Once more did the Original One look upon His children's works, and once more did He find them wanting. So did He call into being the most numerous of His children.

Thus began Xerneas and Yveltal, Bringers of Life. Thus began Uxie and Mespirit and Azelf, who gave the gifts of knowledge, of emotion, of willpower. Thus began Zygarde, the vigilant protector. Thus began Kyurem, ever wise. Thus began Lugia and Ho-Oh, the twins Latias and Latios, Jirachi and Victini the Mad. Thus began Regigigas, and thus began the many other Legends who shaped the world.

By the time we reached Shimmerlake Village, the sun had fallen below the treeline and the first stars were visible in the sky above us. I was surprised to find Virgil already there, waiting for us.

"Hey, Virgil," Artemis greeted as we walked out onto the dock. "What are you doing here? I thought you'd be in your cave by now."

Virgil chuckled, a low, rumbling sound that shook the aged wooden platform we stood on. "It's been a long while since I had the pleasure of escorting you to our island at this hour, Artemis. I was eager to hear of your mission's outcome, and so chose to await your return." The gyarados flashed a fanged smile before adding "Though, I must admit, I did not expect to wait so long."

"Sorry about that. Things… didn't go so well," Artemis said as we stepped onto the gyarados' back. "We didn't make it through Murky Woods."

"It is not often that the prey eludes our famed huntress, Artemis," Virgil replied, his smile vanishing in an instant. "What befell you?"

I cut in before Artemis could speak. "She's probably going to say something about it being her fault. Don't believe it. We got attacked by some wind-thing, and Artemis used an escape orb to bail us out. She's the only reason either of us made it out of there in one piece."

"You encountered the Dweller?" Virgil asked, concern evident in his voice.

Yeah," Artemis began, "But I should've sensed-"

Virgil interrupted her protest. "No. The Dweller in the Unknown is a terrible monstrosity of which we know far too little, and that you should not sense its approach is little surprise. Your surviving the encounter is success enough - be content with it."

Artemis sighed. "Alright. I'll... I'll try. Still not happy to have our first mission as a team end like this, though."

"I would not expect you to be," Virgil answered as he swam towards the island, "but the fault lies with the Dweller, not your leadership."

I decided it was a good time to voice my concerns. "So… I should probably tell you that this Dweller thing spoke to me before Artemis teleported us out. I'm guessing that's not a good sign."

Virgil stopped dead in the water and turned to face me, his expression unreadable. "The Dweller… spoke with you?" he asked.

"Yeah," I replied. "Knew my name, too."

Virgil sat immobile for several seconds before turning and resuming his swim across the lake. After a few minutes of absolute silence, it became obvious the gyarados wasn't going to speak anytime soon.

"Darkrai…" Artemis said, clearly just as unsettled by Virgil's silence as I was, "I didn't hear anything back there. You sure you didn't just imagine it?"

I folded my arms, annoyed. "I know what I heard. That thing spoke to me."

"I am... inclined to believe him," Virgil said, eyes fixed on the island ahead. "That the Dweller should choose to speak with Darkrai would be in keeping with what little I know of it."

I was getting tired of the gyarados' secretive behavior. "Virgil, what aren't you telling me?" I confronted him. "Last night, you knew my name, even though neither of us mentioned it. Now you're saying you expected this thing to try and kill us?"

"No, I did not expect the Dweller to attack you. If I had, I would have never allowed you to set out for your mission." Virgil sighed deeply before continuing. "As for your name, that was merely a fortunate guess on my part."

"Don't lie to me," I began, "If you know-"

Virgil twisted around towards me, snapping his mouthful of alarmingly sharp teeth far too close to my face for comfort. "I do not lie!" he roared, and the lake around us seemed to roll in response to the sound.

I took several steps back as his hot breath washed over me, painfully aware that I was still standing on the crazed gyarados' back. To my surprise, Artemis did the same - Virgil's behavior was just as frightening to her, it seemed. After several tense moments, Virgil's rage suddenly vanished, and the gyarados just looked tired.

"I am… sorry," he rumbled, slowly turning to face forward once again. "I should not have reacted so strongly. I value honesty dearly, and to hear mine brought into question… it is a sensitive matter for me."

Artemis stepped forward, a look of concern on her face. "Virgil… what aren't you telling us?"

The gigantic gyarados sighed deeply before he spoke. "I have traveled far in my lifetime, heard many stories few here would know. Tales, some so old that they speak of when humans walked these lands, some recent enough that their participants are still among us. Through these many stories, I have found a… commonality. Something they all share."

Virgil fell silent for several moments. "The legends speak of an omen,' he continued after a time, "Though the details vary from tale to tale, there are mentions of a figure, cloaked in shadow with hair of white, who appears before catastrophe strikes. Where this being wanders, doom is sure to follow... or, so say the tales." He looked over at me, his expression even more unreadable than usual. "They name this enigma Darkrai. When you arrived, I was reminded of these legends… and so guessed your name."

I turned away from the gyarados' gaze, mulling over his explanation in silence. A cool breeze drifted over the lake's surface, stirring the branches of the Golden Tree high above us. Their distant rustling and the gentle splash of water were the only sounds to be heard as Virgil pulled up alongside Shimmerlake's dock. Artemis and I disembarked without a word.

"Virgil," I began, turning towards the gyarados before he could depart, "why? If you really think I'm some kind of walking disaster, why would you ever bring me here? Why trust me?"

"You ask the right questions," he replied, "but are incorrect in assuming it is you I chose to trust. No, had you come to me alone, I would never have allowed you into the village, for the reasons I have mentioned." The gyarados smiled. "However, I was willing to set aside my suspicions in light of Artemis' vouching for your good intentions."

"Okay, what?" Artemis asked, bewildered. "Virgil, I never said anything about trusting Darkrai. Don't get me wrong, I don't think he's out to hurt us or anything, but I just brought him here to get help."

"Yet again, you underestimate yourself, Artemis," Virgil chuckled. "Through their horns, Absol are gifted with an incredible sense of danger, as you are well aware. It is an innate talent, one so natural to you that you likely do not realize how often you rely on it. Were Darkrai a threat to the village or the guild, I am certain you would have sensed it the moment you set eyes on him. That you did not attempt to kill him when you first met and, moreover, brought him here to seek aid, said more in favor his trustworthiness than words ever could."

"Yeah, I wouldn't be so quick to trust my judgement, Virgil," Artemis replied, eyeing me as she spoke. "I mean, my teammate here is clearly bad luck, judging by today's mission. If I can't sense the Dweller-magnet here, obviously I'm not as good at this foresight thing as you think."

"Hm… I am confident any member of the Guild could tell you as much, Artemis. Your reputation is not, shall we say, one of level-headed decisions." When Artemis responded with another of her murderous glares, Virgil laughed and turned away from the dock. "I speak only the truth! But now the hour is late, and I suspect the two of you are weary from your travels. I will detain you no longer. Farewell and good night, Team Exile," he called as he swam out into the lake, not waiting for our reply.

"One of these days, that old fish will get what's coming to him," Artemis said as Virgil vanished below the water's surface. She lazily slashed the air in front of her with a single claw. "Right in the face."

I gave her a skeptical look. "Sorry to break it to you, Artemis, but I don't think that's a fight you'd win." Glancing out at the lake, I couldn't help but be reminded of the sheer force of Virgil's brief display of anger. "In fact, I'm pretty sure the word 'slaughter' is more appropriate."

Artemis shrugged. "Only if I fought fair. Now come on. It's almost dinnertime, and I'm not missing a meal because you were too lazy to hurry up."

I was still trying to make sense of Virgil's comments as I followed Artemis up the Guild's central ramp. I'd first come to Shimmerlake looking for answers, but every day seemed to only bring more questions. Who was I before I lost my memory? What had happened to me? Had I really been some ancient omen of destruction, or were Virgil's legends referring to someone else? These questions kept racing through my mind, and I was so distracted by them that I didn't see another Guild member step out onto the ramp until I'd collided with them face first.

"Ow! Watch where you're going!" the newcomer shouted as we both stumbled back. The stranger, a disheveled-looking zangoose whose mess of fur stuck out in every odd direction, blinked in surprise as he saw me. A moment later, his angry expression vanished, replaced by a broad grin.

"Hey, you're that new recruit we heard about!" the zangoose beamed. "Derkor… Darkar… ah, what's your name again?"

"His name's Darkrai, genius," chimed in a new voice. A small, lithe seviper had joined us on the ramp, and was busy glaring in disdain at the zangoose. "Please excuse my teammate's idiocy, I'm fairly certain his egg was dropped a few too many times before he hatched," the seviper said, shaking his head in disapproval.

The zangoose whirled to face the new arrival. "Why do you always gotta go making me look bad?" he demanded.

The seviper barred a fanged smile. "Because you always make it so easy." Ignoring his teammate's angry sputtering, the seviper turned to face me. "My name's Sev. The hygiene-deficient zangoose here is Zen. We're Team Nemesis."

"Nemesis?" I asked, arms folded. "Isn't that name a little… ominous for an exploration team?"

"My thoughts exactly," Sev replied, bobbing up in a strange approximation of a shrug. "Unfortunately, I didn't find out about it until after my… teammate had registered it with the Guild."

"I think it's a great name," Zen said, shoving his way forward. "I mean, zangoose and seviper are supposed to be enemies, right? So I thought it should be what we call ourselves-"

"What are you two blockheads up to this time?" Artemis interrupted as she walked back down the ramp ahead of us. "I mean, besides trying to make us all miss dinner."

Zen practically collapsed in surprise. "Artemis? You're actually eating with the rest of the Guild tonight? I mean, you haven't done that since-"

Whatever the zangoose was about to say was cut off as Sev slammed the flat edge of his bladed tail into Zen's chest, knocking the wind out of him and sending him sprawling to the ground. "Sensitive as always, Zen. Shall we not make fools of ourselves in front of our new guildmate?"

Zen growled, then leaped to his feet, slashing at the seviper with his long claws. Sev dodged the blows and darted up the ramp, and Zen scrambled up after him. Artemis chuckled quietly as the duo vanished around the corner. "Glad to see those two haven't changed."

"You don't usually spend time with the rest of the Guild?" I asked as we resumed our climb. "Seemed like they were pretty surprised to see you."

"I've been running night missions for the past couple months," Artemis explained. "Great for catching bandits off guard... not so much for socializing."

"Sounds like I'm really messing things up for you." I remarked.

Artemis shook her head. "Nah, not really. I wasn't expecting a teammate, but I can manage." After a moment, she added "besides, it'll be nice to spend a little more time with the other teams. It's… been a while."

With that, we arrived at the Guild's seventh floor, where the infirmary and mess hall were located. Much of the room was occupied by three long wooden tables, each ringed by a variety of simple stools of different sizes. A door in the back led to another room, presumably the kitchen. The most distinct feature, however, was the number of pokémon present... or rather, the lack thereof. Only a single table was occupied, and even then had plenty of room to spare. I counted fewer than a dozen Guild members, including the Guildmaster and her assistant.

"I thought you said the entire Guild would be here," I said to Artemis as we entered the room.

"This is the entire Guild," she replied. "Well, most of it, anyway. Virgil's obviously not here, and Cleo and Chess are probably off getting the food ready. Only one who's missing is Audino." As we approached the table, a tall, scrawny dewott waved us over to the empty seats near him.

"Glad to see they finally dragged you out of your cave, Artemis," the dewott greeted us as we sat down. To me, he added "you must be the new guy. Darkrai, right?"

I nodded. "Yeah. Still getting used to things around here."

"He hasn't figured out there's no 'getting used to it' yet," Artemis interrupted. "Darkrai, meet Dewott. He's head of Team Knights."

"Newest team in the Guild," he added with a smile. "Until you came along, all of us were the most recent recruits."

"Speaking of which," Artemis said with a grin, "how's your team doing lately? I've been a bit out of the loop."

"Well…" Dewott glanced over at the door to the kitchen. "Cleo set the treasure bag on fire again last week, and Chess still has trouble with any strategy that isn't 'charge the enemy head-first.' But, we've made it through a few missions without any major injuries…" He grinned. "So I'd say we're making progress."

Before the conversation could continue, the back door burst open and a surprisingly large chespin stumbled through, arms laden with plates of food. A small chimchar bounded out after him, and gave a flourishing bow to the assembled Guild.

"Fellow guildmates, dinner is served," she announced, and was met with a wave of enthusiastic cheering. The chespin leaped into action, literally tossing plates right and left as he distributed the food amongst the Guild members. One plate slid to a stop in front of me, piled high with several thick slices of some roast berry and drenched in a colorful sauce. In less than a minute, the meal had been distributed throughout the mess hall, and the energetic duo threw themselves into a pair of seats next to us.

Artemis laughed. "Well, at least they're good chefs. Never hurts to have a fallback."

"Good?" the chimchar demanded. "Chess and I are not good chefs. We are excellent chefs. To say any less is an insult, especially from someone who insists on skipping out on our meals. Isn't that right, Chess?"

"Yeah!" the chespin huffed indignantly. "It's bad enough that Audino spends all her time locked in her room lately without you skipping out on us too!"

"Where is she, anyway?" Artemis asked, glancing around the room.

"Busy working on something in the infirmary," Dewott replied. "We sent Chess to get her for dinner, but…"

Cleo, the chimchar, burst into laughter. "She threw a totter seed at him the moment he opened the door! He was stumbling around, running into walls - it was great!" Chess took a halfhearted swipe at Cleo in reply, who, trying to duck under the blow, lost her balance and fell off her seat with a dull thud.

Dewott chuckled at the two's antics. "He was out of it for nearly an hour. My guess is that Audino didn't want to be disturbed."

Their conversation was cut short as a loud, bell-like tone rang through the room. Reuniclus, apparently the source of the sound, was floating above the gathering. "Attention, Guild members," he said, his shrill voice loud in the sudden quiet, "the Guildmaster wishes to make an announcement."

This was met with a wave of groans from the assembled pokémon, which quickly fell silent as Guildmaster Torterra rose from her place at the table's end. "My apologies, everyone," she began, smiling faintly, "I know we're all eager to enjoy our meal, so I'll try to make this brief. As many of you are already aware, a new member has joined our Guild as of this morning." The Guildmaster nodded to me as she spoke. "While I am pleased to welcome Darkrai into our midst, I regret that he should not join us under happier circumstances. For reasons beyond our understanding, he is suffering from a severe case of amnesia, and cannot remember his own history and identity. Despite her best attempts, Audino has been unable to remedy this condition… something she doesn't seem to be taking well, if her earlier behavior is any indication." This drew a small round of laughter from the pokémon, and a fierce scowl from Chess.

After a moment, the Guildmaster continued. "However, despite the grim condition of his arrival, I have no doubt Darkrai will prove to be a valuable member of this Guild. In time, I hope, he will recover his memory, but until then I ask that you all do your best to make him feel welcome, and that you refrain from pestering him about his condition." Glancing at Zen and Sev, who were seated across from us, she added "I'm talking to you, Team Nemesis." Another round of laughter broke out, which the Guildmaster spoke over. "Now then. I don't think I can stand the sight of this delicious feast tormenting me any longer, and I have no desire to provoke a riot among my own Guild. So, without further adieu, let's all-"

"Eat!" the Guild members shouted in unison, and immediately tore into their meals. The food was a beautiful medley of flavors, with the mild taste of the large, lumpy blue berries complemented by the strange but delicious yellow syrup they were drenched in. It was heavenly, and the next thing I knew, my plate was empty.

"I didn't realize how much I missed you guys' cooking," Artemis said, leaning back from the remains of her meal.

"Well, maybe we'll be seeing you more often, now that you remember what you're missing," Cleo replied , and Chess nodded enthusiastically in agreement. "So, how'd the mission go?"

"Yeah, tell us!" Zen shouted, loud enough to draw the entire room's attention. "How'd the legendary Artemis' new team do on its first job?"

"Er…" Artemis grimaced and looked down at her plate. "It didn't go so well. We had a run-in with the Dweller. Had to use an escape orb."

The room grew quiet, and for nearly a minute no one spoke. Eventually, Guildmaster Torterra broke the silence. "That is… unfortunate," she began, her brow furrowed in thought. "What forced you to delay long enough that it could find you?"

"That's the weird part," Artemis replied. "We weren't in there for that long. Hit a monster house on the last floor, but we should had plenty of time left before it showed up."

The Guildmaster smiled softly. "Then, if you are certain you made no mistake, we should treat this as nothing more than a run of bad luck. Reuniclus and I will make arrangements to ensure the bandits' capture - do not let this trouble you any longer." Turning to the rest of the Guild members, she added "But enough talk of misfortune. I'm eager to hear the rest of your adventures. Dewott, I believe your team was attempting to recover some lost item?"

Dewott grinned and launched into his tale, detailing how he, Cleo, and Chess had been sent to find a rare seed that had gone missing. Their story was met with a mix of skepticism - Dewott's claims of having fought off a dozen rhydon single-handedly may have been slightly exaggerated - and laughter, particularly when he mentioned that Chess had nearly devoured the seed, having gotten it mixed up with their supply of food. Zen and Sev shared their day's adventures soon after, though their constantly interrupting and arguing over details made their story somewhat hard to follow. The last team, consisting of the swellow that had woken us that morning, a proud-looking pidgeot, and a rather militant talonflame, gave a brief, dry description of their patrols over the mountains to the north.

In that way, the gathering dragged on far into the night, and it was a long time before we made our way to our respective rooms. I stumbled in and collapsed onto my bed without hesitation, and Artemis did the same. Despite that day consisting of a long string of disappointments, frustrations, and near-death encounters, I was oddly relaxed. Sure, I'd been experimented on by a crazed audino, dragged into some legends-forsaken forest, and nearly killed in a number of new and exciting ways, but… I was content. Not exactly thrilled, but happy to be where I was nonetheless. As I finally drifted off to sleep, I couldn't help but wonder why I felt like that was unusual.

The moment it began, I knew it for what it was.

A nightmare.

No! Don't let go! Just a little longer...

I was drifting above a narrow stone path that stretched onward as far as the eye could see. On either side was a sharp drop, falling away to reveal swirling clouds below. In the distance, I could barely make out the shape of a large, blue tower, its upper portions wreathed in angry red clouds. As I observed my surroundings, I felt- no, knew their significance, in a way far more fundamental than mere words can express.

It's too soon for farewells! You two… are coming with me!

This was a place where heroes walked. A place where the legends clashed with mortals, where the fate of the world had been shaped by a single decision. Getting here had been a struggle, and some who had set out to reach this place had fallen to ensure others would succeed where they had failed. It was a place of determination, of hope… and of tragedy, a sacrifice so profound that it chilled me to the core. Something very dear had been lost here.

It's a world of perpetual darkness. The sun never rises… so morning never comes.

I knew all of this in an instant. I'm not sure how, or why, but I was as sure of the knowledge as I was of my name… which is really about as much as I could ask for, all things considered. In the same way, I knew that the nightmare belonged to the lone figure climbing slowly up the path.

I was lucky to have known you. Though the parting hurts… the rest is in your hands!

He was a charmeleon, and carried himself like someone who knew exactly how powerful he was. I could tell at a glance that he was accustomed to fighting, but wasn't the type to seek trouble. The heavy brown bag slung over his shoulder confirmed this, as it bore the distinctive badge of an exploration team. I drifted along silently behind him as he made his way towards the tower in the distance.

You have to go home… tell everyone about what happened here. So that... nothing like this ever happens again.

As the last words rang out through the empty air, the charmeleon collapsed onto the ground, sobbing quietly on the empty road. I drifted closer, curious, when the figure suddenly whirled to face me. His eyes burned with hatred as he saw me, and the fire on his tail grew to immense size.

"You!" he screamed, his rage palpable in the waves of intense heat radiating from him. I drew back, startled, and he responded with a blast of fire that flew from his mouth in a roar of pure hatred. Waves of intense, searing pain washed over me, and the nightmare shattered.

I bolted awake, shaking in a cold sweat. Looking around in a panic, I saw that Artemis was still sound asleep in her bed, and the room was undisturbed. I was safe.

I stumbled over to the nearby trough, splashing the cool water over my face in an attempt to calm myself. I just stood there for several long minutes, staring into the pool as I tried to bring my breathing under control.

What had I just seen? It was a dream, that much I was certain of, but somehow, I knew it wasn't mine. Which begged the question… who's was it? The charmeleon clearly wasn't happy to see me, but that meant he at least recognized me. Was he someone from my past, then, trying to contact me? If so, why did he react so violently to my presence? I had far too many questions and far too few answers… something I seemed to be making a habit of.

After a while, I stopped shaking and made my way back to my bed. I sat looking at the ceiling for the longest time, thoughts rushing through my still-shaken mind. It would be several hours before I calmed enough to fall back asleep.