Chapter Ten – Ultimatum

Rosa tore her gaze away from the bones behind the iron-barred wall and looked at Cheren. Not many moments passed during life when a person could feel his or her heart breaking, but the pain in Rosa's chest couldn't be anything but that. Everything about Cheren now—his completely exhausted eyes poured tears, his dry lips shook with a whimper, and his arms stayed wrapped around himself—made it obvious that he had been shattered.

He knew. He must have known—it was the only way to explain how he had deteriorated so quickly here. Cheren knew that Hilda was here, dead, and still brought Rosa, anyway.

Meanwhile, N could be…

Rosa forced herself to look back at Hilda's remains, letting out all of the breath that she had been holding in for the past couple of minutes. There was nothing they could do for her anymore. They couldn't just take her out of here and restore her back to the person she was—she was gone forever, nothing more than a skeleton.

"We need to go," Rosa croaked, pushing herself back to her feet and dropping Hilda's hat. It fell to the floor, and she toed it back into the cell. "And we need to help N—we need to tell him!"

Cheren lit up, burning like a raging fire, and grabbed Rosa's hand as she bent down to help him up. "No!" he shouted, the sound echoing in this dark room and practically bouncing off the grayed bones. "You can't—we can't—tell him. Promise me, Rosa. Promise me that you won't tell N. Please, I'm begging you."

At the end of his plead, he collapsed again under the weight of his words. His breath broke in harsh pumps of air, and Rosa couldn't bring herself to make the promise that he so desperately desired. Instead, she lifted him with an arm under his and carried him out of the room and back onto Arcanine.

"Rosa. Please."

"Come on," Rosa muttered to her Pokémon, tears slipping down her cheeks. She hopped on Arcanine's back behind Cheren again, and his wince away from her shattered her heart into smaller pieces. When Arcanine broke into a run, she wasn't even holding on, and it was as it bounded down the stairs that she flew off and hit the floor.

She groaned, rubbing some pebbles out of her skin. There was some blood—nothing bad—but her body ached now. So, she stood back up and leaned against her Arcanine and looked at Cheren, who would not do the same and glance back. The pain got worse and worse, but Rosa would press on until the end.

"I know what you're trying to do, Cheren, and I know why you brought me here before going for N," she began, and he turned his head to the other side. His eyelids fluttered as he struggled to keep them open, but at least he tried to look at her now. "It's understandable that you didn't want to carry this knowledge on your own. But I can't promise not to tell N. He needs to know—he loves her, Cheren."

"It'll break him."

Cheren's words brought even more tears to Rosa's eyes, and they slid steadily down her cheeks now, dripping off her chin and hitting Arcanine's fur. He was right, after all. Telling N that Hilda—the girl who opened his eyes to the reality of their world, the girl he didn't even know he loved, the girl who would never be able to tell him she loved him back—was dead… that would absolutely destroy him.

"I know, Cheren. I know you just want to protect him, but you can't hide something like this from him. He'll keep searching until he finds her. I don't want him to have to face that alone like you did. I can see what it did to you." Rosa reached a hand out, the less bloodied of the two after her fall, and touched Cheren's arm. "I'm so sorry, Cheren. I'm so sorry."

Everything that Cheren had left in him broke, and Rosa wrapped her arms around him as he sobbed into her shoulder. Arcanine howled in sympathy, masking the sound of Cheren's gasping cries, and the Ampharos behind them chirped. But, no matter how loud her Pokémon got, they wouldn't be able to hide the way Cheren bounced as he cried—wouldn't hide the warmth of his breath as he hyperventilated against her.

"I'm sorry," Rosa whispered again, but somehow she knew that nothing she said would ever make it all right.

It wasn't that N was following Hilda exactly, but after their conversation at the Chargestone Cave, he couldn't help but be curious about her—more so than he already was.

She had gone into the Mistralton City gym to challenge the Gym Leader, so it was only natural that she come back out with the badge in only a few minutes. N knew that Hilda was a strong trainer, and he respected her as someone who cared for her Pokémon. But the fact that she wanted to battle people—to pit Pokémon against Pokémon—all for a silly badge annoyed him.

Sure enough, when Hilda walked out of the gym, she was looking down at her badge case, and N could see a shiny new badge in the sixth slot. A Zebstrika followed behind her.

"They may say it is for understand one another better, but what trainers really use battles for is to compete…" N commented, and Hilda jumped, snapping the badge case shut and holding it against her chest. "And they hurt each others' Pokémon! Am I the only one who finds this terribly painful?" When Hilda didn't respond, clearly still getting over the shock of him sneaking up on her—not that N would ever word it like that—he continued. "Whatever… I'm going to talk to your Pokémon. I've been living with Pokémon since I was born, so it's easier for me to talk with them than with people."

"But—"

"Because Pokémon never tell lies," N interrupted, and Hilda pursed her lips.

"I wouldn't lie to you," she grumbled.

The funny thing was, N didn't doubt that. Hilda's Pokémon, on more than one occasion, had vouched for her. But hearing a Pokémon's words had always been more reliable to him than listening to a human, and he wasn't about to change his mind just because one girl told him the truth all the time.

So, N stepped towards the Zebstrika and held out his hand, and when the Pokémon leaned towards him, he patted its snout. "Hey, Zebstrika. Would you tell me what kind of trainer Hilda is?"

The Zebstrika's explanation was quick, if not a little accusatory towards N—Hilda was given a gift, and for N to doubt her annoyed the poor beast.

"Okay, okay, got it." N smiled, patted its snout one last time before backing down. "So, Hilda was born in Nuvema Town, lives with her mom, and was given the Pokédex to start off a journey to see the world." Hilda's eyes were wide when he looked towards her. There was nothing there that made her much different than anyone else. "Still, this Zebstrika trusts you for some reason. That's good! If every person and Pokémon cared about one another like you two do, I could watch over the future of people and Pokémon without having to liberate Pokémon from people who just use them."

"N, listen to me," Hilda started carefully, putting a hand on his shoulder. His first reaction was to move away, but he let her touch him. Was that not a sign of trust? "I know there are bad people in the world—people who mistreat Pokémon—but they're the exception, not the rule! If you just… come with me… I can show you!"

The offer made N's cheeks burn, and he finally pulled away from the girl. Her eyebrows lowered slightly, and she frowned—N didn't want to mistake whatever that expression showed with sadness, but… it resembled it almost perfectly… or maybe it was disappointment?

"Okay." Hilda's hand tightened around her badge case, and when she blinked, any hint of sadness or disappointment disappeared. "Then just… tell me what you plan on doing. Make this a fair fight for me."

He shouldn't. Telling her wouldn't make this a fair fight—it would make her unbeatable.

But he had to tell her.

"Ghetsis is using Team Plasma to search for some special stones—the Light Stone and the Dark Stone… these stones hold the essence of two legendary Pokémon," he explained. "It is said that when they lost their physical form, they fell into a slumber and were transformed. Now, they wait for the hero's arrival…" If he was truly the foretold hero, telling her this wouldn't make a difference. "I shall resurrect a legendary dragon-type Pokémon from one of these stones and become its friend. That will show the world that I am the new hero. Everyone will follow what I say!"

"You could cause a war, N!" Hilda countered.

He shook his head—that wasn't what he wanted at all. "My vision is to change the world without using force. Trying to change the world by force will just make others resist. If people resist, the ones that will be hurt are the innocent Pokémon used by foolish trainers. You understand. Pokémon are not just tools for people to use!"

The sad look on Hilda's face was back, and this time when she moved towards him, she wrapped her arms around him. He could feel her whole body as she pressed him against her—from her bony collarbones to her firm breasts to her hips—but it didn't make him uncomfortable.

Instead, all he felt was guilt.

"As a result…" he told her as she held him, "Pokémon and trainers who care about one another, like you and your Pokémon, will be separated." She let go of him, but their proximity didn't really decrease. "And that does break my heart a little."

Just as she reached a hand up to his cheek, N pulled away, leaving her before he felt any worse about the things he was going to do to such a lovely girl.

The sun finally disappeared behind the towering skyscrapers that surrounded the small garden, leaving the space in relative darkness. The Shadow Triad, in their entirely black clothing, could barely be seen beneath the lone tree, save for their long white hair and pale arms. In the darkness, their domain, it was all the more important to watch them closely.

Especially once they moved.

"Game on," a Shadow breathed, and his eyes, barely visible beneath his hair, flicked towards the stairs at the edge of the garden. He released a Bisharp, and it sprinted out of the garden and into the darkness of the sewers. A second Bisharp followed, and then a third, and all N could do was watch as they faded away.

"What are you doing?" N demanded.

One of the other Shadows stepped forward, picking the Eevee up from N's lap by its scruff. The little Pokémon struggled, trying to reach to bite the Shadow but to no avail. The Buneary by N hopped back into the tall grass, where it might be able to hide, but even it had to realize that wouldn't be for long. The Pidove took to the sky and landed on top of the tree where it cawed.

The Shadow held the Eevee out in front of him as though it stunk, and N jumped to his feet. "What are you doing?" N asked again, holding his hands out for the Pokémon.

"Lord N, you have a choice." The Shadow handed the Eevee off towards one of the other Shadows, who cradled the tiny creature despite its clawing and biting to be set free. "You can turn yourself over to Lord Ghetsis willingly, or you can fight. The choice is yours. But be aware of the outcome either way, as it's the same."

"So, Ghetsis is the cause of all of this…" N didn't want to admit it. It wasn't that he didn't want to be wrong, but he was so sure that his father, or whatever he was, had nothing to do with Hilda's disappearance. "Did he take Hilda?"

"Everything we do, we do for Lord Ghetsis," the Shadow holding the Eevee explained. "Now, you made us a deal, so give us your answer."

Ghetsis… N didn't doubt that the man he couldn't quite call his father hated him for everything that happened. Hate was not a word that N used lightly, and his feelings towards Ghetsis were not so negative. The man raised him, poorly or otherwise. But, at the same time, the power-obsessed man also abused N in more ways than one—N was not so naïve that he didn't recognize that, either.

But he believed that Ghetsis could be redeemed and hoped that was the road his father was currently traveling down—his heart had been shattered upon defeat, after all.

Yet if Ghetsis hated N, if he truly hated his son, then the result would be death. That was what he had planned for Rosa, after all, until N intervened. It was not beyond his capabilities, nor beyond his morals.

The Shadow said that either way the result would be the same—which meant that the fight the Shadow Triad desired would end in death, too. The Shadow Triad didn't expect a battle; they expected a fight for his life, and it was obvious that they would deliver N to Ghetsis when the battle ended.

Ghetsis wanted his son dead?

No… not if his heart had truly broken upon defeat… it wasn't possible.

The only thing N knew was that this whole thing had been a trick, but he already knew not to trust the Shadow Triad. Even as a member of Team Plasma, he had been better off putting his trust in the grunts than selling his soul off to three little devils. They didn't plan on telling him where Hilda was any more than they planned on letting N out of here alive.

N heard what the loyal members of Team Plasma called him after the team fell apart into two: a traitor. Was this retribution?

"Ding, ding, time's up."

The Shadow nearest to the one with the Eevee sent out another Bisharp, and the other let the Eevee fall from his arms. The Eevee didn't have much time to move before the Bisharp pinned it against the ground, and N screamed for it to stop, knowing now what the Shadow Triad planned. But it was too late. The Bisharp removed its bladed arm from the Eevee, crimson liquid sliding off the tip.

Something animalistic came over N, and he roared as he ran towards the Shadow Triad, hoping to get his hands around the throats of at least one of them. As if predicting the move, though, the three circled N, and like the Bisharp had pinned the Eevee to the ground, they pushed N against the stone wall of one of the skyscrapers.

"That fate could have been avoided had you made up your mind. It's your fault. You spend too much time considering the reasons and not enough time considering the consequences," one of the Shadows whispered as N struggled to free his arms from the trio's grasp. "Now, take your pick, or next time we'll decide for you."

It was not in N's nature to fight. If they hadn't done that… if they…

He couldn't even think about it. But if the Shadow Triad just waited, N would have gone to Ghetsis willingly—which was why N suspected that they never wanted him to pick that choice in the first place. When they said he had a choice, they didn't mean that the choice was really up to him at all. It was going to be made for him regardless.

"F-fight," N breathed, and with his throat compressed under a Shadow's arm, the words barely came out. "Now… g-give Hilda back."

Author's Note: Anyone else's pictures (like, profile pictures and stuff) not loading on this site? I'm just wondering if it's just me… or maybe Chrome.

Eevee is one of my favorite Pokémon, so I just broke my own heart. I'm so sorry.

I'm wondering if I should put the Mature filter on? Opinions?