A/N - After this chapter, there will be a short break of approximately 1-4 weeks! This is due to holiday, and the fact I want to wrap up Part 2 and do banner art for it. (The art is posted to Thousand Roads and my Tumblr 'Del's Mad World') I'm almost done with Part 2 - I have half a chapter to write, and some tidying up of the new plot elements I've added in. Part 2 is where most of the changes from the first write-up will take place, and I want to make sure it's as smoothly integrated as possible. I don't want the break between updates to be too long, as weekly works for me. Just please be assured I have not abandoned this story! The wait will most likely be on the shorter end of my guess-timate!

Thanks everyone for all reads, reviews, faves and follows!

13 - The Hostage

The Moorlands Forest lay blanketed in night, the pale moonlight barely penetrating the sparse canopy. It was exactly how Enigma liked it.

He perched on the thick bough of a tree with his head on one side, blending into the shadows that wrapped up the tree's sturdy trunk. There it was again. A deep rumble like thunder, rolling overhead and fading out into silence. Unlike thunder, it wasn't difficult to pinpoint. Enigma turned to his right and warped across the canopy towards it. Each time the noise broke the air it was louder. Good. That meant he was going the right way.

The trees parted, and the air rippled over Enigma's body. A soft tingle that froze him in the spot. He scrambled over spindly branches before his chosen tree turfed him onto the ground. Once he was steady, he gazed over at his surroundings. The trees had parted, giving way to a large clearing that housed a squat building. It glowed white as the moonlight poured down onto it, and above the door was the familiar crescent-shaped logo the Heretics had adopted.

That rumble resounded again, thudding against Enigma's eardrums. He snapped his head towards it, spotting a pair of lycanroc moseying around the corner of the building. Midday and midnight. The latter wheeled a wheelbarrow laden with something that glistened red when the light caught it. The sharp smell of blood wafted up on the wind, causing Enigma to rise slightly for a better look, but the pair vanished out of sight. The banette stealthily slipped into the shadows and warped himself across the canopy to land neatly in the trees on the opposite side of the building.

He tipped his head on one side and let out a curious 'oh?'

Sitting beside the building was a large tyranitar, its limbs bound with heavy chains. The ground around it was scuffed bare of grass and any other foliage, and deep grooves spread out a foot in each direction. The side of the wall was coated with a heavy metal sheet, scratched and beaten out of shape. An afterthought to counteract a rampage, most likely. Enigma assumed as much from the tyranitar's face alone. Its eyes were wild, and it bared its teeth as the two lycanroc rounded the building.

A deep, resonating roar left the tyranitar's throat, and the midday lycanroc bared her own teeth back at it.

"Yeah, yeah," she said. "I get it! You're hungry. Well, here you go, big guy. Aunt Roxie's here with your din-dins."

The tyranitar struggled to its feet, stooping as the chains fastened to its tiny arms reached their full length. It thrashed, bringing its tail into the metal sheet with a deafening clang. The midday lycanroc flinched back from the noise and snapped her ears against her skull.

She turned her head towards her ally and bristled. "Lou!"

The midnight lycanroc dropped the leg of meat he'd been chewing on and fixed the female with a wounded look.

"That's for B!" She nodded to the tyranitar. "Give it its dinner, you dumb lug!"

The midnight lycanroc let out a low growl and tipped the wheelbarrow's contents onto the floor by the tyranitar's feet. He leapt back as the massive creature lunged, jaws snapping. The lycanroc yelped and dashed out of the way, clutching his bushy tail in both paws.

Roxie shook her head slowly. "Never learn, do ya, you idiot?"

The pair froze as the tinkle of a bell rang out over the gnashing, hungry jaws of the tyranitar. Enigma appeared before them, folding his arms as he looked over the ravenous creature. The tyranitar snapped up the pile of fresh meat, fixing one eye on the assassin. A wild eye filled with unreachable madness.

Roxie was the first to recover, standing with her tail erect and ears pricked.

"What are you doing here?!" she barked. "Thought this place was hidden."

Lou licked his bloody paw in a way Enigma felt was meant to be intimidating. It didn't work.

"I followed this guy's cries." Enigma nodded to the tyranitar which was now much more interested in demolishing the thick thigh bone it had found. "But… I'm actually here to speak to whoever is in charge."

"That would be Rio," said Roxie. "But he's busy. What's Hydreigon sent you here for?"

Enigma stared into her eyes, and her stoic demeanour melted away in a heartbeat. Her ears pulled back and her bushy tail lowered between her legs.

"I can take a message, is what I'm sayin'," she said.

"I need to speak to him personally," said Enigma. "I'm not one to give important messages to inferiors."

Lou let out a low growl at that, but he kept his distance. Nevertheless, Enigma found himself locked in the lycanroc's crazed crimson gaze.

"Take the front entrance," Roxie told him. "You'll find Rio in his office."

"And where's his office?" Enigma asked.

Roxie looked past the tyranitar towards the far corner of the building. "Right at the back."

"Perfect." Enigma turned his back on her. "I appreciate the help."

Her protests fell on deaf ears as Enigma marched past the tyranitar, too busy with its meal to give Enigma the time of day. The banette cast a curious glance at it, straining against its chains to reach the meat that had fallen a little out of its reach.

Enigma melted through the walls of the building, eliciting a yelp of surprise from a plusle and minun. They leapt to the side with their backs pressed against the wall, wearing twin expressions of terror. Enigma grinned at them and looked up at the pristine white walls on either side.

"I appear to have miscalculated," he purred. "Where can I find Rio?"

The minun pointed a claw down the hallway. "Turn right."

Enigma nodded and marched past them, his claws clicking on the tiled floor.

"But it's authorised pokemon only," said the plusle.

Enigma didn't look back as he continued along the narrow hallway. "Oh, I'm sure he'll see me."

He wound through the corridor, his bell ringing with each step, drawing curious and fearful eyes from an open door. The corridor ended at a closed set of double doors. The right one wore a sign that said 'authorised pokemon only'. Enigma grinned and phased through it into a cloud of medical stink. He tried not to cough, instead leaning against the door with a deliberate ring of his bell.

A meowstic stood leaning over his desk, and he stiffened at the sound, one tightly curled ear flicking back towards the door. He looked up slowly at Enigma, but all the banette could see was his eyes. The bottom half of his face was hidden behind a medical mask Enigma assumed was more to block out the smell than for the pokemon's own safety. If he was scared, he didn't show it.

"Rio, I assume?" said Enigma.

"You shouldn't be in here," said Rio. "It's dangerous."

Enigma looked over at the shelves that adorned the walls, filled with tubes, vials, and neatly organised folders and boxes.

"I'm rather curious to know what you do here," he said. "I just met your pet."

Rio lowered his mask from his face. "Pet?"

"The tyranitar, outside, in chains." Enigma folded his arms and smirked at him. "Quite a curious way to detain someone, wouldn't you say?"

"The tyranitar is sick," said Rio. "It's outside for the safety of itself and others."

"Sick how?"

"Parasite," Rio explained. "It's taken over the poor creature's brain. Why are you really here, Enigma? For more information?"

Enigma clicked his tongue. "So you are the ones who sent Boomer with a message?"

"Yes." Rio sighed and ran a paw through the fur between his ears. "Then if Lord Hydreigon sent you back here, was the message not enough?"

"You could say that." Enigma smirked and folded his arms. "It never reached him."

The meowstic's eyes darted around the room before finally settling back on Enigma's. "How?"

"He was killed," Enigma said bluntly. "By a whimsicott, apparently."

"A whimsicott?" Rio popped a claw into his mouth and his eyes turned distant.

Enigma tapped his claws along his arm as he watched Rio seemingly drift off into his own little world. Enigma had a lot of patience, but it was growing thin watching Rio idly nibbling his claw.

The assassin chuckled and covered his face with a paw. "Starting to get a little bored, here, Rio." He looked up sharply as Rio came back to his senses. "And when I'm bored, I like to find new ways to entertain myself."

Rio went rigid and he stuttered. "Sorry, Enigma. I was just thinking…"

"Think on your own time," Enigma growled. "I'm trying to gather important information here."

"Yes, certainly. It's just… the whimsicott… I…" Rio cleared his throat. "The information I gave Boomer, it took a little while to explain. Do you have a while to spare?"

"No."

"Ah." Rio nodded and leant back on his desk. "Then I guess I'll have to just show you. It's ground-breaking, Enigma. Evolution is happening."

Enigma spat at that. "Evolution? That's your ground-breaking discovery? Do you have berries for brains? Pokemon evolve every day." Enigma jabbed a claw into his scarf. "I used to be a shuppet. Did you hatch a meowstic?"

"Not that kind!" Rio snapped, then quickly back-pedalled at Enigma's cold stare.

Good choice. Getting short tempered with an assassin was never a good idea.

Rio smoothed out his fur again and took a trembling breath. "This isn't like your basic evolution from caterpie to butterfree, or onix to steelix. This is a rare phenomenon, evolution on a different scale. You might call it survival." He paused as if for dramatic flair and gave an over-confident smile. "It's a new type."

"A new type?" Well that was interesting. Enigma settled back against the door and waved a paw at Rio. "Go on."

"We've not named it yet, since we don't know much about it," Rio explained. "It's just codenamed Type18. It cropped up randomly in our lab three seasons ago. One of our participants happened to have a child that possessed this new type. An azurill."

When Enigma didn't respond, Rio took the cue to continue.

"We discovered it quite by accident," he said. "The azurill was at the age where he'd make quite a nuisance of himself. He angered two of the axew here and one of them retaliated with a dragon rage. It didn't even phase the azurill. Washed right over him like water off a ducklett's back."

Enigma's crimson eyes widened. "He resisted a dragon attack?"

"He didn't resist it, Enigma, he was immune to it."

Enigma didn't know what to say. This was huge news. He wasn't even entirely sure he believed it.

"This is why we requested Boomer," said Rio. "So he could see it for himself."

Enigma nodded and gazed over at the window behind Rio. Of course, one could only believe such a thing if they saw it with their own eyes. No pokemon had ever been immune to a dragon-type attack. It was one of the reasons they were so feared. Few pokemon could stand up to them, and those that could had been driven to the brink of extinction, if not wiped out entirely. Other than the weavile that so loyally served Hydreigon, no one had seen an ice-type in years. If Hydreigon was suddenly told that there was a new type that didn't quake at his dragon pulse there was a huge chance he would laugh it off, then sentence the messenger to death. Having one of his loyal aces experience it for himself… Boomer wouldn't have outright lied to Hydreigon. Hydreigon would have no choice but to believe it.

"We ran some tests while Boomer was here," Rio went on. "He brought some murkrow with him, as requested. Aside from the tyranitar, who is completely untrustworthy due to its condition, we have no dark-types here in the laboratory. This meant we weren't able to see how Type18 fared against every single type in Estellis." Rio paused, reading Enigma's expression. Satisfied the banette was clearly interested, he went on, "It turns out Type18 isn't immune to dark-type moves, but it is resistant."

"And does this 'Type18' possess any attacks?" Enigma asked.

"Not from the azurill," said Rio. "But new moves had cropped up in our labs over the past few seasons. Ones we didn't recognise. Going off their sparkly appearance and their ability to floor our fighting-type subj… participants, we just assumed they were new psychic-type moves."

Enigma folded his arms and tapped his claws along one, glaring at the meowstic.

Rio sank further back against his desk and raised his paws. "You can't fault us on that! We didn't expect moves of a new type to crop up like this! No one was expecting it."

"I suppose." Enigma's voice was laced with danger that pushed Rio's fur on end.

Regardless, the meowstic continued, avoiding Enigma's eyes as if he was looking for a quick way to escape. "When we explained this to Boomer, he wanted to see if these new moves were linked to Type18. We called out one of the pokemon who had demonstrated these moves, a cherrim. After seeing this ray of purple light knock out both axew in one hit, Boomer was angry. He accused the axew of being weaklings and stepped in to try it himself. When the attack hit him, it knocked him right off his feet. He was aghast."

"And what of the murkrow?" Enigma asked.

"Wiped out instantly."

Enigma scratched his head as he took all this in, gazing once again towards the window. A deep, repetitive rumble came from outside. Snores from the slumbering tyranitar. So there was a new type… one that could fare rather well against both dragon and dark-type pokemon. Perhaps it was a good thing the news never reached Hydreigon? If he found out about it, he could cause an uproar. Or an all-out war… destroying the peace that had managed to settle over Estellis in a desperate bid to wipe out any pokemon that could use this type. Every single pokemon that was neither dragon- nor dark-type.

Enigma smirked and wound his claws into his mane. And where would that leave him?

"Has something amused you?" Rio asked.

Enigma let out a sigh and turned back to Rio. "Have you considered the repercussions that giving this information to Hydreigon could raise?"

"I thought it would leave us in his favour, actually."

Enigma shook his head and laughed. "Oh, you poor pathetic creature."

Rio shifted uneasily and wound his paws together. "How is this not beneficial to Lord Hydreigon? He gets a heads-up about it, it's brought to his attention, and he learns to counter it! We continue our research here, finding their weak-"

"Picture this." Enigma looked up suddenly, cutting Rio off. "You sent Boomer back to the Shadow Lands to tell Hydreigon of this, but on his way Boomer was killed. A noivern, who is a formidable force in the dark and no easy feat to face in the day either. And he wasn't taken down by an ice-type, or anything else you may think might get the upper paw. No, he is defeated by a whimsicott. You know… the little grass pompom that likes to pull pranks? Hardly a threat to a dragon, is it? And Boomer wasn't just defeated, Rio. That whimsicott took a dragon pulse head on. From what the few murkrow that survived could tell us, he wasn't even singed! As for Boomer, he was reduced to a bloody pulp.

"This whimsicott could only have done that if he was exceptionally powerful. Ordinarily they're not much of a threat to a dragon. So tell me how a whimsicott could easily take down a dragon, and not just any dragon but Hydreigon's number one ace?"

Rio stuttered for a moment and glanced at the floor. "I… I guess it must have possessed Type18."

"Exactly, and not just carried it but used its attacks." Enigma gave him a wicked grin. "So knowing that, Hydreigon isn't exactly going to be impressed to learn of this 'Type18' as you so proudly put it. No, this type hasn't just manifested in your labs, Rio. It's out there!" Enigma waved a paw towards the window. "It's out there, and it's real, and it's posing a threat! Now, how do you think Hydreigon, your ruler who is both dark- and dragon-type, will react when he hears about this news?"

Rio grimaced and steadied himself against his desk with both paws. "He's… going to start a war…"

Enigma nodded. "He's going to start a war."

"But… we're the Shining Moon. We're on his side, so we'll be okay." Rio looked up to find Enigma smirking at him. "Right?"

"What? A group of Heretics who've been nurturing this type in their labs for goodness knows how long?" Enigma's smirk fell into a terrifying glare. "I wouldn't count your blessings."

Rio visibly quaked, causing the quills on his desk to rattle in their pot.

"I'm going to do some more sniffing around to see how big this threat really is before I report back to my boss." Enigma turned with a flourish for the door and paused with his paw above the handle.

"What if we capture this whimsicott for you?"

Enigma looked back at Rio. "You want to capture him?"

"Yes," said Rio. "Yes. Anything! If we can catch him, then we can turn him over to Lord Hydreigon for execution."

"It's already being dealt with," said Enigma. "Harlequin was sent after that whimsicott and his two allies. If I know Harlequin like I think I do, he'll have killed all three of them by now."

"But we know this forest," Rio explained. "We know the nooks and crannies pokemon can hide. We might be able to find them before Harlequin does."

"You really think you can manage that?" Enigma couldn't help but chuckle. "Fine. Do what you want. In fact!" He fixed Rio with a playful smirk. "If you do capture that whimsicott, find me. I'll take them back to Hydreigon myself and put in a good word for you."

Rio blinked with surprise. "You'd do that?"

"If you play your cards right."

Enigma shut the door behind him and marched down the corridor through the nearest wall. He gave one glance back at the squat white building. There was little chance Rio would beat Harlequin to his targets, but Enigma hoped he'd succeed. It would certainly spice things up more than they already were. A new type… Enigma was in no rush to head back to the Shadow Lands. Not now. He had a lot of research to do. He chuckled and warped into the canopy, leaving the lab behind.

Things were starting to get very, very interesting.

...

Cleo groaned and rubbed a paw over her eyes. Her fur was clammy and damp, and cold bit through to her skin causing her to shudder. She burrowed beneath the thin blanket covering her, and her nose recoiled at the musty smell coming from it. It was like a wake-up slap, prompting her to shove it off and sit up on the bed of clean hay.

"Spark?"

Her voice came out as a strangled whisper and she licked her dry lips. It didn't seem to help. It just made her more aware of the horrid taste filling her mouth. She swung herself off the bench and staggered, placing a paw to her head as the room began to spin. She muttered to herself, dragging her unwilling body towards the door. Perhaps some breakfast would help? Her stomach lurched at the thought and she clasped a paw over her mouth, pausing to lean against the door frame. Maybe not…

Once her stomach settled again, she tugged the door open to be greeted by a fog of musty air. She closed her eyes and sighed. Of course. She was still in those cells. It was all coming back to her now. Tinker had been explaining their situation to her and Spark, then everything went… hazy.

Where was he? Surely he wouldn't leave her alone in the cells?

She worked her way towards the staff room, and faint voices came from beyond the closed door. One stood out from the rest. She let out a sigh of relief and nudged the door open.

Tinker sat around a table with Spark and two guards - a combusken and meinfoo. The group were enjoying a spread of dried meats and berries, which once gain turned Cleo's stomach. She leant her head against the wall and closed her eyes.

"Cleo!" Tinker exclaimed. "You shouldn't be up! You look terrible!"

Cleo bit her lip. "Thanks."

"Are you sick?" the meinfoo asked. "You shouldn't keep pokemon down here if they're sick, Tinker, the air isn't good for them."

"She's not sick, she merely fainted so I had her sent to the medical ward for a rest." Tinker looked up at Cleo, catching her bleary gaze. "How are you? Rose said you were having feverish nightmares."

Well that explained the clammy fur. She pushed herself from the door to approach the table, where she found a cool glass placed in her paws.

"Drink that," said Tinker. "You're probably dehydrated. It should help you feel better."

Cleo took a grateful sip, finding it to be spring water. With some delight, she found her nausea began to settle. She muttered a thanks and sank down into a chair beside Tinker.

"So… have there been any developments with Harlequin?" Cleo asked.

Spark rolled an oran berry towards Cleo, and she took a cautious nibble as Tinker replied.

"Not yet," he explained. "We left him be overnight. He seems to have tired himself out with hysteria."

Cleo took a more confident bite of her berry. "Should we go and see her… him?"

"If you want to get things moving sooner rather than later?"

Cleo closed her eyes in a grimace and clasped her paw around her glass. She just wanted to get out of these stagnant cells, but she knew Tinker wouldn't allow them to leave without their new burden. She'd already taken on Mischief, and now she was expected to drag an assassin around with them? It certainly wasn't a welcome situation.

Her eyes snapped open and she looked around the room. "Wait… where's Mischief?" She met Tinker's eye. "I thought he'd be up by now."

"He is," said Tinker. "He was so grateful to Rose that he's insisting on helping her out, so he's doing the rounds with her."

"Doing the rounds…?" Cleo asked.

"Yes. Checking on the health of our inmates," Tinker explained. "You can't exactly get information out of someone if they're on death's door, can you?" Tinker paused and a funny look crossed his features that Cleo couldn't quite place. "Rose is… rather well received among the pokemon held here."

The combusken seemed to frown at that and took a swig of his berry juice.

Checking the health of the inmates? It hardly seemed like a safe job to task an amnesiac with. Or was Tinker merely testing Mischief, putting him in a potentially dangerous situation? Either way, Cleo wasn't happy with it.

"Well then." She placed her paws on the table and pushed herself up. The room began to spin again, only with less ferocity than earlier. She masked it by leaning forward against the table. "I'm going to question Harlequin."

"Alone?" Tinker watched as she strolled past him.

"Of course not, you dunce!" Spark scampered along the table and leapt up onto Cleo's shoulder. She jabbed a thumb-claw into her chest. "She's got me!"

Cleo looked back at Tinker. "But you can come if you want? It is you who wants me to drag Harlequin around while looking for some pokemon that may or may not exist."

The two guards gasped and the combusken dropped his glass.

Tinker hissed at Cleo and waved a frantic paw. He then turned to address the stunned guards and smiled.

"This is a confidential Elite investigation," he told them. "So if you could keep it secret, that would be appreciated?"

The meinfoo narrowed his eyes. "Of course."

Tinker nodded and turned to leave, but the combusken's voice froze him.

"You are aware that pokemon will find out about this anyway?"

Tinker looked back at him. "Yes. But if news gets out in less than two days, I'll know it was one of you two, and you'll both lose your rank."

The combusken licked his beak and looked away. "I won't say a word."

The meinfoo shook his head rapidly and dragged a claw across his lips like a zipper.

"Good," said Tinker. "Now finish up your breakfast and get back to work."

He closed the door behind them and lead Cleo and Spark to Harlequin's cell.

"You've still not explained how I'm meant to be doing this," Cleo told him. "Am I just meant to expect her to obediently follow along?"

"I was going to explain things last night," said Tinker. "But you made that rather difficult with your fainting spell."

Cleo swished her tails.

"But never fret," he went on. "I shall explain all in due time. Just… what?"

His paw hovered over the lock to the cell and he frowned at it. The door was slightly ajar, and voices came from the other side. He shoved the door open, revealing Rose the audino and Mischief. The pair were crouching by the cell bars, and Rose was talking in soft tones.

"What are you doing in here?" Tinker asked.

"Health check," said Rose without looking up.

"Harlequin was the first one you checked this morning." Tinker folded his arms. "The prisoners here only need one check. That was our agreement.

"Of course. But he's paralysed, so I wanted to give him a second check-over." Rose looked up at Tinker. "He's not touched his berries."

Cleo stepped further into the room to see into the cell. Harlequin was crouched against the far wall, their lips pulled back from their canines in a silent snarl.

Tinker placed a paw on Rose's shoulder and tried to steer her away from the cell. "If he won't touch his berries then leave him. I have work to do, as I'm sure you have your own duties?"

"I can't just ignore a patient," Rose protested. "If he won't eat them then the paralysis won't fully wear off."

"That's his problem."

Rose dusted herself down and rose to her feet. "You need to have a little sympathy, Tinker."

She fixed the riolu with a glare then turned from the room. She paused in the doorway and smiled at Mischief. "Thank you for your help."

"Any time!" Mischief chirruped.

Rose cast another glare at Tinker before closing the door behind her.

Cleo watched after her. "Is she…?"

"A peace maker?" Mischief beamed up at her from beside the cell. "Yup!"

"It's 'peace enthusiast'," Tinker spat. "And it's entirely pointless. No one has ever made peace with a dark-type yet."

Spark smirked. "Yet?"

Tinker lashed a paw in the air. "That audino can get under your skin! Drop it!"

Spark snapped her mouth shut and ducked into Cleo's fur.

Tinker shook his head and moved over to the desk where he rummaged noisily in the drawers.

Cleo turned her back on him and approached the cell, drawing a threatening growl from its lone occupant.

"Are you ready to answer some questions?" Cleo asked.

Harlequin glared back at her, their livid eyes lighting up with sapphire flames. The fur along the zorua's back stood on end, and they tucked their bushy tail into their side.

Cleo wasn't sure what was worse. Harlequin's silence, or the risk of another rampage. Getting information out of dark-types was never easy, but once behind bars with their comforts taken away, they were usually much more willing to speak. Not Harlequin. There was no bargaining for their freedom. No bargaining for their belongings back-

Cleo's eyes widened and she reached into her bag, whipping out the strange orb that had prompted Harlequin's outburst only hours before. The zorua's sapphire glare snapped to it, and their growl cut off abruptly. The glare melted away to something unreadable. Fear? Anger? Sadness? Maybe all of them? Whatever it was, a reaction was still a reaction.

"What is this?" Cleo asked.

Harlequin said nothing, but their eyes didn't leave the strange sphere, following its pendulum swing as it hung from Cleo's paw.

"If you tell me," Cleo said cautiously, "I just might give it back."

Harlequin's eyes snapped to Cleo, hard and cold as ice. As uninviting as a frozen lake in the dead of the cold season. Harlequin pushed themselves up with their forepaws until they were sitting at a lopsided angle. They licked their lips a few times then cleared their throat.

"I don't know what it is." The zorua's voice came out hoarse and dry. "It belonged to a friend. It's value is purely sentimental, and I want it back."

Cleo returned her stare, unfazed by the zorua's intimidating glare. "Not just yet. I have more questions for you."

Harlequin's lips curled back from their teeth, but there was no growl this time.

"Why did you poison the river?" Cleo asked.

"I didn't poison any river!" Harlequin snapped.

"Really? We heard an absol has been sighted in the mountains, and is believed to have poisoned the river." Cleo inclined her head on one side, noting a fleeting look of surprise on the zorua's face. "You weren't working with an absol?"

Harlequin lowered their head and licked their canines. "There aren't any absol in the Shadow Lands. They're enemies. They were driven out years ago. Killed. Each and every one of them." A low growl rose in their throat. "Whoever told you they saw an absol is lying."

Spark looked up at Cleo and shrugged. "They were Heretics. Maybe she's right?"

"Okay, fine," said Cleo. "Let's say you aren't responsible for the river then. What are you doing in the Moorlands? Why were you targeting us?"

Harlequin's snarl turned into a sinister grin and a dry chuckle left their throat. "Because it's my mission. I was told to assassinate a whimsicott and his friends. What… you think I have some deep-seated personal grudge or something?" The zorua smirked and inclined their head on one side. "I do now."

Spark leapt from Cleo's shoulder to land on her feet between Cleo and the iron bars. "You can't intimidate us! Your threats will just be met with another jolt of electricity, zorua!"

Harlequin let out a lone laugh and lowered their head, fur bristling. "Bring it on, pipsqueak!"

"Enough!" Tinker barked. "This is not productive."

Cleo folded her arms and shook her head at her small companion. "It was until Spark cut in."

The dedenne's ears drooped and she looked up at Cleo. "Hey!"

"She's behind bars, Spark," Cleo waved a paw at the cell.

Tinker grabbed her outstretched paw and placed a large white ring in it. Cleo blinked at the device. It wasn't entirely dissimilar to Harlequin's collar. In fact, it was very similar. The only difference was the size.

"Put that on your wrist," Tinker told her.

"Why?" Cleo asked.

"You'll see soon enough." Tinker approached the cell and turned a key in the lock. "Mischief? Don't you lift a paw unless I tell you to."

Mischief nodded and took a step back.

Harlequin stood and began pacing back and forth by the door, watching Tinker intently. Their movements were stiff and sluggish, and they walked with a slight limp on their right paw. It didn't hinder them though. As soon as the door was open, Harlequin lunged, crashing into him with a full-body tackle. The pair rolled in a frenzy of blue and black fur across the room.

"Tinker!" Cleo gasped.

"Put it on!" he barked.

The riolu, now abandoned, rose up against the wall, separated from Cleo by a snarling, crazed zorua. Everything seemed to happen in slow motion. As Cleo fastened the bracelet around her wrist, Harlequin lunged towards her. Spark scattered, vanishing beyond the bars of the cell in a flurry of sparks. The electricity missed its target by a hair's breadth. A loud click came from the bracelet as Cleo snapped it in place. Her heart was in her throat, eyes fixed on a set of snarling, glistening canines. They snapped shut mere millimetres from her muzzle. A surprised yelp came from the zorua as an invisible force shoved the pair apart. Cleo stood her ground, but Harlequin was slung across the room like a rag-doll. They landed hard on their side, skidding along the dirty floor in a shaggy heap.

Harlequin raised their head and shook it. "What the-?"

The assassin scrambled to their feet, fixing another livid glare on Cleo. "What did you do, meowstic? Your psychic shouldn't affect me!"

They launched another attack, jaws snapping, only to be met with the same result. This time they landed on their feet, skidding on their pads. Claws raked up dust as they brought themselves to a stop by the cell door.

"What are you doing to me?" Harlequin hissed. Then they spotted the bracelet. "Is that some kind of shield?"

"You could say that." Tinker stood in the corner of the room with his arms folded, a good distance away from Cleo.

Harlequin snapped their head around towards him and pounced. The zorua's head snapped backwards with a yelp while their back feet continued on. They landed flat on their back with a sick thud. Harlequin groaned and flailed their paws before rolling over onto their stomach. Sapphire eyes fixed on the bracelet with a look of realisation, and a low growl left Harlequin's throat.

Tinker's eyes were glittering with glee. He pushed back from the wall, following it to Cleo's side.

"You asked how you were meant to handle Harlequin," he said. "This device is designed to keep its detained criminal locked in a two foot radius. Harlequin can't move out of it, and, as you have discovered, he also can't touch you."

Cleo stared aghast at the bracelet. "How does it work?"

"It's locked to your DNA," Tinker explained. "This is why I took some of your hairs yesterday. The bracelet recognises you, and therefore repels the collar, resulting in repelling Harlequin." Tinker grinned and rubbed his chin. "It's nice to see that it actually works!"

Cleo rounded on him. "You didn't even test this thing?!"

"Not extensively." Tinker shrugged. "I tested it on a tree, a chair…"

"But no living pokemon?" Cleo had to restrain herself from blasting him with her psychic. "You just put me at risk, Tinker!"

"You were perfectly safe. I would have let no harm come to you or your friends." Tinker smirked at the stunned zorua. "I'm fully capable of handling a dark-type in a one-on-one battle."

Cleo rolled her eyes and turned away from him.

"So… if it repels Harlequin…" Spark hopped up onto Cleo's shoulder. "That means I'm safe here, right?"

"Of course," said Tinker. "Not only are Harlequin's special attacks restrained by that collar, you are safe from all of his physical attacks so long as you are perched up there, or outside of the two foot radius. Like Mischief."

Harlequin's jaw dropped. "What?"

Mischief blinked a few times and rubbed his fluffy head. "I'm confused."

Cleo stared at Tinker, aghast. "Tinker, I've not agreed to this!"

"Agreed to what?" Mischief sighed and spread his paws. "Can someone please tell me what's going on? Is this more of your science?"

Tinker leant back against his desk and folded his arms. "I have requested you take Harlequin and go and look for more of this new type, like you have, Mischief."

Harlequin's mouth flapped open wordlessly and they pushed themselves back up onto their feet.

"I am not taking her!" Cleo snapped. "She's dangerous! Not to mention she makes us a massive target to Hydriegon's armies!"

"Hang on!" Harlequin gasped. "I am not going anywhere with you! And what do you mean 'new type'?!"

"That is confidential to the Guild," said Tinker. "And as for going with Cleo and her friends, I'm afraid you don't have much choice."

"I do." Harlequin closed their eyes and puffed out their chest. "I just don't have to move. It's not as if you can touch me to drag me along now, is it, since your little device won't let me touch you."

"Cleo?" Tinker motioned for Cleo to follow him.

She sighed and slumped after the riolu towards the door. There was a slight tug at her bracelet, followed by a despairing yelp. Harlequin lay on their side, scrabbling with their paws as they were dragged effortlessly behind.

"Like I said." Tinker placed a paw on Cleo's shoulder to stop her. "You don't have much choice."

Cleo grimaced and turned her head away. She couldn't help but feel those words weren't only aimed at Harlequin.

...

The sun warmed Harbinger's back as he sat looking out over the mountain. The warm rays shimmered off the swiftly moving water as it snaked its way through the forest, coating the neighbouring skeletal trees with its frothy foam.

Just like any other river, it flowed away from the Shadow Lands, as if the very water itself didn't want to be there.

"Looks like they've got it flowing again."

Harbinger looked down at the speaker.

Claw stood next to him with Scratch, the latter less interested in the water than he was in his surroundings. He rubbed his claws together, gazing at the shadows as if they threatened him.

Harbinger turned back to the flowing river and nodded. "Yes. It would seem they have." He paused and lifted his head to follow the river as it vanished into the distance. "That's the beauty of nature. Things know how to survive. That goes for pokemon, too."

"Pokemon like us?" asked Claw.

Harbinger said nothing, keeping his mind fixed on the present.

After a while, Claw spoke up again. "Do you think we won this one?"

"Even if those Heretics survived, I think I made my point." The absol rose and motioned for the twins to follow him. "Come. We have things to do in the Moorlands Forest."

...

And thus ends Part 1!

Review Replies:

Adamfics - Thanks for the cross-post, I appreciate it! =D Mischief did receive quite the shock! Perhaps it will be a growing opportunity for him? (And, yes, hopefully he'll keep some of his bouncy naivety!) I also enjoy Harlequin and Enigma's synergy. They're two of my favourite characters to write, although that doesn't say much. I love writing so many of the characters in this story! XD Thanks for reading!

Please R&R! =D The next chapter will be up in 1-4 weeks!