October 4th, First Year

Rain thrummed against the turf outside the cave. From within, Jaku ignored the way her chest and injured leg ached as she carefully studied the runes on the back of her broken time pendant and translated them onto the muddy wall with her fingernails. She kept a careful ear on her pokémon's antics, watching Emmet in particular as he talked quietly amongst his Galvantula, Vespiquen, and battered Electabuzz in a corner of the cave.

Azelf, you'd better count your days. To say that Jaku was angry would be an understatement, having found out what the legendary pokémon had done to her fellow faller while Jaku was in the throes of a visceral infection. Emmet, who was completely innocent and who had been trying to help her. Emmet who had absolutely no business being a pokémon. And what was he even doing in the mirelands in the first place? Jaku wondered. Wasn't he supposed to be with Ingo? Far, far away from here?

Unable to concentrate on her work, Jaku pinched the bridge of her nose and shakily rose to her feet, hobbling over to the entrance to study the ominous weather. "More rain," she grumbled. "When's it going to stop?" She flinched as a fat bead of rain struck one of her eyes, wiping the dampness from her face. "This is just great. Can't get anywhere in this weather." As she spoke, she crossed her arms, her hands trembling with hot fury.

Jaku had been waiting for either Ingo or Akari's response to her letter about the second attack she'd endured. About Emmet's condition as well. After all, Jaku had agreed to share any important news with them whenever something of importance came to pass. All she had received thus far was silence. Jaku didn't have a psychic-type to teleport letters all over the place. Hydra, her Yanmega, couldn't even hope to fly in such torrential downpours. That meant that Jaku had two options: wait for a response to the letter she'd given Parlor or do something about her current predicament.

She had considered sending Lilith and Ghost in a tag-team to escort Emmet back to Ingo. It would mean that the man would be safe for the time being. And besides- it'd be dangerous to keep him here. It's already bad enough that he got this badly fucked up for no reason. I need to get him to Ingo, pronto. Not a chance with Akari… No. My pokémon are capable, but it would render Emmet vulnerable, and he's not protected by any legendary that I know of. Neither are my pokémon.Not sure if Celebi counts.

Something tugged on the edge of her trousers. Jaku glanced downward, her face twisting with discomfort when of course, Emmet's silver eyes stared blankly back up at her. Peanut was beside him, their muzzle scrunched up at the prospect of wetting its thick fur coat.

"What?"

"…Sni?"

Jaku sighed and squatted down so that they were at least speaking at the same level, somewhat humored by the massive size difference between them and the fact that in the past, she had always had to look up to speak to the man. "You do realize that I can't understand a word you're saying, right?"

"Sniv. Sssnivy." Emmet's leafy tail swished and tapped against the floor.

"And I take it, you have no idea what I'm saying either. This is just fan-fucking-tastic." Jaku bodily turned away from Emmet, instead turning back to watch the storm to channel her frustrations on something other than the tiny grass snake milling about her feet. "This is just great. I'm going to obliterate Azelf the next time I see them," she seethed. "This is fucking ridiculous. I go through lengths to keep you-" she pointed one finger at Emmet- "out of my business and instead of just- oh, I dunno, wiping your memory or something- Azelf turns you into a pokémon and thrusts you under my guardianship! Gee! It sure is great having so many pokémon and barely any healing items! This is the perfect condition for getting shit done! I just love the fact that I keep dying to a preventable infection that would've been cleared up already if a certain somebody would hurry the fuck up and fix the pendant! And it's their fault that I'm even stuck in this mess!" Jaku involuntarily sank her nails into the soft earth bordering the cave entrance, her eyes narrowed to slits as she pulled the fragmented pendant out from beneath her shirt. "I never would've broken this damn thing if Azelf would've never made me babysit Ingo to get that thing back in the mountains. What even is taking so long to get it fixed?" With a loud, long sigh, Jaku slid back down along the wall, eyeing the time-keeping tallies on the wall as she cradled her aching chest. "It's already been over a week. How long am I just gonna have to suffer here and wait?"

"Sni! Snivy-sni!" Once again, Emmet pulled on Jaku's trouser hem, focused on taking up as much of her attention as he could. As he continued to warble and hiss, he began drawing pictures and words in the sparse dirt of the cave floor with his claws. "Sni!"

Jaku stared at the almost indiscernable writing and squiggly pictures, trying her best not to laugh. With her head in her hands, Jaku turned toward the one pokémon who could probably make sense of things. "…Glacier. Buddy. Friend. Pal. Chum."

"…Translation duty?" The small Zorua had emerged from its cozy hiding place in Lilith's belly fur, yawning as they found a nice place to curl up directly beside Jaku's elbow. "I can help."

"Thanks. I owe you."

Glacier raised their head, their golden eyes twinkling and their tail wagging. "Mamoswine meat?"

Jaku chuckled, playfully ruffling the wispy fur on top of Glacier's head. "If we're still paired up by the time this mess is over with, I'll get you some Mamoswine meat for your troubles. You deserve it."

"You promise?"

Jaku laid her hand down in the dirt and gently squeezed Glacier's paws with her fingers. "Pinky promise. You do this favor for me and I'll give you as much Mamoswine meat as you can eat."

"It's a deal then!" Glacier then turned, rolled onto its back, and relayed something to Emmet, the two conversing back-and-forth before Glacier spoke again using their telepathy. "Emmet wants to know where Ingo's Alakazam is."

"Gee, that's what I'd like to know myself. I have no clue where Ingo's pokémon is. I'm still waiting for Ingo's response- "

"Emmet says you're an idiot and that you should've just had Parlor take you to his brother in the first place," Glacier cut in, staring dubiously at Emmet who had crossed his arms, pointing at the numerous bandages peppered across Jaku's body. "Don't talk about my friend like that! She's trying!"

Upon Glacier's voiced words, Jaku scoffed. So did Jester, Raptor and Lilith all at the same time. "Tell Emmet," Jaku drawled, eyeing the tiny garden snake as she spoke, "that my illness is not Ingo's business and that going directly to him would lead whoever is attacking me to him as well. We still don't know who it is exactly and I'm willing to bet you don't want to see your brother get hurt. Besides," she grunted, looking away. "Last thing I need is to be indebted to Ingo of all people. He's a nice man and I've already messed with him enough with the time travelling bullshit. I don't want to involve him."

"…Emmet says that you still owe him a debt and that he wants you to use that debt to get help from Ingo."

Jaku blinked, scratching at the back of her head. "What debt are even talking about, Emmet?"

"…The one with somebody named… Akanti?"

Jaku's expression soured. "Bastard. Thanks for reminding me about that particular incident. I'm surprised you still remember that. Fine. I'll keep that debt- I'm not using it on something as stupid as getting an incurable infection taken care of by Ingo, though. If anything, I'll have Parlor get me to the hideout so that I can take care of things on my own. Then, Parlor can get you over to Ingo. Problems solved."

"That's not smart," Glacier retorted. "And that's what I think. We want to help you, but you won't let us. What Emmet is saying makes sense. You should get help. It's better than staying here. We're all worried about you, and you keep… well, dying."

"Says the ghost-type pokémon. Look, I can't exactly fight infections when I have a gaping wound in my leg, Glacier," Jaku argued. She eventually relented, gingerly leaning back against the cave wall. "As soon as Parlor gets back, I'll see whether it can get us to the hideout. "If-" she stressed- "If they can, then I have the supplies there to treat my wounds. If not, then- "

"You keep dying?"

"Bingo," Jaku rasped, fighting back a cough. "You've got it now."

"Snivy-sniv! Sssniii." Emmet interrupted the two of them by climbing Jaku as though she were a playground ladder, using his leafy tail to balance as he once again gestured at something else he had drawn in the dirt.

"…Emmet… wants to help you. Says he owes you too… for healing him after he got all banged up."

Jaku waved her hands dismissively. "I could hardly care about that right now, but thanks for the sentiment. All I want right now are three things. Emmet, back as a human, preferably as far away from me as possible."

"Sneee."

"Me, without infections in my chest and leg with the time gear in working order. Oh, and maybe the third wish could be being back home where it's warm and I'm not constantly dying from sepsis."

Glacier yawned. "Yeah, I agree with you there. And we can't go with those other humans, can we?"

"No." Jaku still didn't understand exactly why her letter to Adaman had gone unanswered. In her gut, Shige's attack on her had felt so wrong and with the way he had been acting and the sheer brazeness of his claims, Jaku was almost certain that something had occurred in the Diamond Settlement. Something that she knew she couldn't be a part of but something that had been linked to her no doubt. She had asked Akari to check in on things but again, no letter from her had arrived. And that worried her slightly.

Jaku had also sent her pokémon to check for Akanti who was supposed to go and get help immediately after being warped to the Holm of Trials. Nobody knew where she was. She hadn't mentioned her exact location in the letters she had sent, and the only reason Emmet had found her was because Parlor had directly teleported him to her.

She had gotten nothing back in terms of letters from anybody. Her pokémon hadn't been able to enter the settlement nor had they managed to find Akanti. Parlor hadn't even been able to deliver a letter to the man which sent up a major red flag to Jaku. He was the one to maybe see who attacked us in the night. And I'm almost certain he wasn't the one to attack me. Jaku swalllowed. And maybe… maybe he caught up with whoever did. Maybe that's why I haven't heard anything yet.

"I return." Parlor appeared in a flash just within the cave's entrance, a scrap of paper attatched to their arm. "A letter from my master."

"You can just say 'Ingo', you know?" Jaku grimaced, not quite comfortable with the particular word Parlor had used. "Okay, let's see. Yada yada yada- angry about Emmet. That's to be expected. More of this about…" She turned and glared at Emmet. "What is it with you and Ingo sharing a brain cell? I'm not going back to that frozen hellhole just to get help for my infections. I have supplies in my hideout."

"Teleportation needed?" Parlor volunteered.

"…Why didn't I think of that earlier?" Jaku nodded, almost slapping herself after recognizing her own former stupidity. "Yeah, that'll do if you could, please and thank you. Take… Take Jester with you. He knows exactly what I need, and he knows where everything is. Need a bag, buddy?"

Jester nodded, stretching from where they had been resting. The Zoroark heaved up Jaku's pack onto their back and reached out a clawed paw for Parlor to take. In one second, they had gone and in less than a quarter hour, they had returned, Jester heaving down a small wooden crate stamped with red ink. Other bags were strapped around Jester's chest, one containing an assortment of medicinal herbs and berries and the other, numerous rations of human food.

Jaku instead reached for the crate and began prying it open. "That's the one. Good boy," Jaku praised. She lovingly scratched behind Jester's ears and sent him off before digging near the bottom of the crate to reveal the real solution to her problem. "Here we go. The forbidden medicine." She pulled out a handful of small, thick glass vials, each of them containing a brownish, semi-solid mixture. "It won't help with everything, but it should supersede the infections if anything."

"Snii?" Emmet grasped at one of the bottles, one of his claws catching on a cork. Almost immediately, Castor whisked it away and placed it firmly into Jaku's hands. "Sni-vy! Snii-sssni."

"Don't touch that," Jaku warned, pushing Emmet and his reaching hands a few paces back. "It's poison. Lethal poison. Specifcally prepared in case of scenarious such as this. Not for nosy little grass pokémon."

That seemed to have been the wrong thing to say as almost immediately, Emmet tried and failed to steal the rest of the bottles, Castor easily retreiving them by means of lifting Emmet up by his tail leaf. Glacier was just as disturbed, staring at the strange concoctions.

"Why are you planning on eating poison? You'll die!"

"That's the point." Jaku carefully placed the rest of the vials into their holder and let the last one rest in her trouser pocket. "This poison is special. It takes priority over any other infliction when it kills me. If I'm right about this, once the poison actually takes me out, I'll get back to square one with no open wounds and no infections. A do-over potion if you will."

"…That's literally just poison… That's what… Emmet said."

"I know it's not the nicest solution, but it works." Jaku stood, wincing at the immediate spike of pain that bloomed in her torn leg. "I'm off to go and take this poison. Be back in probably an hour or so. Lilith, Dusk. Make sure these two- " she pointed a finger at Emmet and Glacier- "don't follow me."

At her words, both Peanut and Hydra came forward, taking up positions on both sides. Peanut pressed their fluffy body into Jaku's uninjured leg, purring. Hydra hooked their legs into Jaku's bag, clicking their mandibles.

"They want to come with you."

"…I guess. You guys know how the poison works, so be my guest. Let's get going- before the storm worsens. Hydra, stay close to me. You know what water does to your wings."

They didn't travel very far, heading west toward Gapejaw Bog where they were unlikely to be found or heard. There, they found a wide expanse of hole-dotted hills where the tall grass came up to Jaku's shoulders. The nearby river babbled as it flowed down its course, tiny waterfalls bubbling as the water carried downstream. It was a perfect place to hide in. Plenty of cover and plenty of noise-obscuring sounds. Jaku was about to take a seat in the grass and uncork the bottle before another noise caught her interest.

"Alone again, huh? Thought I'd find you hiding here. Followed your pokémon's tracks and what do you know?" Shige appeared from the tall grass, his face covered in soot and mud as he stormed toward her, brandishing his saber. "You're awfully light on pokémon," he commented, his sharp gaze flickering first to her and then to the obvious lack of any bags or pokéballs at her waist. "That's pretty convenient."

"Convenient?" Jaku stilled as a series of coughs made her chest seize in pain. Sensing something amiss, she carefully shooed her pokémon away. Peanut made no sound as they disappeared into the undergrowth leaving Jaku standing under Hydra's shadow, her pokémon refusing to leave. Thunder rolled overhead. "What do you want?"

"I bet you didn't know but the Diamond Encampment? There's barely anything left of it. Due to a landslide." Shige took a step forward, tapping his hand against the flat edge of his saber. "You caused it."

Jaku bristled. "Who gave you that idea? I can't cause landslides."

"No, but your pokémon can."

"They didn't." Thunder rolled overhead again, speckles of rain beginning to fall from the sky. "Hydra," Jaku grunted. In a lower, weaker voice, she said, "Go back to the cave and stay dry." After stalling for another moment or two, the alpha Yanmega eventually whizzed away leaving just Jaku and Shige standing opposite one another in the tall grass. "I don't know what the hell you want from me, but I didn't do anything, nor did I cause any natural disasters, you fucking idiot."

"That's why I saw you and your little pokémon scampering down from the mountain just after the landslides started, right? You didn't seem too concerned about us. No. You're just… what? Off doing some unnamed task with those creatures you keep with you, right?"

"Oh? You saw? So then maybe you're forgetting that I was unconscious!" Jaku rasped, taking a hesitant step back. She had no saber. She had lost her weapon and most of her on-hand items, leaving her utterly defenseless. Maybe I shouldn't have sent my pokémon away. "Leave me alone, Shige," she croaked, her overused leg beginning to tremble. "Go find your answers elsewhere."

"No. I think I'll be taking you back to Adaman and the clan for that matter. You caused the landslide- I know you did. You're just lying to make yourself look better. You caused the giant rift right on top of the lake, didn't you? Adaman caught on. So did the entire clan. And you thought nobody would ever catch you, huh?"

Is that what this is? Jaku swallowed and gritted her teeth. I never did tell Adaman that I caused the rift directly over Lake Valor. That's right. But it doesn't even touch the Diamond Encampment. It's mostly over the island cave. So that's why I never got a response back. "I didn't cause your problems, regardless of what you or Adaman or the Diamond Clan want to believe."

Shige took another step closer and brandished his saber at her. "Come nicely, and I'll take you to Adaman alive. You have a lot to answer for."

"I don't have to answer for anything. Adaman knew- he knows that I've been busy doing work for Almighty Sinnoh this entire time. He's known that for some time now."

"What would you know, traitor? You've been away from camp for months now with your indentured pokémon doing Sinnoh knows what running around Hisui like a Paras without its mushroom. And you expect me to believe that you're innocent in all this? When you and your little friends are constantly finding trouble? Hell, that girl you came with killed one of the nobles!"

"That was self-defense!" Jaku argued. I need to end this now or else this infection will just sap my strength. "Put your blade away… and I'll go with you."

"… That easy, huh? All I have to do is threaten you with violence and you sit and heel like a dumb Budew?" And despite his gloating tone, Shige did not sheathe his saber. "Do you take me for a fool? No. I know your pokémon are nearby and I also know that the moment I turn my back, you'll flee. No, I'll do this properly."

Shige suddenly lunged forward, raising his saber. Jaku ducked away, her eyes widening at just how close the edge of Shige's saber had come from impaling her through her abdomen. He swung upward, halted as Peanut descended upon him in a fury and sank its fangs into his shoulder, forcing the man to drop his blade in surprise. Jaku immediately went for the saber, just barely missing it as Shige kicked out in frustration, sending the saber spinning toward the river before it landed on the river's edge.

He's actually trying to kill me. Focus! Heavy rain began to lash at the clearing, partially blinding Jaku as she struck out, catching Shige's face with the edges of her nails, tearing flesh and almost scratching the man's eyes in her effort. Shige in turn grabbed Jaku by her hair and forced her into the mud, losing his grip when Peanut scrambled onto the man's face as the Eevee scratched out Shige's other eye.

"You bitch!" With a growl, Shige reached up and tore the enraged Eevee off of his face before viciously punting the creature into the undergrowth as hard as he could. He grinned even wider at Peanut's howl of pain, almost relishing the sound. "Nevermind! I'll just kill you here! That'll make up for lost time." Shige stomped forward, Jaku catching him by the hem of his shirt as she slammed her fist into Shige's right side.

"Don't you touch my pokémon!" With her free hand, Jaku jabbed her fingers into Shige's eyes as deep as she could get them and kicked out the man's knees, quickly straddling him as she began to tear at anything she could reach. His eyes, his hair, his nose, his cheeks. She swung hard and swung fast, her hands searing after one punch had knocked loose a tooth.

Shige fought back, using his legs to throw Jaku off of him. He then grabbed hold of her injured leg and pulled her back, seizing her by the hair as he forced Jaku's face into the mud once more. He held her down, taking the opportunity to sit all of his weight directly on top of her chest.

Blinding pain, vicious and blistering and unrelenting, tore through Jaku's body. She screamed and in turn, Jaku braced her uninjured leg and kicked back, feeling something break as she forced Shige back off of her and sent him sprawling into a collapsed pokémon den hidden in the tall grass.

Jaku moved to pin Shige immediately as the man attempted to right himself and with what little strength she had, she stood and kicked him in his groin, turning him over the moment he curled in upon himself. She forced him onto his belly and with one quick motion, yanked his arm back hard, dislocating Shige's shoulder before ruthlessly moving to do the same to his other arm. She then seized Shige by the disgusting hair on his scalp and dragged him to the river's edge before forcing his head under the water.

Shige bucked and twisted and jerked underneath her, unable to move his arms and unable to pivot his legs to throw Jaku off. Instead, Jaku forced Shige's head deeper into the foaming river, locking her hands tightly around his throat as she began strangling him. Shige writhed. He held his breath, furiously blinking the storming sediment out of his eyes as he was held underneath the unyielding waves. He attempted to raise his head. Attempted to move erratically. Attempted to move his arms despite them laying unmoving beside him. Jaku only gripped Shige's throat harder, pushing all of her weight into the motion until she felt something begin to give in the man's throat.

Bubbles exploded to the river's surface. Shige convulsed, trying but failing to hold his breath. His mouth opened and closed. Opened and closed. Jaku didn't let up, tightening and tightening and tightening her grip even despite her hands and wrists beginning to ache. The river swelled. The sky darkened. Jaku continued holding her grip long after Shige had stopped fighting her. Long after she had felt Shige's erratic pulse fade out in her fingertips. Until Shige's dead stare was aimed at the sky. Until no more bubbles arose from his lifeless corpse.

The undergrowth shifted. Peanut stumbled onto the river's edge, blood dripping from their nose as they carefully approached, limping. To Jaku's surprise, two other familiar pokémon were right behind her: a quivering Snivy and a trembling Zorua. Emmet and Glacier.

I thought I told Lilith and Dusk to keep them in the cave. Jaku winced, the shocks of her chest pains halting her in place. "…The saber, Peanut," Jaku grunted. "Get me the saber. Over there. By the river."

Peanut quietly obeyed, dragging the saber by its pommel back over to Jaku who immediately relinquished her hold and moved to stand, albeit with an obvious lurch. She gripped the beaten saber in her trembling hands, leaned to the side, took a deep breath, and swung true, slashing Shige's throat. Jaku then dropped the saber into the river and rolled Shige's corpse in, watching as his limp body caught the current and floated downstream toward the southern mirelands and effectively, out to sea. And once Shige's corpse was no longer visible in the murky waters, Jaku dragged herself over to a crop of mangrove trees and dropped, reaching for the flask of poison only to find her shirt wet and her pocket brimming with broken glass.

"Well… that's… that." Jaku let out her breath, the familiar ache and throb of infection worsening as she removed the top portion of her tunic and picked out the glass, flinching when Peanut crawled into her lap and pressed their wet nose to her wrist. Their big eyes were focused on the smaller shards of glass embedded into her chest. "It's okay, buddy… We'll just have to try… later," Jaku rasped. She shut her eyes tight. First, Adaman wouldn't return my letter. Now… Shige is dead. Because he thought that I caused the natural disasters in the mirelands… Does Adaman… is that why he isn't responding? Really? Does the Diamond Clan really blame me for getting destroyed?

Emmet and Glacier slowly approached, overshadowed by Lilith who stalked toward Jaku, their head low and their ears drooping. The Arcanine carefully lowered their muzzle, revealing an extra glass vial clamped between their jaws. Lilith whimpered, pressing their warm muzzle into Jaku's cheek.

"…Good girl," Jaku immediately praised her pokémon, ruffling the fur along Lilith's face. "Very good girl, Lilith." Jaku then accepted and uncorked the bottle and before Emmet could reach, Jaku tilted back the vial and downed the contents in one go, recorking the vial and stowing it back inside her tunic pocket. "That… ought to do it." She gently nudged Lilith and Emmet back, swallowing as her throat began to burn from the aftertaste. "Go… back to the cave. I'll be there shortly."

Emmet was still staring at the foaming river, his eyes wide and unfocused. Carefully, Lilith lifted Emmet up by the foliage along his neck and whisked him off, leaving Glacier alone as Jaku shut her eyes and finally relaxed. The Zorua settled in alongside Peanut, resting solemly in her lap.

"You'll wake back up, right?"

"…Of course."

"Goodnight."

"G'night."

Drowsiness set in. A comfortable weighty sensation settled into her limbs. Like being squished under her pokémon during naptime. Like sunbathing on a warm day. Another feeling came, this one making her head throb and her chest feel cold. Jaku ignored it, instead trying her best to relax and succumb to the first effects of the poison. The sooner it took its effects, the sooner it would hopefully override the infection rampaging within her and hopefully get her back to full health. And no sooner had that worry left her mind did Jaku fall asleep and let the poison run its course.

October 5th, First Year

It was night when Jaku eventually stumbled back into the cave she'd been hiding in, still feeling the dizzying effects of the poison as she scuffed her feet against the cave floor and nearly collided with the rim of the cave. The poison had worked. While twangs of pain still occasionally flared up along her chest and leg, there were no more wounds in the areas and more importantly, no more infections.

Almost immediately, Jaku was swarmed by her team, Lilith pulling her in by the scruff of her tunic to rest against its large, warm body, peppering her face with licks. "Enough. Still a bit… sore." Jaku fought her way out, surprised to see that Emmet had been in the initial pile. He had been the first to grab hold of her and had attached himself to her with some vines. "Are you stuck?"

"…Sni."

"He accidentally used a move," Glacier snickered.

After being freed, Emmet pulled Jaku over toward the one pokémon that hadn't been in the greeting party and who also hadn't been seen in some time: Parlor, Ingo's Alakazam.

"Parlor's back," Glacier spoke through their telepathy. "That means that we're off to see Ingo." Upon Jaku's quick flash of anger, Glacier doubled down. "I know you don't want to receive help, but we don't care anymore. We don't want to hide out in the cave anymore and watch you get hurt. Lilith and Dusk say that we'll be protected in the Pearl Settlement and that they're expecting us."

Jaku sighed. And now I just feel like shit, keeping my pokémon here with me this whole time. She sighed. "…Fine. We'll go and see Ingo. Let me grab my things and we'll go." She moved to grab her poison just in case, grabbing as much leftover food as she could manage while easing herself through her remnant nausea. Though the rain had washed away most of the grime and muck stuck to her face and hand, Jaku could still feel the slight stickiness of Shige's blood caught under her fingernails. She recalled all of her pokémon to their capsules and tied the damaged belt to her waist. She then reached for Emmet, hugging him closely to her chest before reaching for Parlor. "Okay. Let's go see Ingo."