Arc One: Mystery

Chapter Thirty-One: Get It Together


Everything doesn't feel good at all. I feel like I'm being trapped by my own wounds.

...But I don't care at all. I just want some shut eye. When you've been up for almost an entire day, that slowly becomes the only thing you want to do.

But am I missing something, though? I feel like...this isn't the right thing to do. But I grunt as soon as I try to move.

Well, whatever it was, it can wait. It'll have to...

Then I feel something on my tongue, and it tastes bitter. I groan. Uhhhhhh, I can't believe how hard the universe is trying to keep me awake. I open my mouth and try to grab whatever's on my tongue with my hand.

Strange, I can feel right where it is, but I just can't seem to grab it. And it feels weird in my mouth too. It's not only bitter, but it's making me feel all warm and...awake...and better?

Huh...maybe whatever this thing is isn't so bad after all. My ears perk up as I hear...something. Well, actually, somethings, and they seem to be talking with one another.

It then comes to my attention that my eyes aren't open. Strange, it felt like they were just a second ago. Was I dreaming?

My eyes then start to crack open, and faint lights enter as I feel myself sitting down on the ground. The pain is still a pain in the neck, so I still can't move as freely as I'd want to.

But I can pick up a faint color of white and blue.

Blue?...

...!

Lucas!

I jolt up as if I had just waken up from a nightmare, but the last thing I can remember was a living one.

Zygarde, he had me. He had me and I didn't care! He lifted me up and choked me until I pasted out, but I saw Lucas before that...

Did Lucas stop him from getting away, did he somehow managed to get me back? And that had to be Eve with him too, right? Am I somehow back at the Guild getting more bandages put on?!

Maybe that's one of the reasons I feel so stiff.

I then look down to see what's left of my bandages, but I then see blue surround me fast. I get another reason why I feel like I can't move: I'm being hugged.

Yes, my bones feel like they're getting crushed and it does hurt. But there's so much more to the tears I'm tearing.

I was...I should have been dead. There was no reason why I should still be here. I lost...yet they didn't. Arceus may like to mess with me with all of the unnecessary fights from Dark-Types, fake legendaries, real legendaries, but I am alive, so that's something.

As much as it hurts to do it, I lift my arms behind both of their heads and return the hug.

"Thank you guys..." I manage to say, though I regret it a little as my chest burns, and not in a good way.

My mouth is then forced open, and I feel the sweet taste of an Oran Berry. I start chewing it with a smile. Oh, that's already hitting the spot.

Eve let's go of me, but Lucas continues to hold on. I don't blame him, in fact, I don't even want him to let go just yet.

"I'm so glad you're alright." He says crying.

"Yeah, though I think 'alright' is stretching things a bit." I say.

Lucas snickers as he loosens his grip. "Yeah, I guess...you could be better. Much better."

Finally, he let's go as my vision starts to clear up with all the tears leaving my eyes. Or maybe not because everything looks...really weird.

I rub my eyes and look again. Okay, it's still a little fuzzy again, but it doesn't seem that the weird red color isn't going away.

But just for good measure, I rub my eyes again.

"Well Red, you have a lot you need to know." Eve starts off. "You've missed quite a lot while you were out."

Yeah, figured as much. I'm starting to get the feeling that I was wrong about being back at the Guild.

"So to start, Zygarde did catch you, and then brought you to this place. I believe it's near the core, as I don't think he would go anywhere else with you. Lucas and I managed to follow him, and freed you from his vines. Right now, we're inside a Mystery Dungeon, and I think it leads to the true core."

"..." "..." "..."

"Was that a little too much?" Eve asked.

I blink. "No, I got it all." When you've been chosen by Arceus himself to save the world, and have dealt with the all the things I've been through lately, anymore wild events just fade into one another.

Yeah, sure, why not at this point? It's not like my life can't get any weirder than it already is.

I grunt again. I look and see Eve putting on her bag. "You don't happen to have another Oran Berry, do you?" I asked.

"Sure do." She says as she takes one out of the bag. "Here."

I smile as the treat gets closer to me. I'm feeling better just by smelling it. "It's a good thing you brought that bag, Eve." Lucas said. "We'd be in huge trouble if it weren't for that."

"Well, when the two of you left, I decided to grab the bag and fill it with supplies before I went upstairs too." She said. "Mom has told me that it's never wrong to be too safe, and I knew whatever happened couldn't be good, so I made sure to grab multiple Oran Berries, and a couple of Revivor Seeds. Though I'm not sure if any of them are left. Maybe a berry or two, but I think we're out of seeds. Didn't want to take too much time...unfortunately."

I finish off my berry. "Well, I'm glad you did that." I say.

I then tried to get up, but my legs feel too sore to support my weight.

"Careful!" Eve said. "The berries may help you get back some power, but your bones are still going to need a lot of time before they'll feel normal again."

I sigh. Really wish it was that easy. Suddenly, I feel myself being lifted off the ground. I can see that Lucas is picking my left side, and Eve is helping him put me on his shoulder.

"Here, I'll help you get around." He says with a smile.

I smile back at him. I simply say, "Thanks." to him as we walk forward.

"So, what exactly are we doing?" I ask, a bit clueless.

"Eve and I are going to take you to the core so we can stop these Mystery Dungeons." Lucas says. "Just got to get out of this one first."

I look over at Eve and spot the flute just sticking out of the bag. I can't imagine what position we'd be in if she didn't grab that bag and the flute. Things would have probably been terrible without it.

"So, Zygarde was the answer to our problems. Glad we got that figured out." I say sarcastically.

"Yeah...Well, it's good to see you awake, Red." Eve says. "We didn't know for sure if you were alive when Zygarde had you."

"I could say the same to you guys." I add. "You don't look as bad as me, but you don't look so good either."

"Well, that's what happens when you cross paths with Zygarde." Lucas says. "He crushed me with one of his vines when I tried to save you."

"Well, you ended up saving me, so it was worth it, right?" I say with encouraging smile.

But Lucas, instead of laughing or agreeing with me, turns away and looks ahead as we keep moving without a word. It was worth it...Right?

I look back at Eve, who gives me an uneasy look. Guess there's more to the story I don't know about, but that can wait for now.

"So, does anyone here have a plan?" I ask.

Eve nods. "I'll keep watch for anymon who wants to fight us. You're in bad shape, and Lucas is carrying you. I'm the only one who can always be ready...though, that's if anything even is down here aside from Zygarde."

"Alright, makes sense, but Zygarde. Do you know if he's close to us?"

"Uhhh...let's not worry about that now." She says.

"Yeah, we're hoping that he gets stuck in here as well. At least long enough for us to find the exit." Lucas says.

While that does sound good to me, there is one question that needs to be answered. "What happens if he beats us to the core?" I ask. "Could you show him the flute so that he won't kill us?"

Lucas makes a left as he says, "He said that it's too late for us to use it, but I for one think that's just an excuse for him to kill you. It'll work." Lucas says that with a determined look, but his voice felt like deep down, he was worried.

I still have some more questions. I mean, what are we supposed to do once we get there? I know somemon will have to play it, but what? Is there a special song we have to play? What happens if we mess it up?

...

You know, thinking about this makes it hard to take one step at a time. I'm sure something will kick in once we get there. Who knows, maybe Eve will have another vision. That would be very useful.

Yeah, I'm still worried about this because the world as I know it could be in ruins if I mess it up, but I'm just glad I'm with Lucas and Eve again.

None of us are in the best shape, but we're all glad to be back together again...just got to take any victories I can at this point.

Again, I look around. I'm getting flashbacks to that same hallway back at Central Mountain. Only this time everything seems to have less of a pulse as if it's dying, and it's more glass like...like my last nightmare.

Geez, everything is blending together to make one big smoothie in my head. If anymore facts are connected to even more stuff, then my head is going to explode.

The shaking of the ground scares me Lucas and Eve stop. The pulse on the wall glow brighter as the walls begin to move. Turning our path forward into a fork in the road.

Lucas sighs. "Ok, guess we're going...right." He says as we resume moving forward.

But something feels off about going in this direction. Almost as if we should have gone left again.

I brush it off at first, but it only takes five step for me to get that feeling again.

Is that where the stairs are? Over there? It feels weird as there's no way of knowing for sure where the stairs are, but...it could be over there.

"Lucas, can you turn around." I ask.

"Why?" Lucas says before he panics. "Is there somemon behind me?!"

"No, I just...have a gut feeling we need to go left." I say.

He and Eve look at each other. "Well, your guess is as good as mine." He says as he turns around. As soon as he does, my feeling is...better? Wow, that feels weird.

"Did you just become a compass for us?" Lucas asked.

"No, it's a gut feeling, like, I felt sick in my stomach when we weren't going the this way."

Lucas appears to be weirded out, and I can see Eve give off a confused look. I then realize something. "It might be the Lucky Pebble. It could be leading me towards the core."

Eve tilts her head. "But why did you say your stomach felt sick-"

"Oh, Red apparently ate the pebble." Lucas cleared up.

"O-oh." Eve tries to say in an understanding way, but I can tell she's even more confused and a bit disgusted. I don't blame her. I don't think we mentioned that I ate it.

"But what if it leads us to Zygarde?" She asks.

I worry for a moment, but then remember something. "Xatu told me that the Lucky Pebble would be the key to all of this, and it's already helped us with getting through the temples, so I think I'll continue to trust this feeling."

"Well, that's great! Just tell us where we need to go then." Lucas says as I feel his tail hit my leg repeatedly.

More forks appear, and I feel the same way: We have to go in a certain direction, otherwise it doesn't feel right to me.

It's still weirding me out, but its great news for Lucas and Eve, as they feel relieved that I seem to know the way through this ever changing maze.

I mean, I could be wrong, but hey, living in the moment right now.

"How close do you feel like we're to the stairs?" Lucas asks.

I shrugged. "I don't know, I just feel it, but I'm not sure how close we are-"

Another earthquake happens as I hold that thought. This time it feels even more powerful than the last one.

My ears then perk up as I hear...something. It sounds like white noise, only it doesn't have a relaxing feeling to it. In fact, it sounds like it coming from something that's watching us.

Come to think of it, it's beginning to FEEL like something is watching us. The ground and walls stop shaking, but I don't.

I don't have a feeling of where we should go anymore. I feel like we've been found by something.

I take deep breathes, and Lucas asks, "Red, you ok?"

"I-uh...I-I don't know..." I spit out. "I just feel like...we're not alone anymore."

"AHH!" Eve howls at the top of her lungs. Her scream make me turn white as I look at her just as she uses Ice Beam on the ground. Lucas and I have no idea what caused her to do that, but she seems to be on her toes, and she backs up into Lucas, shaking in fear.

"S-s-something grabbed me." She stuttered. "It came from the ground, and grabbed my leg with a hand, and-and it felt so icky and..." She never finished her sentence, and that only made the cold feeling in my gut feel colder.

But it feels worse when I feel the ground shake, and hear something sliding in the distance.

We're in trouble.

"Left, left, left, left, left, left, left." I say on repeat as Lucas and Eve start running, while I just try my best to not get in Lucas' way.

Zygarde's on our tail again. It doesn't seem that he knows exactly where we are, but Eve's scream gave him a great idea where we are.

I can only hope he goes right and not left.

Still, as we make our way through this maze as fast as we can, I can't help but wonder what happened with Eve. She wouldn't lie, and she clearly was scared of something, but what? What could possibly be another thorn in our side?!

The ground continues to shake as the slithering seems to be getting louder. Dang it, why do my legs have to slow us down so much?

There's another fork in the path. "Left again!" I say.

There's no way he'll think we went the same direction again, right? We make our way as I can hear him reach the fork. I cross my fingers, praying for another miracle.

I don't get one as the noise continues to get louder.

"This is bad!" Eve says panicked. "What are we going to do? We're not going to outrun him, and we definitely can't beat him either."

"I'll...think of something, alright?!" I say. "Maybe there'll be more forks in the road, and we can-"

Suddenly, I'm tripped up, and Lucas falls on top of me. I see Eve turn around as she prepares to help us up. But that's when we see something dark hit the fox, pinning her to the wall.

From what I can see, it's a Haunter that about to use Shadow Claw on her. She manages to dodge the first strike, but I ready up an Ember incase she's too slow for the second one.

Yeah, my chest hurts, but time is running out, so deal with it, body!

I fire it at the mon, and it vaporizes in moments, some of the fire hitting Eve, who uses Protect to cover to shield from the rest of the attack.

"Where did he come from?!" Lucas wonders as him and I get up.

"Don't have a single clue." Eve says. "Let's just get the-LOOK OUT!"

We don't have time as we're brought back down to the ground hard. It feels like there's a leg standing on my back, and I wouldn't be surprise if there's one on Lucas' back too. The first thing Eve does is charge up an Ice Beam and fires it, but it is canceled out by a Dark Pulse from off to the side. I look, and I see more dark Pokemon appearing from what seems to be out of thin air or from the ground. I can't tell what Pokemon they are, they look...weird.

If I wasn't scared for my life, I would be asking what the heck is going on, but that foot on my back keeps me from thinking that. Instead, things are looking just as bad as when Zygarde had me.

But then a wave of energy like a strong wind hits me, and once it passes me, I'm shocked to look around and see the beings...gone?!

I HAVE SO MANY QUESTIONS STARTING WITH 'What the heck!?'!

Then something heavy slams into the ground, knocking the dust into the air. I cough, as do the others. I look to where the fall was, and I see it.

Zygarde is on the ground, only separated from me by a few inches. I want to jump away from him, but I'm frozen in fear, and considering that no one else is doing anything either, I think they're frozen too.

Arceus, save me.

The dust slowly settles down as the neon energy around him gets brighter. I can feel my anger building inside of me. If I wasn't so hurt, Zygarde is somemon I'd love to use Sucker Punch on.

But then he starts shaking, cracks, and then...pops? I see multiple green dots fling to the wall like slime. Some behind me, some still before me, and they all lose their glow, with one exception however, and it's the one on the ground in front of me. The neon glow does change a bit, and it seems as it gets a tad bit dimmer and the color even changes to...

...

My eyes widen as the blue light starts to fade too. Is that the other half of Zygarde?!

I shouldn't feel the way I do about him. I'm still in pain because he tossed me down here to save the world, all when we have the flute with us. And from what I could tell, he tried to do the same with Eve and Lucas. He's been nothing but a pain to deal with...

...But to see him looking out of breath, out of power, so helpless as a single cell...I can't lift my Sucker Punch hand up to strike him.

And here's a crazy thought, was he the one who did that...whoosh thing?

Maybe his brother will actually listen to reason this time around.

"Are-uhhh...you ok?" I ask, still scared.

The blue clue is laying face first in the ground, and has barely even moved. But I move my arm towards him.

"RED! What are you doing?!" Lucas yells as I turn to him. "That's Zygarde. We got to get out of here."

I look at the cell again, and while I do want to get out of here, my curiosity gets the best of me. I breathe in and exhale as I poke him.

"Berry."

"Ahh!" I gasp as I put my hand back. Was that Zygarde? I then feel my hand being tugged away. I look and see Lucas dragging me away from the small neon slime as Eve charges up an Ice Beam.

"Wait Eve! Hold it!" I yell before grabbing my chest.

Her eyes dart towards me before closing her mouth. "What do you mean wait? I was just going to freeze him." She says.

"I know that, but it's fine. I don't think he wants to hurt us." I say.

Lucas is confused and worried. "Then, why did you gasp?!"

"He used telepathy." I answer. "He just said berry."

"Berry?" Both Lucas and Eve ask.

I nod. "I think he's wiped out and wants something to heal him."

I go to reach for the bag when it slides to Eve. "Red, why would you want to do that?"

"Because he needs help."

"Red, it's got to be a trap." Lucas says. "And a weak one at that, you can't fall for that."

"I don't think it is one, though." I state. "You remember back at the Ground-Type Temple we saw a painting of Zygarde, right Lucas? How there are two cells that are the core of Zygarde?"

There's no word that comes out of my friends. "Look, our Zygarde wouldn't just faint like this. He'd still have at least some anger left in him, and I don't think his legendary status would allow his ego to do this."

Lucas seems to listen to me just fine, but still is worried. "But...it's still Zygarde."

"It's a Zygarde, Lucas. He's his own Pokemon."

"But you..." He holds onto me tighter. "...You just woke up...I just got you back...I don't want to risk losing you again." I can tell that by the way he said it.

As much as I don't want to make him worried, I just can't listen to him or Eve this time around.

"Look, I know we've been running away from Zygarde because he's been trying to kill me, but even after that, I can't call him a bad guy. We both want the same thing: To stop these Mystery Dungeons. We just have very different ways of doing it, and he's not wrong to come after me, I just wish we could work together so I don't have to die."

I take a deep breath. "Because that's what I want to do at the end of the day. I want to make sure everymon is safe. That everything will be alright...and that includes Zygarde. Don't want to give him another reason to hate me."

There's a silence that follows as my two partners think about what I said. I hope they understand what I mean and don't get any wrong ideas. I don't want to die, but I do want to work with Zygarde.

Eve breaks the silence by sighing, before taking a Oran Berry out of the bag. "I trust you Red." She says as she has the berry float to the lead cell.

Slowly, he slides to it, and when his body makes contact with the food, he starts to cover it with his body as he starts to beam brightly. I hear Lucas whisper a prayer to Arceus as the light fades. The cell is now 'standing' up as his blue light is more noticeable.

"Thank you." He says. "That was much appreciated."

I then notice that the regular cells have opened their eyes, and are now looking at us. I'm beginning to second guess myself, but I have hope. The cells then start to inch closer and closer towards me, and my hope is getting smaller and smaller.

But I don't want to fight them. At least not right after I just said how I would rather work with him then against him.

But they're not stopping, and I notice that Eve is starting to charge up her Ice Beam again.

"Easy now. I don't not wish to attack any of you." Zygarde says. "My cells and I are only trying to get to the core, as I assume you three are trying to do as well?"

Eve relaxes again, but Lucas is still on guard. "Yeah, that's right. We're going to use the Flute of Aura to stop these Mystery Dungeons from appearing."

"Is that the name you have decided to give these disturbances? Hmm, I must admit, it's a name that describes them quite well." Zygarde says.

Ok, so far, so good. He seems a lot more calmer than his brother has in a long time.

"I believe we should all have the same understanding before we make our way. Raboot, or Red, you mentioned to your friends that my other half has been trying to kill you. Do you know the reason why he's doing this."

Oh boy, a touchy question. Let's hope he's more understanding too. "Yeah. The reason he's after me is because...he thinks I caused all of this to happen."

All the cells in this hallway turn to me, and stare blankly at me. Uneasiness returns to me as all ninety-eight of their eyes are on me.

"You're the reason?..Did he mention why he thinks that?"

"Something about my aura being off." I say as I feel like I'm being backed into a corner. The cells on the walls begin to make gibberish sounds as if they're discussing. If my memory serves me correct, only the blue and red cells are able to use moves while the green ones just make it more powerful...right?

"It's not Red's fault though." Lucas chimes in. "He lost his memory and doesn't know for sure if he did it. We've been trying to stop this too, but your...brother?..Anyways, your brother doesn't want our help and only wants Red's head. You got to believe us. We're good guys here."

The cell doesn't respond, and instead has his eyes shut. Is he talking to to his brother somehow. That would be the best and worst thing he could be doing right.

"Hold still Raboot." He says as he begins to slide over to us, well, to me is better.

"What are you doing?" I ask.

"That Oran Berry may have helped me recover some of my strength, but I've been stuck down here for...well, I've lost count. You can't really tell the time down here. Anyways, the berry only helped me with so much, but I need to get closer to you to see if he's right."

I gulp, but I don't think I have a choice I can make. I get nervous when he is inches away from me again.

"Hmmm...I need to get closer to you." He goes to climb up my leg, but is then lifted into the air.

The cells around us start to panic, but Eve calms them down. "Don't worry. Don't worry. It's just me. I just...wanted to help him up."

The blue cell looks at the Vulpix. He seems to be curious about Eve before turning his focus back on me. Eve brings him up to eye level, which is not what I would have liked him to be.

Much too close for me.

He stares right at me as I'm getting even more worried. "...Still too weak. I can't tell for certain if he was right or wrong." He says. "Nevertheless, I believe we all have a common goal. Vulpix, do you have the Flute in that bag you're carrying?"

"Y-yeah, I do. Give me a second." She says, putting her head in the bag. She brings it out in a snap, still worried about what the cell might do.

"Very well." He says. "Shall we continue going to the core?"

That catches the three of us off guard. He...he really just said that. As in, he's willing to working with us, and won't try to kill me. I've been with the other Zygarde long enough that this makes me feel awkward.

"Well? Shall we?"

Oh yeah, right.

"Yeah, of course...uhhh, you lead the way?" Lucas says.

He shakes his head. "I'm not in the right position to lead this team. I'd rather have one of the three of you carry me. These halls aren't safe, so it's best-woah..."

Zygarde is raised without warning onto my head, where I feel disgusted by the slime that is now in my fur. Lucas smiles, and I can even hear the cells chuckling.

"Well, Sparks liked sitting on your head, so I thought he could enjoy it too." Eve says, holding back her laughter.

I groan, but I guess it's not a big deal when you compare it to the other Zygarde. There's not even too much ooze going down my head...at least not yet.

My head can never catch a break.

The ground starts to shake again. I can feel Lucas's grip getting weaker on me as all of this shaking seems to be getting worse and worse, each time being longer than the last.

And then it stops, but then I feel something in me again. That feeling that had been guiding me while we've been in here is telling me something.

And it just grabbed my leg.

The force from the pull brings me down as I slip out of Lucas' grasp. My legs can't take the pain as I go onto my knees, and then on my stomach. And then, well, I'm not sure how, but it feels like I beginning to be pulled through the ground.

But before I can cry for help, the same wind feeling happens as a bright green light pops like a balloon to the side of me, and the pulling stops. I look at see Zygarde on the ground, once again seemly weak.

He is lifted into the air as Lucas asks, "What was that, and what did you just do?" As he helps me up again.

Ugh, it feels weird having my legs being inside the ground, only to climb out of it like nothing ever happened to it. He waits to answer that after he gets back on my head once I'm back on my two feet.

He then says, "It's because of the core falling apart. Are you three familiar with the afterlife?"

"The afterlife?!" We all shout at once. We then look at each other with confusion afterwards.

"I take it by that reaction that you are aware of it, though are very confused by it as well." Zygarde says.

"Yeah, but what does that have to do with this?" Eve asks.

"Well, the core holds the balance between this world and the next one. With the core breaking, some lost spirits are trying to fight their way back here, but they have not reached the point where they could ever reenter the world of the living, so they are insane, and are very quick to anger."

Thank goodness that Eve and I know about what happened at the Ghost Temple, otherwise we'd be completely lost. Though Lucas never heard the full story, so he might have a harder time trying to wrap his head around this.

And I'm proven right when he puts a hand to his head and groans, "I...wait...Oh, my head."

"I'm sorry that it may be hard to grasp, but we must get to the core before it's too late and we have a much bigger problem on our hands." Zygarde says.

We all agree and start to move forward. I then remember what Eclipse said to us when we asked why the Flute of Aura was at the Ghost Temple.

"You'll understand why if you learn of it's deeper meaning."

Huh, I had no idea that this was the reason why it was placed there. I'm scared, yet excited for any new facts that I can find out about. As long as they don't lead to more questions.

But I don't have time to dwell on that as Eve asks, "But you never answered what you did?"

"Oh that, it was simple really." He says. "Me and my brother are linked to the core as we are connected to one another. It just used my energy to seal up the cracks around us for now. While it's not to the point where we act the same, we can communicate pretty well...under normal circumstances that is."

He stops as I get nervous. "What do you mean? Are you saying you haven't talked to your brother in a while?"

"Yes, we haven't talked to each other since the core broke badly. It came out of no where, but when the blast happen, we were in our single cell forms, and were knocked back into this Mystery Dungeon, but we didn't know where the other cell was. We thankfully were able to talk to each other, though barely. So then we decided to escape this dungeon, and then devised a plan after, but I never made it out. Zygarde said that he would find help to fix the core, perhaps the flute, and that I should save my strength as much as I can, and that was the last I heard from him."

Zygarde looking for the flute. Lucas said that he said it was too late for that. Why is that?

We reached a fork in the road. The normal cells turn towards us, as if they were asking us which way to go.

"Do you have a feeling of where we should go, Red?" Lucas asks me.

"No, not anymore." I say. "But let's just go right."

"Hold on, Zygarde?" Eve asks. "You said that you're connected to the core. Would that effect how you act?"

Zygarde nodded. "Yes, when the core is in good condition, we act as ourselves, but if it's acting up, there can start to be thoughts in our heads that aren't our's are most certainly aren't safe from the lost souls. Mainly it doesn't get too serious, but as you can see, the core is in the most corrupted form I've ever seen."

I look to the side of the caves as I start to imagine how that would feel. Thoughts that weren't your own? And telling you random things? It's making me feel bad for Zygarde...mainly the other one.

"With the way the core is now with some, however, I can see why my brother would be more incline to eliminate you. He was always more on the offensive side when it came to these things, and I was the one who knew how to use it. I can imagine that he's must have fallen into a deep rage trying to hunt you down, Red."

I give a thumbs up instead of nodding him off my head. "Yeah, from what I can remember before I past out, he was not happy with me. I kind of also made the Ground-Type Temple into a Mystery Dungeon yesterday. I wonder if Eclipse is alright."

"Ahhh, Eclipse. I'm sure he must have helped you out if you're here. He always preferred taking orders from me rather than my brother."

I place my hand where Eclipse's claws had been before he had let me go. "Yeah, we got to stop this, or else we still owe him."

We then come across the end of the road, where there's a set of stairs inside of the room. And they're going down this time.

I chuckle. Well, the joke is on them, because I can't walk right now. I'm being carried by Lucas, meaning I can't lose to them...

Wait, is that a good thing? No. No it's not. I wished the Oran Berries could heal my legs all the way.

Ughhh, since when could they go down?!

"Do you think you can walk, Red?" Lucas asks me.

I sigh. "I'd rather not try to right now. Believe me, I've been trying to put more pressure on my legs, but it's like stepping on sharp rocks."

Eve walks closer to us. "We're going to have to be really careful when we go down these." She says. "I'm not really good when I have go down stairs and carrying something at the same time."

"Then wait a moment." Zygarde says. He then jumps off of my head, and before he lands, beams of light fire at him from the wall. It doesn't take long before his ten percent form lands on the ground...though he didn't land it perfectly as he trips.

But he brushes it off as he says to me, "Riolu and I will hold your sides. Vulpix, I want you to hold a little psychic veil over your friend."

"I thought you said you didn't have enough energy to lead?" I asked in an annoyed tone as I start feeling my slimy head.

"I don't, and you'll see that when I break apart again, which won't take long, so we better hurry."

When he takes a step forward, my body takes a step back out of instinct. "Woah, woah!" Lucas says as he almost lost balance.

Zygarde then looks at me again. "Oh, sorry. Am I bringing back bad memories?"

"I'll be fine." I lie. "You can carry me."

"Very well." He says as he gets closer. I almost took another step back, but I stood my ground, which is difficult when there's so many eyes looking at you.

It gets really hard when he finally reaches me, and actually is supporting me. I twitch when I feel his grippy skin against my fur. Feels like something I've never felt before in my life.

"Alright Riolu, follow my lead." Zygarde says. "One, two, one, two, one, two..."

Step by step we make our way down the stairs. Both Lucas and Zygarde are in sync as Eve acts as a failsafe incase I take a wrong step. I do look at Lucas, and he seems...conflicted.

He turns his head, and I turn my to avoid his eyes. But I take a quick peak to see what he could be looking at, and it doesn't seem to be the fog around us. He seems to be looking at Zygarde.

It then clicks for me, as I remember that I wasn't the only one who Zygarde talked down to. Well, not this Zygarde, the other one..

Hmm, I guess it's probably best if I call him something else now that I've met his brother...

...

...heh...Zyg-R. Think that'll work for now.

Still, I can't imagine what's going through his head. It may be even worse than my head. He didn't answer me when I thanked him for saving me from Zyg-R. Almost as if he didn't save me. Eve did give me an uneasy look when Lucas didn't respond.

Lucas has been trying his best to help me through everything, but I'm getting the feeling that Zyg-R's words have been eating him up more and more. He already seemed stressed when Eve and I got back. But hey, maybe this Zygarde will be able to help him out, or at least get rid of that taste in his mouth.

"...My brother though..." Zygarde starts. "...He wasn't always furious, was he?"

"No, but he's been getting crazier and crazier the more times we see him." Lucas says. "He always wanted Red, but he never said he was going to kill him until we met him at the Ground Temple, and then he planned to kill all of us before we got here. He's just so stubborn."

Zygarde looks down. "I'm sorry you have to see him like that. I'm glad he hasn't hurt you too bad. I wonder where he is though."

"I won't be surprised if he entered in this dungeon right after us." Eve says. "Thanks to Arceus, we were able to 'escape' here, but my guess is that he went in here as well to try and find us or beat us to the core. We heard you coming towards us and thought you were him."

Zygarde nods. "Again, I apologize. I have no idea what hoops he's been making you jump through, but I'm sure they weren't good. Maybe if we see him again, I could try to talk him out of it. I would be doing the same things if I was in a blind rage too, but I'm sure I can reach him. All he needs to do is to calm himself down and just listen to me. I've done the same thing when I get the same thoughts, so you must take every one of them captive."

The three of us get worried. "Are you saying that you aren't fine?" I ask worried.

He looks at me, and then gives it to me straight. "I cannot say that I'm am fine, so know that if I get bad, play that flute at the core before I stop you."

There's silence that's follows. Well, at least he's being honest with us, but that doesn't help us calm down.

Thankfully, we then see the ground at the end of the stairs. Now it's time to move on to the next room.

Zygarde grunts. "Be ready, you three. I have to detransform once we get down there."

"Ok." I say. "Thanks for the heads up...and for believing us too."

"I'm just doing what is right, and I believe whether you caused this or not, you should be able to right your wrongs."

I smile at his remark, but something is still hollow inside me. As if this won't be enough for me to live with.

"I..." I start as I try to find the right words to say. "After this is over, I'm planning oONNNN!"

The steps we're on begin to shake, and we try our best to remain balanced. Lucas and Zygarde do a great job keeping the three of us still.

Eve, who is behind us however, slipped.

She tumbles into us, and that causes us to fall down to the ground. Thankfully, we only had five steps left before we reached the ground.

But that's still five steps we fall from, and we end up making a pile.

"Ouch!" I yell, feeling my legs getting crushed. I open my eyes and see all the cells, all in a line, looking at us. Zygarde then powers down, which makes it easier for us to untangle ourselves.

"You guys alright?" I ask. Lucas gives me a thumbs up, and Eve nods. I then feel something land on my head, and it's Zygarde out of breath.

"Vulpix, do you have anymore Oran Berries with you?"

"I've only got one more in here." She says. The bag opens, and a blue berry floats towards him.

"NO MORE TRICKS!"

The ground then shakes as a vine hammers Eve, causing the berry to drop as she crashes into the ground.

The first thing I try to do is jump after her, but I'm reminded why I was avoiding using my legs, as the moment I bend them, they feel like they can't support me any longer as I fall to the ground.

Still, the moment I see that the vines are going to attack Eve, I yell, "Protect!" As a pink barrier appears in-between the vines and the Fox Pokemon.

I then look over and see Zyg-R staring right at us. "You think that will stop me?" He says boastfully.

I'm worried as I look at Eve again, and this time I see that the vines are going to pierce the shield. I don't even have enough time to do anything else, because the vines do break through it all, and rubble is launched into the air as I feel something break inside of me.

But, that didn't reach Eve, right. I-it couldn't have.

And it didn't, because Eve then appears in front of me. But she's gasping as she's on her back, with a paw over a fresh wound on her chest.

She almost didn't teleport in time, and she didn't have the bag too, meaning that we don't have anymore supplies left now.

A wave of vines then appear in front of us. "Let's see you teleport out of this!" He yells.

I am then pushed, not by the vines, but by the lone cells that were following us, and I land into Eve as soon as I also hit Lucas. But then the vines get closer to us, and I use Protect one more time. But then more vines appear from around us, and they go around my shield just as Zyg-R tries to pierce us once again.

My Protect breaks again from the pressure, and I feel another shockwave hit me again, but they did enough so that the other vine wall protects us.

"Brother! Stop this right now!" Zygarde shouts as the vine dome begins to shrink.

I hold my breath as I can feel everything around me getting tighter and tighter.

And then, it's gone.

The vines retreat back into the ground, and Zygarde had his return as well. Once there's no more vines, I look again at Zyg-R, who is standing in front of something far off into the distance.

It looks like a huge sphere that has cracks all over it, and while it's white, it makes the black stand out much easier as it tries to wrap around it.

That has got to be the core, meaning that we're here, and now the only thing that stands in our way is a mad Zygarde.

I gulp. Here's hoping that he'll listen to his brother now that he's here.