When the group arrived at the clearing north of Lostlorn Forest, which had been covered in a fine layer of ash and made the surrounding sky look sickly and yellow, they were disappointed to find that almost nothing remained.
"There's nothing here," Bean murmured, glancing around at the charred clearing.
"I told you," Meyers grumbled. "Now let's go."
"Is- is this it?" Golurk asked, stepping towards a part of the ground that was somewhat lifted. It was perhaps the most discouraging implication of ancient myth the group had ever seen.
Rayzor leaned down and brushed the loose dirt and ash away, and the others gasped at the sight of carvings beneath their feet. "There is something here!" he said triumphantly, attempting to brush off the rest of the dirt.
The rest of the group crowded around, trying to get a glimpse of the runes. "This is the magic we're looking for?" Sheer grumbled, unimpressed. She had expected a great warrior's grave, even though ancient, to be a bit more extravagant.
Rayzor glanced at Golurk, who was still staring at the mound. "What's wrong?"
The ghost seemed hesitant to speak. "I don't know. It's kind of like that feeling I had at the lake, when there were spirits, but… it's just not there. I feel like I should sense something, but it just feels empty."
Those others shuffled nervously. "Does this mean… There is no magic here? No great warrior?" Zero asked.
"Unfortunately not," somebody's deep voice rumbled. For a moment, Sheer was confused. It didn't sound quite like Meyers, but who else-? She turned to look, but already Meyers was throwing himself between their group and- oh, great stars.
A Samurott was watching them disinterestedly from the other side of the clearing. Judging by the battle scars and the dead eyes, Sheer thought they had a better chance against Death itself. "Don't bother to check. The myth of Terrakion was always nothing more than a fairy tale."
"Kids," Bean said, but she was breathing fast and she could see her shaking. "When we say run, run. As far as you can. We'll try to stop him, but please, just remember-"
Invictus didn't give them a second glance, instead walking towards the mound they had just been inspecting. They all backed away, too terrified to act. Sheer felt herself freezing up. Even if they all attacked now, Invictus would rip them to shreds. No contest.
He stepped up onto the mound and looked down at them as if they were nothing more than peasants. "Great to finally meet you all," he drawled, sounding bored. "I've heard so much about you. Unfortunately. I'm actually quite surprised to find you here."
Immediately, despite the terror she was filled with grim, unwanted satisfaction. I was right. Somebody here has been spying on us.
"But I need my agent back. Step forward. Now. I have no patience for games today."
Sheer burned with rage, for she knew who would step forward.
For a moment, nobody moved, and the tension was so thick that it was impossible not to hold one's breath. Then, finally, Zero moved forward and Invictus sneered in triumph as the rest of the crowd gasped and cried and growled and whimpered.
"You did fine blending in, I see. Or perhaps these idiots are so blind they didn't see me amidst their crowd," the Samurott rumbled, his smile revealing his razor-sharp, yellowed fangs. The tip of his mouth curved downwards slightly into a scowl. "Unfortunately, these fools are of no use to me. Perhaps next time you will pick somebody who provides the information I seek."
The words held a dark threat. There was no perhaps- if Zero failed another assignment, it wouldn't end well for him.
"Of course, sir. My next job will be completed to the fullest," the traitor said flatly as he moved to Invictus's side. Hearing Zero's voice made Sheer's fury bubble up again, and she let the temperature around them drop until the others were breathing clouds of vapor.
Invictus smirked at her and tilted his head up. "Now, now. I wouldn't do that, if I were you. I was planning to kill you all anyways, of course, but you're only speeding up the inevitable."
A ripple of fear went through the others, the shuffling and hitching of breath filling the air. They'd all had the hunch that things wouldn't end well, but hearing it out loud brought on another level of fear.
To her surprise, Meyers let a low snarl curl from his throat and stepped in front of the others. Bean set her jaw and flapped her wings a couple of times. "You won't be touching 'em," the Druddigon growled dangerously, "or I'll rip you to shreds."
"Meyers!" Rayzor whimpered, flinching when Invictus's gaze turned to him.
The Samurott's grin widened, only making him look more unhinged. "Is that so, lizard?" In one swift move, faster than Sheer had expected for the bulky beast, he unsheathed one of his shell blades and held it out in a casually threatening way. The group tensed, and she let her ice creep forwards until it glistened under Meyer's talons.
Invictus faked a lunge, and they all leapt back and yelped. The monster leaned back and roared a barking laugh. "Oh, this is too fun. I really don't want to waste such good toys, but I have other things I must attend to." The red glare turned dangerous- truly dangerous. "Enough playing."
The energy in the air changed instantly, and Invictus crouched down and let out a low snarl, muscles bunched and ready to spring at them. Sheer called up icicle spears, ready to stab through his pathetic face as he leapt forward-
There was a click, a grunt, and Sheer's icicles swished through empty air and disappeared. "What-?" It took her a moment to comprehend the scenario laid out before them.
Invictus's paws were raised in an attempt to leap, but something was locked around his neck, keeping him from making it off the ground. A silver, spiked ring-
"Zero!" Rayzor, Golurk and Bean gasped in unison. Zero was… helping them? Sheer's mind was a mess of confusion. What? But I was so sure he was the one who gashed me- A double agent? I don't understand…
"BASTARD! I'LL KILL YOU!" Invictus roared, his eyes alight with fury as he thrashed against the chokehold, but Zero was too far behind him to be hit.
"What do we do? We can't leave you here!" Rayzor called out to the Klinklang. They could run now, but Zero would have to let go eventually. And he certainly couldn't take on the dictator by himself. They could all attack now, but again, Sheer seriously doubted that they were organized enough to be able to fight in unison.
Zero's unblinking gaze didn't waver as he tugged at Invictus's twisted collar, dragging him closer. The Samurott coughed and scrabbled at the steel, but it didn't budge. His string of curses was growing weaker by the second, but Sheer knew that desperation would kick in soon. Invictus had killed King Satyr. He would not be felled by a Klinklang.
"Why are you helping us?" she broke in, meeting his cross-eyes. "You did this to me. I know you did." She didn't have to gesture to the massive dark slash in her face to get the point across.
"I did," Zero said, so matter-of-factly that Sheer was taken aback. The others' excitement faded to hesitation.
"Why-"
"But Invictus is my enemy now," he continued, cutting her off. Rayzor and the others perked with hopefulness again. She knew what they were waiting for. The soppy, heroic ending: 'Because then I met you guys, and you taught me how to love and blah blah blah…'
Golurk leaned forward, still eyeing Invictus nervously. "So… does that mean you're on our side?"
For the first time that day, Zero's blank face quirked into the smallest smile. "I'm sorry. I am afraid not." And then he shocked Invictus.
Shocked was an understatement, really- the force and light of the electricity was so bright that Sheer couldn't stare directly at the pair of traitors. The Samurott's scream rang out over the hungry sounds of climbing static, so sharp and loud she felt as if it would shatter the other side of her face.
A massive hand fell in front of her vision as Golurk pulled them all closer, shielding them from wayward lightning. Bean and Meyers' faces were slack with shock. Some twisted part of Sheer found clouded amusement in the fact they had the same reaction despite being such polar opposites. Tears were running down Rayzor's face, though from shock or terror or betrayal she didn't know. Golurk looked down at them with such desperation and powerlessness that Sheer felt guilty for the first time in forever. She wasn't sure what for- maybe the fact she'd contributed to this terrible end, maybe the fact she hadn't tried to stop Zero sooner…
The sight before them was nauseating to watch. Neon lightning coursed through Invictus, his mouth open in a dying scream and his eyes wild with animalistic terror. Zero's face was empty, the small smile still lingering.
At that moment, Sheer hated him more than she'd ever hated anyone. Even Rayzor, on a bad day. Even the Zebstrika who'd shattered her brother. As quickly as the gruesome show had started, the lightning fizzled out, leaving a scorched, twitching dictator heaving before them.
She prepared to summon her spears, the stab through Zero's soulless face, but as soon as Invictus began to fall forward, the feeling in the air changed. Something was wrong. Very wrong. And it wasn't just Zero. Time began to trudge forward in ultra-slow motion.
Something that had been lodged behind Invictus's sword slid from its place. A small, plain white stone… Sheer could only watch as it fell closer and closer to charred ground, until-
As soon as the stone touched the ground, it appeared as if it had absorbed all of the darkness around them into one concentrated spot. She'd never seen something so purely black. The air around them distorted, and suddenly Sheer was thrown backwards as if a blast had just rocked the clearing. The darkness from the stone rushed outwards and engulfed them, and the roaring of the universe was so loud that she couldn't even hear the voices of her companions anymore.
Suddenly, a huge, white shape cut through the darkness and disappeared overhead, deep into the blackness where she could no longer see. She only caught a glimpse of huge wings and a long, flowing tail before her vision was completely engulfed by the darkness once more, even if she tried to keep her eye open…
And then there was nothing.
When Sheer returned to consciousness, she was greeted by three things: Meyers with his tail curled around a motionless Bean, Rayzor and Golurk still half-unconscious, and a jarringly absent Zero and Invictus. Great. Just when this day couldn't get any worse. Though maybe the lack of murderers was for the better… for now, at least.
Another tremor of anger went through her as she thought about the traitor. When I find you, I'll make you pay. For what you did to me. And the others.
It wasn't until something else caught her eye that she realized they might have bigger problems. "Meyers?"
"What." He didn't look up at her, still trying to nurse Bean into a sitting position. Sheer did her the service of removing her barely-intact glasses.
It had become apparent that their group wasn't alone. Another group of Pokemon was standing across the clearing, and it wasn't anybody she recognized. From here, she could see a Sawsbuck struggling to say standing, a Cofagrigus and a Chandelure (up until this point, she didn't think she'd ever seen a Cofagrigus in real life- wait, this was real, right?), and an Escavalier and a Maractus.
"I just wanted to let you know we have another problem."
▬▬ι══════════════ι▬▬
END OF POKEMON: CORRUPTED BLACK.
Thank you for support- but this isn't the end! Keep watch for ZERO: UPRISING, the sequel to both Corrupted Black and Mysterious White, beginning soon.
