside her.
The sylveon backed away from the opening, her eyes mostly on Shiloh. "What kind of Pokémon are you?"
"Confused," she answered honestly, turning to look back through the opening. "Sorry if this is your park. Promise we won't ruin it."
The Pokémon retreated further and further away, rejoining several other Pokémon in the park who looked equally like they'd been left by trainers.
"Return to this place when your task is done," Mewtwo said again. "I will be watching."
The portal began to close, light flickering from the edges as it collapsed inward. Right before it could, someone moved from the other side.
Aspen leapt from Lane's shoulder, flinging herself through the portal. It stayed open just long enough for Lane to gasp, staring in shock—then it closed with a harsh crack of air, and Aspen landed in the grass.
She tumbled and rolled over herself, coming to a stop against a bush. Aspen righted herself quickly on stubby legs, grinning up at Shiloh. "I'm helping!"
Shiloh dropped down beside her, all the way to ground level. "Aspen, are you crazy? Your mom—she won't want you to be here! This could be dangerous!"
Aspen stuck out her tongue. "Oh, saving my sisters was so safe. You didn't even want to go, and you still saved me. I have to help you in return."
Shiloh looked back to where the portal had been. Any moment now Mewtwo would reopen it, and Lane would come through demanding Aspen go back to safety. She waited, and the seconds ticked away—nothing happened.
"I guess it's okay then," she said, cautiously. "You didn't seem to know humans very well though, Aspen. This will be dangerous in completely different ways. Buying Pokémon is illegal in most places, including Goldenrod. Whoever bought Briar didn't care about the law, and they might even be connected with Team Plasma.
"Even if they're not, the city has its own trainers who might want to catch us. We can't just walk to the address and ask for Briar's return. We'll need a plan, maybe some resources."
The shaymin nudged her with her head. "That's why I'm just here to help. You come up with the big smart plan, and I protect you if you need it. Keep your eyes out for some flowers, though. Being small might be better now—but we should keep some with us in case I need to fly. We can all..." She stopped abruptly. "Okay, not all. The big dark one can't do it."
"No, but she can do more important things." Shiloh floated up, closer to head level with her. "Mirage, do you need to rest before we start? I know that fight was hard on you."
"Got medicine already," she said. "We should find kit now. He needs me."
"Okay." Shiloh grinned, running her tiny hands through her feathers. "Do you remember what I used to look like, before I was a Pokémon? It's time for an illusion."