Leo was too busy staving off a rotten mood to sleep. Even though they'd chosen a grotto a good hour's walk away from that dangerous cavern, Leo still felt on edge. It had to be at least midnight, and the foggy night made him feel vulnerable and unprotected. Leo was pretty sure he was the only one still awake at this late hour, and he simply couldn't relax. Even the usually energetic Flare was curled up at his side, soundly asleep by the fire. He sighed and sat up again from his sleeping bag, trying to get his mind off of what happened today. He was starting to dread the morning. It felt like only more bad news was ahead. That was all that seemed to come his way lately, and he was rather tired of all the attacks and traps.
"You're up too, huh?"
Leo was startled for a moment by the sudden comment from Amber. He could see her looking at him with a soft grin from her place next to his. Leo couldn't help smiling back. Something about her carefree smile made him feel calmer and somewhat happier, even for a moment.
"Can't sleep a wink. I've got a lot on my mind..."
"Me too." Amber sat up herself, stretching out as she rose from her sleeping bag. "I'm scared those robots are gonna come back..."
"I doubt they will." Leo replied, even though he wasn't sure he believed it himself. The robots were just one more problem in an ever-growing list of troubles that plagued him. He sighed and propped his head up in his hands, resting his elbows on his knees. Who was he kidding? He was in a funk, and thinking about the robots again just soured his mood. Leo scowled into the fire and shook his head in frustration.
"Leo, I have something I've been meaning to say. I just hope you'll listen."
Leo looked up at Amber. "Well? Say it if you're gonna."
She looked down at her lap, lowering her head. "I've been thinking...maybe I haven't been considerate of your feelings lately." He was taken aback. What made Amber say something like that all of a sudden? Leo opened his mouth to protest when Amber continued, "Earlier, when I rushed that round robot thing, you told me I scared you." Amber's braid was out, and her hair was messily slung over her shoulder, giving her a surprisingly more mature look. She started toying with a stray strand of hair and looked back at him. Leo was surprised to see a serious expression on her face. "I feel like such an idiot. If I were only thinking straight..."
"You weren't the only one who wasn't rational. I acted out. I didn't mean to make you so upset." Leo scratched his head, recalling how he snapped at her. That was definitely not a moment he was proud of, and reflecting on it made him feel rather embarrassed at himself.
Amber sighed. "I need to stop being so irresponsible. Gloria got hurt because of me and-"
"That's enough." Leo cut her off abruptly, earning a surprised stare, "There's no way any of us could've known what was going to happen. It's not your fault, so stop being whiny already!"
Amber paused for several long moments, staring down again. Leo felt more than a little stupid. Did he accidentally offend her? "Er, sorry. That came out harsh, huh?"
To his relief, Amber smiled at him again. "That's alright. It's true. I need to stop being such a victim." Amber's good cheer seemed to return, and she nodded once. "Thanks, Leo. I needed that."
"Sure. Glad I could help." Leo was glad to see her bounce back. Even though she had the tendency to be kind of childish, he couldn't help but admire her ability to be so cheerful.
Leo was caught off-guard when she leaned over and threw an arm around him. He blinked again and looked back her way. She met his uncertain gaze with her usual cordial gleam,. "I'm so glad you're here, Leo."
"M-me too." Leo found himself at a loss for words. At least Amber didn't seem to mind his awkwardness. Leo felt Amber relax and lean down on his shoulder. She looked up at him, meeting his eyes.
"Thanks for everything, Leo. I feel a lot better now."
"...Sure." Leo felt his face get red. He felt more awkward than ever now, especially since he never got to hear Amber's answer when he asked if she wanted to be his girlfriend. He sat there for a while, debating whether to bring up the subject again. After several minutes of mental dispute, he made up his mind to try again. He made ask her once again, only to find that Amber had fallen asleep on his shoulder. Leo found himself in an awkward position, literally and figuratively. He sighed, feeling a bit at a loss.
He really couldn't catch a break today either.
"You've got to be kidding me." Leo stared incredulously ahead at the obstacle before him. He wished he never had to see another cave again. After the incident with the robots last night, the last thing he wanted to do was go inside yet another one. There was no other way out of the canyon, though they could go back and try to find another way. That option was looking better and better to him This cavern seemed much larger than the one by the hot springs and Leo couldn't see any sign of the end.
"I guess I could fly us out," Gloria commented. "Just give me a second..."
"Wait." Sarah put a hand out to stop Gloria, "We have no idea about Silicon's presence here. If we fly, it might get their attention."
"I vote cave. Let's go in the cave." Shawn walked off ahead, already making his way into the cavern, "I bet whatever Victini wanted to show us is in here."
"Then let's get some light in here. " Leo pulled his flashlight out and turned it on, aiming its light down the mouth of the cave. The light revealed no obvious sign of trouble, just Shawn getting further ahead. Leo sighed and looked down at Flare. She was lagging behind, looking this way and that.
"Flare, stay close. I don't like this place one bit."Leo said, reluctantly following Shawn through the cave. "Let's catch up with him." As Leo, Sarah, Shawn, Gloria, and Amber all made their way deeper through the cavern, Leo noticed the temperature beginning to drop. Leo was starting to see frost on the rocks, and the air coming from inside seemed much colder.
"Is it just me or is this place getting icy?" Shawn said over his shoulder, a cloud of vapor forming as he spoke.
"It's definitely colder here." Sarah commented back. "We must be getting deeper inside."
"I wish I'd dressed warmer..." Amber pulled her jacket closer around her.
"Well, you aren't the one stuck wearing a dress!" Gloria grumbled back.
Leo shook his head and walked on. As he continued down the cavern, he noticed the floor was starting to ice over where he walked, and fast. Leo only had the time to realize that this wasn't natural when a chill gust of wind blew from further ahead. Mixed in with the whistle of the wind through the cave, he heard a strange cry. It almost sounded like...groaning?
"Is someone here?" Shawn asked, "I can't see very well..."
Leo pulled his jacket closer and moved in front of Shawn. As he swept the flashlight around, he noticed that the cave ahead widened into a chamber. Inside the chamber, ice coated the walls, the floor, and the ceiling. Scattered around were several small pillars of cloudy ice. In the center of the chamber, the ice was much thicker, completely encasing a larger object in the middle. Leo's light wasn't quite strong enough to see what it was, simply that whatever it was was clearly frozen rock-solid. Was this the source of the cold?
"Whoa. This is kinda weird." Shawn commented, "Is this what Victini was showing us?"
"I doubt it." Gloria answered. "I'm not really interested in staying here. It's too cold here! Let's move on."
"Amber! What in the world are you doing?!" Sarah shouted. Leo spun around, looking over at Amber. She had carelessly wandered over to the icy object in the middle of the cave.
"Guys? I think something's in here..." Amber reached out and put a hand on the pillar. "I think it's stuck inside!"
"Don't touch that!" Sarah rushed over to Amber, yanking her back before Leo even had the chance to react.
"Amber, are you nuts?!" Gloria scolded, "You have no idea what's-"
"Look at that thing!" Amber pointed at the icy thing again, "I swear, there's something frozen inside there!"
"I wonder..." Leo came a few steps closer to the ice. He shone his flashlight at the thing, wondering what Amber could be talking about. What he saw made his eyes go wide, and he nearly dropped his flashlight. Inside the ice pillar, there was a small, orange Pokémon frozen stiff. The Pokémon appeared to be a Trapinch, its jaws spread wide as if it were lunging for a bite. Leo took several steps back, shaking his head in disbelief. It was then that he noticed what the smaller icy lumps were. They were smaller Pokémon, all in various states of frost. Leo found himself shivering in fear at the grim sight. What kind of place was this?!
"What the hell!?" Leo blurted, "These are frozen Pokémon!"
Sarah's face grew serious. "Guys? I recognize this stuff..."
"Huh?" Amber turned her way, "What do you mean you recognize it?"
"This looks like the kind of thing a Froslass does. Chill, my Froslass does this sometimes..."
Leo was taken aback. Just one Pokémon did all this? He found this hard to believe."A Froslass did this? It looks kinda extreme. Don't you think there's a lot of Pokémon here for just one Froslass...?"
"Well, I know Chill likes to put her frozen prey on display like statues. This looks like something she'd do. I don't quite know if a Froslass did all the work though. There's a lot of frozen Pokémon here..."
"Here's what bugs me." Gloria scratched her head. "If this is a Froslass' work, then either it's an escaped Pokémon or someone purposely put it here. Froslass aren't native to Unova."
"Let's be careful, everyone." Shawn nervously backed away from the frozen Trapinch. "We better go before the Pokémon that did this shows up."
Leo shook his head again. Something about this place seriously put him on edge. He wasn't sure if it was because of all the dead Pokémon frozen around him, or knowing that their killer was probably still here. Either way, Leo did not want to meet the culprit. As he backed up from the grisly sight, he couldn't shake the feeling that something else was here.
Something very close.
As he tried to ignore his growing anxiety, another moaning cry rumbled through the caves. Leo shuddered unconsciously. Was he the only one who heard that strange noise?
No.
Flare's reaction seemed to confirm his unease. Her fur was on end and she bared her teeth in a snarl. Gloria, Amber, and Sarah seemed upset too; they kept looking around with frightened looks.
"Please tell me I'm imagining that creepy groaning..." Gloria shuddered and grabbed her shoulders.
"Then your imagination's contagious!" Sarah changed form into a Glaceon. She started weaving here and there, her nose to the ground. "I don't like it! Where's it coming from...?!"
Just then, a loud crackle echoed through the cave. Before Gloria could evade it, the floor started to crumble away under her feet! Leo realized he was the only one who could act in time. He reacted instinctively, lunging out to grab her away. He missed, landing hard on the ice nearby and tumbling down the crevasse along with Gloria. He only had the time to briefly panic before landing on the ground below.
Leo laid there, momentarily winded from the fall. "Ugh...ouch."
"Ow, ow, ow..." He heard Shawn groan. "I think I busted my butt..."
"I'm okay..." Leo heard Gloria sigh. "I landed somewhere soft."
Lucky her. Leo grunted, opened his eyes, and tried to sit up. His annoyance was quickly replaced with bewilderment. He couldn't get up, and he couldn't see. Something was on his face and smothering him! Leo reached up and tried to push the thing off. His confusion deepened when his hands met something warm and...cloth-covered? He grabbed hold and pushed with both hands.
"Eeeyah! You pervert!" Gloria screamed. Leo realized with a start just what happened. Somehow, Gloria wound up landing on his face. He was grabbing her butt! The offended girl shot to her feet, leaving a red-faced Leo laying on the ground. "How dare you!"
"Yeek! Sorry!" Leo only barely rolled away from a slap, "I didn't realize that was you!" Shawn burst out laughing like a nut. Leo shot the giggling man a look. "What the hell's so funny?!"
"You are! What a pair!" Shawn was slapping a leg, bent over in mirth.
Gloria glared back at Shawn. "Ugh, you're no better than him!"
"I'm sorry already! I didn't know it was you!"
"Are you guys okay?!" Leo looked up at Sarah's voice. She and Amber were peering over the edge of the hole at them.
"I will be if Gloria doesn't kill me first," Leo groaned, "She landed right on my head..."
"Hang on guys! I'll jump down in a minute." To Leo's bewilderment, Amber crouched down and made to jump!
Sarah grabbed her by the jacket with her teeth and yanked her back. "Get away from there! What's wrong with you today!?" Sarah sighed. "Look, I know you're worried, but Shawn, Leo, and Gloria are okay." Sarah turned back to the hole, "Right?"
Shawn sighed and groaned. "I think I twisted my leg..."
"Can you walk?" Leo hoped Shawn wasn't too hurt.
Shawn got to his feet, grimacing a bit as he stood. "Yeah. I think it's just a sprain."
A loud growl made Leo look down. Flare was glaring at something ahead and her fur was on end. Leo picked up his flashlight and knelt down to her level. Flare looked back up at Leo. A snarl was pasted on her lips, and her eyes were narrowed. She stared back over, fixing her gaze on something further back. Leo stood back up, raising his flashlight.
What he saw made the frozen Pokémon from earlier seem mundane.
There was a large, dragon-like figure standing at the back of the room. It stood at least as tall as he was, upright like a human. Its frame was heavily-muscled, and it bore a series of dark blue spikes down its dark-blue, scaled back. A set of dark, leathery wings were folded around its body like a cloak, obscuring most of its body. Its tail, long and thick like a tree log, was wrapped about its two-toed talons. The creature's eyes, deep violet and intense, shone in the light like dark amethysts. The dragon was surrounded by a black, fog-like cloud that seemed to be boiling off its body like steam. This definitely was not a Pokémon he'd ever seen before! His horror deepened when the thing unfurled its wings, revealing a body that seemed...incomplete?! Though that fog made its features unclear, what Leo could see made him recoil and gasp in terror. Its torso and lower tail consisted of exposed, gray bones, and it seemed to be oozing some kind of vile fluid from its...wounds? It looked less like the dragon was injured and more like the dragon was simply desiccated and decayed. The fog-like stuff seemed to be generated from its core, and it was extremely dark where a normal creature's chest should be. The strange dragon loosed a strange moan; it was the same eerie cry he heard earlier. This had to be what was making that awful noise!
But what the hell did he just find?
"Kyaah! What's that?!" Shawn shouted.
"How should I know?!" Leo spat back over a shoulder, "This can't be a zombie, right?!"
"Zombies aren't real, Leo. This has to be some kind of Pokémon!" Even the usually keen Gloria seemed at a loss: she didn't sound at all sure of her own declaration.
Leo could only stare at the zombie-like creature in revulsion. It lowered itself onto all fours and groaned yet again, this time, spewing a blue-violet ice-cloud as it roared. Before Leo could react, it whirled its tail around, nearly tripping him. Its tail attack would have easily broken his legs if he hadn't jumped back at the last moment. Gloria's and Shawn's screams told him that they were nearly hit as well.
"Damn! It's not gonna let us go, is it?!" Leo shook his head. This thing, whatever it was, clearly wanted to fight. He wasn't sure he could win.
Just how could he beat something so alien?