Hybrid: Aurora Edition

by SairaCrystaline

A story in the Pokemon world with a trans protagonist who lives through some of the worst life has to offer, but refuses to back down and always does their best to do the right thing. Lots of hurt/comfort, comedy will be in places, don't expect much hetero stuff to happen. And plenty of filled in holes the canon of the games leaves.

3. Chapter 3: Descent into Madness

Finally we have learned ever so slightly more about where our story begins. It goes to show exactly what sort of place it is, however, that we have only just learned where they are. Not to mention how the past few days were only the initial stage of their plan. Iron Island… a location said to be difficult to survive for all who venture there. Ironic, then, that upon this island is where such events are taking place. So let us see now how Aurora's fight for survival goes.

~~Dream World, Year 8520, Damidar, ?~~

I woke up, shaking my head. There was snow beneath me- actual snow this time- and the sky was pink again. I pushed myself up, looking around. The trees were covered in green, needle-like leaves and bulges in the snow belaid their roots. Despite the sky being crystal clear, it was snowing lightly. To my right, there was more of a clearing than there was before. It didn't look as though the trees had been chopped down, however. It simply looked as though they'd never existed to begin with, evident by the untouched snow and lack of stumps Except for...

"Rhea!" I started running over, snow kicking up beneath my feet. She was standing next to what looked like the start of a building; a wooden frame, a couple walls and windows in place. The floor was finished, all having been made out of a darker wood. It looked like a house built by someone who didn't know too much about how building a house worked, but could make it without that knowledge perfectly fine.

She looked over, relief and surprise flaring in her heart. "Aurora!" She held her arms wide, and I ran into her embrace with a small jump. I hugged her back tight, her wings curling around me kinda like Mama did with her tails. "Thank goodness, I couldn't find you the other night…"

I shuddered, remembering the dream from before. My hand went to my neck, where there wasn't a collar. "What… was that?"

She held me tighter. "A nightmare. Depending on how you're feeling, you might enter the Dream World closer to me… or further away…"

Her wings unfurled, and I could see a dark cloud far off in the distance. I shuddered and held closer to her. "Can't I just… choose to not go there?"

She smiled sadly. "If only. But it's safe here." She turned to show me what was behind her. "I started making this for us. Do you like it?"

I blinked. "What is it?"

Surprise lit up before dimming slowly. "It's the start of a house. I figured you might enjoy staying in a house sometimes, instead of sitting in the snow whenever you come here." She shivered. "I certainly would…"

I gave her a weird look. "Can't you make fire though? You look like you can make fire."

She shuddered. "I… not yet." I felt a deep fear, regret and sadness from her as she said that.

I won't ask. I don't wanna make her sad. Maybe if she feels better about it someday.

We sat on the floor inside… well, not inside, but in the kinda built area. I noticed how the slabs of wood had lots of cool swirls in them, and even though it wasn't as cushy as the snow? It was neat. And a lot less hard than the floor in evil land.

Rhea looked at me, confusion emanating from her. "Aurora. You… met someone, didn't you?"

I nodded. "Yeah, Rhodo. The nice human who gave me and Mama juice. Why?"

She screwed up her face. "I… feel as though I've met him before. I don't know for certain though. When you wake up, could you ask him if he recognizes my name?"

I nodded again. "Sure! Maybe your name is a secret code that opens up a hatch and lets us all get out!"

She chuckled. "Let's hope. I think that'd be wonderful if it did."

I sat with her, resting my head on her lap. I felt much better here than I did out there. She started scratching my head behind my ears, and a slow rumbling emerged from my chest. She stopped, surprised, and I looked at her. "What is it? Is something wrong?"

She shook her head, putting her hand back on my head. "No… no, I was just surprised. That's all. You didn't do that intentionally?"

I looked up at her, worried. "That's like what Rhodo said… is it bad?"

She shook her head quickly. "Not at all! It's… how do I explain it…" She looked up at the sky, quiet for a while. "Me, Rhodo, and a lot of the people who aren't Pokemon around you have their own ideas of what other people who aren't Pokemon do. If you do something we don't expect, that doesn't mean it's bad. It just means that what you did didn't occur to us as an option, one that someone else would or could do. Like how some of the Pokemon are surprised you can understand them. They're used to anyone who's not a Pokemon not being able to, and because you're not they expected you to not. But when you could, it surprised them. Does that make sense?"

I hesitated, then nodded slowly. "So it's not bad… I'm just not what people expect?"

She smiled. "Exactly! You don't have to worry."

I then laid back on her lap, the same rumbling from before happening when she scratched behind my ears. She wasn't surprised this time though. Just happy. I want everyone to be able to be safe and happy in a place like this…

~~Iron Island, Year 8520, Damidar?, ?~~

I woke up again, this time without any snow beneath me. Something better was above and around me though.

I snuggled closer to Mama, and she looked in her tails at me. {Good afternoon, my child. Did you sleep well?}

I nodded, thinking for a moment. My head didn't hurt as bad, and neither did my throat. The collar was still there, but it didn't feel as bad as last time. I focused on my flame like Mama told me, and instead of getting shocked when I tried to make it bigger? It actually did get bigger, spreading more warmth throughout my body. I could even get to what felt like a comfortable temperature, and a little above it before I felt the collar start tingling.

Mama smiled warmly at me, just seeing her face warming me more than any flame. {I see you can grow your flame more now, my child.}

"{Yeah,}" I said sleepily, "{It feels better than before.}"

"Hello? You two awake?" Rhodo asked before making his way over with more of his medical stuff, apple juice and medicine. "Ah good afternoon, you were asleep for awhile. The collar was loosened so you both should be feeling much better."

Mama nodded at him, her gaze less intense than before. {Indeed they are. I am surprised you made good on your word.}

Rhodo noted Mama's eye and nodded at her. "My only purpose here is to make sure you guys are feeling as good as you can be. You ready for your second check up?"

Mama unfurled her tails some as I nodded, remembering something. "{Hey Rhodo?}"

"Hm?"

"{Is the name Rhea familiar at all?}" Mama looked at me curiously as I said that. Rhodo on the other hand froze while he was checking my temperature. I could feel his heart plummet as he began looking around eyes filled with terror. He turned back to me, leaned in and spoke in a hushed voice.

"Never mention that name again here. To anyone. To any pokemon, fused, grunt, Jean, especially not the lady on the phone, an admin, no one. If you do and they find out, I physically cannot save you from the consequences. Do you understand me, Aurora? Twitch your left ear if you do," Rhodo spoke quickly and with a sense of urgency similar to how Leanne felt before Razin was taken away. His eyes were filled with desperation for me to understand.

I flicked my left ear, and he sighed in some minor relief. Mama clearly wasn't a fan of his tone, but we glanced at each other. She knows he's scared, not controlling or anything. I mean I can not say something pretty easy, but why's it such a big deal? He definitely knows her though. I guess I'll have to ask her next time I see her?

"So, I got you some more apple juice, but I also made you both some muffins to enjoy. I'm something of a baker in my freetime and I had the ingredients so I figured why not. Gruel has everything you need, but nothing anyone wants." Rhodo's tone was lighthearted and whimsical, yet his heart remained sunken. As if he was trying to forget everything we had just said. How much do humans fake what they're feeling? It's like they all do it all the time.

He handed me more medicine and two juice boxes. "Lemme go get the muffins in the back."

I took the medicine before drinking from the juice box, Mama having started already. {Clearly we have something to keep in mind, my child.}

I nuzzled against her as I thought. Yeah… What'd make him so afraid? Rhea's a nice person, so he can't be afraid of her. It doesn't make sense for him to get scared over something good, since he feels like a good human. And he was talking about how it's something other people can't find out about… So somebody else knows her? And mentioning her is bad? Was Rhea a superhero or something?

My thoughts were interrupted when Rhodo came in holding a tray of brown, poofy… things. Whatever they were they smelled better than anything I'd smelled before. He placed one on a plate for each of us.

"I wasn't sure what you'd like, but corn muffins with butter are pretty universal. Eat up," He gestured.

Mama sniffed each one before nodding and biting into hers. I felt that it made her happy, so I took a bite of my own. And it was awesome. Apple juice was good, but this was amazing. I had to keep myself from devouring it all at once, since it was sweet and fluffy and I wanted to eat it instead of gruel all the time.

Rhodo gave another tiny real smile. "Wow, your eyes are going wide, you must really like it. I'm glad." He felt like he wanted to chuckle, but his heart wasn't in it yet.

I nodded, eating it happily. I stopped though when I got closer to the bottom. Ron would be going nuts right now for one of these… I looked up at Rhodo, who was confused why I'd stopped. "{Is there more? For everyone else?}"

Rhodo furrowed his brow. "Everyone else? Sorry I didn't make enough for everybody. I could ask for everyone to get better food, but I doubt they'll say yes."

My ears drooped a bit as I nodded, looking at the rest of the muffin. Then I'll bring this back and give it to Ron and Rush. They'd love it. I used the paper with the pretty folds in it to cover up the rest of the muffin.

"For the others?" Rhodo asked. I nodded and he nodded back affirmingly. "You're a very thoughtful girl, Aurora. You two can stay here as long as my boss allows. You've still got a bit of a fever and there's not really much to do here, but it's clean, the beds are a bit softer and I can always make more muffins. After you leave you'll be coming back for more medicine over the next few days, too."

His heart still felt really bad, so I put down the wrapped muffin and held out my arms to him. Rhodo turned to Mama with a wary look, but she just waved a couple of her tails in allowance. Her gaze never left him for a moment, though. He leaned forward and gave me a light hug, which made him feel a little better, but I could tell something still concerned him. A lot. But not so much for himself, but for me?

After he let go and stepped back a bit, my throat felt sorta scratchy so I coughed. This time though, a couple embers popped out when I did. Mama didn't seem surprised at all, while Rhodo felt super surprised. That quickly changed as his gaze grew severe, his voice growing hushed again.

"I'm going to tell you two something vital. Phase 2 is beginning and it will only get worse from here on out. Do not stand out or they will single you out. Aurora, avoid using your powers too much, even a cough will get their attention."

Rhodo turned to Mama with an equally serious face. "Ivane… they don't care about losing a few grunts in the midst of all this. But you need to keep in mind that if you cause too much trouble they'll begin weighing whether keeping you alive would be more detrimental to them than you being dead."

This time it was my heart that was dropping, but Mama just sighed. {Though I figured as much, confirmation is important information to have.} Then she looked at me. {It will be alright, my child. I will stay with you. They will have no reason to keep you away from me.}

I nodded slowly, hugging her tight. I was starting to feel sleepy again, but I wanted to stay awake and hug her a little longer. At least here… things are getting a little better.

Rhodo picked up our trash and plates. "The medicine is kicking in. Sleep well Aurora."

Me and Mama woke up again later, and Rhodo called Jean to come get us. She did, and she felt distinctly glad that we were feeling better. She didn't say much though, as Mama was still glaring at her the whole time. There were less blue meanies… Grunts, I think Rhodo called them? There were less of them walking around than when we'd come to the office in the first place.

When we got to the door, Jean looked at us. "I've been appointed to escorting you both, so when it's time for you to go to Rhodo again tomorrow I'll be the one coming." The door hissed open and Mama simply walked with me inside, after glaring at her one last time.

The door shut again, and inside there were a whole buncha people waiting for us. Mabel, Haley, Benny, Bors, Guinevere and Chestnut were sitting on a cot close to the door. Chestnut's ears perked up and she smiled brightly. {They're back! And they're okay!}

They all looked over and I could feel relief from all of them as Mabel led us over to a bed. There was… something else though, in all their hearts. Not sadness at us coming back, not at all, but… something else had happened to make them upset.

For now though, that wasn't the focus. That was Mabel looking me over. "Are you alright? Everything went well?"

Mama looked at them. {Indeed. The human called Rhodo is apparently our doctor. I would not place our trust in him just yet, but…} She glanced at me and smiled. {Aurora benefitted from the trip. And we learned some about our situation.}

Everyone looked more at attention as Mama explained about the phase 2 thing and how we're on whatever an Iron Island is. They weren't that surprised about the phase 2 thing (but I noted that they all felt more angry when it was mentioned) but with Iron Island? Benny put a hand to his chin in thought while Mabel thought out loud.

"Iron Island, huh? I've been a couple times with Benny, but we have to be really far underground."

I looked at them curiously. "{Why's that?}"

"Iron Island is an abandoned mining facility," They began. "Abandoned because too many Pokemon came into the facility for it to be safe to mine. The tunnels are still around, and trainers come all the time to fight and train."

My ear flopped as I tilted my head in more confusion. "{Why would they come here though? If they wanna fight, they can do that anywhere. Right?}"

They clenched a fist, and I felt their heart pulse in a bit of anger. "They could, if they were fighting each other. The wild Pokemon on Iron Island are stronger than usual, due to having pushed out humans from the area. Combine that with how they're primarily Rock, Ground and Steel types and lots of trainers use them to battle against instead of going after other trainers."

My heart took a nosedive, Mama noticing and explaining. {Humans seem to believe that they should assault wild Pokemon for experience rather than battling amongst themselves. Combine that with the fact Pokeballs force one to be more amicable, it really is no surprise the state of things is so horrid. Or that groups such as this take hold.}

That surprised the others. Guinevere especially looked concerned. "Wait. Force them to be more amicable? You mean that Pokeballs force a Pokemon to be more affectionate towards whoever caught them?"

Mama nodded, her tails flicking behind her like a billowing flame. {Of course, this is information mostly overlooked by humans. It is, however, the primary reason as to why Pokemon will listen to humans that use them as mere tools. If they had free reign of their minds, they would not follow.}

{A perfect example of this is the Glameow enslaved by that Grunt human from earlier. They had no real desire to help the human, they were simply forced to. However, when their instincts told them to flee so vehemently and there was nothing they could do to help the human, the Pokeball did not force them to do anything. And as such, they fled.}

Mabel, Benny and Guinevere all looked at the Pokemon with them. I, meanwhile, looked at Mama. "{Does… does that mean-}"

{No, my child,} She interrupted. {You were at no point the holder of my Pokeball. Simply holding it does not transfer 'ownership' as humans call it. My love for you is genuine.} She then glanced at the others. {This is also not to say that a Pokemon is incapable of bonding with a human. While a Pokeball is tantamount to mind control, it can be broken under certain circumstances due to more recent updates. They used to be far, farmore of a stranglehold on Pokemon. If Haley, Bors and Chestnut did not care for you? The current situation would have broken through any manipulation.}

That seemed to calm them a bit, but I just held Mama tight. Humans do stuff like this all the time, don't they… I thought it was just this place, but they control Pokemon all the time and don't care. And they send out the Pokemon they… enslave, Mama called it? Whatever that means, against wild Pokemon who just wanna live their lives… And all because of Pokeballs…

Guinevere noticed and smiled at me warmly, a gentle kindness glowing from her. "You've been through a lot today. There's a couple other people who want to make sure you're alright, but let me know if you need anything. I'm sure if you really need something, we can get it for you."

I nodded and gave them all hugs before Guinevere and Chestnut led us back to our bed. Leanne and Yvonne were there, watching over Ron, Rush, Hazel, Vivian, Eclipse, Yuna and Koko. Ron and Koko noticed first, waving happily and pointing us out to everyone else. Hazel and Vivian's brown ears were drooping slightly, but they perked up upon seeing us.

They all welcomed us with a big hug, Leanne smiling and relief washing over her. "You're back… how'd it go? Nothing too bad? You're walking again, that's good yeah?"

"{Yeah,}" I said with a smile, "{Rhodo had medicine and it helped me feel better. I gotta go back for more, but I should be better soon.}"

She rubbed my back gently, Yvonne bowing her head gently with a warm joy coming from her. I notice she doesn't really talk… Is she like Benny?

Concern was spiking in Eclipse though. "You're sure everything went alright? No secret poison or anything?"

Mama shook her head. {No, none I could smell. And usually even poisons imperceptible to the human nose carry a slight scent. There was nothing I could detect, and my child is feeling better now.}

She breathed a sigh of relief while I pulled out something, Rush's eyes lighting up. "{It's not much, but… I saved some for you two,}" I said to Ron and Rush.

Ron's eyes got huge and I felt a massive spike in joy from him as he took it gently, like it would shatter if he dropped it. He showed it excitedly to Rush before unwrapping it. His smile only got bigger as he looked at me. "There's a whole half muffin left here! This is really for us?"

I nodded, smiling a bit. "{Rhodo said he makes muffins, and they're good, and you both like food, so I figured it'd make you happy.}"

The two nigh on leaped on me, hugging me happily. "It definitely did! Thanks Aurora!"

Hazel chuckled as the two split it in half and annihilated it. "Don't go too fast. Well… I'd say that, but it's already gone."

Rush chuckled awkwardly while Ron's eyes were sparkling. "You weren't kidding, that was good!" He put a hand to his chin. "Maybe I should pretend to be sick, so we can get more muffins…"

Rush gave him a look. {I… don't think that's a good idea.} He looked at me. {Did he say it was for any special occasion?}

I shook my head, the motion not making me anywhere near as dizzy as it had before. "{No, it was more like he made them to make people happy, I think. Maybe I can bring some back next time?}"

At that Leanne got concerned again. "Next time?"

{Aurora is not fully healed yet,} Mama started, her tails waving, {And as such we need to make certain she is. They will be giving her medicine until she has recovered fully.}

Leanne sighed, fear clutching at her heart. I hugged her gently. "{It's okay, he's a nice guy. I think. Bad people don't give you muffins and medicine, do they?}"

One of her fists clenched before it relaxed and she shook her head. "No… no, I suppose they don't." She smiled softly at me. "You've had a big day. You should get some rest."

Even though I'd been sleeping through most of the day, I still felt tired. Not nearly as bad as I had before though, which was good. I hugged her before she got up, beckoning to the others. "Come on, let's let her sleep."

They all nodded, but Hazel and Vivian stayed a moment. Mama looked at them curiously before Vivian began. {Miss Ivane… You've seen a lot of things, right?}

She nodded, her head tilting. {I have, young Eevee. Why?}

She shuddered, her tail bristling. {I… don't want to evolve into something that reflects a place like this. I know we can become lots of things, I just… wanted to know if you've seen anyone who's evolved to be like this, that I don't know about. That's all.}

Mama thought a moment before shaking her head, her eyes closed before she opened them once more. {I do not believe so, young one. Even though I am aware of your kind's evolutions to be of steel, stone, earth and darkness? I do not believe you are in any danger of unintentionally evolving into them. Perhaps becoming of ghost, but that is…}

Vivian nodded. {Something I only gotta worry about if I'm about to die, yeah.} She breathed a sigh of relief, looking up at Mama. {Thanks. That's reassuring.}

{Anytime, young kit.} Mama sent them on their way, Hazel waving to us. Even without saying anything, her feelings made it clear. Thanks for helping calm her. She's been worried about that.

As they walked off I snuggled close to Mama. "{Eevee can evolve into lotsa things, huh?}"

She smiled. {They can indeed, my child. They are known for it, in fact.}

I snuggled under her tails with her, both our flames warm enough to keep us both comfortable as we fell into sleep. The blankets had been mussed up some, but they were still plenty soft and Mama was very fluffy. My tail curled up even more, the white fur only really clouding the end of it now while the rest was a dirty red. With thoughts of muffins, hugs and Eevees in my head, I fell asleep.

~~Iron Island, Year 8520, Damidar?, ?~~

"{Hey Rhodo? What're all these plants?}" We were back in his office, and while the medicine had made me sleepy, I was less sleepy than last time. I only took a nap once, and now I was just resting with Mama and looking around the room. There were lots of plants (well, compared to everywhere else I'd seen except for my dreams anyway) in the room, and I didn't recognize any of them.

"Plants?" He turned around realizing what I meant. "Oh these are berry bushes. They are pretty small, but easy to grow even in a place like this. This here," Rhodo picked a blue berry. "This is an oran berry, they replenish a little bit of a pokemon's health and make a good snack."

Rhodo reached for the pink berry this time. "This is a pecha berry, they cure poison and are pretty sweet. Here, try one." Rhodo handed the pecha berry to me. I bit into it and almost recoiled; it was crazy sweet. There was barely any flavor to it at all, it was like biting into raw sugar that melted in your mouth.

Mama chuckled. {Yes, they are quite sweet. They taste better with something else though, unless you enjoy shoveling sugar into your mouth.}

"You think it's that sweet?" Rhodo took another pecha berry and bit into it giving it a thoughtful taste test. "Hmmm. I've had far sweeter. Maybe it's because you haven't had anything sweet since you got here… I could try making some zesty muffins or cookies with these at least."

Muffins and cookies with this definitely sound good, but what does he mean it's not that sweet? It's super sweet! Maybe his berry is different or something? I broke off the bit I'd taken a bite out of and held up the berry to Rhodo. "{Maybe yours isn't as sweet or something?}"

Rhodo tasted it and shook his head. "Tastes about the same. Maybe you'll like oran berries a bit more. They're good for you and have got a pretty neutral taste. Not very sweet at all, either."

He was right; they weren't all that sweet. But they didn't have an intense flavor in general. Some sweet, some tangy, but it blended in a really nice way and wasn't too much at all. I happily ate the rest of it, Mama nodding. {They can be a nice meal, even on their own.}

I looked at Rhodo, ears flicking slightly. "{That tasted lots better!}"

He gave me another one of his tiny, but true smiles. "Glad you liked it. I've been tryna grow lotsa other berries. Rawst, aspear, leppa, cheri, sitrus, lum," He gestured to some growing berry pots. "They'll all be ready soon enough and you can taste test them all."

I nodded, looking at the various colored trees that were still slowly growing. I definitely wanna try them… but it'd be nice to be able to go home before they grow totally.

There was a knock on the door, a familiar voice speaking from the other side, "Rhodo? It's Jean again. Am I interrupting?"

"Just taste testing some berries, come in."

The door opened and Jean and Indra came in, Indra's wings folded up so he could walk in comfortably. I definitely felt a spike of interest when he saw the berries, though he didn't go for them. Rhodo though immediately gestured for him to come over and eat some which he happily obliged.

Jean and Rhodo started talking about something, but I was lost in thought. Rhodo's nice, and Jean and Indra have been nice too. They don't feel bad either… and it feels like they know each other. Not a lot, it's kinda like… how Ron and Rush feel about Hazel and Vivian. They're nice, they know each other, and that's mostly it.

Mama was still very wary of them both though, so once Jean had said a couple things she gestured to us. "I'll escort you back to the others. Are you ready to go?"

I nodded, picking up the muffins Rhodo had given us to take back. "{Yup.}"

I waved to Rhodo as we walked out, and kept the muffins in my arms. Mama kept her tails close around me, and I walked close to her. So if someone wanted to touch me, they'd have to get within striking distance of her tails. And even though a couple grunts eyed us as we walked past, they all gave Mama a wide berth.

As we were walking past one of the rooms, I heard what sounded like fighting from inside. I looked at it, Mama noticing. {What's wrong, my child?}

Jean noticed next, and her heart dropped. "You… shouldn't go there now. That's for later."

Mama glared at her, but brushed her tails against me gently. {Loathe as I am to agree with her, it is not safe here. We should keep moving.}

After some hesitation, I nodded and kept walking. Not without glancing back at the doorway where I could hear some muted scuffle, though. I swear I heard Eclipse through that…

When we got back, I could definitely hear fighting. It was coming from the screen, and it was pretty obvious mostly everyone was watching. Guinevere though was closer to the door and noticed us come in, and she smiled sadly. "Welcome back, Aurora." She squinted slightly. "You seem to have brought something with you?"

I nodded, walking over with Mama. Now that we were inside, she didn't have to hide me. "{I got some muffins from Rhodo. I figured we could share… what's going on?}"

She patted the bed next to her, and we went to sit with her. Hazel and Vivian were there, along with Chestnut. They all felt… scared? What's going on? I also noticed Hazel's dad, Paul, was sitting a little way away. He was muttering something to himself that sounded like total nonsense, though. The Hydreigon with him was just floating.

I averted my gaze before they noticed it, shuddering slightly. Hazel noticed and hugged me. "Are you okay…?"

I nodded slowly, noticing Mabel, Benny, Haley and Bors coming over. "{Yeah, sorta… just… your dad's scary…}"

She hugged me tighter. "He's… not been right… I hope he's okay…"

Vivian nuzzled closer to Hazel while Guinevere held us both gently, Chestnut curling around us. "It's alright. I'm here for all of you."

Mama nudged me gently. {Perhaps we can distribute the muffins, my child?}

That snapped me out of it as I started giving a muffin to everyone there. I went through them pretty fast, but at least everyone got one. Ron and Rush were talking with some other kids, but I was sure they'd come over quick. But after a look around the room…

"{Where're Eclipse, Yuna and Koko? We have muffins for them too.}"

Chestnut looked at me sadly and just motioned her tail over to the screen. And what I saw…

"C'mere shitass, I ain't done with you yet!"

Portrayed wasn't the room from before, with the horrifying machine. That was just about the only good thing. Instead it was a somewhat higher up view of a large glass tank thing, with various blue meanies standing around in white coats and mini-screens tapping away. Opposite the room there was a smaller room with a single, long window suspended above the ground and looking down. Inside there were a couple blue meanies- Or are they grunts? Is there a difference?- without the blue hair but who still had the white coats.

There were four other people though. They were kinda out of view of the screen, so I couldn't see too much past three of them being humans and one being a Pokemon. They were standing at the front of the room though, and the only one on screen… I shuddered, cuddling closer to Mama.

I can't forget those eyes.

The same Sneasel that attacked me and Mama… somewhere, was leaning against the glass, their claws leaving slight scratches down the glass. Their mouth was stretched into a twisted, sadistic smile and their eyes were filled with malicious glee.

None of that was what the screen was pointed at, though. What the screen was pointed at was Eclipse, Koko, Yuna and another Lycanroc. It was easy to tell Yuna and the other one apart; instead of orange, they were tan and they didn't have any fur coming up and over their head. Koko was staying at the far end of the room, as far away as she could get from the other Lycanroc. Yuna and Eclipse were standing in front of her.

Yuna's coat was a bit messed up, but nothing major. Eclipse though had red liquid trickling down from places on her face, her arm and some places where the sides of her shirt had been torn away. She was clearly hurting, but she still stood between the other Lycanroc and Koko.

"A woman forced her to fight," Mabel began, their heart in their stomach. "At first it was Yuna fighting them while Eclipse stayed with Koko, but the woman we heard over the speaker within the first couple days clearly has other ideas. She said that if Eclipse or Koko didn't join the fight, she'd turn all their collars on and let the other Lycanroc rip them apart."

I shuddered as Yuna sent shards of stone hurtling towards the other Lycanroc. "{But why would you do that?! If they turned the collars off, why can't they just get out?}"

They sighed. "They tried that first. The glass wouldn't budge. Whatever this is, it's clear they don't intend on giving anyone any kind of free reign."

I held close to Mama, her tails curling around me as I watched. Koko was clearly horrified at everything going on, but she yelled a bit. "You've got this Eclipse! I know you do!"

"Jus' stay over there! We'll handle this!" She yelled back while dodging a spear of stone that rose up underneath her, threatening to crush her against the ceiling. The other Lycanroc then howled, ripples forming at spots on the ground as several stones rose up and sent themselves towards the two.

Yuna broke most of them no problem, but one was heading straight for Eclipse. She's gonna get hit!

But I was wrong. Eclipse didn't get hit. She grabbed the rock, skidding back several feet as she growled in response before throwing it right back. It didn't hit, but it forced the Lycanroc to dodge right into Yuna Crunching their side.

They yelped, kicking her off and leaping away. They then started circling each other, Yuna and Eclipse together with the Lycanroc on the other side.

{I understand you're being forced to fight, but that doesn't mean you have to attack my family! Why?!} Yuna yelled at them.

They growled. {You think my family isn't being held hostage as well?! If I don't fight you, my pups…}
Yuna's ears tilted back, but she narrowed her eyes. {All the same… I can't let you hurt them.} Both Lycanroc were then enveloped in glowing shards of stone, circling them as they charged straight towards each other.

Meanwhile, Eclipse just looked up at the suspended room and… raised her middle finger? "If you're gonna make us fight, at least don't fucking send other people to do your dirty work! What, you afraid I'll snap your neck if you get in here? Cuz you're right!"

I noticed the human in the center of the three press a button before a voice rang out. "Less chatting, more fighting lest I turn the collars on and have Midday Lycanroc ravage you all," A familiar voice spoke. The same one from the screen in Rhodo's room… "You have been fused with a Dusk Lycanroc and thus should have their powers. Utilize them in order to survive the ordeal. That goes to your sister as well. Dusk Lycanroc, instruct them."

"Fuck off!" Eclipse yelled while Yuna glanced up. The other Lycanroc stopped as well. Probably glad they don't have to fight for a minute…

{At risk of us all dying, Eclipse.} She looked over. {I'm… not certain if this works for you, but you should be able to feel the stone around us. Try to bring some up from the ground. Like our opponent did before.}

She didn't say enemy.

"Uh. Alright?" She rolled her eyes and glared up at the room again. "No instruction booklets on how to survive fuckass land?" As the silence grew longer, Eclipse just groaned and held out her hands in front of her. "Fine, be a bitch," she muttered as she closed her eyes.

The other Lycanroc got into a ready position, and all eyes were on Eclipse. A few beads of sweat formed on her forehead. I looked at Mama, worried. "{Is this like the flame thing…?}"

She nodded, gently pushing her head into me. {Yes, my child. Simply for stone and not flame.}

Eclipse suddenly yelled, falling on her knees and barely catching herself with one hand before tumbling fully to the ground. The other was clutching at her chest, and even without being there I could tell she was in lots of pain. Her limbs were shaking and it looked like it was all she could do to not pass out.

My eyes went wide as Koko ran over, yelling Eclipse's name. I looked at Mama again, my heart pounding. "{W-what happened?}"

{I… do not know, my child.}

Koko glanced up at the room above them, shuddering. "Uh… here goes, I guess."

Eclipse looked up at her, barely keeping herself up. I couldn't tell if the tears in her eyes were from pain or fear. "Don't…"

Koko just hugged her before she held her hands out in front of her, closing her eyes. After a few seconds, a small area in front of her began to ripple slightly. It stopped abruptly though as Koko fell to her knees, coughing violently. She wasn't as bad off as Eclipse was, but it was clear whatever happened hurt her as well.

Benny tapped Mabel's shoulder before making more symbols with his hands. Mabel shook their head after a minute. "I don't think so… we didn't see any electricity. Whatever happened, it wasn't the collars. I don't think, anyway."

Benny nodded slowly, Bors holding his hand with a huge paw as we looked at the screen.

Yuna was standing in front of Eclipse and Koko, the fur on her back raising up as she growled. The two Lycanroc were ready to go at it until-

"That's enough, the battle is over," the intercoms sounded once again. "Take the fusions and dusk Lycanroc to the doctor and the midday Lycanroc back to their holding cell."

There was a series of beeps as a couple lights on the collars lit up again, and I noticed one around the other Lycanroc as well. Several blue meanies with the blue hair but no white coats stood at the sides as parts of the glass were pulled into the floor. One of them pulled out a Pokeball and clicked the button on the front, the other Lycanroc turning red before being sucked in, before they walked away.

Meanwhile a few others grabbed Yuna, Eclipse and Koko and took them away.

"Will she be alright…?" Guinevere said quietly, likely more to herself than to anyone else. Chestnut noticed though and curled up on her lap.

Mama also heard, glancing at her. {Provided it is Rhodo they are taken to, I believe he will help them. I cannot speak to much about his character, but he seems to dislike this place at the very least. As well as genuinely wanting to go against our captors.}

Guinevere nodded, smiling. Her fear wasn't gone, but it wasn't around as much. "That's good to hear. Thank you."

Mama doesn't trust him any more than before though… I guess she kinda trusts some parts of him? I think he's nice. Sad, but nice. He wouldn't have given us all the muffins and talked with us and felt a little happy at watching us get better if he was evil.

~~Iron Island, Year 8520, Damidar, Noxal 23rd~~

Over the next couple days, a whole buncha stuff happened. One of the main ones being that lots of people were called in to fight. And I got why Rhodo said to not use my abilities and they'd make me stand out; every time someone else went to try something, they fell over clutching their chest. Mabel pointed out to me that it wasn't their hearts, but it was somewhere else. Which at least meant it wasn't blowing up their hearts or anything.

Rhodo said the same thing, and talked a little bit about how it had to do with an organ being underdeveloped or something? I didn't get it all, but apparently something Pokemon had that was in me too was only sorta in them.

He also gave me lots of muffins to take back to everyone else. He made sure I had some for myself, but each time I went back he felt a little happier. Not by lots, but he seemed happy that I was bringing muffins to everyone else. And I liked bringing them muffins, so I was glad that made him happy. Ron, of course, went nuts over them every time. Rush made sure we weren't troubling ourselves doing it, but we really weren't.

Fortunately, Eclipse and Koko weren't super messed up or anything. They took a day or two to recover after, but they were mostly more tired than usual. Yuna seemed very happy to have the time to rest as well. Still though… whenever I watched someone try to do something a Pokemon could but they couldn't, I flinched. Something just felt… bad. Mama asked me about it, but I didn't really have words for it. It was just a bad feeling, and after talking with some of the Pokemon they had the same feeling.

Hazel, Vivian, Leanne and Yvonne have also been spending more time with me. Leanne even asked Rhodo what day it was after she was taken in for a fight. It was over a week since we'd been taken here, according to Mama. Not two weeks yet, but getting close.

Leanne and Yvonne I could feel were still grieving for their family, but spending time with me and Mama seemed to help them both. From what I could figure out, even though we weren't from the same family we also were kinda family? It was a weird feeling, but not a bad one at all.

Hazel and Vivian though… I thought they'd spend more time with their dad, but they felt kinda scared. If I asked about it though, they said it was okay. Which it definitely wasn't, they were mentioning how he was talking to himself in ways he never used to. And when he went to fight, before he passed out from trying to use abilities he seemed… wild.

One second he'd be asking them to stay calm, another he'd be ready to attack, and the next he'd be trying to keep himself away from everyone. And when he was closer to me, it felt like there were three main totally different emotions fighting each other. One of them I recognized, since I'd felt it the first time I met him, but the other two were new.

And they were winning.

My eyes were still heavy as I woke up in the room with everyone else, feeling a lot better from the medicine Rhodo had been giving me. My ears slowly raised up, then flicked towards a weird rustling. I shook my head a little to try and feel who it was.

Hazel's dad? And Hydreigon?

The lights in the room still weren't on yet, but that didn't bother me or Mama. We could see just fine. Mama's tails were around me, but I could hear his heartbeat. It was fast.

Is something going on?

I moved one of Mama's tails aside, to get a better look.

Right in front of me there was a face. A face with several sharp, jagged teeth in a few rows going down an open maw. His hair was wild, like he hadn't touched it in days. Right next to the face were his hands, reaching for me. But his eyes… I couldn't see them. I couldn't see the colored part at all. Just the whites, and the red lines trailing from the bottom connecting to where his eyelid was.

There was only one thing I felt from him. I'd felt it before, from Ron and Rush, but this time? It was different.

It was maddening.

It was hunger.

I screamed, and Mama immediately woke up, looking around before her eyes fell on Paul, and the Hydreigon floating with a mix of sadness and glee beside him. Her eyes narrowed and a purple glow enveloped me as I was thrust behind her, the collar around her neck sparking to life as bolts of electricity shot through her.

Several other people were waking up by now, the lights above burning to life, but not quickly enough for anyone but Mama to do anything.

Paul lunged towards her as she got to her feet, electricity sending her tails shuddering. The temperature suddenly dropped a couple dozen degrees as the air itself froze, swirling into a ball held within Mama's open maw.

It then exploded outwards, a single beam of frost and deathly cold illuminating the room briefly in a pale blue light. It hit Paul right in the chest, sending him crashing through an unoccupied bed before it froze him to the wall.

Hydreigon swooped in to attack, Mama turning her gaze to him. Her fur was all on end from the electricity coursing through her as it forced her to her knees. Panic filled my heart, as the thought of him ripping off Mama's head rushed through my head.

Until a blur of green and red streaked over us both, knocking Hydreigon to the floor. Their three heads were snapping violently, but Yvonne kept them all pinned beneath her with her fan tail poised to stab them at any false move.

I went to hug Mama, aftershocks rushing through me. I didn't care. It hurt a little bit, but nowhere near as much as Mama was hurting. I could feel her pain. I didn't want her to hurt. Even if it meant I took some of it, I didn't want her to keep hurting.

There was a sudden cascade of ringing as the ice around Paul shattered, the shards falling to the floor. He only took a couple steps before Eclipse and Leanne slammed him into the wall, his head knocking against it.

Hazel screamed, but Paul only snarled. I could feel fury building in Eclipse. "Oh no ya don't." She grabbed his face and slammed it into the wall. Again and again, as his snarling got quieter and quieter.

When she let go, his head lolled to one side. His heart was still beating, but at a much less manic pace. The two slowly stopped restraining him before propping his unconscious body up against the wall.

I could feel lots of things from lots of people, but there was only one thing on my mind.

"{Mama!}"

{I-I'm alright, my child…} Her form shuddered as she collapsed on the bed, her tails curling around me. {Do not worry…}

Tears filled my eyes. "{B-but you're hurt! W-we gotta get you help!}"

Mabel and Haley were running over, Haley pulling out an egg for Mama. {Please, eat it. Quickly!}

Mama nodded, chomping down on it and swallowing. I felt that a bunch of the pain went away, but not all of it. {Thank you…}

I buried my face in Mama's side, hugging her tight. "{Y-you gotta be okay… don't die, Mama!}"

She nuzzled her head into me weakly. {I will not die… not from that.} Her tails curled around me more. {I must stay with you, my child.}

I heard Leanne running over to Yvonne while Eclipse ran to me. "Hey, Aurora! You okay?!"

I glanced at her, nodding. "{Y-yeah, but Mama…}"

She hugged us both. "Easy, easy. It'll be fine. She'll be fine." She glared up at the ceiling before yelling at the top of her lungs. "HEY! Wake the fuck up!"

There was no response from any speakers, but I shuddered as I heard thumping against the ground. Everyone else started noticing as well, Eclipse getting in front of me as Yuna ran to her side as well.

The door hissed open, but the way to the hallway was blocked with a huge white and green fluffy form. Something deep in my brain blew away the fog and told me they were an Abomasnow. Several Abomasnow, and some grunts as well.

They glared at Yvonne and Leanne, who glanced warily at Hydreigon. Leanne backed away, gesturing for Yvonne to follow. Yvonne let him go, her tail still poised to stab.

Which she almost needed, because the moment she got off he went right for her neck. The sadness in his heart was gone. There was only hunger.

A massive green paw shot out and grabbed Hydreigon, then freezing him in a block of ice. Another Abomasnow went over to Paul and picked him up, giving him a similar treatment. They then started walking out the door, the grunts with them. I noticed Jean and Indra weren't with them.

"Dad!"

Hazel was running for them, holding her hand out towards them with Vivian right beside her. The Abomasnow carrying her father turned around and growled at them when they got too close. A grunt gestured for the Abomasnow to keep walking before sneering at them.

"Go back to sleep," He said dismissively before turning back around. Hazel and Vivian dashed right past him and ran straight to Paul.

"Dad! Dad look at me please! What happened?" Hazel begged for answers, but he couldn't hear her through the ice. One of the grunts shoved her to the side sending her to the ground. Vivian, Guinevere and Chestnut ran over to her in her defense. The grunt stared down at her with eyes colder than frost from the coldest Abomasnow.

"Go. To. Sleep," He accentuated. In reality what he meant was to get out of his way. He didn't care about their pleas, he just wanted to get this over with. Hazel watched from the ground tears streaming down her face as she watched her father be taken away.

"I love you Daddy… please, don't go…" She whispered as the doors closed behind them, tears beginning to stream down her face. Vivian nuzzled close to her feeling just as terrible. Her heart didn't want to admit it, but her dad and Hydreigon had been gone for a long time.

Guinevere ushered Hazel into her chest to weep. Her pain was similar to Leanne's when her family died, but she felt a bit more… prepared? At the bottom of her heart I could sense she knew something like this would happen to her father and they would take her away.

Hazel quietly sobbed into Guinevere's arms, slumped onto her. The realization her heart made up was catching up with her mind. The thing she feared most finally happened and there was nothing she could do to stop it. Her body went into a state of shock, her limbs lost what little power she had as all she could do was reach for whatever comfort she could gather.

Chestnut curled around all of them while Guinevere held her tight, making sure she was safe and warm while humming a little song to her to calm her down. Mama and I watched from the distance, even after what they tried to do to us… my heart ached for Hazel, my chest hurt and I had to rub the water from my eyes.

And they still don't care at all...

My heart mourned for Paul and Hydreigon. For Hydreigon it was more recent, but Paul… he died two weeks ago. It had just taken us all this long to realize.

The room was quiet, then. The lights were on as ever, but no one spoke a word. We were all giving Hazel the space to grieve, Guinevere and Chestnut easily being the most experienced with this. Mama was still hurting and I was staying with her. I felt the pain from before rising again in Leanne and Yvonne's heart, hesitancy holding her back. Yvonne only gently nudged her, and she nodded slowly before going to Hazel and Vivian to help.

To be an adult who gets it…

Mabel and Benny were staying together, Haley and Bors right with their partners. I could feel they understood what was happening better than most, but were distraught all the same. Ron and Rush were with some other people I didn't recognize, and Paris was with Legolas off to the side. I could feel she cared, a lot. She just didn't have the words. Something told me though that if there was anything she could've done to help, she would've.

When the door opened again, everyone tensed up. I noticed Hazel shudder and start crying harder again. This time though, there were no Abomasnow. Only Jean and Indra.

Both felt pretty shaken up themselves as Jean gestured to me. "We need to get Ivane to Rhodo. Please…"
I could feel Eclipse's anger boil while my mind was whirling. How is she on the same side as the others? And Rhodo? It doesn't make any sense…

Pushing that aside for now, I nudged Mama gently. "{W-we gotta go get you help…}"

She sighed, shuddering and slowly stood up and tenderly getting to the ground. I was afraid she'd fall, but she just gave me a weary smile. {I am well enough, my child.}

I nodded, slowly walking with her. I know I was the one who had trouble walking before, but… I'd take it being me over her…

Jean and Indra led us down the hallway, and I stayed right next to Mama the whole time. If a grunt looked at Mama and felt any joy from that, I just growled at them. They stopped pretty quick. I don't think it was me they were scared of, just when Mama got better. They just wanna pick on people who can't fight back…

She then did the eye thing in front of Rhodo's door and knocked. "Rhodo? I'm here. Ivane and Aurora are with me."

Rhodo opened the door and greeted us all with a serious expression as he helped us put Mama in a pokemon bed. He began looking over Mama to see what was wrong.

"Thanks to the looser collar, your shocks weren't as bad as they could've been," He noted as he began spraying some liquid on her from a weird bottle, mostly red but with a yellow top and the same color red circle with a hole close to the top. "Still not ideal, but I'd rate the damage you received to be around… a couple of unpleasant Shock Wave attacks. Your heart was jump started quite a bit, but some cheri juice will calm it down."

Mama nodded, still exhausted and her tails occasionally jittering from aftershocks. Rhodo stepped aside and went into the mini fridge before taking out a box of cheri juice and a bowl. Instead of the apple juice boxes he gave us before, this one looked much less bombastic and a lot more practical. Just the berry with some words I couldn't read due to their size about how it helped. He poured it in the bowl and placed it by Mama's face.

She started pulling it up into her mouth with her tongue, curling it a little and dragging it. Much as my heart was in the floor, I couldn't help but stick out my tongue a little and brush my finger against it. It feels a little rough, kinda like how Mama's looks.

"Good," Rhodo whispered to himself before speaking to me. "Notice how her body is relaxing the more she drinks. Cheri berries cure paralysis, but they are also excellent at calming you down. Perfect for stress relief or in this case a bad shock."

I looked at the juice, then at the tree Rhodo had in his room. There were a couple really small, green ones on the end of some branches. Around that tree there were several others, with different colored leaves and either little flowers or small greenish berries as well. The only grown ones were the pecha and oran trees. Do all berries do something?

Though while that was going on, I could hear that Mama's heartbeat was getting much more stable and going back to how it normally was. Her tails weren't jittering nearly as much either.

"Now that she's looking better it's about time to give you your medicine now," Rhodo said to me as he got his usual. My medicine and juice to wash it down. "You've been getting better over the last few days, so I expect you should be all better any day now."

Rhodo then turned to Mama who had stopped drinking and felt… concerned. Rather than speak to Rhodo her eyes shifted to the door cautiously. I followed her eyes, to where Jean and Indra had left. There were footsteps at the door that had paused a moment, but they kept going. Once they did she breathed a small sigh of relief.

Rhodo turned to the door before realization dawned. "If you're worried about defending yourself, in this case you won't get punished. If they do try, I'll vouch for you. Hydreigon are prone to violence and have a higher level of instability compared to other pokemon so it's very important they stay in decent environments or they… snap. It's not their fault, it's their biology. The fact this one took so long to attack must mean they really tried not to hurt anyone."

My heart dropped even further at that. "{So if Paul and Hydreigon had been able to go home…}"

He was thoughtful for a moment. "If they were home… they could've gotten some better help."

My eyes narrowed as I glared at the floor. I could feel the same flame Mama had in me, a little bit, growing. They could've been okay… but because of the humans here, making Pokemon listen to them all the time and doing all this just cuz they wanna, he went crazy. And they keep killing people. And they apparently aren't even done, they're just gonna keep doing more stuff like this! Why would-

I yelped a bit as the collar around my neck shocked me, breaking me out of my train of thought. A couple embers floated up around me, and Mama curled a couple of her tails around me. {I am here, Aurora.}

Rhodo got up and handed me my own cheri juice box. "This should settle you down a bit so the collar doesn't shock ya again."

I nodded slowly, taking it. I didn't feel better, but I wanted to punch something less after drinking it. Still though...

"I know everything about this is beyond frustrating." He meant it, but his heart was so tired that even his frustration was a bit muted. What happened to him? "There's… I don't have much power here and not even I can save Paul and Hydreigon from what comes next, but… I know he has a daughter. You two are friends right? She's undergone tremendous loss and she just needs to feel less alone in the world right now. Just be there for her. This situation is crap, but it'll do you both good to at least shoulder each other's pain."

My mind went back to how when I held Mama before, some of the electricity went from her to me. And helped her hurt less. Emotions work sorta the same? All the same I nodded, clenching my fists as I looked up at him, determined. "{I'm gonna help!}"

Rhodo gave me the biggest small smile I'd seen from him so far. It was still super small, but ever so slightly bigger. He went to the cupboard and pulled out a metal cylinder with a black ring around it about a fourth away from the top along with a pokemon bowl. "Next time you see the girl with the Eevee, give them this. It's not much, but… it should help with their grieving. It tastes pretty good, so I think I made it right."

My ears tilted back a bit as I looked at it and shook it slightly. There was a similar sound to the juice boxes and bottle Rhodo took out that had my medicine in it, but I didn't see a way to get it. I looked up at him. "{Uh… sure, but how do you open it?}"

"Ah your memories," He hummed before turning the top of the cylinder and opening it up, the smell of berries wafting out. "It's a canteen for storing drinks."

I nodded as he closed it again. Mama felt a lot better than before, and I wasn't getting sleepy after medicine anymore. A little bit, but I didn't wanna nap all the time anymore. I dunno if staying awake and seeing all the awful or being woken up by awful is worse, though…

He gave it to me before turning back to Mama. "Ya feeling better, Ivane?"

She nodded, shaking her head down to her tails before sitting and looking at him, her tails waving slowly. {Indeed. Thank you for the assistance.}

He smiled another teeny smile, staying a respectful distance away before looking at us both. "Do you want to go back now, or later?"

I shook my head, holding up the canteen. He gave a tiny nod before looking at Jean. "Can you…?"

She nodded. "Of course." Indra hopped off the perch he had in the room, and Mama got off the bed much more easily. There was a tiny shiver in her step, but mostly it was gone and definitely way better than earlier. I waved to Rhodo as we walked out, but Mama stopped and looked behind her at him for a moment.

{You are interesting, human.}

Rhodo tilted his head curiously similarly to how Ron and Rush would, giving him a more youthful expression for a brief second. "Was that a compliment?"

Mama simply chuckled before making her way out. Like I thought, as we were walking back, the grunts were giving us a much wider berth now that Mama was feeling better. I didn't even need to see her face to feel her eyes rolling. They're cowardly bullies. That's it.

When we got back to the room, Guinevere and Chestnut were still with Hazel and Vivian. Leanne and Yvonne too, with Yvonne waving her tail slightly at us to beckon us.

As we got closer, the wave of despair Hazel and Vivian were putting out was intense. The other four's sadness just helped to heighten the waves crashing towards us. I stumbled, shuddering for a moment. Mama looked at me concerned, but I just shook my head and kept going.

Hazel's ears swiveled around and she looked at us, her eyes red and puffy and tears still streaming down her face. I held up the canteen to her. "{Rhodo said you'd like this… I hope it helps.}"

She could barely move her arm to grab it, so Guinevere gently took it, giving me a small smile, before I put the bowl on the bed next to them. She opened it up and poured a little into the bowl before giving it to Hazel.

"It smells like home…"

I tilted my head, confused, but Hazel found the strength to grab the opened canteen and put it to her lips. She took a small sip, a small bit of joy breaking through the waves of sadness. Vivian was drinking her share while Hazel took long, slow sips, savoring it.

We didn't interrupt her, and Mama hopped on the bed while I got on so we could sit with her. When she was finished I could still hear some in the canteen, which she poured into Vivian's bowl. She held close to Guinevere, but looked at me.

"In Floaroma, we use berries and dried, then boiled flowers to make a drink… M-mom always used to make it for me when I was sad…"

I felt water in my eyes again and I hugged her quickly after. She started crying, but not as hard as before. Chestnut lifted up her tail to let Vivian crawl into Hazel's lap, and Mama kept her tails around us. Leanne hugged us all, and Yvonne embraced us with her wings. As awful as everything was… we were there for each other.

Rhodo said that things were gonna get worse… and that I should be there for Hazel and Vivian. Everyone needs someone to be there for them, especially now… I'm gonna be there for them. I'm gonna punch all the grunt meanie assholes and we're gonna be okay together.

~~Iron Island, Year 8520, Damidar, Tenebrice 24th~~

As hard as it was, we all managed to get to sleep last night. Hazel and Vivian slept with Guinevere and Chestnut, while Leanne and Yvonne slept closer to me and Mama. Even after what'd happened, I felt safe. Since Mama kept me safe.

Mabel brought us food today. Sometimes it was them, sometimes it was Guinevere, sometimes it was other adults. Though I always saw them all bringing the bowls of gruel to kids, who they were going to just depended.

After we'd finished eating frozen gruel, Mama nuzzled me gently. {Would you like to go to Hazel and Vivian, my child?}

I nodded, hugging her before I got up. We still had to go to Rhodo today, but Jean came at what felt like the same time and it wasn't that time yet. Leanne was helping with giving out gruel to the other kids, so she'd probably come by after.

Hazel was laying under her blankets with Vivian, who nudged her as we came closer. {Hazel, it's Aurora and Ivane.}

She rolled over slowly, eyes still red and staying under her covers. Mama hopped on the bed while I climbed on. "Hey…"

My ears drooped, but I just shook my head and hugged her gently. "{You don't gotta say stuff if you don't wanna.}"

She didn't respond, but moved a little bit more into the hug while Mama laid with us. Both of their hair was messier than normal; we had showers and big trays full of clean dust, but they'd been preoccupied.

We didn't really do anything. We just laid there together, being there for each other. Leanne, Yvonne, Guinevere and Chestnut eventually came over, Leanne smiling sadly and ruffling my hair. "Hey Aurora. You holding up?"

I nodded, and she was about to say something else when a sudden spark of surprise flew through her. "Did… you always have two tails?"

I blinked, confused. What? Then I looked at my tails. While one was the same as before, mostly a dirty red with a bluish white fluffy curl at the end, I now had another right next to that one that was pure white like my first tail at first. They moved together when I tried to move them, Hazel and Vivian having looked up.

Mama smiled a bit. {Do not worry, my child. That is natural for a Vulpix. Typically our kits start with one tail, then grow in another five over the coming weeks. They stay at that number until evolution, at which point we Ninetales have nine.}

Hazel looked curious. "What… does it feel like? Having two tails?"

I blinked. "{Uh… like I've got two tails?}"

A bit of surprise sparked in her before she smiled a Rhodo smile, laughing a little. She rubbed her eyes a little. "Yeah… they would, wouldn't they?"

After that? We all sat together for a while. We didn't really talk, or anything. We were just there for each other. Some other kids came up to Guinevere every so often, but most of them got what was going on and left us be. I did have to leave for a while to go to Rhodo's, and when I got back Owain and Sue were fighting another Samurott.

Owain, of course, was making the most of this opportunity.

The other Samurott looked very confused, while Owain was holding what looked like a sword? I did notice that Sue had one less shell in her front legs than usual.

"You might know everything I'm going to do, but that's not going to help you because I know everything you're going to do! Strange, isn't it? Hraaaah!" He lunged forwards with the sword, but I could tell by his smile there wasn't any intent to actually hit with it. He was making it a play.

The Samurott decided to respond in kind, pulling out their own swords from their front legs and parrying his strike. They went in for another blow, but Sue pulled out her own sword shell thingy and blocked it.

Owain hopped back, holding the sword in front of him before pointing dramatically. "We shall not fall this day! We all will overcome, persevere and outlast this dreadful place! Come now, our battle will be legendary!"

He and Sue both charged at the Samurott, Sue blocking both their opponent's strikes with her own while Owain flanked to the side with a slight skid. He feinted, faking a sword slash before kicking their leg out from under them.

They stumbled slightly, getting a slash across their chest from Sue. They then went in for another strike, but Owain popped up in front of them and parried, a smile on his face. "You shan't forget about me!"

{It's hard to,} they responded before their lower body was enveloped in rushing water that carried them around the room, cascading on the wall before going straight for the duo. Their blades were now enveloped in a glowing, deep blue watery light crossed in front of them.

Owain was forced to dodge while Sue met them head on, horns clashing as her blade shone with green light and shattered the aura around the Samurott's swords. The two clashed head on for a moment, neither backing down, until Owain ran in and held his arms out in front of them. "You shall not hurt my comrade!"

They went back for a stab, but Owain grabbed their arm quickly and pulled it towards himself. For a moment it looked like he was going to get hit, but I noticed him move slightly to the side before catching it between his torso and his arm. A couple people gasped, but I was just confused. He's fine? His jacket's a little messed up, but no blood exploded out of him or anything. There's no organs on the end of the sword. Why'd he do that?

He then dropped his sword, holding his side with his hand. "Ah, my tale ends here!" He staggered backwards, falling dramatically into Sue's arms while the other Samurott looked very confused.

"Oh, the horror!" he cried, flinging his hand over his head so it was lolling above it. "The pain! I cannot go on! Dear Sue, carry on my legacy! Escape this dreadful place, ensure my legend is spread far and wide-"

"Stop. No. The battle is over. All participants leave the arena. Silently," the voice on the intercom interrupted sounding exceedingly exasperated.

The Samurott put away their swords, wincing slightly as the collars turned back on. Owain, however, didn't stop. "Oh, the cruelty! To not even be allowed to finish my final words! Truly, this audience has no appreciation for the finer arts!"

There was a small beep, and both Sue and Owain's bodies were wracked with electricity as the collars pulsed. Both of them winced, gritting their teeth, and Sue only just keeping hold on Owain. However, in their faces, I saw something. Even though they were too far away for me to feel anything, I got the feeling that they were being quiet now because that's what the evil lady didn't want.

She wanted satisfaction. And they weren't gonna give it to her.

Eventually it stopped, and both of them shuddered before standing up proper. Sue put Owain on the ground so she could stand a bit easier, and he patted her leg before shaking himself off, sighing. "Tough crowd, jeez."

At that Sue got shocked for a few more moments. Owain's eyes widened and he was about to say something, but Sue just shook her head and gave a middle finger with her claws towards the platform. Glaring.

And then she got shocked again.

It was Owain glaring this time. "Racist much?"

"That was a reminder that your actions do not simply impact you, but your allies as well. If you cannot fight seriously for yourself, fight for Samurott's survival. I can assure you your next opponent will not be as fond of your 'theatrics'," the voice continued.

Owain glanced at Sue, who nodded, before he crossed his arms and looked up. Legs still shaking, but standing strong. "We're plenty serious. Serious about doing things other than just whatever you want. Surprise surprise, people need a bit of entertainment here! We're gonna provide, and kick ass doing it."

"Your foolish actions will cost you. Make light of your arena battles again and the consequences will be grave. You will be envious of the Hydreigon and his trainer once-"

She was cut off, which caught everyone's attention. When the voice spoke next though, it wasn't the evil lady. It was far deeper, and somehow even colder. I shuddered, and Mama glared. Recognizing it from the forest.

"Clearly you are insubordinate enough to require your consequences to be laid plain. Continue as you have, if your desire is to be strapped to a table and dissected by my associate while you still live and scream."

At that, Owain and Sue just glanced at each other and walked away. No quips, no nods or smiles, nothing. The screen went dark after that, and no more voices came over the speakers.

I shuddered, looking at Mama worried. "{W-what does 'dissected' mean?}"

She grimaced. {It… is not something pleasant. I would hope that you never find out what it is. If it comes up, however… I will tell you then.}

I nodded, hugging her while Leanne was glaring and staying close to us. They really don't care at all about anything but what they want, do they…? Is this what humans are like? They just need an opportunity and they'll turn into monsters?

My mind went to Rhodo. How he'd given me and Mama medicine and help, how he gave everyone muffins, how sad he felt. How he wanted to help us all, and gave Hazel a drink from her home to do it. How all the other Grunts were cruel, but Jean never called us by number and did her best to help us feel better.

No… Not all of them. Just most of them.

~~Iron Island, Year 8520, Damidar, Tenebrice 26th~~

After we'd eaten, the door opened. Jean was standing there. "Aurora? Ivane? You need to come with me."

Leanne gave us a worried look, but seemed calmer after Mama gave her a look in return. We followed out the door, and I looked up at her confused. "{Where're we going? I thought Rhodo said I was okay?}"

She paused, but nodded. "We're… not going to Rhodo yet. They... want to see how well you can fight."

Log Entry

-With the fusion process having been completed we may now begin Phase 2: Combat. No casualties as of yet, but it seems despite retaining several of their pokemon partners' body parts via fusion, none of the fusions seem to be able to use their powers without causing extreme pain to themselves.

-The most worthwhile mentions are the rumbling of pebbles for the Rockruff fusion and the adept use of the scalchop sword for the Samurott fusion. Once again the younger fusions are the outlier with the Vulpix fusion being the defining example. -They have at least some ability to use their powers, meanwhile she has most of it. Interestingly enough as well, the Hydreigon fusion became highly unstable akin to normal Hydreigon when overly stressed.

-According to the cameras, it seems they were intent on devouring the Vulpix fusion and Ninetales in their sleep. The Hydreigon is useless to us in that rogue state so it has been put down, but as we speak we are prepping dissection of the Hydreigon fusion. We plan on analyzing his brain and body to confirm multiple theories I have concocted. I am remiss to admit my glee to begin.

-The Samurott pair continue to try my patience. Their incipient theater and open defiance disgusts me, but it seems they responded well to Leader's authority. They'd do well to remember their place.

-One of the elite grunts has done well in handling the fusions so far. They are much more receptive to her presence than the others. I believe I may very well assign her to be their main transporter.

-Judging by the medical reports the Vulpix fusion has been inflicted with a type of illness never before seen in humans. Although it is commonly seen in pokemon… once again she seems to balance the scales of humanity and pokemon much more evenly than the rest. Soon, I shall see how her powers fare in combat. For the glory of Team Galactic and in my genius' honor, she'd best not disappoint.

-Unfortunately, I do not have a Kalolan Vulpix on hand to compare her to and the Ninetales is far too developed to be a fair comparison, thus I've asked one of the admins to breed one for immediate use. Soon we will have the ideal example to observe.

-The medic has also insisted on adding their names to the file. Not that it matters as I've memorized their numbers, but so be it.

#001 Fused Kalolan Vulpix (Aurora) & Kalolan Ninetales (Ivane) Status: Nominal

#006 Fused Pyroar & Pyroar Status: Nominal

#011 Fused Magcargo & Slugma Status: Deceased (Failed Fused)

#019 Fused Carnivine & Carnivine Status: Deceased (Failed Fused)

#020 Fused Furret (Guinevere) & Furret (Chestnut) Status: Nominal

#033 Fused Eevee (Hazel) & Eevee (Vivian) Status: Recovering (Emotional Instability)

#043 Fused Hydreigon (Paul) & Hydreigon (Tobias) Status: Deceased (Unstable, reverted to feral instincts, used for dissection)

#053 Fused Flygon (Leanne) & Flygon (Yvonne) Status: Nominal

#068 Fused Decidueye (Paris) & Decidueye (Legolas) Status: Nominal

#072 Fused Swampert & Swampert Status: Nominal

#078 Fused Phantump (Razin) & Phantump (Urie) Status: Deceased (Failed Fused)

#079 Fused Glalie & Glalie Status: Deceased (Failed Fused)

#085 Fused Blissey (Mabel) & Blissey (Haley) Status: Nominal

#086 Fused Bewear (Benny) & Bewear (Bors) Status: Nominal

#123 Fused Female Gallade (Lucia) & Gallade (Arden) Status: Recovering

#132 Fused Pachirisu (Ron) & Pachirisu (Rush) Status: Nominal

#134 Fused Silvally (Clive) & Silvally (Elpis) Status: Nominal

#143 Fused Electrode & Electrode Status: Deceased (Failed Fused)

#158 Fused Rockruff (Koko) Status: Recovering

#159 Fused Dusk Lycanroc (Eclipse) & Dusk Lycanroc (Yuna) Status: Recovering

#163 Fused Spiritomb & Spiritomb Status: Deceased (Failed Fused)

#180 Fused Samurott (Owain) & Samurott (Sue) Status: Recovering (Irritatingly well)

Author's Note: We're slowly moving into the main part of this place. Oh, you thought that the earlier parts were awful? Nah, that was the appetizer. Now it's time to start the first meal of the main course. For the record, part of me feels awful about all this and part of me is just 'yes pain', but something you should know? I prefer writing stories with happy endings. So don't expect everything to be like this.

Oh, and on the subject of Paul and Hydreigon. That was specifically him going insane, and not a manifestation of an alternate personality taking over or something. I wanted to make that clear, since far too many things portray folk with alternate personalities as evil for that fact. And that's not right. So I wanted folk to rest assured that that's not what's happening here. Look forward to next time, when we get to see what Aurora's first fight is like!