Chapter 29
Assistance to All
Coming back to Aurora Town had not been a challenge for Team Vendetta and Vantis, even if it was still a nightmare for Terron to be in the air. There had been very little turbulence in the clouds far above Shiron. And yet, despite the ease of the flight, no one had spoken about Erebus the entire time. No one had gained the courage to speak. The only thing that had been discussed on the journey home was to warn Vantis about how he would become a Plagued One in time, should he continuously explore Mystery Dungeons. He had become very alarmed and tense by the revelation, but he didn't say anything about it. He had no words for the disturbing news, as if he had become completely stunned.
After the children had told him that, the tense, restrained silence resumed for the whole flight.
By the late afternoon, the five were able to return to their home. Seeing their precious Aurora Town again brought a great joy to their hearts, temporarily easing their worries. It was such a welcome contrast to Dusk Mines and its gloomy atmosphere. And for just a moment, it made the five completely forget about Erebus and the Plagued Ones.
After basking in the peace for a few moments, the children and Vantis went to Emdox and gave him the evolution stones their mission called for. They had told him the mission went well, and did all that they could to keep their thoughts free of Erebus in the presence of the Xatu. It required intense mental concentration, but somehow, everyone managed to find a way. Once that had been taken care of and they received their reward, the team and Vantis went their separate ways to tend to different tasks of the day. Yet, the five agreed to meet up again the next day to discuss a particular incident.
It was now that very day. The children had just finished their day's mission, which had been to simply refill the Fellowship's larder with fresh meat. For this hunting mission, they had gone to a nearby place known as Cedar Forest, where they were quick to find the wild Pokémon they sought. The task had not been a difficult one, at least, not compared to their last mission.
Once the children had gathered enough carcasses, they then took the meat to the Aurora Town Fellowship and received their promised reward: seven hundred Poké.
Now, with their mission complete, the team found themselves with Vantis in a remote section of the city. He too was now finished with his tasks of the day, which had involved sorting out the various assignments that had been turned in to the Fellowship that day.
The five sat around each other in a circle, the afternoon sun shining upon them. Everyone was thinking over their situation with Dusk Mines, mulling over the crucial information in extreme reluctance.
"Soooo, here we are again," Vantis announced. "Here we are… talking about what to do…"
"Yeah, here we are," Zekra said lowly.
Terron turned to Zekra to find that she appeared to be both bitter and melancholic. The Cubone sighed at seeing her like this. She was no doubt still thinking of how Dusk Mines was filled with Plagued Ones, her sworn enemy and how she, herself, was becoming one of the monsters. Though she had tried her very best to not appear affected throughout the entire day, Terron knew she was consumed by the horrifying thoughts of such monsters.
It was in her eyes. Her eyes said everything. She couldn't hide what her eyes showed to the world. Even now, there was still a look of despair and frustration that was apparent in those windows to her soul.
It was the same expression she wore since she found out the truth about the Plagued Ones. It had never gone away.
"So, I guess we'll review what we know so that we aren't missing anything," Vantis suggested. "That's a good start. Well, let's see. Everyone inside Dusk Mines is becoming a Plagued One thanks to some being known as Erebus. We don't know how long it's going to take, but they're becoming them by staying near Erebus Wood, which is home to this Erebus. Right?"
"Yeah, that's right," Terron said. "But, I've got a quick question now that I think about it, Vantis. When you went to Dusk Mines last month or whenever it was, didn't you see Erebus Woods? I mean, it was right there. You make it sound like you've never heard of the place before."
"That's because I didn't get to see the woods when I went," Vantis sighed. "I could feel Erebus's influence in the mines, but I didn't actually see the dungeon. I mainly stayed inside."
"Do the other Fellowships even know about Erebus Woods?" Terron then asked. "Because I remember on our mission paper, it said nothing about visiting a dungeon. It said to just pick them up. So, is Yimtri keeping the place a secret or something?"
"No, we know about Erebus Woods," Vantis said with a shake of his head. "We're aware that it's the place where Dusk Mines gets their evolution stones. We just don't put it on the papers since that mission has been around for so long. We figured everybody knew about it by now because of that. But yeah, we know Erebus Woods exists. We even know that it looks a lot different than other dungeons and a lot more dangerous. What we don't know, however, is that you can actually die in there. Of course, now we know that you probably become a Plagued One when that happens, but still. And we don't know about this 'Erebus' either. No one ever said anything about some kind of entity living inside the dungeon. We never knew any of that."
"So basically, you guys don't know anything," Terron frowned. "Every crucial detail you should know isn't a part of your knowledge."
Vantis shifted uncomfortably in his spot.
"Yeah… that's right," the Flygon admitted. "I'm mainly speaking for the Aurora Town Fellowship, but I have a feeling the other Fellowships don't know either. Otherwise, they probably would have told everyone else. All of the Fellowships tend to share their new information with the others pretty quickly. I mean, remember when you four found out the Plagued Ones could talk? We managed to get that information to the others within a few days, and now, basically every Fellowship member knows it."
Terron let out a snort. He stuffed one of his clubs into the ground and rested his arms and head upon it.
"So," Vantis then said in a lowered tone, "if we choose to open our mouths, we can be fairly certain that, well, the whole world is going to hear what we say."
Everyone was quiet for a moment. The reluctance once again took hold of each of their hearts. For a moment, Terron thought they weren't going to get anywhere. But, thankfully for him, someone managed to gain the courage to start talking.
"If we tell the Fellowships of Erebus and its ties to the Plagued Ones," Impetus began, "what will happen? What will you do? What will the others do? Exactly what will happen? I wish for all details."
"Len will probably tell the other Fellowships about the news since it's pretty important," Vantis answered frankly. "Except Dusk Mines, of course. And then… I'm pretty sure the Pledge Mountain Fellowship will tell everyone to start killing everyone who follows Yimtri. And then we'll start hunting them down. "
"And then those of Dusk Mines will hunt us down," Impetus stated with grit teeth. "Fellowships will hunt Dusk Mines, and Dusk Mines will hunt us. And we will have to run."
"Well, the Fellowships can try to protect you," Vantis suggested. "I bet they'd be willing to help. I mean, you're their members. They always do their best to protect their members."
"I don't believe that," Impetus spat.
Everyone cast her an odd gaze. Though she still managed to keep a calm composure, everyone could see that her eyes held a faint bitterness.
"Why do you say that?" Vantis asked curiously.
"Because if they truly wanted to protect their members, they wouldn't be killing them," Impetus said, her words dripping with cynicism. "Protect their members? I think not. They will not care about us. They do not care about Yimtri, leader of a Fellowship. The other Fellowships want to kill him and his own followers. That is not what I call 'protecting'."
"Well, we can't protect everyone at Dusk Mines if they're turning into Plagued Ones," Vantis sighed. "There might not be anything left to protect. I think they might have reached the point of no return. I mean, I guess we always could talk to them and try to get some kind of solution where they can help us somehow, but I don't know. From what you told me, Yimtri really seems in denial about this whole thing. I don't know if we can convince him to help us…"
"You could still try something," Syn suggested, now inspired to begin speaking. "I mean, instead of killing everyone at Dusk Mines, maybe you could study them or something. Like, figure out if there's some cure that works on them or figure out how we can kill Erebus. You could find out so much by doing that. You could stop this whole Plagued One thing if you work with them! And, they're not completely Plagued Ones yet, so I'm sure they'll let you. At least, if we can convince them to. But, I'm sure they'd be okay with that if it means that everyone isn't trying to kill them."
"Hm, I can see how that could work," Vantis said thoughtfully. "That's an interesting idea. But, in order to do that, we'd have to tell the Pledge Mountain Fellowship that. They're the ones who make the big decisions that everyone has to follow. They're sort of like the main leaders."
"Do you think Pledge Mountains would like the idea?" Terron asked. "I mean, if we tell them this, and they don't like it, then they're probably going to send out the killing order. And then both us and everyone in Dusk Mines will have to go on the run."
Vantis put a claw against the side of his face. He nodded quietly to himself.
"Well, in all the time I've known the leaders of Pledge Mountains, they've been pretty reasonable," the Flygon stated. "They're rational and usually listen to what you have to say. So if we do give them this proposal, I think they'd listen."
"Alright, then let's try that," Terron proclaimed. "But first, we have to convince Yimtri about this. If we talk to the Pledge Mountain leaders first, and he doesn't go along with the idea, it's going to get ugly really quickly. So, as much as I hate to ask this, do you think you can take us to him again? I don't want to go anywhere near Erebus Woods again, but we need to talk to Yimtri. We have to talk some sense into him and get his support with the whole idea. And then, once we do that, we can tell Pledge Mountain about the idea."
"Sounds like a plan," Vantis said pleasantly before his smile abruptly disappeared. "But there's something you need to consider before we actually go along with this. You need to think about something before you finally decide to take this course of action."
The Cubone gave Vantis an odd stare.
"And what would that be?" he asked curiously.
"What happens if Yimtri disagrees with your idea?" Vantis asked as he stared deeply into Terron's puzzled eyes. "What if he doesn't want to listen to you? You do know what's going to happen, don't you?"
Terron grimaced at the thought. Yes, he understood the consequence of this choice he was now making. Yet, he did not let the fear take him. He had resisted its most powerful form when Yimtri was about to kill him, so surely he could do it again. He had reached a decision and he couldn't back down.
"He'll listen," Terron stated firmly. "I know he's denying it, but I saw the look in his eyes when we told him about how they're becoming Plagued Ones. He knows it's true; he just doesn't want to admit it. But, there's a way we can convince him. There has to be. And if he doesn't listen… well, he still can't kill us. We haven't told anyone else about the situation except you, and he doesn't know that. So we won't die. But, I'm not going to think about that. He'll listen to us. I know he will. He's still reasonable even though he's becoming a Plagued One. Even as we were traveling through Erebus Woods, and Erebus slowly began to corrupt him, he kept his reason for the most part. He's still rational."
The Cubone turned to his teammates.
"Are you guys with me in this situation?" he asked them. "I want to know what you guys think."
Impetus rose to her feet.
"I stand for this decision," she spoke in a powerful voice. "It's for the good of everyone. It will help everyone. No one will die and a conclusion can be found. I do not wish to die and I'm certain the Dusk Mines ones wish for life as well. This decision is a step forward to the end of Plagued Ones."
"Yeah, I'm all for this too," Syn chimed in, also deciding to stand up. "From what I've been told, you guys have been fighting the Plagued Ones for fifty years. You guys haven't really gotten anywhere in figuring out what they are, except that they can talk apparently. This is a great opportunity to figure out what's happening to those who become Plagued Ones since I can assume you guys have never really caught a Plagued One before. You can find cures, figure out if it's doing something to their bodies, all kinds of stuff! The Fellowships are wasting an opportunity if they kill everybody in Dusk Mines!"
Terron looked toward Zekra to see if she was going to say anything. Much to his chagrin, she was still lying on the ground, her eyes glassy and void. She seemed as though she hadn't been paying attention to the entire conversation. In fact, it was only then that Terron realized she hadn't said much the whole time.
"Zekra? What do you think?" he asked, attempting to rouse some words out of her.
The Zorua glanced at the Cubone for a brief moment. A strange flicker of tension went through her eyes.
"Yeah whatever, do whatever you want," she stated blandly. "You're our leader. The leader makes the final call. Just continue without me. I need to go somewhere. I'll catch up with you guys later."
She immediately picked herself up off the grass and leapt into the air. The illusion and Deception Amulet lights merged as she transformed into a Pidove. She cringed as a fraction of her health was sapped away, but was quick to get over it as she flew away from the group.
Terron scowled at her attitude, but decided not to go chasing after her. He would do that later. Right now, he needed to confirm their decision.
"So it seems we're all in agreement," Terron said to Vantis as he too stood up. "My team is willing to go along with this. We know that if Yimtri refuses to listen, we'll have to do something else, but that's not going to happen. He will listen. I've said it at least five times already, but he will. He has to. So Vantis, whenever it's possible, we'd like to go back to Dusk Mines. I don't care how we do it, but we need to get back there."
Vantis gave a wry smile to the team.
"Alright then," the Flygon said. "It's your choice. I won't stop you. I'll give you my full support since I'm a part of this too now. Just give me some time to figure out how and when I can get you kids to Dusk Mines. I have a bit of a busy schedule, and it might take some time."
"That's fine," Terron replied. "We can wait for a while. We'll just continue our Fellowship duties until then. Just don't tell the other leaders about all of this, including Len. We have to talk to Yimtri first."
"Yeah, I know," Vantis chuckled. "No need to remind me. I understand everything. Get you kids to Yimtri somehow, let you guys convince him, then go tell the Pledge Mountains Fellowship of our idea. Yeah, it's all good. I've got it."
"Or you can somehow get Yimtri to come to us," Syn suggested with a shrug. "But yeah, you've got it all right."
"Alrighty then," the Flygon said as he slowly rose into the air. "Looks like this meeting is over. I'll see you kids around. Take care of yourselves."
Once he had risen a few feet off the ground, Vantis took off and left the children to themselves. All three of them sighed as they sat back down. Finally, they had reached a decision. All of the tension that had been building in their hearts melted away and filled with calming relief. There was still the lingering doubt that insisted Yimtri wouldn't listen to their idea, but it was so miniscule and insignificant at the moment compared to the resolution they had finally reached.
Unfortunately for Terron, he soon found that dark feelings were creeping into his heart, drowning out the short-lived relief. When he glanced at the empty spot in the circle between himself and Impetus, he knew why.
"Hey, I need to go get Zekra," he told his two team members. "Can you two just stay here together while I go get her?"
"Yeah, that's fine," Syn said. "But, how do you know where she is?"
Terron gave a bitter smile.
"There are just some things you know when you're with someone for a long enough time," he answered.
Gray Lands
Zekra sank her teeth deep into the Sentret's lungs, listening to its pleading cries. It gazed up into her eyes, begging to be spared of death. Unfortunately, Zekra held no mercy in her soul at the moment. She was completely consumed by her bloodlust.
With a carnivorous snarl, she tossed the wild Pokémon into the air before shifting into Zev's form. With her sharp claws, she sliced its body into two, letting the blood rain down upon her fur. The blood slid into her maw, filling her tongue with the wonderful taste of precious life. Unfortunately, it wasn't enough to satisfy her. She needed more.
She needed more to kill.
Zekra spotted a Hoppip floating around idly in the distance. It was strange for it not to be traveling in a pack, but Zekra didn't care. It was easy prey.
She bolted after the Pokémon before leaping into the air and slashing at it. The Hoppip shrieked as it darted out of the way in the nick of time. Zekra landed back onto the ground with a fierce snarl, cursing herself for missing. As the Hoppip hurried away, she shifted into a Swellow and sped after it. With her swift speed, she rammed her beak into its body. The attack connected, and blood spilled with the fresh wound. The Hoppip let out a cry as it plummeted downward, but before it could even touch the ground, Zekra swooped in and returned to Zev's form.
The false Zoroark bit down upon the feeble creature, severing its heart in a mere second. Zekra descended upon the ground gracefully as she kept the Hoppip in her maw, savoring the blood that now trickled down her throat. It was intoxicating to her. It numbed any thoughts in her mind. All that existed in her mind now were her predatory instincts.
"Yeah… I thought I'd find you here."
Zekra quickly swiveled her head to the side to find Terron a few feet away. He was standing beside the Sentret corpse with a dull expression upon his face. The false Zoroark spat out her Hoppip meal before changing back to normal.
"How did you know I was here?" she asked, her voice relatively calm.
"It was a hunch," Terron said. "And also… because you always go hunting to get your mind off something. It's how you cope. You've been doing this for as long as I can remember. I figured here of all places was where you'd come since it's so close."
Zekra grimaced, allowing the Cubone to see the crimson that stained her fangs. There was hardly any white on her teeth.
"But, I'm not here to lecture you on that," Terron stated. "I'm not going to judge your ways of escapism. I just want to know exactly why you're so bitter. I know it's because of what we found out about the Plagued Ones, but exactly what about all of the information is bothering you? Because you didn't sound very happy when we were talking about solving this little situation with them."
The Zorua made her way to the Cubone before stopping in front of him. Her eyes were faintly flickering with a dark light.
"I'm not happy with a lot of things," Zekra explained quietly. "I'm not happy knowing that a fifth of all the Fellowship members are a bunch of walking, soon-to-be Plagued Ones. I'm not happy that if we start going into dungeons, we're going to start seeing Erebus again. I'm not happy that we have to avoid dungeons for missions that the Fellowship wants us to do. I'm not happy that I'm going to slowly start turning into a Plagued One if I go inside of any more dungeons. But, there's one thing I'm most not happy about."
"And what would that be?" Terron asked.
Zekra cast her eyes away from him.
"That we're not actually going to kill the Plagued Ones," she said, barely above a whisper.
Terron's eyes became wide at the comment.
"What did you just say?" he gasped.
"I don't want to just find a cure for them! I want to get rid of them! I want to kill them all!" Zekra answered, snarling fiercely. "They ruined my life! They took everybody I knew! I don't want to just turn them back into normal Pokémon! I know it's stupid thinking, but I just can't stand it! It's like if somebody killed your parents and the police finally found the killer after a while. But, instead of bringing that killer to justice by killing them, they just throw them in prison for a few years and then release them! Nothing gets solved! The one responsible is still out there, living and breathing while your parents aren't! It's not fair! They deserve the same fate!"
"But Zekra… it's not the normal Pokémon's fault if they become Plagued Ones…" Terron tried to say. "It's not the same as what you're saying. I don't think infected ones really want to kill Pokémon, but are forced to once they become Plagued Ones. It's not their fault… it's Erebus's fault for making them Plagued Ones and making them want to kill and turn others into more Plagued Ones…"
"You don't know that!" Zekra cried. "You said that the Plagued Ones can talk! You said you heard them! So tell me, did they sound brainwashed to you?! Did they sound like they were forced to be doing anything?!"
"… no, they didn't," he said hesitantly.
"Exactly! They could be killing everyone on their own free will! Erebus might be the reason they become Plagued Ones, but that doesn't guarantee it's the reason they want to kill everything! They just might be doing that on their own!"
"Zekra, stop-"
"And so what happens if we manage to turn the infected back to normal?! Is that going to get rid of their bloodlust as well?! Or is that something we can't get rid of?! Because if it is, they'll just go around killing everybody, even after they go back to normal! That's not progress!"
"Zekra, you really-"
"If we kill all the Plagued Ones, then we won't have to worry about that problem! We can just kill them, kill Erebus, and then it's all over! It's the plan we should go with! We don't need to waste time on convincing Yimtri! Just kill him! Just get rid of him and everyone else at Dusk Mines! Just-"
There was a blur of movement.
Zekra suddenly found herself collapsed on her side, her left temple throbbing painfully. She found Terron giving her an intense gaze, his fist still clenched tight from the punch he had sent to her. One of his clubs rested behind him, having been discarded to allow his previous action.
"You know, for someone who hates the Plagued Ones so much," Terron seethed, "you sure are acting a lot like one."
Zekra's eyes became wide. She opened her mouth to give a violent retort, but suddenly stopped before any words could come. She was acting like the Plagued Ones. She would kill everything in sight whenever she felt such wrath come upon her. She would let her bloodlust completely consume her so that nothing else mattered. That was very much like what those demons did. They slaughtered all with no remorse.
Her ways were uncannily like the Plagued Ones'. She was no different than her enemies.
As this dawned upon the Zorua, she seemed to become completely blank. Seeing that he had gotten her attention, Terron started to speak once more.
"Look, I know killing everybody at a Dusk Mines is an option we could go for," Terron began, easing his voice. "It's simple and easy. But you're forgetting something; we don't know how to kill the one who's making them turn into Plagued Ones. We don't know how to kill Erebus or how to get to it. And not only that, but there's more than one Erebus. They're in every dungeon; they're just weaker than the one in Erebus Woods. At least, we can only assume that. There's still so much we don't know. There can be only one Erebus for all we know that's just following you around after you get marked somehow. We don't know. Yimtri might know, but how are we ever going to get that knowledge if we kill him?"
Zekra didn't answer the question.
"Yeah, we'll never get the knowledge," Terron answered for her. "So rather than kill everybody and throw away this vital information, we can convince Dusk Mines to help us and use that knowledge for the better. We can figure out how to prevent more Plagued Ones from forming. It's like with Combee and Vespiquen. Combee, or workers, rely on the Vespiquen to keep them alive and give them orders. Their entire existence revolves around the Vespiquen, their queen. Without her, the workers will eventually die since they need her to lead them. The same thing applies to the Plagued Ones. You can get rid of the workers, the Plagued Ones, all you like, but until you get rid of the queen… the problem won't go away. The source is still there. The queen will just keep making more workers. No progress will be made. We have to kill Erebus, the 'queen' of Plagued Ones if we want to get any kind of progress done. And in order to do that, we have to study the 'workers' of Erebus and figure out information from them . Killing everyone in Dusk Mines isn't the way to solve this. I know it's hard to prevent your emotions from getting the best of you, but you need to do that and look at this logically. This is going to help us in the long run. It'll end the Plagued Ones, just not the way you want them to.
"If our plan doesn't work, then we'll go with your idea with killing everybody. But until then, just try to cooperate with us. Let's try to stop the Plagued Ones in the most rational way possible. Don't be like the Plagued Ones you're trying so hard to destroy."
Terron retrieved the bone he had abandoned. Once he had done so, he stared at Zekra in silence, waiting for a reaction. Zekra continued to remain quiet as she thought to herself.
Her blank state slowly disappeared as a more thoughtful, melancholy one overcame her.
"… You're right," she sighed in defeat. "I'm not any better than the Plagued Ones if I act this way. I have to be better than them if I want to beat them."
Zekra frowned unpleasantly at such a revelation.
"I'll listen to you and go along with this plan," Zekra then said. "I'm… I'm sorry for acting the way I was."
Zekra stood up and gave an absent nod. Terron smiled, but it wasn't a happy smile.
"Let's go back to Aurora Town," Terron said quietly. "The others are waiting for us."
After a long walk in mostly silence, the two made it back to Impetus and Syn. Just as Terron asked, the two were still in the same place where the meeting was held, speaking to one another.
"Hey, we're back," Terron called, not much energy in his voice.
The two stopped talking as Terron and Zekra sat down beside their members. Zekra still appeared to be somewhat hollow, but was attempting to smile again. She looked at the Snivy and Mienfoo.
"Sorry about earlier," she said. "I just wasn't feeling very good about this whole situation. But, I'm better now."
"What was wrong?" Syn asked curiously.
Zekra grimaced. She swallowed hard.
"I wasn't happy with our plan is all," she answered quietly. "I just wanted to do something else, but I'm better now. I'm going with the plan we discussed."
"What did you want to do?" Syn continued to ask with honest curiosity.
"I… I'd rather not talk about it," Zekra said hesitantly.
Terron let out a sigh. Everyone was still so reserved from each other. They still weren't operating like a real team.
That had to change.
Terron suddenly remembered how he felt, lost and stranded in Erebus Woods, knowing that it was caused by his own inability to open up to his teammates. He remembered what disastrous consequences that had. Having just barely escaped with his life and his teammates, and not without lasting scars, he knew now more than ever that he couldn't let something like that happen again. He was on a team now. They all were. Keeping secrets was dangerous; they needed to learn to act as one. They needed to be one .
And now was the perfect time to create such unity by getting everyone to start talking.
"Zekra, just tell them why," Terron stated.
The Zorua looked at the Cubone in bewilderment.
"Wh-What?!" she cried.
"Tell them what you told me," Terron said again. "We need to start talking to each other. We can't hide our problems anymore. We're a team. Teams work together, and in order to do that, we need to start understanding each other. We can help each other if we know what's going on in each other's heads. Starting now, we're going to do that. We're going to talk about our current problems so that we can learn how to talk about our problems without hesitation. So Zekra, tell them why you didn't want to go with our plan. Please. I know it hurts, but just talk about it. It'll help you."
Zekra continued to stare at Terron in disbelief. Syn gave the Cubone the same expression while Impetus simply waited for someone to talk. No one was saying anything.
"Fine, I'll go first," Terron said, mustering every bit of courage he could. "I'm the leader, so I suppose I should have gone first anyway to set the example."
The Cubone took in a deep breath as the eyes of all his companions continued to watch him carefully. He looked directly at the youngest member of their team.
"Syn… you're the only member of the team who doesn't know something about me," he started to say. "I'm… I'm not really… I'm… yeah…"
Terron put his hands underneath his skull to clutch his scalp in frustration.
Why can't I talk?! Why won't the words come out?! I have to say something! I have to tell everyone what's going through my head so they can do it too! I can't keep hiding secrets! I have to talk!
Terron's helmet accidentally came tumbling off his head and rolled onto his lap. Yet, Terron made no effort to put it back on. He was far too infuriated with his inability to talk to even care about the helmet.
"Talk, Terron," Impetus said powerfully. "Do not hold back. Get rid of the pain."
The Cubone let out a few raspy breaths as he tried again.
"Syn… I'm… I'm not really a Cubone," he managed to say, actually getting the words he wanted out of his mind. "I wasn't born… or hatched as one. You might have heard me talking about it with Zekra… but I'm not a Cubone. I'm… a human. I just woke up in this body, not being able to remember anything about myself. Not my name… not my family… not even who I was… I don't know anything. The only reason why I'm here now with you guys… is because Zekra found me in the Gray Lands, unconscious, in this body, and with this amnesia. I've gotten a little better, but I still don't know anything important, like why I'm a Cubone now."
The Snivy's eyes slowly started to grow. His gaze became blank as the information processed in his mind.
"You're human…" Syn managed to say. "Your kind aren't supposed to exist… everyone thinks humans are extinct or live in some faraway region no one's ever heard of…"
"I do live in a faraway region," Terron said quietly. "It's called Kuron. It's a planet. I'm from another world. That's why Pokémon can't find humans. I'm… I'm not sure where it is, though. I just know that's where I'm from…"
Syn continued to stare at Terron with such an unreadable expression. The Cubone felt such uncomfortable tension well up inside him from the silence.
"You don't believe me, do you?" Terron asked weakly.
The Snivy remained quiet as he seemed to consider the question carefully.
"I just don't know what to think," Syn replied wearily, grimacing uneasily. "I just never thought humans were still around. I mean, no one believes you exist, and there's really no way to tell if you're really human. It's just… so much to take in."
Terron let out a depressed sigh. He shouldn't have set his expectations too high. Not everyone could believe he was once human. It was such a bizarre truth that not all could grasp.
"But… you're my friend, and I don't see why you'd lie to me," Syn then said, catching Terron by surprise. "So… even though I still feel unsure about this… I'll believe you. I can accept that you used to be human. And, I promise not to tell anyone else."
Terron smiled warmly. Knowing that brought such warmth to his heart. Syn believed him. Despite dropping this secret on him so suddenly, the Snivy had chosen to believe Terron.
Silence once again resumed as the others processed the information Terron gave them and figuring out who would speak next. Several minutes passed.
"Alright, I'll talk," Zekra said with a pained groan.
She grimaced as a wave of unpleasant memories swept through her thoughts.
"Everyone, " she began. "I'll explain everything… from the very beginning. Please… don't judge me. I know it'll look bad… but just don't hate me for what I have to say… that's all I ask…"
"No one's going to hate you," Terron said gently. "We all have our problems. Just let it out. It'll be okay."
He put a paw on her head and stroked her fur gently. Zekra gave a small smile to him for a brief moment before looking back at the other two members of the team.
Then, Zekra closed her eyes, gave a long and deep sigh, and began to speak.
She told them everything.
She told them of her former life. Her friends. Her family. Her brother Zev and all the gifts he had given her. Her desire to travel the world with him.
She told them how they had all been lost on one fateful day, the day she had first met the Plagued Ones.
She told them how she had narrowly escaped with her life. She told them how a tiny part of her had always wished that she hadn't.
Then she told them about how she found the Cubone with no helmet, and no memories. The Cubone who wasn't really a Cubone. She told them why she had given the Cubone his name. She told them about joining the Fellowship and learning to run missions with her new partner.
And she told them about the vendetta. The force which moved her, becoming the reason she rose from bed each day. The reason she breathed. This immense hatred, this scathing, endless desire to make the Plagued Ones pay for what they had done. This desire to make them suffer. To make them bleed. To make them die, not caring that they might have already been dead. To never stop until she had finally eliminated them all.
And, with heavy breaths, she explained why she didn't like the idea of curing them. Why it merely wouldn't satisfy her. Why she needed to see them die.
And, at last, when she had reached the present, she stopped.
It felt as though an hour had passed. By the time Zekra had finished, her eyes were red and tears were coursing down her face. Terron continued to caress her head as she tried to recompose herself. Everyone stared at her in silence, their eyes reflecting the melancholy they all felt.
"Well done," Terron said gently to his partner, smiling softly. "Feel any better?"
"Yeah…" she sobbed, still trying to restrain her tears. "Yeah… I do."
Zekra wiped her eyes with a paw as the last of her tears fell onto her matted muzzle. Terron knew she would be getting better. He knew she could feel all of the weight, all of that constrained darkness, being lifted from her heart. She was finally letting herself free.
"Wow," Syn simply said, blank-faced, as he thought about Zekra's story. "I get it now. I get you guys now. It makes more sense. I never would have known you guys had been through so much. I mean, for the longest time, I thought this was just our job. I thought we were all just… well… just a boring old Fellowship team."
Terron couldn't restrain an awkward chuckle.
"Yeah… it's been anything but boring, Syn," he said. "See… this is exactly what I mean. We really need to do more talking."
"What was it you said?" Impetus spoke unexpectedly, looking at Terron. "On the mountain, you intended to kill me for my bones. You never told me this. So the existence of Drae and my decision to fight him is the reason I am still alive."
"Well, when you put it that way, yeah," Zekra said, chuckling. "Yeah, I guess it is."
Terron blinked. He couldn't believe it; Zekra was laughing. It was such a strange sound for him to hear, something he hadn't heard for many weeks. But it sent a pleasant shiver down his spine knowing that Zekra was feeling better, that opening up to her friends was exactly what she needed.
They spoke for a little while longer about Zekra's story, laughing about the odd things that had happened, and solemnly discussing the darker issues, until Zekra's friends ran out of things to say and an awkward silence once more fell over the group.
Syn sighed and bowed his head. He knew he would be the one to break the silence this time. He told himself that if Zekra could be so open and honest, that he could as well, but it still wasn't easy. Eventually, he stood up and gave it a try.
"Well… I guess it's my turn," Syn started to say. "I… I guess I'm really not the only one who's in a lot of pain and has issues after all. That kinda makes this easier."
The Snivy nervously glanced at the ground and began to toy with his hands.
"You guys know most of my story already," he said. "I'm adopted, and I was abandoned shortly after I met you guys. I really don't know how I feel about that, though. Sometimes, I feel really sad that my parents don't want me anymore. Other times, I just feel really mad at my parents for doing that. I can't decide how I feel. But, there's one thing that's always been clear to me; it's that I'm starting to think I'm the reason they left me. I think there was something I did that they just couldn't stand… so they left because they didn't want to put up with that… "
The Snivy squeezed his eyes shut.
"And sometimes, I feel that you guys don't want me either. But, I suppose that's my own fault for forcing myself onto this team."
"Syn, I already told you that we don't want to get rid of you," Terron stated. "You don't need to worry about that anymore."
"I know… I know," Syn said weakly. "But, I just need to get that out of my head. I mean, I still feel it's true at times even though I know you guys care about me, but that's not your fault. That's my own guilty complex's fault, or whatever you call it. It's not going to go away for a long time. Probably… not until I find my parents or get over what they've done."
"Well, we'll help you with that," Zekra spoke up, her voice no longer as teary as before. "When this is all over, we'll help you find them. But until then, just know that we're your new family. You're not alone. You have us now, Synergy. Don't forget that."
"You guys don't mind being my replacement parents?" he asked.
"I think family is a better word, but yeah, we don't mind," Zekra replied. "We're all family here. I mean… none of us really have families with us anymore… so this team is like our new family. We all support and love each other. And, when you think of it like that, we're really not all that different from real families."
Syn smiled warmly as few tears streamed down his face.
"Thank… thank you," he whispered. "I feel a lot better now…"
Terron smiled at seeing all of his team members opening up. The pain everyone held was slowly numbing. He knew that the hurt would never go away completely, but at least now, it didn't need to be hidden. The heartaches didn't feel nearly as painful now that everyone had support.
The Cubone looked upon the last member of his team: the only one who hadn't yet shared any secrets.
"I know you always talk about what's on your mind, Impetus," Terron began. "But, is there anything you want to say anyway? Something that's been bugging you, maybe?"
"I do not have anything that pains me," she said, answering without hesitation. "I have a single question that bothers me, but it brings no pain."
"What's the question?" Terron asked. "We might be able to answer it if you tell us what's on your mind."
"I already asked you the question, but now I have better understood the question I was asking ," Impetus answered. "And that question is why civil Pokémon work together despite such strange clashes."
"What do you mean?" Zekra then asked.
"In my old world, Pokémon of the same species work together," Impetus explained plainly. "The Pidgey fly in the sky together. The Durant form a colony under the ground. Pokémon care for their mates and their young. But in civilization, it's different. Pokémon of all types work together. They ignore species and types and form alliances despite them. The predator is allied with the prey. The Staraptor speaks on equal terms with the Rattata. The fire Pokémon accepts friendship with the water Pokémon. This is what I do not understand. How can the civilized Pokémon defy their natures? Why do civil Pokémon form friendships with those that their instincts demand they hate? Even though I can feel it happening to me as well, I do not understand why. This is my question."
"Oh, I see," Zekra said, somewhat unsure of how to react.
"That is why I stayed with you and Terron after you brought me to the civil world," Impetus went on. "I stayed here to find the answer. It's why I also followed you while you were at my home. You two are different species, yet you work together so well. It's something I don't see in my world. I wanted to understand it."
Zekra nodded thoughtfully as a glum frown etched its way onto her face.
"So, what are you going to do when you get your answer then?" Zekra asked as her voice lowered. "Are you going to leave us and go back?"
"I haven't decided," Impetus said nonchalantly. "This world has many interesting things… but I miss my old world at times. But, I cannot stay in both. I must pick one world to stay in, or I'll remain trapped in between them. But, I will not decide until I get my answer to my question. That answer will help me figure out what to do. It'll tell me to stay here… or to go home where I'm supposed to be."
Zekra let out a melancholy sigh.
"Don't talk like that…" Syn said quietly. "You're making it sound like you really are going to leave us…"
"I only wanted to let you know how I feel," Impetus clarified. "I still don't know what I'll do. I probably won't know for a while longer."
"If you say so…" Syn said, still saddened by the news. "Just let us know what you decide when the time comes…"
Impetus smiled softly as she reached over to the Snivy. In an unexpected gesture, she pat the child's head with a paw. It was the first time she willingly showed any kind of physical affection and seemed to understand its implication.
"I will," she promised. "I will."
And so, with everybody having spoken their minds about everything, they all released a collected sigh. The four members of Team Vendetta sat together in peaceful silence, letting their weary hearts rest.
After everyone had spent enough time relaxing, the team decided to continue about their day as they normally did. They were going to visit the gym as usual, but first, there was something else they needed to take care of. It was something specifically meant for Zekra.
It was learning Dark Pulse from King.
The team had finally completed a "B" level mission after so long, which was to collect the evolution stones. The mission had been much more difficult and eventful than the children expected, but nonetheless, they had completed it with flying colors. Now, Zekra could learn the power she had so eagerly wanted when she saw it so long ago.
When the four arrived at the Fellowship base to search for the Bisharp, they were surprised to find that he was outside for some reason. As the group came forward, wondering why he was standing out there, they were able to see that he was actually up to something else. He was currently having a duel with another one of the Fellowship leaders: Jade. The two sped at each other with blades of different affinities, each trying to out-best the other. Their blades clashed ceaselessly, never losing their sharp edge despite the many strikes.
"Your precision has greatly improved since last time we fought," King stated matter-of-factly as he blocked an oncoming Leaf Blade with a blade of his own. "It's becoming increasingly difficult for me to stop your attacks."
"Or maybe you're just getting slower with age," Jade teased.
The Grovyle pushed back the Bisharp, creating more space between the two of them. She then sent a flurry of projectiles out of her mouth and toward the Bisharp. Unfortunately for her, the Bisharp was quick to encase himself in a green barrier of energy. The projectiles bounced harmlessly off the shield before disappearing completely.
"Tch, I hate that tactic of yours," Jade cursed. "But at least you can't use it twice in a row…"
A second after she had said this, the barrier dissipated, leaving King exposed to any attacks. She took this opportunity to rush forward, holding her arms in scissor formation.
Just as she was to close in on King, the Bisharp suddenly darted to the side and out of harm's way. Before she could stop her momentum, King slammed the blunt end of his blade into the back of her head. Jade immediately fell to the ground, groaning painfully from the impact. King was about to send another attack, but was quick to notice the children coming his way. He withdrew his steel razors back inside his arms.
"Well, if it isn't you children," he said. "It seems you've gained more members last I saw you."
Jade quickly got back to her feet, rubbing her scalp with a grimace. When she realized who King was talking to, she gave the team a warm smile as the light filling her own blades disappeared.
"Hello," she said pleasantly, no longer bothered by the pain. "How are you four doing?"
"Good good," Zekra said. "Got our mission done today. What are you two doing out here, though?"
"Training," Jade answered carelessly. "King and I use similar battle styles, so we sometimes fight each other to improve our skills. It's really helpful."
"Ah, okay then," Zekra said with a thoughtful nod.
The Bisharp glanced down at the two members of Team Vendetta. He stared at them with his impenetrable gaze.
"So, you two are now members. Who are you?" King asked. "I haven't been keeping progress with Team Vendetta's team growth."
"Well, I'm Syn," the Snivy answered before gesturing to the Mienfoo. "And this is Impetus. We've been here for about three weeks. We joined around the same time."
King brought his intense gaze to the Mienfoo. Impetus returned the same stare, not becoming unnerved by his cold demeanor.
"So King, you said you'd teach me Dark Pulse if we completed a 'B' level mission," Zekra started to say. "Well, we did. We did the Dusk Mines mission you guys posted. So, can you teach me the move now that I've proved myself?"
The Bisharp removed his gaze from the Impetus and brought it over to the Zorua.
"I would normally ask for proof that you've done this, but I can see that you're speaking the truth," King stated. "Fine then. You've met my expectations. I'll teach you this power."
Zekra giddily hurried over to the Bisharp and awaited his instructions. As King started to explain the details of the power, the rest of Team Vendetta simply watched in silence. That is, until Jade came to the children and stopped before them.
"Hey, remember how you guys said you wanted me to talk to Impetus?" she began. "Well, I can talk to her now if you want. I'm not really doing anything right now."
"Yeah, that'd be great," Terron said with a smile. "I almost forgot about that. Sure, go ahead."
Impetus turned her head to the Cubone.
"Why do you want me to talk to her?" the Mienfoo asked.
"Well, to help you," Terron explained. "I realize that you're still a little confused about things in the civil world, so I thought maybe Jade can help you with that since she was also a feral at some point. Like… maybe she can answer that question you keep wondering about. It's just to help clear things up a little for you."
Impetus was quiet for a moment.
"I suppose I shall try this," she said, somewhat reluctant. "I would like answers."
"Yeah, Syn and I will stay right here while we watch Zekra in case you need us," Terron assured. "We won't go anywhere."
"Alright then," Impetus said with a nod before looking at Jade. "Whenever you want to talk to me, I'm ready."
"Well, let's go over there first so we can hear each other more clearly," Jade suggested. "Then we'll talk."
The two left behind the team as they made their way over to one of the giant trees that made up the Aurora Town Fellowship's base. Once they were there, they found an empty spot next to one of the giant roots. Jade hopped onto the root and sat down upon it while Impetus remained standing on the ground.
"Sooo, let's just try to get to know each other first," Jade suggested uneasily, not sure how to initiate the conversation. "That might help break the ice."
"You don't talk like a former feral," Impetus suddenly stated.
Jade scratched her head awkwardly.
"What do you mean?" she asked.
"You sound like a civil," Impetus clarified. "I know that you're a feral, though. You fight like one and you have the eyes of one. The same is for King. I can tell both of you were ferals, but neither of you sound like them. I just noticed that. I'm wondering if I will start talking like that."
"Yeah, you will," Jade said. "It just takes time. Probably in another couple of weeks. Do you not want to sound like a civil?"
"I don't mind what I sound like," Impetus answered. "It's just something I've noticed and I wondered if I would be like that. But no, I don't mind what I sound like. I already sound half civil right now. I don't mind sounding full civil. It lets me express my thoughts more easily."
Jade didn't know what to say. She half-wished King was here to talk to Impetus instead. After all, he had been the one to help Jade when she was becoming sentient. He was far more of an expert at this kind of thing, even if his ways had been more brutal and involved less talking.
"Why are you here in the civil world?" Impetus then asked. "Why did you leave our old world behind for this one?"
"Well, that was so long ago, that it's getting harder to remember nowadays," Jade said slowly. "But, I think I came here because I wanted to understand something. It was something about how… oh, I remember now! Yeah, that was it. Yeah, it was to know why they saved me…"
"What are you talking about?" Impetus asked.
Jade smiled wistfully as she glanced up at the sun.
"A long time ago, a little less than two decades, Emdox, King, and Vantis had to go visit the Nestati City Fellowship for whatever reason," she started to say as the memories came back to her. "They were going through this jungle that I happened to live in. And, as they were resting, I tried to steal their bag since I was so hungry and they had so much food in it. Well, they weren't exactly happy with that and chased after me, trying to kill me to get their stuff back. But, before they could catch up to me, this Seviper came out of nowhere and tried to eat me.
"I thought I was going to have to fight that Seviper, but then suddenly, Emdox came in and took care of it for me. I remember that was so shocked to see that. I mean… these Pokémon I had never met were helping me. I know now that they didn't really intend to save me and just wanted their stuff back, but I still couldn't believe what I had just seen. It was something I had never seen before as a feral. So, instead of running off again, I started following them around so I could figure out why they had saved me. And, I guess I followed them out of the jungle and they just took me with them. And then I eventually became civil like you see me now."
"So that was your reason for coming to this world," Impetus said, more so to herself than Jade. "It was still out of curiosity, but not my same kind… but why did you stay? After you found your answer, why didn't you leave? You know your answer now."
The Grovyle thought for a moment.
"I… I really don't know why I didn't go back to the wild," Jade admitted. "Once I came to the civil world, I didn't really think about going back. Something about this world seemed better than the feral world. It might have been because I'm not always in danger in this world, or that I always have help now, but I really can't say. The thought of going back never came to me. It's very strange."
"I see," Impetus said blankly.
There was a moment of awkward silence.
"How come you came here?" Jade then asked, trying to get Impetus talking again.
"I want to know why Pokémon of clashing natures work together," Impetus answered simply. "That's all I want to know. Once I find that answer, I'll decide whether I stay here or not. This world is nice, but I do wish for my old world as well."
"So, you're here for a philosophical question," Jade confirmed to herself. "Interesting. What do you mean by 'clashing natures', though?"
"Why the Cubone doesn't fear the Dewott in the civil world," Impetus clarified. "The Dewott is a water Pokémon. The Cubone is a ground Pokémon. Ground Pokémon fear water Pokémon in the feral world and stay away from them, but not in the civil world. Here, the Cubone will speak with the Dewott with no fear. They talk as if they are friends. As if their instincts do not exist."
"Oh, I understand now," Jade nodded. "You mean why such different Pokémon can get along when they should be fighting against them. I see. Huh, that really is an interesting question. I kinda wondered that myself when I first came here."
Impetus said nothing as Jade started to mull over the question.
After a few moments passed, the Grovyle let out a sigh.
"I wish I could answer that question for you," Jade started to say uncomfortably, "but in truth, I don't know the answer either. I never really thought about it. I just accepted it without questioning it after staying here for a while. I'm afraid you're just going to need to find out on your own."
Impetus nodded silently. It seemed that this conversation had been for naught. Nothing had been explained. It had been a waste of time. With this realized, the Mienfoo began making her way back to her team. From how things seemed, Zekra had just learned the power she was attempting to wield. She could use it efficiently now, and seemed very excited to do such. Terron and Syn were congratulating her for gaining her newfound power while King seemed as stoic as ever.
"I'm sorry I couldn't help you," Jade said quietly, causing Impetus to stop and listen. "I'm not very good with this kind of stuff. But, I can give you a reason for why you might want to consider staying here after you get your answer."
The Grovyle looked straight into the Mienfoo's eyes.
"You have friends in this world, and they bring a kind of joy you can't get anywhere else," Jade said seriously. "I know you've felt it. Every feral feels it after staying in the civil world for a while. You can't find that in the wild. In the wild, there's no happiness. There are only instincts that crave for you to live and for others to die. You've come so far here, that you now crave this happiness as much as you crave food and water. If you go back to the feral world, then it's going to be a painful process turning back into a feral. You'll be like King… where you're alone for years… with no one there to love and support you until you finally get reduced back into a feral. But, until you revert back into a feral, you're going to be very miserable and lonely. Whenever you look into King's eyes, you can see what those years of suffering did to him. He doesn't talk about it, but he used to be civil and then became feral before finally becoming civil again. He's different than us, but he was where we were at one point in time. He's made the choice you might make when your answer comes.
"It's your choice for what you do after you find your answer, but I want you to remember that, Impetus. I want you to know what will happen to you if you go back so that you can avoid it if you don't wish for those consequences."
The Mienfoo stared at Jade for a long time in silence. She could see the boldness and truth behind those words. It was not something that could happen; it was something that would happen if she went back to the feral world. She'd have to suffer for so long before she could be reduced back into nothing but living instincts. It was the cost of living in this civil world and allowing its ways to take hold of her.
Yet, Impetus wasn't frightened. Whenever the answer she sought came, she would use that to decide where she'd go. Even if she would be in torment should she go back home, she'd do it if her answer pointed her back to the feral world.
"I'll remember," Impetus stated as she turned back to her team with a bitter smile. "When the time comes, I will remember."
Special thanks to ScytheRider for helping with this chapter.