A Dragon's Tail

by Dragon of Vale

The world of Pokemon is now in a peaceful era under the protection of goddess Yggdrasil and the Hero/ine of Legend, a group of Pokemon who received the blessing from the god Arceus. However, the tide of destiny seemed to hate this world as the force of chaos had appeared and plagued the realm, and the cause of it was from the Hero/ine of Legend themselves!

75. Tail 7-5: The Lost Artifact

A Dragon's Tail

Tail 7: Korben's Tail - Inequity

Tail 7-5: The Lost Artifact

"If you want to achieve the victory, then you must obtain the power…"

-On Venom Island…

"Zetarus, are you doing okay?"

Natasha turned her attention to the Garchomp who was slowly walking beside her and asked him with a concerned voice. It had been a few hours since when three royal siblings had arrived at the toxic island of Shadowlost Territory, the Venom Island.

Venom Island was the biggest island in the continent of Symmetria (With Riverbrine Island in Queendom of Riverbrine in the second place.). Back in the past before the Fallen Crisis happened, Venom Island was an island located to west of mainland Symmetria named Fairy Isle, which was regarded as the most heavenly place on the continent of Symmetria, making it a habitat of Fairy type Pokemon. However, because of the unnatural event that occurred during the Fallen Crisis, the continent of Symmetria was twisted, sending Fairy Isle to be located to the north of the continent. The acidic sea surrounding the island then quickly turned the once-beautiful Fairy Isle into a living hell, forcing all Fairy type Pokemon on the island to evacuate to the southernmost land on the continent of Symmetria, which was the land known as Theocracy of Venturnome today, and settled there. Venom Island was void of any inhabitants until the Poison type refugees came to the Shadowlost Territory from the Principality of Leafburg near the end of War of Jasmine, and Venom Island was given to them as their new home until today…

Because its inhabitants were the Pokemon originally from Principality of Leafburg, the architectures on this island was built in a mixed style of Leafburg and Shadowlost, with most houses being built in the dried trunks of the dead trees and was decorated in the similar style as the houses in Shadowlost City.

As Zetarus, Natasha and Largo arrived at the island and the port and entered the town area, the Garchomp could notice that the inhabitants of this island were very wary of the foreigners from the other land, which Zetarus didn't mind because he learned from Natasha earlier about the misfortunes from the foreign land that the Pokemon of Venom Island had faced, notably the War of Jasmine and Bloodmoon War. Zetarus, however, noticed that the Poison type Pokemon of Venom Island, on the other hand, were very friendly with Natasha and Largo, especially Natasha. The Garchomp could even see that some Poison type Pokemon regarded his elder sister as their 'heroine'.

"It's because Natasha and I played a role to end the Bloodmoon War, and Natasha was very close to the Pokemon of Venom Island because she once studied here.." Largo explained as the Alolan Marowak noticed the Garchomp's attention on their elder sister being praised as the heroine.

"Really?" Zetarus said as he turned his attention to his younger brother. "By the time the Bloodmoon War occurred, you and Natasha, mostly you, were just the whelps. How did both of you end that infamous war?"

"Actually, it was your mother, Empress Sharon, who was the one that 'end' the Bloodmoon War with her wisdom and determination." Largo answered, ignoring his elder brother's sarcastic tone in his voice. "She sent Natasha to study in the Shadowlost Territory and me to Fireview Kingdom. With two children of the emperor of Dustorm Empire in Shadowlost and Fireview, both sides of the war would be hesitate to continue the war and risk killing the prince/princess, which would incur the wrath of the ruler of the nation with the most powerful military on the continent of Symmetria... Not that father cared about me much, but you know, Natasha was his favorite child… Anyway, that was why Bloodmoon War suddenly ended without much explanation."

After they finished walking around the town, the trio left the town and headed to the northern area of the island, which was the more remote area of the Venom Island as the town and the port were located in the southern area of the island. The northern area of the island, on the other hand, was a desolate land filled with toxic swamp that released the noxious miasma every second, making it a hazardous place for the non-Poison type Pokemon without a gas mask. (The toxic air in the southern area of the island was still somewhat tolerable, but not its northern counterpart.) The miasma also caused this area to become incredibly misty and hard to navigate. However, even when the air started to grow thicker, Zetarus still refused to wear the gas mask, and he was quick to evade when his siblings tried to force him to wear one. And so, it was clearly seen that the Garchomp was having more trouble than his siblings as they continued their journey, but it didn't seem like the Garchomp was poisoned by the toxic air…

"I told you, Natasha, that I have seen worse." Zetarus answered as he stopped to catch his breath.

"Geez… You are so stubborn, Zet." Largo commented through the gas mask that he was wearing, which muffled his voice a bit. "I knew that you are stubborn, but I never knew that you would be THIS stubborn!"

"Heh… Some people even mention that I am tenacious before…" Zetarus mumbled and turned his attention to his elder sister. "Anyway, how far until we reach that place? Er… What was its name again?"

"The Misty Shrine." Natasha answered. "It's not too far now, as far as I remember. That place was located at the northernmost point of the island, and the northern part of the island was being like this, most Pokemon wouldn't come here unless they are some sort of hardcore traveler or anything else."

"And I guess that we would be one if that place doesn't have anything to do with you, Natasha." Zetarus said as he stood up again. "Let's continue. The sooner we get this done, the better— EAAERRRRGR!"

Without any warning, Zetarus let out a scream as he stumbled backward and landed on his butt, startling his siblings.

"W… What happens, Zetarus?!" Largo said before he and Natasha noticed what caused their brother to scream and stumbled.

Right in front of where everyone, which was concealed a bit by the misty veil around them, a lone gas mask stood in the middle of the mist, staring at the trio!

However, before either the Dragalge or the Alolan Marowak could scream…

"… Really, Zetarus. Do you think this is funny?"

A strong, serious and feminine voice, which was muffled a bit through the gas mask, was heard by the trio from where the gas mask was, following by the gas mask moving a bit closer to the trio, revealing that the gas mask was actually wore by another Pokemon, who was none other than…

"C… Claura?" Zetarus said as he was finally able to grasp the appearance of the female Kingdra in front of him, who was wearing a gas mask around her face to protect herself from the toxic air around here. "W… What are you doing here?"

"I should be the one who asks you that question, Zetarus." Claura replied through the gas mask she was wearing. "I told everyone that I would travel to Venom Island, didn't I? And I heard about a desolate shrine here that serves as a tourist destination for a hardcore traveler, so I decided to pay it a visit. It turns out to be just an ordinary shrine with nothing extraordinary thought… Anyway, what the hell are you doing here, without any protection from the toxic air too?! Are you dumb, lazy or idiotic?!"

"Hey, spare me from that 'Richard' talk, wouldn't ya?" Zetarus interrupted the Kingdra's words. "Besides, I didn't come here unprepared. I got the Poison-proof potion made by Rachael before I came here, so I would be immune to being poisoned for a time being."

"Oh, that's why you didn't get poisoned since when we arrived here." Largo spoke up.

"Hm?" Claura looked at Largo and Natasha as she had just noticed them. "Zetarus, who are these two Pokemon?"

"My elder sister and my younger brother." Zetarus answered.

"Okay." Claura replied. However, she still didn't look or speak to Natasha and Largo. "Anyway, thank you so much for your help, yesterday, Zetarus."

"My help?" Zetarus said.

"Yes." Claura nodded. "Thank you for your offer to deliver food to Xavier. That lazy Dragonite would be starved if it wasn't for your help, Zetarus."

"Food? Xavier?" Zetarus repeated the words he had just heard in the manner that he didn't understand what he just heard. "What are you talking about?"

"I was talking about yesterday!" Claura seemed a bit irritated after hearing Zetarus' words. "Yesterday, just before I departed for Venom Island, I suddenly remembered that I got Xavier's food with me, and then you showed up and offered to deliver it to Xavier. Don't you remember all of this?"

"… Did I really do that?" Zetarus spoke with his arms crossed. He seemed to be even more confused as he heard Kingdra speaking. "The last time I met you was after our meeting at the town hall, and I didn't meet you or Xavier afterward, let alone agreeing to be your errant boy."

"Don't play dumb with me, Zetarus. It happened just yesterday, so there's no way that you won't remember this, unless…" Claura continued speaking with a clear hint of irritation in her voice. "… You already ate all of Xavier's food."

"Wait, what?" Zetarus was caught off-guarded by the Kingdra's words that he didn't know what to say.

"You are hopeless, Zetarus…" Claura said as she shook her head. "It's not that I am angry that you ate Xavier's food… But… Let me tell you one thing, when Xavier gets angry, he is VERY angry, and someone stealing his food is one of the things that can cause him to become angry."

"Wait, that's not it, Claura! I didn't do anything like that!" Zetarus tried to explain, but the Kingdra still continued speaking.

"You may not know this, but Xavier actually likes his food to be fatty and creamy, making his food a high-fat one…" Claura continued speaking. "Also, you may know that Xavier eats a large amount of food per meal… A large amount of high-fat food, I would say. And… I think you can think of what would happen if you eat Xavier's food…"

"Come to think about it…" Largo spoke up as he looked at the Garchomp. "Zetarus, I think you look quite a bit… fatter than before I met you yesterday…"

"H… HEY!" Zetarus turned his attention to the Alolan Marowak to scold him.

"… I knew it." Claura mumbled. "Anyway, I will go back to the town now… Hopefully, Xavier won't kill any of us when we met him next him."

After finished speaking, Claura moved through the trio and headed south toward the direction of the town, disappearing into the thick mist once again.

"… Geez!" Zetarus grumbled after seeing that Claura had already left. He then turned his attention to his younger brother. "Thank you for choosing the exactly RIGHT moment to say that, Largo."

"You're welcome, Zetarus." Largo replied with a crafty voice and a crafty look on his face.

"Cut it out, Largo." Natasha scolded her younger brother. "Besides, think about it. How could Zetarus get fat just from a single meal he just ate yesterday? Even if it's possible, it would still take some times before the change to the body becomes noticeable."

"Aww… You're no fun, Natasha." Largo mumbled.

"Still…" The Dragalge turned her attention to the Garchomp. "Largo was right. Zetarus, you are fatter than the last time we've seen you."

"Not you too, Natasha…" Zetarus groaned as he held his paw on his forehead.

"No, I didn't mean it that way…" Natasha quickly explained. "I mean… The first time we met you… In the Terra Room at the Desert Palace… Zetarus, you looked very undernourished, and you were so skinny that I could see some of your bones in your body. For the second time, at Fireview Palace, you looked a bit better, despite that you are still very skinny. For the third time, at the top balcony of Desert Palace, you looked much better than the first two times, and that was the first time that you looked like you are really 'alive'. And now…"

"It was thanked to my friends that I am like this." Zetarus said. "And that includes Freya too."

"Hey, Terrus asked you to take care of our little sister, not her taking care of you!" Largo spoke up. "Moreover, comparing you to Terrus, you are still thinner and less muscular than him."

"Terrus and I have different battle styles, Largo." Zetarus commented. "While both of us focus on offensive, Terrus also focuses on his defense too, while I focus on my speed instead. That's why our builds are different."

"Still…" Natasha stepped in between her brothers. "Shouldn't we keep going? We still have a lot to do."

"Agreed." Largo said before turning his attention to his elder brother. "Then, let's move, my 'beloved' brother."

"Of course, my brother." Zetarus replied.

As the trio finished their conversation, they resumed their journey to their destination, the Misty Shrine, which was not very far from where they were right now.

However…

"… What was Claura talking about? Me? Delivering food to Xavier? I don't know anything about that!" Zetarus thought as he walked alongside his siblings.

---

-Meanwhile…

"… Here we are…"

A Fighting and Dragon type Pokemon and a Dark type Pokemon stood in front of a large blood-red building located at the western edge of Shadowlost Wasteland. The building itself was partly built into the mountain behind it, which was the same mountain that formed the Darkveil Chasm. The front of the building itself was built in an ominous style, with the carvings of many menacing pictures such as the picture of the black moon, which was painted blood-red like the whole building, making it look like a blood moon…

However, for some reason, the same discomfort, anxiety and the feeling of someone looking at him that the Kommo-o felt since yesterday as he arrived at the Shadowlost Territory had become even more noticeable. While they never left him, Korben tried his hardest to ignore it. However, as he and his Zoroark companion reached the temple, the feelings he had was doubled for an unknown reason, and the Kommo-o started to feel his body shaking and his heart beating faster. And so, he decided to speak up in order not to let the feelings he had overcome him.

"S… So… This is the Newmoon Temple…" Korben decided to comment on the building in front of him. "This place really looks ominous…"

"For me, it's quite a contrary…" Fenrir Jr. commented. "As you can see, this place was blood-red, and blood is the fundamental liquid within every living creature's body… In other words, this place reminds me of our very existence… Our very life…"

As both Pokemon approached the temple entrance, they could see two Ghost type Pokemon named Golett in the black armor suit standing at the sides of the entrance, with a spear in each of their paw.

"… Good day, both of you." Fenrir Jr. greeted the Goletts as he and Korben approached the entrance of the temple. His appearance caused both Goletts to kneel down and put their paw on their chest in the manner that they were greeting their master.

"WELCOME, LORD FENRIR…" Both Goletts spoke in unison. "HOW CAN WE HELP YOU TODAY?"

"… I want to meet the Somber Priestess…" Fenrir Jr. answered with a cold voice and his arms crossed.

"ABSOLUTELY." The Goletts replied. "THE SOMBER PRIESTESS IS… DEALING WITH HER BUSSINESS IN THE SANCTUM OF THE TEMPLE. PLEASE PROCEED…"

"… Thank you…" Fenrir Jr. said.

"AND… YOU! THE FIGHTING TYPE!" The Goletts turned their attention to Korben and spoke up again with a much harsher voice. "WHAT IS YOUR BUSSINESS OF COMING TO THIS SACRED PLACE?"

"Wha—" Korben was startled a bit by the Goletts' sudden aggressive toward him.

"… He's my associate." Fenrir Jr. spoke up again. "He accompanied me here, and he's here to sightseeing this place too."

"OH, I SEE…" The Goletts spoke up in realization after hearing Fenrir Jr.'s words. Both of them then turned their attention to Korben again and spoke up. "WE'RE SORRY FOR OUR RUDE WELCOME. YOU MAY PASS, KOMMO-O."

"T… Thanks…" Korben wasn't sure what else to say after witnessing the Goletts' sudden change in their demeanor.

"… Let's go, Korben…" Fenrir Jr. mumbled as he walked pass both Goletts into the Newmoon Temple, and the Kommo-o quickly followed him.

---

-Inside Newmoon Temple…

As they entered the entrance of the temple, Korben and Fenrir Jr. found themselves in a long hallway that served as the foyer of the Newmoon Temple. Each side of the hallway stood several torches with the ominous blue flame being lit on each of them.

While it was true that the interior of the temple gave out an ominous feeling, Korben felt like the ominous feeling was tripled for him, as well as the terrible feeling he sensed since when he was outside, especially the feeling of someone looking at him despite that no one was around here except for Fenrir Jr. and some priests and priestesses of the temple, who didn't look at him. One more thing, there was one feeling that was amplified much more than anything else as he entered the temple. It was the feeling of nostalgia, a feeling of being here before in the past…

But how could that be? This was the first time that Korben had come to the Newmoon Temple, so how could he feel the nostalgia from a place that he hadn't visited before in his life?

"Wow…" Korben commented as he looked around the hallway that he was currently in right now, as a way to ignore his feelings again. "This place is… simpler than I thought…"

"Simple sometimes makes a better impression than complicated, though the same thing could be said to the complicated too…" Fenrir Jr. commented. "… Anyway, I'm sorry that those gatekeepers are a bit rude to you, Korben. They were just a bit too… duty-bound."

"Duty-bound?" Korben repeated the words he had just heard.

"… They were assigned the duty of the gatekeepers, and they took their job seriously… Too serious, if you ask me…" Fenrir Jr. explained. "They insist on calling me with that nonsense title, despite that I am not the lord of Shadowlost yet. I tried to stop them from doing so, but they never did, so I gave up…"

"I see. Don't worry about it. I don't mind at all." Korben said before he realized something. "Wait a minute… You told me that this place is just a temple, and this temple doesn't have anything extraordinary… So, why do they have to go all the way to assign two duty-bound Goletts as the gatekeepers?"

"… It's…" Fenrir Jr. slowly answered. "… I guess you could say that it was a way that we tried not to redo our mistake in the past…"

"Mistake in the past!?" For some reason, Korben was much more terrified than he should be after he heard Fenrir Jr.'s words.

"Yes…" Fenrir Jr. answered without looking at Korben. "Something terrible befell on us nineteen years ago from our mistake… While it may not cause much damage back then, it's just an action of setting a timed bomb that would explode later in the future, bringing even a greater calamity upon us…"

"Wha—" The Kommo-o was about to ask the Zoroark to elaborate his words when both of them found themselves out of the foyer and in the main hall of the Newmoon Temple.

The main hall of the Newmoon Temple made Korben realize that this place was much larger than he thought it would be. The main hall along was as large as a main square of a middle-sized town, large enough to have a town meeting in this place. There were many Pokemon in this temple, some were in the priest robe while the other seemed to be either the locals or the travelers coming here for sightseeing. On the left and the right of the main hall were several corridors that led to the other area of the Newmoon Temple such as the priests' private chambers, and on the other side of the main hall, the opposite side of the foyer, was a single altar located at the end of the main hall. On the ceiling of the temple were several exotic chandeliers with blue flame similar to the flame of the torches around the foyer and the main hall burning on it, giving the whole temple a dull but mysterious atmosphere.

However, the majesty of the Newmoon Temple wasn't the thing that attracted the attention of the Kommo-o and the Zoroark. It was a group of six Pokemon standing in the middle of the main hall. Three of them were the Pokemon wearing the somber priest robes of the Newmoon Temple. The other three of them, however, were different. One of them were wearing the white priest robe while the other two wore the white uniform similar to the one wore by the priest in the white robe, except that they were the heavy armor suits instead. The three Pokemon in the somber priest robes seemed to have a conversation with the other three Pokemon in the white uniform, but anyone could see that their conversation didn't seem to be very… friendly…

"…" Without saying anything, Fenrir Jr. quickly walked toward the group of six Pokemon, and Korben quickly followed them. As they approached the group, both Pokemon could hear the conversation between both groups clearly.

"…As I said before…" The Pokemon in the white priest robe, who was Beheeyem, spoke. He was accomplished by a Hitmonchan and a Hitmonlee in the white heavy heavy armor suit. "The goddess Yggdrasil is the creator, protector, and the arbiter of Symmetria. Her blessing salvages many from their demise, and—"

"… It doesn't matter what you say…" One of three Pokemon in the somber priest robe, a Mismagius, spoke up with a plain voice. "Newmoon Temple isn't a place for you and your goddess."

"And why are you still insisting on refusing our almighty goddess' blessing?" The Beheeyem continued speaking. "Her kindness extents to even the most sinful creatures. She has saved many souls from their drought everywhere else on this continent, and yet you people of the Newmoon Temple still refuse to bask in her glorious power."

"As you said before, Newmoon Temple isn't originally a ceremonial site." Another priest in the somber priest robe, an Arbok, spoke up. "Back before the Fallen Crisis, this place only served as an important landmark of our land. We only started to put this place into a good use when Shadowlost Territory was found, and its initial purpose wasn't for any ceremony either…"

"But that doesn't mean that this place couldn't become another sacred site for our lord and savior Goddess Yggdrasil." The Beheeyem spoke up again. "With your support and cooperation, everyone in this land of darkness will be saved by the power of our almighty goddess, or do you wish the people of this very land to not be saved?"

"… Our answer remained unchanged." The last Pokemon in a somber priest robe, who was a Zoroark wearing a demonic mask on the right part of her face. "… You all are allowed to promote your religion to the people of Shadowlost Territory, but we of the Newmoon Temple still have to refuse you and your goddess…"

"That's your answer, hm? How close-minded you are!" The Beheeyem spoke in a fake surprised voice. "Then, I guess we have nothing else to say today, and so, we shall take our leave right now. May the Goddess Yggdrasil be merciful on your souls…"

"…" The three priests of Newmoon Temple said nothing as the Beheeyem, the Hitmonlee and the Hitmonchan turned back and walked toward the exit of the temple, leaving them. They then remained silent for a few minutes when they realized that two new Pokemon were approaching them.

"… Fenrir Jr.?" The Zoroark priestess spoke up as she noticed a Zoroark and a Kommo-o approaching them.

"Good day, Aunt Hel." Fenrir Jr. greeted the Zoroark priestess politely. "I hope that you are doing well, though I can see that there was a… little inconvenient a minute ago…"

"…" Hel didn't say anything to her nephew.

"…Who are they? And what did they want from this place?" Fenrir Jr. asked.

"… They are… the missionary group from Theocracy of Venturnome, and… They want to… promote their religion and teaching about… their goddess, and they want to… turn the Newmoon Temple into their religion's site of Shadowlost Territory." Hel slowly answered.

"…Strange…" Fenrir Jr. commented. "The Pokemon of Theocracy of Venturnome always have a strong dislike toward us the Pokemon of Shadowlost Territory, and they would never want to involve themselves with us, and here they are… I can clearly sense that they are still disgusted by us, and yet they—"

"Either way…" Hel suddenly interrupted her nephew. "What are you doing here, Fenrir Jr.?"

"Your elder sister sent me here as her message boy." Fenrir Jr. answered as he picked a small letter from his bag and handed over it to his aunt. "This is for you, Aunt Hel."

"… Thanks." Hel took the letter from her nephew, and paused a few moment as she looked at the letter she received, and then she put it away. "… Anyway… Since you are already here, why don't you show your friends around here?"

"… Okay." Fenrir Jr. slowly nodded.

"Then, we shall take our leave right now." Hel said. "If you need anything, you know where to find me…"

After finished speaking, Hel and the other two priests walked away from where they were standing, leaving Fenrir Jr. and Korben in the middle of the main hall.

"… I thought that's going to be the end of my work for today, and yet Aunt Hel created another one for me…" Fenrir Jr. mumbled to himself.

"Don't worry about it." Korben spoke up. "I will be fine on my own. I will just taking a little tour in this place by myself. You don't have to—"

"Or maybe I could spice things up a little?" Fenrir Jr. spoke up with a crafty voice as he turned his attention to the Kommo-o. "I could tell you a little story that you won't hear anything else about this temple. Do you want to hear it?"

"What kind of story?" Korben asked.

"A story about hope and dream… And chaos…" Fenrir Jr. replied in an ominous voice. "About a wish… and a pain. About the beginning of the Newmoon Temple… As well as the tragedy that was set in motion…"

"What kind of story is that?!" Korben said before he remembered something. "Wait a minute, back when we were in the foyer, you said something like this before… About what happened in the past in this temple or something like that…"

"Ah… Good memory…" Fenrir Jr. said. "Yes, you're right. It's the same story… The story about the beginning of today's Newmoon Temple… As well as the terrible thing that happened nineteen years ago. Interest?"

"Hm… I'm not sure about it…" Korben replied. "I mean… It's a terrible incident, isn't it? And you did say that I won't hear this story from anywhere else, which means that no one else is going to talk about it, right? That sounds like this story is going to be some kind of secret that should be kept in the dark, and I am a foreigner to this land, so… Is it really okay for me to learn about this?"

"Haha… Nice thinking…" Fenrir Jr. complimented. "But you have nothing to worry about it… This story isn't really a secret… But it brought so many… unpleasant memory to everyone here, so they don't want to speak about it. I, however, wasn't affected by it very much, and I somewhat feel like I want to tell this story to you."

"If you say so…" Korben said. For some reason, he started to become interested in the story mentioned by the Zoroark.

"Great… But first, let me ask you a question…" Fenrir Jr. said. "… If someone offers you the ultimate power that will allow you to defeat even the strongest foe, but in return, you will have to sacrifice someone dear to you. Will you accept their offer?"

"What kind of terrible offer is that?" Korben answered with his arms crossed. "That's just a mindless option. Why would I sacrifice someone just for power? It isn't worth a life of innocent Pokemon at all! I would never do that, no matter what benefit I would gain from doing it."

"Hm… I don't know if that's an honorable answer… Or a naïve one…" Fenrir Jr. mumbled to himself before he started speaking again with an enigmatic voice. "Very well, then… Let me tell you a story... Fifty years ago… In the land where the light never reaches… There was a small village shrouded in the eternal twilight… The village was small and far from the modern civilization, yet everyone in the village was able to live together in harmony without any dispute or misery… Until one day… A berserk Pokemon suddenly appeared outside the village, and it destroyed everything in its path, including a life of one female Pokemon who lived in that village. The dead of that female Pokemon caused her husband to face a miserable death, and their two sons mysteriously disappeared afterward, along with that berserk Pokemon, and no one had ever heard of them again…"

"…" Korben carefully listened to Fenrir Jr.'s story.

"After that day, the land around the village had gradually become more and more dangerous, with wild Pokemon roaming everywhere around the village, turning the once-peaceful land into the perilous wasteland…" Fenrir Jr. continued the story. "One of the most terrifying thing was the mindless monster that found Skeleton Woods as their home 7 years after the first tragedy, or 43 years ago, turning the dark woods into the graveyard of many unlucky Pokemon… Some says that this monster suddenly appeared in the Skeleton Woods 43 years ago, while some claims that the monster had been living in the woods since long before it matured into a creature capable of killing other Pokemon in the heartless way…"

"…" Korben turned his face away a bit, as he actually knew the true identity of the 'monster' mentioned in the story of Fenrir Jr. This monster, however, was one of the Pokemon that the Kommo-o didn't want to think of right now.

"But as sudden as it appeared, the monster of the Skeleton Woods disappeared 33 years ago, and the village of darkness was freed from one incident… And was swallowed into another one… The Fallen Crisis…" Fenrir Jr. continued the story. "The Fallen Crisis caused the village of darkness to experience the first snowfall, which was impossible in the normal condition because the village was located far to the south by that time. While it might sound delightful, it wasn't… The sudden change of climate caused many plants around the village to die, and many Pokemon fell ill as they weren't able to adapt themselves to this sudden change… Luckily, the Fallen Crisis was over before any of the village's residents died… However, the Fallen Crisis caused the entire area around the village to move to the north, permanently lowering the overall climate of the area, forcing the Pokemon of the village to migrate to the south, to the area with a bit warmer climate, and they also had to spend several years trying to adapt themselves to the new climate, which, fortunately, wasn't as drastic as the one during the Fallen Crisis."

"Hold on a minute…" Korben spoke up. "The stories of yours are quite good, but I don't see any connection between each of them. The only connection between each story that I can pinpoint is that—"

"All stories told the terrible incidents that the village of darkness had faced." Fenrir Jr. finished Korben's words. "You may already figure out that the area of village of darkness in my stories is the area of today's Shadowlost Territory, and the village of darkness in the stories was the Lunar Village."

"Lunar Village? Not Shadowlost City?" Korben asked. "And… I have never heard of Lunar Village before. Is it another settlement in Shadowlost Territory?"

"More like the abandoned ruins." Fenrir Jr. replied. "After the Fallen Crisis, Lunar Village was sent to the northernmost area of today's Symmetria, and as I told you, the temperature of that area is too cold for the village's residents, and they decided to migrate to the wasteland to the south, which was a bit warmer than the area of Lunar Village. They decided not to go further south because doing so would result in them ending up in the frigid area of Queendom of Riverbrine, and the area other than today's Shadowlost Territory wouldn't be covered in the eternal twilight, which was what they were used to. That's how Shadowlost City was found."

"And what about the Lunar Village?" Korben asked.

"It was abandoned." Fenrir Jr. answered. "Its current location would be somewhere beyond Darkveil Chasm, somewhere near Cape of No Return. I heard that the abandoned Lunar Village had become the lair of Shadow Pokemon, but I don't have any official confirmation about this because I have never gone there, as the area of Cape of No Return is the most dangerous area in the entire Shadowlost Territory due to a large population of Shadow Pokemon being found there."

"I see…" Korben nodded. He felt like Fenrir Jr.'s words disturbed his mind somehow, but he couldn't tell why. "Even so, other than all of them being the stories of horrible incidents, I still don't see any connection between them and the Newmoon Temple."

"… Here we are…" Fenrir Jr. spoke up as he turned his attention from the Kommo-o to something in front of him. This was the moment when Korben realized that he was no longer standing in the middle of the main hall, but he was standing at the end of the main hall, on the opposite side of where the foyer was, which meant that he and Fenrir Jr. must have been slowly walking as the Zoroark told the stories.

And here…

At this spot, right in front of where Fenrir Jr. stood was a single altar that Korben had noticed since when he entered the main hall. For some reason, since when he stepped into the main hall, Korben had always felt like this altar was the most notable spot in the entire hall, and he had been feeling like he was being drawn to this spot, and now, his feeling was much stronger than before…

As he looked at it closely, Korben could see that the altar was… ominous. The entire altar was made of some kind of dark stone, which was being carved with many demonic figures such as the unholy marking or the face of demons. On the top of the altar was a dark stone that was being carved in the shape of a head of some demonic creature that didn't resemble any kind of Pokemon. The eyes of the demon statue on the top of the altar were staring at the distant, and Korben felt like this gaze was piercing his soul right now…

"If I have to pinpoint the most important spot in the entire temple, it would be this one…" Fenrir Jr. spoke up while Korben was inspecting the altar. "This is… the Altar of Desire…"

"That sounds… enigmatic…" Korben commented after he finished inspecting the altar.
"I don't think so…" Fenrir Jr. said. "If we replace the word 'Desire' with the word 'Wish', the name would sound positive, yet the meaning of it doesn't change at all…"

"Wait a minute…" Korben started to realize the hidden meaning within the words of the Zoroark. "Don't tell me that…"

"… Since the beginning of the historical report of the land of darkness, Newmoon Temple had always been the integral part of this land…" Fenrir Jr. continued the story. "However, while being an important landmark, Newmoon Temple never played any important role in the history of the land of darkness. It had always been just the ruins located near the settlement… But then, after the Pokemon of Lunar Village migrated and found Shadowlost City, which was located not too far from the temple itself, they decided to put the temple into a good use. They sent a team of Pokemon to renovate the forsaken ruins into a usable temple… And that's when they discovered this altar hidden deep in the buried part of the temple…"

"Let me guess…" Korben spoke up. "That's when an even more terrible incident befell on this land, right?"

"Wrong." Fenrir Jr. revealed. "After the renovation of the temple was finished, the main hall of Newmoon Temple was extended to the area where the altar was located because this altar is an important discovery of the temple. However, after that day, the number of wild Pokemon in the Shadowlost Wasteland had gradually decreased, and the temperature around the wasteland had gradually increased to our pleasure. Most important of all, just a few years after the discovery of the altar, the land of darkness was granted independence, and Shadowlost Territory was found. After all misfortune we had faced throughout these past decades, why were we blessed with these fortunes in such a short amount of time? The answer that came to the mind of everyone was the discovery of this altar, which led them to believe that this altar was the 'Lucky Altar' and was adored as the sacred place of the land of darkness."

"That sounds… Unbelievable." Korben commented. "I didn't mean to say that I don't believe the whole story about it… But it's just… unbelievable…"

"Indeed." Fenrir Jr. nodded. "I wouldn't believe in all of these too if the whole story didn't come from my mother and her siblings as they had experienced the whole thing first-handed."

"... Anyway…" Korben spoke up again. "What happen next?"

"… And so, the altar was worshipped as the sacred place of Shadowlost Territory, and it attracted many Pokemon to visit the newly-renovated Newmoon Temple..." Fenrir Jr. continued the story. "Of course, when many Pokemon shared the same beliefs in an object, there was some Pokemon that… didn't quite believe in the power of this altar. And so, one day, in the hour that the temple was closed and no visitor was allowed inside the temple, one non-believer, who was actually a priest of Newmoon Temple, decided to approach the altar out of their determination to prove that this altar had nothing to do with the fortune of Shadowlost Territory. They, of course, ignored the voice of their fellow priests that no one, not even the high-priest of the temple, was allowed to touch the altar due to it being a sacred spot. However… Just as they placed their paw on the altar, their body suddenly froze, as if they were cursed with petrifaction."

"Petrifaction?" Korben said as he looked at the altar. "So, this altar is actually a cursed altar?"

"… But just a few minutes after they touched the altar, their body returned to normal…" Fenrir Jr. continued the story. "However, instead of doing anything else to the altar, that priest retreated from the main hall and returned to their private chamber… And what awaited them inside their chamber was something unbelievable… It was… a huge pile of gold coin… Much more than the amount of Poke earned by an average resident of Symmetria per year…"

"That's impossible!" Korben said. "How could a thing like that happen?!"

"That's what all other priests in the Newmoon Temple thought too, but what unfolded before their eyes told otherwise…" Fenrir Jr. said. "And the only explanation of this was… the altar, and they were right. The other priests had tried to touch the altar like what the non-believer did, and they had faced with a similar result."

"… What happened to them?" Korben asked.

"… All of them reported the same thing… That after they touched the altar, they heard a sinister voice asking for their greatest desire, and when they replied, the voice said that it would grant them their wish…" Fenrir Jr. answered. "And when they returned to normal, they found that… What they desired the most, be money, objects, or even love, had appeared right before their eyes…"

"Unbelievable…" Korben mumbled as he glanced at the altar. "Such a thing like that really exists… But… If that's true, then why…"

"… It's because there's always a price to be paid for each desire that's fulfilled…" Fenrir Jr. replied in an ominous voice. "The next day after the day when the wishes were granted, the news had arrived to the Newmoon Temple, to each priest that got their desire fulfilled, and all of them were very far from being the good news. The non-believer who received a large amount of fortune received the news of their daughter's sudden illness… The priest who was granted a large estate received the news that their wife had lost her arms… The priest who was granted the love they sought for so long… received the news of their parents' demise…"

"So…" Korben said. "You want to tell me that the altar has granted wishes at the exchange of a price?"

"Precisely." Fenrir Jr. replied. "The story of the wish-granting altar soon reached the ears of the chancellor and the Serpent General, and both of them, along with the High priest of Newmoon Temple, decided that the power of the altar was too dangerous for the whole world. And so, the three of them concealed the story of the wish-granting altar within the Newmoon Temple and its priests, so that the rest of the world would never learn of this forbidden power and use it to bring an even greater loss."

"… But things didn't turn out like what they want, right?" Korben asked.

"We Pokemon are feeble and imbecile creatures, after all…" Fenrir Jr. nodded. "Despite the chancellor's order, many priests of Newmoon Temple still secretly used the altar to get their wishes granted, even if they have to lose something in their life. And soon, the news of the altar and its power leaked to the outside world, to some residents of Shadowlost Territory, which caused many Pokemon to pay a visit to the Newmoon Temple in order to get their wishes granted, despite knowing that they would lose something in the process. And so, many innocent lives were lost just because of the avarice within the heart of us, Pokemon, and the land of darkness was enveloped in another chaos, just like the time before the altar was discovered... Or maybe even worse…"

"Terrible…" Korben commented. "Those who abuses the power to their own greed… Unacceptable…"

"… Isn't that the basic rule of the world?" Fenrir Jr. spoke as he looked at the Kommo-o. "Those who were born to the royal family are able to live a luxurious life while those who were born to the family of pleasant have to live a miserable life… Isn't this the truth of the world? After all… Equality is just nothing but an illusion created by those who couldn't accept how the world works…"

"…" Korben said nothing after hearing the Zoroark's words.

"… Forgive me for being unpleasant, Korben…" Fenrir Jr. said as he noticed the Kommo-o's silence.

"… Anyway…" Korben decided not to say anything else about Fenrir Jr.'s words about equality. "What happened afterward to the altar? Since when we entered this place, I don't see anyone coming here to get their wishes granted."

"It's because the altar had already lost its power 19 years ago…" Fenrir Jr. answered.

"Lost it power?" Korben repeated the words he had just heard. "What exactly happened to the altar?"

Fenrir Jr. was about to answer the Kommo-o's question, but before he was able to do so…

"… The artifact on the altar wassssssss sssssssstolen…"

A blunt voice was suddenly heard by the Zoroark and the Kommo-o. Both Pokemon then turned back and saw another Zoroark standing right behind them. This Zoroark was wearing a black armor suit, as well as a demonic mask similar to the one wore by Hel. However, the demonic mask wore by this Zoroark was wore on the left side of his face instead.

"… Uncle Jormungand…" Fenrir Jr. mumbled the name of the Zoroark who had just appeared.

"… In the fateful night nineteen yearssssss ago, the artifact on the altar had myssssssterioussssly disssssssappeared…" Jormungand spoke as he slowly approached the altar, walking pass Fenrir Jr. and Korben. "No one know what exactly happened that night, except that in the evening of the previoussssss day, the artifact wasssss ssssssstil on the altar, and in the next morning, the artifact wasssssssssssss gone. The only explanation we have isssssss that ssssssomeone had ssssssstolen the artifact from this temple."

"The… artifact?" Korben said. "What does that artifact have to do with the altar and its wish-granting power?"

"… While many Pokemon believe that the altar hassssssssss the power to grant wishessssssss, most of them don't know that the altar actually ssssssssserved as a link between them and the real wisssssssh-granter, the artifact." Jormungand answered. "The artifact on the altar isssssssss actually the thing with a power to grant wishessssssss, assssssss well assssssss the power to take the price from the one who got their wishesssssss granted."

"The artifact… With the power to grant the wish at the cost of losing something…" Korben mumbled to himself. For some reason, he felt like the whole lore about the artifact was strangely familiar, as if he had heard about it before...

"… After the artifact wassssssss ssssssstolen, the altar lossssssst itsssssss wissssssh-granting power…" Jormungand continued the story. "…. And Ssssssshadowlost Territory was finally sssssssspared from the chaosssssss that almost sssssswallowed the whole land…"

"… I wouldn't say so…" Fenrir Jr. spoke up. "Remember the story of the terrible incidents that befell on the land of darkness before the altar and the artifact were discovered, and the fortune faced by the very same land after the artifact and the altar were discovered? And… Do you remember what happened right after the artifact was stolen from Newmoon Temple?"

"… The Bloodmoon War." Jormungand replied with an ominous voice.

"And what about other terrible incidents that happened here after the artifact was stolen, such as the sudden increasing number of Shadow Pokemon in the area beyond Darkveil Chasm, as well as the sudden appearance of Shadow Pokemon in the other area of Shadowlost Territory?" Fenrir Jr. spoke with his arms crossed. "And this doesn't count the fact that the artifact could be in the hand of someone who may use it for their own greed, at the cost of another innocent life. I wouldn't say that Shadowlost Territory was finally spared from the chaos. It seems like we are on a timed bomb that could explode and bring another suffering upon our land at any moment."

"... Between having an artifact with a power to give and take everywhere and facing ssssssssseveral terrible incidentssssssss… What a good choice we have here…" Jormungand spoke with a sarcastic voice. "But at least… We don't have to worry that anyone would ussssssse the artifact for their own benefit."

"…How so?" Fenrir Jr. asked.

"… You haven't heard thissssssss part from ussssssss yet, so it's completely understandable for you to be confusssssssed…" Jormungand said. "In order for sssssssssomeone to get their wishesssssssss granted by the artifact, they need to either have the artifact on the altar or have the artifact in their possssssssssssessssssssssssssion and be at where the altar isssssssss at the sssssssssssame time, which meanssssssssss that, unlessssssssssss the one with the artifact isssssssssss right here, in front of the altar, their wishessssssssssss would never be granted."

"I see it now." Korben spoke up. "That's why they have two gatekeepers at the entrance of the temple, because if the one with the artifact tries to get their wishes granted, they would avoid the time when the temple is crowded, and if they tried to sneak into the temple after it was closed, they would have to pass the gatekeepers, which isn't an easy thing to do."

"… That'sssssss the leassssssst we could do right now…." Jormungand said.

"… And I guess that's the end of the whole story, as of right now…" Fenrir Jr. spoke up. "… But I don't think the story would end right here… Either another terrible incident happens… Or the artifact is retrieved, along with people's avarice… Both cases would surely extend the story… To the path that's far from the path of a good ending…"

"Thank you for telling me the whole story, Fenrir Jr. You too, Jormungand." Korben said. He wasn't sure how to address the Serpent General, but he decided not to use any honorific title as he knew that the Illunight family hated it. "I can see why others wouldn't want to tell this story, so… Thanks."

"My pleasure…" Fenrir Jr. replied.

"…" Jormungand lowered his head a bit in the manner of accepting the Kommo-o's thanks.

"… Jormungand?"

An emotionless feminine voice turned the attention of the two male Zoroark and a Kommo-o to behind them, and they found another Zoroark standing behind them. This Zoroark, however, was the high-priest of Newmoon Temple, Hel.

"Hel?" Jormungand spoke as his younger sister approached him. "Where have you been until now?"

"… Sis sent me a letter via her son earlier…" Hel answered as she glanced at Fenrir Jr. a bit. "… It's just… You know… an official approval document… About tomorrow…"

"… I see…" Jormungand mumbled. Korben could feel like Hel and Jormungand glanced at him a bit when Hel mentioned 'an official order', and the Kommo-o could grasp what they meant by that…

"… Tomorrow? Official approval document?" Fenrir Jr. spoke up. "What are you talking about?"

"… There's going to be a big pilgrimage starting tomorrow, and everyone from the Newmoon Temple will join this pilgrimage." Hel answered. "We will leave tomorrow, and we won't be back until a few days later… Your mother has just sent the official approval document of this pilgrimage today via you, Fenrir Jr."

"A pilgrimage? This soon?" Fenrir Jr. commented with a snarky voice. "… Heh… If this doesn't come from you, and there isn't an official approval document from mom, then I would have guessed that this whole pilgrimage thing is just a big scam to get everyone out of the temple… And then something really really bad is going to happen here…"

"… Either way…" Hel spoke up again, trying not to let her nephew notice something wrong within her tone. "Starting tomorrow, Newmoon Temple will be closed to the visitors until five days from now on. The notice of this should be revealed to the public soon…"

"… That means that you are very lucky to be able to visit Newmoon Temple before its temporary closure, Korben." Fenrir Jr. spoke as he turned his attention to the Kommo-o before he seemed to realize something. "… And since you're already here, why don't you give your prayer to the Altar of Desire?"

"Prayer?" Korben repeated the words he had just heard. "Is it okay for me to do that?"

"Everyone always did it back when the artifact wasn't stolen anyway, but now that the artifact was gone, this altar is nothing more than just a stone pillar…" Fenrir Jr. said. "And don't worry that doing so would be against your religion too, because Newmoon Temple and this altar don't belong to any religion to begin with."

"I… I am not religious anyway…" Korben said. "… But I guess I could give it a try anyway. I mean, if the high-priest doesn't have any problem with me doing that, of course."

"… Go ahead." Hel said. "After all… Nothing's going to happen, and everyone has already ignored that the temple prohibit touching the altar anyway…"

"Thanks, Aunt Hel." Fenrir Jr. spoke with a crafty voice before turning his attention to the Kommo-o. "Now, then… Shall we?"

"Um…" Korben said as he looked at the altar. "… What must I do?"

"Simple." Fenrir Jr. replied as he approached the altar once again and stopped right in front of it. "All you have to do is place your paw on the altar, close your eyes for a few second, and that's all."

"That's it?" Korben said as he watched the Zoroark placed his paw on the top of the altar, on the part that seemed to be the head of the demon statue on the altar. The Zoroark then closed his eyes for ten seconds before he opened them and lifted his paw from the altar. "That's so… simple."

"Were you expecting anything else?" Fenrir Jr. asked as he left where the altar was.

"When you mentioned 'prayer', I thought that there would be, you know, think deeply about yourself and your feeling as we close our eyes." Korben said. "But… Just a few seconds won't be enough to do that…"

"You don't have to think of anything at all, if you want." Fenrir Jr. said. "Or you can just think of anything while you close your eyes… Such as what would a girl you have a crush on look like when she takes off your cloth."

"Wha—?!" Korben's face suddenly turned red after hearing the Zoroark's words. "What's with an idea like that?!"

"Sigh… Perverted nephew…" Hel spoke up and sighed. "Saying something like that inside the temple… Aren't you afraid of the sin you've committed, Fenrir Jr.?"

"I am a sinful creature, after all." Fenrir Jr. said with a crafty voice. "No matter how much good deed I did or how much sin I committed, I would never ascend to the heaven anyway…"

"… Aren't you going to pray?" Jormungand spoke up to Korben after keeping silent for sometimes.

"Oh." Korben replied. "Okay, I will do it now."

Korben approached the altar and stopped right in front of it, looking at the demonic statue on the top of the altar. The statue was glaring at the Pokemon in front of it, giving the Kommo-o an extreme uneasy feeling, as if someone was staring into his soul…

"Go ahead." Fenrir Jr. said.

"Hm." Korben nodded to the Zoroark before he reached his paw toward the altar and placed it on the head of the statue...

But then…

---

"TELL ME WHAT YOU DESIRE…"

---

"Korben!"

"Wha…"

The Kommo-o opened his eyes and found that, instead of standing in front of the altar, he was now lying on the floor of the temple, and three Zoroark were surrounding him.

"W… What happens… to me?" Korben asked slowly as he tried to sit. Right now, he felt very inert, as if his entire body had stopped working until a few seconds ago, and now his body was slowly rebooted. "Why am I… on the floor?"

"… After touching the altar, your body… stopped moving, as if you were… petrified." Fenrir Jr. answered. "If Uncle Jormungand didn't pull you away from the altar, who know how long you would stay like that."

"I… see…" Korben mumbled as he looked as his paw, unsure what to say anything else.

"… What about you?" Fenrir Jr. asked. "What happens to you after you touched the altar?"

"I… I don't know…" Korben answered with an uncertain voice. "Everything was dark… And then… I'm not sure what happened after that…"

"… I see…" Fenrir Jr. replied with a skeptical voice. "… Could it be that you were exposed to an excessive amount of chaotic force? Shadowlost Territory is a land full with many… unnatural forces, and I heard that this altar has a high concentration of a negative energy, right, Aunt He—"

Fenrir Jr.'s words was paused as the young Zoroark noticed something that caught his attention, his uncle and aunt. Since the moment that Korben regained his consciousness, Hel and Jormungand hadn't spoken anything, not even a single word. And now, both of them weren't acting natural. Hel was staying still, with her face remained without a tiny bit of any emotion, as if she was frozen in the place of the Kommo-o. Jormungand, on the other hand, was very restless, as if something had greatly disturbed him, despite that it was clear that he was trying not to show it. Nevertheless, there was one thing that both Hel and Jormungand did right now…

Both of them were staring intensely at Korben…

"… Are you listening, Uncle Jormungand, Aunt Hel?" Fenrir Jr. spoke again as he was quite sure that both his uncle and aunt didn't listen to him before.

"…Hm?" Hel was the first one who snapped out of her trance. "… What?"

"… Either way…" Fenrir Jr. ignored his aunt and turned his attention back to the the Kommo-o. "Korben, you must be tired after this whole thing. Why don't you return to the city and call it a day?"

"… Good idea." Korben replied as he felt like he really needed a rest, and he wanted to get away from the negative feeling that had been plaguing his mind since when he arrived at this temple.

"Then, I will escort you back to the city. After all, I need to report to the chancellor that the high-priest had safely received her message." Fenrir Jr. said.

"Thanks, Fenrir Jr." Korben said.

"… That's… unusual…" Hel spoke up, turning the attention of Fenrir Jr. and Korben to her. "… Usually, you aren't a type who could easily befriend anyone, are you, Fenrir Jr.? While Princess Natasha was easily able to befriend you, it took Prince Largo a few weeks to do the same thing… And now…"

"… I know what you are trying to say." Fenrir Jr. replied. "To be honest, I am also surprised by all of this too… But again, sometimes, I don't really understand myself, so, that's okay…"

"Suit yourself…" Hel replied.

"Then…" Fenrir Jr. was about to ask Korben to leave with him when he remembered something. The young Zoroark then turned his attention toward his uncle and started speaking again. "… Speaking of which… Uncle Jormungand, what is the general of Shadowlost's special force doing in a time and a place like this?"

"…" Instead of answering his nephew's question, Jormungand turned his attention toward Korben and slowly approached him. "… If I remember correctly, you are… Korben the Kommo-o, right?"

"Yes?" Korben replied to the Zoroark. "Do you need something from me?"

"… Actually…" Jormungand reached his paw into his pocket and pulled out an envelope. "… A few hourssssssssssssss earlier, I ran into…. A certain Pokemon who wasssssssss... looking for a Kommo-o named Korben, and he asked me to deliver this to you after I mentioned that I knew a Pokemon with a name and sssssssspecie like that."

"O… Okay." Korben said as he received the enveloped from Jormungand. "T… Thank you for delivering this to me."

"… Accepting a request from a stranger... That's not like you at all, Uncle Jormungand." Fenrir Jr. commented. "Who knows what might be in that envelope… Maybe it's a mail bomb or—"

"You overthink it, Fenrir Jr." Jormungand replied.

"Moreover…" Fenrir Jr. continued speaking. "… Using the high-rank general of Shadowlost Territory as his personal deliveryman… What kind of Pokemon is he? Is he a native or a foreign—"

"Sssssssssstop being pessssssssssssimist like your mother, Fenrir Jr." Jormungand scolded. "The Pokemon who asked me to do this sssssssssssssssounded really desssssssssssperate, so…"

"Sigh…" Fenrir Jr. interrupted Jormungand's words by sighing. The young Zoroark then turned his attention to his Kommo-o companion. "… Let's go, Korben."

"O… Okay…" Korben nodded to the young Zoroark. He and Fenrir Jr. then started walking toward the foyer of the temple. However, just after both of them walked for a few steps…

"… Tell me once last thing, Hel." Korben suddenly stopped walking and turned his attention back to two Zoroark that were standing behind him and Fenrir Jr., before he started speaking once again. "… What is the kind of the artifact that was stolen from the altar?"

"Hm?" Not only Hel, but Jormungand and Fenrir Jr. also had their attention on the Kommo-o after hearing his question.

"O… Oh…" Realizing that he was now the center of attention, Korben spoke up with a flustered voice. "I… Is it something that's a secret to the outsider?"

"… No, it's fine." Hel replied with a plain voice. "… Answering your question, the artifact that was stolen nineteen years ago is… a diadem."

"A… A diadem?!" Korben spoke with a shaking voice after hearing the answer from the female Zoroark.

"Yes… A diadem… An ornament accessory that's used as a headgear, similar to circlet, headdress or tiara…" Hel continued speaking. "The entire diadem was made from pure silver with many gemstones decorated on it. The unique carvings on the diadem itself are highly cherished in its historical value, but the most outstanding thing on that diadem is the gemstone that's decorated at the center of the diadem, the Black Moon."

"Black Moon?" Fenrir Jr. spoke up. "You mean… the biggest black diamond that's ever discovered?"

"Right, that one…" Hel answered. "Normally, diamond is very hard to find, but black diamond is harder to come by because it's a diamond that has absorbed the dark minerals under the ground, turning the entire thing into a black gemstone. And so, it can only be found in the Shadowlost Territory, and since Black Moon is the biggest black diamond ever discovered… So…"

"Not only the artifact, the diadem, isssssssssss valuable in the term of itsssssssss historical value, but it also hassssssssss its own value in term of how much it'ssssssssss worth in money…" Jormungand spoke up. "… And we haven't talked about the fact that thissssssssss diadem could be used to get wishessssssss granted yet…"

"… I could understand more and more about why this artifact is highly sought…" Fenrir Jr. commented.

"Anyway…" Hel turned her attention back to the Kommo-o. "… Does my answer satisfy you, young Kommo-o?"

"Hm? O… Of course." Korben replied. "T… Thank you for answering anyway, Hel."

"Glad to quench your thirst for wisdom, young Kommo-o." Hel nodded in response.

"… Let's go already, Korben." Fenrir Jr. spoke up to the Kommo-o before turning his attention back to his uncle and his aunt. "Thank you for today, Aunt Hel, Uncle Jormungand, and farewell for now."

"Right." Korben spoke up. "Thank you for everything, Hel. You too, Jormungand. Good bye."

"… Good bye, both of you." Hel spoke up. "May the dark force embrace your soul…"

"… May we meet again… ssssssssssssssoon." Jormungand said while lowering his voice at the last words in his sentence.

After finishing their farewell, Fenrir Jr. and Korben walked toward the foyer of the temple before they exited the Newmoon Temple, leaving Hel and Jormungand in the main hall of the temple, along with other priests who were minding their business.

"… That Kommo-o…" Hel spoke up after seeing that her nephew and his companion had already left the temple. "… He's special, isn't he?"

"Hm…" Jormungand nodded in response. "… Hisssssssssssss kind isssssssssss rare, after all…"

"… Come to think of it, he's the second Kommo-o that we have met in our lifetime, isn't he?" Hel continued speaking. "I remember that… There was a female Kommo-o who worked as the priestess of Newmoon Temple for several years before she mysteriously disappeared…"

"… If I remember correctly, didn't ssssssssshe go misssssssssssssssing during the Bloodmoon War?" Jormungand said as he looked at his younger sister. "After the war, I received a report that sssssssssseveral priestsssssssss and priesssssssstessssssessssssss had died or gone misssssssssssssssing, and I remembered that I sssssssssssaw a Kommo-o being in the lisssssssssssssst…"

"… Actually…" Hel spoke up again. "… That Kommo-o priestess had gone missing just a bit before the Bloodmoon War started, and either the one who wrote the report thought that she went missing during the war, or they were too lazy to write a separate case for her."

"… Now that I think about it again…" Jormungand spoke up again. "… If that Kommo-o priesssssssssstessssssssssss went missssssssssssssing jussssssssssst a bit before the Bloodmoon War ssssssssssssstarted, then ssssssssssshe would have gone misssssssssssing around the time that the artifact was ssssssssssstolen…"

"Jormungand…" Hel turned her attention to her elder brother with a grim look on her face. "Don't tell me that you are thinking that…"

"… And if I am right…" Jormungand spoke while still having his attention on the way to the exit of the temple. "It would mean that… The young Kommo-o who vissssssssssssssssssited Newmoon Temple today… And the female Kommo-o who worked asssssssssssss the priesssssssssssssstessssssssssssssss of Newmoon Temple nineteen yearssssssssssssss ago…"

"…" Hel said nothing and had her attention on the way to the exit of the temple too.

"… I will keep an eye on that Kommo-o…" Jormungand spoke up with a grim voice. "… After all, we have already lossssssssssssssst so many thingssssssssssssss in our life, and I refusssssssssssssse to losssssssssssse anything elsssssssssssse, even if it meanssssssssssssss that I have to… ssssssssssssspill my venom."

---

-Meanwhile…

"This place's… enchanting."

Three Pokemon, a female Dragalge, a male Alolan Marowak, and a male Garchomp, stepped into a lone building located on the northern shore of Venom Island. This place was called the Misty Shrine, which was perhaps the only building located on the northern part of Venom Island due to the excessive amount of poisonous fume on this part of the island, which caused this shrine to be void of any visitors most of the time. Right now, however, the Misty Shrine received a visited from three Pokemon from Dustorm Empire, who wished to ask the shrine to awake a sacred power within one of them…

Outside the shrine, the whole structure of the shrine was almost impossible due to the fog being very thick in this area. However, as the three visitors stepped into the shrine, they could see the architecture of this place wasn't what they used to see. The style of this shrine's architecture was much smoother and more sophisticated than the architecture of Shadowlost, which were rather primitive and chaotic (According to Natasha). For example, there were several carvings of flowers inside the shrine, all which were very refined and carefully carved. Overall, the architecture of this shrine resembled the architecture of Leafburg, but…

"Actually…" Natasha spoke up after she and her brothers entered the shrine. "I heard that this place was built by the Fairy type inhabitants before the old Fairy Isle was turned into Venom Island after the Fallen Crisis, so… The architecture of this place is the same as Venturnome's."

As the three Pokemon walked along the hallway of the shrine, all of them could feel that this shrine was full with a large amount of mystical power, a power that's beyond any explanation. The power gradually grew stronger as the three of them walked deeper into the shrine, until…

"… An altar?"

As they reached the end of the temple, the three visitors stopped in front of a small shrine located at the end of the hall. This altar was small and humble, making many Pokemon consider it as an insignificant place, but not for these three visitors…

"… It's your time, Natasha." Largo was the first one that spoke up after a long silence since when the three of them entered the shrine.

"I know…" Natasha replied to her younger brother before turning her attention to the altar. "… Mother, please watch over me…"

After finished speaking, Natasha gracefully walked forward and stopped right in front of the altar. The Dragalge then kneeled down and placed her fin on her chest, praying from the bottom of her heart.

"…" While their elder sister was praying to the altar, Largo and Zetarus said nothing as they silently watched their elder sister proceeding with the small ritual requiring for her to awaken the power within her veins…

And then…

A minute after Natasha started praying, a dark purple aura suddenly appeared out of nowhere and formed around the body of the Dragalge, but she still didn't budge. The Dragalge continued praying as the dark purple aura embraced her body, awaking the sacred power within her body. Right behind her, her younger brothers were watching her silently, and they would be more surprised about this whole ritual if this was their first time seeing the power of legend being bestowed to a Pokemon…

"… Ah!"

As soon as the dark purple aura was absorbed into her body, Natasha quickly opened eyes. The Dragalge then quickly stood up and looked around, as if she was searching for something.

"Natasha!" Largo quickly approached his elder sister after seeing that she had completed the ritual, followed by Zetarus who casually followed his sibling. "Are you alright? How are you feeling right now?"

"I… I heard her voice…" Natasha slowly replied. "I… heard mother's voice… Just a second ago."

"Mother?" Largo repeated the words he had just heard. "You mean the late Empress Sharon?"

"Right…" Natasha answered. "I could still remember her voice clearly… There's no way that I am mistaking this."

"Then…" Largo continued speaking. "What did mother tell you?"

"I… I couldn't hear her clearly…" Natasha answered. "But… Her voice is so kind and serene… And a bit sad too."

"Sad?" Largo looked at his elder sister. "What do you mean by that?"

"I don't know…" Natasha replied. "It's as if she was trying to tell or warn me about something, but…"

"Anyway." Zetarus spoke up as he reached where his siblings were standing right now. "Natasha, you are now the Heroine of Poison type, right?"

"… Right." Natasha answered as she flipped her fin and found something new on there, which was none other than the proof that she was now the Heroine of Legend, the Mark of Legend.

"And if I remember correctly, when he became the Hero of Ground type, Terrus got a new, fancy weapon, right?" Zetarus continued speaking.

"…" Natasha picked her weapon, a whip, up and found that something also happened to it too. First, the handle of the whip was turned into pure silver with many flower carvings on it. For the whip itself, it had turned dark purple similar to the aura that surrounded its owner a minute ago, making it look like it was always dripped with deadly poison that could poison anyone that got hit by it. Moreover, the whip was much more flexible than before, so it won't break or be cut easily, and even if it was cut, it would regenerate itself within a few seconds, making it a reliable weapon.

"That must be the sacred weapon of the Heroine of Poison type…" Largo commented. "I can feel its power emitting from itself…"

"… I remember now…" Natasha spoke up. "… I remember that mother also had a weapon like this too, but I never saw her using it because she didn't want to hurt anyone…"

"Mother…" Largo mumbled, reminiscing a woman who was his body, despite not being a biological one.

"… In the honor of our mother, I shall name my weapon after her weapon…" Natasha spoke up as she held her whip with her fin. "… I'm counting on you, my Beryl Whip."

"…" Largo and Zetarus nodded in response to their sister's words.

"Now, shall we leave?" Natasha spoke up after she put away her weapon. "We still have one more destination to go, and it's your turn now, Largo."

"I know, I know…" Largo said. "Let's go, everyone. Our next destination is Darkveil Chasm!"

After finished speaking, the three visitors turned back and walked forward, and then they exited the Misty Shrine, leaving nothing but silent inside the shrine…

Except for…

"My children… Please… Take care of yourself…"

---

-A Few Hours Later…

After travelling across Shadowlost Wasteland again, Korben and Fenrir Jr. had arrived at Shadowlost City. The Kommo-o and the Zoroark then said farewell to each other before they went their separate way. Fenrir Jr. headed toward the city hall in order to report to the chancellor. Korben, on the other hand, quickly walked into the downtown area of the city. The clock tower in the center square of the city told that it was currently 15:00, but since Korben had already had his lunch with Fenrir Jr. just after they left Newmoon Temple, the Kommo-o wasn't hungry at all. In fact, even if he was hungry, Korben wouldn't stop to have his meal, because something else was troubling him right now.

After ten minutes of walking, the Kommo-o had reached the inn where he and his friends stayed. The Kommo-o quickly went upstairs and walked toward his room, and then he unlocked the door and entered his room. Luckily for him, his roommate, Xavier, seemed to be out and wasn't in the room right now, meaning that Korben had the entire room for himself, which was what he needed right now.

"…" As soon as he locked the door and finished checking that he was alone in the room, Korben slowly reached his paw into his bag, with his paw shaking very hard. After a few seconds of searching, he could feel his paw touching something cold and hard, which caused him to jolt a bit before he slowly pulled the object out, revealing it as…

A diadem with a large black diamond at its center…

"…" Looking at the diadem gave the Kommo-o a nostalgic feeling about 3 years ago (A few weeks in the feeling of the Kommo-o), when he received the diadem from his deceased grandfather, who told him that it was a keepsake from his deceased mother. However, it also gave him a dreadful feeling, which came from his realization that his fear had come true.

"This… There's no doubt…" Korben spoke up with a shaking voice for the first time since after he returned to Shadowlost City. "This must be… the lost artifact… The artifact with the power to grant wishes… The artifact that was stolen from Newmoon Temple nineteen years ago…"

Realizing the truth, Korben's mind was instantly bombarded with many questions regarding the diadem in his paw. Why would this diadem be in his possession right now? No… This artifact was given to him by his grandfather, who said that he found it along with the body of the Kommo-o's deceased mother, which meant that it was his mother who got this artifact in the first place… But… Why would his mother have the lost artifact of Shadowlost Territory with her?

"Wait a minute…" Korben tried to think back to yesterday, to the conversation he had with his friends at the local bistro. He remembered that Richard speculated that Korben may have a blood of someone from Shadowlost Territory, and that someone was most likely the father that the Kommo-o never saw or knew. And if his father was someone from Shadowlost Territory, then it's most likely that his mother must have visited Shadowlost Territory after she left Valley of No Return… Which meant that…

"… Right now, I am fifteen years ago…" Korben mumbled to himself. "And plus three years that I have been… hibernated, then it would mean that… I was born eighteen years ago… And one year earlier… the artifact was stolen from Newmoon Temple… The artifact… That was in the possession of my mother… What if she stole the artifact… And then returned to Valley of No Return, give birth to me, and die? That's… I can't believe it… But… The timings of both events do fit together…"

Korben paused mumbling for a few seconds before he continued. "Then… It would mean that my mother left Valley of No Return and ended up in Shadowlost Territory, where she met my father… And then, nineteen years ago, for some reason, my mother stole the artifact from Newmoon Temple and escaped back to Valley of No Return. However, she suffered an illness or injury and died right at the entrance of Valley of No Return… And died, leaving the egg that contained me inside, a paper with my name written on it, and… the diadem, all which was eighteen years ago, one year after she stole diadem from the Newmoon Temple.

"... But still… Why did my mother have to steal the diadem from the Newmoon Temple?" Korben mumbled to himself. "And… What should I do with this diadem? Should I return it to Newmoon Temple? Or should I keep it hidden? But if I kept it hidden, it would mean that I'm committing a crime… But again, there must be some reason that my mother would go so far to steal this thing… Grrrrrr…"

The Kommo-o let out a frustrated groan as he sat down on his bed, looking at the ceiling of the room. "… I wish I could talk about this with someone…" Korben mumbled. "But… I can't drag my friends into this. They have helped me so much, and they have a lot to deal with right now…"

"Sigh…" Korben sighed as he still had his attention on the ceiling of the room, not knowing what to do next. "… Father, if you're still alive, I wish that I could meet you…"

"…"

"!" Suddenly, Korben felt a sharp and intense negative feeling jolting into his mind, piercing his entire mental soul. This was the same feeling that he had been feeling since when he had arrived in Shadowlost Territory, as well as the same feeling he felt while he was inside the Newmoon Temple. This time, however, the Kommo-o could pinpoint the exact location of its origin, which was none other than…

"T… This diadem!" Korben mumbled as he looked at the diadem in his paw. He could feel that all negative feelings he had was originated from this artifact in his paw. Realizing this, the Kommo-o quickly threw the diadem away from his paw, which bounced on the bed before it stopped as it rested idly on the bed without moving. However, Korben could still feel the negative feeling coming out from the diadem, though much less significant than a while ago.

"This… This is the reason behind everything I felt…" Korben mumbled as he was glaring at the diadem with a look of disgusting his face. "That thing has a power to grant wishes… And because this is the land where the altar that this thing belongs to exists… It must resonance to the whole land and emit those negative feelings toward its possessor… Such a cursed artifact…"

The Kommo-o continued glaring at the artifact, not sure what to do about it. One part of his mind told him to throw it away because not only it was a treat to him and his mind, but it was also an artifact that caused much suffering to befall on many innocent creatures. However, the other part of his mind told him to keep it, because…

"… If I throw it away, it may fall into a paw of another Pokemon… Which would bring the pain and suffering to them— No… They can also use it to cause the pain and suffering to other innocent creatures…" Korben mumbled as he approached the diadem and picked it up, ignoring the intense negative feelings that started pouring into his mind again. "… Moreover, I was entrusted this thing by my grandfather and my mother… And my mother must have some reason for stealing it… Whatever it is… And… I will place my trust on her…"

After finished speaking, Korben placed the diadem back into his bag before he laid down on his bed. "… I guess I'll keep it with me for now… And I'll decide what to do with it later.."

The Kommo-o was about to close his eyes and call it a day after a long and eventful day before he remembered something. He then sat up and reached his paw into his bag again. This time, he pulled out an envelope that was given to him by the Serpent General back at Newmoon Temple.

"That Zoroark… Jormungand, isn't it?" Korben mumbled as he looked at the envelope in his paw. "He said that a stranger wants to give me this… What is it? And who is that stranger? Well… I'll just take a quick look before I call it a day…

The Kommo-o opened the envelope and pulled out the object inside, which was a roll of paper. He then unrolled the paper and started reading the words on it.

"YOu aRe sTiLL hErE, wHIch wILL bRInG uPoN nOThInG buT PaIn aNd sUffErinG. IF yOu sTill vaLuE YouR lIFe, LeaVE tHIs pLAcE anD NeVEr ReTUrN aGAiN. ThIs iS tHe sEcOnd waRnIng."

To Be Continued…

---

Dragon of Vale: This chapter turned out to be much longer than I expect, and it took me much longer than I thought. Still, this chapter serves as the 'heart' of this Tail, because the most important detail of the seventh tail is revealed in this chapter…

Right, I was talking about the chapter's namesake, the lost artifact. It was the artifact that can be used to get any wishes granted… At the cost of losing something precious to you… If you could get a hand on that artifact, would you use it to get your greatest desire granted?

One more thing… An artifact with an ability to grant wishes at the cost of losing something… Doesn't that sound awfully familiar?

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Q&A Session:

Tail 7-5 – Question: Everyone has your own weapon preference, right? Then… Why did you choose that weapon to be your weapon of choice?

Answer: (Dragon of Vale: Note… Everyone's answer is surprisingly long, longer than the average length of each character's answer.)

-Korben: Story time. Back when I started training the art of battle with… everyone, we all were trained in the basic art of all weapons because the weapons in my… village are the simple one, like sword, bow, axe and spear. After the basic training, we were told to choose one weapon as our preference in order to continue with the advance training in each weapon. Noctus chose lance. Lyzia chose bow. Unos chose axe. And Dimitri chose sword. For me, I couldn't choose which one to use because I felt like none of them suit me, but I went with the sword for the time being. One day, we all went into Valley of No Return for our usual patrol, when we were assaulted by a group of wild Pokemon. While everyone was dealing with the enemies, I was attacked off-guard by another wild Pokemon, and my sword was flung away from me, leaving me weaponless. All I could do was use my bare paws to fight the wild Pokemon off. However, as I fought them, I felt that fighting using my bare paw suited me very well, and I was able to finish the battle without retrieving my old sword. When we returned to the village, I decided to fight using my bare paw from now on, but Dimitri insisted that I should, at least, wear a gauntlet or a knuckle to protect my fist. Despite that, we couldn't find an equipment like that because no one else in my village fights like me. Tomorrow, however, Dimitri came to me and handed me an old knuckle. He didn't tell me where he got that one, but I later found that Dimitri stole it from his dad, but Damos still allowed me to keep it because it's just an old weapon, and no one else would use it anyway. I couldn't believe that my knuckle would actually once belong to the legendary figure, Bahamut, who was Damos and Dimitri's ancestor.

-Claura: Similar to Korben's story, back when Xavier and I started training, we have to choose our one weapon type in order to proceed with the advanced training. Because I don't have any appendage, I couldn't use a weapon that requires a use of more than one appendage (I can still use my tail to hold my weapon, but that's the only 'appendage' I have.), and I don't like a weapon with short reach, such as sword or axe, too because of the same reason. Also, I was trained in the marine battle, so I want to use a weapon that's related to the sea. Combined all of this together and you'll see why my weapon of choice is the anchor.

-Xavier: Read Korben and Claura's answer first except for the weapon choosing part. I chose to use a halberd because it's easy to chop off the head of my enemy, eviscerate their stomach, and impale their heart with it. Also, having a longer reach than most physical weapon means that I don't have to waste too much energy to get close to my enemy too.

-Anastasia: You may not believe this, but I was actually trained in the art of sword and shield… No, it wasn't my brother who trained me to use the sword… Anyway, I fought with the sword and shield during the Fallen Crisis, but after that, I went on a journey with my brother… However, seeing the sword and shield of mine made me feel very bad because I once used them to hurt… my old friends. Also, during our journey, because Baromyteus had killed almost everyone who hired him as a mercenary because most of them would tried to do something bad to me, I decided to start working as a songstress, and what's with a songstress that can't play an instrument? I chose to go with a harp because the sound it produced is wonderful… And later, I learnt that, if used correctly, harp could be used as a weapon too. That's why I decided to change my weapon preference from a sword and a shield to a harp.

-Baromyteus: While I may not have the greatest childhood because I was exiled from my homeland when I was very young, my father would often visit me and train me in the art of the sword as it was the most basic weapon art. Later, he taught me about dodging, and he said that, in order to maximize the dodging ability, I shouldn't use a shield or a heavy weapon, such as a two-handed sword. However, I found that having a weapon in only one hand and leaving the other hand free are such a waste, so I decided to train in the art of dual-wield, and double swords are the best option for a dual-wielder like me. That's the main reason why I'm ambidextrous.

-Diego: Being a gladiator, I have to fight with whatever I can find in order to survive, and I have been using many kinds of weapon in my battle. Among all of them, I found that I like using spear in a battle most because it has a better reach than sword and dagger, was easier to use than axe or hammer, and most battles in the arena have a physical contact, making the close-range weapon a better choice than the long-range weapon. And that's how the spear becomes my weapon preference, which isn't surprising considered that most members of Novaflare family (Which includes me.) also fight using spear too.

-Zetarus: You know how my story goes… I have never fought in my life before because I stayed in Desert Prison for the gxxxxxn 21 years. During the day I escaped from that hellhole, the guards were after my ass, and I had to use whatever I found to fend them off. That's when I found this pistol in a room that I ended up in, and I know what it was and somewhat know how to use it because I usually saw the guards used it to shoot any unlucky prisoners who happened to be nearby them when they were pissed, or something like that. I took that pistol with me and used it, along with my newly-acquired power, to escape and destroy that place. After that day, I decided to stick to a pistol not only because it saved my ass, but I found it… enjoyable to blow up the head of my enemy with it. Moreover, you may not see this, but I am a rather skinny Pokemon because I'm rather underno… nou… Whatever it is! I mean that that hellhole didn't feed me well throughout my 21-year stay, so, I'm far from being a muscular and healthy Pokemon, which means that I can't wield a heavy weapon or fight a close-range battle very well, so I decided to stick with a long-range battle, and the pistol is my choice for this.

-Rachael: I haven't seen much battle before I departed from Leafburg, so I didn't fight much before that. However, during the night before I left my home, Cathy appeared, and it's so cute! This cute li'l doll also said that it will protect me, so I took it with me, and it also served as my 'weapon' too. To tell the truth, it's quite a relief that a talking doll is my weapon of choice, because fighting and killing are such the cruel things, and seeing others use their weapons for these… I can't do something like that! But with Cathy, a doll that could attack the enemy on its own, I would be able to help everyone, and I'm grateful for this!

-Richard: As you may or may not know depend on the level of your intelligence, I am the smartest, cleverest, and the most intelligent member of the Pendragon, and I only use a weapon that could bring upon my fullest potential, and that's the tome, a book that can be used to conjure many means of attack. Of course, the tome is a weapon that's very hard to master due to its user is required to be smarter than most Pokemon. However, the tome of mine, the Chronicle, is perhaps the hardest weapon to master due to itself being one of the most powerful weapon in the entire world, and that's the reason how the tome become my weapon of choice.

-Freya: W… Well… For me… I… I wasn't a strong Pokemon to begin with, and I don't like a battle too… So… I didn't start my training in battle until I was sent to Windsky Village… During that time, I already knew from their letters that Natasha specializes in magical attack, Largo specializes in physical attack, and Terrus specializes in everything. (And I later learned that Zetarus specializes in ranged attack.) With this, I decided to specialize in the support role in order to help everyone. And healing rod is one of the best supporting weapon too… Also, because Windsky Village had just become a part of Dustorm Empire a bit before I was sent there, there were still the shrines and the priests from Venturnome there, who taught me in the art of healing and how to use a healing rod too, a… and I'm grateful for their kindness…

-Snow: I… I don't remember much about my past… But I remember a bit that I was a servant of some kind… And… I was trained in a battle too… That's all I can remember… However, if I have to guess, I would say that, being a servant who was trained to battle, I must be ready to battle at any time, even when I'm serving a cup of tea. So, a dagger would be the optimal weapon for someone like me because I can use it in both kitchen and in a battle, and I can carry it with me of all time too. That's my guess…

-Sirius: … (Dragon of Vale: Sirius says that it was created in the Civilized Laboratory to be the weapon of destruction to begin with, so it doesn't need any weapon. However, they implanted the Chip into his body in order to increase and enhance his fighting skill and ability, and that's it. In other words, Sirius didn't choose which weapon to use, but the weapon was chosen for him, and it was fine with it as long as it can use it to help everyone.)

---

Question from Ridin Valon: From: Lucille Ostend

To: Rachael Lustermist: U-U-Um... (the rest of the message is in scribbles until the next readable word) This is Kite Maxwell. Lucille, the sender, is wondering whether you would want to be friends with her.

-Rachael: Of course! I'd love to befriend you! I don't have many friends who's at the same age as mine, and most of them were from the school that I attended back when I was living in Forezon Village! I am very excited to meet you! My name is Rachael Lustermist the Latias, by the way, and this Cathy, my cute li'l doll! Do you have a doll with you too! Tell me more about yourself!

---

Question from Parousia45: To Freya: What do you think Terrus and the others will feel about your disappearance after you are sealed for an unknown period of time?

-Freya: While Terrus didn't say much about this, I am sure that he was very worried about me, as well as Zetarus, because he was carrying the responsibility for all of us' wellbeing after Empress Sharon died. When I have to travel back to Dustorm Empire alone after King Apollo's coronation ceremony, Terrus was against this, but there's nothing he could do because it was a father's order. And… I think you would understand how Terrus felt after finding that I was nowhere to be found after he, Natasha and Largo returned from Shadowlost Territory, especially after the Pontifex Hawkins was murdered a few months ago in the desert of Dustorm. The same thing could be said for Natasha and Largo too because Natasha is always like a mother figure to all of us, including Terrus, and Largo, despite his tough and rough appearance, is actually very caring to his family deep down. And now… After I have to leave them, all of them respect my decision despite that they are actually against this, and me and Zetarus choosing this way would mean that we would end up being the enemy of each other, and we have to cross our blade with each other in the near future too…