Chapter 94 – Resonance

"OWEN!" Gahi cried, barely able to stand.

Clouds of dust obscured anything that was under the Titan's feet. The plateau had collapsed and the two had fallen right into them. Marshadow's flames were bright green and yellow, muttering curses to himself as his eyes darted left and right for something.

Eon was about to fly forward, but then Marshadow squeezed his shoulder and said, "We ain't gettin' there. They're gone! They're gone! We gotta fall back!"

"NO, THEY AREN'T!" Eon roared, flying forward again. "I can still sense them! They're in there, they—"

"That's just that Mystic power er whatever," Marshadow said firmly. "There ain't any recoverin' from—"

"Do you really want a Mystic Titan?" Eon hissed. "We're going to remove them from that thing."

"We don't have the power fer that," Marshadow hissed again.

"Then get off me. I'm doing it myself!"

"So am I!" Gahi spread his wings, wincing as some of his shadowy burns reminded him that he wouldn't be at his best.

"Gahi," Trina warned, but Gahi gave her a firm glare. She glared back, and even as the Titan lifted its foot again and turned toward them, they stared each other down. Finally, Trina said, "I'll help."

"Yer all nuts," Marshadow snarled. "We can't beat a Titan. Like this we c'n only run. We don't got the power fer—"

"I'm not leavin' Owen," Gahi snarled. "Not 'til I know we can't win."

His wings darkened until they resembled a starry sky. The winds picked up around Eon, a small dust storm brewing below him.

"I can't manipulate the plateaus," Eon reported, "but I can use the dust on the ground. And I can feel my Flying Orb working, too."

"Rrgh…" Marshadow glanced at the Titan, which was in some sort of paused state, and then at the others. "Snivy, stay back with Xypher and Hakk. Y'ain't strong enough."

Trina looked defiant, but she ultimately nodded and transferred to Xypher with an extended vine. The Corviknight wasn't anywhere near flight-worthy, steely feathers partially melted and burned black rather than their elegant purple.

There was something resonating within the Titan, and Eon knew that feeling all too well. Owen. Perhaps even Amia.

Marshadow pulled out a few four-sided crystals. "We can try ter distract it and go fer a strike, then. If we're really fast and he's really lucky, we'll be able ter pull those two out." He was speaking hollowly, like there was no chance that was true. "Or," he added, "we cn' at least neutralize it so they'll just be normal Void Shadows."

By now, they had flown cautiously toward the Titan, which seemed to be resuming its movements, looking slowly toward them.

Marshadow winced. "This is a strong one," he said, cursing. "we aren't supposed ter take these head-on. It's got a core."

"A core?" Gahi asked. "So, a weak point."

"No," Marshadow hissed. "Don't hit th' core. Y'ain't gonna do anything. Now, listen. The way to beat a Titan is ter take out its appendages, and then strike the center body. Break it apart and it'll destabilize enough that it'll—"

The two Flygon swerved out of the way of an incoming shadowy blast, which pierced the clouds when it missed. Black lightning crackled in the haze.

"Gahi, yer faster!" Marshadow shouted when they drew closer. "Distract it with this, and then Eon'll go fer attackin'!"

"How can we split off?" Eon said quickly, still flying next to Gahi. "We can't coordinate like that against—"

"Figure it out! Yer the ones who wanna do this! But if I say retreat, yer gonna listen, got it?!" Marshadow held his hand on Eon's shoulder and said, "Follow what I say. Gahi!" Marshadow dug through his bag, and tossed three crystals Gahi's way. He caught two of them and dove down to catch the third.

"Go," Marshadow said into Eon's earhole, and the duplicate Flygon banked left. Gahi, his wings still like stars, banked right, and the Titan's head leaned toward Gahi.

This close, its facial features—if they could be called that—consisted of nothing but a large hole in the center of its head, where a dark haze billowed out before rapidly evaporating. Each time it readied a blast, that haze thickened.

To his credit, Gahi was good at feinting strikes, and while his glittering scales weren't of much use in the dim atmosphere, his agility in the air let him weave around and then toward the Titan. He was so close that the Titan tried to stomp on Gahi, but its movements, thanks to its size, were too slow to have any hope of striking him.

But the Titan was also huge. It was unreal—a building's height, several stories high, and just as wide. How many Void Shadows made it up? And the core… Eon felt it, too. There was a central core to the thing that was even stronger than the Void Shadows that surrounded it.

They just had to get Owen. And Amia.

He could at least feel Owen's presence inside that thing, but it was faded and dim. A faded ember from a dying campfire.

A pressure on Eon's shoulder caught his attention. Marshadow said, "Attack it now, the leg!"

There was only one nearby, and he knew Gahi's abilities well. Attacking up close was too risky, so instead, he conjured molten earth below it, which burst in a smoky explosion. It wasn't enough—but he could also tap into his Mystic power, couldn't he? A little more… His scales turned a tan brown, like they were made of clay, and he conjured wind from his Flying Orb to maintain his altitude.

The Earth Power redoubled, and the whole Titan toppled into the churning ground.

"Oi, great!" Marshadow encouraged. "That's one leg!"

"Owen's somewhere in its midsection," Eon said. "We need to—"

"Other leg," Marshadow said. "I'm gonna aim fer that head so it can't fire as easy!"

The Titan blasted again, this time carving the ground in a linear fissure that ended at a nearby plateau. The crater left behind was black and smoldering with some kind of obsidian-like rock that radiated the same black haze.

Something hot was forming above Eon, and he could only assume Marshadow was preparing his own attack.

"Dive!" Marshadow shouted, and Eon followed it without question. A half-second later and a beam of shadows grazed his tail; a chilling, knife-like pain surged through his spine.

Eon didn't realize he cried out until Marshadow screamed over him, "FORWARD!"

Fighting through the pain, not wanting to look back at the damage that may have been caused, he leaned forward and dodged another incoming blast, this time snapping the air above him. The pressure made his earholes feel underwater, and he lost altitude without realizing it.

"Keep it together, c'mon!" Marshadow shouted. "Keep steady! I'm gonna blast that thing's head next! Go fer the other leg! If we get it totally down, maybe we c'n smash it apart!"

"Wasn't this supposed to be unbeatable?" Eon asked with a grimace, spotting the charred end of his tail in his peripheral vision.

"Something's up with it." At this point, it was completely ignoring Gahi, whatever ineffectual taunting he was doing on the other side. Marshadow lobbed his attack.

A tiny, marble-sized Aura Sphere flew through the air like a bullet, landing dead-center in the Titan's face, vanishing in the black haze.

Eon had to stop, incredulous. "…What kind of pathetic—"

Orange energy pulsed through countless imperfections in the creature's face and neck in a wave, exploding outward as Void Shadow remnants scattered in the wind.

Marshadow braced on Eon's shoulder, conjuring another tiny Aura Sphere with his free right hand. "Well, c'mon!" Marshadow commanded. "Other leg! Befer it grows another head!"

Eon nodded hastily and sped forward, the cold stinging on his tail slowly, but not completely, fading into a dull throb. More magma swirled and destabilized the land beneath one of the hind legs of the Titan, this time, and without having to worry about another strike blasting toward them, it was much easier.

On the other side, the ethereal sound of a twisted Psychic scattered another one of the Titan's legs.

"And you said this was hard," Eon admonished Marshadow.

"Like I said"—Marshadow glared toward the great wraith—"it ain't right. Maybe it's got indigestion."

Eon's mind snapped to the presence trapped in its torso. "Is Owen fighting it from the inside?"

Marshadow didn't answer, still conjuring another Aura Sphere. "Tell me again where Owen is?"

Eon could spot him easily and pointed at the upper chest. Owen kept shifting around, but he had settled there, or at least his energy did. That was still Owen, right?

"Easy-peasy." Marshadow took aim.

"Wait, what're you gonna do?"

"Blast 'im out," Marshadow said. "If he's already Voided, then we're freeing 'im from being part o' a Titan. If he ain't, then he'll survive. Win-win."

Before Eon could protest, Marshadow fired. Another tiny Aura Sphere dug into the Titan's chest, and Eon was wise enough to fly away from the impact site. One explosion flash later, and suddenly Owen's presence flew across the battlefield; Gahi must have sensed him, too, because he immediately flew toward the presence.

"Owen's out!" Eon announced.

"Or what's left of 'im," Marshadow grunted. "Can we go now?! We gotta—"

A subtle shadow of something caught Eon's eye and, on reflex, he swooped down and narrowly dodged a black spire striking the air where he'd flown. It was that length tail of the Titan. It lashed out and Marshadow cursed, grabbing onto one of Eon's wings to keep from falling.

"Gyah—get back on! I can't fly like—"

The tail twisted and whipped Eon into a downward spiral, skidding and tumbling over the dirt. Marshadow landed on his feet next to him and fired a smaller Aura Sphere at the incoming tail, deflecting it to the ground a few feet away from Eon's arm. The tail lifted up again and went for another stab. Eon rolled and waved his arm haphazardly forward, erecting a thick wall of compacted dust, which was just enough to deflect the tail's next strike.

Marshadow ran across the ground in the form of a shadowy puddle, speeding toward Gahi, who was jostling a black blob near the plateau.

"Flygon!" Marshadow shouted. "Izzat Charmander?"

"Yeah!"

"It ain't—"

"He's delirious, but he's alright!" Gahi said. "He says we gotta find Amia!"

"It's sayin' something?!"

Near the blob's lower half was a black tail emitting an orange flame. From that flame, orange scales started solidifying along the tip, climbing toward the central body…

"Then Amia's still in there?" Eon said, hesitating. "I can't sense her power as much…"

"Please…" The Void Shadow trembled.

Marshadow shook his head, eyes wide and fire wisps green, and then looked back at the shambling Titan. "Fine. We gotta finish this before it goes nuts. Use the crystals to channel extra power and we might be able to disrupt it enough that we can make a run for it afterward."

Gahi, hasty, dug through Marshadow's bag and winced when something inside shined particularly brightly. He picked up the source—a pink crystal. "This one."

Marshadow couldn't look directly at it. "Why's it so bright?"

"What, you don't kn—"

The rumble of the Titan's remaining limbs hitting the earth was enough to cut their conversation short. Eon stood up and grabbed a few of the crystals for himself and faced the Titan. "Hurry!"

"Mom…"

Eon channeled as much energy as he could into the crystals he had hastily pulled from the bag. Marshadow stood next to him, preparing the same a fair distance away. His gems weren't shining as brightly.

But something was wrong.

Eon was feeling weaker. Even as he tried to channel his energy into a crystal, his power drained faster than he could provide, and his vision was starting to whiten. He shook his head—he had to stop. There was barely enough energy in him to retain his Flygon body. But his vision was still whiting out—no, that was coming from Gahi.

The opposite of Eon, Gahi's cosmic wings flared and doubled in size. The pinpricks of light were all going supernova at once. The crystal in Gahi's hands was an overwhelming white, and it looked like Gahi was trying his best to keep it held in his hands.

With a determined grunt, Gahi crouched down and flared his wings again, large enough that it rivaled the Titan's head. "All my power, eh?" Gahi said. The galaxies swirled, and Eon saw the vague shapes of Unown within the dark patches, or perhaps he was just seeing things in the extreme light.

From the hole where its head should have been, the Titan fired a dark blast their way. Gahi launched a wave of Psychic energy that distorted the light around it in a pink wave; sparks of white energy followed it, dissolving the shadowy blast like fire in the sea. The rest staggered the Titan, and several more waves from all sides of its body blasted it to the left and right, forward and backward, as little filaments of light surrounded its body like cracks in mud.

Gahi's wings returned to their normal size, and then their normal shape and color. An overwhelming, white light blinded Eon to the point where he not only had to close his eyes, but then lost his concentration enough that he lost his shape, too. Feeling the dust seep into his pink slime, Eon shuddered and waited for his vision to return, even as his body jiggled with the shockwaves of Gahi's Psychic blast. He didn't know what that technique was called, but did it work?

Sight returned. Ahead was a scattered mound of dissolving shadows. In the center was something curled up, much smaller than the Titan, though he couldn't tell what it was. Gahi had flown ahead, sifting through the scattered Void Shadows that were too weak to move. Several were fleeing in random directions like a horde of Paras from smoke.

"Ah-ha!" Gahi picked some black thing up. "Found 'er!"

Marshadow muttered something under his breath, still covering his eyes. The crystal he had planned to use was discarded on the ground in favor of covering his face. "Flygon, what did yeh ev'n do?! I can't see!"

"You said ter use the crystal!"

A new wave of fatigue washed over Eon, and a few tired bubbles escaped his ill-defined form. He didn't even care that the dust was mixing with whatever he was supposed to call his body's current structure. "Can someone carry me…"

"Eh? Ditto, what's gotten inter yeh? Yeh didn't ev'n attack."

"I tried… but it felt like my energy was being drained away."

"Well, ain't that somethin'," Gahi said. "It felt ter me like energy was comin' ter me."

Marshadow frowned, thoughtful. "Sounds like somehow, Eon's energy was transferred inter Gahi's… But why? That ain't how those crystals work, not unless yeh set it inter a catalyst spire."

"I don't care," Eon said. "Please, someone carry me. I can't… move."

Gahi flew toward Owen next, carrying a Void Shadow in his arms. "Oi, Owen!" Gahi said. "Found Amia!"

Owen, still more blob than Charmander, struggled to wobble and turn Gahi's direction, while Marshadow helped Eon back to the rest. Trina had been sitting by Owen the whole time, while Hakk tended to Xypher's wounds.

"Mom?" Owen asked, tripping over himself—his legs were only half-formed.

"Charmander, what's yer name?"

"Owen. What's—what's happened to me?"

Marshadow could only stare in disbelief, a hand to his forehead. "Yer… un-Voiding right befer my eyes," he said. "That ain't…"

"Is Mom okay?" Owen tried to stand on malformed legs, then collapsed again. He coughed and black sludge spewed from what might be his forming mouth. Then, with a grunt, he stood shakily on two feet, even as his upper half remained amorphous and wobbly.

"I think so," Gahi said, holding the other Void Shadow by the nape of its… something. Eon wasn't sure what.

"Owen," Eon said. "Are you sure you're okay?"

The upper part of the Void Shadow's body nodded, but not after a moment to hesitate. "Nothing feels right."

"Yeah, that's about how I've been feelin' fer a while," Marshadow mumbled, staring uncertainly at the unmoving Void Shadow that Gahi was holding. "Gahi, careful. That one migh' be hostile once it comes to."

"It's Amia," Gahi said, shaking his head. "She ain't hostile, wouldn't hurt anybody."

Beg to differ, Eon thought.

Hakk and Xypher, their wounds tended to for the time being with simple bandages, approached next. "Bad news," Hakk said. "Xypher's too injured to fly. We're going to need to set up camp until tomorrow and see how he's feeling then."

"You don't have Orans to heal?" Eon asked.

"This isn't Kilo. Orans aren't some miracle cure. At most, they'll ease the pain, but that won't mean anything if you need your wings to fly."

Marshadow looked back at the scattered and defeated Void Shadows, and then at the core that the Titan had once housed. "Wherever we camp, it's gotta be away from that thing. Even after that blast, it doesn't look like we defeated it."

The core was smothered in Void Shadow sludge, but whatever was inside still shifted weakly, occasionally groaning. It was large, whatever it was—maybe two Owens tall. Well, when he was fully evolved, at least. Eon tried to look for more details, but his vision was still weak.

"Wait…" Owen staggered forward, his legs a little more solid.

Hakk stared nervously at Owen and said, "Hey, don't try anything funny. If you make one weird move…"

"I'm—I'm sorry I did that to Xypher," Owen said, bowing at the two. "I really wanted to save Mom, but…"

"What?" Hakk squinted again. "No, I meant if you tried to attack us."

"Why would I attack you?"

Hakk glanced uneasily at Marshadow, who shook his head. "Don't worry about it. We'll talk it over later. Right now, we—"

The Titan's core rumbled and Marshadow's flames bristled.

"—gotta go," Marshadow finished.

"Wait, but that's…" Owen pointed at the core.

More sludge fell off of the core, revealing deep blue, shining scales, accompanied by a thinner line of cyan along what looked like a limb. Even more sludge fell off, revealing steel, clawed hooves and a broad, steel chest with a chipped diamond in the center.

"I don't believe it…" Eon said breathlessly. "It's…"

The Void Shadows trembled again, and then they tried to congregate around the core. But then, a blue tail flicked a few Void Shadows off of it, and then the core's hoof slammed into the ground. A great, four-legged creature rose from the sludge, sluggish, and the Void Shadows congregated even faster around it.

A flash of light broke through the Void Shadow conglomeration, and then a flurry of indigo flames burned through several of them. Some Void Shadows flailed at twice the speed they should have, while others were frozen in midair, but a split-second later, time flowed normally. All of the Void Shadows dissolved into sludge, dust, or nothing.

"Dialga," Eon said, more a statement than anything. He couldn't believe what he was seeing. Dialga, the Timekeeper? A Creation Dragon? Here?

As a Titan?

Dialga took his first step forward, but his leg buckled and he fell into a kneel. He coughed, expelling a thick wad of sludge and smoke, and then slowly rose back to his feet.

They all stared, too stunned to move. The first to finally take any form of action was Marshadow, who called, "Dialga!"

And the giant Legend finally noticed them. He tried to open his mouth to speak, but his voice didn't come. Instead, a constricted, strained growl came, and then a nod. Dialga took a few wobbly steps forward again, aimless, and then fell over with a slow, thunderous crash.

Marshadow muttered a curse and sped along. "Hakk, Snivy, help me inspect this guy!"

"Eh? What about me?" Gahi said.

"Keep Ralts stable. She awake yet?" But Marshadow wasn't there to hear the answer, already a few paces away from Dialga.

Eon, knowing he'd be too tired to help, approached Owen with some apprehension. The dust felt horrible against his body. "Owen… are—are you okay?"

Owen's eyes were half-formed in darkness, and even then, he saw the shadow of a glare in them. "Do I look okay?"

"Im-improving?"

Owen growled, but relented with a shadowy sigh. "Yes."

The Void Shadow in Gahi's arm twitched against her initial rhythm. "Eh?" Gahi loosened his hold. "Hey, Amia. You awake? We saved yeh fr—"

The Void Shadow screeched and emitted a pulse of shadows against Gahi, knocking his arms open and burning his chest in black flames. Gahi shouted and stumbled back as the Void Shadow plopped on the ground, yet it continued its assault. Another beam of darkness struck Gahi's left thigh, leaving another lingering burn.

"Mom!" Owen shouted. "M-Mom?! It's okay!"

He tried to get closer, but he tripped and fell again, even as his dark body assumed the vague shape of a Charmander. Amia screeched again and blasted Eon with another shadowy beam, but it only grazed his slime. It felt cold and biting, like venom.

Hakk shouted something and stood in front of a trembling Xypher. Marshadow balled up his fist and formed another Aura Sphere in his hands, waiting for an opportunity.

"Wait!" Eon shouted. "Marshadow, what are you doing?!"

"What? Killin' a Void Shadow."

"No!" Owen ran for Amia, who ignored him, while Gahi rolled and avoided another hostile blast.

"Step aside, Charmander," Marshadow said. "That ain't yer mom anymore."

Owen, of course, refused, and instead stood between Marshadow and Amia, but then remembered Hakk was on the other side. He stepped back and crossed his arms, forming a Protect around them both. Amia bumped into the barrier and fired against it to hit Gahi, but when it evaporated, she turned to Owen and hissed.

"Mom, calm down," Owen begged. "It's me, don't you remember?"

Eon had a sinking feeling that if Amia still had eyes, there would have been no recognition in them.

"Tch." Hakk clicked his claws and lowered them.

Marshadow dispelled his Aura Sphere. "Charmander, that ain't yer mom. There's nothin' left. It's a Void Shadow. That's what happens to folks that become part o' a Titan. It's like dyin' over and over. Somethin' way below Class D."

"Well, we—we weren't in there for long," Owen said, turning around. His scales were pitch-dark, but brightening, and his eyes had that usual shine to them. "Maybe it's different and she's just scared!"

"Only reason she ain't attacking you is because she thinks yer like her." Marshadow readied another Aura Sphere. "So once she attacks you, I'm—"

"If—if you do that, I'm running away," Owen said helplessly.

"Owen," Eon tried to step in, but Marshadow held his other arm up. Defiant, Eon pressed forward anyway, "Owen, please. We'll figure something out."

"Then promise you won't kill her."

"Kill? She's worse than dead already!" Hakk spat, and the glare Owen gave him, while intense, did not seem to faze the icy Sandslash.

"Erm." A deep voice shook Eon's slime. "Am I… interrupting something?"

Still on his side, struggling to stand, Dialga huffed and puffed, flicking his tail and hooves to get the last of the Void sludge off of him.

"Dialga." Marshadow glanced at Hakk, who nodded, and then advanced toward the Timekeeper. "Y'remember anything?"

"I'll need some time for that," Dialga said, "ironic as it sounds." He winced at what Eon imagined was the worst headache in all worlds. "Everything is a fog. I remember fighting… and escaping, like trying to climb from a pool of black aether… over and over…"

"Take it easy," Marshadow said. "We got a lot ter sort through. And—"

Suddenly, Owen was screaming, and so was the Void Shadow. Blast after blast bounced off of the Protect barrier, Owen ducking and weaving between each one until the barrier shattered completely. Hakk raised his claw and took aim, each claw glowing a bright white. Owen gasped and crossed his arms again; just as icy spikes jettisoned themselves away from Hakk's claws, a new, golden shield blocked their path.

Then, the Void Shadow blasted Owen point-blank with another shadowy ray. Owen ducked. It struck the barrier. The Protect shattered. Hakk fired—

"MOM!"

And then it all stopped.

The spikes remained frozen mid-fire. Hakk's glare did not waver and his body did not move. The Void Shadow's aimless quivering had stopped mid-ripple. Owen's breathing, rapid, gradually slowed the same rate as Eon's anxious ripples.

"What," Eon whispered, "just…"

"Sometimes," Dialga said, finally on his feet, "we need a moment to pause and think."

Marshadow dispelled his Aura Sphere, hopefully for the final time, and then looked back at Dialga. "How long's that gonna last?"

"I can last a while if I focus only on the strange, black thing there…"

"Void Shadow," Marshadow explained. "And…" He looked toward Owen, then at Hakk, and then sighed. "Alright. Hang on. You, Snivy. You alright?"

"Rgh, yes." Trina nursed a large burn that covered most of her side. "Amia's quite strong, even now, isn't she?"

Owen gulped, stumbling over his words, but Marshadow kept talking. "Go on Flygon fer now, rest up." He plucked the spike that was meant for the Void Shadow and let it drift toward open air. On cue, Dialga released his temporal hold, and the spike flew across the ground. Then, Hakk was released, and he blinked several times in confusion.

"What? Marshadow? How'd you move that—don't tell me you're defending that kid's—"

"Dialga put a pause on it," Marshadow said, gesturing to the Void Shadow, the only thing still frozen in time.

Owen squeezed his claws together. "Then that means we can bring her back, r-right? And—and maybe contain her, and then find a way to cure her?"

"Cure?" Hakk scoffed. "Kid—"

"We'll bring her back," Marshadow agreed. "Figure there's somethin' we c'n get from this. An' if yer totally sure it's her…"

"I sense her Fire aura, even if it's corrupted," Trina agreed.

"I'm pickin' up Psychic somethin's," Gahi noted.

"It's her," Owen said, simultaneously firm and tearful.

Marshadow let out another irritable sigh, shaking his head. "I dunno what's gonna come from this," he said after a long silence, "but if it's gonna be the only thing that keeps yeh calm, fine. We'll bring it back."

He looked back at Dialga. "Oy, Dialga. C'n you fly?"

"I'll need to recover some strength first," Dialga said, "but I believe I should be able to."

"Then let's set up camp here and rest. Dialga, yer way too big ter hide, so if we sense another Titan, we'll have ter be on th' move."

"Of course."

Eon inched closer to Owen, but his eyes were transfixed on the frozen Void Shadow. Was Amia really reduced to nothing but that? It was unbelievable. But… that meant Owen would need more support than ever. From him, just like old times.

Owen's glare from their last rest stop flashed in his mind. How hasty Owen was to get away from him. That thought lingered for a few extra seconds, just enough for him to slide away and say, "Gahi."

"Eh?"

Gaining some distance from Owen, he said softly, "Stay near Owen for a while. He needs a lot of support."

Gahi scoffed. "What, you ain't gonna try?"

Eon suppressed a scowl, tried to say something, but the words were shrouded in a haze.

Gahi was already by Owen before Eon had realized it, and a new, cold emptiness filled where Eon' imagined his stomach should have been.

Inteleon Qitlan stepped down a hall of polished obsidian. The walls were decorated with regal, purple, gold, and red cloth, and the floor had an intricate, geometric design of varying colors of black, yellow, and red. Every several paces, Inteleon passed by tables that had a vase of a Voidlands plant, or clock, or a bowl filled with colorful berry candies in the shape of Minior. For some reason, there were a lot of yellow ones left behind compared to the much rarer greens and reds, and he only saw a single pink candy.

He was tempted to go for it—Pecha was his favorite flavor—but Aster would be upset if he found out.

Far ahead was a door large enough to fit giant Pokémon through, ornate with gold swirls that ended around a press to push the door open.

Which way should he address the King this time? Your Greatness? No, he never cared for luxurious titles. He preferred subtlety. Made the greatness shine brighter. He'd already used his simple title and name before, and repetitions felt too redundant. Ah, what did it matter, perhaps simply Your Swiftness this time. He'd been practicing his agility training recently.

The door was heavy, and only after a loud clang did it finally relent to Inteleon's attempts, though he tried to keep from huffing too loudly. Undignified, and weak, and the King would be very unhappy with that.

Beyond the door was a room large enough for Rayquaza himself to fly. Near the back was a large bed that Inteleon would be able to perform Substitute four times and sprawl all five of him on different parts comfortably in the cushions. Though, the mattress seemed quite firm. Not that he'd dare find out how it felt—not when Alexander would surely…

Ah, there he was, far to the left, looking through another one of his reports. It always filled his heart with joy to see the Hydreigon looking through those notes—all of Inteleon's hard work being put to use.

But now he had to decide whether to disturb him or not. No, he'd already opened the door; it was just irritating Alexander by stalling. "Your Swiftness," Inteleon greeted.

"Qitlan."

His voice was deep and smooth like abyssal butter, and it always dwarfed the higher, breezy vocals that Qitlan's thin frame produced. Keeping himself composed, Qitlan said, "I have another report, well, two, actually."

"Two? Is one of them Dark Matter?"

"Yes, of his movements." Qitlan produced the first one from his satchel, though it was a thin report, only a few pages long. "In summary, he is continuing south, but is drifting away from Cipher City."

"Hmph. Well, he'd be a fool to come here, so of course he'd avoid us." The Hydreigon drifted away from his desk, having never sat down, as he floated by some dark force that swirled around his wings—darker than the usual typing that came with his species. "Odd that he's moving at all…"

"Something must have changed in the living world." Qitlan smirked.

"I wonder what that could be." Alexander returned it with all three of his mouths, but then returned to a more neutral countenance. "Well, and what's the other report?"

"Of course." Qitlan approached Alexander's table and set the first report down, then pulled out the next, somewhat thicker one, this time six pages long. "Most of the report is numbers and verifications, but the summary is simple: a large spike of Infinity Energy was detected in the deep Nil Plateaus."

"Near Null Village?" Alexander said.

"Far south. At least a day's travel nonstop."

"Hrm. A spike of Infinity Energy…"

"We are going to investigate what that means soon," Qitlan added. "However, our readings suggest that the energy output was significantly higher than your average Z-Crystal."

"Could it have been a new spire?"

"Considering the location, very unlikely. There is no reason to set up any kind of sustainable settlement there." Qitlan placed the report on the table and nodded. "In any case, I will inform you if there are more findings for—"

"Where is Aster?"

Qitlan's blood ran cold. "A-Aster?" he repeated, trying to keep his composure as flashes of the artificial god blinked in his mind. "He, er, I'm not sure. He was clearly having his way with the candies in the hall some time ago, er…"

"Find him, and send him to Null Village."

"Now?" Qitlan spoke out of turn, quickly trying to compose himself. "That is to say, before further reporting?"

"I am concerned that if we hesitate, we will miss our opportunity to acquire whatever it is there. Null Village's relationship with us is… tenuous. While Marshadow is keeping them obedient, the civil unrest could lead to an irksome rebellion."

"That's true… but do you really think a run-down shanty like that would hold that sort of power?"

"No," Alexander said, "but I'm taking no chances." His six eyes closed, three heads looking contemplative. "Spirit strikes have ravaged the Voidlands lately, each one a new soul from Kilo. Any of them could be a disturbance. Any of them could be Anam. And aside from that loathsome Charizard, who is probably long dead, Anam is our best chance at finding and capturing Necrozma. Do you understand where I am going with this?"

"Of course." Qitlan nodded. "You're saying that any hint at Necrozma's power should be investigated."

"Yes."

"And that I should be adopting such a policy going forward, regardless of the resources it may cost?"

"Yes."

"Should I divulge this information to lower leadership?"

"On a need-to-know basis."

"Understood." Qitlan bowed, held it for a few seconds, and then rose when no further address came.

Alexander turned back to his table, which was gone, along with all of his reports and supplies. Qitlan stared in disbelief.

Alexander's smaller heads' jaws clenched. "Aster."

An echo from somewhere bounced off the walls.

"Aster, not now!" Alexander snapped, staring at the sky. "I'm going to give you to three. One. Two. THR—"

The table and all of its contents reappeared where it had been, along with a single, yellow candy in the middle of the desk. Alexander grimaced and turned around and, suddenly, Qitlan felt a presence behind him.

Keeping himself dignified, the Inteleon turned and said, "Aster, how much of that did you hear?"

"I just got here!"

Qitlan kept his stance neutral while he addressed the Mewtwo. "Of course, Aster. This shortens things. You are hereby assigned on a mission to investigate Null Village to the south."

Aster's wide eyes took in every word like he was speaking of some grand, short tale. Yet, when he finally processed the words, those eyes narrowed to a displeased frown. "Null Village?! But that's so faaar! And so boooring!"

"With your Teleportation, it would hardly be more than a few days' travel," Alexander cut in. "Consider yourself grateful. If I went by wing, it would take me months."

Aster crossed his arms exaggeratedly, leaned forward in a curl, and pouted. "Can I at least bring Leph?"

"Leph has to stay here in case another mission comes up," Alexander said. "But if you go to Null Village and ask the questions Qitlan gives you, you can do anything you want with them after, so long as you bring back whatever your mission statement requires."

Aster perked up at this, his purple tail flicking with interest. "Anything?"

"Anything."

"Anything?" The Mewtwo leaned even closer.

Alexander leaned forward, grinning to show his teeth. "Anything."

Aster's fists clenched in front of him, trembling as the Mewtwo's glee overtook him. The marbled floor below him cracked. He curled up a little more and whispered under his breath, "Yesss…" Then, he stood up and enthusiastically saluted Alexander. "Okay! Mewtwo Aster is on the case!"

He disappeared in a flash of white light.

Qitlan and Alexander both stared at the empty space, and the circular, intricate cracks left in the ground. Clicking his tongue, Qitlan said, "He forgot the mission statement."

"He'll remember." Alexander turned to his desk. "Write it up and wait for him to return."

"Of course." He had a lot of other duties to take care of, though, and he didn't want to wait for too long. He still had to tend to their new guests. And pray the Zoroark didn't find a new place to hide and growl at him. His shoulder still hurt from the last time. "Then I shall be going."

"Mhm."

Qitlan stepped out of Alexander's quarters, slid the door closed behind him, and took the last Pecha candy for himself.