Chapter 88 – New Home, Old Friend

At first, Jerry protested flying over the forest, claiming that the wraiths below would shoot at them. Xypher, undeterred, continued forward, and Hakk shrugged, nonchalant.

"It's fine," Hakk said. "Most of them can't do much harm. The strong ones, we'll avoid. We've got some Illusion fields just in case."

"Illusion what?" Owen looked nervously downward. From above, the trees he had once explored for tree taffy and berry bunches looked more like mangled fingers clawing at the sky.

"Illusion field. It distorts outgoing light to disguise us. Same way Zoroark cast their illusions." Hakk looked back at Owen. "Better than just bending light around us, or we'd be flying blind."

"Zoroark…" Owen squinted. "Have you run into a Zoroark recently? Or Zorua. She might be scared or confused, but she's another friend."

"Nope. We'll ask around our network and see if anybody else has info, though." Hakk looked at his device again.

"Mm." Owen's claws dug into Jerry's shoulder and the Aerodactyl jostled in response. "Oh—sorry."

"What's up with you?" Jerry growled. "No matter what these guys do to us, we're better off than before. If they wanted us for food, we'd be dead already."

"I—I wasn't thinking about that at all!" Owen's flame doubled in size. "I thought they were friends!"

"Well, aren't you trusting," Jerry grumbled. "Just leave the carefulness to me, then. We still don't know what these guys want from us, and I doubt they're going to be charitable when we arrive. Look at this place!" Jerry jerked his head vaguely upward. "You think they have resources to spare? Please. Best case scenario, we're their servants."

"S-servants?" Owen squeaked.

"Yep. But if we're fed, it'll be worth it. Better than dying. So look at it that way."

"But what about Zena? She can't…"

"They probably have something," Jerry said. "And if they don't, I dunno, at least we're alive."

"Um—excuse me!" Owen perked up, shouting toward Hakk.

"Eh?"

"Are we—"

Jerry dove down, making Owen scream, and then he lifted back up. "Ignore him," Jerry said. "He's impatient."

"We're almost there. And don't fly down too low or you'll leave the illusory field." Hakk sighed and looked ahead again. "Okay, this is going to be a little tricky, so you'll need to follow more closely. You see that stone spire ahead?"

Owen leaned to the left, around Jerry's neck. Far ahead, looking like one of the trees, was a great cone tipped with a white, glowing point. It reminded Owen a lot of the central spire in Kilo Village where the Central Waypoint marked the center of the world map, or the Spire of Trials where Manny had once lived. The tip was probably as sharp as Owen's claws.

"Yeah, what about it?" Jerry asked.

"When we start slowing down, stay behind us until the spire dims a little. Then, fly forward with us. When it gets brighter again, keep flying, but when it dims for a second time, slow down."

"…What?"

"Just follow Xypher's lead."

"Forward," Xypher said. "Slow, slow, fast, fast, slow…"

Soon, they slowed down. Zena anxiously swirled around in her aqua bubble, glancing up at Owen, and then at the spire ahead. It dimmed, so they moved forward. When it brightened, Jerry almost stopped, and Owen felt him lurch, so Owen mumbled that he had to keep going. Jerry grumbled something back, probably another curse, and then followed their lead. Once it dimmed again, they stopped.

"What's this supposed to be? Some kind of signal that we aren't hostile?" Jerry asked.

"Yep," Hakk said.

"What, that communicator doesn't do it for you?"

"A Void Shadow could've stolen it from us," Hakk said.

"Void what?"

"Later. We're clear for a landing." Hakk put his tablet away into his bag and leaned forward. Xypher started to glide down, so Jerry followed.

"Seems like it would be pretty obvious if a Void whatever stole it from you. Sandslash and Corviknight. Not many pairs like those, right?"

"Some Void Shadows can mimic bodies the way you'd expect a Ditto to. And from far away, sometimes it's hard to tell. Better to shoot them from far away if they try, since most of them are pretty stupid."

"And if a clever one mimics you?" Jerry asked.

"That's what the next test's for. Get ready to land."

The tops of the gnarled, black trees threatened to scrape Jerry and Xypher, but they found a clearing soon enough. Xypher landed on a fallen tree, which collapsed partway under his weight. Jerry landed on purple mud, grimacing.

"Ugh," he grumbled. "Is everywhere this… what's the word… vile?"

"Outside of town? Pretty much. That's the Voidlands for you." Hakk marched forward. "Stay close, stay behind, and stay quiet. Clear?" He picked up Zena's bowl and started rolling her forward, the forcefield maintaining its shape tenuously.

Owen fidgeted and followed at a faster pace to make up for his leg span. "Um, what's—"

"What's the third thing I said?" Hakk said, glaring at Owen.

He squeaked and shrank back, playing with his claws. "Sorry…"

Jerry glared at Hakk, but said nothing. He gestured forward with a wing.

Satisfied, Hakk nodded back and said, "Follow any instructions you're given. Play nice and this'll be easy for everyone, including you three. We don't like dealing with troublemakers. Any questions you guys have, we'll answer once we have you inside and verify that everything is secure."

Owen nodded vigorously, trying to shake off his nerves. Though he noticed that they weren't moving forward. He wanted to ask, but then he remembered Hakk's third command and shifted his weight instead.

Jerry tensed enough for Owen to notice his wings pinned to his side. Defensive stance, perhaps even noncombative at the same time. Owen felt a phantom sensation of his lack of wings doing the same.

"Identify yourselves, scouts."

The voice was gruff and booming, sending another tight chill through Owen's chest and into his throat.

"Sandslash Hakk, Class B," Hakk replied, pulling out a white badge with a strange, star-shaped symbol with four large points and four small points between them.

"Corviknight Xypher, Class D," Xypher cawed back, followed by a chirp. He produced another badge with the same symbol.

They were so bright; he only now realized that, aside from Hakk's white-cyan appearance—which was stained reddish purple—those badges were the first pure white thing he'd seen in a while. The symbols were black, and something about them made his chest feel warm.

"And the other three?" the booming voice said. It sounded vaguely metallic.

"All rescues. Found them in a group. Yeah, I know, rare." Hakk shrugged, motioning back. "Feebas, Aerodactyl, Charmander."

Another pause. Shuffling. Owen's scales tightened like feeble armor against his body, like a vestigial remnant from when his hide used to be stronger. They were surrounded.

"Alright, forward. Sandslash first with Feebas, then Charmander."

Jerry tensed more, but continued to say nothing. He glanced down at Owen, who looked up uncertainly. They didn't have a choice anymore, did they? Owen's tail blazed; there was no point in trying to fight now, but if he needed to, they had to find some way to escape.

The caution in Jerry's eyes suggested he agreed.

The source of the booming voice came from a Steelix, its shining, steel hide covered in flecks of the ground's sticky mud. Huge eyes stared down at Owen and even more daunting jaws, frozen and expressionless, radiated a paralyzing aura. He could crush Owen with a tap. Wouldn't even notice.

Owen stared straight forward, walking past his long, segmented body, the little, gleaming parts reflecting his tail flame, which was a lot smaller. His fire crackled now and then like a wet fire.

"Aerodactyl next," Steelix said, and Owen wanted to collapse to his knees. But he didn't and held strong, though he did ball his fists up.

Jerry approached just as slowly, occasionally giving a glance at Steelix, and then Xypher took up the rear.

The walk that followed was silent, save for Steelix's grinding slither across the ground, light footsteps from the heavier Pokémon of the line, and the occasional swish or blub of Zena swimming in her bubble. Sometimes, a broken branch, a heavy misstep, or some other foreign noise gave away the fact that, indeed, they were still being watched by more than just Steelix.

"So," Hakk said, glancing back. "Charmander. How long've you been out in the Nil Plateaus?"

That meant he was allowed to answer, right? "Not sure," he replied. "I can't tell time that easily here. No sun, or at least, I don't think there is. But I've fallen asleep maybe… five, six times? I don't know. Some of them might have been because I passed out…"

"Passed out?" Hakk asked.

"Mm." Owen nodded. "I couldn't get a lot of food, and there were these… giant things that I had to run away from, and the stress made me pass out sometimes, I think."

"Those are called Void Titans," Hakk said. "You were smart to run away from them."

Owen nodded a little too enthusiastically.

"And you, Aerodactyl?"

"Same deal," Jerry said shortly. "Less passing out, though. Wings help."

Hakk continued walking. Occasionally Xypher babbled under his breath, but Owen couldn't tell what he was saying—or if it was comprehensible at all. Whenever Hakk made a light snapping noise with his claws, however, Xypher quieted down.

"And you, Feebas?"

"I'm afraid I don't remember much," Zena said. "It's a little blurry. I remember there was a fight I was part of… As a Milotic, if you can believe it, and then… Well, and then things became dark… There was a horrible… presence…"

"Presence?" Hakk asked.

"I remember seeing it. When it was dark, I felt something, like it was… pulling me, but not. Like a current. I couldn't get away at first, and then… I woke up."

"Mm." Hakk nodded. "Sounds pretty scary. Glad you're still with us."

Hakk knew more. Owen could tell. But he couldn't speak up. He'd remember it for later.

They continued in silence until the icy Sandslash pointed a claw toward a bright spot ahead, like a small, starry sky in the forest. "There's Null Village," he said. "Just keep to this formation, alright?"

Null Village had no welcoming sign and no clear perimeter. It simply started as part of the forest, little black buildings made out of packed mud and reinforced with some other, even darker material that Owen didn't recognize. No building was greater than two stories tall, and they looked to be very deliberately below the trees' height.

Some had larger doors, likely for larger inhabitants, while others were nostalgically smaller, like the tiny home Willow had once occupied in Hot Spot. Owen always wondered what furniture she would have had. Probably mushrooms.

Despite the unceremonious beginning to the village, the internals were organized and grid-like. Streets were mercifully solid and packed down like stone. The claws of his feet tapped on it, and the sound reminded him of fine pottery.

Occasionally, they passed by lighter spots in the buildings that illuminated the whole street despite the dim lighting. The light source came from more diamonds embedded into the walls, just like the crystals that he'd found in—what did Hakk call it, Nil Plateaus?

But they didn't have the same draw that those crystals gave him. Disappointing. Even more disappointing was they weren't able to find the old crystals that he'd lost.

Most of the Pokémon in the village weren't fully evolved, which was an odd sight. He was so used to everyone being fully evolved in Kilo Village, most of the kids inside or at school or playing elsewhere than the Hearts' center of operations. They gave him curious, sometimes wary glances, particularly at Jerry. A Ponyta galloped away from the other end of the street when they'd seen him, while an accompanying Cranidos sighed and followed the Ponyta more leisurely.

"Alright," Hakk said, snapping Owen out of his thoughts. He'd lost track of how many streets they'd turned and how many buildings they'd passed, but suddenly, they were in front of one of the larger buildings. At least sixty feet across. Even if Zena was fully evolved, they'd need at least three of her, end to end, to cross one side.

The Feebas flitted about in her bowl. Owen wanted to get closer, but Hakk's words continued to echo in his mind.

They entered, and the inside was a lot brighter. The walls were painted a light brown in a design that was reminiscent of a Dungeon's twisted wood-warping. He wasn't sure why that would be a desirable look, though. It just meant danger.

A few beanbags lined the ground for sitting and resting. A desk sat at the back of the room, which had two passageways to the let and right, as well as a closed door in the back that didn't have any lever to push open. How did they get through? It was just flat.

Sitting at the front of the desk was a Jynx, quietly looking at another one of those strange, rectangular tablets like it was a book. Her eyes scanned the rectangle in a slow and steady rhythm.

It just occurred to Owen that Steelix and the unseen others had stopped following them some time ago. It was just Hakk and Xypher again.

"We have three. Three, three," Xypher called, chirped, and then preened.

"Three more?" Jynx said, bringing an incredulous hand to her forehead. "Sure, okay, fine, just… ahh…" She frowned at the three, but then motioned to their left. "Go ahead and set up rooms and we'll have them evaluated. Welcome to Null Village."

Hakk gestured for Owen and Jerry to follow. Down the hall to their left, several doors—each one without any sort of knob—were separated by several wingspans' distance. The walls were a polished black, like obsidian. It glistened against Owen's flame.

The distance between each door felt a lot longer than it should have. Owen lost count of the paces, and he wondered if there were hidden rooms between them to compensate for all the empty wall space.

Owen was about to ask a question, starting with an, "Um," but then remembered he was probably not supposed to be talking. Instead, he tried to play it off as a cough.

"Alright, Owen. You first." Hakk stopped at one of the rooms, only a few doorways down from the main lobby. There was a symbol above the obsidian door that didn't match the others. While the ones behind Owen were red and square, this one was a green circle.

"In you go," Hakk said, pressing a paw against the door. He held it there for a second, then pulled away, yet a glowing imprint of his paw remained.

Owen moved to get a closer look, his eyes reflecting the light. But before he could see how it worked, the pawprint disappeared and the door slid open—into the doorframe.

Owen let out a feral chirp in response, flinching.

"Wha? Where'd the door go?" Jerry said.

"Uh, it slid aside." Hakk gestured for Owen to go in. "Go on. We'll get to you later."

The interior was a short hall into a large room. The walls were that same obsidian color again, and the floor that similar, pottery texture. A dull heat emanated from the inside that made his flame perk up eagerly.

Hakk didn't seem as receptive. "C'mon, I hate Fire rooms."

"Sorry." Owen quickly shuffled inside, ducking his head.

A deep and unsettlingly familiar voice echoed across the hall. "Where is he?"

Jerry blinked, looking down the hall, then at Owen. "That your clone?" Jerry said. "Didn't think Har was in that fight."

"Har…" It was Har's voice. Which meant it was his own voice. Which also meant it might be—

Eon, as a Charizard, flew across the halls, glancing left and right when he passed their corridor. He halted—overturning a nearby potted void plant with his gusts—and stared at Owen.

"You're here," Eon breathed.

Xypher squawked. "No interaction! No interaction!"

"But he's—"

Xypher squawked even louder, fanning out his feathers.

"Back off," Hakk said, growling. "If you know this guy, we'll process it later. You just got cleared, so don't make us revoke it."

"But—"

Xypher screeched, making Jerry wince and shuffle to the left. Zena tried to get as low to the ground as possible while remaining in her bubble.

Eon didn't move. Owen, by the doorway, didn't either. Eventually, he realized Hakk was staring at him, and he backed away.

"Press the help button if you need something," Hakk said, and then the door slid shut.

And suddenly, Owen was alone.

Several days ago, they had followed a burst of black lightning in some faraway forest. That, coupled with the vague sensation that something familiar was there, led Demitri and Mispy to travel across rough, desolate terrain, taking rest stops in little caves and valleys when they could. Over those three days, they had happened upon two wraiths. One dissolved into nothing the moment they were taken down; the other, Demitri couldn't stomach.

Now, over yet another chilly, dusty, black mountain, toward the jagged, violet horizon, the mutant Meganium and Haxorus continued. Mispy's vines crawled over the terrain easily, and Demitri, who felt lighter than ever, rested atop her back, occasionally wincing from hunger pangs. His claws' grip strength was getting weaker and weaker. It would be time for another break soon.

"I'm sorry," Demitri said.

"What?"

"I'm sorry… I think you can tell I'm…"

Mispy frowned, but said nothing. So even he recognized how weak he had become, to need a break just so he didn't slip off. Maybe she could use a few more vines to hold him in place.

"I just can't eat those things like you can," Demitri said. "Not like it matters. We haven't found another one like them in so long…"

That was true. Mispy wouldn't mind eating something, but seeing Demitri like this was tearing her apart even more. She bit her lower lip, then eased her way over a particularly steep slope. Demitri was slipping, so she quickly wound a few extra vines around him. When she did, she lost her footing below and tilted left; Demitri yelped, and then a few of her vines lost their hold on him next.

"No!" Mispy shouted, but her voice was drowned out by the bitter wind. Demitri hit the sloped ground and tumbled several feet, coming to a rough stop when his tail's axe cut into nearby stone.

Mispy carefully slid down the same slope and picked Demitri up. "Are you okay?" She channeled some healing energy into him, but that was starting to wear her down, too. But she kept going anyway until she felt there was nothing more to aid.

"I'm sorry," Demitri repeated quietly. "Come—come on, let's get going. I'll… walk. I'll be fine."

"No, you won't," Mispy said, wrapping a few vines around him. "Come on."

Demitri resisted halfheartedly, but Mispy could tell it was more out of shame than anything.

"I'm just so weak," Demitri lamented. "How did it get like this…" He squeezed at his gut, where the scales had started to sag where a healthy layer of fat had once been. Now his form was unhealthily slender. Mispy wasn't doing much better, but she had ample excess mass to draw from before she'd show any signs of starvation. She had always overeaten. That wouldn't mean anything, now, though, especially for Demitri…

For some reason, she kept seeing Demitri cooking in her mind. All those times he'd experimented with all kinds of dishes when Rhys was out on longer missions. Served them to her; she'd never asked if he wanted some, either, or if he wanted more than those small portions that he'd eaten instead. He was so strong; surely, he'd need to eat more.

"Are you okay?" Demitri asked, and his claws to her cheek broke her from a trance.

Another gust blew dirt in their eyes; Demitri closed his left one and ducked down, like that would help, while Mispy brought a few vines over her face.

"I'm sorry," she said, pressing her head against the base of his neck. "I… I always eat. And you… you always… you don't eat enough…" The words came after long stutters, but Demitri waited patiently, because he always did. He was always so patient with her. She didn't deserve it.

"Don't talk like that," Demitri said, rubbing the back of her beck. "Especially not now."

Demitri climbed onto Mispy's back with newfound strength, slowly creeping until he was resting on the back of her neck. Reluctantly, she wrapped her vines around him, securing his position. His Dragon body was warm. So warm. Even now. Perhaps it was his inner, blue fire.

"It's going to be okay," Demitri whispered. "I loved when you ate. And I'll love it when we get to eat again. It's gonna happen. We're gonna have a huge feast together…" His voice was so soft that she had to strain to hear it over another indifferent gust.

"Promise me," Mispy said, though she advanced forward again. "Don't… die."

Demitri leaned a little deeper. "If we find another wraith…" He nuzzled her, and that, somehow, relaxed her. "We'll fuse, and maybe I can stomach it easier. I know it's risky, but…"

That was all she needed. "Okay."

With more valleys ahead, they continued along the slopes once more. They carefully traversed over jagged gaps and sudden dips, occasionally navigating horizontally until they found a more lenient drop. Demitri mumbled about a time when they had gone on an exploration in Void Forest, which felt vaguely like the dreary atmosphere they had been enjoying for the past few days. How scared he was about Ghosts, of all things. What he'd do to worry about those than wherever they were now.

Demitri had eventually fallen silent, and Mispy, worried, shook him gently. "I'm okay," Demitri replied, squeezing her a little more. "Was just resting my voice."

But she liked his voice. And it wasn't like she could speak to fill the air that easily, either. Still, they continued, Mispy occasionally contemplating—if only to pass the time—whether her vines qualified as plant matter or flesh.

"I feel him," Demitri suddenly mumbled.

"Huh?" Mispy looked back.

"He's close…"

Mispy blinked, perplexed, and stopped. Was he losing it? His aura still felt fine; while he was weak, it was still stable. He wasn't fading—she'd force him to eat if it came to that…

She closed her eyes and humored him anyway. Whatever he was seeing, it wasn't with his—

A Flygon flew over a forest of black trees.

Mispy's eyes shot open. How did she… know that?

"Who?" Mispy asked.

"Gahi."

Then they felt the same thing. "Let's go."

Demitri held on a little tighter, and Mispy moved a little faster, following that strange feeling that guided them forward.

"You're flying too high," Trina criticized.

"Bah, they ain't shot me yet," Gahi dismissed. Still, he flew closer to the treetops.

Trina looked down, inspecting a wound along Gahi's side. "And how have you been doing with…"

"What, it look bad again?"

"It might. Try not to strain yourself too much."

"Bah, better 'n yesterday." Gahi snorted. "Stupid Druddigon… who would've though that we'd get some territorial feral here, too."

"It's too bad the Orans here aren't blessed," Trina added.

"Might be poisoned, too," Gahi grumbled. "That one I ate messed me up good."

"It might have been a cursed berry," Trina said. "Those used to happen on occasion in southern towns, from what I heard. I don't know if that's the case anymore."

"Cursed? Sounds kinda familiar, but I dunno. Either way, I ain't gonna eat another one without taking a long, hard look at it…"

"Do you still feel anything guiding you?" Trina asked.

"Yep. Gettin' real strong, too."

"Hopefully whatever it is, it can give you a chance to rest." Trina frowned, her tiny body feeling vulnerable against the rushing wind. "I don't want you falling while I'm like this."

"Bah! I ain't gonna fall unless I get shot."

Trina half-expected a blast of darkness to hit Gahi just then, but none came.

"You ain't gettin' hungry, are yeh?"

"Oh, no," Trina lied. Then, she amended, "Not more than usual. The lack of sunlight isn't agreeing with my leaves."

"Maybe I'll start lookin' fer somethin' later. Better berries. Maybe more wood if we gotta."

They flew along in silence afterward, Trina occasionally taking a closer and more careful look at Gahi's wounds. They were only open because he'd refused to sit still; had he spent longer asleep and not constantly wandering around restlessly, it would have been healed by now. But instead, the wound was reopening yet again.

Stubborn fool. Trina rolled her eyes and used her arms—it was so strange to have them so long again—to get a better hold around his neck. Her vines anchored her further.

And then, suddenly, she was glad she had held on so firmly. Gahi twirled and rolled in the air, and everything felt frigid. Frost covered her left hand and she tried to shake it off before it'd damage her flesh.

"Gahi!" she shouted over the wind.

"Found Owen," Gahi spat.

"You what?" Trina tried to look past Gahi's neck. She saw a great spire in the middle of the trees with a glowing tip. It radiated a fine mist and cyan energy—the telltale sign of the Ice element.

"Ice, why's it always ice?" Gahi growled, shifting his angle in the air as the source of the blast rapidly drew near.

"You said you found Owen. Is he there?"

"Yep. Feel it fer sure."

"You shouldn't follow your instincts so blindly," Trina chided.

"Bah! Save the lecture fer later." Gahi twirled around another blast and sped forward. Trina braced, hearing a whistling in the air that came from Gahi's wings. And then, the sound of metal wind chimes—that was odd. Gahi's wings darkened with little bright dots, like a sky.

"Gahi?" Trina said.

But Gahi didn't hear her over the whistling and the wind.

Suddenly, Gahi dipped under the trees and closed his wings. He landed on his feet, ran several paces, and then hopped in the air again, the updraft of his own power pushing him forward. Trina saw a few wraiths in the shadows, yet Gahi was too fast for them to so much as react in time.

And then, just ahead, a Steelix emerged from the trees to the right, though Trina had seen his massive, shiny form coming for a while.

"Ngh—!" Gahi abruptly slowed down, spreading his wings apart to further decelerate.

"Gahi?" Trina glanced at Steelix. He'd crush them if Gahi didn't move…

"Barrier." Gahi poited at the lightly reflective, transparent surface that blocked the entrance to the village. He glanced at Steelix. "Oy, you keeping Owen in there?"

Steelix glared, and Trina's leafy scales tingled. They were surrounded. Did Gahi even know?

"Rushing toward a village like that…" Steelix glared down at Gahi. "What is your name?"

"Who wants ter know?"

"Gahi," Trina hissed under her breath. "Excuse me! We're looking for a friend of ours. His name is Owen, a Charizard. He may look different from a normal Charizard, though."

Gahi grumbled, but said nothing in protest. Instead, he kept his guard up, ready to bolt at any sign of aggression. Trina decided not to comment that he had been the aggressor here.

"A Charizard named Owen," Steelix said. "And your names?"

"I am Serperior Trina," she said, paused, and then sighed. "…Snivy… Trina."

Gahi narrowed his eyes, then said, "Flygon Gahi."

"You're an odd Flygon," Steelix commented.

"What's it ter—"

"He's from the south," Trina explained. "Pokémon have some regional variants there, and Flygon are a rare one."

"Mm, I see. The south. Then you're from…"

"From? I'm from Arachno Forest. Gahi comes from Hot Spot, an unknown location. But he is also of the Thousand Hearts." By now, Trina had scaled Gahi's neck and was sitting between his antennae. "Where are we now? We were attacked and eventually found ourselves here. I had entered a strange Dungeon as a Serperior, but once I exited, my form dissolved, and I woke up as a Snivy."

"I see. And what about your family?" Steelix said.

"Okay, enough!" Gahi snarled, flaring his wings. "I don't know what yer—get off me!" Gahi tried to grab for Trina, but she ducked and weaved away from his grip. Meanwhile, she wrapped her vines around his mouth.

She could tell he was tempted to bite on them, but while she had the opportunity, she whispered into Gahi's earhole, "Do you want to see Owen?"

Gahi stopped his struggling and glared at Trina with one eye.

"Then you will cooperate with them." She rose up and addressed Steelix. "My family is all long since deceased. I was adopted into a family of Spinarak and Ariados."

"And I don't got a family," Gahi said.

"You don't have one, or you don't remember them?" Steelix said.

"He's…" Trina wondered how to phrase it. She'd already said he was southern. "Orphaned. But my memory of his status is clear."

Steelix looked to Trina, then at Gahi, who maintained his glare.

"No sudden movements," Steelix commanded. "You will follow us inside. You can't see Owen yet, but we can bring you to where he is being kept for evaluation."

"Evaluation?" Trina said. "Is he hurt?"

"No. But he is a Charmander now, so a similar fate as you, Snivy."

"So I don't gotta go through that," Gahi said.

"You do if you want to see Owen."

Gahi growled again, but Trina tightened her vines. He relented and motioned toward the town. "Fine."

Steelix paused, scanning them one last time. Trina wondered what would make a town so cautious as to have so many scouts in the area just for two visitors. Though, he did dodge those Ice blasts…

And finally, Steelix slithered into town, the barrier granting access without resistance. Gahi followed behind, and Trina briefly wondered if they'd be allowed to step out again.