N followed his father into the old, derelict mansion, the wooden floorboards creaking under the soles of their feet. The paint on the walls, pocked with countless jagged holes from years of deterioration, had long since chipped away.

"This is where we will be staying the night," his father said. "One of the sages will bring us what we require."

N nodded. With his criminal status, he could not go in public, even during the dead of night, for fear of being recognized, and that meant his father could not, as well, or risk leaving N alone. At times, members of Team Plasma would obtain the things they needed for them, but this time Ghetsis had entrusted the task to one of the Seven Sages. Until he arrived, they would stay in the mansion, located on the far outskirts beyond the metal buildings of Castelia City.

His father seated himself on the floor; his back pressed against one of the walls. He closed his eyes and slid his arms inside the voluminous folds of his robes, leaving N to do as he wished.

He was not very tired - the sun had barely set - and so decided to explore the rest of the building.

He walked along slowly, the planks under him groaning in protest with each step. He came to a corridor bathed in shadow after turning a corner, so much so that he could not see the two ends to his right and left, but he decided to go left on a whim. The dust that had accumulated there over the years invaded into his nostrils as he went along. Each time he sneezed, the sound echoed back in his ears.

Like any person, the home had a history: a tale to tell in the worn, rusted hinges of its doors and its broken wood. Someone had decided to go against the flow of the nearby city, instead opting for a more quiet life, although, in the end, they abandoned it. N found himself enjoying the place, even if he wasn't able to shake the uncanny feeling that something watched him in the grave, black shadows. The souls of the dead who hid among the blackness, judging him for adding another to their ranks. I did not mean to. I didn't.

He stopped, glancing to his side, where a mahogany spiral staircase curled upward, enclosed by a railing, flecks of gold-paint all that remained of its coloring. He started up it, thinking he could waste time by seeing what the upper floor had to offer. Not being tired wasn't the sole reason he wanted to stay awake. Soon, he was to meet Luna nearby, after the Sage had delivered their goods.

A smile crept onto his lips. That tended to happen whenever Luna's beautiful face appeared in his mind. He could not stop himself. More and more, he loved spending time in her company, despite how they could only meet at night when his father had long since fallen asleep.

N came to the top of the stairs, arriving at what appeared to be a large ballroom. It was a vast, open space with a floor that once would have polish and a marble fireplace where a warm, roaring fire would have gone. Nothing remained inside of the fireplace, he saw, moving over to it, other than a few stains of soot on the white marble. He sighed and leaned back against it, folding his hands behind him at waist level.

In sneaking away with Luna, he was disobeying Ghetsis' wishes. Again. His father would be furious if he ever discovered what N was doing. On top of that, the time he spent with Luna brought him no closer to achieving his goal.

Strangely, he didn't care about either. He felt as if he should, but he did not. Of course, he did not want to upset Ghetsis, and, of course, he was still as determined as ever to free Pokemon… even when the pursuit of that led to him taking another person's life, something he would never forgive himself for. But that guilt was lessened when he spent the first hours of dark chatting and laughing with Luna, knowing that she forgave him even when he did not. When he watched how carefree she lived, relieved from much burden, it made him see that, at times, living life to the fullest meant doing what brought happiness. And he was never more happy than with Luna.

A chilling wind whipped at his hair. He blinked, startled for a moment until he turned and saw that there were two sets of glass doors leading onto a balcony. Coming closer, he could see that age had weathered the glass panels. A web of cracks ran over them, and in other sections, the material had shattered completely.

He stepped outside and leaned on the balconies railing. Castelia City was a cluster of light and tall buildings like skeletal fingers rising from the earth. Dense forest surrounded the mansion, and there was a small, winding dirt trial like a coiling snake that directed to the front entrance, where he and his father had first-

He froze. Three police officers marched up the way to the building, their uniforms clear to see even in the darkness.

He ducked, shivering, mouth turning dry. He clenched his fists. They were coming to the mansion.

They were coming for N.

Had they seen him? How had they discovered their location? He risked a peek over the balcony. The police had almost arrived, but if they had noticed N, they made no indication of it.

What was worse, Ghetsis was downstairs. When the police entered the mansion, it would not take long before they found his father. N crawled along the wood, back toward the ballroom, not daring to stand when the police might still see him. Reaching the inside, he scrambled to his feet and began to run, sweat wetting his palms, only to halt himself again. The floorboards. They screamed each time he stepped on the wrong one. The police would hear that, come for him. But Ghetsis needed his help.

He progressed as quickly as he could while still being careful. He grimaced when the wood groaned underneath him like a blaring trumpet. He applied his weight slowly, stepping around those that squeaked the most, finding the ones that did not, inching along step by arduous step, until he came to the spiral staircase and tiptoed down. Voices echoed through the corridors, freezing him in place.

"Put your hands where I can see them! Where is N?"

"There is no one here but myself."

"Bullshit. Dan, search the building. We know he's here."

"On it, boss."

"John, watch the entrance. No one is sneaking out or in on my watch."

"Right."

He came to the bottom of the stairs, huddling with his back against the wall, licking his lips. Footsteps began to creak toward him, closer, closer. What did he do? Where did he go? He had to save Ghetsis, but how? N would only get himself captured if he tried, and with both of them in jail, Team Plasma would lose its sense of direction.

Everything they had worked for would collapse. All because the police had discovered their location.

He squeezed his eyes shut. One of them had to escape. They had already gotten his father. Footsteps were almost on him, next to him. Father, forgive me! Forgive me!

N spun into the hallway, meeting face to face with one of the policemen, who staggered back in surprise. In his moment of hesitation, N slammed into him, knocking the man over. His gun clattered to the floor. N kicked it away and ran for the window at the hallway's end.

"Hey! Got him! Got him!"

N tore through the corridor, feet smacking wood. Doors flew past him. The window neared, but it remained intact, not broken by age. N would have to break through.

He glanced behind him. The man had grabbed his gun.

N vaulted into the air, slamming his shoulder into the window. Cold night air flooded over him. A sharp sound cracked in his ears, and it did not come from the breaking window.

He knew that sound. It haunted his dreams, a constant plague on his mind, a herald of death.

He collapsed amid shards of glass glinting in the moonlight. Some dug into his palms, his arms, his knees, but he could barely feel them. Fiery red pain, like a knife had plunged into his skin, burst through his shoulder, radiating down his arm, causing his hands to shake. He scrambled to a stand, hot tears soaking his cheeks, glass cutting his hands, and fled, sprinting into the woods, to the one place where he knew someone could help him. He did not think of the Sages, but of the only kind person he knew.

To Luna. I will come back for you, father!

Another explosion broke through the night. Then another. Something whizzed past his ear. He charged into the forest. Soon there were no more gunshots.

He tripped, skidding onto his knees. He cried out, grabbing his shoulder. Warm liquid slid between his fingers.

He groaned, standing. He leaned against a tree, catching his breath, then took a step forward, and another, and another.

Luna, he thought. His chest heaved with shaky breaths.

I must find Luna.