URGENT EDIT - I am so sorry! I've not been getting emails off FFNet so I'd not been alerted to reviews. Please see the end of this chapter for review replies! Thank you!

A/N - Following the end of the previous chapter, it feels like a fitting point to look back at Enigma's past. This 'special episode' is broken into five parts. It ended up being much longer than I expected, and longer than the original writing of it. I hope you enjoy.

Thanks for all reads, reviews, faves and follows!

Hero

Part One

The soft tinkling of a bell rang out from amid the rafters as a small shuppet darted between them. The banette sat beneath him hastily gathered together various items into a bag. Enigma hadn't really noted them, too busy amusing himself chasing dust bunnies through the air.

A pool of shadow appeared by the door as his father materialised. The male banette glanced back at the door nervously then joined his mate by the table.

"How is it?" she asked quietly.

"Uncertain," Crux replied. "We've found a path that leads through the Darkwoods, towards the scree slopes. If we're going to leave, it has to be now."

Riddle nodded stiffly and looked up at the young shuppet. "Enigma? Come down please, we're leaving now."

Enigma paused his pursuit of a flurry of dust motes to stare inquisitively at his mother. He didn't really understand what was going on, but he could tell when his parents were being serious. He floated down from the rafters to join them, and his father chuckled.

"I remember when I used to be able to float like that," he said.

Riddle smiled and reached for her heavy black cloak. "He's been up there all day. He really likes that bell you gave him." She pulled the cloak around herself and opened the right side. "Come on, Enigma. Hide."

The hatchling complied, snuggling up to his mother's warm fur. She fastened an arm around him and followed her mate towards the door. A dark pool of shadow formed on it as a sableye crept into the living room. His jewel-like eyes remained fixed on the closed door and he glanced at the two banette. He fidgeted his claws together as his entire body trembled.

"It's too late." His voice was like claws on slate. "He's here."

Riddle gasped and tightened her hold on the hatchling. Enigma tried to peek around her cloak, only catching a glimpse of the sableye's twitching ears.

"What?" Crux hissed. "Why? There was no sign of any attack tonight."

"He must have had spies," said the sableye. "Look, you need to get out of here, Crux. We all know too much, but after what you started, he'll be after your neck."

Crux nodded and took his mate's arm. "Then we have to hurry. Head to the Darkwoods-"

"You can't," said the sableye. "The route's been sabotaged. The scree's given way, and the Darkwoods are teeming with murkrow."

Crux stiffened, and Riddle turned to look at him.

"Were you followed?" Her voice trembled.

Crux's jaw tightened and he looked past the sableye to the door. "Then we'll go around the mountain and follow the river."

"Are you mad?!" the sableye whimpered. "That's way too close to the Shadow Lands!"

"What other choice do we have?!" Crux barked. He took a deep breath. "Listen. If his troops are focused on the Darkwoods, there'll be hardly anyone guarding the river." The sableye made to speak, but Crux cut him off with a wave of his paw. "Hydreigon has decimated his own forces. They're a third the size they used to be, and still declining! He's hardly got enough to spare."

The sableye screwed his eyes shut. "Fine. It's not as if we have any other choice. Go. Get the kid to safety. I'll tell everyone else."

The sableye slipped through the door into the evening air, with the two banette close behind him. They didn't follow. Instead, Crux ushered his mate towards the path that lead around the side of their house. Shouts were heard in the distance, and the sky darkened with wings. Enigma's heart pounded and he cowered closer to his mother.

"Why?" she whimpered. "Why is he doing this to us?"

"That monster killed his own father. Why would he ignore us?" Crux ushered her away. "Run. I'll be right behind you."

Riddle cuddled Enigma to her chest and gave her mate a sad frown. "Please… don't play the hero."

"I won't. I'm right behind you. Go."

Crux gave her a shove and she took off, clutching Enigma to her chest. Wing beats rumbled through the sky like thunder, interspersed with the frantic cawing of Yurlik's murkrow flock. A flash of flames lit up the sky, and the smell of burning wood filled the air. Enigma poked his head out of his mother's cloak to look back, and his eyes widened.

Flames crept across the floor, licking the trees and wooden huts before consuming them with a blazing hunger. Canine shadows raced ahead of the flames, howling as they spewed fire from their mouths to torch the village as they passed. Yet more flames joined the sky in an orange and purple rain as the dragons followed suit.

A mighty roar shook the trees, and Hydreigon's hulking shape twisted to look in the fleeing family's direction. The army split in three, and Hydreigon lead his group towards Enigma and his parents. He moved with alarming speed, and Enigma could see the fire flashing in his wicked eyes.

With a squeak, Enigma pulled his head back into his mother's cloak. Riddle screwed her eyes shut and pounded the floor with her feet, racing towards the dark path that lead down the mountainside. She glanced back to check Crux was behind her, but he'd stopped, turning to face Hydreigon. The huge dragon spread his jaws and fired a pulse of purple energy. It hit the ground just at Riddle's feet. She let out a scream and staggered back from the smoldering grass which seemed to melt under the purple flames.

Several weavile zipped through the grass towards them, their claws glinting in the firelight. They spread around the two banette from either side, their crimson eyes glistening with malice. Riddle turned to watch them, clutching Enigma close to her chest. She took a step back, then propelled herself forwards, turning her body to mist. Warping wasn't one of her strengths. She didn't make it very far, instead materialising just beyond the weavile. It was enough. She took off ahead of them, giving one last glance back at Crux. But instead she met the open jaws of a salamence. The dragon landed on her like a comet, dragging her to the ground with his claws. Riddle screamed, raking with her own claws, but each lash fell short. The large dragon pinned her arms to the floor. Her screams rent the air, now oddly silent save for the crackle of flames. The weavile had stopped, standing around her, ready to pounce if they needed to.

Hydreigon hovered just before Crux, looking between the two banette. Without being prompted, the salamence dragged Riddle to her feet and took her over to Hydreigon.

"So these are the two trouble-makers?" Hydreigon's voice rumbled like distant thunder.

"Two?" Crux gasped, casting a glance at his mate. "No. It's just me. Leave her out of it!"

Riddle clutched Enigma protectively to her chest, not taking her eyes off Hydreigon. The salamence looked her up and down, then nosed at her side, causing her to flinch away.

"This one's hiding a hatchling," he said.

Hydreigon raised a brow and watched as the salamence tugged Riddle's cloak away. The banette protested, squealing as she tried to fight it from his jaws. Enigma's eyes widened when he saw the dragon, and he froze with fright.

Hydreigon gave a sinister laugh. "Well spotted, Ripwing." He turned his attention back on Crux. "Now, I suppose you'll be willing to co-operate, given their lives are at stake?"

"No!" Crux shook his head and took a step towards Hydreigon. "They have nothing to do with this. Just let them go and I'll tell you everything you want to know."

"Oh, I know plenty," Hydreigon purred, lowering his head towards Crux. "You're the one who sent message to the outlaws. You're the one who lead their revolt on my domain when my forces are still recovering." Hydreigon bared his sharp canines, misting hot breath over the quaking banette. "You are the catalyst sparking unrest among my own pokemon! Because of you, I am having to quash a revolt!"

Crux raised his head to look the dragon in the eye. "You're blaming me for your decision to kill off your own followers? Their beliefs are their own, I have nothing to do with that!"

"Like I said." Hydreigon's voice was laced with danger. "You are the catalyst. Slipping under my radar to lead a gang of messengers into the Border Woods to leak inside information? I think that's reason enough to eradicate every single one of you sneaky ghosts from the face of Estellis!"

Crux swiped a paw to the side. "It was a small number of us! Just ten! There a thousands living here! Is that really reason to kill everyone?"

Hydreigon chuckled and a sneer spread across his muzzle. "You're at fault there, ghost. Not me. I'm just doing what I need to in order to erase your mistakes. I've never liked ghosts. You sneaky vermin with your ability to slip through walls… to steal… to blend into shadows effortlessly, and vanish before my very eyes. My father was a fool to let you live here in the first place, but would he listen to me? And you, Crux… you've proved my point. Now, if I have to wipe out several species to silence this revolt, so be it."

Crux's eyes flit from side to side and he took a step back. The weavile flexed their claws, lowering themselves in preparation to spring. Riddle hugged Enigma in a protective embrace, her sobs audible over the crackling flames.

Crux watched her for a moment then turned his attention back onto Hydreigon. "Okay. You can do what you want with me, but please let them go. They're innocent in all this!"

"They know too much," said Hydreigon.

"But they're innocent!" Crux pleaded. "Just… if you can't let them go, then take them with you! Enigma… he's young! You've just said yourself how sneaky ghosts can be." Crux closed his eyes for a moment and balled his fists. "Why not raise him to fight for you?"

"Crux, no!" Riddle gasped.

He waved a paw to silence her, not taking his eyes off Hydreigon. The dragon's eyes had lit up at the idea. If there was a chance Crux could save his mate and child, then he was going to take it, no matter what the cost.

"You didn't even see us enter the Border Woods," Crux went on. "No one did. So why wouldn't you want ghost-types in your army? We can turn invisible, slip through walls… if you gave us a chance we'd be great assassins! Please… consider this at least? Take them both with you. She can raise him, and they can both work for you."

Hydreigon inclined his head on one side and scratched his jaw with one of his pincers. A thoughtful growl emanated from deep in his throat.

Ripwing glanced at the trembling female in his claws, and his eye lingered on the shuppet. Enigma couldn't take his eyes off Hydreigon.

"The banette has a point," Ripwing told his leader. "We need all the help we can get right now, my lord. The kid's young. How much of this is he going to remember? And we can always leave the female in the breeding pens."

"And how do you suggest we contain her?" Hydreigon asked. "Ghosts can slip through walls, and there's no one in the Shadow Lands who'd want to breed with her. As for the shuppet…" A smirk spread across his jaws. "Very well. You have your wish, Crux."

"Wait…" Crux raised a paw and took a step towards Hydreigon. "Please, take her-" His words were cut short by a pulsing beam of black energy and he crumpled to the floor.

Riddle let out a cry and stood to the side, clutching the now-trembling banette. She turned tearful eyes onto Hydreigon.

"Why are you doing this?" She bristled, forcing herself to meet the dragon's eyes. "Your father was fine with us living here! He was a good and noble ruler!"

Hydreigon's eyes flashed and he spat another dark pulse, knocking Riddle from her feet. Enigma soared into the air, righting himself as he watched his mother crash to the ground, buried in her cloak.

"My father was weak," Hydreigon scoffed. He turned his back on her and gave a glance at Ripwing. "Grab the kid. I want him taking straight to the barracks."

Ripwing gave the shuppet a nervous glance. Enigma drifted down towards his mother and nudged the bundle of cloth.

"But… who's gonna raise him?" Ripwing asked. "He's just a hatchling! We could have kept his mother around for a little while at least-"

"We're recruiting plenty of hatchlings," Hydreigon told him. "Niana can raise him like she's doing the others."

"That's a lot to put on one poke-"

"Are you questioning me, Ripwing?"

Ripwing snapped his jaws shut and lowered his head. "No, my lord."

"Good." Hydreigon turned away from him. "Now bring the child. With force, if you need to. He'll soon learn his place."

Enigma nudged his mother again, but there was no response. With a sob, he dropped onto the cloak and snuggled into her body, still warm.

The weavile began to disperse, following after Hydreigon. A couple considered staying behind to assist Ripwing, but the heat was becoming unbearable and the dragon soon found himself on his own. The salamence edged closer to the sobbing shuppet and reached out with his talons. Enigma jerked away, but refused to leave his mother.

"Come on, kid," Ripwing told him. "Let's get you somewhere safe, eh?"

Enigma didn't take his eyes off the salamence, flinching back as Ripwing reached for him a second time.

"Come on, this place is burning." When Enigma didn't move, the dragon sighed and lowered his head so he was on the shuppet's level. "Okay… can you understand me?"

Enigma nodded once.

"Can you speak?" Ripwing asked. "What's your name?"

"Enigma." The shuppet's voice came out small and feeble, almost drowned out by the snap and pop of burning wood.

"Okay, Enigma," Ripwing said. "We need to get away from here before we're caught in the fire, okay? So are you going to come with me?"

"Why isn't she moving?"

Ripwing was caught off guard by the question. His mouth opened and closed wordlessly. How did someone answer a question like that? The shuppet was just a hatchling. Perhaps it would have been mercy if Hydreigon had just killed him, too. Spare him the distress.

Ripwing closed his eyes and sighed. "Because… because she's too sick to move. So… I have to get you to safety, okay?"

Enigma looked up from his fallen mother. "That dragon did it, didn't he?"

Ripwing stared at the child, speechless. Either he was older than he looked, or just very bright. Did he actually know too much? How much of this would he even remember? The salamence found himself warring between duty and heart as he tried to decide whether or not it was safer to just kill the shuppet there and then.

"Why?" Enigma asked.

Ripwing's jaw tensed and he diverted his eyes from the hatchling. "Perhaps you're better asking him yourself when you're older."

"You could have stopped him."

Ripwing flinched at those words. He had no answer to that.

The sick sound of cracking wood split the air, and the dragon looked up as a blazing tree fell towards them. He reared up, beating his powerful wings. The gust swept the tree away from them, where it crashed down in a spray of embers.

Enigma's eyes were wide, reflecting the orange inferno that was rapidly spreading throughout his home.

Ripwing reached out a paw again. "Okay. It's much too dangerous, we have to go."

Enigma shook his head, turning his face away as he cowered into his mother's cloak.

The salamence sighed and took a step towards him. "Enigma, look at me."

The shuppet peeked up from amid the black bundle of cloth.

"I need to get you out of this fire, otherwise it's going to hurt us both," Ripwing explained. "Will you come with me?"

"No."

"Why? Are you scared of me?"

The shuppet nodded slowly, and the dragon sighed again.

"Do I look evil to you?" Ripwing asked.

Enigma was silent for a moment, studying the dragon's face. Then he shook his head.

Ripwing tightened his jaw again. He hadn't actually expected that response. He'd expected to have had to convince the shuppet otherwise. "Then… then you can trust me. Okay?" When Enigma didn't move, Ripwing added, "I promise, Enigma, I am not going to hurt you."

Enigma stared down at the cloth for a moment, then slowly drifted up from it. Ripwing reached for him, then faltered. He turned to the bundle of cloth and began gently removing it from the banette's motionless body. Seeing what he was doing, Enigma assisted as best a shuppet could. Once the cloak was removed, Enigma retreated into it.

"There we go." Ripwing cradled the bundle in his talons. "Now let's get us out of this fire."

With a running jump, Ripwing took off into the air like a jet.

Enigma's answer was still whirling around in his mind, whipping up a storm. A child's judgement… perhaps he was too naive and would grow up adapting to Hydreigon's ideals after all?

...

The sky over the Shadow Lands was a vivid scarlet, smeared with heavy black clouds. Ripwing trudged along on three legs towards a low, dirty building squatting beside a murky lake. Enigma, still swaddled in his mother's cloak, lay huddled in the salamence's left talons. Once Ripwing reached the building, he balanced on his tail to beat the door with his claws.

A grumble came from beyond it, and it cracked open, revealing the disgruntled face of a scrafty. The discontent melted away in an instant.

"Oh. It's you." The hoodlum pokemon pulled the door open wider and hoisted up his scale-like trousers before peering around Ripwing's shoulder. "Thought you were that ruddy honchkrow."

Ripwing snorted smoke from his nostrils. "Watch what you say around here, Jex." He deposited the bundle at the scrafty's feet, and a soft jingle came from within it. "I only came here to give you this. Lord Hydreigon wants him trained here, although I dread to think how that is going to go down with the rest of your students."

Jex raised an eyebrow at the dragon, then dropped to examine the bundle of cloth. "What do you- Oh."

As he peeled back part of the cloak, Enigma peered up at him. The shuppet burrowed backwards, further into the familiar scent of his mother's cloak.

"A shuppet?" Jex looked up at Ripwing. "Why?"

"Lord Hydreigon has his reasons," Ripwing told him. "Just raise him." The salamence turned his back to walk away.

"Did Lord Hydreigon take pity on this ghost then?"

Ripwing spun around with alarming speed, and Jex leapt back with a yell. The dragon's muzzle stopped mere millimetres from the scrafty's nose, and smoke pooled into the barracks' entrance hall.

"No," Ripwing growled.

With that, the dragon spread his wings and took off towards Hydreigon's castle.

Jex watched him go for a moment, then stooped to gather up Enigma. The little shuppet trembled amid the cloth, his eyes screwed shut.

"Come on." Jex gathered up the ghost and cloak into both arms and ducked back into the barracks. "I ain't a clue what he's thinkin', takin' you on. I wouldn't be surprised if everyone 'ere's just gonna use you as a punchin' bag."

Enigma's entire body shook and he ducked into his cloak. One eye peeked out, taking in his new surroundings. Musty walls soaked up the damp like a sponge, and mildew clung to the tight corners. The narrow, winding corridor seemed endless and dark, filled with grunts and harsh, loud voices which faded away the further they walked along it.

"There's lotsa kids like you here, some probably your age. It's Niana's job to care for y'all, not mine. Anyway, 'ere's your room."

Jex kicked a door open and marched across to a nest which lay against the far wall. He dropped Enigma onto the hay with a jingle. The shuppet peered out from his bundle, fixing the scrafty with wide, frightened eyes.

"Ahh, calm down." Jex closed his eyes and ran a paw over his face. "Flippin' kids. Not that we 'ave much choice now, eh? I'll tell my sis you're 'ere. She'll probably drop some berries off for ya or somethin'."

The scrafty marched from the room, slamming the door behind him.

Enigma stared at the door for a long moment as everything began to sink in. His mother's cloak felt oddly cold, and the room seemed to expand out around him. Sparse, bare, musty. Nothing else filled it apart from the strange, stone bed topped with stagnant hay. A wide window spread across the wall at the foot of it, letting in the cold night air. Outside, a murkrow cawed.

A deep pang of loneliness stabbed at Enigma's chest and his eyes stung with tears. Everything was so alien. So quiet. He wanted to just retreat into his mother's comforting embrace. But he couldn't… That option had been taken away from him forever. He screwed his eyes shut, letting the tears streak down his face. With a sob, he nestled into the cloak's familiar scent, wrapping it tightly around himself.

He was alone.

...

A soft knock at the door dragged Enigma out of his slumber. He blinked his bleary eyes, bringing the dingy room into focus. With only the moonlight trickling through the window everything looked grey. His heart clenched when he felt the brittle hay shift beneath his makeshift nest, and he huddled into the cloak, fixing his wide eyes on the door. It creaked open, and the small delicate face of a sneasel peeked around it. Crimson eyes fell on the shuppet, and he ducked further into his nest.

"Wow, they weren't kiddin'!" Despite her excitement, the sneasel's voice was quiet as if she didn't want to draw attention to herself. She slipped into the room and closed the door behind her with a soft click. But her eyes never left Enigma. "They really did bring a ghost-type here. And ya so tiny!"

She trotted over to him, and in a flash Enigma bolted from the confines of his cloak to vanish beneath the bed. The sneasel froze, watching after him with a smile on her face. Enigma huddled in the dust, staring out at her with wide, frantic eyes. The weasel-like pokemon dropped onto all-fours to peek beneath the bed, and Enigma let out a squeak as he retreated further backwards.

"Aww, come on," she said softly. "I'm not gonna hurt ya. Niana sent me in here to check ya'd eaten ya supper, since ya were sleepin' like a snorlax in the cold season!"

Enigma said nothing, but his heart was galloping almost as fast as the sneasel spoke.

"I can show ya around if ya like?" the sneasel went on. "Get ya familiar with the place before trainin' starts later?"

Enigma shook his head sharply, whipping up dust.

"Really? Well… I guess it is too much too fast, huh?" She paused and let her head rest on one paw. "My name's Kera. What's yours?"

Enigma was silent for a while, but his nerves began to calm. The sneasel didn't seem to be posing any real threat. He licked his lips and glanced to the side. "Enigma."

"Ooh, like the berry?"

Enigma stared at her again, but she only grinned.

"So…" She chuckled. "Are ya gonna come out or am I gonna have to come under there and join ya?"

As if to make his point, Enigma flattened himself into the floor.

Kera rolled her eyes and scrabbled beneath the bed. "Join ya it is."

"No." Enigma edged away from her.

"No?"

"No." Enigma lowered his density and drifted up through the base of the concrete slab.

Kera watched him with wide eyes, then clambered out from beneath the bed. She stood up, placing both paws on the edge of the stone slab and met Enigma's defiant stare. Kera closed her eyes and chuckled. "Well, that got ya outta hidin', huh?"

"You work for that dragon." Enigma sank back into his cloak. "You're evil."

Kera's head jerked around to the door and she hissed. She turned back to Enigma and waved her paws, giving a nervous glance wandered to the window, before fixing wide eyes on the shuppet. "Watch what ya say here, or you'll get killed, okay?"

Enigma looked to the window, then pressed his back up against the wall. "I want to go home."

"Well, that ain't an option no more." She leant against the bed. "Just make-do and be glad you're alive, yeah? And I ain't yer enemy. I just thought ya might need a friend."

Enigma snorted. "A friend?"

"Of course!"

"I don't play with girls."

Kera quirked an eyebrow at that. "Huh?"

"I don't like girls," Enigma went on. "They smell."

Kera folded her arms. "Ya won't be sayin' that in a few years time."

Enigma looked away and pouted.

Kera laughed, a tinkling noise that reminded Enigma of icicles in the wind. "You're adorable!"

Enigma felt his face heat up.

"So are ya gonna turn away a friendly face just because I'm a girl?" Kera asked.

Enigma sank down to his bed, not looking at her. "No…"

"Good!"

Kera bounded up onto the nest beside him, and Enigma let out a squeak and drifted back into the air. The sneasel didn't seem bothered, as her attention immediately went to the black cloak she'd landed on. Her claws stroked over it slowly and her eyes lit up with fascination.

"Is this what I think it is?" She scooped the cloak up in her paws and sat back on her haunches to admire it. "It is! It's dusclops cloth!"

Enigma drifted back down behind her to peer over her shoulder. He eyed the sneasel out of the corner of his eye, then watched as she turned the fabric in her paws.

"Wow!" she exclaimed. "This stuff is mega rare! How did ya manage to get an entire cloak made of it?"

Enigma was silent for a long moment, watching Kera glide her claws delicately over the cloak's dense fabric. She appeared entranced.

Enigma glanced at the back of her head then back at the cloak. "It was my Mum's."

Kera squealed and dropped the cloak, snapping her head around to Enigma. He jerked back, startled, fixing his wide, blinking eyes on hers.

The sneasel laughed and placed a paw to her chest. "Sorry! Ya snuck up on me. I thought ya were still up there." She nodded to the ceiling then wiped a tear away. "Wow, ya'll make a great assassin with those sneaky skills, eh?" She returned to the cloak while Enigma rejoined her side. "So why do ya have this? Dusclops make 'em 'cos they have problems with invisibility right? But most other ghosts can turn invisible way easier?"

"Not all of us." Enigma flopped down beside her. "My mother couldn't for some reason. She lost the ability when she evolved, so Dad bought her this. To keep her safe." Enigma's eyes welled up and he turned his face from Kera. "But it didn't work, did it? It didn't keep her safe…"

Kera bit her lip and glanced to the wall.

"I don't know what to do anymore," Enigma went on. "I just want to escape."

"If ya try, they'll kill ya too."

Enigma screwed his eyes shut and huddled down into the nest.

"Lord Hydreigon doesn't keep ghosts in the Shadow Lands," Kera told him. "But he's kept ya for a reason."

"Because my father begged him to take me. He wanted to keep me and my mother alive."

"That's a pity." Kera grimaced and idly toyed with the cloak.

"He thinks I'm too young to remember any of it," Enigma went on. "But I'm not. I'm gonna make sure I always remember what he's done to me."

Kera didn't look up at him, but she closed her eyes briefly. "Of course. Ya should never forget ya parents. But just bare in mind, if ya retaliate or try to escape, Lord Hydreigon won't bat an eye at killing ya."

Enigma huffed. "Like he didn't bat an eye at killing his own father?"

Kera hissed at him and waved her paws. She glanced to the window, then the door. Satisfied no one was listening, she spoke in a hushed voice.

"Don't ever talk about that! Anyone who won't keep quiet has already been killed. That's why our numbers are so low!" She sighed and sat back on her paws. "It's bad enough there's rumours of unrest. Please don't add to that."

Enigma sighed. "So I can't leave?"

"Oh ya can try, but like I said, ya won't make it." Kera gave him a sideways glance. "And that would be pretty sad. I mean, I like ya, and with ya here, I have someone my own age to spar with."

He fixed her with a look of disgust. "You want to use dark-type moves on me? That hardly seems fair."

She shrugged. "If ya learn to dodge 'em, then that'll be a valuable skill on the field!"

"But I don't want to be an assassin!"

Kera gave him a sad smile and inclined her head on one side. "I know, little ghost dude. But your parents gave their lives to save yours. For their sake, make the right choice?"

Enigma sighed as he felt his heart breaking. He blinked back tears and stared at the closed door.

Trapped.

But at least he wasn't alone anymore.

"Fine," he said. "For them, I'll do it." He turned back to Kera and frowned. "But I'm not happy about it."

The sneasel merely grinned.

...

The first training day had been awful. Enigma had stuck close to Kera during their walk to the training grounds. They were just outside the barracks, an area of land that had been flattened by many, many feet over the years. It was bare of grass, and the soil was cracked and dry. In the moonlight, twelve pairs of eyes glistened at Enigma as he cowered behind Kera. The sneasel didn't show him any pity, instead keeping her focus on the female scrafty that marched back and forth in the ring of trainees.

"All right, ya miserable lot." Niana didn't look at a single one of her trainees. "I know we're thin on the ground, but after the flop that was yesterday's training I expect a bit more enthusiasm from ya'll, ya hear?"

No one replied. The surrounding dragons bared their teeth at the shuppet, while the small number of dark-types bristled and those that had tails flicked them.

Niana noticed this and followed their gaze. The scrafty rolled her eyes and tucked her paws behind her back. "All right. I suppose I should address the copperajah in the room, eh? We have a new recruit. Lord Hydreigon wants us to train this shuppet into an assassin, using his unique skills to turn invisible and move through solid surfaces."

"But he's not a dark-type," said a small nickit.

"They're not my orders," said Niana. "They're Lord Hydreigon's. Ya wanna take it up with him?"

The nickit tightened her jaw and diverted her gaze from Niana.

A gible let out a low growl and scraped his feet on the floor. "You want enthusiasm, then pair him up with me."

"Hey!" The kommo-o beside him jabbed a claw into his chest plate. "I'm callin' dibs here! Back off!"

Enigma ducked further behind Kera, his tiny body trembling.

"Excuse me!" Kera took a step forwards and waved a paw. "If anyone gets to pair up with him it's me! I already said-"

"When?" the gible barked. "I didn't hear you call dibs!"

"Neither did you," snarled the kommo-o.

Niana's eyes lit up as she looked over the eager faces and restless shuffles as the surrounding pokemon practically salivated.

"Well," she said. "It's a start. All right, Tannen. He's with you."

The gible fist-pumped the air.

Kera's posture sank and Enigma felt his heart freeze in his chest. As soon as Niana finished shouting out the pairings, the entire training grounds erupted into chaos. Feet stampeded in all directions, and Enigma darted into the air to escape being trampled.

The gible leapt towards him, flames licking at his canines. A huge blast of purple flames struck Enigma, searing through his fur. He let out a yell and dropped from the air. His eyes widened as he was greeted by Tannen's glistening teeth.

Enigma never thought a bite could hurt so much.

The next thing he remembered was waking up in his nest, the sharp hay jabbing at every sore part of his body. He let out a whimper and rolled to the side, but the result was the same. The bitter scent of sitrus juices stung his nose and he opened his eyes to examine his body. His fur stuck out in sticky clumps coated with sitrus pulp. Beside him, on a little stone table, was a plate of berries that could have been fresher.

He became aware of the shouts and yells from outside, and flames flashed past the window, lighting up his room with a vibrant orange. So they were still training? The image of the gible's gaping maw flashed through his mind, and he screwed his eyes shut and whimpered.

A soft scratch came from the door as someone turned the handle, and Enigma shuffled towards the wall, ready to slip through it to safety. A loud yell from outside made him freeze and reconsider, his eyes trained on the door.

Kera poked her head around and her expression softened when she saw him.

"Oh, thank goodness." She closed the door behind her and leaned back on it. "You're okay."

Enigma screwed his eyes shut and looked away before turning his back on her, wincing with the effort.

"I had no idea they'd react like that," Kera went on. "Otherwise I woulda-"

"Just shut up."

Kera was silent for a moment, but he could hear her shuffling by the door.

"She's not happy about it," she finally said.

Enigma said nothing, staring at the yellowing wall.

"Once Niana rescued you from Tannen she made him do laps for the rest of the session. He's banned from trainin' for the next five days."

"What does that mean?" Enigma scoffed.

"It means, for the next five days he's on the exercise field with Jex. Runnin', squats, weights. Everything no one here likes." She flashed Enigma a playful grin. "He's gonna hate it."

She perched on the edge of the nest and took a sitrus from the bowl. She cleaved the peel off with her claws and punctured the flesh, letting it drip onto Enigma's sore body.

He yelped, twisting away from her and fixing her with wide eyes.

"I'm only tryin' to help," she said with a chuckle. "Yeesh!"

"Just leave me alone!" Enigma snapped, taking her by surprise. "You wanted to fight me too, right?!"

Kera let her paws flop into her lap and her feathered ear drooped. "Yeah, but… I wouldn't have hurt ya."

Enigma scoffed and turned his back on her again. "You're just like the rest of them. You hate anyone who isn't dark- or dragon-type. I'm just a punching bag for all of you."

"Don't be ridiculous!"

"Just leave me alone."

Kera set the berry back on the table and went to the door. She paused with her paw on the handle. "You're wrong, ya know. Ya might add variety here, and yeah, I wanna spar with ya but that's it. I actually like ya. And Niana? When she thought Tannen had killed ya she was worried sick."

"Really?" Enigma looked up. "Are you sure that's not because she was scared Hydreigon would kill her for letting one of her idiot kids harm his new toy?" Kera's eyes widened at that, and Enigma scoffed. "I mean, it's not as if I can be replaced, is it? He killed the rest of us."

"Enigma-"

Enigma snorted. "Perhaps it would be better if that idiot gible had killed me."

Kera was silent for a heartbeat, and she bared her canines in a snarl. "Ya moron." To his surprise, the sneasel's crimson eyes filled with tears. She shook her head and her voice came out choked. "Ya know, Enigma… ya really need to be careful whatcha say around here or ya will be killed."

She closed the door softly behind her, but the click of the latch seemed a lot louder than it was. Enigma rolled over in the hay to face the wall again and closed his eyes, trying to block the tears that insisted on flowing. He hated it. He wanted to go home.

But home didn't exist anymore.

He screwed his eyes tight and huddled into a small ball. Perhaps, if sleep came, he'd stay asleep forever?

It didn't. His mind raced and roiled with the recent events, and the image of his parents falling to Hydreigon, and that gible's gaping maw, kept flashing through his mind. It made his heart race and he cowered into his own fur. Why was this happening to him? He was no assassin. He was just a child, plucked from the comfort of his own nest to be dropped in a world that didn't even want him. How many other pokemon had been forced into the same situation? Was Hydreigon that desperate that he was recruiting any hatchling?

He hadn't seen many adult pokemon in the barracks at all. They were all similar age to him. To Kera.

'Ya really need to be careful whatcha say around here or ya will be killed.'

Enigma's eyes snapped open and he stared at the wall before him. Had Kera experienced something similar? Did she also not want to be here? Had she lost her family, just like he had?

No. Sleep didn't come. Before long, the morning sun was pooling through the window, bringing with it the roll-call of the murkrow flock as they rotated their watch.

The shuppet turned his head towards the door. There was no sound beyond it. The trainees had long since retired to their nests, and the last door had clicked shut when the sun began to rise. Kera had given him a brief tour only earlier that day, and she'd made sure he knew where her room was. She'd done so with much excitement since it was directly opposite his.

Enigma drifted from his nest and slipped through his closed door, stopping as he reached Kera's. His throat tightened and he glanced up and down the dingy hallway. Very little sunlight reached it, since it was bare of any windows. With no one in sight, he was free to go wherever he wanted. But the thought of sneaking into the sneasel's room made his blood turn to ice.

He stared at the door for a good, long moment. There was every chance she was merely teasing him, and it wasn't her on the other side. If it was anyone else… like that gible…

Enigma swallowed air and pulled back slightly. Perhaps he was better off waiting until later?

No. No, he wasn't going to let fear defeat him. She'd been trying to help him earlier, right?

Enigma gave a small sigh and drifted towards the door, dropping his density until he was no longer visible to the naked eye. He poked his head through the door into a room that was the mirror of his. It was a lot darker, since the window had been covered by a heavy piece of fabric nailed to the wall to block out most of the light. The small sneasel lay curled up in a ball on her nest of hay, her nose buried beneath her tail feathers. As a flood of relief washed over him, Enigma re-manifested before he even thought about it. He froze, watching the sneasel's flanks rise and fall, deep in sleep.

He drifted over to her, and her ear twitched at the tinkle of his bell. Her eye snapped open and she jerked her head up with a gasp. Enigma recoiled, almost slipping straight back through the door.

"Oh, it's just you." Kera pushed herself up and brushed her ears back. "Whatcha doin' in here, little ghost dude?"

Enigma glanced back at the door then bobbed over to her. "I wanted to apologise."

"It couldn't have waited until night?"

"I couldn't sleep." He landed on the nest beside her and gazed out of the window, or what he could see of it.

Kera was silent, but out of the corner of his eye he could see the smile forming on her muzzle.

"Well, it's sweet ya wanted to apologise," she said. "I get why ya were upset. But it's okay."

"You were trying to help me," he said sulkily. "And I was mean to you."

She chuckled, drawing his eye to her. "Listen. Ya've been through a lot recently, huh? So it's understandable. I've not taken it personally, don't worry."

He smiled at that and glanced away.

"Now go on." She curled up again. "Get some sleep. We all need it."

"I can't."

Her expression turned to one of exasperation and she opened her mouth in a wide yawn, revealing her sharp canines.

"Well I can," she said.

"I have insomnia," he explained. "I've never been able to sleep well."

"Probably why ya so small, huh?"

He narrowed his eyes at her. "Hey."

"So ya never, yanno, sleep at all?"

"I do, just not often." He shuffled in the hay and turned to face the door. "My Mum would always read to me. It sometimes helped."

"Well, there's lotsa books on trainin' in the break room." Kera rolled onto her back and stretched. "So go knock yerself out."

When Enigma didn't move, Kera opened her eyes again to find him staring at her. A frown creased her dainty face and she pushed herself up onto her elbow.

"What?" she asked. "Can't remember where the break room is?"

"I can't read."

The sneasel's ears drooped and she let out an exasperated sigh. "Really?"

"Not well," he said. "I'd only just started learning."

"Then good job we've got readin' lessons after the rally tomorrow, eh?"

"Rally?" Enigma asked.

"Lord Hydreigon gives a speech once every few days," Kera explained.

Enigma spat air. "Sounds so exciting."

"Exactly, so get yer rest. Find a book with pictures or somethin'."

"Come on, I want a story. Not some boring training manual."

"We don't have stories in the barracks," said Kera. "The library, sure, if they've not been destroyed already. But not in here."

"Where's the library? I'll go myself."

"Ya can't. It's off limits. Ya'll be spotted by Yurlik's murkrow and picked off, if the mightyena pack that've moved into the place don't eat ya first."

Enigma sighed at that and turned away. "Fine. I'll just go back to my room. I'm used to not sleeping anyway."

Kera pushed herself up to watch him leave, and her ears drooped again. "Okay, how 'bout this? I find one of them trainin' books and read to ya for a little bit?"

Enigma looked back over his shoulder. "It'd be more fun than staring at the wall."

"Well, we'll make it fun." She pushed herself out of her nest and yawned. "Ya go back to ya room, okay, and I'll find one."

"With pictures!" Enigma said as he slipped through the door.

"Yeah, yeah." Kera yawned again and followed after him.

It didn't take long for her to find something. If Enigma were to guess, she'd grabbed the first one she saw. The pages were dog-eared, and the cover looked like it had been gnawed by a rodent pokemon, but it was still readable. If one could read.

Kera settled with the shuppet in his nest and propped the book up against his cloak which she'd bunched into a sturdy mound. It was as boring as he'd expected it to be, pictures or not, but Kera managed to somehow make it enjoyable. Despite still feeling sore, the loneliness ebbed away and Enigma found his mood lifting. Sleep didn't come for the little ghost, but after a while Kera nodded off beside him, her words fading away into a yawn. Enigma watched her, considering waking her back up and sending her back to her own room. But seeing her so peaceful, he decided against it.

Enigma set the book at the foot of the bed and covered the sneasel with his cloak. Then, resigning himself to the fact he wasn't going to get any sleep that day, he gazed out of the window, waiting for night to fall.

...

Review Replies:

Williamlap - Sorry I've not seen your reviews! I don't know why FFNet has stopped sending me alert emails. Thank you so much for reading! Your comment on Harlequin's speed amused me XD I'm a sucker for redemption arcs, so all I can say is wait and see! I hope you enjoy Enigma's back-story in the meantime!

Rycorop - Thank you so much for your continued reading! I'm glad you enjoyed Faith and Enigma's little dance =D It's been a favorite scene of mine for a long time, and I really enjoyed re-writing it (then editing it!) I have some art I mean to upload to Tumblr of this scene. I drew it so long ago and I've been holding back sharing it because spoilers XD After reading that some fans ship this, I've added more scenes in between them lol. So you can expect there'll be more.

Josh the Writer - Thanks for your cross-post review! I'm glad you enjoyed the opening chapter, I really appreciate it. Also, feel free to use the name Harbinger for an absol character! =D Another name I often use for absol is Blight, although that sounds more feminine to me. I hope to see you again, but if PMD isn't your thing I understand!

Thanks for reading, everyone! I'll check reviews manually from now on! Please R&R! =D