Ch.33: Coming to Terms with a New Threat! Understanding the Hatred of Everfall!

"So, we've gone from living in a rundown hut to living with you…now we're going to live in a circus trailer?"

Morgan had brought Angel and Cheri to the traveling circus caravan and just got done explaining the new living arrangements to them. Cheri, being the young spirit she was, was curious about the new change in home.

The Hypno crouched down and rubbed her head. "Sorry about the sudden change, kiddo, but this is pretty important. I need to help my friend track down those treasure hunters that helped you and your mother."

Cheri blinked. "You mean we're going to look for Tony, too?"

"Yes, yes we are."

The Pikachu smiled and leaped in the air with glee. "Why didn't you start off with that?!" She hugged the doctor's arm. "YAY! I get to see my big brother!" She jumped off him and danced around. "Going to see Tony, woohoo! Going to make him proud, woop woop!"

Morgan and Angel chuckled at her excitability. "Well," Angel started, "I say this trip is a lovely idea. I haven't been outside the Fire Zone in ages. I hope I didn't lose my 'spark' for adventure!"

Cheri stopped dancing and groaned, pulling on her ears. "MOM!"

"Hehehe, sorry, sweetie." Angel held her fist up to her mouth and coughed, then held her chest. "Oy vey…"

Morgan wrapped her arm around his shoulder and supported her. "This trip serves a double purpose. While searching for Team Ravenfield, I'm hoping the fresher and cleaner air will help you get back on your feet. I took everything into consideration when making my decision."

Angel smiled lightly. "You're sweet, Morgan."

He smiled back. "Just doing my job. Now then, if you both are ready…" Morgan walked up to the trailer door and knocked three times.

The door opened and Ava stepped out. She smiled at the two newcomers. "Ah, hello." She smiled at Cheri. "Hello again, little one."

Cheri teetered on her feet. "Hi, Ms. Ava."

Ava walked over to Angel and held her hand out. "And you must be Angel. It is so nice to meet you. I am Ava."

Angel smiled and shook her hand. "A pleasure to meet you." She looked at the caravan. "I hope we don't become a bother to your troupe."

The Medicham laughed. "Oh nonsense, darling. We welcome the company. Plus, Morgan told me you could use the fresh air. I must warn you, though: everyone loves to put on a show here, so expect a lot of eccentric characters here."

Angel giggled. "Oh, don't worry, I'm quite use to people-"

"Please don't say 'clowning' around!" Cheri shouted in annoyance.

The Raichu clasped her hands together. "D'aww, you know me so well, sweetheart." Cheri facepalmed.

Ava chuckled. "Oh, I can tell you're all going to fit in just fine." She crouched down to Cheri. "Cheri, you'll be staying with my daughters in their room. They're really nice, so you should be able to get along with them."

Cheri nodded. "Okay."

Ava stood up and looked at Angel. "Angel, you'll be staying with Nebula and Faye. I hope you don't mind sleeping on an air mattress."

Angel smiled amusingly. "Compared to what I used to sleep on, it's a massive upgrade."

Ava chuckled. "Glad we're all in agreement. Please, come inside so we can get you situated." They stepped inside, with Cheri helping her mother walk. Ava looked at Morgan just as he stepped his foot in. "Well, they seem lovely."

Morgan smiled. "Odd contrast once you meet Angel's son. Nice fellow, but no saint."

"I'll take your word for it." She followed him inside. Once she closed the door, one of the side doors to the trailer opened. Abby, Carrie, Nebula, and a Sliggoo walked in. The Sliggoo wore a green shirt with a bright yellow star on the front and a red bandana around her neck.

Nebula was the first to greet them. "Hello! Welcome to the Circus of Enchantment! Or at least the caravan." She chuckled, then held out her flipper. "Anyway, let me be the first of the troupe to welcome you aboard. I'm Nebula. I head the magic show."

The Sliggoo closed her eyes and smiled. "I'm Faye. I manage the props and have a hand with some of the special effects."

Angel smiled. "My, my, what a warm welcome." She reached out and shook their hands/flipper. "I'm Angel."

Cheri walked up to Abby and Carrie and smiled. "Hi! I'm Cheri!"

Carrie grinned. "Nice to meet you, Cheri! I'm Carrie! This is my big sister, Abby!"

Abby held her hips and smirked. "Looking forward to rooming with you, Cher. Don't be surprised if I smack you with a pillow."

Cheri grinned with narrowed eyes. "Don't be surprised if I fight back."

"Ooh, you're feisty. I'm liking you already."

The adults chuckled. "Well, there shouldn't be any issue with those three getting along," Ava commented. She looked to Nebula and Faye. "If you please escort Ms. Sapienti to her new room. She has some trouble getting around, so please be careful."

"Yes ma'am!" they exclaimed.

Nebula hooked her flipper around Angel's arm. "Follow us and watch your step. We have to go over some bridges and carts."

Faye smiled. "Would you care for something to eat?"

Angel chuckled. "Oh, no thank you, I ate earlier. Perhaps later." Nebula and Faye guided the Raichu out of the cart.

Carrie grabbed Cheri's hand. "Come on! I want to show you the prop room! It'll be a blast!"

Cheri smiled. "Cool! Do you have cannons?!"

"Yep!" The girls laughed and ran off to the prop cart.

Abby ran after them. "Oh, now hang on a minute! We are NOT playing in the cannon!" She slammed the door behind her as she chased them.

Morgan and Ava laughed to themselves. "Nice to see everyone getting along well already," Ava commented.

"That's good." Morgan sighed, then he ran his hand through his hair and leaned against the wall. "I wonder if we should tell them about the prophecy."

Ava shook her head. "I'm a mother, Morgan, and I know how Angel will react if she hears her son is part of a dangerous prophecy. The same goes for little Cheri."

The Hypno shrugged. "Yea, but they will find out in time."

"Let's just give them a while to adjust to things before we drop this news on them." Ava held her hips and paced back and forth in the trailer. "The concern should be placed on those treasure hunters. They're the ones that will have to bear the weight of destiny."

Morgan rolled his eyes. "This destiny stuff has always been a pain in the ass for me." He took out his flask. "Fate and destiny always seems like hogwash to me." He took a large sip from his flask. He hiccupped and pounded his chest. "Phew…but, like I said, I'm not one to doubt Cielo."

Ava shook her head. "We have a general idea of who the main six are, but we still don't know who the other symbols are or what they represent."

Morgan capped his drink. "Well, if they're connected to the prophecy, you could do a fortune telling with all six. It should strengthen the connection and make everything a bit clearer."

Ava rubbed her chin. "Hmm. You know, that isn't a bad idea. Still, that requires all six and they only have five members as far as we know."

Morgan shrugged. "Guess we'll have to wait and see how it turns out. With our luck, everything should fall right into place."

"You sound confident in that claim."

Morgan chuckled. "Maybe it's from all the alcohol I've been downing."

Ava deadpanned. "…you've been taking care of a child and a sick mother a month. Please don't tell me you were ever drunk around them."

"I am a responsible drinker, I'll have you know. And, like I said, I rarely get drunk." He held his flask upside-down, but it was empty. "Darn…"

Ava sighed and shrugged her shoulders. "Whatever." She held her hips. "Just be prepared for when we run into them." She looked over her shoulder with narrowed eyes. "What we know is not for the faint of heart."

Morgan pocketed his flask. "Don't worry. Those kids are tough. They'll handle whatever we throw at them."

Griffin tossed and turned, slowly coming out of unconsciousness. He mentally groaned, remembering the pain from his Exosus Release. His own energy knocking him out? What a humiliating way to go out. He tried to lift his hand to rub his head, but it was pinned against his side.

Even with his eyes closed, he could see the magical energy wrapped around him. The imagery in his dark mind was orange changes wrapped around his body, ablaze with his own aura. The chains had his arms pinned, his legs bounded, and restricted his movement entirely. He tried to break them apart with his magical pressure, but they would break. A lot of magic must have been used to make these things unbreakable.

Another thing he realized was what he was laying on. He was positive everything went black on the streets, so why did it feel like he was laying on a sofa? Griffin opened his eyes, slightly blurred from the light.

"…of all the places you could have brought him, you chose to drag him TO OUR HOTEL ROOM?!" Griffin blinked, then narrowed his eyes. He got a quick scan of the room he was in and saw he was, in fact, in a hotel room. And his captors were arguing about it.

"Oh, I'm sorry, I thought you didn't want the police knowing about our involvement in the fight."

"I didn't think you were going to drag him here in a burlap sack! I mean, seriously?! That has got to be the most suspicious looking thing ever!"

"It's going to be more suspicious if you keep shouting. Remember, thin walls."

Flint clutched his head, then paced back and forth with a frantic expression. "We are SO dead. We're going to get caught! Found out! We have a deadly killer in the same room as us!"

Tony shrugged. "Eh, everything will work out. Once we leave, we'll drag this guy to a different town and cash in any bounty on his head."

Wes sighed. "But you said he has friends in the city. They'll likely come after him should we keep him hostage for too long."

"You let me worry about that," Tony insisted. "Our goal is to get that dang key and get the hell out of here."

Ella, who was laying in an armchair, rolled her eyes. "Looking forward to that…"

"But I still don't know where the temple entrance is," Wes reminded. "The map won't give me a pinpoint location of the key, so it has to be somewhere in this city."

"Wouldn't the volcano make sense?" Gwyn asked from around the corner of her room. She was listening in on the conversation while also experimenting with her plants. She pulled out a syringe and injected a potion into an Oran berry. "I mean, I would set up a secret lair there if I had to."

"Err, it's possible, but that volcano isn't restricted from the public. It would have to be somewhere out of reach." Wes held his chin. "Maybe I should go up to the volcano and examine some of the inner features."

Flint shook his head. "Wes, the heat down there can kill you."

Wes grinned. "Well, we could throw you down there."

His eyes widened, then he shook his paws. "Oh no, absolutely not!"

"Well, if the heats a problem," Gwyn said, "I could see if I have a potion that can apply heat resistance. Just enough to where the heat won't hurt you."

Wes smiled. "You can make that?!"

"I'm sure I have the ingredients to make some."

"Haha! Great! Get working on that!"

"Roger that!" Gwyn pushed her experiment to the side and dug through her bag.

Flint pinched between his eyes. "Okay, okay, so we have a work around for the volcano situation, but we still have him to worry about!" he reminded, pointing at Griffin.

"I have a name."

Flint shrieked and jumped into Tony's arms, nearly knocking the thief over. Everyone, including Gwyn who poked her head out, looked to the couch and saw the bounty hunter wide awake, with his eyes narrowed into a light scowl.

"So, this is how you treat people who attack you? Tie them up and hold them hostage?"

Tony glared and dropped Flint, who yelped in response. "Nice to see you awake, Blood Moon Rogue. Have a nice nap after taking a hate beam to the face?"

Griffin closed his eyes and scoffed. "I'd advise against taunting me, boy."

"Boy? Dude, you're not that older than me. Besides…" He poked Griffin in the forehead. "You, yourself, are in no position to be talking back, considering we have every right to send you packing to the nearest holding cell."

"I assume this is about the bounty against you five?"

"Sort of," Wes admitted. "Like I said, there's no way that bounty was real. If it was issued in the Desert Zone, then it's a forgery."

"And a damn good one," Tony pointed out. "The guy who hired you took just about everything into account, only using your lack of knowledge on us in his advantage."

Griffin raised a brow. "So, what you're saying is that this was some convoluted plot to get a key?"

Wes shrugged. "Eh, yeah, pretty much."

Griffin blinked, then narrowed his eyes. "Okay, who the hell are you people?"

"You would like to know that, wouldn't you?" Tony asked rhetorically. He narrowed his eyes. "Yeah, that's not happening. I think you are the one who needs to explain himself."

Flint glared. "How about we start with your killing sprees? We know those weapons don't belong to you. So, you either stole them or you killed the original owners."

"And, according to multiple sources, the latter seems FAR more likely," Tony added. He sat down, rested his elbow on his knee, and held his chin. "Hope you have one heck of an argument ready, because we'll be dropping you off in the next immediate prison."

Griffin glared at the treasure hunters before him. He closed his eyes and scoffed. "What makes you think you can hold me? I could break out of these bindings at any moment and splatter your blood all over this room."

Ella narrowed her eyes. "Didn't we just get the whole bounty thing disproven?"

"Maybe so, but I'm more interested in your fighting capabilities rather than the money." Griffin opened his eyes. "It's been a while since a fighter knocked me out cold. You five are remarkable fighters…save you," he directed at Flint. The Flareon clenched his teeth and growled. "Seems to me I don't have a reason to stop fighting."

Tony pointed his finger at him, lighting it up with magic. "We have you trapped. Don't go acting like you're still in control. We can still mess you up should you try anything."

Wes leaned over and whispered to the Dewott, "So, are we playing Good Cop, Bad Cop, now? Because you're teetering towards the threatening side of things."

"I know what I'm doing," he whispered through his teeth.

"This is ridiculous," Griffin exhaled in annoyance. "Release me at once."

Tony pressed his glowing finger against his forehead. "And let you 'splatter our blood all over this room?'" Tony mocked. "Heh, yeah, if I was stupid and gullible."

"And yet, you brought me into your current place of residence," Griffin argued. "How long until someone realizes there's an extra guest in the hotel? An extra guest that is being held captive against his will?"

Tony narrowed his eyes into an uncaring expression. "I don't give a flying feather about it. You're answering for your crimes whether you want to or not."

Griffin groaned. "On and on with this. Once I break free, you'll be the first to fall by my blade."

Tony smirked. "Keep dreaming, pal."

Wes narrowed his eyes at the bounty hunter, then took a step forward. "You might as well cooperate with us. There isn't much you can do until you get your strength back up."

The Grovyle sighed. "That appears to be the case."

Ella leaned over to Flint, whispering, "He seems fairly civilized."

Flint rolled his eyes. "Probably an act to throw us off."

"Hun, I throw on acts all the time. Believe me, he has nothing to cover up." She rubbed her chin. "Looking at him up close, though, I can't help but question why he would kill heroes."

Tony crossed his arms. "Does seem like a split decision on his part, given that his records indicate he has been executing criminals in his free time." He raised a brow. "I've heard it all. Stabbing, incineration, decapitation, impalement, blood loss-"

"Hehe," Gwyn laughed nervously. "W-We get the picture, Tony."

Wes raised a brow in curiosity. "Who exactly are you?"

The bounty hunter's gaze was stone cold and emotionless, yet he pondered the question, wondering if he should say something. What choice did he have? He couldn't escape, he couldn't pull out his weapons, and his friends…well, he doubted they were going to pull off a grand scale rescue mission to free him.

He leaned his head back and sighed. "…very well. If you must know, my name is Griffin Everfall."

"Griffin Everfall…" Wes mumbled to himself.

"I am the notorious Blood Moon Rogue, who has slayed countless evildoers with my sword and bare hands." He narrowed his eyes. "I found your 'wanted poster' and decided to take up the bounty. However, it became a second thought when I saw how strong you all were. I wanted to test my skill against you."

"By trying to murder us?" Ella asked dryly. "Heh, yeah, that's a great defense."

He glared. "The poster may be a fake, but someone went out of their way to get me to hunt you down. Fake or not, you five are hiding something. So, what's the deal with this key business? You seem interested in protecting it. In fact, from the way you were speaking, it sounds like there's more than just one."

Flint glared. "Our business is for our ears only, not for the likes of a psychopath."

Griffin raised a brow. "I hear that word thrown my way a lot, but I'm no psychopath."

"Could have fooled me," Tony mumbled under his breath.

"I am simply a Grovyle who wishes to test his strength by purging all who spilt innocent blood."

"So, why go through the trouble of killing us?" Wes asked.

Griffin narrowed his eyes. "To be frank, most of you don't look like innocent folk. Especially the shifty one," he directed at Tony.

The Dewott smirked. "You flatter me."

"Perhaps I may have gone overboard in my desire to fight you…" He shook his head. "But it is how I was raised."

"How you were raised?" Ella asked with a brow raise.

Flint narrowed his eyes. "That actually reminds me. Your magic, it's…it's…"

"Vile? Unholy? Loathsome? I hear it all the time." He shook his head. "Bystanders, victims, the dying screams of my kills; all who face me feel the burning hatred of my aura."

Wes scratched his head. "I'm quite fascinated to learn about it. What is it?"

Griffin scoffed. "Figure it out for yourself."

"Then let me take a crack at it." They turned to Tony, who flashed a smug grin. "I'm going to take a wild guess and say you're from the Storm Zone, eh?" Griffin didn't speak. His face scrunched up into a scowl. "Ooh, I struck a nerve there! I'm right, aren't I?"

His friends blinked in confusion. "Wait, what makes you think he's from the Storm Zone?" Flint asked.

"It's that aura of his. It's a special magic type that is part of a specific hereditary line. The Grim Ash Clan."

Everyone was confused, but Griffin was clenching his teeth together as his eyes glowed red. "Stop. Talking," he ordered harshly.

"That's two nerves struck," Tony mocked. "It's a magic type called Emotion Anima." Griffin bowed his head, trying to hide his glare.

"Emotion Anima?" Flint repeated in confusion. He scratched his head. "I'm not familiar with that."

"Yeah, well, the Grim Ash Clan wasn't exactly popular. This is the type of material you hear on the streets." Tony held his chin. "Judging from his aura, I can determine he was born with Hatred Anima."

"What's Emotion Anima, anyway?!" Gwyn shouted as she cut the berry she was experimenting on into slices, then squeezed one of them.

Tony crossed his legs and tapped his fingers together. "Hmm, best way to explain this? Okay, so, ignoring the history going into the clan, there's a total of five different types of Emotion Anima: Hatred, Sorrow, Revulsion, Fear, and Jubilation. Anyone born with a specific anima has access to a specific set of spells that only that anima can learn. Some say the Grim Ash Clan harbors the most powerful spells in existence when at full power."

"So, basically just different skill sets in magic?" Ella questioned. She shrugged. "I don't see a problem with that."

"Hehehe…" Tony chuckled darkly. "Yeeeah, you've definitely never heard of the Grim Ash Clan. You see, while magic is different for all five, there's a common ability among all of them: Anima Absorption." Griffin glared.

"Anima Absorption?" Wes repeated.

"Let's paint this lovely little picture for all to see. So, Griffin here runs into this angry looking Pokémon who's about ready to snap some necks. Our good ol' friend here cuts him down and kills him, but not before taking a little something in return. Hatred Anima, in this case, allows the user to steal all the hatred within them and store it deep inside. The more hatred he collects, the stronger his magic becomes. The angrier or more spiteful his victim is, the more he has to steal from."

Tony narrowed his eyes. "The Grim Ash Clan has a history for being a clan of killers."

The treasure hunters looked at the bounty hunter with shocked and fearful expressions, mostly from Flint. The Flareon even took a step back and hid behind his younger brother.

Griffin narrowed his eyes. "Clearly your information on my clan is outdated. Formerly a clan of killers."

Tony grinned smugly. "History can repeat itself, buster."

Ella hopped out of the armchair and stretched her legs. "I've never heard of this Emotion Anima or the Grim Ash Clan before."

"That's because it disappeared off most modern maps," Tony explained. "Why? I'm not sure."

Griffin rolled his eyes. "Perhaps I did take after my clans past record for killing. So, what? My killings have been legal. I've only killed official bounties."

"And us," Ella muttered through her teeth.

Wes glared. "Then what about those heroes? Care to explain why you have their weapons?"

Griffin glared back. "And if I do?"

"Well, considering you tried murdering us, don't expect a get-out-of-jail-free card," Tony warned.

The Grovyle bowed his head and sighed. Whatever his odds, he wasn't breaking free from his chains anytime soon. He might as well come out and say it. "Very well. Yes, I have killed many evildoers and claimed their bounties without fail." He narrowed his eyes. "However, I have never spilt the blood of a hero. My sword is only tainted with the blood of sin."

Ella narrowed her eyes. "And you think we're just going to believe that? Those weapons aren't yours, after all."

Griffin closed his eyes and shook his head. "Believe what you will, but I speak the truth."

Tony raised a brow, observing Griffin's facial expressions. Flint was glaring with annoyance. Ella kept a calm demeanor. Wes tapped his chin with curiosity.

"I hear nothing! Is everything alright?!" Gwyn asked as the berry she was experimenting with was expanding in size. It looked like it will burst like a tense balloon.

"Yeah, we're fine," Tony assured. He stepped up to Griffin and bent down to eye level. "Not one innocent soul?"

"Not. One," Griffin spat.

Tony narrowed his eyes. "Then if it wasn't you, then who? You have all those weapons, so you've been following the real killer."

Griffin closed his eyes. "And if I do tell you, what?"

"What do you mean 'what?'"

"I mean, what do you plan of doing if I tell you the truth? I've been trying to fight this guy for years. Let me put it to you like this: you all struggled to fight me?" He glared. "The real killer is far stronger than me."

Tony stepped back and crossed his arms. "Is that right?" He held his chin and turned away, contemplating his next move.

"I don't know where he is now. I've lost track of him for a while. I've been busy chasing some other bounties."

Flint growled. "This is ridiculous. I say we throw him on the streets and leave him for the cops!"

"Flint, calm down," Ella gently said, patting his back.

"Wouldn't be a good idea," Wes said. He narrowed his eyes. "He could turn the authorities' attention onto us."

"Maybe I would," Griffin agreed. He shrugged. "Your friend there seems pretty high strung."

"You slapped me into a building!" Flint shouted. "We don't even know if you're worth keeping! We don't know who you are other than some killer who tried to kill us under false pretenses!"

"Flint, that's enough!" Wes shouted. "There's no point in getting worked up. We're holding him here until he gives us a straight answer. Once we leave and hit the next town, he's not our problem anymore." He then whispered, "He isn't our concern, anyway. We're supposed to be looking for the Key of Fire, remember?"

Flint sighed, then whispered, "I know, I know, but…I don't trust this guy."

"You didn't trust Tony," Wes reminded.

"Tony stole from us. This guy tried to murder us."

Wes rolled his eyes. "I know some people who tried to kill me before. They're either friends or…huh, well, I'm not sure how to classify the Desert Beasts. Rivals? Enemies? Some pirate group I keep running into?"

Flint held his face. "This guy is from a clan of trained killers. He SAYS former killers, but he took up quite an interesting career path for a pacifist."

Wes placed his paws on the Flareon's shoulders. "I understand that you're upset. I don't know how to feel about Griffin, but he seems honest. He could've killed me earlier, but he wanted to make an honorable duel out of it."

Flint deadpanned. "Honorable?"

Wes chuckled awkwardly and looked away from him. "Weeellll, about as honorable as you can get when accidentally tearing up a city."

Flint sighed, then rubbed his face to relax his nerves. He looked his brother in the eyes. "Promise me…promise me you have this under control?"

The Umbreon held his paw over his heart. "You have my word."

Flint held his face, then sighed. "O-Okay, okay, I trust you. I know you have everything under control."

Wes nodded, then cupped his paws around his mouth. "Team meeting! Now!"

"EEP!" An explosion alerted everyone, including Griffin, in shock. Gwyn fell out of the room. Her fur was blackened and smoking.

Griffin blinked. "…are you okay?"

She gave the thumbs-up. "I'm good…" she wheezed. Without lifting her face up, she dragged herself over to the group as they bunched together. She grabbed Flint and pulled herself up. She opened her mouth, but puffed a cloud of smoke. She pounded her chest, then said, "As it turns out, making a Naturae Fruit out of my Blast Berries isn't that simple…"

Tony blinked. "…right. Anyway, what's this meeting about?"

Wes cleared his throat. "Right. Now, considering all that has happened, we may need to speed up our plans and find that key quickly. We don't know if or when the city will catch wind of what happened, so it's best that we keep on the down low and get everything done with."

"That's not the only thing we need to concern ourselves over," Ella brought up. She glanced at Tony. "Tony found something out about the bounty placed on our heads."

Tony pinched between his eyes. "I should have realized it, but I'm positive Aeternus was the one who set up that bounty."

"The creepy mob boss?" Gwyn asked.

"That's the one. I found his magic lined in the wanted poster. It was spell set to suck in a specific item. He was using Griffin to do his dirty work, to steal our key." Griffin raised a brow upon hearing this. "It's likely all of the Anguis Organization will be on our trail. And considering how expansive they are, we could run into them again."

"So, he was basically going to have Griffin do the hard work and kill us so we wouldn't interfere anymore," Flint summarized. He closed his eyes and growled through his teeth. "That guy pisses me off even more than before."

"Welcome to the club," Tony joked. "So, we need to find the Key of Fire, pay off our hotel bill again, and keep an eye out for the Anguis Organization." He sighed. "Tall order to fill out, if we're being honest."

"We don't have much of an option," Wes said. He pulled out the map. "I don't have an exact location, but our best lead is the volcano. Some of us should investigate it."

Tony nodded. "Right. And I'll head out through the city and make up our profits." He looked over his shoulder at Griffin. "And perhaps track down your buddies."

Griffin glared. "I can assure you, they have never killed an innocent." He looked to the side with a deadpan stare. "Though, I can't say much about Mack's stability."

"Just want to cover my bases."

Wes looked to Flint. "Flint, I could use your expertise to help search the volcano."

Flint nodded. "Alright, sounds good."

Tony patted Gwyn's shoulder. "Gwyn, how about you come along with me? I can teach you how to pickpocket."

Flint glared angrily. "Under no circumstances am I letting you corrupt her innocent mind!" His eyes widened at his sudden outburst, then he blushed. Ella shot him a knowing look behind his back, snickering silently.

Gwyn giggled. "Aww, don't worry, Flinty. I'll leave the stealing to Tony."

"Exactly," Tony admitted. He pulled Flint's hat over his eyes. "Though, if I do run into Griffin's pals, I feel she will be useful backup."

Flint pulled his hat up and sighed, "Fair enough." He blinked in realization, then glared at Griffin. "What about him, though? We can't leave him here unintended."

Ella smirked and placed her paw against her chest. "Well, since the rest of you have your thing, I'll gladly take up the role of prison warden."

Wes narrowed his eyes in concern. "Uh, Ella? Are you sure about that? If he somehow manages to break loose, you won't stand much of a chance against him."

She flicked his nose with her tail. "That's sweet of you, but I'm not a defenseless damsel. You got your magic, I got my psychic power and wits. I can handle a hotheaded bounty hunter."

Griffin rolled his eyes. "Charming…"

Wes sighed and held his face. "Okay, just…don't do anything stupid."

Ella smirked and flicked his face again. "Never do." The Umbreon smiled. She walked up to Griffin and bopped his nose. "I'm going to have so much fun with this."

Griffin narrowed his eyes. "Don't push your luck."

"Oh, I love testing my odds!" she exclaimed.

Flint pinched between his eyes. He sighed. "Ella, please be careful with him. Killer or not, he's still dangerous."

"I have everything under control, Flintster." She ran her paw through the fur on her head. "I need to do my part in the team, after all."

Wes sighed with a small grin. "Fair enough. Gwyn, get those fire resistance potions ready and we'll all set out."

"Right!" the team exclaimed.

Griffin narrowed his eyes as everyone separated through the room, with Gwyn heading back to her room. The others chattered, going over details with their plans. The Grovyle leaned back into the couch, silently keeping to himself. He closed his eyes, trying to forget the mention of his clan. Forget his village.

The place where he changed for the worst.

Sailing above the clouds was the ship of the Desert Beast Pirates. The wings flapped gracefully with rhythmic beats, blowing away a chunk of cloud with each flap.

It was a slow day for the pirates. No big raids, no treasure finds. So, when they weren't busy with chores or raiding, they were doing the next best thing: getting drunk and throwing a party.

Lyra played energetically on her concertina as her fellow shipmates danced around the ship, laughing and cheering in sheer delight.

Indigo and Leigh clanged their mugs together and chugged. The Sneasel's face was flushed with heat, already succumbing to the effects of the alcohol. She laughed out loud while tripping over her feet. "Haha! You know something, Leigh?" She hiccupped. "I think…I think…oh, I forgot~!" She hung her arm over the ship's edge, laughing.

Leigh, who was conscious, narrowed her eyes. "Indigo, you shouldn't be overdoing it on the drinks. You're still pretty young."

"BAH!" she groaned, pulling herself up and stumbling backwards. "That sounds like a challenge…"

"It really isn't," Leigh assured with a bored expression.

Julius hobbled over, bellowing a hearty laugh. "Oh, let the lass have her fun! Not the first time we had to drag her back onto the ship!" He lifted his mug and chugged.

Leigh deadpanned. "I'm surrounded by idiots." She took a sip and walked away.

With all the partying going on, it stirred Jeffery from his nap. He flew onto the deck, dressed in red pajamas. He raised his wings and shouted, "Oi! What's with all the ruckus?!"

Zerif took a sip of rum and sneered at him. "Watch it, featherbrain!" He held up his mug to the stuffed bear sitting next to him. "Care for a sip, Mr. Pooky?" The teddy bear leaned forward lifelessly, pressing its head against the mug. "Aww, you like that?"

Jeffery groaned. "You're a grown pirate, Zerif! Stop playing with that stupid toy!" The parrot shrieked and dodged a cutlass thrown at his talons.

Zerif stood up and gave him the stink eye. He pulled out six cutlasses from his hair and held them up, albeit teetering around while drunk. "Say that again," he challenged with a hiccup. "I dare ya to call him stupid again!"

Jeffery waved his wings defensively. "I-I-I didn't mean, I swear!"

"T-That's what I…I thought." He placed the cutlasses away and went back to drinking.

Jeffery sighed in relief, then pinched between his eyes. It's too early in the morning to deal with this crap.

Rico kicked the storage room up and brought out a barrel. "Hey guys, I brought the berries!"

Ray sat off to the side with a juice box. He smiled. "Sweet! I want my Oran berries!" He ran over.

The pirates who were still capable of rational thought ran over to the barrel as Rico tried to pry the lid open. "I'll be honest, it was lighter than I expected. I could have carried this with one arm."

Leigh rolled her eyes. "We have enough meatheads on the ship. I better not see you admiring yourself in the mirror like Smith," she warned, pointing over her shoulder at the Simisear, whose expression shifted in offense.

"No, I'm serious. I was expecting this to be heavy." He finally got his fingers around the lid and pulled it off. "Dig in, everyone!"

The pirates reached into the barrel, but were surprised that they didn't immediately grab berries. The barrels were usually filled to the top. They peered inside, then gasped in horror as the barrel was nearly empty, with only two Cheri berries and a Micle berry left.

Leigh glared at the barrel, then aimed her battle claws at her shipmates. "Alright, which one of you greedy gluttons has been snacking?!"

Banama held his hands up defensively. "It wasn't me."

Leigh aimed her claws at Julius, who glared in response. "Whoa, lass! Ye think I did this?! How do we know ye haven't been snacking yerself?!" He aimed his cannon at her.

Graham stood off to the side, shaking his head. "You all are a bunch of idiots."

"Watch yer tongue, Graham!" Julius warned as he took aim at him. "Who's to say you weren't getting greedy yerself? Ye already boast about yer wealth over us. Ye could easily be acting like everything is beneath ye."

Graham scoffed. "Turning your weapon on me? I'll have you know, I didn't steal extra rations. Not that I need to. I have my own stock of personal goods."

Drake glared up at Jeffery. "What about him?"

Jeffery squawked, then angrily shouted, "Oh, don't go pointing fingers at me! I'm the most loyal pirate on this crew!"

"Loyal to the captain, yes. Loyal to us?" Drake wrapped his fingers around his katana. "Seems likely you wanted a little payback."

"How could I possibly consume that much food without getting caught?!" he cried furiously. "Look at me! Do I look like I can consume that many berries with this small a stomach?!"

Tyrone scratched his head. "Well, he has a point."

"No one's going anywhere until they fess up!" Julius shouted.

"Now hold on a minute-!" Jeffery tried to say, but the infighting between the crew escalated into violent shouting and drawing weapons on each other. The only crew member who was staying out of it was Lyra, who gave her concertina an awkward squeeze.

However, Malcolm stepped away from the arguing and made his way to the barrel. While he would love nothing more than to get into a good brawl, there was something suspicious about the near empty barrel. The crew can get carried away with the drinking, but they're not stupid enough to waste rations for gluttonous means.

He looked inside and observed the sides of the barrel for any unusual signs. Almost immediately, he found an out-of-place handprint on the side. A handprint of berry juice. He narrowed his eyes, then looked up at the others as they yelled at each other. Malcolm rubbed his chin as the gears in his head turned.

Arid eventually heard the commotion and marched outside, glaring. "Alright, what's going on?! I'll have you all thrown overboard if you don't shut up!"

The crew stopped fighting, with Banama explaining, "Sir, we suspect one of the crew is stealing rations."

"Excuse me?!" he roared in anger, making them flinch.

"No, it wasn't the crew." Everyone looked at Malcolm, who was rubbing his berry stained fingers together. "I found a handprint inside the barrel. It doesn't belong to any of the crew members. Size and shape is wrong." He glared. "I think we have a stowaway."

"A stowaway…" Arid narrowed his eyes and jumped down to them. "That means they're in the storage room."

A sudden tumbling of berries was heard inside the storage room, likely hearing Arid. The pirates looked at each other with serious expressions.

Arid gestured Lyra over. "Lyra, flush them out."

The Zangoose smiled brightly and nodded. She walked over to the storage door and opened it. The room was dark, only able to make out the dark shapes of the crates and barrels. She narrowed her eyes, then crouched down to place her hands on the floor.

She inhaled silently, then made a shushing noise that rang throughout the room. A blue energy spread out from under her hands and stretched all over the room, giving it a blue tint.

Far in the back of the storage room was the stowaway, trying to stay as silent as possible. Crap, crap, crap! They found me! I was doing so well! Okay, just calm down. Don't say anything and keep still.

She exhaled to calm herself, then her eyes widened. Her hands went straight to her mouth in fright.

She didn't hear herself breathe.

She tapped the crate she was behind and it didn't make a sound. She couldn't hear anything all of a sudden. She pulled a dagger out from her cloak and held it against her chest defensively. What the hell is going on?!

She looked around the corner of the crate to see if anyone was inside. She carefully stood up and stepped out from behind the crate.

Is anyone here?

She turned around, then exhaled a soundless scream as Lyra pounced from the shadows and pinned her to the floor. The stowaway flailed and screamed, but no one heard her cries. Not that any attempt at calling for help would do much.

Let me go! Let me go!

Lyra narrowed her eyes and bent down. She sniffed the stowaway's breath. It smelled like berries and fruits. She's the culprit.

The crew stood outside the storage room. They couldn't hear anything with Lyra's Indicens spell activated. Though, they had no doubt she would find the culprit.

That faith remained intact as a cloaked figure was thrown out of the storage room and slammed into the main mast. Her hood fell off, revealing she's a Steenee. Ropes were tied around her, pinning her arms and legs together.

Indicens ended and they heard Lyra walk out. Malcolm grinned. "Nice work, Lyra." She closed her eyes and smiled appreciatively.

Arid stomped towards the Steenee and huffed smoke from his nostrils, making her cough. "Who are you? How long have you been on this ship?"

She shook her head and glared. "I'm not answering to the likes of-!" She gulped as battle claws, cutlasses, and guns were pointed at her. "-you?" she squeaked in fear.

"Speak. Now!" Arid ordered strongly.

She clenched her eyes shut and shivered. "I-I-I've been on your ship for a month!"

"A month?!" Jeffery squawked. "How haven't you idiots noticed?!" he berated the crew.

Banama glared. "Blaming us? Aren't you the one who keeps stating this ship is running because of you?"

"I can't do everything, thank you very much!" he shouted.

Leigh pressed her battle claws against the Steenee's throat, who gulped nervously. "What should we do with her? Throw her over the side?"

"I'll die!" she screamed in panic.

"Yeah. Kind of the idea."

"I say we shoot her from the cannons!" Jeffery encouraged, rubbing his wings together maliciously. The Steenee inched back as far as she could against the mast.

Arid narrowed his eyes, contemplating the smarter move. Throwing her overboard would land them into hot water. They already have bounties on their heads for raiding/destroying villages. Should anyone find out they're tied to brutal murder, they'll have powerful wizards on their tails.

The Darmanitan sighed and turned away. "We'll work something out later. For now, she's our prisoner until further notice." He glared over his shoulder, making the Steenee shiver. "You'll pay for your crimes on this ship."

"A-A-Are you going to…" she started.

"Kill you? No. Until we figure out what to do with you, you're going to work off all those berries you ate."

"Manuel labor?" she questioned.

"Exactly." Arid snapped his fingers. "Bring down below and chain her up."

Banama and Drake grabbed the Steenee by the arms and dragged her away. She kicked her legs in protest. "Let me go, let me go! I refuse to work on your cruddy ship!"

"It's either that or the cannon," Drake reminded. "Don't the Chatot will have second thoughts."

Steenee looked back at the smirking Chatot, who was rubbing his wings together with malicious intent in his mind. She gulped with a nervous grin. "Hehehe…so, what's the first chore?" They dragged her below deck.

Arid paced back and forth, pinching between his eyes. "I can't believe we missed her. A whole month on the ship and no one noticed…"

Julius shrugged. "Give the lass credit, I guess."

Jeffery perched onto Arid's shoulder and crossed his wings. "I still say throwing her overboard is the better option. We don't know if she's dangerous or not."

"Can't be more dangerous than half the crew," Arid mumbled as he walked back to his quarters.

"I implore you, captain, to reconsider. We can't afford dealing with pests like this." He whispered, "We're still on the hunt for Ravenfield and his band of misfits. Distractions like that girl are best to be dealt with."

"Then keep her busy while I decide her fate." He rubbed his chin. "Why stowaway onto a pirate ship, though? She's either brave or reckless."

Jeffery scoffed. "How about both?"

"Regardless, no harm shall be brought onto her unless I say so." Jeffery yelped as the captain grabbed him by the beak and held him in front of his eyes. "I swear, I will have you fired from those cannons personally should you turn your back on me. Are we clear?"

Jeffery grinned nervously, sweat dripping down his head. "Hehe…o-of course, sir."

Arid released him. "Good." He walked up to his quarters and entered. "I shall be continuing with my research. Keep the crew in line."

Jeffery deadpanned. "Asking for the impossible, but I'll do what I can." Arid nodded and shut the door. Jeffery rubbed his face and groaned. "Not how I wanted to wake up in the morning…"