Kuro

My whole body burned like nothing else. There were many reasons why, but one became quite evident to me as I spent more time here. There isn't even enough of a crack to the outside to let in proper lighting, and now, whenever the one who took me here tries to do some 'experiments,' the aftermath is this room increasing in temperature without remorse. Now, even when I had a break from all of the harm, my body was still searing. It was terrible. I don't even know how oxygen gets into this place with all exits sealed off.

Open.

I still never got used to being talked to mentally, even when Naru did it, I couldn't adapt. It didn't help that I couldn't block the noise out, as that's rather hard to do when it's literally inside of your head.

Open.

I felt the air get more and more thin with every second that passed, the combined heat and lack of a release for it made it hard to breathe, which was all I was focused on doing. I would usually try my best to observe the room around me, find something, anything that would give me a better idea of where I was, but that never worked, and it certainly wouldn't now, seeing as I could barely see even in bright light at the moment.

Open.

The voice kept on ringing through my head, coming from the delphox, a scientist from what I know now. Her trials for me to go through weren't pleasant. Not at all. Once she started to take in interest in how I would react to certain things, it got messy. She makes sure there's always something in my head to be terrified of, at any moment. I was already scared out of my mind, and yet, she managed to make it worse. Under my eyelids, I could see the faint pulsing purple light, something that she had kept in here at almost all times. It's her way of being here, observing me, without needing to actually come to this room.

Open.

No matter how many times I attempted to ignore her voice in my head, I couldn't. You would think a dark type would be immune to this, but she has some way to get passed that. She was able to paralyze me, and now, constantly be in my head at all times. I wouldn't call it as bad as the physical treatment I've gotten since I've been here, but it's still painful, and I could use less of that these days. The treatment of my body though, I could barely take it. I stopped resisting screams, I didn't care anymore. Resisting anything just made everything else harder, stopping myself from screaming was only going to make this worse. I already felt like someone jammed sticks in my eyes, and opening them was hard now.

Open.

I very slowly and painfully opened my eyes, only for an extreme wave of heat to blast into them, causing me to let out a loud yell, and shut my eyes on reflex again. My scream slowly filtered out, and I began heavily panting, along with trembling. I felt like I took in next to no air from all of this, but I couldn't help it. It was impossible for me to resist anything at this point, I couldn't will myself into it. I didn't like to think of it this way, but frankly, I was on the verge of tossing my mind away. I was about to stop caring about everything. Getting out of here, the extreme pain, the daily abuse from Luna, the emotional tremors she opened, all of it. I nearly stopped. I was close to giving up.

I'm surprised how much you can take. We may need to keep you alive, but I thought for sure you would be done for after all of this. My mind stayed silent. I gave up on trying to communicate with their scientist already, I never got anywhere with it, so I didn't bother anymore. She would ask me questions, I would never answer, just like I never answered Luna. No matter how many times she comes back and reopens wounds, I'll sooner prevent myself from breathing then give her anything.

You can't seem to open your eyes anymore, not without effort. I realized as she spoke, that I couldn't see the blurry purple light anymore, which would mean she stopped watching me, but was still talking to me. I must say though, you're going to have many permanent scars after all this, assuming you get out alive, which I somewhat doubt, unless you give us what we want.

I didn't respond, and minutes passed, my breath as stable as it would be if I just ran two marathons.

If you stay silent for too long, we're going to lose our patience. I have other pokemon to learn about, and I'm sure Luna won't stay locked onto you as much as she is right now. We're a large organization, it wouldn't' be the hardest thing in the world to track down where the items are located in the first place. We've already checked places like their old home, the Nest, everywhere they went thoroughly, the list is narrow at this point. As much as I wanted to communicate, I still remained quiet.

I learned something new a day ago, the Void went back to where I lived at first once more, looking for the two accessories. They came back with nothing, both confusing me, and causing me to be grateful. I had no idea how they could possibly miss them, especially if they claimed to search thoroughly, but I wasn't going to complain. It was a mystery, one that I couldn't task myself with solving right now. I was too focused one my fear to think about anything else.

If you won't speak up, you'll be nothing but a nonfunctioning body. You'll have a mind, that's it. Do your loved ones really want to see that? Her comments made to get under my skin worked way too easily. I was irritable while I was here, that hitmonchan, now called Nekro apparently, kicked everything off. He taunted me, said he wanted to go after Naru, and I wasn't going to listen to that. Any other Void member that's brought up anyone back at the Nest, whether it be this delphox or Luna, I lost it. That was the only time I ever responded to either of them, and perhaps that made me predictable, but I couldn't care less. At this point, I barely cared about anything. I just wanted this all to end, I didn't care how.

The Raven that was with you back in the place I captured you, she's an interesting one. I wished to take her in for tests too, but my orders didn't allow it. Based on her thought patterns, she seemed like your friend, right? You have a decently strong bond with her from what I read. The fact that this pokemon could pick apart my mind was scary to say the least, but it seemed as if she couldn't read memories, which was the only good thing to come from all of this. If she could, they would already be on their way back here with the necklace and scarf, and I would most likely be dead.

I looked at a lot of the intel we have on you in particular, seems like this isn't the first time you've been in contact with our best. I think you should consider yourself lucky, having survived an encounter with Luna as a child, an attack from Rage, even one from Grace. That's certainly something to be proud of, don't you think? Surviving through all of those experiences? Many others in your position would easily die, but here you are, defying it all. Reminiscing on all of these events bothered me, none of them were happy memories, all they did was further increase the mental torture I was already being submitted to.

I heard that the Void is planning on attacking the Nest. We have been for ages, but never had the confidence to do so. Luna takes the strangest risks, and yet, plays it safe with so many other tasks. I suppose attacking the Nest is one of those objectives we can't just hop onto immediately, even though I feel like we have the strength to do so. I was hardly paying attention to anything she said.

My trembling became lighter as time went on, I still couldn't open my eyes, but forcing myself to deal with the pain somehow made it easier on me. Maybe it's because I was used to just taking it all from my recoil and the like, so embracing it was better than ressisting. It didn't go away, but I was able to think at the very least, even if nothing was really going through my head. It was rare I was able to focus hard enough to think about something other than whatever is going to happen to me next, but whenever I did, I always went to the Nest, to Naru and Shiro, to Charm, to Kage and Vero, to Shine, to Core, Shard and Kai, all of them. I wondered how they were all doing, if they were safe, and what they were up to. Most likely Nest tasks, as per normal. I found it odd that my mind went to Kai at all, he was a Void member too, but for some reason, I felt that his training, and actions toward me, were genuine, as if he was actually looking to make me stronger, to help me deal with whatever I'll need to approach in the future.

All of this was likely just me trying to find a random light in the darkness entrapping me though. It was far more conceivable that Kai is just another Void member, lurking in the Nest, just like Aven. I had no idea what Shine could be up to, if he was doing okay, if he even knows about what happened to the rest of the camp or not, if he was still with Cyan, I knew nothing. I just had to hope that he was doing okay.

Core and Shard have always been pokemon I respected a lot, Core having a connection to my parents helped that fact, but also his willingness to help me, his cheerful attitude, all of that. I wanted to talk more with him before I ended up getting taken here, but it was beyond my control at this point. Shard was such a perfect mentor match with Naru it's silly, the two are so similar, and yet, I can tell that's not all Shard has in her head. She's not just a klutzy mentor to help other pokemon because they're assigned to her, it was easy to tell that she cared deeply about all of the Ravens she interacted with, I learned that from both Naru and the short mach-battle I had with her. Shard and Core will always be pokemon I can look up to for sure.

Every time I thought about Kage and Vero, my mind went to two things: The finals in the applicants' tournament, and trying to teach someone for the first time. Kage was a respectable pokemon, very kind and caring, despite others finding him intimidating at times. I had a lot of simple conversations with him over our time at the Nest, and a small rivalry. He's always been stronger than me, ever since we first got here, he beat me in the finals, and every time I saw him battle, it was clear as day that he would be able to best me. Not that I was angry about it or anything, but keeping up was a good motivator to keep on trying my best when it came to training, along with all of my others reasons not to stop.

Vero, being someone I met for the first time on our first mission, I could tell she had the same caring nature as Kage, though not as verbal about it. She's a bit more blunt, and, for lack of a better word, aggressive. It wasn't a bad thing per se, but it was noticeable to me. She also had a thing for messing with others' heads, which annoyed me to a certain extent, but created a few fond memories in the process. I would say the fond ones are far more common than the annoyance. Plus, my first impression of her was saving half of the residents of that camp we went to on our first mission, so that painted a positive picture in my mind right off the bat.

I met Charm very recently, and was only able to spend roughly one day with him until everything took place that ended with me getting taken away, but I already had a sort of fondness for him. Maybe it's because at first, he reminded me of Shiro, though not exactly the same circumstances. After talking with him a bit, he stopped reminding me of Shiro and more of Shine, and right after, I started to gain a lot of respect for him. Despite his very young age, he wanted to tackle his mental blocks immediately, he wanted to know how to solve them, and takes steps to do so. Him and Shine both, they always wanted to help others, no matter what situation they were in. They did so much better than I did when I was younger, I was nothing but a mourning sack of flesh, but they were different, and I admired that about the two of them.

Me running into Shiro when I did could be classified as nothing but luck, and if I had to get lucky at any given time, I'm glad it was at that point. She spent who knows how long in that shack, without being able to seek food or water on her own, it must have been awful. Finding her and being able to provide her with what she needed while she was terrified was a stroke of luck for sure. The day came when Rage came to the same place, wanting to take Shiro back to the Void most likely, and do… whatever else with her, something I don't want to think about. I was able to get her away though, take her to safety, and began growing a relationship with her, along with Naru doing the same thing. After spending so much time with her, I honestly saw her as nothing less than a daughter. I had no idea how to raise a child, but I felt like she was a young vulpix I wanted to protect at all costs, and we provided her food, safety, support, it honestly felt like Naru and I were raising her. She was a bright young pokemon, shy, but smart and honest. I loved watching after her, and I couldn't wait to see who she would become. If that wasn't an example as to what I saw her as, I don't know what is.

Naru…

What could I even say about Naru? There were so many things… From the very beginning, when we rammed into one another right after I had left my home and the forest for the first time, she always stood out to me. Granted, back then, I had no idea how pokemon were supposed to interact with one another, or rather, I had never really seen it outside of occasional glances at my parents, but still, she was in my head at all times after that. The reflex I had when I saw her getting trailed by a suspicious gallade, that didn't feel normal, I hadn't talked to her passed a name and an apology, and yet, I wanted to make sure nothing bad happened, no matter what. Either way, I immediately intervened, and despite the fact that if I fought that guy off, I'm almost positive she could have, I was glad that I was of assistance. After that, I was invited to her home, which baffled me. At that point, my parents had told me to never bring anyone back, even though I never left, but just as a precautionary measure, they hammered that point into my head. The fact that someone else trusted me enough to invite me to their home after less than a day of talking was confusing, but I needed shelter at the time, so I suppose I didn't mind going along with it.

The next day came, and we went to get food, walked around aimlessly for a bit, and then arrived at a huge building I hadn't explored the entirety of. After curiously searching for a few, we came across who we now know as Core, sitting behind a counter, intrigued by our entry. One small conversation later, and I would make the most important decision in my life so far, in the span of only a minute. As much as I felt that I rushed it, and it realized how impulsive it was, I can't say I will ever regret the choice I made. Plus, I had someone to experience it with. That was the biggest push in my final declaration, the fact that I was with someone else, I wasn't alone for once. It was a huge weakness of mine, to be so easily swayed out of fear I would stay on my lonesome, but it turned out better than I could ever imagine.

Participating in a tournament when I was so unfamiliar with battling anyone who wasn't a random feral in the woods, right after I just made a huge choice no less, I was clueless on how to handle it. I was even put into the first battle, the very first… I'm glad my luck improved at least a little bit after that day. Either way, Naru encouraging me, saying that I would do well, believing in me, that made all of it so much easier, more than I can describe. Someone was backing me up, someone was with me, and they even cheered me on. No wonder she always made me feel so warm, so comfortable. Not only has she been with me since I first decided to quit my brooding and try my best to change for the better, but she was so supportive, always making sure I was okay, always keeping an eye out, always just making me happy.

My whole body shuddered, despite the numbness ever so present. My eyes were still closed, but I felt tears build up.

After we were both accepted into the Nest, everything changed again, it was like diving into a whole new world. I had a mentor, one I was terrified of no less, living in a safe space, even making friends, despite the fact that I right next to two other pokemon I couldn't even face without shaking in fear. Yet, I kept going strongly, I kept at it, because I had support. I still had Naru, I got off on a good note with Kage, and I talked to Core, beginning to look up to him. I had pokemon around me that I got along with, I actually had friends… it was so weird. Not in a bad way by any means, but I was in no way used to it at all. A little far down the line, I learned that Naru had similar feelings, finding oddity in friendship, but she seemed in her element when she was being social, she was able to act so naturally around anyone, and I admired that. I began to admire her a lot more.

Our first mission came and went, yet another experience that I couldn't recreate in a million years. Everything going south, being taken by the Void and subsequently managing to get away, not just me, but Naru and Vero as well, all of it happened so fast, and it was certainly a chain of events that didn't need repeating. Either way, when all was said and done, and Naru ran over to me with the storm gone, nuzzling my head while I was barely conscious on the ground, it made me feel happy. Happier than I had ever been on my lonesome.

It felt like my eyes opened a bit, though I still couldn't see. I felt tears run down my cheeks, soaking into the dirt ground under me.

We had such a calming period of time after our first mission, it was peaceful, relaxed, and pleasant all around. Days went by, I was feeding Shiro every single one of them, I was trying to train Vero as best I could with my limited knowledge, I myself, was slowly improving, mentally and physically, they could be considered the most calming days I've spent since my parents were alive. Spending time with pokemon I came to know as friends, helping a small pokemon in need, and bettering myself in any way I could, it was a productive period for sure. Since then, we haven't had a stretch of time remotely similar. Rage went after Shiro, I was lucky enough to catch him in the act and get Shiro out of there, and begin to raise her in a way. Not long after we started, Naru had an odd dream, specifically about what happened to me when my parents were killed. I still have no idea what brought that vision to her, but it wasn't natural, not that it mattered much at this point, but it was a way for her to learn about it without me needing to go into detail, which was, if anything, helpful.

Next, Naru and I had to go to Myriad, where we started. It was a normal set of tasks to accomplish at first, we got them done at a very fast rate, and I even got to both teach a small lesson to Naru's old bullies, and see Shine again, so it was looking successful. It took a turn when we went to my old home, and I started looking around, reminiscing about my childhood life, before the two of us went outside to where I buried my guardians. I totally lost it on the spot. I have no idea what caused such an uprise in my emotions after visiting them so many times prior, but it happened regardless, I couldn't hold them back. Just like every other time I was upset, or worried, Naru was there to help me. The way she held me when that happened, and the comfort I felt, even though I was pouring out an ocean of tears, just like so many other times, there was no way to describe it. I didn't want to leave her side, no matter what. I can't put it into words, how much Naru has helped me, or how much I care about her, how much I appreciate her concern for me, how much I cherish being around her. There was only one way to wrap it all into one sentence.

I felt the tears erupting from my eyes become more plentiful, though I still couldn't move effectively enough to wipe them away. Reflection was always such a double edged sword, but worth it in the end. Thinking about everyone secured the miniscule amount of sanity I had left, and no matter how many times I was burned, sliced, beaten, abused, no matter what happens to me in here, the thought that everyone else is okay, that I'm taking the brunt of this, as opposed to the others, that was enough for me.

Are you finally breaking? I've never seen you cry before, maybe Luna has, but not me. I had nearly forgot about the delphox, still spectating me. She must have been using a different method to do it though, as I still couldn't see the purple light she would usually cast in here. It was very possible that she just read through all of my thoughts, in which case, I didn't really care. Out of everything, I'm surprised you aren't holding out some ridiculous fantasy that someone is going to come save you, that's the usual reaction from most we hold here.

I paused, letting the tears coming from my eyes further soak the ground I was laying on.

Nobody is saving me. I communicated back to the delphox, for the first time in who knows how long. I know that already. Nobody even know this place exists, nobody other than the ones within it. Someone saving me is a wild fantasy that can't come true. You're either going to keep me alive for years, and I won't talk, or you'll give it up and kill me. Either way, I'm not assisting you. I refused to ever say anything to them, and that wasn't changing, no matter how many flashbacks Luna gave me.

How admirable. Then it looks like you'll be Luna's toy for a long time. I've learned everything I needed to from you, so I'll be heading somewhere else, but she's not going anywhere. Not until you spill.

The notion that I was going to be used as a "toy" made me shudder, but it didn't matter anymore. I was committed to silence.

\

I'll never say anything. Maybe I'll even find a way to kill myself while she's trying to get information out of me. I half-threatened. It was sad that the only form of a threat I could make was that of suicide, but it was something. Arceus knows, if I was pushed, I wouldn't hesitate to go through with my threat.

I'll be sure to tell her that.

With that, I didn't hear anything else from the delphox that had been tormenting me for the longest time. She was gone for the moment. I relaxed my mind, as I tried to do at all other times while stuck here. After looking back on so many events, I was blank, and lightheaded. It wasn't uncommon for me to randomly pass out while I was here, for various reasons. Losing consciousness was always a way for me to get away from the physical pain for a bit, so I welcomed it.

My mind wandered to my parents, as it always has occasionally. Sometimes, I re-played some of our happy memories in my head, almost vividely enough to hear their voices. I could still picture them perfectly, their image would never fade from memory. If I try really hard, I can project what they would sound like in my head, and imitate it mentally. It was so close to actually being able to hear them talk again, so close to being with them like I was so long ago.

"Kuro?"

My ears painfully perked, but I was still unable to see anything. I heard a voice, just like my dad's, extremely close to my ear. My body twitched all over, and my breathing picked up again. I'm not sure why I nearly went crazy, it was obvious what was happening.

"Try to calm down dear."

It was my mother's this time, as soothing as ever. Just like my dad, she sounded so close, almost as if she was in my head. Though, it was clear as day why they sounded like that. I was losing it. I thought about them a bunch, and now I was hearing voices. I wasn't aware that I was so close to going crazy, but it seemed as if I had arrived at that point. I was back to trembling, attempting to slow my breathing down. I'm going insane…

"I know you can't talk to us, but listen up, nice and close." My dad's voice played again, causing the tears that were leaking before to only intensify. I could handle thinking about them, hearing their voices, almost like they were trying to talk to me, this was almost too much. I tried my best to calm myself, and do as the voice said. Even if I was going insane, it was better than being all alone in an empty head. After some effort, I calmed my body, holding still once more.

"Your mind is tricking you in more ways than one right now. I probably don't need to tell you that, but I want you to keep it in mind. You're having some bad thoughts, you can't listen to them." My mother's voice chimed once more. My head was devoid of logic at this point, I really was losing it.

"You think death is the way this is going to end, that your time here is only going to get worse and worse until your body eventually can't take it. I disagree." The voices playing in my head alternated between my parents. My lightheaded feeling slowly but surely increased in severity.

"You'll find a way out, you always manage to find a way to make it all work out." My emotions were running rampant. Hearing the voices of both of my parents, hallucination or not, it was driving me insane, truly making my mind go blurry. I haven't seen them in eight years… more than that at this point… they wouldn't know everything that's happened since then, they have every right to assume I died right after them…

"You've grown so much since we last saw you, it's hard to even recognize you! Though you sort of evolved… so that's hard to begin with!" My dad's blind optimism was always a great defining trait for him. It was reckless at times, but still enjoyable to see for everyone. I guess even in my head he would act the same way…

"I was always worried that you would have a hard time socializing because of how sheltered you were, but you did amazing! The first pokemon you met is really fond of you, you must be a natural!" My mom would always try and match dad's enthusiasm, but never quite got to that level. It was funny to watch them go back and forth all the time, with their varying levels of energy. In a way… it's almost like Naru and I.

"We met through the Nest, and it's awesome to see you participating there too! Even if we sort of… wanted you to avoid it at first, you found your way there anyway, which means it must be fate!" 'Fate,' dad loved that word. He was so interested in myths and legends, fate was just another phenomenon that none of us believed in, other than him. Sometimes mom would say he sounded crazy, talking about wanting to meet legendaries one day, but also liked that part about him. He didn't let logic hold back his aspirations, even if he did sound like a lunatic trying to go through with them.

"You've also had someone with you the whole way through, someone very special to you." Mom wanted me to find someone to talk to when I was younger, but out of what I assumed to be fear, kept me cooped up at home. I didn't blame them for it, if they knew everything about this part of the world, I can see why they wouldn't even want me to leave home. I couldn't say I felt any different about Shiro, I hated having her out of my sight at times, unless I knew she was already with someone else. Now that I had someone I could consider a daughter, I understood that notion more than ever.

"Aaaaaand, who knows? Maybe you'll start your own family with them! Wouldn't that be fantastic!?" Another worry my parents had, primely my dad. That I would meet someone if I left home, and want to leave with them as opposed to coming back. It was silly to think that I would ever want to just up and leave them, but that sounded like a normal worry for a parent to have, so I didn't question it. Though, I felt myself fluster a little bit after reading more into what my father had just implied in my head. I'm sure I was blushing from said implications, but I couldn't feel the normal heat I would when that normally happens.

"I'd say you already have a small family there, but why not make it official? It would be good for you!" Now my mind was getting even blurrier. Even considering all of that… it was enough to stop me from talking, assuming I would be able to talk in the first place. I wasn't sure why, but I couldn't help it, those thoughts always flustered me, I just didn't think that, here of all places, I would start blushing from something, let alone from something that's spanning from me losing my head…

"You would like doing that, wouldn't you?" Dad's voice was so clear in my head when he said that. "Wouldn't it make you happy?" The notion of having a family, of course it would. The other pokemon I would be starting said family with being Naru… Of course it would. Being able to live peacefully again, with none of these evident Void problems dominating my life, that's what I wanted more than anything else. Maybe after that… I can even have a family, one to extend off of what I already have. That… really would make me happy.

"But that can't happen right now." I knew that already… "It can only take place after you get out of here. After you reunite with your loved ones." Loved ones…

"You'll for sure find a way out, you can't give in so easily. We never gave up, and we ended up with a family we're proud to have! Don't throw the rest of your life away now by giving up, as long as you keep on fighting, you'll find a way out, and find a way back to your friends, back to everyone."

I took a second to reflect. I'm going insane… Whatever is talking to me… It's clearly not my parents, they're gone. They aren't coming back, my mind is fading away and this is my body's way of trying to keep me conscious, that has to be it. But… everything they're saying, everything that their voices are portraying, even if it's not them… they have a point. It has a point…

Some time passed, and I didn't hear anything else, it looked like I was done having my little episode. The fur on my face was wet with tears, I could still barely move, my body burned like nothing else, everything was just like it was before, even my lightheadedness.

But… I was calm.

I was breathing evenly, despite the burning and everything else, I was stable, I was calm. Maybe it was hearing my parents' voices again, even if they weren't real. Maybe it was the newfound clarity in my mind, maybe it was me just getting closer to passing out, I had no idea. The only thing I knew was that I was calm. It's almost like, I was disconnected emotionally, I didn't feel sad, scared, anxious, anything I was feeling prior to the conversation I had with my imaginary guardians. I had a goal in my mind now, a single goal, and I wanted to accomplish it through whatever actions necessary. I wanted to get out of here. That's my goal.

I had no idea when, how, or if it was even possible, but that was my goal.

I felt my body drift, almost as if it was moving on its own, signaling that I was about to close consciousness. Despite that though, I felt odd, my body was light, much more so than usual. Most likely a signal that I was about to pass out.

The last thought in my head before I went under was how loose my body felt.

Hello Readers!

Another chapter done on time! Hoorah! This doesn't happen often, so celebratory dance! I hope everyone is doing well out there! And uh… you see, when I have nothing to announce, I never know what to put in these things, soooo hi!

…..

Wow, this is awkward.

Thanks to everyone who has sent me any reviews, pms, the like, I love all of them! They always put a huge smile on my face! Don't be shy, I don't bite! Not from criticism, not from normal conversation! Thank you to my beta reader for cleaning up all of my chapters to make sure they don't suck! (8-BitUmbreon)

See You Next Chapter!