Chapter 29 – Arc 2 (Akala Island) Cain Instinct
Alone in a dimly lit room aboard the fantastical Aether Paradise, Lusamine was hunched over a desk. It was late and she was in her private office. Not the one she invited others in for even the most important of meetings, but her truly private, personal office, complete with decorative pedestals all around the perimeter. Of course, frozen within those pedestals, unlit at the moment, were lives she treasured deeply for their eternal beauty. Perfect, captured happiness, there to stay with her forever, unable to decay or vanish into thin air such as he had…
She was never alone with them around, nor was she ever alone in general much anymore, but that wasn't to say she couldn't ever be alone again… and she still longed for something so much more. There was one lovely beast she couldn't get out of her mind and that was why she so desperately searched for more perfection to add to her collection. That was why she cherished Dr. Faba's mind and capability. That was why she couldn't think of anything else. Sprawled across the desk just in front of a laptop opened on a blank, black screen was a set of needles and vials of viscous, violet fluid, the only thing she had to recall of that otherworldly visitor that had first drawn her attention outside the bounds of this reality—and later became her only tether to the world around her at all, after his disappearance.
Back then, she had been so unappreciative of that gorgeous guest. It had been before he had vanished, so she had been afraid, and had demanded for Nihilego's immediate evacuation. Dr. Faba had of course rushed to her assistance, as had all the other lab hands in that room that day. Although they hadn't discovered a way to force Nihilego to leave, her uninvited guest had shown himself the door via his own wormholes—but not until after he had lashed tentacles out at Lusamine, wrapping one firmly around her arm, then injected her with his potent toxins using a different, more slender tentacle with a fine, needle-like point at the end. The poison had an immediate relaxing effect, which had made everything seem to move in slow-motion that day in the deepest lab of Aether Paradise.
She had been released from Nihilego's hold as others in the lab rushed to try to force him away. A prototype Type: Null, the only one of the three that had seen any success in obedience, was brought in to scare the beast off. Collapsing to the floor, Lusamine had felt a warmth burn in her veins that she didn't understand, but never wanted to end, and then he had bolted to her side. Hardly able to speak, she had asked him to please tell the others not to harm Nihilego, but the beast had left through a wormhole before he had the chance to pass the message along. Following that day, she had been determined to find Nihilego again, to learn more of the alluring world he came from, of the wonderful poison that had felt so, so wrongly right.
The tiny vials of toxins ahead of her had been siphoned from her system through a series of blood transfusions and centrifuges. Ultimately, most of it had been destroyed or rendered inert through testing by her scientists, who were desperate to understand the venom's properties, both for curiosity's sake and more importantly, to make an antivenom. Yet, oddly enough, they found Lusamine didn't react too poorly to the otherworldly injection, all things considered. Aside from her immediate loss of mobility (which had come back just a few minutes after Nihilego had departed), there was no recognizable signs of damage. The tissue around the injection site wasn't blackened or swollen or leaking fluid; it had looked just like any other small puncture wound would be expected to look. And although her scientists had tirelessly insisted they develop an antivenom anyway, Lusamine had pulled the plug on those experiments long before they ever came close to developing one. He had been upset about that and he had begged her to let them continue, but she had refused. There was nothing wrong with her, and there was nothing wrong with Nihilego, so what was the point in wasting resources on it?
Of course, she had wanted to meet Nihilego again, to know more of him and the enchanting world that venom had whispered to her about. Well, it hadn't literally spoken to her, but… She raised a hand and snatched up a vial in her hands. She really wasn't supposed to have it, but this was her facility, and this was Alola. Such ideas of 'shouldn't' were mere guidelines. They were no hard-set rule. Truly, she just worried about getting carried away and utilizing too much of the toxin—oh, how she had such a hard time calling it that—and not having any more before she managed to summon Nihilego again.
Picking up a syringe, she pressed it through the thin membrane at the lip of the vial and sucked in a small amount at first… and although she intended to stop there, she stared, transfixed, as she drew more and more into the syringe. Reluctantly, she managed to stop after a quarter or so of the vile was empty and withdrew the point. Eyes still fixed to the point of that needle, she slowly rose to her feet to turn the main light of the room on, so she could get a good look at her arm and ensure she hit the right spot.
She found the light switch and flicked on the pristine, white overhead chandelier. Prisms of frozen pokémon glittered in the newfound light and the dark venom in her syringe looked so much more tantalizing in the better light. Eagerly darting back to her desk, Lusamine sank back into that tall, black leather chair, and held out her right arm. A small nub of scar tissue on the underside of her wrist told her exactly where to go and she plunged that needle in without a second thought, injecting herself all at once.
With every experiment, with every night with Dr. Faba, with every phone call to Professor Burnet, with every warm, lurid rush of that needle and toxin, his memory was farther and farther away, his name a forgotten relic of the past and his children an even duller memory. She didn't need him, his kids, nor Dr. Faba in the end, though, because the real paradise would be capturing the beauty of this world and every reality beyond it, all for herself and Nihilego. He had chosen her and together, they would craft the perfect, eternal paradise—one where nobody could ever be torn from her so violently and suddenly ever again.
It would be a world for them and them alone. Needle haphazardly slipping from her arm as she fell limp against the table, she sighed contentedly at the pure flood of heat in her veins and closed her fluttering eyelids. No, she had not intentionally done anything to harm him, but soon, she would leave behind the broken, ugly world where he was gone. Alola could burn to the ground or fall to eternal wintry darkness for all she cared, because she knew Nihilego would come for her, she'd continue her collection, and they would be together—forever. Forever encased in eternal beauty like the various pokémon displayed gloriously around her.
Oh, what a time to be alive…~ Dulse and Zossie had better not be wasting my time…
She practically purred to herself as she stretched her arms comfortably across the desk, accidentally knocking a desk lamp clear of the surface, though she didn't move to pick it back up nor did she react to the sound of the lightbulb shattering as it struck the floor. It sounded far, far away.
I might need to take matters into my own hands if they are…
When Selene had finally entered the room after Lillie and Elio, she had been shocked to find both had fallen asleep… together. Well, it didn't look as if they had curled up under the blankets and had intentionally done so; they were both still half-sitting upright, above the covers, and facing the miniscule TV in the far corner of the room playing the credits to some movie or TV show, suggesting they had passed out while watching something. Macho was curled up on Lillie's hip and still staring at the screen, as if fascinated by the TV. Still, the unexpected sight made Selene dip her head and sigh resignedly to herself. A dull flare of jealousy made her wonder why the plucky, snappy Lillie was more appealing to talk to for Elio than his own sister, but she didn't feel as if she had the energy to be upset about that on top of everything else. As she quietly chose a bunk on the opposing bed in the room, Nebby burst from beneath a pillow, squeaking excitedly and scaring her. She backpedaled and yelped, dropping her bag unceremoniously to the ground, while Bowtie irritably ruffled his feathers and cawed at Nebby. "Nebby!" Selene growled, frustrated, as she immediately dropped to retrieve her bag. I hope the egg is okay…
Elio and Lillie had shot awake at the commotion, with Lillie awkwardly untangling herself from beneath Elio's arm, flushing red as she realized their somewhat compromising position. "Selene? What's going on…?" she groggily asked, blinking fervently to adjust to the sights in front of her.
Sitting down on the bed she had chosen at last, Selene worriedly dug for her Miltank egg and hauled it free of its confines, carefully turning it over to inspect for damage. Satisfied that it was okay in the end, she let out a huge sigh of relief, while Lillie chided Nebby like a misbehaving child.
"Is it alright?" Elio had yawned as soon as he realized what was going on. He stumbled out of his bunk and moved to hers, curiously peering over her and down at the egg.
"It's fine," Selene answered cagily, squaring her shoulders as she shrank away from him. Nervously, she shot him an apologetic look. "Sorry, just… don't touch me, please…" I don't… I don't want any more of those visions…
"Oh, right, right," Elio laughed awkwardly, rubbing the back of his head and giving her some space. Then, he paused. "Hey, where's Hau?"
As if on cue, when Selene opened her mouth to try to explain how he had told her to go away and would be up later, there was a knock at the door. "Alola, Selene? Elio, Lillie?" Hau asked, muffled by the door.
Macho and Bowtie immediately bolted for the door, with Macho yowling and clawing at the bottom, while Bowtie fluttered around the peephole. Selene and Elio shared a look, then laughed in unison, as Lillie snorted. "It's us, Hau!" she hollered at the door. "You have a key?"
"Ae," he answered dully as he opened the door to enter. His Brionne rushed in before he did, blowing a few watery bubbles at Macho and Bowtie right away, drawing the two pokémon away from the door. Macho lunged at Popper almost immediately, and the two rolled in a mock fight on the floor, all while Bowtie landed nearby and clicked his beak repeatedly, as if to complain he was being left out. Yet, Hau, who Selene knew would have normally joked about their pokémon interacting like that, was entirely uninterested. He closed the door softly behind himself and his shoulders sagged with exhaustion. "Sorry. Was lot take care," he muttered.
"Hau, I'm sorry, man," Elio offered right away, standing up from the bed. "I… I had no idea that Lurantis was so sick, and whatever happened, it just shouldn't have been battling, and I know the Z-Move was too much for it—"
"Stop," Hau cut him off, recoiling at his words and shaking his head rapidly. He gave a shuddery sigh and stared at the floor. He waved a hand at Elio and started for the bunk above Selene's, hauling himself up the ladder without saying a word to anyone else. Flopping down on the bed above, he exhaled loudly. "Just… stop. No that."
"Hau, please, what happened with Captain Mallow?" Selene begged as she, too, stood up, after carefully ensuring her egg was secure on the bed. A frightening thought coursed through her as she waited for a reply that she somehow knew wasn't coming. What if Hau, after just starting to feel like a close friend, was withdrawing from her out of fear, much the same way Elio always did when their conversations got too serious? Fighting that wave of panic, she frustratedly pressed, "What was all of that back on the mountainside about being honest and sticking together, huh? Why won't you talk to us?"
He hoarsely snapped back at her in biting, bitter Alolan. "Because there's nothing to talk about. I gave you a whole speech about how we shouldn't be afraid, to be better than the rest that let fear guide them, and then I met a Tapu and realized why everyone might have reason to let it be that way." Sitting upright, he glared down at them all and huffed. "I just realized the world I want, where I don't have to be scared of anything and don't have to worry about being part of someone else's twisted machine, doesn't exist. And… and won't ever exist." He rubbed his right arm and brokenly whispered, "I just want to go to bed. Please. And tomorrow, we can go to Konikoni, and find your parents, and then you two can get out of here." With that, he flopped back down.
"What did he say?" Elio asked frustratedly, pacing in a circle. "What's going on? What's wrong?"
Floored and honestly, rather disturbed by Hau's depressive outburst, Selene just swallowed hard and glanced at Elio. "He met a Tapu and… he's upset," she mumbled to him in Kantonian. Daring to speak up to Hau again, Selene asked, "But, Hau, what did the Tapu do?"
"Yeah…" Elio paused to lick his lips anxiously. "I… I want to know, too, Hau…" Face twisting up as if he had tasted something sour, he uncomfortably added, "I'm w-worried, uh, about you."
Surprised, Selene blinked at her brother. That… was uncharacteristically honest. And to Hau, at that!
There was a long pause and Selene briefly feared that Hau wouldn't respond at all, but then he said through a strained voice, "When come choose new Totem, Tapu Lele use root hold Captain and me down. Force Fomantis evolve become Totem. Threat to hit Mallow if not listen. Made me mad, Tapu Lele sense, Tapu Lele attack me. Make use electric power… Did nothing, reveal me to Mallow. Mallow upset but promise not tell. Just… make see am nothing to rest of all. Am just go to be memory, another piece of machine, like all other here."
Lillie joined Selene and Elio then, cocking her head worriedly up in Hau's direction. "Another memory, like another piece in the machine…? Hau, what do you mean?"
This time, he replied in Alolan. "Sorry, not sure how to say this in Galarish. But have you ever noticed how you don't see a lot of maimed people walking around despite how the Tapus take care of Captains and Kahunas so they can't use their powers anymore once they're done?"
Selene did not like the sound of this already. She tensed and, in unison with Lillie, replied, "Yeah…?"
"That's because most don't live after that," Hau bitterly growled. "Captain Ilima was a lucky one. There're tons of books on the different powers and how the Tapus are known to take them away at the libraries… I only read a couple of pages of one in the past before I just put it up. All I can think, after Tapu Lele attacked me, was that I am nothing more than their tool and when they're done with me, they're going to throw me away, like they do everyone else. And I was stupid for thinking I could ever hope to be any different at all."
"Hau…" Selene gnawed her lower lip. She just didn't know what to say… And the mention of the way most Captains and Kahunas didn't live following their demotions was horrifying. She went white as a sheet and just took a seat on her bunk. Her heart ached for Hau, and she wanted to tell him he was wrong, to give him some hope he so clearly needed, but how could she when she didn't know for sure if he even was wrong? She felt another tidal wave of self-loathing, for the power Tapu Koko had granted her and for her inability to come up with anything to help Hau.
Elio sounded desperate. "Seriously, what's going on?" he begged, glancing to Lillie.
"He's just very upset after being attacked by Tapu Lele," Lillie guardedly explained. "He's just thinking a lot about the Captain and Kahuna stuff…" Dipping her head, she whispered, "I think we should just give him some time…"
"That's not all he said," Selene quietly interrupted. Elio froze and stared at her.
"What else did he say…?" he asked nervously.
"He said there's books in the libraries that talk about the different Captain and Kahuna abilities… Lillie, if my power has been given to a person before me, would information on it be in one of these books?" Selene hauntedly asked. "Like… like… how it works, or… how it gets… taken away…?"
Wincing, Lillie nodded stiffly. "Well… yes, but Selene, those books… most Captains or Kahunas don't ever read them for a reason," she said softly. "I used to spend a lot of time when I still went to school and such here on the islands at the libraries. Every book about the Tapu gifts has a disclaimer at the start that Captains and Kahunas are discouraged from reading because it can drive them crazy if they know how that power is going to get taken away first… I mean, some are obvious, like Captain Ilima's was pretty much guaranteed to be a loss of sight, but… others aren't so cut and dry and could have scarier consequences…" When Selene nor anyone else said anything, Lillie sighed. "But there is a library in Konikoni, and if you want, while you two search for your parents, I can check one out…"
More silence. Selene pondered the option as she stared at Macho, Popper, and Bowtie, still playing in the free part of the floor, oblivious to their trainers. On one hand, Selene thought, I could maybe find out how I control this stupid thing so I don't get anymore surprise looks into people's heads. Touching clearly has a tendency to cause it, but it doesn't always have to happen that way, considering I saw into Gladion's head even though it was his Type: Null that attacked me, so there must be something else going on… But on the other hand… She internally cringed. How do you take away someone's ability to internally visualize someone's memories? Frying their brain? Just, how would that even work…?
"I think I'd like you to do that, yeah…" Selene meekly said at last. I just… I need to find out anything else I can about this…
"Alright. That's settled, then."
Maybe tomorrow there will be something, anything, I can use after learning more about my power to help Hau… and of course, I really hope we learn something new about our parents… She paused as she thought about the beaten, despondent Hau. I don't think Elio and I are the only people that need to get out of Alola once we find them…
As it would turn out, the lower grunts in the Skull Gang were not the only ones who needed 'babysitting.'
Gladion had awoken that morning after yet another stay in the Skull boat to Makua skittishly pacing the length of its interior. He had seemed far jumpier than usual and had spoken in stuttering, fast gasps for breath, confusing and—to a degree—scaring the two grunt tagalongs they had under their care. Still with bleary eyes, Gladion had snapped at him to calm down and speak coherently, since he couldn't understand a word Makua was saying in his borderline frenzied state. Gladion might have understood Alolan, but frantic, broken phrases in it were still near impossible for him to decipher.
"Diglett," Makua had heaved in a forcibly steady voice, still speaking in Alolan, pausing momentarily. He had immediately started to tap his foot, as if unable to stand being still, itching to be moving again. "We n-needta grab some Diglett from the tunnel near the R-Ruins o' Life, 'cause construction workers like t-to use them, and those can go for a good pr-price, or be traded for something nice, a-and—"
"I thought you said we were leaving today?" Gladion had cut him off irritably, bewildered. The two grunts, who had also been woken up by Makua's zaniness, huddled at the other end of the boat, avoiding him and remaining quiet. "Back to Ula'Ula. 'We got enough shit from here on Akala, and Guz needs his new pet back.' Those were your exact words." I remember because I was pretty pissed at them. I'm not Guzma's lapdog.
Rapidly shaking his head and starting for the ladder out the interior of the vessel, Makua hollered, "No, no, I didn't! L-let's go! On to Diglett's Tunnel!"
Before anyone had even had a chance to argue, he was gone, and Gladion had sighed deeply and urged the other two grunts to come along.
They spent most of the journey to Diglett's Tunnel struggling to keep up with Makua, who suddenly seemed to have boundless energy. The entire time, Gladion had just mutinously thought to himself, 'I still do what I'm s'posed to, Gladion.' Sure, you do. You just also go into drug-induced fervors like this, apparently. You failed to mention that, Makua. Yet, from what I understand, you're one of Guzma's best friends, so if anything happens to you, it's probably my ass. He had glanced over to the two nervous grunts, whispering to one another in a weirdly subdued fashion that made him uncomfortable to see. And maybe theirs, too, even though they don't know what's going on…
Upon arriving at this Diglett's Tunnel, Gladion was beyond angry at Makua. They had trekked an unreasonable distance that day—part of him wondered why they hadn't just moved the boat, then walked—and Makua still seemed oblivious to how ridiculous he was being. As Makua scoured the tunnel for a Diglett to try to battle, Gladion turned to the two subdued and exhausted grunts. Stiffening his back, already uncomfortable despite not having said anything yet, Gladion mumbled, "You two okay?"
"Yeah…" the male muttered, though he refused to look up at Gladion. "Just been a while since saw Makua like 'at, y'know."
That certainly piqued Gladion's interest. As he looked down to call Null back, who had started to curiously walk after Makua, he asked, "You've seen Makua like this before?"
"Mhm," the girl chimed in, nodding slowly. "Big Sis says it's okay, though. He just needs a lil' bit to tire himself out. He's a Steel-type trainer, so, he can prob'ly hold his own same as you and that, uh…" She wrinkled her nose as she flicked her gaze to Null. "As that Null, there. That's it, right?"
That's the first time they haven't called him a mutt or a monster or something to that effect… Gladion couldn't help the tiny smile that graced his face. "Yeah, that's his name."
"Well, that's not all Big Sis said 'bout it," her friend pointedly said, looking up at Gladion almost expectantly. Expectant for what, Gladion wasn't sure. "She did say that if he ever didn't snap out o' it after a couple hours or so to let her know…"
"…Except we're on an entirely different island, and Makua's supposed to be our contact with Po Town," Gladion groaned. Why on this godforsaken planet would they send us off with our only contact being someone that's hanging on to reality by a thread?
"Stop! You're messin' with the Skull Gang now!" Gladion heard Makua snarl from deeper within the cavern, or perhaps just outside of it on the other end.
"That sounds bad," the girl grunt nervously mumbled.
Gladion had already stiffened his jaw and hissed for Null to keep close. "Let's go check it out. Keep close to me, you two." The hell's wrong with you, Makua?
Nothing. Absolutely nothing.
That was what he, Selene, Hau, and Lillie had found in Konikoni regarding his parents. Following the night in the Pokémon Center in Heahea where Hau had snapped at them all, they had taken a couple of Ride Charizard (which had been an experience, for sure; he was used to seeing Charizard on TV that had been beefed up for battle, ones that couldn't care less for human affection, meanwhile the ones the Alolans used for travel were docile and even playful) to Konikoni, and had gotten to work asking around the city for any information about their parents. Although he knew it had been a slim hope, to find more on their parents in Konikoni, Elio hadn't realized just how much he had been clinging to it until it was dashed repeatedly, as Alolan after Alolan had no idea who or what they were talking about. It was an utterly heartbreaking feeling to get excited every time they spoke to someone, just to know in the back of his mind that they were just as unlikely to know anything as the last person.
At some point, Lillie had offered to go get that book for Selene from the library while they paused to pick up some food for them all at a shop. Hesitantly, Selene had accepted Lillie's offer, and off she went, promising she'd return shortly. That had made Elio nervous, and he had just tuned Selene and Hau out at the shop as they waited and as his sister sympathetically tried to chat with the unusually moody Hau. It wasn't as if he could understand them anyway, so…
When Lillie returned with the book, she had offered it to Selene, who had balked upon seeing its cover. "Maybe… maybe not right now, actually," she had nervously chuckled. "Maybe tomorrow, or something… Let's just eat and then keep looking and asking around… Let's just focus on that today…"
Elio hadn't said anything. He wasn't sure if it had even fully processed in his mind that Selene's power had the potential to be revoked in the future in a bloody or painful way. Just the mere thought of that had his fists clenching and teeth grinding furiously.
Some time later, they learned from a native in the city that there was a police station just outside of Konikoni. "I dunno what they really do, to be honest," the man had callously laughed. "Not like anyone listens to them over the Koni Champions, anyway."
"The Koni Champions…?" Selene had almost cautiously implored.
"Oh," the man had awkwardly paused, "uh, yeah… Right, you're not from Alola. Well, you know, the Konis—that's what people who live here in Konikoni and closer to the Ruins of Life call themselves… Then, everyone that lives in Heahea and north of there calls themselves the Heans. Us Konis, if we got anything really goes wrong, we just tell the Koni Island Challenge Champions, and they'll sort it out real quick." He had laughed and winked at them. "If you know what I mean. They're really who keeps us safe. They know what they're doing, unlike those idiots in blue that like to yap at everyone about what's safe or what isn't, like we're all idiots. Tapus only know why Kahuna Olivia has been telling us to try to listen to them more lately…"
No, I don't know what you mean, and whatever you mean I'm sure is horrifying. And the fact you think police officers are a stupid concept says a lot, Elio had rudely thought to himself, taking everything in his power to keep from snapping exactly that.
They had decided after that it couldn't hurt to speak to the 'police' (though Elio thought it sounded like they were more like hall monitors than police as he knew them), so, out of Konikoni's east gate they went. There as only a single building along the short path that connected the city to a cave route and what Elio thought looked to be a graveyard… He inwardly cringed at that sight and clung a little closer to the rest of the group as they headed for the police station.
It was painfully silent, though. Elio had come to understand his forced humor wasn't really that funny, so he had no random jokes to make, and Hau and Selene were both subdued, as the former was still quiet and shutdown after the experience he'd endured in the Lush Jungle. The utter defeat in Hau's voice whenever he did speak was enough to make Elio want to guiltily hang his head. Maybe, if I had just paid closer attention to the Lurantis during that battle… but I didn't… I can just be so accidentally… dangerous…
"Stop! You're messin' with the Skull Gang now!"
Oh, fucking, great. Elio jerked his head up in time to see a gangly man with whitish hair and trademark Skull Gang attire run up to them with a blue and white Poké Ball clutched in his right hand. Selene and Hau, at the front of the group, jolted in surprise and then backpedaled from the Skull member. "What do you want?" Elio barked at him defensively before anyone else had a chance to speak, feeling that immediate rush of adrenaline and protective anger. Macho stepped in front of him and flexed his claws against the ground again and again, growling lowly at the Skull member. Elio thought about what the man had said, then scoffed. "We didn't mess with you. You literally just ran up to us. What?"
"Don't play 'at shit with me!" the man snarled, pitching the Quick Ball. A Mawile spilled free of the ball and snapped its fangs after them.
"What the hell?" Selene frustratedly groaned, stepping even further back as Bowtie jumped from her shoulder and started to hover in the air ahead of her. "We didn't do anything to you! We don't have time for this!"
"And frankly, I don't have the patience," Elio added waspishly. Still, this man pulling a pokémon on them made his intentions more than clear. With no idea what this Skull member could possibly want from them, all inhibitions about battling were forgotten as Elio looked down at Macho and sternly said, "Macho, watch him, get ready!"
The Torracat lunged forward and landed, poised for battle, just ahead of the Mawile.
"Makua! Makua, will you knock this o—oh, for the love of…"
Puffing for breath as he caught up with the Skull member threatening them, Gladion slowed to a stop and gave them an unreadable look. His uncanny, Frakenstein's-monster-of-a-pokémon was hot on his heels, though when Gladion stopped, it dropped to its side and scratched at its mask. Shaking his head in disbelief, Elio opened his mouth to tell Gladion off, and to his surprise, it was Selene who ruthlessly cut him off to do so for him.
"I don't know what your game is," Selene snapped, "but I told you that I'm not joining, and you said you would leave us alone unless we messed with you. We're not messing with you. Your friend here came and ran up on us and tossed out a pokémon to battle." She stamped a foot irritably and shot at him, "So, call him off, before I decide I do want to mess with you!"
If his life were a sitcom (which he sometimes felt like it was), Elio thought he might have heard a record skip to a stop. 'I'm not joining…' What does she…? His mouth dried out and he blinked fervently as he inched his way closer to Selene and, despite her obvious aggravation and preoccupation with the Skull members, anxiously asked, "Uh… Selene, did you talk to him before…? About… about joining?"
"Not the time, Elio!" Selene whined in frustration. "Please…"
"Enough talk!" Makua barked. "Battle, now! Fangs, Iron Head—"
"Makua!" Gladion hissed, turning to the lanky man and grabbing him by his shirt. He shook him in a scene that might have been hilarious if they weren't all in such a poor mood. "Earth to Makua! Knock this off!"
Of course, his orders fell on deaf ears. Makua raised a hand and ungraciously slapped Gladion away, pointing an accusatory finger at him after he stumbled back in shock from the blow. "Ya just don't get it! And ya never will. Ya ain't really Skull!"
Gladion's entire demeanor seemed to change after the slap. Rubbing his face where he'd been struck, Gladion cut his eyes at Makua and, oddly calm given the situation, asked, "What do you mean by that, Makua…?"
"Oh, can you two have your drama somewhere else?" Selene spat. "We've got better things to do." With that, she tried to sidestep Gladion and Makua, but Makua's Mawile jumped in front of her and snapped teeth at her legs, which triggered Macho to attack, and so, he bowled into the Steel-type and snapped flaming teeth around its elongated maw. While Selene squeaked in fearful surprise and jumped back, both pokémon rolled around in a violent battle, with the Mawile trying to sink its fangs into Macho to wrench him off and Macho doing his best not to let the pokémon get back up.
"Gladion!" Lillie sharply chimed in, addressing her brother at last. She stepped into place next to Elio and desperately asked, "What's going on? Who is this threatening us? What are you doing?"
Slowly moving his hand from where he had been slapped, Gladion's lips pressed to a thin line as his back stiffened. Giving her a look with glittering green eyes Elio could have only described as murderous, he practically bared his teeth as he growled, "Good to see you, too, Lillie."
Curling her lip right back at him, Lillie snapped, "Oh, save it. If you knew who I was, why didn't you say anything, either? And by the way, what the hell are you doing as part of the Skull Gang?"
"I could ask you the same thing about not saying anything despite recognizing me," he retorted with a sneer. "You saw me before when I didn't recognize you and you said nothing!"
This is a fucking mess, Elio thought in the beginnings of a panic as he surveyed the situation. Selene had stumbled back to join him, standing to his left, while Bowtie watched Macho and Makua's Mawile wrestle on the ground. The Dartrix occasionally darted in with a Peck at the Mawile, but that, of course, did nothing. Lillie was to his right, and clearly, she and Gladion had too many hurt feelings between them to interact rationally, especially not given the crazy Skull member named Makua influencing Gladion. While Lillie and Gladion had started sniping at one another, Makua had started combing through the other Poké Balls on his belt, as if oblivious to the fact he had his Mawile out and battling already. Blinking, Elio realized he didn't see Hau. Looking around himself briefly, he caught sight of him watching from a short distance with that measured, wary expression and his knees slightly bent, tensely poised for… something. Elio wasn't sure what, but it pissed him off to notice that Hau had all but bailed on them as things got heated with Skull. Turning his attention back to the scene immediately ahead of him, Elio took a deep, steadying breath. Okay, so—
"What was I going to say to you, Glad?" Lillie pleaded, shaking her head at him. "I… I messed up, and I still can't even be sure of what I can tell you… I'm sorry. I got caught up in something so messy, and I was and still am scared, I just… I never meant to abandon y—"
That clumsy apology only seemed to serve to rile Gladion up more. "You were scared?" he cut her off furiously, jabbing a finger at her. "You don't have a fucking clue!" He grinned a wild, almost unhinged grin, and then laughed. He flicked his gaze to Makua. "Makua? If you still want to battle them, I'm down."
"Trying to pick next pokémon," Makua distractedly told him. "Fire-type…"
"Don't you have a Bastiodon?"
"Right!" Makua retrieved a Timer Ball from his belt, and pitched that one, too. The massive pokémon that was freed stomped a few times and then roared, a loud, grating noise that made Elio wince, and all of them cover their ears—except for Makua. He just cackled, like someone had told him the funniest joke on Earth. "Now this party's really gettin' started!"
"What are you doing?" Elio demanded, protectively stepping slightly ahead of Selene and Lillie both. Blood roared in his ears, heart pounding, as he wanted so badly to do nothing more than keep them all safe, to walk out of this confrontation unscathed, but terrified that wouldn't happen. He didn't understand this place and he didn't understand Skull, and he didn't know what they wanted, nor just how deep the bad blood between Gladion and Lillie ran. Yet, despite his internal panic, his voice had taken on a commanding, deep cadence. "He already has his Mawile out. I assume you're going to use that… thing right there"—Elio pointed to Gladion's monstrous pokémon, still on its side and clawing at its mask—"so you already have enough pokémon out for a double battle."
Gladion glared at Lillie, then turned that cold stare on Elio. "Cute, he thinks we have to follow battle standards," he mockingly sneered with a wicked grin. "Null! By me!"
Breath hitching, Elio realized in a rapid, runaway train of thought that there really wasn't anything to keep them from ignoring standard battle rules… did Alola even have standardized battle rules? Well, he knew the Kahuna battles did, but… Oh, whatever, he didn't have time to think about that! Not as Makua's Mawile finally slapped Macho away and retreated to stand between his Bastiodon and Gladion's Null. Oh, but… if they didn't have to follow standard battle rules…
…then neither did he, Selene, or Hau. In a protective autopilot, he decided to give everyone their orders, not that he knew where the confidence to do so came from. "Hau!" Elio hollered over his shoulder, where the other jerked his head to stare at him with wide eyes. "I know you're not doing great right now, man, but we need your help, so get over here, please!" Switching gears to Selene, he curtly told her, "These guys aren't going to follow standard battle rules, so neither are we. Toss out your Sandshrew."
She nodded up at him and the battle was on.
Gladion hadn't intended to even speak to Lillie during this encounter. As soon as he recognized the crew of four ahead of him, he had wanted to just snap Makua out of it, and move along, leaving them alone, but… Lillie's biting tone and callousness, followed so shortly after the slap from Makua, was infuriating on a level he didn't know. He had heard the phrase 'to see red' before, but only in that moment had he truly understood it, as after she had said she had been scared, his vision had fleetingly flashed a crimson and he had felt the overwhelming urge to do… something to her. He didn't even know what.
She had abandoned him to Lusamine.
She had abandoned him for a pokémon and then hadn't even left Alola, as Dr. Wicke had made it sound she intended to.
Based on Elio's aggressive protectiveness, he surmised that she had even done herself the favor of finding herself a partner after skipping out on him. How adorable.
As he ordered Null to attack Elio's Torracat, knowing that it was the biggest threat to Makua's mostly Steel-type team, Gladion was just full of hate. He hated everything she stood for, everything she had done, everything he had been put through—scared…
Lillie didn't know what scared was.
Scared was getting locked in a room with no idea of when you'd next come out.
Scared was randomly getting struck across the face at your mother's moody whim, usually followed by a diatribe or speech about why you deserved it.
Scared was watching scientists rip apart a living, breathing pokémon, a Type: Null, then watching them put it back together, as if it were no more sentient than a broken computer.
Scared was being left alone to it all when, for a time, even if he and Lillie had grown distant, he thought she was all he had left.
He licked his lips as he hatefully scowled at her, partially huddling behind Elio. I'll make you know what 'scared' is. You're not all I have left anymore. Sure, Makua was acting oddly, and he certainly hadn't appreciated the slap that had reminded him far too much of home life with Lusamine, but the two grunts (who were watching everything unfold from a distance), the little girl he had helped save from attackers back near Po Town, Guzma, Null… they were his world now. They were as far from Aether Paradise and as far from Lillie as it got. He could handle a slap here or there, he thought mutinously.
I'll show her just how much I don't need her. I'll beat that stupid boyfriend of hers and show them how strong I am—and make sure she knows I'm not her brother anymore.
the takeaway from this chapter is everyone in Alola is crazy /s
also please forgive me for obvious errors or mistakes, but please also point them out to me so I can fix them. This was another "ADHD-fueled rush to write it out before I lost all motivation" chapter so I wrote it while half-asleep and half wired on coffee. lol.