Another day, another round of training. Ryder spent the entirety of yesterday teaching Pikachu and Oshawott augmentation. The process was slow, as expected since it isn't a technique one gets right on the first day. He didn't want to rush them, but they needed to be ready to combat the Darkmon at any given moment. He knew it was going to be tough for them, but he was confident they can get it down. They've pulled through in a pinch before. This time isn't so different.

They've managed to feed aura into their hands and feet, which was a start. They managed to maintain the flow of energy after some practice, but it took all day to get down. Today they were finally going to see if it was well worth it.

Ryder brought along two large boulders and set them down in their training grounds. He dusted his hands off and stepped back. Looking at this brought back nostalgic memories to the Charmeleon, mostly pain though. He could never forget the unfathomable agony he endured when he tried destroying a boulder. The many, many injuries he suffered from were a reminder of how much he has grown. He never wants to go through the nightmare again, but he's glad he did.

And now he had two students who were going to experience his training firsthand.

Oshawott scratched his head with a perplexed expression, staring at the large rock in front of him. "Sssooo…I have to punch that…with my bare hands?"

"That's the idea," Ryder answered.

"Can't we start with something softer? Like a pillow? Or, you know, NOT a rock?" It's not that he wanted to skip on training, but he rather not shatter his hand.

"Look, it's simple. You need to focus energy into your fist, which will enhance the kinetic force of your punch upon contact with the rock."

"Oh sure, when you say it, it sounds like a walk in the park," he muttered.

Pikachu cracked his knuckles and walked up to his boulder. "Well, no use in stalling." He winded his arm up, sending his white aura to his fist.

He closed his eyes, concentrating. Alright, just do what Ryder says. I am one with the universe. My fist will smash through this rock. The rock will shatter. My fist will not be broken. He opened his eyes into a determined expression and threw his fist at the rock, colliding against it with tremendous force.

Good news, he did end up leaving a fist sized impression into the rock, which made Ryder smile. It was an impressive feat for his first time using augmentation. A little more practice and he should be able to gain full control over it.

That's, however, where the bad news came it. Pikachu retracted his fist and waved it frantically. "YOW!" He fell on his back and blew on it.

Oshawott sweatdropped, then turned towards the hideout. "I'm heading back inside."

Ryder grabbed him by the scruff. "Not so fast, Oshawott."

"I don't want to break my hand!"

"I understand, but we can't wait for too long. You're gonna have to endure a little pain in order to get this all down. On any other day, I'd let you both take your time. But, for now, it's in my best interest that you should deal with it." He whimpered a bit. Ryder sighed and tried a different tactic. "…Oshawott, why are you so determined to train?"

"Huh?" He rubbed his chin. "Because…I want to help you defeat the Darkmon?"

Ryder narrowed his eyes. "That's only part of the reason." He set the otter down and sat down. He gestured for him to do the same. He raised a brow, but did as requested. "There's another reason, is there?"

"Well…maybe."

"What is it? Your will to protect humans and Pokémon from the Darkmon? Is it a need to get stronger?" He closed his eyes and crossed his arms. "Or is it because you're trying to prove something to a certain someone? Snivy?"

Oshawott's face lit up bright red. "Uh…" He bit his lip and glanced off to the side. No one else was around and Pikachu was too busy concentrating on augmentation to listen. He let out a sigh and whispered, "…y-yes…"

"I figured. What is it that you have to prove to her?"

"You wouldn't understand."

"Try me."

The otter sighed and rubbed his arm. "A lot of Pokémon, even humans, have called me…childish. Rarely anyone takes me seriously. They say I'm impulsive, reckless, stupid…" He shook his head. "I've been called many things. It gets on my nerves.

"Trainers always went for Tepig or Snivy because they look tougher and cooler. Not someone cute and adorable like an Oshawott. I've been around the Pokémon Lab for a while. It's why I became so close with Professor Juniper. She was the only real friend I had at the time.

"Then Ash came along and, for the first time in a while, someone was actually interested in me. It was…incredible. Of course, he already had a starter: Pikachu." He chuckled sheepishly. "You may not believe this, but I use to be extremely jealous of Pikachu's bond with him."

"I would have never guessed," Ryder muttered under his breath. After all the stories he heard from Buneary about him and Piplup competing with each other for Meloetta's affections, it doesn't come as a shock to him he possessed envious emotions.

"So, I followed them and helped them out with Team Rocket. I kept following them until Ash decided to take me along on the journey. Things were looking up for me. Of course, I was still getting into my fair share of trouble, especially when I try to outdo Pikachu.

"That's when she came into my life. Snivy…I didn't know what to expect when I first met her."

"Is that when you developed feelings for her? Love at first sight?"

"Something like that. I've explained this to Pikachu a while ago. Snivy hit me with her Attract when we met and it…opened my eyes."

Ryder shivered. Attract…not his favorite thing to get hit by, especially when you had a girlfriend who can turn into a hair-trigger time bomb of rage. He took every opportunity he had to avoid that move when she was around. "I see. So the Attract influenced you to develop these feelings for her?"

He nodded. "I guess. At first, I thought I was still under the effects when she became part of our team. But…I quickly learned that it was much more than that. Snivy and I got along easily with each other. She's my best friend and…I care about her deeply." He hugged himself. "After a while of traveling, I finally convinced myself it wasn't Attract's doing, otherwise I'd be fawning over Emolga with all the times she hit me with it.

"I like Snivy…a lot. I…want to be with her."

Ryder crossed his arms. "So, what's stopping you?"

He sighed. "Me." He gestured to himself. "This…weak Oshawott who constantly gets himself into trouble. This Oshawott who causes mischief wherever he goes. This Oshawott…who needs to be constantly saved by the one he loves."

The Charmeleon narrowed his eyes. He saw what this was about. "You fear you're too weak to protect Snivy."

He nodded. "She's always saving me from my mistakes. If she were in trouble, what could I do? I could never beat her in a fight. And I certainly couldn't beat something that could defeat her. When those Darkmon first attacked us, all I could do was try. Then I failed. We couldn't protect ourselves and I ended up needing to be saved again."

He sighed in frustration. "Every time…every single time. I'm always the one being saved. Why can't I be her knight in shining armor? Why can't I be the hero for once?"

Ryder shook his head. "Osh…you don't have to be a hero to win her affection."

He sighed. "I know…but I've tried everything. I'm too nervous to tell her my real feelings. Maybe if I were to impress her, she might take interest in me. It'd be easier to talk to her."

"Perhaps, but it doesn't always work." Ryder closed his eyes. "Listen, I know it how it feels to struggle with your emotions. I've been in your position a couple of times myself, even when Jade and I started dating. I could never find the right thing to say.

"Yet there are ways to show her you truly care. Perhaps find a similar interest you both have. Jade and I love to fight, so we regularly spar with each other. We forget our relationship and become rivals the moment our eyes lock. It's one of many things we love to do with each other." He closed his eyes. "What is it you and Snivy share?"

Oshawott rubbed the back of his head. Well, he supposed they both loved battling, but he wouldn't call that a passionate interest they shared. She liked to lounge around and he liked to stay active. He normally finds it hard to stay still for great periods of time.

The only times he does keep himself still is when they talk. That's really it, they talked. About their journey or just stupid stuff they've seen in the towns and cities. He felt like he knew more about Snivy whenever they talked to each other. Underneath her tough exterior, she was a pleasant Pokémon to get to know. She wasn't as cold-hearted as the others would normally believe.

"I…we don't do much outside of just talking with each other. We play sometimes, but that's normally with the others."

"I see…" Ryder breathed in, then out. "Well, it sounds like you two already have a healthy friendship."

"Yeah, we do. But how do I know she feels the same way about me? She never showed any interest towards me outside of a friend."

"Looks can be deceiving. There are some who hide their feelings to avoid the possibility of reject." Oshawott looked away and frowned sadly. "Then there are those who might not know how they feel. I don't know Snivy well, but I can tell she appreciates you. She doesn't need you to become stronger to win her heart. I'm sure if you talked to her, you might shed some light on this whole ordeal."

"And…if she rejects me?"

"Then you two can still be friends. But don't doubt yourself yet." He smiled. "Take a chance."

The otter looked down at his scalchop and fiddled with it in his hands. He sighed. "I guess I'll try…I'm still going to be nervous."

Ryder waved it off. "Hey, no harm in that. The next time you're alone with her, just take a deep breath and have a heart to heart with her."

He smiled a bit. "Thanks, Ryder…"

"No problem. Now get up." He flipped to his feet. "You still need to train."

The otter chuckled and stood up. "Fine." He clenched his fists. "I'm ready this time! Bring it on!" He charged at the rock and threw his fist.

"Oshawott, don't forget to-!" He cringed as the otter slammed his fist against the rock and flailed in pain. "-augment." He sighed. Really does feel like the old days.

Chloe sat awkwardly as Meowth examined her. They agreed to observe her behavior to determine what the root of her problem was. Something manipulated her last night and they needed to figure out how. Something forced the Darkmon to listen to Dark, or whatever controlled the dark cat last night.

He wanted to believe her, but he couldn't rule out Dark as a suspect. He was the only one they know of that has the voice to manipulate the Darkmon. They needed to figure out why he, or whatever, does it. Unfortunately, without any access to equipment, Meowth had to act on common sense and basic questions to get a lead.

He carved a list into the tree and etched in the numerous possibilities. It took him all night to compile all these possible hypnosis tricks. He just needed an analysis of Chloe's behavior and which possibility was likely.

"Okay, now Chloe, can you tell me how you felt during the attack?"

"I was…asleep and confused, I guess. I can't remember much other than something muttering in my ear. I can't remember what, though."

"Most likely you were repeating your commands," he guessed, etching it into the tree under a list of her conditions. "Do you feel any malice towards me?"

She shook her head almost immediately. "No! I don't!"

"Easy, it's just for the experiment." He etched it in. "Okay, let's see. Maybe it's one of your instincts. You said you obey Dark's orders without question. Maybe you subconsciously obeyed him in your sleep."

She scratched her head in thought. "I'm not sure about that. I don't think we can hear him when we're asleep. Darkmon can be heavy sleepers."

"So his words are almost nonexistent." He scratched out the possibility. "Mind control, perhaps? You said he can highjack Darkmon that are unconscious. He could have done that."

"Yes, but he can only do it through the central bulb. Was a vine attached to my neck last night?"

"…no." He sighed and crossed that one out. "Okay, he can communicate with you guys telepathically. Can he do that while you're sleeping?"

"If he ever did, I wouldn't know."

He groaned and slashed it out. Maybe this was a mistake. There were only so many possibilities. At this rate, they're gonna come up with nothing. But he couldn't quit. He was sure he can find out what's caused Chloe to attack last night. He just needed to find a connection.

"Okay, let's skip this part for a bit." He sat down and faced Chloe. "Okay…what do you think happened?"

She scratched her chin. "I don't know. I can't remember anything when I attacked. It was all a big blur."

"You said you heard someone whispering to you? What does that mean?"

She shrugged innocently. "Heck if I know. This has never happened to me before." She looked up in thought. "Come to think of it, I don't remember any Darkmon violently attacking in the middle of the night."

"This has never happened before?"

"Don't forget, the longest it took us to capture a Pokémon in this forest was an hour. We never went berserk without our knowledge."

Meowth raised a brow. Her word choice seemed odd to him. "What do you mean…without your knowledge?"

"I'm not sure I've told you this, but Darkmon can manipulate their evil to give themselves a boost it power. By abandoning who we are and giving into evil, we can achieve a strong power that brings us to our peak. We call it Awakened Evil."

"Awakened Evil?"

"It's a powerful, but dangerous technique. If you don't have control over it, you can go into a violent, unstoppable rage. If you can control it, you become a powerful force. I am one of few who can use it effectively. Though I rarely use it since there's no point. Pokémon are so weak compared to us that almost all Darkmon see no reason to use it."

Meowth rubbed his chin. The more he learns about these menacing creatures, the more sadistic they seem. Their entire being relies on them being evil. He can believe that their power lies with their sadistic nature, but it almost sounds like they can't be anything but evil. Why was that?

Like he said, he can believe that's how they gain power. Dark was the biggest example he can think of. Yet he can't wrap his mind around the point of always being evil. Is it because they worry they'll become too soft to use their full power?

Awakened Evil, however, contradicts that claim. If what Chloe said is true, giving fully in to their biology turns them into murderous monsters. There wouldn't be a reason to stay evil twenty-four seven. Chloe isn't acting evil and she claims she can use this power at any given time. So what was it that made them who they are?

It's not like they're taught to act like this. From his studies, Darkmon are born evil, with the exception of the 'defect' he has been hearing about. The idea is implanted into their brains on the day they are created. They know to be evil on instinct.

Perhaps Chloe snapped last night. He didn't want to assume his friend was losing her mind, but he has seen these monsters lose control before. The only reason he isn't dead yet is because they were given a direct order not to harm him. They were bound by the order of Dark.

Something about this left the cat puzzled. With Dark's sadistic nature, he would probably want Meowth to know who ordered his subjects to execute him. He has no reason to be secretive. He could trick Laura into thinking a Darkmon was being insubordinate and they'd follow along with his deception from his command. Someone went out of their way to make sure his death was done out of personal hatred, not from an order.

Dark clearly had more self-control out of all the Darkmon. He didn't act like them, actually. He didn't act like a mindless monster. He didn't act like a ruthless dictator. He acted like a supervillain with some morality in him. It was strange. What else didn't he know about this Darkmon leader?

As he thought, Chloe was trying her hardest to remember who spoke to her last night. The whispers were so distorted and hazy that it was impossible to tell. She felt like she heard these whispers before, but they never made her go into a violent state like that before. All they ever done was…

"Kept reminding me to be evil…" she mumbled.

Meowth looked up. "Huh?"

"I've heard these whispers before I met you. Actually, I think all Darkmon have."

"What do you mean?"

"Well…how to explain?" She closed her eyes and crossed her forelegs. "Every so often, when Darkmon aren't acting evil, whispers speak in their heads that remind them of who they are. It convinces us to stay true to our nature. We never questioned their intent of words. We only listened because they've never stirred us wrong before.

"They seem to appear when we…give in to goodness…"

Stop talking!

Her eyes widened and she clenched her head. Meowth's eyes widened. "Chloe?!"

Can't you see you're straying from your true self! You are not Chloe! You are Darkmon 7-7-9!

"I…am…"

Meowth grabbed her and shook her. "Chloe, snap out of it!" She didn't listen, clenching her eyes shut. He had to do something. Fortunately, he considered an idea that he thought about last night. He hugged her close. He whispered in her ear, "Listen to my voice. Don't listen to those other voices. Trust me."

She breathed heavily and tried relaxing. "Meowth…"

Who are you?! You are a Darkmon! You are meant to be evil!

"You can be whoever you are. You don't have to be evil."

A creature of the night can never belong to the world of light!

"You can be more than a monster."

The Darkmon will bring havoc and death upon the world!

"You can do so much more than kill."

Two different whispers, one she recognized and one she couldn't. She breathed quick, heavy breaths, trying to decide which voice she should listen to. Her evil aura leaned towards the dark, menacing whispers.

It's so tempting. So easy. Just give in to who you are and embrace the malevolence.

"Embrace…the…malevolence…"

Meowth frowned at the dark cat. He stroked her back. "Chloe…listen. Do you remember your friend? The one who was murdered with those other four Darkmon? You remember how he loved a Pokémon? You knew about it. You could have easily exposed him. But you didn't. Why didn't you?

"Because he's your friend. You didn't want to abandon your friend. You didn't want to let him down. You gave in to kindness on that day. You gave in until he died. How do you think he would have felt if you killed his love? Would he ever forgive you?"

He could feel her struggling, which was a good sign. "You don't have to be evil. You can be good. If one Darkmon can do it, you can too."

"Be…good…"

Are you foolish?! YOU ARE EVIL!

Chloe clenched her eyes into a glare. NO! I am not! I won't listen to you!

You will, whether you like it or not! You were born evil and you will listen to me!

Who are you?! Lord Dark?!

You can't escape me. As long as the sun exists…as long as this forest stands…you can never escape your nature.

Chloe growled and threw her head back. "GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" She slammed her head against the ground, making Meowth jump back in shock.

There was silence after that, except for Chloe's exhausted panting. She rolled onto her back and laid there with her eyes closed. She felt like she was going to lose her mind for a moment. She took a moment to relax herself, spreading out on the ground.

She opened her eyes a bit to see Meowth's face hovering over her. "Hey…are you okay?" he asked.

She took slow, deep breaths before responding. "Yes…I'm fine." She took another breath and sighed. "Thanks for…keeping me together."

He smiled. "Hey…that's what friends are for." He narrowed his eyes. Now this was beginning to concern him. She said the whispers occurred when she strayed from her evil nature. So it was some sort of trigger. An external trigger, perhaps. He scratched his chin in thought.

"What's cooking in your head now?" she asked.

He sat back and sighed. "Just a thought…" He crossed his arms. "How much do you know about this forest?"

She was confused, but gave the best answer she could muster. "Well, aside from this being our home, there isn't much that I can tell from what I've taught you. Everything in this forest is connected, after all."

"Connected?"

"Yeah. Energy is constantly running under the forest. It's what keeps this place from burning during the day."

"Everything is connected to that bulb?"

"Pretty much." She rolled onto her stomach. "It's the prized possession of the Darkmon. We wouldn't be able to live without it. It is what we were created from."

Meowth rubbed his chin. "I see…" He walked up to the wall and unsheathed his claws. "I might be on to something." He started carving into the tree, leaving Chloe to only guess what he was up to.

Martial arts was useful, as well as physical training, but training to use a weapon might prove to be beneficial. The Pokémon can't always rely on their moves, after all. Teaching them how to handle weapons might be a good thing.

So, while Pikachu and Oshawott trained, Ryder focused on the other three. He was going to teach Pikachu to use a weapon later. Oshawott had his scalchop, so there was no need to teach him how to use one or give him one.

He had an assortment of weapons to choose from. He let them pick something that suited their style of fighting.

Buneary tapped her chin as she looked at the options. She couldn't help but wonder why he had these in the first place. Maybe if his Bo staff broke or something. Still, it was important that she choose the right weapon.

She picked up a dagger and looked it over. She cringed, thinking about how she could hurt herself with these things. "Ryder, do you have anything safer?"

"The point of a weapon is to protect yourself. There's some risk to using any of them. Although, if your issue is bladed weapons, you could use the tonfas."

"Tonfas?"

He pulled out the weapons. They were black and metallic. He spun them in his hands. "These might suit you. They're very defensive weapons, but capable of offensive strikes. It takes years to fully master them, but I feel they'd work for you."

She held them in her hands and gripped them tightly. "Hmm…"

Ryder looked at the others. Snivy picked up two sais and spun them in her hands. Piplup was wielding a large collapsible windmill shuriken, much to the Charmeleon's worry. "Uh, Pip? You sure you don't want to use something smaller?"

He smirked. "You kidding? This is perfect! I'm going to shred through those Darkmon with this thing!"

"That thing is extremely dangerous," he warned.

He scoffed. "Danger is my middle name!"

"You don't have a middle name," Buneary said.

Ryder groaned and rubbed his temples. "I'm going to regret this…I'm going to regret this…" he kept muttering to himself. He took a deep breath and sighed. "Alright, let's carry on. Now then, I'm gonna have to work with you all one at a time in order to get this down. Snivy, let's start with you."

Piplup pouted. "Aww…I wanted to use my large shuriken."

"WE DON'T!" Buneary and Snivy shouted.

The Charmeleon sighed and climbed up with the grass snake.

For an hour, he took the time to show her the techniques related to the weapon, not to mention their purpose. She was a fast learner. She was getting it down pretty fast. She was no master by any means, but she was getting the basic use of them down.

"I'd never use against Pokémon or humans," Ryder said as he showed her some movements with the sais. "Unless they can regenerate like Darkmon."

"It's not like I'm going to be carrying these things with me all the time," Snivy said as she mimicked his movements.

He chuckled. "True. Though, if you were an agent like me, they're very useful."

"I see…"

He stopped and stretched. "That's enough for today. We'll continue with the lesson tomorrow."

"Hang on, Ryder." He looked at her as she sheathed the sais behind her back. "I've been meaning to ask you something."

He crossed his arms. "Okay, what?"

"It's just something I've been wondering about your past with Pikachu. You sounded a bit hesitant when you mentioned how you encountered him."

He blinked, then chuckled, shaking his head. "You heard that, didn't you?"

"Well?"

"Look Snivy, my past with Pikachu is already complicated enough. Let's just say it was a strange day and leave it at that, okay?" She narrowed her eyes, not satisfied with the answer. "Clearly you're not going to drop this topic, are you?"

"It's not that I don't trust you, but I don't like have secrets about my friends being kept from me. What happened to Pikachu when you met him?"

He raised a brow. "You sound pretty untrustworthy of me."

"I don't know you all that well. None of us know you that well. You might as well come on out and say something."

"Why are you so interested in this information?"

"I wouldn't be if you didn't sound so hesitant on saying anything yourself."

He narrowed his eyes at her. He wasn't going to get her off his tail anytime soon. He'd either have to comply or find some way to diverge the conversation. Unfortunately, she didn't seem as easy to trick.

He sighed, folding his cloak over his body. "…strange things happen in this world of ours, Snivy. Every once in a while, we have the rare opportunity to see those occurrences with our very eyes. Sometimes you wish you didn't see them."

"Elaborate."

"Very well." He looked up, trying to recall the events. "Let's see…well, like I said, it was storming outside when I heard a cry for help. I was unsure what to do for a moment, but I couldn't leave someone on their own like that. I raced off to see what the issue was when I came across Pikachu. He was injured and fighting…something."

"This supposed 'wild' Pokémon, you mentioned?" she asked, raising a suspicious brow.

He sighed. "I'll be honest with you. I have no idea what I saw that day. One moment I'm confronting this creature, the next I'm fending for my life. Imagine getting an electrical burn so bad it seared your skin for weeks on end. Now imagine that burn multiplying in intensity in a snap." He snapped his claws for emphasis. "Suddenly you realize this isn't a normal Pokémon you're dealing with. Suddenly you realize you're in mortal danger. Suddenly you realize you might die."

Snivy's eyes widened. "What are you saying?"

"Whatever attacked Pikachu wasn't normal. It was a monster. I left this part out, but I was incapacitated for weeks after that confrontation." He felt his chest. "It was strange. I've felt electric attacks before, but that didn't feel like it came from a Pokémon."

"Then…how did you get away?"

"I only barely managed to escape with my life. I scratched whatever was attacking us in the eye and ran off with Pikachu, unconscious on my back. When I got back to the lab, I blacked out from the pain."

Snivy couldn't wrap her mind around this. He makes it sound like a Darkmon attacked him. Yet, they didn't exist back then. What could have attacked him?

Ryder sighed. "When I became a Shadow Agent, I soon realized what kind of troubles I was getting myself into. The same kind of dangers I faced on that day. It became clear to me that I wasn't going to be dealing with regular Pokémon on a daily basis. That day was a sole reminder to me that there is more to this world than I thought. There will always be something to ruin your day. There will be something that will stand in your way.

"It revealed to me that…there are forces outside of my control that could kill me. I've never felt that kind of worry in a Pokémon battle. Every day is a constant struggle to survive out here. Suddenly, you come to terms that the kiddie gloves need to be removed. It becomes a game of survival.

"I kept the part about what happened when I found Pikachu out on purpose. At any given moment, there's something that may do harm to you all. With the Darkmon around us, how could I tell you all that the world outside of this is just as dangerous? I couldn't."

"So…why didn't you just say wild Pokémon without hesitating?" she asked.

"Because that's the part that trips me up. Was that a wild Pokémon? Or was it already captured? I have never felt a wild Pokémon do that kind of damage to me. I wasn't sure what happened on that day, but I'm never going to forget it." He sighed and leaned against a tree. "The world isn't as safe as people make it out to be. Organizations like Team Rocket are the reason why. I intend to find out what their plan is and put an end to it. They created this forest for a reason. I'll be the one to put an end to it."

Snivy smiled. "A noble cause you have there."

He smirked a bit, shaking his head. "Well, I can't do everything alone. You guys helped remind me that I'm not a one man army. I can't take the Darkmon on alone. I can't take Team Rocket on alone. With a team…we can do it."

She nodded. "Couldn't have said it better myself." She stretched. "Well, that's all I needed to know. Sorry for prying."

He waved it off. "No problem. Just…keep it to yourself. I don't want Buneary having more reasons to worry about me."

She chuckled. "Noted."

Ryder put his hands in his cloak. "That's enough for today. I need to start training Piplup." He sighed. "Hopefully he had the time to reflect on using a different weapon."

Snivy laughed. "Doubtful."

He chuckled, then narrowed his eyes in thought. He looked at the grass snake and placed a hand upon her shoulder. "Hey Snivy, can I asked you something?"

"What?"

"It's about Oshawott."

"Is something wrong with him?" she asked, showing a tone of worry in her voice.

He shook his head. "No, nothing like that. I was just wondering about why you're friends with him."

She crossed her arms. "What does THAT mean?"

He shrugged. "You two seem like polar opposites. I was just wondering why you consider him a friend." That, and he wanted to help the otter out a bit. Perhaps get some insight on Snivy's perception of him.

She raised a brow in suspicion, but quickly dismissed it as harmless curiosity. "Well, if you must know, he's a really nice guy. We hang out regularly when we take breaks from traveling. We talk, we play with the others…stuff like that." She shrugged. "He's someone I can open up to without worry of being judged."

"You also seem very protective of him," Ryder brought up with a raised brow. "He told me about the times you saved him from danger."

"That's what friends do. I would have done it for anyone."

"I guess, but you seem pretty fond of him."

Snivy narrowed her eyes. "What are you talking about?"

"Are you sure there isn't any other reason you hang out with Oshawott?"

"…no…"

He crossed his arms. "Snivy…"

She looked away with a tired expression. "Well…I'm not entirely sure, to be perfectly honest. Oshawott always seemed fun to be around. I never questioned why I got along with him so well. I never really put much thought into it."

"Have you ever told him about it?"

"No, I didn't want to bother him with it. It's just…a strange feeling I've had." She sighed. "He's a good friend. I…really like him. I couldn't ask for a better best friend than him."

"Why do you like him?"

"Like I said, I'm not sure. We didn't hit it off immediately when I joined the team, but we slowly got to know each other. We enjoy each other's company. I don't know why I like being around him so much. I never had a friend before meeting the team, so…"

He narrowed his eyes softly. "Maybe you should talk to him sometime…if it really is bugging you, you might get some closure explaining it with him."

"You sure?"

He shrugged. "Better than nothing, right?"

Snivy rubbed her arm. "I guess that could work."

He patted her back. "Try talking to him later. Trust me on this one. I think it might benefit you both."

She smiled. "Thanks." She started heading to the hideout. Ryder smiled and prepared to follow.

Kill them all.

His scar glowed purple and pulsed. His eyes widened and he fell to his knees, holding his eye in pain. Ugh! What was that?

You oppose us…now you will feel our wrath.

His scar pulsed again, sending a wave of agony throughout his body. "AAAHHH!" He fell down and held his head in pain.

Snivy's eyes widened. "Ryder?!" She ran over to him and dropped to his side. "What's wrong?!"

"I! Don't! KNOW!" The scar pulsed again. He screamed louder. Every fiber of his being was searing in pain. He felt like he was going to explode.

The hideout door burst open and everyone rushed over. "What's wrong?!" Pikachu shouted.

"I don't know! He just started screaming all of a sudden!"

Ryder flailed around in torment, the pain only growing worse. "What's…happening…?" His body erupted in purple and red aura, knocking them off their feet. They coughed from the suffocating life force emanating off his body. He was completely engulfed in it. They couldn't see his body.

"RYDER!" They couldn't get too close to it without choking on the aura. All they could do was sit back and listen to their friend holler in pain.

A whole minute passed before the screaming stopped. The aura dispersed, knocking them over again. They got up and saw Ryder was fine, save for his scar glowing a menacing purple. He was unconscious, his face scrunched up and sweating.

"Oh my…" Buneary stepped back with her hands up to her mouth.

Pikachu narrowed his eyes. "We need to get him inside." He, along with Oshawott, grabbed him by the legs and arms respectively and carried him to the underground hideout.

Piplup placed a flipper over his heart, his face expressing shock. "Wha…What was that?! He was…and the purple smoke…the choking…huh?!"

Buneary shivered worriedly. "Oh Ryder…I hope he's okay…"

Snivy narrowed her eyes. He went from zero to a hundred in a matter of seconds. What made him snap so suddenly? She knew one thing: he was ill and he needed their help immediately.

"Come on. We need to help the guys. We can't sit here and worry." The rabbit and penguin looked at each other uneasily before nodded. "Let's go!" They ran back to the hideout and jumped down.

Once the lid closed, a figure jumped from the bushes and scaled the trees with a smirk spreading across his face. Exploit their fears…then break them…they're in for a surprise once night comes. They all are.