Fierce winds blew against a derelict building just east of Lentimas Town. Flurries of sand scratched against the glass of the broken windows, and the unhinged doors swung ominously on their frames. The interior of the building was at odds with the maelstrom outside, as an eerie and unnatural silence permeated nearly every corner of the house. Plant pots scraped and rugs shifted, though there was no living soul present to move them.
No living soul, save for one lone man tucked away in the master bedroom upstairs. He sat crouched in front of a small television, its soft light illuminating the dusty room, its low volume the only source of noise in the Strange House. The man shifted slightly as he held up a remote control and clicked one of the buttons.
"This Trainer is doing nothing but throwing Poké Balls."
*click*
"Hey everybody, welcome back to the show! We're your hosts, Nancy and Christoph, and - "
*click*
"In other news, more strange weather has been reported around the Unova Region, this time in the area outside of Lacunosa - "
*click*
"Next time on the Pokémon Whisperer... "
The man hastily clicked back to the previous channel.
" - Giant Chasm has seen a drastic decrease in temperature seemingly overnight, which has scientists baffled."
"So, it looks like it's true…" the man said in a gruff voice. His words echoed throughout the abandoned room as he leaned forward and shut off the television. He breathed in a lungful of musty air and closed his eyes, exhaling a sigh as he did so. Strong winds continued to blow viciously against the Strange House, sending a cold draught throughout the entire building. The man sat with his eyes closed for a few more seconds, then spoke out into the silence again.
"Well well well," he said softly, " I had a feeling you'd show up sooner or later."
"Where's Kyurem, Ghetsis?" the voice of a young man came from the doorway.
The man named Ghetsis opened his eyes and turned his head round to look at the new arrival. A young man in a white shirt and cap stood in the doorway, his long green hair tied in a messy ponytail down to his waist. Ghetsis eyed the young man with disdain, then smirked.
"Funny," he said, "I could ask you the same thing, N."
The young man called N took a step forward into the empty room. Ghetsis immediately recoiled against the wall. N stopped walking forward. "You're pathetic, Ghetsis," he said softly.
Ghetsis looked incensed, but N took another step forward and the look of incense on Ghetsis' face immediately changed to one of fear.
"W-What do you want?!" Ghetsis asked, strained. "I-I don't know anything!"
"You don't?" N asked quietly, stopping for a second time to consider Ghetsis' words. N looked at Ghetsis, taking in his filthy appearance; once upon a time, Ghetsis' long hair had been the same brilliant shade of green as N's, but now it was filthy and unkempt, with specks of mud scattered throughout. The remnants of a once majestic, floor-length cloak rested in shambles upon Ghetsis' emaciated shoulders, barely reaching past his elbows.
N spoke again, "Looking at you now Ghetsis, you certainly don't look like you have anything to do with Kyurem's disappearance. But you always were a wonderful liar…"
N took a third step towards Ghetsis, who gave a gulp. Ghetsis held his hands out in front of him, waving them frantically for N to stop.
"I swear, I don't know anything! Look at the state of me! I've just been hold up here, desperately struggling to survive!" Ghetsis implored with a hint of begging in his voice.
N stopped a third time. He looked at the sniveling, pathetic form of Ghetsis huddled against the wall, closed his eyes, and sighed.
"You're right, Ghetsis," N said slowly, turning towards the door, "I'm wasting my time here talking to you. You clearly don't know anything at all. You're just a scared old man now. Scared… and alone."
N began to walk back out of the room, as Ghetsis straightened himself up. A blank expression had come across his face and he spoke softly:
"Who said I was alone?"
N turned his head to look back at Ghetsis, a confused look on his face. As he did so however, two shadowy figures appeared in the doorway, blocking N's path. N turned around to face Ghetsis again, who was now smiling triumphantly; a third shadow appeared mere feet in front of N.
The Shadow Triad had N cornered. Ghetsis brushed some dust off his arm, and straightened the remnants of his cloak, a bored look on his face.
"Took you boys long enough," Ghetsis said to the shadow standing in front of N, "I had to do a bit of improvising there. I haven't acted that hard since I tried to convince the people of Unova to throw away their Pokémon!"
Ghetsis laughed at his own joke. The shadowy figures continued to stand motionless. N stared back at Ghetsis coldly.
"Our apologies, Lord Ghetsis," one of the shadowy men said.
Ghetsis waved his hand dismissively. "Bah, pay it no mind. I quite enjoyed myself. Besides," he continued as he walked closer to N, "the look on his face when he was suddenly ambushed... It was the look one gets when they've lost all hope, and I do so enjoy seeing that look on people's faces!"
Ghetsis laughed again. "Now then, boy," he said matter-of-factly, as though getting down to brass tacks, "Let's have a talk."
N glared at Ghetsis, who was looking back at N with a look of commanding calm.
"So," N asked Ghetsis, "it was all an act?"
Ghetsis laughed a third time. "My dear boy," he chuckled, wiping a fake tear from his eye, "you may think you're intimidating, but believe me when I say it takes a lot more than the likes of you to break my spirits. I mean, take a look around you!" Ghetsis motioned around the dingy room, "If living in this dump for so long couldn't defeat me, did you really think that you could?! Priceless!" Ghetsis smiled at N. He was clearly enjoying himself. N looked around the room for a means of escape. He took a slight half-step to his right, but the Shadow Triad reacted immediately, moving closer to N.
"Oh come now," Ghetsis implored, as the Shadow Triad continued to bare down menacingly upon N, "Don't tell me you want to leave already? We still have so much to talk about! For starters," Ghetsis said, as he moved closer to N, "you can tell me everything you know about Kyurem's disappearance!"
N's eyes widened, and his face took on a look of slight worry. "You… you mean you... don't know where Kyurem is?" he asked quietly.
Ghetsis gave a snort of disgust, and turned his back to N. "Are your ears as defective as the rest of you, boy?" Ghetsis snapped, "I already told you I have no idea where the blasted dragon is! Again," Ghetsis turned back to face N, indicating the barren room, "does it really look like I have the resources or the manpower to pull off such an operation?" The Shadow Triad continued to look straight ahead, unflinching. Ghetsis eyed them and added, "No offense, boys."
"We are not offended, Lord Ghetsis," one of the Shadow Triad said.
Ghetsis sighed. "I know, you never are…" he said, somewhat exasperated. Ghetsis shook his head and looked back at N, who continued to look worried. Ghetsis smiled wickedly.
"Do you know what I think?" Ghetsis asked, as N remained silent, "I think you knew deep down that I had nothing to do with Kyurem, at least not this time around." Ghetsis began pacing back and forth in front of N, his head in his hands as he spoke. "In fact, I think you wanted me to be the one to have kidnapped Kyurem. That way, you could simply confront me as you've done before, foil my plans, and save the day." Ghetsis uttered the last three words with contempt. "But now…" Ghetsis continued in a voice just above a whisper, "you've got confirmation that I have nothing to do with it, and now you're worrying about who might really be behind it…"
N said nothing, his gaze set down on the floor, a look of defeat on his face. Ghetsis smiled triumphantly, and moved closer still to N. "But that's not all…" Ghetsis continued, "I think you already have an idea on the true identity of Kyurem's abductor. So now…" Ghetsis moved so close to N that their faces were now inches apart, "I want you to tell me everything you know."
N continued to look down, despondent. Ghetsis eyed him intently. After a brief moment of silence, N slowly lifted his gaze to meet Ghetsis'. Suddenly, a devious smile spread across N's face. Ghetsis looked taken aback as N began to ripple, as though made out of the stuff of mirages. In an instant, where N had previously stood now stood the form of a Pokémon with midnight-black fur, and the eyes of a trickster. Ghetsis and the Shadow Triad floundered, and Zoroark's body began to glow with a dark light.
"Lord Ghetsis!" the Shadow Triad member closest to Ghetsis exclaimed, as he grabbed Ghetsis and threw him aside. A split second later, Zoroark unleashed a burst of dark energy. The Night Daze attack hit all three members of the Shadow Triad, sending them flying. Ghetsis lay sprawled on the floor after being pushed aside, holding his arms up to shield himself from the aftershock of the attack. As the dust settled, Ghetsis sat up and looked around the room. A Shadow Triad member lay slumped against the wall opposite the door, knocked out. The other two lay unconscious in the hallway. Ghetsis crawled towards the wall. "You…" he managed weakly.
"The plan was to knock out all four of you at once, but the Shadow Triad reacted faster than I thought," said a speedy voice from the hallway. Ghetsis' face contorted into a look of rage as he lifted his gaze to the doorway. The real N stepped out from behind the wall and walked into the room to Zoroark's side.
N placed his hand on Zoroak's mane, and Zoroark growled softly. "Thank you, my friend," N said hurriedly, "I hated putting you in so much danger, but you were right, Ghetsis was a lot more forthcoming when he thought he had the upper hand." N turned to look at Ghetsis, who slowly began to work his way up the wall into a standing position.
"So, you got the better of me, and my Shadows," Ghetsis said bitterly. A small purple orb slipped from beneath Ghetsis' tattered robes into his hands, but this went unnoticed by N or Zoroark. "Well played, boy. With deceit like that, perhaps you're worthy of the name Harmonia after all..."
"It's over Ghetsis," N said swifty.
"I think NOT, boy!" Ghetsis shouted, as he threw the orb to the ground. The Smoke Ball enveloped the room in a dense, purple fog. N and Zoroark shielded their faces, coughing. N heard the sound of breaking glass and ran over to one of the windows. In the distance, he could see the haggard form of Ghetsis running towards Reversal Mountain.
"He got away…" N remarked quietly, as the smokescreen dissipated. Zoroark walked over to its friend, and gave him a reassuring nod and a growl. N shook his head.
"No," N said briskly, looking over the unconscious bodies of the Shadow Triad, "with his Shadow Triad captured, he truly has nothing left. It's doubtful he'll pose much of a threat now. Besides, it was a longshot that he was involved in the first place, but we now know for certain that he had nothing to do with Kyurem's disappearance."
N turned towards the centre of the room, a look of trepidation on his face. "As I feared, this threat goes way beyond Ghetsis, which means… I think it's time we asked for some help."
Zoroark gave a growl of agreement, which N returned with a small smile. The two friends turned to the door and walked out of the room, the unconscious Shadow Triad in tow. As the door slowly creaked shut, a small crack appeared on the far wall of the room, glowing with a silent white light.