Lore of Yandor #11

The first mystery dungeon ever recorded in history appeared around the year 233 in the Age of War. It was discovered by Essi the swanna in the Croudor Province, and it was aptly named The Endless Chasm. To this day, it hasn't ever been fully traversed or at least no one's ever actually came back to state that it has. The dungeon was created by Yandor's largest earthquake which occurred after the first Province War in Year 232 AD. Croudor's second largest city, Hazelward, collapsed into the chasm that it created. Many buildings are still jammed in the chasm and haven't fallen since. There are also many caves and tunnels in the walls of the chasm. What's at the bottom is still a mystery.

Age of Zezula: Year 780: Location: Croudor Province: Niles and Sheila's Home

In the dead of night, Niles's eyes shot open rather suddenly. He propped himself up with his elbows and glanced around the bedroom. He looked down at his three fingered hand and then at Sheila's calm, sleeping form. He let out a sigh and shook his head with a despondent grin.

"Same world… same treecko… same salandit…" the treecko whispered under his breath with a hint of disappointment.

Some part of me wished that when I woke up, that I would be in my normal human room and be called to breakfast by my noisy little brother. Never realized how much I really missed them, even though I've only been here for two days, it felt like a millennium. Not that it's all terrible, some of these pokemon have been really nice, supportive, encouraging, and occasionally stifle a laugh from me. Especially Sheila, I don't know where I'd be if she hadn't run into me. As lovely as all that is, I just don't think I can handle living in this world any longer than I have to. I mean, I've already witnessed death and nearly experienced it. I just have no clue on how to get out of here. He thought, letting his mind wander in the dark of the room.

He took a gander outside of the window behind their bed. He always prefers to sleep closer to fresh air, especially in such an old, rickety, and dusty home.

To say the least, what view the window held behind it was nothing short of unnerving at the darker hours. Only a single street light, that flickers every so often, provided any sort of light to the darkened, run-down street. Even creepier is the alleyway that sat directly across the street, which lined up perfectly with the window that Niles was looking through. It was also next to an assumingly abandoned, boarded up building.

It never occurred to me just how damn freaky this spot truly is. Mostly because I'm usually dead asleep at this time of day. Unfortunately, less than enjoyable dreams have haunted me tonight… Niles pondered, groggily blinking his eyes. He squinted as he tried to observe further down the alleyway. He noticed something odd, something quite out of place indeed. Two menacing, glowing red eyes sat far at the back of the alley. They didn't move, blink, or waver once, just staring back right through the window.

Niles felt a chill run down his spine, he wanted to look away, but feared that the possessor of the eyes would end up closer than before.

A-lright… guess the nightmares have yet to end… Nah, it must be the sleep deprivation getting to me. As long as I stop thinking about it, it'll go away. He rubbed his eyes slowly, blinked twice, and the unsettling red eyes were gone. Knew it. Man, you're such a genius Niles.

He turned away from the window and attempted to lie back down, until he heard a ghastly, high-pitched giggle that reverberated in his ears from beside him. He slowly cranked his neck to the window once more. He came face-to-face with absolutely nothing except his reflection.

Ok, so, this is either a nightmare or my imagination. Regardless, it's high-time I get to sleep before I drive myself crazy with this horror movie bullshit. After taking a deep breath, he turned back around to face the front of the bed.

His eyes widened as he froze in terror when he saw the same red eyes from the alleyway inside the closet at the front of the room. "Wha-what!" He yelped in shock, but he found himself unwilling to move a muscle.

Somehow, Sheila remained asleep, unaware of anything that was going on around her.

A sinister smile that seemed to be a golden zipper revealed itself from the shadows underneath the pair of eyes. The zipper mouth belonging to a banette. "Found you... murderer!" They exclaimed in a malicious tone as they rushed out of the closet at a blazing speed. Niles had no time to dodge before being knocked out of the window by the raging ghost type. Needless to say, Niles finally got back to sleep after that impact.

Sometime later…

Sheila woke up and glanced to her side. She was a bit concerned that Niles wasn't there, since she'd usually wake up before him or anyone really. It wasn't until she saw the broken window beside the bed that she gasped in surprise. In a panicked state, she hurried outside to see Niles's unconscious form lying on his back surrounded by gem shards.

She ran to Niles's side and knelt down. "Oh my Arceus, Niles! Niles! Wake up, please!" She rapidly patted his face to try and wake him. "Welp, I may not know Wake-up slap, but here goes nothing…"

Sheila looked away for a moment before smacking Niles across the face. Fortunately for her, that was enough force to cause him to jump up more awake than ever.

"Yeowch! Why would you do that?!" Niles asked, rubbing the red mark on the side of his snout that her hand had left.

Sheila pointed to the broken window that he was launched through. "I feel that serves as enough of a worrying factor."

He scratched his head as he took a double take at the window. "Oh… dang, guess it was real…" He commented with an uneasy smile. "Who in the what was that Banette then?"

Sheila's eyes narrowed upon hearing about this banette. "So a banette did this to you? But... ghost types don't normally hang out in Croudor," she responded, thoughtfully tapping the underside of her chin with her thumb.

Niles stumbled back up to his feet with the help of Sheila. "Whatever the reason was for them being here, all I know is that they told me that they "Found me" and accused me of being a murderer."

A look of confusion sprouted on Sheila's face. "I don't care who or what they're! They'll meet my flames of justice for coming into our home and attacking you!" She exclaimed with anger, clenching her left hand into a fist. "That is, if we even see them again. From what I know, those damn ghosts are masters at playing you for a fool with their corporeal crap."

Niles wiped himself off, happy that he managed to avoid being cut too badly. Although, there were some small cuts on his back. "Look, being the victim here, I would love to get my revenge, but there's no chance we'll find them right now. I say we just go to the COY hall and meet up with the rest of the team."

"You're correct as usual…maybe Lulu can figure it out! She's got that detective blood after all," Sheila said with a smile.

"I doubt she'll find anything notable, there's not much evidence to go off of. Just let it go Sheila," he said, putting a hand on his hip.

"Fiiiine, but when I see that ghostly bastard, they're going down, DOWN!" She proclaimed with fury, stomping her foot down as she stomped off to the COY hall. Niles followed suit at a slower pace, shaking his head with an amused grin.

Age of Zezula: Year 780: Location: Croudor Province: COY Hall

The place was bustling with more energy than usual. Many pokemon were sitting at the tables chattering with one another about who knows what. Risha, the Druddigon receptionist, seemed to be both annoyed and worn out, lying her head flat out on her desk.

Niles went on a lookout for the rest of his team amongst the bustling pokemon.

Meanwhile, Sheila was just puzzled as to why the place was so busy. "Jeez, is this the prime time for mercenaries or something?" She commented. "I feel bad for Risha, it can't be too fun to deal with so many pokemon."

A certain familiar jovial totodile walked up to them. "My best guess is that they heard of a hot single Eskor Player that was in the building and wished to hear some sweet tunes~" Court presumed, waggling his brows at a group of ladies sitting at a table. "And it's not like me to disappoint, am I right? Or am I right, ladies~"

Most of the females that heard him glared daggers at him.

Court whistled innocently, his eyes flicking back and forth from the pokemon to the ceiling. "Heheh… we'll get em next time."

Tuba, whom was hanging out with the rest of Team Eternity at a table in a corner, busted out laughing.

Jessica crossed her arms and gave him a look of disapproval. "What's so hilarious about Court's dismay?" She questioned with a frown.

"What? Comedy is subjective," the luxio stated firmly before rolling his eyes. "Don't be so judgmental, I was laughing at and with him anyways."

Jessica's disapproving glare only dug deeper into him.

Rukous looked up from the large book he was reading. "Court… I recommend learning a little subject called modesty," the girafarig suggested in a friendly tone. "Overconfidence in one's own abilities does not often translate well among all existing parties."

Court stared at him with a blank expression. "Look man, when you come up to score, it's either max points or bust. And you ain't gonna hit no bullseyes holding back," he countered with a smug grin.

"You'll come to understand soon enough why that's not always the brightest idea," Rukous warned, returning his attention to the book. Respectable analogy though.

Naoto, whom was sitting next to Rukous away from all the females, seemed pretty attentive at the moment. "Usually, when a large group gathering forms, it's a result of either special circumstances or a meeting that was called," the mienfoo presumed, leaning forwards and resting his head on his left hand.

A swadloon, that was with a team situated near them, turned to Team Eternity. "Haven't you heard? The Fireforged sent quite the disconcerting message at Jono City's front door, those depraved lunatics…" they informed them with a scowl of disgust. "Because of that, Vermex called for all available mercenary teams to meet up here."

Sornos growled, leaning against a wall somewhat close to the rest of the team. "This is why you never make enemies with those you do not want to keep," the midnight form lycanroc commented, looking away at the patterned floor. "This vendetta is our own fault and it's our problem to solve."

"Not to undermine everyone's abilities, but I'm not too confident of our chances in a second run-in with those violent marauders," Jessica said with a concerned expression, solemnly stroking her tail. "We lost enough already… it's best for us to leave this to Vermex."

Lulu clicked her beak. "What even is their goal with this?" the murkrow asked, puzzled at the thought. "They're just a bunch of raiders, nothing good will come to them by stirring up the Province."

Niles rubbed the back of his neck. "I mean, we shouldn't underestimate them. They must have something up their sleeves if they are being this brave," he reasoned, sounding a bit nervous.

"If their tactics are anything like their penchant for torture…" Naoto shuddered, recalling his painful experience in the clutches of Vaylie. "Then we're in for a real pain train."

Sheila slammed her hand on the table, making the others sitting there jump up. "Sornos is right! They pissed us off, We pissed them off. They took the lives of our comrades, our friends, and we took one of theirs. So this is primarily our fight!" she exclaimed with powerful authority. "Vaylie was no poor fighter, yet we took her out. Who's to say the others cannot suffer the same fate?"

"B-but I-I…" Jessica sputtered shakily.

Sheila gave her a warm look. "If you feel the need to back out for your own safety, then you have that option," she reassured her, placing a hand on her shoulder.

Rukous's expression grew more serious as he shut his book. "You know, Sheila does have a point. To back out of a fight we couldn't finish, while admittedly probably smart, will leave us with guilt once it causes disaster for those around us," he added, closing his eyes thoughtfully. "Not to mention, our reputation would suffer as a result."

Court nodded in agreement. "Exactly! Team Eternity should be remembered as valiant heroes! Not petty cowards!" the cheerful reptile proudly announced. "We must give all the bards out there like me some material to work with after all!"

Tuba let out a long sigh. "I don't mean to rain on the parade, but we have no idea what the Fireforged even wrote in their message," he brought up, shaking his head. "What if it was just some stupid over-the-top threat or something?"

Everyone in the room suddenly went silent. Niles was confused for a second until he saw that Vermex had entered the hall.

The noivern strolled up to the front of the receptionist desk while everyone formed a half circle around the edges of the room. "If you are curious as to why I have summoned you all here today, allow me to sate your lack of knowledge," he spoke in a professional manner, pressing his crimson claws together. "The Fireforged, yes I speak of those malignant criminals whom have a fetish for gore and misery, have sent us, the proud citizens of Croudor, a concerning message. Furthermore, true to their disrespectful nature, it was carved into a rather unfortunate Gallade. My heart goes out to the poor fellow and those he knew."

"Havan...:" Niles mumbled quietly to himself despondently.

"But I digress, the main issue at hand is what their little warning entails. To reiterate it word for word…" Vermex started, taking a moment to recall the dreaded words. "The flames of the Fireforged have remained dormant for far too long, mother's rage has alighteth the flame, the embers shall rise and the weak crumble to ash… Cryptic as it may be, they make it clear their intentions. I see no reasons to believe it as a bluff. However, without any clue as to where they plan to strike first, I'm at an impasse when it comes to strategy…"

Everyone talked amongst themselves, tension and fear beginning to build within the crowd. Meanwhile, Team Eternity sank back in guilt.

"Nevertheless, we shall not falter!" Vermex proudly declared, raising his right wing high in the air, silencing the audience. "These unruly bandits are worms compared to the might of Croudor! If they've convinced themselves into believing they stand a chance against our proud nation, they're sorely mistaken! Whenever they show themselves, they will be crushed! Their so-called flames shall be snuffed out forever! Let me hear your cries for victory!"

"RAH RAH!" A majority of the pokemon shouted in unison, showing their pride and support.

"For now, this is the time for strategizing. Dismissed!" he ended, swinging his right wing to the side with added force. He leaned back against the desk and smiled at Risha. "Told you I'm more than just a pretty talker."

She let out a mirthless chuckle. "You always surprise me with that warmonger attitude of yours," She said with a hint of amusement in her voice.

Vermex elegantly bowed. "It takes more than a gentleman to lead such a nation as Croudor. I would never have been elected had I lacked a formidable spine," he claimed with smugly, a grin forming on his muzzle. Though, I may have overdone it a bit...

"Still, are you sure that you want to keep this among the mercenaries and military? The civilians should know about the dangers afoot," she responded with some concern in her expression, rubbing a claw against one of her spikes.

Vermex clicked his tongue. "I'd rather not cause distress amongst the people when I know it's unnecessary. The Fireforged are a minimal threat to us. Therefore, I doubt they'd get far with this tirade of theirs, with most of them being nothing but misguided youths and all."

"I suppose you're right, and I know a thing or two about misguided youths…" Risha agreed, reminding herself of her rowdy daughter.

Back with Team Eternity…

Naoto rubbed his face with both of his hands. "Seems that it is in fact, that serious," he commented with careful alliteration. "Does this mean we are going to assist them with the fight?"

Sornos stood upright. "It would be unbecoming of us to not finish our fight," the red and white wolf said, brushing some fur out of his face. "And I have no want for more regrets."

Court leapt up on top of the table. "Well I'm in for sure! Our fighters will require my wondrous serenade to keep their spirits in tip top shape!" He confidently proclaimed, striking a heroic pose.

Rukous pulled the totodile back down into his seat. "Calm yourself please, it's very rude to place your feet all over a public use table," he scolded with displeasure. "Oh! And I too am all in agreement with battling the Fireforged. I must avenge Lu of course..." his expression softened, appearing as though tears were going to form within his eyes.

"First of all though…" Sheila began, looking over at Lulu. "Can you assist me and Niles with something important, over at our house?"

Lulu tilted her head in response. "While I'm intrigued as to why, I might as well comply, since that'll most likely answer my question," she said, getting up out of her seat. "Besides, I am not the type to reject a call for help!"

Sheila and Niles both got up as well. Yet, Niles seemed to disapprove.

"Didn't I already tell you that there's no way she'll find anything of value?" he questioned Sheila, raising a brow.

She shrugged. "No point in not even trying at all," she reasoned. "Not like it'll hurt anyone if we come up short."

I suppose that makes sense, no need to argue over it. Niles thought to himself.

Rukous ended up deciding he wanted to join them.

"Out of simple curiosity, I plan to come with you three too," he told them.

"Then we'll wait around here just in case Vermex has strategies to discuss with the mercenaries," Naoto volunteered, nodding to them.

Age of Zezula: Year 780: Location: Croudor Province: Niles and Sheila's Home

Niles, Sheila, Lulu, and Rukous all arrived at the spot where Niles was thrown out the window. Lulu observed the scene, tapping her beak rhythmically with her wing.

Rukous's face turned to that of shock upon seeing all the broken glass. "Huh, at least you managed to come out of it relatively unharmed…" he commented, showing some concern for the treecko.

"So what exactly occurred last night?" She asked, questioning Niles.

"Long story short, a creepy banette appeared in the closet of our bedroom, said "Found you, murderer!" and then rushed at me, knocking me through the window," he explained, running through the events that night. "This all happened in the middle of the night."

Lulu walked back and forth around the scene. "Well, Vermex mentioned that the Fireforged sent their message sometime in the morning, and this banette fellow conveniently made their move not too long ago saying to have found you before then…" she strummed the underside of her beak. "Additionally, they also accused you of being a murderer, which entails that they must have some kind of reason for making such a claim. Have you killed and or been associated with any deaths lately?"

"I mean, that's quite a bold question…" Niles commented, scratching the top of his head.

"Answer it!" Lulu's commanding gaze bore into him which spooked him quite a bit.

"Okay! okay, T-the only death I feel this has any relation to is Vaylie's, even though I wasn't the one to end her life," he complied, holding his hands out defensively.

"Then my best guess is that this banette is one of the Fireforged, despite the amount of evidence being small, it all points towards that fact," she suspected with a confident expression.

Sheila grew more excited. "Do you have any idea where they could've gone off to?" she questioned rather quickly.

"I'm pretty sure they'd have left by now, considering that they most likely told their Fireforged allies about where they found you and Niles," she responded, then she seemed to trace a line from the window to the alleyway. "However, it's not uncommon for a criminal to return to the scene of the crime. Niles, where did you first see this banette?"

"In the alleyway directly across from the window," he answered immediately.

Lulu's eyes lit up. "Just as I suspected!" she then trotted off to said alleyway, with Sheila and Niles following after her.

Age of Zezula: Year 780: Location: Croudor Province: Verdian Street Alleyway

Entering the run-down alley, the acrid stench permeating from the nearby dumpster became readily apparent to their poor nostrils. The place was littered with old crumpled trash and newspapers. Furthermore, the walls were covered in colorful graffiti.

Niles attempted to close his nostrils shut. "Yep, this is certainly a standard run-of-the-mill alleyway…" he observed, opting to stand as far away as possible from the green dumpster.

Sheila joined him as well. "I never realized how fortunate we were to be across from this disgusting smell. Like, come on, how was this never cleaned up?!" she complained, frantically waving away the smell.

"Sometimes, big city cleaners just can't get it all. I don't blame them either, Jono city is far from a small town," Rukous said, not able to hide his face of disgust. "Still pretty nasty though."

Lulu was apparently too distracted with her detective work to acknowledge the stench. Upon looking closely at the ground next to the dumpster and right wall, she perked up. "Aha!" She exclaimed, you could almost see a lightbulb appear above her head. "Ectoplasm, easy peezy!"

"Excuse me, ectoplasm…?" Sheila tilted her head in bewilderment.

"Inexperienced ghost-types leave behind ectoplasm when they phase through condensed matter," she clarified rather dignantly. "That means this banette must've gone through this wall on the right and into the building at some point. Except, that doesn't make any sense, since that wouldn't be necessary if they were returning to their allies. Therefore, I surmise that they did in fact come back and are in that building as we speak!"

Sheila gawked in awe. "Woah… I may not know if that was impressive or not, but I'm impressed!" she complimented in a cheery tone.

Niles made his way out of the alley. "Thank god we can get away from this brain melting smell…"

"Thank who now?" Lulu asked, her eyes squinting in suspicion.

"What? I said Arceus. I think your detective attitude is causing you to mishear things," Niles cleverly responded, hoping she'd let it go.

Lulu harrumphed. "If you say so…" she shook her head, not quite buying it.

"Onwards to the freaky abandoned home!" Sheila shouted as they all went to enter the building they suspect the banette to reside in.

Age of Zezula: Year 780: Location: Croudor Province: Verdian Street's abandoned household

While not nearly as gross, it was just as run-down in appearance as the alleyway it rests by. Any clean freak would have a heart attack just looking at the place. A lot of the furniture was scattered out all over the place, the paint was peeling off everything, the wooden walls and ceilings were broken up and jutting out every which way. The worst part of it all, it was pitch black besides a few light rays, which illuminated all the dust, from the sun that found its way through holes in the ceiling.

Rukous took the first step forward. "Talk about classic horror scenes…" he casually jokes as he very carefully proceeds further into the entryway hallway. "And number one rule is, do not get separated."

The others were close behind him until…

"Look! Look! I see the bastard!" Sheila yelled, grabbing the attention around her. They all saw glowing red eyes at the end of the hallway before they faded into the darkness. Sheila sprinted full speed ahead after them with Niles in tow. But, they left Rukous and Lulu in the dust, literally.

Unluckily, neither of them had time to catch up before the floor above them collapsed, a large metal dresser fell down in front of them, blocking their path.

"What kind of tasteless craven even uses metal dressers?" Lulu whined, she tried a wing attack on it to try and remove the obstacle, but it was to no avail. "It's no use, I can't even fly over it."

Rukous sighed. "Man, some seriously comedic timing for this, just after I mention not separating, this happens," he said, furrowing his brow. "This world has a sick sense of humor. I would teleport past it, but I'd be leaving you alone."

"I could attempt to break a hole open above us, but honestly, that's probably a bad idea…" Lulu voiced her own thoughts, she looked to the right and noticed a doorway. "Might as well see if there's another way around, let's go Rukous."

2nd Floor

Niles looked back down the stairs hoping to see Rukous and Lulu. He became worried when he realized they were absent.

"Sheila, why'd you have to sprint like an Olympian?! Now we are split up and that loud crash does not bode well for them," he whispered loudly, clearly annoyed.

"I'm pretty sure they're fine, neither of them screamed," Sheila countered, rolling her eyes. "Besides, how can we catch a ghost without hustling it?"

"Oh, I don't know, by luring him into a trap maybe," Niles said in a sarcastic manner.

"Tch, enough with the anxiety already, it's only a two story house. They'll catch up soon," she responded, secretly sticking out her tongue at him. "Wimp."

"Yeah yeah, whatever…" he shook his head as they made it to the top of the stairs.

The 2nd floor contained another long hallway with some ruined doors on the side. At the end lay an unnerving regal looking mirror covered in dust.

"Uhm, how about you take the lead, Mr. Team Eternity leader," Sheila said, attempting to back up behind Niles.

"Uh huh, and you called me the wimp," he responded with a teasing smile. "Wimp."

"Forget it, I'll stay in front then!" she exclaimed, changing her mind on a dime.

Niles rolled his eyes with an amused smirk. It's almost too easy, now I can rest in the back as she gets the scares this time. I had my fill after getting harassed in my own room.

Sheila froze up for a second and looked back at Niles. "Did you just touch my back?" she asked, visibly shaking in fear.

"Uh, no, no I did not. My arms are too short to accomplish that task from here. Much to my dismay." he responded, feeling a bit shook as well.

"Suuurrre," she said, dragging out the word to represent how doubtful she was.

"Do I look like the kind of pokemon to pull random pranks?"

"Weeellll, I still don't really know you all that much, so I can't make that judgment yet."

"No, I didn't," Niles flatly put it, putting both his hands on his hips.

"Then that's another bout of slaps for that damn ghost messing with us!" she exclaimed in annoyance.

They walked further down the hallway until they stopped dead in their tracks upon hearing the shouting from downstairs. They looked at each other, the fear evident in their eyes.

Then they both saw a reflection of the banettes eyes and widely smiling mouth in the mirror at the end of the hallway, they let out a bone-chilling laugh as the doors rattled in unison. Both Sheila and Niles screamed in terror.

"M-m-make t-that t-three!" the terrified salandit commented in a shaky tone.

1st floor

Rukous and Lulu found themselves in a mess of a living room. The TV was smashed and the torn up couch was flipped on its side. Smashed paintings hung crooked on the walls and others lay flat on the floor. Strangely, the glass table in the center of the room was perfectly intact. Lying on top of the table was an Ouija board. Off to the left, they could see a destroyed kitchen.

"Do not check out the kitchen without me, Lulu," Rukous warned, noticing her eying it.

"Read me like those big books of yours, how very shrewd of you," she praised with a hint of admiration in her voice. "I say we check out the Ouija board, because if this ghost won't show themselves, maybe we can get them to speak with us. I know how much they love those things."

"I'm not sure if there's any good reason for that, but I guess we might as well," Rukous gave in, following her over to the Ouija board. Why am I doing this…?

The banette wasted no time in taking control of the planchette. The duo watched the board closely as they moved the circular opening in the planchette to spell out M. U. R. D. E. R. E. R. S.

"This is, without a doubt, the banette that we're searching for," Lulu assumed, bringing a wing up to her chest, her eyes flitted around the room. "Now how does one spot a ghost…"

Rukous kept watching the board as the planchette started to move once more, spelling out… F. E. I. N. T. A. T. T. A. C. K. !.

It took him a moment to register what that meant, unfortunately, he was a bit too late. The sneaky banette leapt out of the shadows with a strong swipe that caught him off guard, also scaring the heck out of him.

"Nyaarrrgghh!" He wailed in pain as he was flung backwards into the kitchen, falling onto his side. "Scared to hell. Check. Genital leakage, embarrassingly… Also check…"

Soon after, he heard Niles and Sheila scream from up above. "Looks like they went after them…"

Rukous mustered up enough strength to rise back up to his hooves. He shook off the pain and readied a Shadow Ball to attack the banette the moment he saw him.

He did catch sight of the marionette ghost standing in the corner of the kitchen and launched a large black ball of energy at them. Unfortunately, they saw it coming and sank into the wall behind themselves, causing the attack to splash against the wall.

Lulu, whom was busy being surprised at Rukous having been hit out of nowhere, blinked back into normality once she realized the gravity of the situation.

"If he thinks he can just keep on popping in and out, he's about to get a reality check!" She waited for a second, eyes peeled for any strange movements in the room. Thankfully, with her gifted perception, she caught a glimpse of some shuffling in the shadows to her left. "Pursuit!"

She charged into the darkness only to catch nothing but air and dust.

"Dangit… and I was all confident and everything, hopefully the other two can pick up the slack."

2nd Floor

Niles and Sheila had locked themselves in a bedroom. The room itself was in a state of disarray like the rest of the place. The closet door wasn't even on its hinges, the bed was very dirty and caked in dust, and a busted lamp was on the food near the bedside table.

"Why did we even lock the door? We know that he can just go through it…" Niles questioned, almost laughing at the absurdity of the situation.

"Look, it's difficult to process things when you're totally not scared and attempting to be brave for those around you!" Sheila proclaimed in a way that sounded very clearly like a lie.

"You need to go to the school of lying," Niles teased with a playful smirk.

"So a school for newcomer politicians?" she quipped, albeit, in a more than nervous manner.

Niles chuckled lightly and then noticed a banette sized bulge underneath the blankets on the bed. "Really? Who does he think he's fooling?" he facepalmed.

Sheila quickly shot out severely poisoning liquid at the bulge. Luckily, it did seep through the poor barrier of a blanket and caused the banette to start coughing. He finally revealed himself by letting the blanket fall right through him.

*Cough cough* "Awgh! Why'd you have to ruin all the fun!?" he angrily shouted at them, now sprouting a pouty face. "You were supposed to lift up the cover and then I'd be all like… BOOGABOOGABOOGA! Then I laugh at you all creepily as you both run away in pure terror. But nooooOOOooo, you had to be a party pooper…"

Sheila gawked at him, both pissed and flabbergasted. "Excuse me? You attack my lo- greatest ally in our own home, alert your fucked up buddies, then come back to terrorize the rest of my friends… and you get mad at us! For ruining your day!?" She crossed her arms and began tapping her left foot rapidly.

"Correctamundo compadre! I am pissed at you!" he reaffirmed, puffing his cheeks out. "To be honest, I don't know who gave you the cajones to come after me in the first place. You knew what you were getting yourselves into… idiots..."

Sheila huffed furiously. "You're soooo dead, you little rat! Niles!"

Niles attempted to suck the life forces of the ghost, but he just stared at him awkwardly as if nothing happened.

"I guess it was a matter of time until my lucky Mega Drain streak was broken…" he said, disappointed in himself. Feels bad man…

The banette shrugged. "Anyways, and Will-O-Wisp to you," he pointed at Niles and out came a blueish-white flame.

With some quick thinking, he blocked it with the bedroom door.

"Hmm!" the banette hummed, a bit amazed. "I really thought that'd work, oh well, farewell, have fun!"

He then disappeared into the floor.

"I'm going to despise ghost-types from here on out," Sheila remarked, thinking about what to do next.

1st floor

Rukous was standing guard, awaiting his next chance to strike. Having been Calm Minding in the meantime. Soon enough, the banette's head popped up from the ceiling above him. He made sure not to look up, to avoid the ghost realizing that he's been compromised.

"Shadow Ball!" Rukous recklessly flung the shadow infused orb above him without even looking. It ended up bouncing all over the kitchen, flinging around utensils on its path of destruction. Miraculously, a knife found itself lodged into Rukous's left hip.

"Fffff-" Rukous cut himself off before howling in pain, clenching his teeth hard.

The banette blinked multiple times in confusion. He then used Telekinesis to pick up a butcher knife and aimed it at Rukous's downed form.

"Night night, sweet little girafarig~" he sang to himself, launching the knife at a dangerous velocity toward Rukous's head.

Thankfully, he was able to deflect the attack with a flat pan that his shadow ball had conveniently knocked to the floor. This sent the knife flying back at the now wide-eyed banette whom quickly ducked, or raised in this case, above the ceiling he was peeking through. Rukous let out a sigh of relief.

Lulu finally joined him in the kitchen and noticed the banette hiding behind the counter in the center.

"Pursuit!" she announced, flanking her enemy with an aggressive tackle.

This time, her attack landed, slamming the banette's face into the counter.

"Another hit like that and you won't have the energy to phase through objects, good luck escaping us then!" she mocked with a hearty grunt.

"We'll see about that!" the banette countered, running off through the walls once more.

2nd Floor

Sheila and Niles were now in some kind of library full of torn up books and tipped over shelves. The once beautiful, huge rug that sat in the middle of the room was a shell of its former self. A fallen chandelier also lay in the center over the top of the rug.

"I-is that a knife sticking through the floor?" Niles pointed at a large butcher knife that was stabbed up from beneath the floor. "We should be wary of that if the banette tries anything again."

"Speaking of…" Sheila said, seeing that very same ghost just casually sitting in a chair reading a page-less book.

"Flame Burst!" she announced, spewing a ball of flames at them.

The flames only managed to both burn his hands and incinerate the book he was holding. He shook his hands violently to try to put out the flames.

"Owowowowoowow! That wasn't very nice you know!" he scolded, trying his best to impersonate an old woman. "You will be punished for that! Hex!"

Sheila was able to avoid the brunt of the attack. However, the dark matter still scraped the tip of her tail.

Niles, hoping for better luck this time, generates green energy from his hands to suck the life out of the banette.

The hope paid off, since the banette visibly began to stumble to the floor feeling a lot more woozy.

He crawled to the center of the room and propped himself up on the chandelier. "The fun ends here, I guess… how sad," he comments, breathing heavily as the effects of the Toxic take its toll on his body.

Sheila, rather forcibly, pinned him to the ground. He painfully gasped in reaction.

"No more games for you!" she charged up a blast of fire in her maw.

Niles stepped in and shut her mouth before the attack went off.

"Hold on! As much as I'd love to end this facade, we should try to fish info out of him," he suggested, earning a glare from the salandit. "Sheila… we need any advantage we can get for the fights ahead with the Fireforged."

Sheila wanted to argue, but knew that he was correct. Arceus, I really hate how smart he is… and I love to hate him. She thought with a warming smile.

"I-info? I can give you info!" the banette sputtered in a panicked state, his eyes bouncing around wildly. "This is all I know. They're planning a pincer attack on Jono City, starting somewhat farther back. Mother will attack Uria Town from the South, while Skorge leads on from Merriville up North. The twist, however, is that they will rotate around clockwise halfway before moving forwards to Jono City. Better act fast too."

"Um, thanks for making it… easy… I guess," Niles thanked with a shrug. "A small part of me expects this to be a lie, except, that was far too specific…"

The banette looked off to the side, masking a malicious grin.

Sheila scoffed. "And a small part of me thinks this banette should live, but, it's ove-RAAAAAGGHH!"

Her statement was cut off short by the floor beneath them plummeting downwards.

2nd Floor

Rukous, still lying on the floor, gasped when he saw that the knife that was stuck in the ceiling was almost done cutting a circular hole. Dust began to fall from the ceiling as the now cut loose piece started to fall.

"Rukous! Move!" Lulu shouted at him, snapping him back into reality in time to roll out of the way of the collapsing ceiling. Well, not without the chandelier that came along for the ride giving him a brain check. Regardless, he remained conscious.

*BANG*

*CRASH*

"AAAAAGGHH!" Sheila screamed along with Niles as they hit the floor of the kitchen.

Once they realized where they were and noticed Rukous and Lulu, they laughed nervously.

"You guys been doing fine down here?" Niles asked, standing up on his toes.

"Other than nearly dying about 3 times, yeah, just dandy," Rukous responded with some sarcasm, but he smiled all the same. Glad that everyone was ok.

All was good till Sheila realized that the banette completely vanished.

"Aw man, figures he got away…" she said, upset. "Can't believe he got away with that trick!"

Lulu raised a brow. "Honestly, that bugger was pretty clever, I've got to give it to him,"

"Whatever the case is, we got some value out of it, that being the knowledge of where the Fireforged will first attack," Niles reassured the team, acting proud. "Now's the time we act fast. Let's head back to the others."

Everyone nodded and headed out of the creepy old home, hopefully to never see it again.

Age of Zezula: Year 780: Location: Croudor Province: COY Hall

The others seemed relieved to see Niles, Sheila, Rukous, and Lulu again.

Lulu was standing on the back of Rukous, tending to the wound on his left hip.

"Are you sure that you're confident you can fight proficiently with this? It cut in pretty deep," she asked him with a look of concern.

"Nothing a little powering through can't do," he responded, wincing in pain. "I'm not about to back out of my opportunity to avenge Lu. No wound is deeper than the one Skorge left."

"Well said, I respect your dutifulness," She nodded in appreciation, patting his head with a pleased grin.

"You four sure took your sweet time," Sornos coldy remarked, sneering. "I'm assuming that your detective got carried away and started babbling nonsensical dribble."

Court cheered with glee. "Who cares what they did, those expressively satisfied expressions can only mean good news!" he pointed out as the four sat at the table with the rest of the team.

"We don't have much time to explain all that happened, and it's for the best, to be frank," Niles said, rubbing the back of his neck.

"What? Was the culprit rough times in bed?" Tuba garishly joked with a snicker.

"Ni-i-i-i-i-i-ce going champ~" Court slapped Niles on the back, whom blushed wildly as he sank in his chair..

"M-moving on to more appropriate matters, we learned that the Fireforged will be attacking Uria Town and Merriville first in their assault," he informed post-haste.

"What was that?" Suddenly, Vermex was listening in on their conversation, leaning in over the table. "I was going to ask if you were planning on joining the fight, yet it seems that was a pointless excursion on my part, heh. Very proud of you all, the bravery is commendable. Where did you get the info from anyways?"

"Well, Vermex, since it's imperative that you know, we managed to find a banette whom was a member of the Fireforged hiding out in an abandoned home," Lulu started before a large smirk formed upon her face. "Thanks to my impeccable detective skills."

"To get to the point, we got him to spill the beans on the Fireforged's plan of attack, which you have heard already apparently," Sheila finished for Lulu.

Vermex clasped his claws together and rested them on the table. "And you trust those words from a known criminal, a ruthless raider no less?" he quizzed, raising a single brow in curiosity.

"It's either that or go off of nothing," Naoto added with a casual shrug. "But, you did have a strategy figured out already, right, Sir Vermex?"

"Believe me, I'd love to place my trust in your judgment, however, you're correct, Naoto," Vermex responded, placing a clawed hand into the fluffy white fur of his collar. "You see, without 100% confirmation on their plans, I cannot risk leaving any city or town full of innocents vulnerable. I had made the decision to split up our military to defend each one of them, along with volunteering mercenaries. I wish I could take any excuse to not spread out the military force in such a way, but iffy words from a ghost type with a shambolic mindset doesn't hold enough water for me."

"That's understandable and probably the more enlightened decision," Rukous nodded in understanding.

"Nonetheless, I say that we, Team Eternity, should take advantage of this information," Niles proclaimed, laying a hand on the table. "This was our fight to begin with and it's ours to end. Worst case scenario, we just end up getting bored. Who's in?"

All of Team Eternity placed their hand over his. "Aye!" they all exclaimed in unison, raising their hands up in celebration.

Vermex clapped his talons together, the clicking sounds they made slowly sped up. "My my, what a wonderful team you've formed, Niles! Allies willing to follow you into battle, knowing full well the dangers that await, are the best you can ask for," he congratulated with a jovial expression. "Don't let me hold you back, if you must hurry, then get out there and make yourselves proud! I'd be happy to hear of your possible success. Good luck out there my friends!"

"Will do! thanks for the good luck wishes, your continued support means a lot," Sheila said, showing her gratitude, even bowing to show her respect for the fabled noivern.

And so, Team Eternity heads out, ready to discuss their own strategy for what will truly be the toughest and grueling battle yet. Well, for everyone but Sornos, who has his own fair share of trials and tribulations.

AN: Yep, I know, I can hear you all now, "Where the hell were you!?" "Why come back now!?" "I can't believe this!" "3 years… 3 freaking years!" or "..." for those absent folks, still love you btw.

Honestly, I'm not even sure what to say at all because just posting this chapter after 3 years of my negligence speaks for itself. Notwithstanding, I'm back, and arguably better than ever! I couldn't be happier that I finally managed to find that drive to write again and deliver this long awaited installment. Turns out, I burnt myself out on DR, so turning to this story instead was what I needed. I'm just glad I finished even just a single chapter after all the stagnation in productivity.

That being said, while I don't think any amount of apologies will make up for my neglect for not only this story, but my DR ones as well. But, for the sake of clarity, I'm truly sorry to have left you all in disappointment for so long. I left without a word to anyone, and I've regretted it. I've regretted every moment I've spent staring at a blank document thinking to myself that one day, I'll finish what I started. Luckily, that want never left me, and that's why this chapter exists today.

However, I don't want to get anyone's hopes up. This by no means confirms that this story will be finished, at least anytime soon. I have no clue how fast I'll be able to get these chapters out either. I suppose this chapter more or less serves as a way for me to tell you that I have not given up.

For those of you who have actually stuck around, waiting patiently for this story to update, I cannot thank you enough for your dedication. It makes me proud that I can even gain one loyal fan with my terrible writing. I don't expect any of you to understand why I stopped for far too long, but it'd mean the world to me to hear from you again. Even if I'm speaking to nobody with those lines, I'll appreciate any newcomers as well. Word of advice, don't trust me whenever I give an exact date for an update.

All that I ask is that you continue to enjoy the story for what it is. Fortunately, with my improved writing, that'll be easier this time. Here's to a new generation of my sub-par writing, Cheers mates!

AN2: Now for something a little less serious. As a result of re-reading the earlier chapters, I've realized how I could improve them. Furthermore, there are some things I want to change, certain events in the story I disagree with.

What I want to know is if people are fine with me re-posting this story in a sort of "Remastered" form or if they want me to keep the original story on the site and I'll just replace the chapters with the newer versions. Of course, the latter means everyone will have to go back over them again to not miss any of the major changes. Let me know what you think!

AN3: Some changes I'm making to the story:

1. I've decided that I prefer a team limit of 8 instead of whatever crazy number it was before, don't remember. I know the number of teammates is over 8 atm, but that'll most likely change, for better or for worse.

2. Along with that team limit, I'm also placing a bar of quality that you must pass in order for your OC to be accepted. This is because I get some OCs here and there that lack any substance at all, and boy is it hard to work with that. I had to improvise new personality traits and the like for a few of them in this chapter. Worst part is, I never know whether or not the creator will approve. Luckily for you guys, the bar isn't that high and you have unlimited attempts anyways (please no spam though).

3. I kind of already mentioned this, but to reiterate, I do not require any sort of action from OCs anymore. However, you are allowed to give me things for your OC to do whenever you want. Whatever that is, I'll figure out if I approve or not. If I find a time and place for it, I will make it happen! This also goes for battle strategies, team choosing, etc. I'll usually tell you about those in the chapter beforehand though. Like this one for example.

4. PM your OCs from now on, mainly so that I can link the PM chain next to the OC on a document of mine for ease of access. Plus, I'd much rather see reviews in the review section over them. I know this hurts the guests, but it's really not that difficult to set up an account. If you do end up sending one in the reviews for whatever reason, the only way I'll accept them is if you clearly put time and effort into it.

5. Just to be clear, when it comes to villain OCs, none of them can be main villains, only side ones. I'll still find a chapter or two where I can give them attention though. Just don't expect any of them to become the big baddie of an arc.

That's all for that.

AN4: AN landslide, my bad, but it's necessary.

Alright members of Team Eternity, you have an option to choose where you OC will be stationed for the upcoming siege, courtesy of the Fireforged. You can also strategize a plan based on current known information. Your OC won't have enough time initially to strategize anyways, so don't feel cheated out of helpful info. However, I can remind you of what each of the revealed Fireforged are and the moves they've used so far.

Will your OC(s) fight the mysterious motherly Blaziken and her children in Uria Town?

1. Niles

2. Sheila

3. Court

4. Sornos

5. Naoto

Or will your OC(s) face off against Skorge's entourage in Merritown?

1. Rukous (I chose because character development reasons)

2. Tuba

3. Lulu

4. Jessica

Long time no see, OC Form! It seems you've changed since we've last met...

OC Rules

1. The classic. No Mary or Gary Stues. You can submit some very skilled and/or powerful OCs, but you must give them at least 2 or 3 weaknesses.

2. There's a bar of quality that you must pass in order for your OC to be accepted. This is because I get some OCs here and there that lack any substance at all, and boy is it hard to work with that. Luckily for you guys, the bar isn't that high and you have unlimited attempts anyways (please no spam though).

3. No human turned pokemon OCs.

4. I will not accept incomplete OCs or OCs that just do not fit into the world of Yandor.

5. No main villains/antagonists. I'm very iffy about them in general, as they're hard to fit into the story.

6. PM your OCs please. I'd much rather see reviews in the review section over them. I know this hurts the guests, but it's really not that difficult to set up an account. If you do end up sending one in the reviews for whatever reason, the only way I'll accept them is if you clearly put time and effort into it.

7. Fair warning, no character is safe from death. Since, I roll dice to determine battle and choice outcomes. However, I may overrule the dice on certain occasions. In short, I'll try to do what is best for the story.

OC Form!

Name:

Nickname/alias (If applicable):

Species and gender (You can submit any species including legendaries, besides Arceus. And for genderless pokemon, just tell me what they prefer to be considered):

Estimated Age (Pokemon don't age the same as humans, so I just need you to tell me if they're a child, teen, young adult, adult, or elder):

Role (Teammate to the main character, recurring villain, just some random shopkeeper, another mercenary band leader/teammate, or maybe a pokemon that I can just kill as an example of how shit Yandor can be):

Province (tell me what province they live in, just know that certain types usually live in a certain province, but they can be in any province really (very unlikely). Read the Lore of Yandor in the introductory chapter for info on that. You can ask any question about the provinces if needed and if I can answer it):

Personality (I need decent enough description that'll allow me to get your OC right):

Character Alignment (You can look up the alignments on google or just ask me about it):

Backstory (I won't ask for much here, just give me a backstory that really shows why they are the way they are):

Relationship? (No, this doesn't mean sex scenes are planned. I'm asking whether or not you're fine with your OC having a relationship develop, and their sexuality):

Ability:

Move-set (give me 6 moves):

Fighting Style (Can be as descriptive as you feel it should be):

Quotes (This is so you can give me a general idea of how they act, talk, and how you'd see them being written. A minimum of 4 is required.):

Other things that you must tell me (like if they have anything unique about their appearance, or if they can mega-evolve, stuff like that):

And the form for mercenary bands (Just put this form above the OCs that are in the team)

Name of team:

Scarf color:

Rank (E, D, C, B, A, S, H, W, Royal):

Members:

Why created:

What they've done:

Forms will be on my profile so you can copy it from there.

And that's all, thanks for reading, ladies and gents, hope you'll be here for the rest of it. ^:^