"So, yeah. It's a big mess." Rayzor sighed and dropped his hands in a final flourish.

"Hmm." Sheer stared straight ahead at the backs of Meyers and Golurk. "Yeah. That sucks. For you." Rayzor snorted and rolled his eyes. "Obviously."

Zero readjusted himself so his face rested on the Bisharp's shoulder. "You should tell him. Bean told me honesty is the best policy." He wasn't sure if he entirely believed that himself, though. Lying seemed to help certain situations.

Rayzor flushed for the thousandth time that day. "No! That's what I just did, and it went terribly!"

Apparently, Sheer had been right about Rayzor on that day in Lostlorn. Him and Sheer had spent the trip listening to him whimper about embarrassing himself up in the mountains. Zero didn't understand what was so gray about the discussion. Rayzor hadn't done a good job communicating his feelings, so he should just try again and be more concise.

"I don't remember inviting you to the conversation," Sheer muttered, looking at him sideways. He frowned. "I didn't know I had to be invited. Sorry."

"Ignore her," Rayzor breezed. "She's just jealous that someone else wants to help."

"You do realize I'm here for the gossip, right?" she said. "I'm going to go tell Golurk everything you said right now."

"NO! Sheer, that's not funny!" Rayzor wailed, taking off after her with Zero still clinging to his arm. Meyers turned at the sound of their voices, but Golurk's gaze stayed off to the side of the road.

"Done plotting? Nice of you to finally join us," Bean cooed, but her tone held no scorn. She pointed out over the hills they were currently trekking across. There was the faintest outline of a city silhouetted against the horizon. "I think that's where we should stop next. I'm a bit turned around after the mountain climb, so I'm not sure exactly where we are, but I think we'll be able to take shelter there."

The others mumbled their usual tired agreement and fell in step with her and Meyers. Zero didn't miss the way Rayzor and Golurk drifted away from each other. Sheer didn't either, judging by the eyeroll. He hoped they'd make up soon. They were two of his favorite travel partners, and it was unfortunate when neither one of them wanted to talk.

The group continued on their awkward parade for most of the morning, the mysterious city looming ever closer, until something caught Zero's eye. "I think there are Pokemon down there. Off the side of the trail."

They were now at the peak of one of the rolling hills, the path guarded by forest on either side. At the foot of the hill, half hidden in the shade of the trees, a pair of Bisharp seemed absorbed in discussion.

Bean stiffened immediately, which made Zero wary. It wasn't often that she got physically defensive. "Meyers-"

"Ignore them," he said pointedly, thumping his tail once. "They have no business with us. We didn't do anything to 'em. We're just gonna keep walking and-"

Rayzor's eyes finally found what they were staring at and let out a pained noise at the sight of the other Bisharp. "Oookay, we're gonna take the long route, come on, everyone, let's go this way-" he rambled, grabbing Meyers's arm and trying to pull him in the other direction, but it was too late.

The commotion made one of the soldiers look up. They elbowed their partner and pointed in the direction of their group. Zero stared back at them, trying to find the correlation between his group and theirs. Rayzor was a Bisharp, too, but the other Bisharp didn't look familiar in the slightest…

"What's going on? Who are those people?" Sheer hissed, glaring at Rayzor and Meyers. Golurk also looked confused.

Rayzor pressed on the space between his eyes. "Bean and Meyers and I ran into one of those Bisharp in a town a while back and they were not nice Pokemon- also they work for Bellatrix," he added meekly. Zero blinked in surprise and turned back to where the two soldiers were staring at them.

"Oy!" one of them shouted. "I know you all, don't I? Well, at least some of ya. Come down here! We just wanna have a chat!" The mischievous malice in his voice suggested the opposite.

"Absolutely not," Rayzor hissed under his breath. "We need to get out of here. If they're here, then that means-"

"Bellatrix," Sheer murmured.

"Yes, exactly! If she… shows up…"

Zero gaze returned to the Bisharp soldiers as he trailed off. More had begun to emerge from the trees, and suddenly it felt less like a run-in and more like a threat. There were perhaps 30 of them in number, though based on the way the trees behind them were rustling there was a very good chance there were more hidden away.

"Oh, dear. We must be walking right by their campsite," Bean murmured. "Unfortunate."

"You think so?" grumbled Meyers, holding his stance as the soldiers eyed them curiously. The forest rustled one last time as the final Bisharp stepped out, and suddenly Zero had a very good idea of why they should be running.

Bellatrix was at least a few inches taller than every other soldier, and her presence demanded that all the attention be on her. Zero found himself both filled with the desire to watch her in fascination and run in the other direction.

The most alluring thing about her was the sense of power that emanated from her in waves. The scars and posture and intimidation were part of it, of course, but seeing her surrounded by soldiers and still standing out so dangerously made it hard not to have a begrudging respect for such a figure.

"What do they want?" Sheer asked sharply, glaring at Rayzor and the others. "What did you do to them?"

"I think we probably shouldn't wait to find out," Golurk offered meekly, and Bean and Meyers nodded hurriedly. "Let's, ah…" Bean signaled behind them with a wing, but a sudden wave of voices from below made them hesitate.

The first soldier was explaining something to Bellatrix, grinning all the while as she stared deadpan ahead. The Bisharp ended their explanation by pointing towards the group, making them tense, but the general sighed and growled something they couldn't make out.

The soldier's expression turned to disappointment, and a rumble of general unhappiness passed through the crowd. Bellatrix's expression grew tight.

"Enough! All of you, shut up!" she yelled, and every soldier leapt to attention so quickly Zero could barely process what had happened. "Are a couple of pedestrians really that important to you, fools?"

She paced back and forth a couple of times, shaking her head in annoyance. Her voice dropped again, too quiet for them to hear, but the thoughtful look she gave their group made him instantly nervous again.

"That's not good," muttered Sheer, squinting down at them. "It looks like they're-"

Bellatrix was in the middle of giving the command when Bean squawked and Meyers reared. "Alright, kids, let's go! Now, please! Quickly!"

They didn't need to look back to know that the victorious shouts were made by the soldiers giving chase. "We have to make it to that city! There's nothing else out here!" Meyers barked as he galloped on. The sound of footsteps grew louder behind them.

"Maybe they don't want to hurt us," Zero suggested, but the others didn't slow down.

"Not worth the risk, I think," Sheer scoffed. "They don't seem like the merciful type."

Personally, he wouldn't mind getting a chance to interact with Bellatrix, really. Anybody with that much poise and control was… worth meeting.

Zero was clinging to Rayzor's arm again by the time the full skyline of the futuristic city loomed into sight. It was nothing like he had ever seen- manmade, perhaps? They'd done a rather good job of avoiding human creations on their adventure, so he wasn't sure if he could match a description to an actual building, anyways. These buildings seemed awfully close, though.

All of the skyscrapers were made of black, sleek material and dotted with windows. The rooms that were lit up glowed blue against the predominantly black horizon. Despite the imminent danger of being chased down by a rather ferocious rogue general and her entire army, he found himself much more fascinated by the city before them.

How had they built towers so high? And for what reason? The buzz and pollution of a busy city seemed almost nonexistent, but they also weren't quite close enough to determine that for sure. Did Pokemon live in this city, with humans? He had heard of Pokemon choosing to spend their time serving humans, but it sounded rather unsavory. Hmm. Interesting. Did Pokemon ever consider ruling humans, instead? His thoughts were getting a bit off-track, but he just found the entire situation rather curious-

"It's Black City! Hurry!" gasped Bean, interrupting his ponderings.

"Black City?" he asked, but his quiet voice was lost in the scuffle. Shouts rang out from behind them.

Rayzor and Zero turned at the same time, expecting to catch glimpses of blades hot on their heels. They were surprised to find that their Bisharp pursuers were slowing to a walk, pacing the path that led into Black City's plaza.

Rayzor's steps faltered and Golurk's hand gently kept the pair standing, the earlier tension seemingly forgotten.

"Meyers!" called Sheer, who had also stopped with them. The dragon slowed to a trot and glanced back, narrowing his eyes at the scene.

"Kids! Come here! Now!" snapped Bean, flapping her wings frantically. Zero felt inclined to go to her side, as if he was being scolded by his mother. Was that what having a mother felt like? The rest of the group seemed to be experiencing the same pull, and they left their marveling to stand with the couple.

Behind them, Bellatrix's scouts began to jeer and shout things that Zero could only interpret as obscene. "Why aren't they following us?" he dared to ask.

"Maybe they can't come in Black City," Sheer mused. Once they'd met Meyers and let Bean flutter around them like a distressed Pidove, they turned back to the stunning neon city again.

"Perhaps Black City has been designated as a safe zone," Bean suggested shakily. "It would make sense, considering the majority of the population is Pokemon."

"It looks like it was made by humans," Golurk said. "Or- that's what I'd assume. It's, uh, different."

Bean nodded again, then puffed up her chest the way she did when she was about to lecture- to educate them on something. "Black City was built by humans, yes. But for some reason, despite being so large, it's almost entirely uninhabited by them. Not abandoned, mind you- there are still a few humans who stick around to take care of the city. It's mostly run by Pokemon. Perhaps the goal was always to make a city for Pokemon to live in, but that seems a bit… gracious."

The others seemed to accept this, but Zero was still burning- not literally, that was a figure of speech he'd picked up from the others- with questions. Why did the humans leave such an extravagant place behind? Was it faulty? Diseased, perhaps? He was impervious to any type of biological illness, but perhaps something sinister had driven the humans away? Or maybe he was just thinking negatively, and Black City had been held to house Pokemon all along. Also, how hard was it to rule- or was run the right word- a city?

His musings were interrupted yet again by a pampered-looking Zweilous trotting out in front of their group as they entered the city.

"Oh!" The two heads looked up at them. "Oh," they said again, the left head wrinkling their nose. "Perhaps you could use a bath. Or maybe a polish."

Rayzor gave a rather offended scoff and rubbed at his hands, but Bean didn't miss an opportunity. "Oh, excuse me! Could you perhaps direct us to the- ah, the mayor, maybe? Who runs Black City right now?"

The right Zweilous head gave a small swoon, and the left snorted. "Cobalt," they answered in unison, though with vastly different tones. They nodded at one of the apartment buildings, which had almost every building lit up in shades of blue and violet. "He's in his suite, I think…"

Without providing any further context, the Zweilous ambled away into the steadily growing crowd. As the moon rose, the Pokemon did too, apparently.

"What do we need their leader for?" Rayzor asked, crossing his arms. "These Pokemon don't seem very…" He trailed off, but Zero could infer he was still a little offended about the bath comment.

"Bellatrix's army could still be loitering outside the city," Bean said, shivering. "If this is a safe haven, we could stay here for a while," Meyers added, though his shrewd glances at the extravagant buildings told Zero he wasn't too keen on that regardless.

"Then let's go look for this Cobalt. I'm tired of standing here with everyone staring at us," Sheer grumbled, sending an icy glare at a pair of gawking, pampered-looking Purrloin.

Inside the building, there was a surprising amount of minimalist decorating. While the streets had been lined with extravagant lights and even more extravagant Pokemon, the lobby was simple, clean, and had a curious amount of the color white.

"May I help you? You look… lost." The group jumped as a Sawk seemingly materialized next to them, the Pokemon's usual garb replaced with a black, glossy robe.

"We're lookin' for Cobalt," Meyers grunted.

The Sawk's expression soured slightly at the slang, but he nodded respectfully in the direction of the elevator. "Room 47. Press on the intercom. And, ah, please don't all pile in the elevator at once," he added with a wary look at Golurk.

"I wouldn't fit in the elevator anyways," he muttered as the butler walked away, eliciting a hesitant smile from Rayzor.

Meyers was already at the panel on the wall, squinting at the array of buttons. "Kids, c'mere. I don't know how to work this thing." Zero himself had never seen an elevator panel, but Rayzor seemed to know well enough to carry the weight of the others' lack of understanding.

After a few seconds of static, a voice came through from the other side of the speaker. "Yes?" It had a heavy accent that Zero didn't recognize.

Bean and Meyers leaned forward before anybody else could speak. "We're looking for Cobalt! Does that happen to be you, sir?"

"Indeed it is. I'll be right there, give me a second-" The voice cut out abruptly, leaving the group to stare at each other.

"That was… deceptively easy," Rayzor mused. Sheer moved to make a sarcastic remark, but before she could the elevator dinged and everyone turned towards the slowly opening door.

"Oh, my esteemed guests! Perfect timing, I was already on my way down here." Zero nearly reeled back in surprise as another Bisharp stepped out of the elevator. Perhaps Bisharp was an understatement, or an insult- this Pokemon was one of the most extravagant he'd ever encountered. As he stepped out of the elevator, his presence seemed to fill the entire room- or, perhaps that was just the light glinting off of his impossibly perfectly shining blades. A royal ruff of sleek black feathers flowed up behind his head and draped comfortably around his neck, the dark colors contrasting the brilliant blue and gold. Zero had thought different-colored Pokemon were rare, but they'd seen two blue Bisharp in a day. How interesting…

The Bisharp gripped a black-and-gold cane in one hand, but he assumed that it was purely aesthetic by the way he stood up straight and spun it with one claw. The others seemed just as stunned, but Sheer was the first to recover. "Are you Cobalt?"

The Bisharp looked her over with a critical eye, his gaze lingering on her scar, before nodding. "That would be me. How can I help you?" The sharp smile returned as Cobalt surveyed the rest of the group with varying degrees of interest. His eyes passed almost without hesitation over Zero, which sparked mild disappointment. He had many questions for this strange Pokemon.

"It's great to meet you, sir!" Bean said, bowing her head. "We were wondering if you might be able to help us out. See, we're just passing through, and-"

"Oh! This sounds like it might be lengthy. This calls for a sit-down, I think!" Cobalt said, clapping his hands together cheerfully.

The clank brought a Frillish to his side. "Bring a tray to the table, would you?" The ghost murmured something agreeably and drifted away again.

"Now, come! This way, please! I love your scarf, by the way," he added as he looped one of his arms around Rayzor's and dragged the group towards a pair of luxury couches and a coffee table.

"I'm kind of tired of sitting down for tea," Zero heard Golurk mumble to Sheer. Sheer muttered something back that was considerably less restrained.

Cobalt sat down on the couch across from the rest of them, curiosity swimming in his eyes. "So, let's hear it. What brings you to me?"

Bean was eager to explain their story, and how they'd ended up in Black City, but Cobalt cocked his head at the mention of the Bisharp army. "A Bisharp army, you say? How fascinating. I wonder… oh."

He tapped his hands together as the group stared at him in bemusement. "It's because of that tyrant fellow, isn't it? Great stars, the world is a mess these days." His speech patterns confused Zero. It was almost as if he didn't know Bellatrix and her army were out battling Invictus. How was that possible when they lurked so close to the city?

"You- um, you don't know about the army? About-" Golurk started before he was cut off by Sheer. "How do you not know about Bellatrix? You're a Bisharp!"

Cobalt blinked at her, his previously casual demeanor somewhat evaporating. "What? Of course I know Bellatrix." He leaned forward on the couch, seeming truly interested in the conversation for the first time. "Though I haven't talked to her in a long time. Wow. She's off running an army, eh? Doesn't surprise me." He gave a disbelieving grin and shook his head.

A collective "what?" went around the group.

"Wait- you- you know her?" Rayzor gasped. He and Golurk swapped a look that Zero didn't understand.

"Yeah, yeah! Of course I do." At their dubious stares, he added, "You… do know she's my sister, right?" For a moment, everyone went quiet with shock.

Sheer finally broke the silence. "Hilarious."

"No, really! I know, I know, we're complete opposites, but… yeah. We're twins." His gaze fell somewhere distant for a moment before refocusing. "I haven't talked to her in years, though. But yeah, the army thing makes sense. I guess-"

"Does she know you're here?" Bean interrupted. Cobalt brushed it off and laughed.

"Darling, everybody knows I'm here! Of course she does. That's why she never visits," he added in a mutter. Zero could feel the pieces falling together.

"That's why the Bisharp didn't follow us in here, right?" he asked half to Bean and half to Cobalt.

"I'd assume so," the Swoobat replied. "Perhaps Bellatrix has told them they're not allowed to approach the city."

"Wait, there are two blue Bisharp in your family?" Golurk asked suddenly. Cobalt lost interest in the previous topic of conversation and nodded. "Yep. Just me and Bellie. The rarest occurrence in a thousand years, did you know that?"

"Okay, wait. We're getting off topic," Sheer butted in, earning an irritated look from the Bisharp. "You're telling us that you know Invictus is marching across Unova and you're not worried about your city? About the residents? And you didn't even know about Bellatrix's army?!"

"Darling, my city is a safe haven. Nobody would dare attack it," he purred, leaning back again. "And if they did, the humans would run to save their falling buildings anyways."

Zero felt Rayzor shift uncomfortably next to him. Obviously, this strange, sparkly Pokemon had never met Invictus. The others fell silent again, unsure of how to respond.

Cobalt frowned at their sudden uncertainty. "It'll be okay, darlings. If you'd like, you can stay here. We'll keep you safe." Zero found himself doubting the ability of Cobalt and his pampered citizens. He'd almost rather take his chances fighting in Bellatrix's army.

At that moment, the Frillish from before floated over with a tray of treats and slid it onto the table. "Oh! Dearest me. I apologize," they murmured as the tray pushed a book onto the floor.

"Not to worry! I've got it." Cobalt leaned down and picked up the fallen book, holding it with one hand so that the pages fell open.

It stopped on a page with an image of a large creature Zero had never seen before. "What is that?"

"Hm? Oh! That's Terrakion," Cobalt told him, gesturing to the warrior's proud stance. "They say he sleeps right around the corner of this city, did you know that?"

"Wait- wasn't Terrakion one of the warriors who protected Unova in ancient times?" Rayzor asked.

Meyers bit back a groan. "It's a legend, boy. We're not having this conversation again."

"No, really!" Cobalt said enthusiastically. "Just beyond Lostlorn Forest. When that forest fire happened, it revealed a kind of… plateau? I think that's the word. And stuff is inscribed on the rock that nobody can read. So everybody's pretty sure it's Terrakion's resting place, but everyone's too scared to get close."

The name Lostlorn made a collective shiver go through the group. Nothing good had ever happened there, that was for sure.

"What makes you think that Terrakion is, ah… sleeping?" Bean asked carefully. Zero couldn't tell if it was a euphemism for dead or not.

"Well, legendary creatures don't really die. The legends say that the great warriors will rise again in times of darkness. You're a ghost, aren't you? Why don't you go see if he's alive?" he added, gesturing to Golurk, who looked rather put off by the idea.

"Unova is literally being overtaken by a dictator!" Rayzor cried. "If this is true, why hasn't anybody gone to see if Terrakion can be awakened? I- I mean, we don't even have to go in Lostlorn, just around-"

"No! We are not doing this!" snapped Meyers, nearly tossing Bean off of his head. "The legends are never real! I won't let you kids be- I won't let you go on a wild goose chase," he finished, lowering his head. Zero heard the start of another thought trail off mid-sentence, but the conversation was moving too fast for him to interrogate.

"We're kind of out of options," Rayzor huffed, crossing his arms. "Even if the Terrakion part is made up, there must be something important in a mound with ancient words on it, right?"

"There's also a lot of legends about ordinary heroes receiving 'Terrakion's Courage.' Maybe you can just go get Invictus yourself with that!" Cobalt added cheerfully.

Meyers exhaled heavily through his nostrils. Bean leaned down and murmured something to him.

"Um- I'll go look, if you want," Golurk offered. "We don't all have to go. Just- if anyone else wants to go-"

"This sounds like great entertainment," Sheer snorted. "I'll go with you."

"Can you drop the stupid sarcasm for a minute?" Rayzor snapped, before adding sullenly, "But- I'll go too."

"I will come too," Zero added, not wanting to be left out.

Meyers was silent for a long moment, and for a moment he thought the dragon would merely sit down and turn up his nose as they all walked away. Finally, he growled, "Fine. I'll come. We can't be separated. But when we don't find anything, I don't want to hear any whining or crying because I told you so."

Cobalt clapped his hands. "Oh, you're all such a cute little family! That was fabulous drama, but I'm glad you came to an agreement. When will you be leaving? I can-"

"Now," everybody said in unison, eager to escape the romanticized gaze of the Black City leader. He nodded and stood up with a flourish, sending glimmering black feathers in every direction.

"Perfect! I'd be happy to help you on your way. Say, would you rather have a bag to carry things in jet black or rose gold?..."

"I have so many questions," Rayzor muttered as they left Black City.

"I can't believe they're siblings!" Golurk added, glancing back at the receding skyline. "I can't imagine growing up with a sister like Bellatrix. Er, or a brother like Cobalt, to be honest."

"Well, you might have to," Bean sighed. "It appears as though that city is one of the last civilizations that has been left untouched. If there's nothing waiting for us beyond Lostlorn, we'll have to return."

Zero could hear the weariness in her voice. He could see it in all of his teammates, actually. Everybody's once-brisk gait and bright faces had become tired and worn from the long days of travelling to places that were never really safe, the constant threat of Invictus looming behind them. They were ready to be done with the disasters of Unova, and Black City was offering them a tantalizingly good refuge- if you ignored the presence of a borderline-incompetent leader.

"Do not worry," he said out loud. "I think our journey will be over soon."

"That's… ominous," Rayzor laughed nervously.

"Oh. Sorry, I didn't mean it like that. I meant… I think what waits for us will give us a way out of this situation."

"Me too, kid. Me too," Meyers grunted, dragging his claws in the dirt. Sheer said nothing, staring out at the horizon and ignoring his words altogether.

Despite the lack of agreement and excitement, something like satisfaction finally settled within him… but it was quickly chased by disappointment.

He wanted the group to be happy, but sometimes he wanted other things more. Was that wrong? He didn't want to stay in Black City with Cobalt, and he didn't believe that they would find any remnant of Terrakion in the ruined fields of Lostlorn Forest. It was improbable. Impossible, really. But what else was there? With Invictus uprooting communities across the region, there was nowhere else to go. The humans would face opposition in their cities soon. The world would fall to the claws of a tyrant. He had no problem following the orders of a leader, but sometimes foolish leaders got drunk on power.

Cobalt's shining eyes appeared in his head. They were dulled with the illusion of strength and security. Security?... Perhaps there is a way to stop this madness.

Slowly, a plan began to form in Zero's mind.