[POV: Wolfe, Seconds After Death]

[Where am I?]

{Your own little paradise.}

He felt… nothing. He heard nothing, he saw nothing, and he was nothing. He was just… there. Floating in a void of nothingness. He couldn't move, couldn't speak, couldn't do anything. He just floated.

Then, in the distance, he saw a spec of light, slowly approaching. As it got closer, Wolfe found that he could move now. He blinked, and watched the light get closer to him. Suddenly, he found himself flying towards it at an incredibly fast pace, faster than he could have ever imagined. His world flashed white, before it faded into darkness.

Then he felt a great pain in his chest, and gasped hugely as his eyes shot open. He was staring up at a full moon, larger and brighter than he had ever seen, with brilliant stars surrounding it. He kept breathing hard, savoring every breath that entered his lungs as he admired the sky.

Then he groaned and sat up, breath slowing down as he looked at his surroundings. He was sitting in a small clearing, filled with flowers. Surrounding him on every side were beautiful trees, the moonlight giving them an unearthly splendor. He just stared in shock.

"Where am I?" he asked no-one in particular.

"Your own little paradise," a beautiful voice spoke from behind him. He flinched, and leapt to his feet, spinning around as he did so, and got into a fighting stance as he stared at whoever had spoken. He blinked in amazement.

Sitting in front of him, between him and a pond filled with clear blue water, was a strange, dark, quadruped creature, with yellow rings on its shoulders, as well as one on its forehead. It was smiling at him slightly.

He shook his head. "Did you just speak?" he asked incredulously. The creature nodded, still smiling.

"Yes, yes I did. Now, I'd imagine that you have questions for me?" it asked. She, he realized.

He frowned. "What happened?" he asked her.

This time, the creature frowned at him. "You died," she told him simply.

He blinked again. Then he snorted in amusement. "So, you're here to judge me then? Choose where I go? Guess I chose my religion incorrectly."

She smiled at him again. "No, I am not here to judge you, though I could if you'd like."

"Miss, I know how I would be judged. I've killed a lot of men, many of whom I probably could have spared. But I didn't. I am a demon in my own right."

She nodded, got to her paws, and padded up to him. He didn't move as she approached, just watched her. She started to circle him slowly, eyeing him. "Are you so sure of that? Well then, let's see here. Firstly, you have no religion. You had nothing to really guide you, nothing to make sure you did the right thing. You killed many men because of this, yet, you weren't a horrible person. Intriguing, isn't it? You've accomplished things that few could imagine, and even fewer could achieve. And you did it all on your own power, not thinking that you would get anything in return. When you were shot saving that child, whom you had no attachment to, you did it for nothing in return. When you saved your friend, David, you saved him for no reason other than he was your friend. You didn't ask for anything, you didn't expect anything."

"When you jumped in front of that enemy to save your brother in arms, you did it for nothing. You did it to save his life, not caring for your own. When you had the opportunity to jump out of that window when a grenade was thrown at you and your comrades, you didn't. Instead, you leaped onto the grenade, fully expecting it to blow up and kill you. But you did it anyway. It was only by chance that it was a dud. You willingly placed yourself into harm's way, just to save your comrades, who all leaped away from the grenade. When you saved those six soldiers, who you didn't even really know, you did it for no other reason than to protect your brothers. You didn't expect to come out alive, nor did you expect to get anything in return."

"When you and David were in your first combat situation, you risked absolutely everything once you saw that he had been shot. You were shot four times in that instance alone, one of which needed serious medical attention. But you still ran on. It was… unfortunate that it was too late. But, it wasn't your fault that he died. He was already dead when you got there. Then, with you still wounded, you literally jumped into the fray, not giving a damn for your own safety. You killed many men that day, but you also saved many as well. Just think of Hendricks, who you first met five minutes after David had died. He was losing a grappling fight with an enemy, almost having a knife plunged into his chest. But then you showed up, with your own knife, and killed him. At this point, you had been shot eight times, two of which would be near fatal with a lesser man. You saved him, and many more that day. Because you felt that you had failed your friend. Because they were your comrades. Because they were your brothers. You did it for no other reason. You wanted to die that day. But you kept going."

"And finally, just a little while ago. You knew that there was a very high chance that you would die if you didn't pull out with the other team. But you also knew, that, if you had done nothing except leave, the other team wouldn't have even made it. You knew that you were their only chance. Yet you also knew that you could die. But, you didn't even hesitate. You held your ground, you fought against impossible odds. You fought against odds that no other man could face and expect to come out alive. And you nearly survived. If you had two more magazines, you would have lived. You knew your limits, but you pushed them. It led to your death. But, you also killed every single one of the remaining enemies. Your last action, where a lesser man might have surrendered, was to spit into the face of the enemy and take them out with you. A pyrrhic victory, but still a victory."

"You risked your life, time and time again, expecting that nothing would happen to you after you died. But you did it anyway. Do you know what we call people like you? A hero."

Wolfe stared at her, shocked that she knew so much of his past. Then he registered her last word and frowned. "I'm no hero, lady. I fought for selfish reasons," he told her.

She raised an eyebrow as she came to a halt in front of him. "Those selfish reasons being that you didn't want to see a comrade killed? That you didn't want to go through the pain of losing your family again? That you wanted to be the one to die, so that they would live? Those reasons?" she asked.

He gazed at her for a while, before sighing. "What exactly is the point of this little flashback session?"

She smiled at him. "I believe that everyone deserves as second chance, regardless of what they have done."

He frowned. "Yet some people don't even deserve one chance."

She shook her head. "Yet you are not such a one. So, if you could have anything at all, what would it be?"

"I don't know. After all, I am dead."

She smiled again. "But that doesn't mean that you have to remain that way. So, what do you want?"

He stared at the moon for a moment, before smiling softly. "A second chance," he told her.

She beamed at him. "Then welcome to your second chance. Just take a drink from that pond behind me."

He raised an eyebrow, before walking over to it. "Let's hope this one's better than my last," he said, as he knelt down to drink, cupping his hands in the cool water. As he drank, she walked up to him.

"Now, you'll be placed in a new world, one that you have never seen. You are to be my champion, my first, and my last. Do all that you can to make this life better than your last," she told him.

"Provided that I am able, I have no complaint. I'll try my best," he replied as his vision started to dim. His last glimpse of her was of her smiling at him.

"You'll be great, my champion," she said softly, as his world went dark.

[POV: Nova]

She stared at the risen Wolfe in shock, as Cordina looked at him, speechless. How in the world… she wondered to herself?

"How…" Cordina started, before trailing off.

Wolfe turned his grin to her. "Were you worried about me, love?" he asked cheekily.

She glared at him, before smacking him with a paw. "Yes! You were dead! For no reason!" she exclaimed.

Wolfe rubbed his shoulder, still grinning. "Well, remember when you had that memory back when you first got your mark? Yeah. That was me from my previous life. You see, I'm actually dead already. I died a long time ago, around 100 years or so. When I was brought back to life, I was… different. I could turn into a pokemon, and I could mark people. That's the short history of me. Now, due to the fact that I am already dead, I can't die. At least, not permanently. I will be dead, but only for a certain amount of time, depending on the cause of death," he told her.

That's… impressive, Nova thought. She looked at Kage, who was just staring at Wolfe.

'Did you know about this?' she asked him silently.

He turned his gaze to her. 'Yes, yes I did. Wolfe is an… interesting individual. Him being unable to die is how he survived me training him. He actually only died once during training, which is surprising in of itself,' came his reply.

Nova nodded once, understanding. 'I'll let the fact that you killed him once slide, mainly because you weren't with me yet.'

'You're going to give me shit about that later, aren't you?'

'No, for once I'll actually let it slide, as he isn't permanently dead.'

'Technically, he is. I just wasn't the cause of it.'

She glared at him, and he shifted uncomfortably. She nodded once, to herself. Then she tuned back into the conversation, in which Duke was talking to Wolfe.

"… charge so much for your services?" the absol asked.

Wolfe shook his head. "No, I charge a lot for my services because I'll get the job done, quicker and more efficient than anyone. That includes Sin, as he usually just destroyed everything. I have a bit more… control, let's say." Kage frowned at him.

"I can control myself if needed. I just normally choose not to," he said defensively.

Wolfe snorted, as Nova giggled. "Well, I say that we all actually go to sleep. Well, I am in any case. That means, everyone who isn't my mate needs to scoot. Now. Before I decide that you're all my mates and treat you as such," Wolfe told the crowd.

Nova let out a giggle as the room was quickly emptied, leaving just her, Lura, Cordina and Kage. Wolfe turned an appraising eye at her and Kage. "Well, I guess that you two want to be treated as my mates then? Hey, I ain't going to complain. Two very good looking 'mon such as yourselves can always have a bit of 'fun' with me," he told them with a grin.

Nova giggled again. Then she stuck her tongue out at him. "Sorry hon, you couldn't handle me," she told him cheekily.

His eyes brightened immediately. "Is that a challenge? Because, that sounded like a challenge to me," he said.

Nova winked at him. "Challenge all you want, you're not ever tapping this eevee rear," she said as she turned around and waved her rear at him, grinning at him over her shoulder.

Wolfe pouted. "What if I beg?" he asked. She turned around and sat down, placing a paw against her chin thoughtfully.

"Hmm… nope!" she exclaimed cheerfully.

Wolfe pouted some more. Then he turned to Kage. "Sin! She's being mean to me! She keeps flashing me her sexy little rear, but won't follow up on it," he whined.

Kage stared at him with disinterest. "Not my problem, she doesn't refuse me," he told him.

Wolfe's lip quivered. The he turned back to Nova. "Please?" he begged hopefully.

Lura started to laugh, as Cordina just smiled. Nova thought for a moment, then shrugged with a smile. "Sure!" she said.

Wolfe's ears perked up immediately. "Really!?" he asked.

"Nope!"

He started to pout again. Then he sighed. "I guess I can wait," he said dejectedly.

Nova frowned. "But I said never," she said, confused.

He grinned and winked at her. "That's what you say now, give it a little bit of time. You'll come around," he said confidently.

Kage snorted once, before heading to walk out the door, picking Nova up by her scruff in the process. "Hey! Wait! We hadn't finished our conversation!" she wailed at him, batting him with her paws uselessly.

"Tough," he mumbled through her fur. She peeked around him to look at Wolfe again.

"We'll finish this conversation later!" she yelled at the grinning umbreon. He started laughing as they exited his room.

As she swayed from her mate's jaw, she glared at him. "Rude," she said with a huff.

He just snorted, before saying, "Yeah, yeah. You can finish your conversation tomorrow. For now, let's sleep." She just glared at him, the effect slightly ruined due to him carrying her.

When they got to the bed in their room, Kage set her down on the mattress gently, before curling up around her and making his cloak shrink into its dark grey collar form. She still glared at him, before mumbling to herself as she curled into his side to sleep. She didn't wait for him to fall asleep first. She knew he wouldn't.

When she woke the next day, she stretched and let out an adorable yawn, ending it with her smacking her lips lightly as she got up to stretch. She knew Kage enjoyed her adorableness, so she sometimes went a little… extra. Wasn't her fault that she was so cute. She looked at her mate, who was staring at her with amusement. She grinned, and flicked his nose with her tail as she hopped off the bed.

"Morning," she told him.

"Good morning," he returned, following her off the bed. They both made their way out their rooms door, and sat outside of Wolfe's room to wait for him to get up.

"Why exactly are we waiting for him?" Kage asked, after they had been sitting for a while.

"Because I want to finish our conversation, that you wouldn't let me finish yesterday," she said with a glare. He frowned at her, and opened his mouth to speak when Wolfe suddenly exited his room, followed shortly by Lura and Cordina. He stopped when he saw the two of them, and raised an eyebrow.

"Why good morning!" he exclaimed with a smile.

"Morning!" Nova replied cheerfully. Kage just grunted in greeting.

"So, why were you waiting to greet us?" Wolfe asked.

Nova frowned. "Do we need a reason?"

He raised an eyebrow and shrugged. "I suppose not. What's the plan today?"

Kage opened his mouth to respond, but was cut off.

"There is someone that I would like you to meet," Duke told them, entering their sleeping wing from the main hall. Nova turned around to watch as the absol and his mate approached them, Luna smiling at Wolfe brightly.

Wolfe looked at them curiously. "And who would that be? Good morning to you two, by the way," he said to them.

Luna smiled even brighter. "Good morning to you too, Aurumn! And, a very important member of the Dark Army," she told him.

He raised an eyebrow at her. "Well, I guess let's go then!"

Duke and Luna nodded, before turning around and gesturing for them to follow. They started after them, with Wolfe being immediately behind them, followed by Lura and Cordina, and them being followed by Kage and Nova. They were just about to exit their sleeping wing, before a voice stopped them from behind.

"Where are you all going?" Artul asked.

Nova turned to the dark jolteon. "They want us to meet someone," she told him.

"Can I come?"

"Sure, don't see why not," Duke said with a warm smile. Artul nodded, before joining Nova and Kage. Then they continued into the hall.

Duke and Luna led them through the long tunnel that served as the main hallway, heading even deeper into the mountain. Nova watched as they passed more side tunnels, though those became fewer and more spread out as they went on. They also passed other pokemon, as well as some humans, all moving with a purpose, or laughing happily with each other. Most of the pokemon were dark types, such as mightyena, as well as weavile and sneasel. She noticed a lot of other types of pokemon, such as normal types. There was one strange one, which peeked her interest more than a little.

It looked like a vulpix, except it was mostly white, barring its head tuft and tails, which were black. It looked more like an ice type than a fire type, in her opinion. It was also wearing some sort of armor on its body, and Nova guessed that it was a warrior. It was obviously in a hurry, rushing past them with scarcely a second glance. Strange, Nova thought as they passed it. When they passed, she glanced back at it to find it staring at them. Well, one of them in particular. When she followed its gaze, she saw that it was looking at Wolfe. She giggled softly.

After a few minutes of walking, she noticed that the tunnel was getting narrower, and guessed that they were reaching the end of it. Large place. Finally, the tunnel ended with a simple door. Duke went up to the door and raised a paw to knock on it. Before he could, however, it opened, seemingly by itself. Duke let out a chuckle as they entered through the door.

Once she was through, Nova gasped in awe. They had entered a huge cavern, with a small river on the opposite side. There was a mysterious glow that illuminated the area, though Nova couldn't identify the source. Sitting next to the river, with its back towards them, was a purple, cat like creature, which Nova recognized as an espeon. I wonder if that's who we were supposed to meet, she wondered?

"I've arrived to introduce you to the individual that we hired, as well as his companions," Duke told the espeon. It nodded its head once, before turning around to greet them.

As soon as it was facing them, wearing a small smile in welcome, Nova heard a slightly sharper intake of breath coming from Artul. Nova turned her head towards him with a slight frown, and noticed that he was seemingly entranced by the espeon. Nova turned back to it as she giggled in amusement.

"Greetings, I am Via," the espeon said in a majestic, feminine voice. Nova smiled immediately.

"Howdy! My name is Aurumn Wolfe, usually referred to as Wolfe, or Demon, depending on who you ask. Call me whatever suites you, odds are I'll probably respond. This lovely vaporeon on my right is Lura, one of my mates. I'm sure you already know the lovely umbreon on my left, Cordina, my other mate. The adorable eevee back there is Nova, a rather recent acquaintance, and the red ringed umbreon who's trying to act tough is an old friend of mine, Kage, otherwise known as Sin. He and the eevee are mates. The unusual looking jolteon sitting next to Nova is known as Artul, a recent friend of mine, I suppose. My partner, who isn't here right now, is known as Gabriel, but prefers to be called Gabe. Just look for a gallade who seems just a little bit too pleased with himself. Odds are, it's him," Wolfe said, as he introduced the group.

They all bowed their heads or nodded as a greeting, and Via just smiled at them. "I was actually aware of who you all were already, but I thank you for the introduction," she told them, before looking at Artul. "Though I'm not sure that I knew who you were."

Lura frowned at her. "How did you know who we were already?" she asked.

Via turned her gaze towards the vaporeon. "It's simply because I'm psychic, Lura. I am the Dark Army's… predictor, I guess you would call it. You see, I can see into the future on occasion, with a few exceptions. For instance, I can see your future very clearly, Lura, an yours, Cordina. You two have much to look forward to in life," she said with a smile, before turning towards Wolfe with a slight frown. "But, I can't see yours, or Artul's. I only knew of you in particular through your exploits, Aurumn. Artul, however, I have no knowledge of. It's… interesting, to say the least."

Wolfe simply grinned at her as Artul frowned. "Don't worry dear, I get that from a lot of psychics. Literally, all of them," Wolfe told her.

She smiled again, before frowning at Wolfe, looking serious. "You realize that you are partly to blame for this disease that plagues our land, don't you?" she asked him.

Wolfe frowned. "How exactly am I to blame for something that I have no control over?"

She padded up to him, before sitting down in front of him. "Just over three and a half years ago, you were given a contract to kill certain individuals. You didn't. I saw that they would be the cause of great peril in our land, and instructed a man to gain your services and kill them. You didn't, and now the disease is running rampant through our region."

His expression cleared, as he suddenly turned very serious. "I don't take to kindly to be blamed for a crime that I have not commit. If you really wanted them dead, you would have hired a cheaper assassin. It is not my fault that your man that you instructed didn't have the funds for my services. Point in fact, if it was this important, don't you think that maybe you would have supplied the man with more money, if only for that reason? So no, Via. I am not to blame at all. These things happen, and very rarely can you change how they'll play out. I know of a plague similar to this that decimated an entire continent, and nobody could do anything to halt it. So don't play the blame game, especially with me. Because I fight dirty," he told her in an emotionless voice that made Nova shiver.

He's always so carefree, and cheerful, as well as very flirty. Yet, his emotions can change in an instant. Makes me wonder if it isn't all just an act, she thought. It was very disconcerting to see the charismatic umbreon so serious and emotionless.

Via jerked back as though she had been struck by his words, lowering her head. "Forgive me, it was not my intention to give offense. I was merely making a statement," she said softly.

"No, you were not. You feel guilty because the plague got out, regardless of all your efforts. You have a lot of pressure on you, especially for one who is so young, what, with having a very important role in the Dark Army and all. You were trying to get some of that weight off of your conscience, and I seemed like the perfect target. After all, it must be the fault of the blade if its owner gets stabbed, right? Certainly couldn't be that the arm didn't raise the blade to defend its owner in time, right? No. It is never the fault of the tool that is used, merely that of the one that guides it. I would recommend not lying to me in the future, Via. I'm not so innocent as to be fooled by them," he replied in that same cold, emotionless voice. Via flinched again.

The group was quiet as they processed what just occurred. Then Artul cleared his throat, drawing attention to himself.

"While I would certainly agree that you shouldn't be blamed for this disease that you speak of, perhaps it is going a bit too far to suggest that she was lying? In her opinion, she could have just been making the statement, despite how it may seem to you," the jolteon said hesitantly.

Wolfe stared at him for a moment, before smiling softly and dipping his head in acknowledgement. "Alright, I can concede to that," he told him, before turning back towards Via. "My apologies, Via. I was wrong to accuse you of lying." The group breathed out a sigh of relief as the crisis was averted.

She smiled back at him, cheerful again. "It's no big deal, I apologize for accusing you of being at fault for the plague," she said. Wolfe dipped his head in agreement, smiling brightly now.

"So, is there anything else that we might need to discuss?" he asked.

Duke shook his head, smiling. "Nope, just felt that you should be introduced to eachother. Via here tells us where we should send our troops, as well as who should be involved. A very important role, and while it is unfortunate that she is so young to carry this much weight on her shoulders, it is necessary," came his reply.

Wolfe nodded in understanding. Nova looked back at Via, who was studying Wolfe and Artul in equal measures. "How old are you anyway?" Nova asked.

Via turned her gaze to the eevee, still smiling. "I am 16 years old. While I am certainly old enough to be an adult, I am still maybe a bit young to have any position of higher standing, at least in my own opinion. But, I am honored to serve in the position that I do, regardless of inexperience," she said.

Nova nodded. "I can understand that. Well, it's nice to see that you're as intelligent as you are, even if you are a little young," she said cheerfully. Via nodded her thanks.

Then Duke spoke to Wolfe. "Well, Demon, would you like to see some of the men and pokemon who you will be working with in action? I can take you to see our battle arena if you'd like," he offered.

Wolfe's eyes brightened considerably. "Oh, hell yeah!" he exclaimed excitedly. Duke grinned, pleased with his reaction apparently.

"Good! Now, if you will all follow me then! Via, you can come to if you'd like. You deserve a break every once and a while," he told them.

Via nodded in agreement, before they all followed Duke and Luna out of the cavern, and back down the main hall. As they walked, Nova took the time to reflect on what had just occurred.

So, they have a 'predictor,' who is a rather young espeon, and a rather pretty one at that. Wolfe and Artul don't have a visible future, yet everyone else does, probably including me and Kage. Wolfe actually got slightly upset, but then went back to being normal in almost a heartbeat. And, Via might have an admirer, though they wouldn't admit it, she thought.

"So, how's it going?" she heard Lura ask her suddenly, startling the poor eevee out of her thoughts. Nova turned her head towards the vaporeon, who was smiling happily at her, with her egg still hanging from her right side. Nova noticed that it was larger than before, and guessed that it had been around two weeks since it was laid, leaving two more weeks till it hatches. She felt a slight pain in her heart as she thought about that.

"Great! Better than great, actually! I mean, after all, I did get to sleep on a legitimate mattress last night," she told the beautiful vaporeon cheerfully. Lura beamed at her.

"I know exactly what you mean! While I do think it is exciting to sleep outside in a tent, as this is really the first time that I've ever done anything like this, its charm does start to wear off after a while," she told Nova.

Nova looked at her curiously. "You'd never slept outside of a house before this trip?" she asked.

Lura shook her head. "Nope! Well, actually I did one night, back when I was still a Peterson, rather than a Wolfe. The Peterson's were my first family, never knew my actual parents. Just hatched with them. They… died, a few years ago. They apparently were the first to succumb to the plague, supposedly having brought it with them to Nor after Aurumn told them he was being hired to kill them," she answered sadly.

Nova's eyes widened. "You mean to tell me that you ended up becoming mates with the man hired to kill your family?" she asked incredulously.

Lura frowned as she thought about it. "When you put it like that it seems really bad. But, he didn't kill them. He actually warned them that he was being hired to do as such, giving them a chance to live if they moved to Nor. Besides, I actually started to fall in love with him when I just knew him as Zero. I wasn't aware that he was also the Wolfe that was being hired to kill my family. I just found that out last year. But, when I finally found out, it was much to late for me to really care who he was. I didn't even know that I was in love with him for the longest time, and when I found out, I asked him if he was in love with me as well. He told me that he was, and, well, things just went from there. It also didn't hurt that's he's saved my life at least three times, once by marking me, which meant I couldn't get the plague. The second time by stopping a flying giant pokemon from crushing me, breaking his arm in the process of defending me. The third time was when I went hunting with him after Haven was founded. A pack of mightyena wanted to do… things… with me, and he and Gabe killed them," she said, before breaking off as she frowned.

Then she continued, saying, "That was the first time I saw anyone die, and also the first time that I… killed… someone…"

She trailed off with a sad sigh. Nova looked at her worriedly. "Well, it's not like you just killed an innocent pokemon. I mean, I frown upon killing in general, but if that was the only thing you could do, then that's nothing to be upset about. I don't think any less of you for it, that's for sure at least!" Nova said, attempting to comfort her. Lura smiled at her gratefully.

"Thank you, Nova. I appreciate that."

Nova nodded cheerfully. "It's no problem!"

They giggled with each other for a little bit, before Lura spoke again.

"So, how are things with you and Kage?" she asked.

Nova's grin widened. "Oh, just great! I couldn't be happier! I know that he seems kind of quiet, and I suppose he is, but once you get to know him, he starts to open up a bit more. He's also very caring, especially when it comes to me. Plus, he's rather gifted in a… certain… area," she said, whispering her last sentence.

Lura giggled again. "Well, I'm glad that you two are doing good! It's nice knowing that I'm not the only one who lucked out with a good mate! Well, other than me and Cordina I suppose."

Nova nodded again, still smiling. "So how does that work between you and her then? I mean, you and Cordina sharing the same mate. Does that make things… awkward?"

Lura shook her head, looking thoughtful. "No, it's definitely not as weird as you might think. He asked me about it before he included Cordina in our little group. Plus, I personally love her, almost as much as I do Aurumn. I also want to have him be happy, and I know that Aurumn is very… er, not sure what the correct word is. Free? Yeah, he's very 'free' with himself. But, I don't really mind as it's rather attractive when he's with another girl. So, provided he asks me and Cordina, I don't really mind if he has 'fun' with others," she told Nova.

They continued to talk and share stories as they walked, and Nova found that she was enjoying the vaporeon immensely. Just something about her made Nova want to keep chatting. She decided that she liked this pokemon,

Finally, Duke and Luna led the group off the main tunnel, and through a side one that had a rather large opening compared to the other ones. Once inside, Nova saw that they were in another, larger cavern, which seemed to be even brighter than the previous one. There were a lot of pokemon and humans there already, surrounding three battle fields that were just simple sand pits.

All three fields were currently in use, one with two humans fighting with wooden swords, another one with two pokemon, a mightyena and a furret, and the final one being occupied by two humans scuffling in the sand. As Nova watched, one of the humans wielding a wooden sword was disarmed, the furret got a lucky hit on the mightyena, sending it out of the field, and one of the humans scuffling in the sand pinned the other one.

The crowds burst into cheers and applauded the combatants' abilities and skill, with the victors smiling brightly as they accepted the praise. The losers bowed their heads, before congratulating the winners. Nova was impressed that no one seemed very upset about losing. It showed that they worked well as a group.

Duke walked towards the middle arena, wearing a large grin. "Nice job Iris!" he called to the furret, who was shaking the sand out of its pelt. She looked up at the absol as he approached, and smiled slightly. Then she spotted Cordina, who was walking next to Wolfe just behind Luna, who was behind Duke, and started to smile even wider.

"Thanks, sir!" she shouted, as she approached the group, eyes locked on Cordina. The female umbreon was frowning now, and she leaned in towards Wolfe to whisper something to him. He nodded and understanding, keeping a smile on his face. The furret came to a halt in front of them. "Hey dear, how have you been? It's been a long time since I last saw you, around three or four months. How'd your mission go?" Iris asked Cordina.

Cordina grimaced slightly. "Well, I've been good, had a few large changes in my life. I would like to introduce you to my mates, Aurumn Wolfe and Lura Wolfe," she said, gesturing towards the umbreon and vaporeon. Iris eyed them with a faint hint of disdain.

"Charmed, I'm sure," she said, eyes lingering on Lura. Then she turned back to Cordina. "But you didn't answer my question! How'd your mission go? You were sent to hire that one mercenary, weren't you? Wolfe or some…" she trailed off as she looked at the male umbreon with wide eyes. "Wait! You're that mercenary, aren't you?"

Wolfe snorted, before nodding his head. "Yes, yes I am. Aurumn Wolfe, pleased to make your acquaintance," he said.

Iris stared at him. Then she shook herself, and turned back to Cordina. "So, when are we going to do something with each other? I'd imagine that you're very stressed, I can help you with that. Help you… unwind," she said seductively.

Cordina continued to frown. "Iris, this is my mate. Him and Lura. If I need to 'unwind,' then one of them will take care of me."

Iris sniffed at her. "I find it rather scandalous that you become mates with someone after knowing them for under six months. I'm sure that you will tire of them eventually. I can also guarantee that I would be much better for you than her," she said, flicking her tail at Lura.

Nova and Lura frowned as Cordina glared. "No, Iris," she said shortly.

Iris smiled thinly, before padding up to Cordina and winding her body around her. "Oh, I'm sure that you'll come around," she purred.

"Iris! Come on! We have a new mission, you're with me and Sam," a voice called. Nova turned around to see that the white vulpix from earlier was standing at the entrance.

"Coming, Hail!" the furret called back. She then spoke to Cordina, saying, "I'm sorry, Cordina, we'll continue this conversation later."

"Hold on a moment, Hail, Iris. I want as many people as possible to witness what I have planned next," Duke cut in. The absol then turned to Wolfe. "I actually wanted you to demonstrate your capabilities as a fighter. I would like you to have a sparring match with me."

Wolfe grinned savagely. "Oh, now that I would love to do. Rules?"

The absol grinned back. "No maiming or killing, victor is either the last one conscious or if the opponent is sent out of the arena."

Wolfe nodded. "Alright! Let's go!"

Nova watched as the center field was cleared, and Wolfe and Duke their places on opposite sides of each other, staring intently. Then Duke spoke.

"Soldiers of the Dark Army, standing across from me is the legendary mercenary, Wolfe. I have challenged him to a friendly little duel to see how good he truly is. We all know how good of a fighter I am, as I am the best among us. Considering that, I have a feeling that I know how this fight will go. Place your bets! I'm hoping for a good match!" he called out to the crowd.

There was an immediate cheer, and many voices called out encouragements. Nova heard the soldiers around her placing bets, and noticed that the majority of them were betting against Wolfe. She heard more than a few of them be rather rude as well.

"He doesn't stand a chance! Duke absolutely destroyed me within six seconds! I don't care how great this mercenary is, he's going to get destroyed," she heard a mightyena say, a few bodies away from her.

"Yeah, but that's the wolf! He's a fucking demon! My father served under him in the Memory war, he told me stories about him," a houndour replied.

"The memory war was years ago! There's no way that he's the same Wolfe," the mightyena said.

Nova mentally shrugged as she focused her attention on the fight that was about to take place. She was personally interested in it as she had never seen Wolfe fight before.

"Ready when you are!" Duke called out to Wolfe. The umbreon nodded, looking focused. "Soldiers! Give me the count down!" the absol shouted to the crowd.

"3! 2! 1! Fight!" the crowd shouted back.

Immediately, Duke sent a dark burst of energy towards Wolfe, the attack moving faster than an arrow.

Wolfe simply jumped over it. The crowd gasped.

The umbreon then sprinted towards Duke at an incredible speed, dodging any attacks Duke sent his way, of which there were many. When he reached him, Duke braced himself, knowing that he wouldn't be able to dodge as the umbreon slammed into him.

Nova heard a few gasps coming from the crowd as Duke was sent sliding back towards the edge of the arena. Then he shook himself to recover from the attack, and launched a purple blade at Wolfe from his horn. Wolfe didn't bother dodging, he just erected a clear barrier in between him and the attack, not taking any damage. Then he launched a dark ball at Duke, and was running immediately after he had fired it. Nova was impressed, as his attack was moving faster than most eyes could follow. Not hers though.

Duke wasn't able to dodge the attack, and was sent backwards even further, standing just at the edge now. He started to run towards the center, as well as towards Wolfe, with his horn lowered, only to be impacted by a dark blur.

This time he couldn't stop himself, and he was sent flying into the crowd. Wolfe stood, untouched, at the edge of the arena.

The crowd went silent as they struggled to comprehend what had just happened. The fight had only lasted 15 seconds, ending with Duke, their leader, the best fighter among them, being sent flying out of the ring. Wolfe grinned as the absol struggled to his feet, face fixed in an expression of shock.

"Told you that you wouldn't stand a chance," Wolfe said cheekily. Duke nodded, dumbly. Then he shook himself, and grinned back, though Nova saw something flash in his eyes.

"I must admit, that was very impressive. I certainly wasn't expecting that, least of all that quickly. I have to say… I'm surprised," Duke told Wolfe. Wolfe raised a paw over his chest and bowed his head sarcastically. Nova giggled, as Duke snorted in amusement.

"Round two?" Wolfe asked.

Duke rolled his shoulders. "Sure thing. I'm ready for you this time."

They set themselves up opposite of each other again. Nova noticed that Duke was set up for a more close quarters battle, as he was in a springing stance. Wolfe just sat nonchalantly, wearing a confident grin.

"I'm only going to hit you twice, alright? Then I'll let you take a nap," he called out to Duke.

The absol frowned. "We'll see about that," he said.

Again, the crowd chanted the count down. As soon as they shouted fight, Duke sprang forward, bolting towards Wolfe at a rather impressive speed, though it seemed somewhat lacking after watching Wolfe's speed. The absol twisted and lowered his head, obviously intending to slash the umbreon's side, seemingly confident in his speed.

Needless to say, this didn't go well for him. Wolfe rolled his eyes, before sidestepping and letting the absol pass. Duke displayed some rather impressive agility, as he stopped and turned in almost an instant, facing Wolfe again.

Then his blade started to glow with dark energy, and he sprinted towards Wolfe again. As soon as he got close, he started slashing with his horn, leading with a low swipe and following up with an upwards cut. He followed those up with a flurry of side swipes and jabs. Wolfe easily dodged all of them, with Duke getting angrier and angrier as his attacks kept missing. Wolfe dodged one more swipe, before he slammed a paw into the side of Duke's head, sending him tumbling away.

"So much for no maiming," Wolfe called out, taunting the absol as he got to his feet. Duke growled, apparently upset. Wolfe grinned at him. "I still got one more hit, buddy. Come at me," he taunted.

Duke snarled and charged at Wolfe recklessly, obviously done with playing fair as he scooped a pawful of sand and threw it at the umbreon's face, hoping to blind him. Nova frowned as Wolfe simply closed his eyes to avoid it. Why does Duke seem so determined to damage Wolfe, she wondered?

As she watched, she noticed that Wolfe's tail had started to glow a silvery color as he avoided the absol's attacks again. He dodged a few more swipes, before whipping his body around so fast that Nova could barely follow it, connecting his glowing tail with the side of Duke's head with a loud, and sickening, crack. The absol seized up, before stumbling to his right. Then he collapsed.

The crowd stared at their fallen leader in shock, as Wolfe felt his neck for a pulse. Then he nodded to himself.

"He's alright! Just knocked senseless!" he called out.

The crowd collectively sighed in relief, before applauding and cheering Wolfe, who just gave a grandiose bow, before walking back to Nova and the rest of his group. Lura, Cordina and Nova were also applauding, sitting on their haunches and clapping their paws together. Nova figure that it was the least they could do.

"Well, that was embarrassing," Wolfe said as he got close. Two humans went and picked up the unconscious absol, before carrying him out of the arena. Nova noticed that Luna barely cast an eye towards him, instead focusing on Wolfe, smiling broadly at him. Wolfe turned to Kage. "You want to have a spar?" he asked him.

Kage looked thoughtful for a moment, before shrugging. "Sure, I don't mind. Could be interesting," he replied. Nova giggled, and nodded. It would definitely be interesting to test her brain against Wolfe.

Wolfe grinned. "Well alright! This is going to be fun!"

The two umbreons headed out onto the arena, before going to opposite sides and facing each other. Nova noticed immediately that Wolfe was treating this a lot more seriously.

"Well, seeing as our announcer is currently unconscious, I'll be taking that spot! So, this is just going to be a one round fight between me and Sin, till either one of us is knocked out or forced out of the arena. That said, can I get a count down?" Wolfe called out to the crowd.

"3! 2! 1! Fight!" came his answer. Immediately Nova felt time slow down for her as Wolfe and Kage sprinted towards each other, and she readied herself to assist Kage. She was his second set of eyes, as well as his tactic instructor. She noticed things happening, and then she tells him silently how to respond.

'Two Shadow Balls, 15 percent protocol, chest height, one at him and one to his right. Then charge towards your right to intercept his dodge with an Iron Tail,' she sent him silently, and watched as he immediately responded, firing two weakened Shadow Balls in quick succession, and leading towards his right. She didn't want to injure the other umbreon, just knock him out of the arena. Wolfe responded as predicted and sidestepped left, right into Kage's glowing tail. Wolfe crashed to the side a few meters away, but immediately got up.

'Get in close and use Valeurs, then use another Iron Tail. Aim for his head,' she sent.

Kage reacted immediately, charging Wolfe with a glowing tail, as Wolfe just stood there and waited. As soon as he got close to him, Kage activated one of his Eyes of Renegade special powers, called Valeurs. Valeurs slowed down time for Kage and any who he deems an ally for a short amount of time. What this meant, is that while Kage and Nova moved at a normal rate, everyone else moved for them at a slower rate. This made dodging attacks a breeze, as well as setting up powerful attacks in a fast manner.

Nova noticed everyone slowing down, even as Kage kept going at his normal pace. She smiled slightly to herself, knowing that Wolfe didn't have a chance of blocking it, as well as knowing that this attack would most likely end the fight. Kage whipped his tail around, aiming for Wolfe's head, and Nova allowed herself a small moment of congratulation, before she gasped in disbelief.

Wolfe had blocked the attack with his own Iron Tail.

How in the…, she thought to herself. Due to her shocked stupor, she couldn't give Kage any advice, which left him vulnerable. Wolfe took advantage of Kage's own surprise, and twirled around, slamming his Iron Tail into Kage's side, sending him tumbling 15 meters away.

Nova shook herself as Kage got to his feet and Wolfe charged him. 'Use your Shadow Balls, make him keep his distance,' she sent.

Kage responded by firing multiple Shadow Balls at Wolfe, who dodged and weaved his way around all of them, to Nova's surprise. The attacks were going as fast as Wolfe's own Shadow Balls that he had used on Duke, yet the flirty umbreon dodged them as though they were as slow as the absol's. Wolfe's tail started to glow again as he got close.

'You're not going to be able to hit him. Wait till he gets close,' she sent. Kage ceased his fire and waited for the umbreon.

Once he was only a few feet away, Nova gave him more commands. 'Valeurs and dodge right. Then turn and fire a Shadow Ball at his back,' she ordered.

She felt time slow as Kage's Valeurs came into effect. She was surprised to see that Wolfe's speed actually increased, and that was when she realized her mistake.

Kage sidestepped to the right as ordered, but was met with Wolfe's glowing tail as it struck him face first, sending him dangerously close to the edge. He can see when Kage is apparently moving faster, so he just makes himself move even faster than before to adjust for it. Impressive, she thought to herself.

'Sprint towards the center of the arena, don't let him knock you away. Once in the center, face him and wait,' she ordered. Kage started sprinting to the center of the arena, with Wolfe following a few steps behind, though he was quickly gaining on Kage. Wolfe was obviously faster, but speed wasn't necessarily everything.

'Once in center, turn and erect a Protect to block the attack. Then use Iron Tail in a backflip. Aim for under his jaw,' she sent.

As soon as Kage reached the center, he stopped quickly and turned around, raising a clear barrier in between him and the other umbreon in the process. Wolfe's Iron Tail slammed against it, not doing any damage to Kage. After his attack struck the Protect, Kage dropped his barrier and performed a very nice backflip, striking the opposing umbreon in an uppercut fashion with a glowing tail of his own, sending Wolfe into the air.

'Fire a Shadow Ball, negative 30 degrees, six degrees to your left, 60 percent power' she ordered.

Kage fired the Shadow Ball at her given instructions, and Nova watched as Wolfe landed ten meters away from Kage, only to be struck by the Shadow Ball and sent sliding across the arena even further.

'Done,' she sent, and smiled to herself. You were impressive, Aurumn. But, unfortunately it wasn't enough, she thought to herself.

Wolfe got to his feet only slightly slower than before, and was about to charge at Kage, before he froze and looked at his paws. His back left paw was standing just outside of the arena. Wolfe frowned as he stared.

"Damn, I guess that means that I lost, huh?" he called out to Kage. Kage nodded silently, as Wolfe sighed again.

Then the crowd broke into cheers, everyone amazed at the impressive speed and skill that had just taken place. Wolfe just shook his head with a slight smile as he approached the other umbreon.

"Good match, my friend. I'm a little sad that it didn't last longer, but I suppose it's a small complaint," he told Kage. Kage nodded in agreement.

"Yes, it was a good match. I'm surprised that you were able to counteract my Valeurs so efficiently," Kage said, as the two umbreons made their way back towards their group. Nova nodded in agreement.

"Yeah, it made it a challenge for me to come up with a good strategy," Nova added as they came to a stop in front of her. Wolfe blinked at her.

"What do you mean, you came up with a strategy?" he asked in confusion.

Nova giggled. "Whenever he fights, I'm always nearby to help him. I give him silent commands to match up with whatever is happening in the fight. I'm pretty good with strategy," she told him.

Wolfe blinked again. Then he frowned. "So, you're saying that I was technically fighting two people?" he asked.

Nova giggled again. "Well, you were fighting him. I was just acting as his brains."

Wolfe started to pout. "I think that might be considered cheating," he said.

Nova shrugged. "Not really, as that's how we normally do things. If it's any consolation, you were still a challenge. If it wasn't for the fact that my goal was to just knock you out of the arena, I would have had him use his other abilities, but it wouldn't be a for sure thing."

Wolfe continued to glare at her and Kage. "That, is definitely not fair. I was fighting against someone with an already impressive fighting prowess, who was being guided by an incredibly sexy and smart eevee. Not fair," he complained.

Nova giggled, as Kage just shrugged. "Well, on the bright side, if we ever spar again you'll be prepared," he told him.

Wolfe's eyes lit up as an idea came to him. "In that case, I want a rematch tomorrow, with certain conditions. I will be in my human form, and you will be limited to whatever abilities you used today, including Nova's strategies. If I win, I get a night with you as a sub," he said, pointing at Kage, before continuing. "If I lose, I'll be your slave for a week. I'm fairly confident that it will be a better match up."

Kage frowned, before looking at Nova. Nova blinked in surprise, before grinning. "Deal!" she exclaimed.

Kage's eyes widened. "Nova!" he complained.

She grinned at him and winked. "Don't worry baby, I won't let you down. I just think it will be interesting to have him as a slave for seven days. And if you lose, well, everyone should be dominated at some point. Make you be aware of what it's like to be me," she told him, giggling.

He frowned at her, before sighing. "Fine, deal. I hope that I don't regret this," he told them. Wolfe started to grin at them.

"Well, it'll be a pleasure to spend some quality time with you, Mr. Refuse Every Time. About time that you come around," Wolfe said with a wink.

Kage groaned loudly, as Nova and Lura giggled with each other.

"Well, that was definitely an interesting match," the white vulpix from earlier told them, having approached their group once the match had ended. "You fight well," she said to Wolfe.

Wolfe smiled and dipped his head. "Always a pleasure to get a compliment from a pretty girl. At least someone notices," he replied, glaring at Kage.

The vulpix nodded. Then she turned to speak to Iris, who was sitting as close to Cordina as she could without touching her. "Iris, we need to go now. Sam is waiting for us," she said.

The furret rolled her eyes. "Yes, Hail. I'm coming. Not like you can complain, you got to ogle over Mr. Eye Candy here," she said, flicking her tail at Wolfe, who chuckled as the vulpix, Hail, started to look uncomfortable.

"Let's just go," she said, looking away. Wolfe started laughing loudly, as Nova, Lura and Cordina started giggling.

They watched as the two met up with an impatient looking human waiting at the entrance. Then they turned to Luna.

"What else is there to do, exactly?" Wolfe asked her. Luna frowned.

"Well, I'm not too terribly sure. Duke might have had some ideas, but, well… he's still out of it," she answered, flicking her tail towards the unconscious absol, who was surrounded by a group of his soldiers. "I suppose that we can just watch some more of the spars, as that was the original intention of coming here."

They all nodded in agreement, and turned to watch the fights.

They stayed there for the rest of the day, watching the soldiers spar. Nova noticed that they all seemed to be more eager than before, and guessed that witnessing Wolfe and Kage spar drove them to do better. One particular human seemed to be very motivated, as well as cocky. After he had won six matches easily, he started to brag that no one there stood a chance against him, not even Duke or Wolfe.

Wolfe obviously took this as a challenge, and had turned into his human form, much to the surprise of the people and pokemon around him. Then he entered the arena to spar with the cocky human in hand to hand.

Nova proceeded to watch as Wolfe toyed with the arrogant man, landing all of his hits where they would hurt the most, as well as dodging any blows that came his way. After leading the man on for twenty minutes, in which time the man realized that he was well and truly outmatched, as well as accruing many bruises and injuries, Wolfe slammed his fist into the man's temple, knocking him out instantly. Then he checked for his pulse, signaled that he was alright, and walked back to his group, turning into an umbreon as he went.

"Well that was just sad," he said. Artul stared at him, as did Via. Nova guessed that Artul wanted to ask him something, but apparently decided not to.

They continued to watch the matches, before getting food in the chow hall, and then heading towards their sleeping wing. Along the way, Via took her leave.

"I need to go back to my sleeping area, my partner is probably worried," she said.

Wolfe raised an eyebrow. "Partner? You mean your mate?" he asked.

She frowned and shrugged. "Haven't mated, so technically no. I suppose you could say love interest. I suppose that I probably shouldn't complain, but he… you know, never mind. I shouldn't bother you with my problems, especially after just meeting you all today. It was a sincere pleasure to do so, by the way. I look forward to seeing you all again," she told them, before bowing towards them. Then she headed down the main hall in the opposite direction.

Nova noticed that Artul was watching her as she walked, and resisted the urge to make a comment about it. One of the few times that she decided that discretion was the better part of valor.

They made it to their sleeping area, and Luna took her leave of them as well.

"I'll see you all tomorrow, I hope that you all sleep well!" she told them. They all said their goodbyes, before heading towards their own individual rooms. As Wolfe padded away with Lura and Cordina right beside him, Nova noticed Luna staring at him longingly. Then she sighed, and left their sleeping wing. Nova stared after her with some sympathy.

She and Kage went to their room, next to the Wolfe's residence, and she immediately hopped onto the bed, again with a happy squeal.

"I love beds!" she exclaimed, as Kage snorted. He hopped onto their bed, and turned to speak to her, but she cut him off by placing her lips on his, kissing him. At first, he didn't return it, but he eventually did, much to her pleasure.

He ended the kiss after a while, and just looked at her with an expression that she could only describe as love. He wasn't a very emotional man, so Nova took these moments whenever she could. As they curled up for Nova to sleep, she had one final thought before darkness overtook her.

I'm glad that he saved me. I'm glad that I have been able to help him through his dark times. I just wish that I could do more for him, though I know that he thinks I do so much already. I… I love him.