18th Red Ash Moon, 908

"Ooooh…my head hurts."

The events of last night were harrowing for the Foresters. Right as Lucient was prepared to look for Jason and Melissa, there was a knock at the door. He and the others would find their missing comrades passed out in front of the door covered in injuries. They were immediately brought inside and treated of their wounds before being put to bed.

With morning upon the horizon, Jason and Melissa lay awake in their beds, trying not to move around too much. Jason had the worst of it due to the self-inflicted burns from his technique. Fortunately, the rations they ate prior replenished them enough to survive until morning.

Wyatt and Avel entered the room, carrying a tray of hot pancakes. "The inn cook was kind enough to let me use the stove. I got fresh breakfast for everyone!"

Lucient sat at the room's desk, looking over the notes Melissa copied down. "You can put mine down over here."

Wyatt slid the plate onto the desk, placed two down on the floor in front of a sleeping Felix and Victoria (both draped in gauze beside the medical kits), and handed the last two plates to his injured allies. "Eat up! I also mixed in some of the rations like you suggested."

Melissa sat up and smiled. "Thanks, Wyatt. This looks delicious."

Jason picked a pancake up and tore a bite out of it. "We're lucky to be alive."

"No kidding," Lucient mumbled. He looked over his shoulder at Melissa. "I'm surprised you were able to drag yourself and Jason all the way back here."

She winced. "Uh…"

That was the story she told upon waking up. While she and Jason didn't go over all the details from their encounter with Grim Deadlock, she filled in the details Jason didn't know about. Keeping to her promise with Basil, she fibbed about carrying herself and Jason back to the inn. She wasn't sure what the Salandit was up to, and she never got the chance to ask how he knew where they were.

"Y-Yeah. Surprised myself," she muttered.

Lucient glanced back at her notebook. "I must say, these notes you procured are astounding. You penned these exactly as you saw them?"

"As best I could, yes."

Jason straightened up. "Can you decipher them?"

"Some. The ancient text for the Great Kingdom has been lost for two centuries, but I've studied what little records were available." He traced his paw across the text. "Something, something…beacon. A beacon of…" He squinted. "Knowledge?"

"A beacon of knowledge?" Jason asked.

"That's what it says. It's a rough translation, though."

Melissa tilted her head. "Maybe that giant pyramid was a library."

"An ancient library buried beneath the earth?" Jason questioned. He scratched his chin. "Actually, that's not impossible given the state of the underground church. Still, would that serve as a beacon of knowledge?"

Lucient shrugged. "Again, it's a rough translation. There are some other words here I'm having trouble deciphering." He glared. "However…there is one that keeps popping up. One I recognize clearly."

"Oh?"

"…Logos."

Jason's eyes widened. "Logos?"

"Just like what The Ghost was after when he attacked Pandora," Melissa gasped.

Wyatt tilted his head. "Eh? What's this about a logo?"

Lucient shook his head. "Based on the way The Ghost used the word, it might be the name of something. The name of this structure, perhaps. Or…the name of something else."

Avel hopped off Wyatt's head and onto the desk. "But what would Logos be? And why was it so important that the ancient people worshipped it?"

Melissa shuddered. "I hope it's not that weird mural we saw. You should've seen it. Big scary wings covered in eyes!"

Lucient traced down to the other copied passages. "I'm still having trouble with some of the other passages, but I managed to translate this one. Fire. Rebellion. Mockery of Logos."

Jason glared. "I remember the mural. It showed flames encircling the kingdom and people rebelling."

Wyatt frowned. "I thought the Great Kingdom had eight hundred years of peace."

"Peace doesn't beget happiness. It just stops wars from breaking out. Theoretically, at least." He leaned back into the pillows. "It means the kingdom wasn't as sacred as we initially thought. There were still flaws in the system."

"These are pieces of true history that we weren't aware of," Lucient said. "For decades, we thought every remnant of the Great Kingdom's history was wiped out in the Ten-Way War. But this proves that detailed accounts of the kingdom still exist. This is incredible!"

"Doesn't do us any good, though," Avel said. "We still don't know what Logos is or why it was so important. These are just…vague passages from a church. They tell us nothing."

Jason nodded. "It's a start. We'll have to fill Luna in when we regroup with her team at the end of the week. Though, now we have another problem to attend to—"

"Grim Deadlock," Melissa muttered.

Lucient spun around and glared. "He knows we're here now. We need to move about through the city with caution. I don't think we can risk running the pancake stall."

"It served its purpose long enough," Jason said. "We'll have to close up for the week and gather the equipment before Godfrey returns to pick us up." He crossed his arms and glared at the ceiling. "Grim Deadlock…"

Melissa glanced at him. "He's one of the Three Deadly Storms. Just like you."

"…Feels surreal fighting someone who could match me in battle. I've had my share of tough fights, but never one that put me near the brink of death. He's strong. He fights well. And he speaks with such contempt towards injustice." He closed his eyes and sighed. "Which is why I think there's something weird about his supposed deal with the circus."

Lucient raised his brow. "What do you mean?"

"I mean, I don't think we know the full story of who Grim Deadlock is."

Echo Bell Residentials

Junko Yukimura glared up at her captor who sat quietly on his bed, staring back at her. The ice temptress and the gravedigger hadn't spoken a word to each other since yesterday, mostly due to the hefty language barrier between them. In truth, Junko had a list of threats she wanted to spit at the Cacturne that she'd personally carry out had it not been for her bindings.

Zechariah remained unfazed by her evil glare, instead leaning lazily on his trusty shovel and listening to the ticks of his wall clock, one of few possessions in his barren room.

Eventually, the sound of Junko's stomach growling broke the silence.

"…" The Froslass groaned and hung her head. "[This is humiliating…]"

"Hungry?" Zech asked.

A word she understood, but one that annoyed her. She snapped her head up and growled, "[Take a guess, moron!]"

"…"

"…" She sighed, then fluttered her eyes seductively. "[Would you be a dear and fetch me some breakfast, handsome? If you get me something sweet, I might repay you~.]"

Zechariah narrowed his eyes before wordlessly standing up and stepping out of the room. Junko laughed to herself, leaning back against the wall. [Men. So easy to manipulate, even if they can't understand me. They just can't help themselves rescuing a poor, defenseless—]

Zechariah entered the room and set a bowl down in front of the Froslass. Much to her chagrin, the contents of the bowl weren't quite what she had in mind. It was a beige-colored slush with oats clumped together.

"[What…?]"

"It's oatmeal."

"[You call this slop breakfast?!]"

"I eat oatmeal every day for breakfast."

"[I wanted something a bit more appealing, you idiot! And…wait a minute, how did you make this so fast? Are you giving me your leftovers?! Your bland, cold leftovers?!]"

Just then, Zechariah heard a knock coming from downstairs. "Excuse me." He stepped out again.

"[HEY! Where are you going? How do you expect me to eat this with my arms tied up?!]" She glared venomously at the bowl before groaning. "[This is so demeaning…]"

Zechariah opened his front door. "Hello?"

He looked around, but didn't see anyone on his street. He didn't normally get visitors this early in the morning, so he thought it a bit strange someone would be knocking on his door at all. For a moment, he thought he imagined it as a way to get a moment of peace away from his gibberish-speaking houseguest.

Before he closed the door, however, he found a note nailed to his door with a knife. Curious, he plucked the knife and note off before closing the door. He carelessly tossed the knife into his open kitchen and read the note.

Check secret chamber in catacombs. Body in need of burial. Thank you.

"…" Zechariah narrowed his eyes. "This isn't Deadlock's handwriting."

Castle Visconti

One advantage to having an antisocial brother was that Asterio's lack of presence in the castle wouldn't draw suspicion. Evangelina was able to secretly gather whatever medical supplies she could find and rush them back to her room. Romano and Angelo were ordered to lock down the secret entrance into the catacombs to make sure Asterio wasn't followed.

With the morning light peeking into her bedroom, the trio stood around the bed as Asterio lay awake, staring vacantly at the ceiling. The shiny Frillish had his wounds wrapped up. Evangelina applied burn cream over his body and stuck adhesive bandages over the minor cuts he received.

Angelo leaned on the bed and groaned. "I haven't seen you this banged up…well, ever. You must've taken one hell of a beating."

Romano glared. "Judging by his injuries, it was more than a beating."

"The Fairy Knight," Evangelina said. She groaned and shook her head. "Of all the people you could run into, you idiot. We're luck you weren't fighting your other stormy brother, lest the entire capital be leveled."

Asterio closed his eyes and sighed. "It doesn't matter. I killed him and Harlow last night. That's the end of that."

Angelo raised his brow. "You sure about that?"

"I slashed them through their backs. I left them dying in a pool of their own blood just like that other trespasser."

Romano shook his head. "I hate to tell you this, Your Highness, but there was no blood on your scythe."

His eyes widened. "What?"

Angelo nodded. "It's true. We found it hidden away in the cellar where you left it. We did find dried bloodstains on it, but those looked like they were wiped off prior. Probably from the other guy you killed. But there wasn't any fresh blood on the blade."

"…" He glared at the ceiling. "I could've sworn I…" He touched his forehead and sank deeper into the pillows. "Did I imagine the whole thing?"

Evangelina groaned. "Not the first time you went on a mindless rampage."

"…" Asterio's expression softened. "I…guess I wasn't thinking clearly. I'm sure I killed them."

"Well, it doesn't matter now. We have confirmation the Foresters are definitely in the capital." She crossed her tentacles and glared out the window. "Likely responsible for the rogue performer's disappearance. The Foresters sure do love kidnapping these days."

Romano bowed to her. "What is your command, Your Highness?"

"Father already has a good number of our knights out investigating the circus. Speaking of, how's that going?"

Angelo shrugged. "They haven't tried anything yet. They keep to their story that Yukimura went rogue. Though, they are keen on making us leave."

Evangelina glared. "Of course they are…"

"Eh?"

"Nothing." She faced the knights and sighed. "Romano, you and Angelo will have to look for the Foresters. Angelo, get one of the knights on the investigation team to take over your duties. If you find the Foresters, don't hesitate to use force. Lethal, if you must."

They saluted. "Yes, Your High—"

"Uh, wait." They all turned to Asterio, who awkwardly wrung the bedsheets between his fins. "Uh…maybe it would be better if we captured them alive. For…interrogation purposes and such."

Evangelina's eyes widened. "What?"

"…" The shiny prince turned away from her perplexed stare.

She frowned in confusion at her brother. Since when does Asterio want to handle things peacefully? She would've pressured him for a reason, but she hadn't slept since he came limping into her room. She was too tired to twist answers out of him. "Ooookay. Romano, Angelo, captured the Foresters alive when you find them."

They saluted. "Yes, Your Highness." They quietly let themselves out of the room.

Evangelina hovered by the door for a moment before glaring at her brother. "Are you feeling alright?"

"…Yeah."

"You sure?"

"…No."

"…" She groaned and shook her head. "Right. Well, I'm going to get myself some coffee. I'll bribe one of the maids to bring your food up and keep quiet about this. Once I get some rest, we're going to talk about what happened." She floated out of the room.

Asterio turned onto his side and closed his eyes. His mind drifted back to the visage of the scared Buneary he had in his grasp, moments away from being another tally on his kill count. That face…the demeanor of fear he was used to seeing whenever people looked upon him, whether as Grim Deadlock or Asterio Visconti.

Why…did she look like Princess Penworth?

Echo Bell Streets

Frediano exited the inn he was staying out, stretching out his arms and smoothing out his cape. "Ah! Another fine morning for the Great Frediano! Rejoice, people of Echo Bell, at the visage of beauty before you!"

The morning Pokémon passed him by without batting an eye.

"Too stunned by my appearance? I cannot blame you!" He reached inside his cape and pulled out the wanted poster of The Lord of Shadows. "No matter. I've got much to complete today. I believe I'll start my hunt regarding my quarry's rumored visitation. That dastardly specter of darkness must be hiding around here somewhere."

"Working today, Fred?" The Weavile felt the titanic shadow looming over him and glanced around to see his fellow bounty hunter out and about. Armant stretched out his upper arms whilst cracking his lower hands. "I thought you would be joining me for some more sightseeing today."

Frediano rolled the poster up. "Though it must pain you to be without my glorious presence, I do have a job to complete. The Lord of Shadows lurks somewhere in the capital, and I intend to find him and claim that bounty. A criminal of his renowned infamy stands no chance against the Great Frediano!"

Armant laughed. "At the very least, you should join me for breakfast. I actually wanted to introduce you to my lady friend."

"Lady friend? Ah yes, you mentioned something about a barmaid who was sweet on you."

Armant laughed, but much more sheepishly. "I've had plenty of one-night stands in my days, but no one who was really my type. I have high hopes for this one, though. Feisty, strong, and sweet. My kind of woman."

"Oho! Will you ask her to join you on your seafaring adventures?"

"Too early to make such a commitment, but I would enjoy the company out on the sea. So, will you be joining me?"

"I'm afraid the seafaring life isn't for me, my friend. Though many other lands would benefit from my glorious presence—"

"I meant for breakfast."

"Oh. Right." Frediano crossed his arms and sighed. "I was going to focus my efforts on hunting the Lord of Shadows, buuuuut…I suppose I can join you for breakfast in an hour. I'll do some light investigation before heading on over."

Armant knelt and heartily smacked Frediano across the back, nearly knocking the wind out of him. "Haha! That's the spirit! Working all the time can be stressful. You got to learn to slow down and appreciate the opportunities around you."

Frediano laughed. "My friend, I think I found the source of your never-ending debt: your perpetual laziness!"

"What one calls lazy, I call going with the flow."

"Uh huh. Well, the Great Frediano doesn't need to go with the flow. He creates his own flow!" He posed dramatically. "The Great Frediano is the flow!"

"Ha! If you say so, pal."

Echo Bell Inn

"You think there's more than one Grim Deadlock?"

The Foresters gather around in a circle with Jason and Melissa still recuperating in bed. Felix and Victoria had woken up and ate their pancakes at the end of Melissa's bed, listening intently to the conversation. Jason reclined back in his pillows, arms crossed and eyes pointedly glaring up at the ceiling.

Lucient held his chin to think the Pikachu's theory over. "A bold claim. What made you come to this conclusion?"

Jason sighed through his nose. "I accused him of his illicit dealings with the circus, but he claims to not have knowledge of the meeting."

Melissa glanced at her apprentices. "Are you two absolutely certain you saw Grim Deadlock?"

Victoria scratched behind her head. "Well, it's not like either of us have seen him in person before. But still, the Mr. Mime guy called him Grim and everything! And he looked like a spooky specter, so who else could it have been?"

Felix nodded. "And Zechariah was with us when it happened, and he apparently knows Grim."

"But Zech also said it was weird he was dealing with the circus in secret," Jason pointed out. "That leads to my next point. There is no way someone like Grim would humor the idea of working with criminals. He was dead set on killing us. He killed that Quagsire without a second thought. There's just too many conflicting factors to suggest the Grim we fought and the Grim you saw were the same person."

Avel glared. "So, there's at least two Deadlocks running around the capital?"

"If there are multiple Deadlocks, there's at least two or three," Lucient said. "There's never been a reported case of Grim Deadlock popping in and out all over the capital. It might just be one doing the killings, or at least one at a time."

Jason nodded. "Someone with an intricate knowledge of how to manipulate Acid Armor, too. That's the secret to Deadlock's perfect intangibility. He's able to shift himself flawless into water vapor. A controlled vapor that he can keep contained within his shadow cloak."

Lucient glared. "That…would line up with our theory regarding the royal family."

Melissa frowned. "You're not suggesting someone from the Visconti family is responsible for this, right?"

Jason sighed. "Unfortunately, it makes the most sense. Unless there's a handful of knights with access to Acid Armor, I can't say for certain it's anyone but one of them."

"…" Melissa griped her bedsheets tightly. "I don't understand…"

Wyatt raised his hand. "But why would anyone from the royal family go around murdering criminals? It seems like that would cause them more trouble than anything. Actually, Grim Deadlock's appearance in general has increased crime rates."

Avel nodded. "Many wanting to make a name for themselves come to the capital to seek a challenge. It's the reason why Deadlock was able to rise so high up the wanted list in such a short time."

"Unless that's what he wanted," Felix suggested.

"What do you mean?"

He shrugged. "Well, if he realized bad people were going to come to him, might as well capitalize off the fame. More bad people, more heads to lob off or something."

Victoria shuddered. "Gross."

"Could be an intended consequence," Lucient said. "Either way, it's definitely someone connected to the Visconti. There's no doubt about that."

"But I still don't understand why anyone would risk their reputation becoming a mass murderer," Wyatt continued. "I don't know much about royal etiquette, but I can speak for myself saying I wouldn't want my king or queen going out at night slaughtering everyone on a whim."

Jason scratched his chin. "Wyatt's right. Plus, if the two Deadlock theory is true, one of them is making a deal with the circus to keep them from blowing the capital up. A deal that involves Last Autumn and this heir system. And one of the Deadlock doesn't know about this."

Melissa sighed. "I…I'm still not completely convinced."

"You're in denial."

"I never had the best relationship with the Visconti children, but it's just difficult for me to see either of them becoming…" She shook her head. "Or maybe I'm just pretending to ignore the truth."

"Hmm…" Jason looked down at his sheets for a moment before glancing at Lucient. "You've lived in Echo Bell most of your life. Do you know anything about when Grim Deadlock first appeared?"

Lucient crossed his forelegs and hummed softly to himself. "Let me think…" His eyes widened as a memory instantly surfaced. "There…was one incident that happened over five years ago before Grim Deadlock emerged. Something that had been going on for a while, actually."

"Oh?"

"There was a serial killer in Echo Bell at the time. A man simply known as the Vermin Butcher."

Melissa's eyes widened. "Vermin Butcher?"

He nodded. "He was called the Vermin Butcher by the noble houses that oversaw the capital for the Visconti. Documented accounts of his victims showed bite marks over the bodies. Not from battle, however. He had a taste for flesh."

Everyone recoiled in horror. "W-W-What?!"

Lucient sighed. "It was a dark point in the capital's history. Crime was getting out of hand, and this was one of the worst serial killings in our recorded history. They say he was a monster born out of the Savage Era itself, just like the horror stories spoken of the exiled Savage Kin."

"Hedwig's people," Jason muttered. "The Savage Kin were exiled to the upper levels of the Subterra Kingdom decades ago. They were forced to adapt to new diets since they didn't have a steady supply of meat to work with. They still have their cravings, but have done better at controlling them. According to Hedwig, some children in the Savage Kin that are born into these new diets will occasionally have random cravings for meat. If not properly disciplined…well, you can fill in the rest."

Melissa shuddered. "I still can't believe you'd let someone like Hedwig join the Foresters knowing that."

"She wants to prove the Savage Kin can keep to their heritage and still adapt to modern society. She's done good at keeping her word." Jason glared. "Even so, I find it hard to believe a Subterran would be living in the capital without being suspect number one."

Lucient shrugged. "It would've made the search easier, though the official reports said there were no Subterran residents living in the capital at the time. This could just be a case of someone…having a relapse from old, forgotten habits."

"Maybe. What else do you know about the Vermin Butcher killings?"

"He killed ten people, each of them with pieces of flesh torn out from their bodies. For the longest time, they were never able to identify who it was."

Melissa frowned. "Not even from dental records? Do they have something like that here?"

"We do, but the coroner hired for the investigation couldn't identify the teeth marks. They were too mutilated."

"Odd…" Jason mumbled.

"Well, it was odd…until the tenth victim showed up." Lucient glared. "There was an unexpected break in the case. As it turns out, the Vermin Butcher was the coroner."

Their eyes widened. "The coroner was the serial killer?" Victoria gasped.

"That's right. Dr. Donato Muraro was the coroner put in charge of the autopsy. He could easily fake a report and tamper with the body to hide any evidence of his involvement. It was unheard of at the time. No one expected a doctor to pervert their practice for such evil. He was arrested the day after the tenth body was found, and he would be publicly executed."

"Those poor people," Melissa mumbled. "I can't imagine living like that every day, thinking someone's going to kill me and…e-eat me."

Jason sighed. "How tragic."

Wyatt laughed nervously. "I'm glad Avel and I lived in a smaller town. Further away from the crazy folks."

Avel glared. "That would give ample reason for someone like Grim Deadlock to appear, I suppose."

"Actually," Lucient continued, "that's not where my tale ends."

Jason perked up. "Oh? There's more?"

"Well, thing is, some people were…unsure about the knights' investigation. The serial killings did stop, so no one cared at the time, but a few people have spoken up about strange it was the Vermin Butcher was found the day after the last victim was killed. Some speculate he just got sloppy and left damning evidence. I was curious at the time, but didn't quite have the creativity to string together a conspiracy. So—"

"You discussed the topic with Giles," Jason guessed.

Lucient nodded. "Giles was the one who recruited me when I searched for Fort Lucus, so we chatted a bit over lunch. When the topic of his conspiracy hobby came up, I brought up the Vermin Butcher killings. He got curious and decided to do his own research."

Jason groaned and facepalmed. "That explains why he was gone for a month after you showed up…"

"Heh, sorry. Anyway, when he came back, he told me about his findings." Lucient glared seriously. "What he found was…disturbing, to say the least."

Melissa shuddered. "Disturbing how?"

"For one, Giles learned the doctor may have had an alibi at the time of the killing. He was out drinking, and the bartender running the night shift thinks he saw him. It was a busy night, so he wasn't completely sure. However, weirdly enough, at no point during the interrogation did Dr. Muraro bring this up. He never once mentioned he was out drinking or that he had a reliable witness. He…complied to the knights and their accusations. Almost perfectly."

Jason glared. "That's weird."

"Dr. Muraro's office space was also cleared out way before anyone arrested him. It was initially assumed he burned any evidence of his misdeeds to cover his tracks, but Giles theorized there were simply transferred. There was no signs of paper shreds, burnt pieces, or anything in his trash. It just all disappeared. Plus, there was no reason for him to suspect he was being arrested the next day, so he wouldn't have had time to destroy the evidence."

Melissa frowned. "Why would he keep any of that if it would get him arrested?"

"Because it might not have been evidence to incarcerate him, but someone else." Lucient glared. "Giles believed someone blackmailed Muraro. The real killer, or someone else who didn't want the truth getting out."

Avel narrowed his eyes worriedly. "Why do I feel like you've been withholding a damning piece of evidence to this crackpot theory?"

"…" Lucient sighed. "It concerns the tenth victim: a Tauros carriage driver. Remember how I said Muraro did have an alibi? Well, the victim was tasked with transporting an ambassador and her bodyguard for an important assignment. He was gone for three weeks. When he returned late at night, he was found dead in the streets. It was on a particularly rainy night, too. What's weird is that a few tavern goers claimed they saw him walking through the city when he returned, but then he…just died out of nowhere. They saw someone run past him, and they found the signature bite marks on his throat."

Victoria shuddered. "That's sick!"

"Someone ran by the Tauros and killed him in one bite?" Jason questioned.

Lucient glared. "Now do you see why this became a conspiracy? The only reason it wasn't taken seriously was because the men who saw the incident were drunk. The more Giles explained his theory, the stranger it all felt to me. I wasn't even sure what to do with this information. I was…honestly scared to pursue it any further. I didn't have Giles' bravery for this stuff."

Jason's ears drooped. "If…this is all true, then what happened that night? If it's not this doctor, then…?"

Melissa frowned worriedly. "And what does any of this have to do with Grim Deadlock?"

The Foresters hung their heads to contemplate the harrowing revelation. The more they learned about their region's dark history, the more it weighed on their hearts. To think something so frightening can happen in the most unlikely of circumstances, out of a person's control. What in Virdis happened that night that spawned the Specter of Punishment and his wrath against all injustice?

With the group engrossed in their thoughts, none noticed Melissa's shadow shifting. A hand of shadow reached out into another patch of shade and flowed out from hers. It carefully and silently made its way out the door.

Meanwhile, in the Echo Bell streets…

Iris got a head start early in the morning. With the knights operating the night shift and keeping lookout on the circus, it made it impossible for her to get work done. Fortunately, under the low light and with a bit of luck, she and a couple of her goons snuck off the site wheeling a wagon covered in a black tarp.

For a couple hours, they navigated through the city and planted barrels in intricate hiding spots according to her design for the ritual. With the festivities underway, no one would think to scour the nooks and crannies of the city until it was too late. Disguised among barrels, planted within the ground itself, loaded into a building and hidden behind normal barrels; whatever worked, she went with it.

She wheeled her wagon alongside the canals as her two goons, a Dragonite and Sawk, followed behind. They were both dressed in work overalls and dye-splattered white shirts. The Sawk carried a spool of fuse that he gradually unwound as they walked.

Iris pulled out her diagram of the city and studied it. "This'll take us until sundown to finish. But it'll all be worth it." She looked up at the sky, her cheeks blooming red as she laughed. "The entire city will be engulfed in flame. Beautiful, scarlet flames~. It's a dream come true~!"

The Dragonite laughed. "What? Prancing around on stage wasn't a dream come true?"

She cringed, nearly tripping over her feet. "Please do not remind me of that horrid experience. So many eyes staring at me…"

The Sawk shrugged. "As long as I get paid, I don't care—" He stopped as the last of the fuse fell out from the spool. "Damn. Iris, we brought another thing of wire, right?"

She scoffed and reached under the wagon's tarp. "Of course we have more. I didn't spend the last two nights designing the ritual not to come prepared—"

"Ritual, huh?" The trio froze as three armored Pokémon appeared around them. One stepped out from an alleyway, another from the canal, and the last dropping out of the sky behind them. The armored Scrafty, Crawdaunt, and Skarmory surrounded the circus trio. "That sounds interesting," the Scrafty said pointedly.

Iris yelped and held her hands up, as did her goons. "Uh, we can explain—"

The Skarmory picked up the loose wire and examined it. "It's a fuse, sir."

The Scrafty glared. "What's in the wagon?"

"Uh…our lunch?" the Dragonite answered.

The Crawdaunt knight pushed the trio aside and ripped the tarp away, revealing the miniature barrels and fuse spools inside. "They're explosive barrels, sir. At least twenty of them."

Scrafty glared at the circus trio. "Seems your Froslass friend wasn't the only bad apple in the bunch." He pulled a pair of shackles from his waist. "You three are under arrest. We'll be sending a party out to arrest the rest of your cohorts."

Iris and her goons pressed themselves back to back as the knights approached with their shackles. "Uh, y-you really don't need to do that," Iris insisted. "These aren't explosives! They're…an elaborate firework setup."

"Uh huh. Tell it to the king. Come quietly and—" As he reached out from her arms, his own suddenly jutted to the side, tossing the shackles into the canal. "What the—" His arms were forcibly raised above his head. "Huh?!"

The other two knights felt their own bodies being pulled against their wills. The Skarmory's wings were splayed open while the Crawdaunt had his own arms wrapped around himself. Next thing they knew, they were pulled up and suspended in the air.

"W-What is this?!" the Scrafty yelled.

Iris lowered her hands and smirked. "I told you not to do that."

Just then, a devilish giggling sounded above their heads. The knights looked up and saw someone crawling out from the shadows along the wall. A Leavanny dressed in red crawled down to eye level with the knights and craned his neck to look them in the eyes.

"Hello, my darling prey~," he hissed. "So wonderful for you to drop by."

The Scrafty knight looked at his hands and saw a faint light shimmering. A thin spider web plus an arrow-shaped dart pricked the back of his hands. They were so tiny that he didn't even feel them entering his skin. To think they even managed to pierce the hide of a Skarmory so easily, too…

Chihiro jumped off the wall, balancing on a net of webs barely visible to the eye. He moved his arms and controlled his capture prey's movements, making them spina and dance in the air. He giggled aloud, staring at them with maniacal eyes.

"Unfortunately for you, you won't be leaving anytime soon. This is a one-way invitation. Now then…"

Chihiro pulled the threads and swung the knights closer to him. Their eyes widened as he raised his bladed arms to their throats. A gleam of red shimmered off his eyes as he traced their necks one-by-one.

"Tell me, what color is your blood?"

Cirque du Madness

The shadow slithered unseen through the circus site and slipped into the ringmaster's caravan. The darkness rose, peeling away from Itzal, and sinking back into his own shadow. He stretched his arms and rolled his shoulders before hobbling over to his throne.

"Absolutely fantastic…" He smirked to himself. "You're quite the little devil, Princess Visconti. What dark secrets do you harbor? I can see why Terrowin has such an invested interest in you—"

"Enjoy your midnight jaunt, Itzy?" Itzal spun around with a start, spotting Basil leaning in the dark corner of the trailer. He straightened up, stepped into view, and snickered at the Gourgeist's stunned face. "Sorry. I thought you wouldn't mind, but I let myself in." He pulled out a throwing dart and threw it at the dartboard's center. "I wasn't interrupting another of your private soliloquies, right?"

Itzal snarled. His scepter flew from his throne and into his hand, and his shadow stretched out over the walls and ceiling, glaring down at the lizard. "How much did you hear?!"

Basil tapped his chin and hummed. "Hmm, around the part when you mentioned Evangelina Visconti, I suppose."

Itzal's eyes widened. "I didn't say her name!"

He smirked. "You just did."

"…" Itzal growled. "Get. Out."

"So, that's the Grim Deadlock you were talking to the other day. My, oh my, Echo Bell is full of wonders." Hands tucked behind his waist, the Salandit paced around the trailer. "And she hoped you would keep her secret in confidence. I suppose that's not the only thing you're holding over her head, but why not go in with a backup plan?"

"Why are you here, Basil?"

"What? I can't pay my old ringmaster a visit—oh wait, I already used that excuse. Hang on, give me a minute—" He ducked under a shadow arm spawning from the wall. "So aggressive~."

"Enough games, Basil! Why are you here?!"

The joking persona fell as Basil shot the ringmaster a glare. "How about we start with you sending Paride to his own funeral?"

Itzal relaxed and glared back. "So, you know about that."

"Don't play ignorant with me. You were in Harlow's shadow since last night. You saw the whole thing."

Itzal chuckled quietly. "You're awfully perceptive. And you still took them back to where they were staying knowing I was hiding."

"Because I already know you followed them back to the inn. It's in your nature, Lord of Shadows." Basil shook his head. "You're too cocky for your own good. Eventually, you won't be able to hide in the shadows and escape. I knew you wouldn't risk a fight, especially knowing I was lurking around."

"If it's any consideration, I didn't know Deadlock would be going on one of his murder sprees. I just wanted Paride to kill your friends. No hard feelings, right?"

Basil sighed. "I didn't get along with Paride, but he didn't deserve to die. You only tagged along on the off-chance they escaped so you can gather clues. You were afraid of them learning too much about Elysivine's history."

Itzal scoffed. "You're an annoying pest, you know that?"

"So I've been told." Basil raised his hand toward the ringmaster and pressed his fingers together. "I could just kill you right now and spare us both the pretense. It wouldn't be too difficult."

Itzal laughed to himself. "You sound more like your mother every time you drop the jester act. Wisteria Dawnblite, 1st Class Archmage. I wonder what she would say if she saw the person you became."

"…" Basil narrowed his eyes.

"When's the last time you've seen her? Your only remaining family, and you can't be bothered to pay her a visit."

"I'm not taking familial advice from the man who complains about his own mother."

Itzal raised his scepter toward the Salandit. "You've helped me with my rituals in the past, Basil. I don't think she'll take too kindly knowing her own son is an accomplice to murder."

He smirked back. "Nice try, but guilting me into sparing your life won't cut it. Besides, I'm already aware of your plan. Sooner I kill you, the sooner I can threaten your team into surrendering themselves to the knights. No giant bonfire for you, I'm afraid."

Itzal tutted and wagged his finger. "No, no, no. That's not how this works, Basil. What you're actually going to do is leave me be to carry on with my own agenda. A ritual of this scale comes only once in a lifetime, and I have all the firepower I could ask for to make it come true. I'm not letting a treacherous jester stop me."

"You don't do well answering to threats." Basil rubbed his fingers together, generating sparks. "I don't think you understand what I've been up to since we last saw each other."

"Hmm, then allow me to shed some light of my own. If you try and fail to kill me…" The ringmaster's smirk stretched. "Your dear friend, Harlow, will be making a public appearance across the capital."

"…" Basil closed his eyes and sighed. "So, you know the truth."

"That Harlow is the formerly missing princess? Oh yes, I do. I'm not sure how you got such an impressive lookalike to take her place, but I know now she's the genuine article." He chuckled. "It's funny what secrets are spilled from loose lips when people feel safe and drop their guards. I taught you that, remember?"

"Heh. What are you going to do about it?"

"Truth be told, I don't benefit from harboring such knowledge, but messing up my plans would be grounds for a public announcement. If I can't burn the capital, I'll just send West Virdis to war by announcing the sins of Princess Penworth. You can choose whether or not this means anything to you."

"You're threatening me into silence."

"That's the idea. You can help them escape for all I care, but there will be a ritual by the end of the week. This is inevitable."

"…" Basil raised his hands. "Itzal, I strongly recommend you don't go through with this."

"Why not? Since when did you care about people's lives being destroyed?" Itzal snickered through his maniacal grin. "Oh, how I remember the vitriol you spat against the Great Gate Empire. Are those horrible memories still festering in your mind? Your brothers, sisters, and cousins being mercilessly slaughtered? Your dad being butchered trying to protect you? Your mother on her deathbed fending off their commander? Admit it. You don't value life. You never valued it. Everything is just one big joke to you. You may say you were venting, but I felt the passion and hatred in your words. You would burn the whole of Great Gate to the ground just to kill the clan that led the assault on Arcania. Say that I'm wrong."

"…" Basil lowered his head and sighed. "You play a mean game, Itzy."

"Have I finally pacified you?"

"I'm serious. Do not go through with the ritual. It's for your own good."

"What? You think I'm afraid of the Foresters? I may be weary of you, Basil, but I'm not putting my plans on hold just because I fear you." His scepter flowed with its internal flame. "Now, swear on the Scarlet Flame that you will not leak my plans, lest you be burned by the sacred pyre."

"…" He sighed and raised his head. The flame reflected off his eyes. "By the Scarlet Flame, I swear that I won't leak your plans to the Foresters or the knights. On the condition you do not announce Harlow's identity to the public."

"I swear upon the Scarlet Flame to abide by your condition." The flame dimmed, and Itzal floated over to his throne. "Now, begone with you. I have a city to burn."

Basil tucked his hands behind his head and waltzed over to the trailer door. "Whatever." He kicked the door open and let himself out. "Don't say I didn't warn you." He closed the door behind with his tail.

Itzal reclined back in his throne and released the breath he was holding. He drummed his fingers on the armrest and glared ahead warily. I can't let him get to me. My resolve must be absolute. I will show this world to appreciate happiness to its fullest extent. I will burn the joy of life into all of them.

After shutting the trailer door behind him, Basil wandered off the circus site and into the crowd. He held a confident smirk over his maw, chuckling to himself. Oh Itzy, when are you ever going to learn to stop making deals with me? I hold my end of the bargain, but…you really need to word yourself better.

His eyes scanned through the numerous Pokémon in his path before landing on one in particular who had his back toward the Salandit. Basil picked up his speed, pulling a scrap of paper out of his pocket.

You asked me how my mother would react if she saw me now. Heh. I've made peace with who I am. Regardless of what she'll think of me, I've decided my fate a long time ago. You have no idea how long I've been waiting for this moment, Itzy. You're going to help me further my goals.

Basil snuck behind his target and effortlessly slipped the piece of paper into their pocket. The fancily-dressed Weavile never noticed as he made his way into a nearby tavern.

Basil slid his hands into his pockets and carried on down the street. All that's left is get everyone into position, then I can execute my plan.