The Dead Men Soldiers, a notorious criminal gang stationed just by the border of the Outlands into the Wick Kingdom. It occupied an old mining town near Copper Gorge, known only as Copper Bluff. Though the town had moved a long way from the gorge, it remained within walking distance of the old mining facility the gang now occupies. Their claim to fame was protecting the town of innocent civilians from the Freaks that fester in the lawless land.

However, in exchange, they had free reign of the town, keeping them under their thumb lest the real monsters come to pick their earnings. With how inefficiently the Wick Kingdom's territories were maintained, no one dared to end the cycle of abuse.

Thus, DMS considered themselves above the affairs of lesser creatures.

The perfect gang to house someone with a target over their head.

Babylas ascended the rocky cliffside before reaching the gang's campsite, which was strung up over the remains of the mining town. Worn down buildings served as walls for tents, old equipment hung between the rooftops like decorations, and every inch of the town was covered in graffiti left by its longtime occupants.

He smirked. "What a dump." One of his Shedinja hovered next to his ear and whispered something. "You spotted him?" He cracked his knuckles and continued on ahead. "Excellent. This shouldn't take more than ten minutes."

He walked along the connecting streets, traveling up the higher elevations of the mining town and passing by gang members who paused and looked at him funnily. He paid no mind to their staring, only interested in his prey. The gang members didn't make an immediate approach against him, mostly because they were intimidated by his posse of Shedinja eerily staring back at them.

He eventually reached an elevation in the town where there was a long strip of road leading out to the town entrance. The entirety of DMS within the Banette's sight stopped what they were doing and acknowledged his presence in a mix of shock and rage at the mysterious outsider.

Babylas' grin grew, and he waved to them. "Hello, rejects of the desert. Would you kindly point me in the direction of a fellow named Marinus? I'm here to kill him." He said it with such nonchalance that it sounded like he was asking for directions to the best café in town.

As soon as he spoke, the whole of DMS circled around him, pointing their guns at him or readying an attack. "Who are you? You're in the Dead Men Soldiers' territory, asshole!" a Golett exclaimed.

Babylas snickered. "Yes, I'm well aware of that, thank you. Now, where may I find Marinus—" He paused as a Grumpig pressed his revolver to the back of the Banette's head.

"We'll send you a letter from him...straight to Hell." The Grumpig pulled the trigger.

BANG!

The DMS gang members' eyes widened as the bullet harmlessly flopped onto the ground. The Grumpig recoiled in shock as he stared at the vacant eyes of a Shedinja, its shell unaffected by the bullet that tapped its forehead. "W-Wait, I-I was just looking at—"

A hand seized Grumpig's wrist from behind and forced him to point the gun at his own head. Trembling, he craned his neck and saw it was Babylas. The grinning Banette tightened his grip and shoved the revolver even harder against the pig's temple. "You're not my target, so I'll spare you. Try that again, however, and it won't be the Shedinja you accidentally shoot next time."

His threat was enough to dissuade the pig from further action. He released him and watched him flee back into the crowd of his peers. Though they didn't lower their guns, they shivered and took a step back from the Banette radiating in unmatched confidence.

He brushed his shoulder off and asked, "Now, where is Marinus? I'm only here for him. The rest of you can go back to whatever you were doing. I don't care either way."

"You think we're just going to hand over one of our own to you, asshole?" Babylas glanced over his shoulder as a hulking Chesnaught approached him. He punched his spiked fists together and sneered at the ghostly doll. "You've got some nerve walking in on our base and acting like you own the joint. Do you even know who we are?"

Babylas grinned smugly. "Why yes, I'm fully aware of who you all are. And?"

The Chesnaught growled. "You're asking for trouble mocking us. We are the Freaks who rose above this dilapidated region. We've been reborn with a purpose to carry out! We are the Dead Men Soldiers, and we will not cower before some intruder!"

"Y-Yeah! What Vitus said!"

"We ain't scared of you!"

"We're the Dead Men Soldiers! We know no fear!"

A turn overcame the gang members, their fears turning into anxious excitement as they rallied behind the Chesnaught, Vitus, in retaliation. He proudly bathed in the praise being dumped on him before kneeling in front of Babylas with a shit-eating grin. "You hear that? That's the sound of a hundred men ready to beat you to a pulp. Scared, little man?"

Babylas' expression remained cool and collected. He chuckled before placing his hand on the armored hedgehog. "You want to know what I really hear?"

BAM!

Vitus staggered back and doubled over onto the ground, clutching his stomach and throwing up over himself. His fellow gang members looked upon him in horror while Babylas hovered over the wheezing hedgehog. Wrapped around his right fist appeared to be a knuckleduster glowing in a beige light.

"I hear the sound of you wasting my time."

Babylas cracked his fist under Vitus' chin, sending the armored hedgehog hurtling through the air despite his larger stature. He crashed down on top of a group of thugs attempting to catch him.

"I don't care about your gang. All I want is the fish's location, or for him to man up and face his execution." Babylas unzipped his mouth, opened it wide, and dropped the knuckleduster inside. Shadows swished around inside his mouth like an ocean. He zipped his mouth and smirked at the gang members. "Now, how many of you do I have to pulverize before I get a straight answer?"

Vitus picked himself off the ground, massaging his bruised jaw. "F-Fuck! Someone shoot him, now!" But no one dared to fire their guns at the Banette, too terrified to twitch their fingers. "What is wrong with all of you?! He's just one Pokémon! Get a grip—AGH!" He clutched his aching jaw and collapsed onto his rear.

Babylas shook his head. "Well, this is just getting annoying." He raised his hand over his shoulder. "Looks like we'll have to do this one by one." His shadow bubbled like boiling water, and something coated in dripping shadow seemed to rise out from it.

"Halt!"

Babylas' weapon retreated back into his shadow, and he gleamed up at a nearby building with a balcony. Sitting atop the balcony and sipping a cup of hot tea was a Kingambit dressed in a dark blue robe and decorated with gold and jewels. He looked down at the Banette with a scrutinizing stare, his quizzical expression only amplifying as he sipped from his teacup.

Babylas smirked. "Florentinus, the Dead Man Soldier who was exiled from New Chariot. My, oh my, what an honor to be in your presence."

Florentinus finished sipping his tea and set it upon the tray beside him. "I overheard the commotion you've been stirring in my hideout. You are here to kill one of my men?"

The Banette flashed the two-finger salute. "Nothing personal. It's just business. Marinus has been charged for the death of a gang member working under Lord Amadeus Rimmer of Skeleton Water. Sound familiar to you?"

Florentinus sighed. "I was wondering when karma would work its way back here. You were contracted to kill him for Lord Rimmer?" He bowed his head. "Give my regards to him should you see him again. I am most apologetic for my subordinate's rash behavior."

Babylas snickered. "How humble. Too bad a kind word doesn't overwrite a contract. I'm not leaving until I crush him into red paste." He hovered his hand over the band covering his left eye. "Unless you want to take a crack at stopping me~."

Vitus cracked his knuckles. "Boss! Just give the word, and we'll gang up on this guy before he can pull anything!"

Florentinus glared at his riled-up gang. "Settle your nerves, my underlings. You'll find that this man is not to be taken lightly. He is unlike anything you've ever faced."

Vitus' eyes widened. "Huh?"

The Kingambit rose up from his throne-like mane and glared down at the ghostly mercenary. "You have much renown across the Outlands. Your claim to fame around here came from an encounter with the second most wanted creature in Virdis, I recall. You were hunting for a pack of Savage Kin living out in the wilderness, and your paths crossed. You and the Fairy Knight."

Babylas smirked. "Then you understand how screwed all of you are, unless you want to come down here and test your mettle with me."

"…" Florentinus crossed his arms behind his back. "My business with Lord Rimmer was purely that: business. I had no intention of my underling causing him strife. However, I am still the leader of the Dead Men Soldiers, and I do not look kindly upon those who go after my men. Instead, we will be settling this my way."

"Oh?"

Florentinus glared over his shoulder. "You may come out of hiding now, Marinus."

Babylas watched as a jet of water flew out from the balcony door and descended upon the street. Bursting out from the water stream was a Barraskewda dressed in a black vest and wearing white face paint that resembled his exposed skull. His propeller-like tail spun excitedly as he grinned at the mercenary.

"So, Lord Rimmer finally sent someone after me. Took him long enough," he hissed.

Florentinus leaned over the railing and explained, "I will obey the parameters of your contract, mercenary. If you'll oblige, I request you settle this matter with Marinus in the form of a duel. The town is your battleground. Settle this dispute like men."

Babylas' grin grew. "Seriously? You just want to give him a fighting chance?" He sighed before facing the Barraskewda. "Alright. Guess I could go for a little sparring."

Marinus laughed. "Don't look down upon me, mercenary. I may be out of the water, but I've adapted to fighting on land. I was trained by the great Master Harriet! My skill is unmatched! I was one of her best students, and you'll find my skill is leagues beyond others you may have faced! I have the potential to surpass even her!"

An evil glint twinkled in the Banette's eye. "Oh?" He laughed quietly as he stretched his arms. "I highly doubt that."

"You mock my ability just because I'm out of the water?"

"I mock because you're weak. I can tell just by looking at you." His laughter increased, becoming more pronounced and crueler. "Your hubris is delightfully idiotic."

Marinus glared, revving up his propeller tail. "You won't be laughing for much longer, pal."

"I'm sure I won't, but I'll cut you some slack. I'll just stand here and do my stretches for the next five minutes. Feel free to do whatever until I'm done." With that, Babylas bent over and stretched his lanky arms down to his feet.

The DMS gang backed off from the street as Marinus cloaked himself in a veil of water. His laughter was distorted within the bubble. "I'll end this…in one shot. Dart Style—" He shot off from the ground, sailing toward Babylas at high speed. "Harpoon Dive!"

Babylas, with his eye closed, stood back up and bent backwards. "It's a wonderful day out. Let's use the open space, shall we?"

Marinus targeted the Banette's head, but he bent himself back at just the right angle to dodge the fish's attack by a hair. Undeterred, Marinus dove into the ground and immediately ricocheted off, bouncing between the surrounding buildings and picking up speed.

However, Babylas continued doing his stretches, dodging around Marinus' returning strike. The Barraskewda repeatedly ricocheted off the surrounding surfaces, trying to hit the Banette from every conceivable angle, and Babylas would just dodge them all with the simplest of stretches and twists. Marinus continued to build up speed, forming a web of water around Babylas as he continued to causally avoid the attacks.

"You think you're funny?" Marinus yelled. "Try dodging this!" He rocketed into the air and fired hardened scales coated in jets of water. "Dart Style: Rending Scales!"

Babylas stood on one foot and gently danced across the street, moving his head and arms in such a way to allow the scales to completely miss him. "Just tell me when you're done warming up," he said. "I'll join you in a moment."

Marinus smirked angrily. "You think you're funny?" He dove out of the sky, ricocheting off buildings left and right, picking up speed bit by bit. "I don't care how big of a name the boss says you are! You're still just a man encroaching on our territory! No one is unbeatable! Not you, and not even the master! You are just a drop of water in the ocean of life! But I'll surpass all of that and become the ocean itself!"

Babylas snickered openly, stretching his arms out and leaving his guard open. "How hypocritical. If you're just going to say one thing and then the other, just say what you really mean. No need for all this preamble and gospel about how amazing you are. You lack avarice in your heart. You need to take, not boast!"

"HA!" Marinus found the right angle and bounced off the wall on a direct course for the Banette's exposed back. "Well then, take this!"

BAM!

A direct hit.

Marinus landed a brutal tackle with his hardened jaw, spearing into the doll's back so hard that it folded around the fish. Marinus laughed through the corners of his mouth. "All that ego, and you fall so easily?"

"…" The shadow's smile grew. "I lied."

Marinus' eyes widened as Babylas' body collapsed into a mess of liquid shadow, and in his place was a Shedinja that collapsed onto the ground. He jolted high into the air, suspending himself in water, and looked around the town cautiously. "What the…? What did you say?"

"I lied."

Marinus' eyes widened. Looking behind himself, he saw another Shedinja floating near him, staring vacantly. The mercenary's voice flowed out from the possessed shell, a grainy whisper that haunted the very wind it traveled on.

"L…Lied about what?"

From a low roof just out of Marinus' sight, Babylas reached out to a Shedinja floating beside him. Darkness swirled from the shell's back, spewing bubbles of liquid shadow until a weapon slid out. He grabbed and yanked it out, spilling fading darkness across the roof.

"Those five minutes I promised?"

In his hand was a silver, ornate bow with a peculiar drawstring. It glowed a vibrant purple. When Babylas plucked on the string, a psionic wave radiated off in tune to the twang. He opened his mouth and plucked out an arrow. Though mostly normal, the arrowhead itself glowed yellow and radiated in electric sparks.

"I meant to say thirty seconds."

"MARINUS! He's below on your right!"

Hearing his fellow gang member's warning, Marinus quickly turned around and saw Babylas stepping out of hiding with the bow drawn. The doll smirked before releasing the arrow, flying through the air on a trail of psionic energy that accelerated its speed.

Marinus barely tilted his head out of the way, feeling the sparks flying off the arrow. It sailed across the air before diving into the further stretches of the mining town. Upon colliding with the ground, a huge crack of lightning erupted toward the sky, startling him and most of DMS.

"W-W-What the—"

"Don't hesitate," Babylas' voice projected from the Shedinja. "Or you'll get fried."

Marinus gasped as three more arrows sailed through the air. He dove out of the air and darted through the streets, arrows raining one by one and erupting in pillars of lightning and thunder.

Babylas laughed, backing away and sinking into the shadows along his cover. "Don't be too much of a disappointment, little fish~."

Year 904 – The Outlands

Babylas grinned at the struggling, yet growling Rockruff he held by the ankle. The pup swiped and snapped his teeth at the air, trying to break free of his captor's grip, but his attempts were all but effective.

"{Chew you! Spit you out! Maul your flesh!}" the pup growled.

Babylas snickered. "I'm not going to kill you, runt. I just need to know where the rest of your pack is. Know anything about an old Delcatty that mauled a Salamence recently?"

The pup couldn't understand him, continuing to bite at the air and growl. "{Survive! We must survive!}"

Babylas sighed. "It'd be in bad taste to torture a kid for information. Not like I can understand you either." His ever-present smile curled up. "Though, I suppose if I rile you up enough, you'll lead me straight back to your pack."

"{Outsiders bad! Outsiders not welcomed!}"

"You're a cute little fighter, I'll give you that much." He raised the Rockruff to eye level and said, "This'll all be over before you know it. All you need to do is tell me where the elder of your pack is, and it'll be like I was never—"

A crack of thunder exploded off the air. Without even thinking, Babylas ejected a shield wreathed in a copper light from his shadow and blocked the incoming strike coming from his blindside. He released the Rockruff, who scampered off in a hurry. He pushed back against the weapon pressing into his shield, throwing back his attacker.

Babylas snickered. "Well, not every day someone can get that close to me without dying. Who might you be, stranger?"

Standing before the mercenary was a figure roughly around his height, perhaps shorter. Though hidden under a cloak, Babylas discerned the lightning crackling off the sword they carried and the famous thunderbolt-shaped tail sticking out from the back.

Babylas' grin grew wide. "Am I assuming? Or am I standing before the leader of Virdis' recent crime wave? Am I perhaps speaking to the one known as…the Fairy Knight?"

The cloaked Pikachu raised his sword at him, weak sparks crackling across his covered face. "I have business with that Rockruff's pack. Stand aside."

"Heh. Sorry pal, but I've already got claim on that same pack. Unless you're after a different target. I'm just after the old cat that runs with them. You can conduct your business after I drag his corpse back to my client."

The Pikachu glared. "You will not move an inch further. Your contract is officially cancelled."

Babylas laughed. "You're funny. You really are the Fairy Knight, aren't you?" He dropped his shield back into his shadow, then unzipped his mouth. "I've heard the stories about you. What a great way to challenge my skills."

Reaching inside his mouth, he pulled out a red, three-sectioned staff with golden dragon serpents coiling around the individual staves. The shadows dripped off the weapon as he unfolded and skillfully flailed it around himself. It radiated in a strong crimson aura.

He caught both ends of the staff and aimed them at the Pikachu. "I'm afraid we're at an impasse with my contract. So, what's keeping me from moving forward?"

The Pikachu slid his hand across the blade of his sword, igniting it in concentrated electricity. He clutched it in both hands and glared at the mercenary. "You're about to find out."

Babylas laughed with delight. "Don't keep me waiting, Fairy Knight~!"

Marinus flew through the mining town, his eyes wildly scanning for the hidden mercenary. "Keep your cool, Marinus," he muttered. "He's just some guy. He's nothing to be afraid of—"

"Boo~."

His eyes widened. As he flew past an alleyway, he saw the Banette grinning at him from the shadows. He yelped and took off back into the air. As he did, Babylas pulled back another arrow and took aim.

"Dodge this." With a twang of the glowing bowstring, he fired the electrified arrow into the sky.

Marinus saw it coming this time and swerved out of the way. "HA! You missed—"

STAB!

The Barraskewda gasped as the arrow made a sharp turn through the air and punctured through his body. His eyes twitched rapidly, spotting the fading psychic trail left by the arrow and the sudden turn it made. "W-What—"

The arrowhead ignited, bathing the barracuda in a burst of electricity. His Aqua Jet conducted the energy, intensifying the pain. He lost control and fell from the sky, hurtling toward an awaiting Banette standing on the rooftop.

"You got too comfortable dodging my arrows," Babylas taunted. "You left yourself wide open because you're weak."

Marinus clenched his teeth and reactivated Aqua Jet. "Screw. YOU!" The arrow snapped off his body, and he took off back through the mining town. He ricocheted off the buildings, wrapping around Babylas position before hurtling toward him from behind.

Babylas reached inside his mouth and whipped out a shield wreathed in copper light. Marinus struck into it, and his maw folded in on itself from the collision. The shield was remarkably sturdy, like slamming into a wall of diamonds. Blood spurted out from his face, slightly discoloring his Aqua Jet.

"Now I see how you killed Lord Rimmer's subordinate," Babylas taunted. "You never actually fought the guy. You just relied on a moment of weakness. A good strategy, true, but…that just makes you a terrible matchup against me."

Marinus rebounded off the shield and took off deeper into the town, bouncing between buildings while trying to keep himself awake. Don't panic. I need to put some distance between us and come up with a counterattack. I'll strike when he least suspects it.

Babylas, however, wasn't going to have it.

"I've wasted enough time toying with you. About time I completed my contract." Babylas dropped his shield into his shadow, then reached inside his mouth again, pulling out a large metal hook wreathed in a grim purple light. One of his Shedinja floated beside him and ejected a chain wreathed in sky blue light from its back.

He hooked the hook to the chain, then spun it over his head. As he did, the wind picked up around him, allowing the chain to spin faster and faster while the hook's light mixed with the chain's. Babylas carefully scanned the town for signs of Marinus until he caught a brief glimpse of him shooting down a street.

"Heh. Got you!" He lurched forward and threw the chain. He let it extend a great distance, endlessly spilling out from the Shedinja, before catching it and manipulating it to sweep across the buildings.

The hook's energy that fused with the chain allowed both to pass through all obstacles in their path toward the fleeing Barraskewda. Once the hook and chain were in range, Babylas tugged the chain and hooked Marinus into it.

"W-Wait, what—" Marinus screamed as he was dragged out of his Aqua Jet and pulled through buildings like a hooked phantom. He hurtled through the air on a direct course for Babylas. "What the—"

Babylas reached out and caught him by the neck. Before Marinus could catch his breath, Babylas nailed him in the side with his glowing knuckleduster and sent him packing back into the street their fight started on. Marinus' face dragged along the dirt before the rest of him tumbled to a stop.

"Uuuugh…" Marinus groaned.

Babylas jumped down into the street, casting his weapons back into the shadows, and approached the fallen fish. "You're supposed to surpass Spring-Loaded Harriet? Heh. You think I've only fought the Fairy Knight? I've battled that monster as well." His smirk stretched. "You're entire regions away from reaching her level."

Marinus reactivated his Aqua Jet and floated off the ground, snarling at the ghostly doll. "How…dare you. Who do you think you are?"

"Heh, me? I'm the Armory of Greed, and I desire nothing more than absolute truth. And the truth is…I hate your kind more than anything."

Marinus growled. "All because I killed some thug?!"

"No. Because I desire nothing more than to exterminate every last disciple of Spring-Loaded Harriet." The evil glint shined off his eye again. "Everyone…who follows her teachings is my enemy."

Marinus revved up his propeller tail and rocketed at him. "Screw you!"

Babylas held his hand out as a Shedinja ejected a bident wrapped in soft blue light into his hand. He twirled the two-pronged spear in his grip and met Marinus' charge. The collision of forces reached a brief stalemate, but Marinus soon found he was the one in danger. The bident ripped his Aqua Jet, almost like it was parting for the weapon outside his control. He tried to get away, but was stabbed through the side like a kebab.

"AAAAAHHHHH!" he screamed.

Babylas held the fish in the air, letting his blood drip onto his grinning face. "Let's see if there's any truth to your incessant barking." He swung his bident, flaying the flesh off the Barraskewda as he slid off.

"AAAGH!" Marinus screamed, his raw flesh slamming into a building. His eyes shrank with rage, and he roared out to the sky, bursting into the air in a spiraling jet of water. "I'LL END YOU!" He flew high up into the air before turning and diving straight down at the Banette, the water around him spinning faster and faster. "Dart Style: Whirlpool Rush!"

Babylas raised his bident and spun it in his grip, channeling an aura of water around the prongs. "Alright…"

Gripping the bident in both hands, he swung and struck into Marinus' attack, redirecting the flow of his water away from him. Marinus ricocheted off a wall and immediately flew back at the Banette, but Babylas twirled the bident again and pulled on the water cloak, throwing the Barraskewda wherever he wished.

"CUT! THAT! OUT!" Marinus rebounded faster and faster off the walls, leaving sizable drill marks with each bounce. He moved so fast that even his shadow was nearly untraceable. There wasn't a hint of his presence within the water, nothing but gravity-defying jets surrounding the mercenary. "YOU'RE NOTHING! YOU'RE JUST SOME SCUM OF THE OUTLANDS! ALL OF YOU…DESERVE DEATH!"

Babylas chuckled through his permanent grin. "Well, you're right about one thing…" He gripped around his eyepatch and gently lifted it, a sinister purple gleam twinkling from the darkness. "I am nothing."

"No one can react to my speed once I start moving this fast!" Marinus saw his chance and rocketed straight at Babylas faster than it took the average Pokémon to blink, his target being the mercenary's heart. You're done—

SHING!

Marinus' eyes widened as the right side of his body was sheared open. Babylas had sidestepped his attack with such fluidity and precision that he was certain he didn't actually dodge. Gripping the bident's neck, Babylas dragged it along Marinus' side and tore open his flesh with the grace of a chef.

"A phantom…with nothing but a boundless wealth of curiosity."

"GyyyyyYYYYYAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!" Marinus fell out of his Aqua Jet and tumbled across the dusty street, leaving a carpet of blood in his wake. Muscle hung loose across his skin, and parts of his bone had shattered and punctured his exposed stomach. He struggled to breathe as sand entered his gills.

"Y…You…" Marinus gasped.

Babylas dropped his bident into his shadow and grinned at the struggling fish. "That is precisely why I despise filth like you. You hold yourselves up in high regard because of your master, thus you are all fools believing you are enlightened. The truly enlightened…are those who seek to understand everything, a wish no mortal will ever achieve." He hovered his hand over his covered eye. "But I've peered into a glimpse of everything. A state of complete symbiosis with the greater expanses of this world of land and ocean. I may be a Ghost-Type, but I may never get to see the end. That's the curse of mortals, I'm afraid."

Marinus struggled to pick himself up. "Y-You…f-fucking…!"

Babylas opened his mouth and reached inside. Marinus' heart nearly stopped as the Banette pulled out a large, menacing war hammer from the dark recesses of his internal void. A roughly meter-long pole with a hammerhead decorated with the pattern of a fanged demon in its side. It radiated in a soft orange glow.

"W-Wait…w-what are y-you…?"

Babylas lifted the hammer into both hands and chuckled. "One of the biggest mysteries we creatures still can't solve is the mystery of death. Is there an afterlife? Is there a world beyond this one? Or do we simply manifest in the void? As a Ghost-Type, do I truly see the souls of the deceased, or do I see the remnants of their phantoms lingering forever from where their final hours took place?"

Marinus' eyes widened as Babylas lifted the hammer into the air. "Y-You're…insane!"

"We're in the Outlands. We're all insane." Babylas snickered. "Now then, let's solve the mystery of death together."

Marinus frantically flopped in place, trying desperately to flee. "No! NO, NO, NO, NONONONONO—"

The hammer came down, and the whole mining town felt its power as tremors carried across the earth. The ground split beneath the hammerhead, carrying to the buildings and splitting through the walls. Thugs were knocked onto their rears from the shakes as the deafening ring of rumbling earth echoed around them.

Florentinus looked upon, his balance unwavering, with a fixed, cold glare. "The Armory of Greed…"

The shaking soon stopped, and all was quiet. DMS thugs picked themselves up, staring at Babylas and his hammer with bated breath, wondering if by some small miracle Marinus avoided the strike, or if his executioner granted him mercy at the last second.

Such fleeting wishes were laughable.

Babylas lifted his hammer, which dripped in fresh blood. In the center of the crater created in his strike, there was nothing. Nothing but a black vest sitting in a huge spatter of red. Not a trace of bone, guts, or flesh. It was just…blood. It was just blood.

It…

It was just blood.

The thugs trembled in fear when Babylas looked in their direction, his eerie smile cutting through their souls. There was no glee behind that smile, nor a shimmer of satisfaction reflecting in his eyes. Both…were filled with nothing. Nothing but a deadly numb. An execution that was performed with the mundanity of hammering a stubborn nail.

It was just…done.

Babylas dropped his hammer into his shadow, then looked up at Florentinus with his dead smile. "So…I'm free to go, right?"

The Kingambit glared at the mercenary's relaxed state with admittable unease. Spring-Loaded Harriet and Fairy Knight Jason, members of the Top 10 Most Wanted in Virdis. I, who exists in that same ranking, even tremble at the depravity of this man's calm. Who even are you, Armory of Greed?

He pointed in the direction of the Outlands and simply ordered, "Get the fuck out of my camp."

"…" Babylas shrugged and did as told, walking back the way he came. He flashed a look at Vitus, shooting him a wink that made the Chesnaught recoiled in anger and fear.

It was so quiet. It was so, so quiet. Not a breath stirred. Not a gust of wind blew. Not a creak of windows, doors, or more. Not even the shifting of the sand with each of his steps. It was just…calm.

A burdensome calm.

A dead, haunting calm.

The second strongest of the Deadly Seven left, leaving behind nothing but a memory for the wicked.

Nightfall

Babylas lay in his portable cot, staring up at the stars as a fire crackled beside him. His Shedinja lay in a circle around him like statues, whether sleeping like their master or silently watching the endless horizon of desert. He dug a finger under his eyepatch, mindlessly playing with it as his emotionless smile faced the starry night.

"I wonder how the others are doing with that bounty on Evelot," he muttered. "It's been a while. Amadeus should've heard something from Ali and Wig before I left. I wonder…"

He knew Alibrand and Wigbrand were strong, so he figured they could capture a single Mimikyu without much trouble. However, Babylas didn't deal in absolutes. There was always a margin for error, and among those errors was the wild factor in all fights.

The fear of dying…was stronger than a lust for blood, and a cornered creature was the most dangerous beast.

He would know.

He remembered the beast that clawed his eye out.

And yet, thinking about that incident, he…smiled fondly. A genuine smile.

"Stay safe, Kitten. I won't let you fall into the same trap as all the other scumbags." He closed his eye and relaxed against his pillow. "Just hold out for a little while longer—"

Shhhhish. Shhhhish. Shhhhish.

He opened his eye to the sound of shifting sand. He sat up unfazed by the potential danger of a night lurker and reached into his shadow. "I'm going to warn you right now," he whispered. "Turn back, and you can keep all your limbs."

"…B…Bab…ylas…"

He arched his brow. "Oh?" He pulled his hand out from his shadow and stood up, rousing his Shedinja. "Who's there?"

He saw a figure dragging itself through the sand, and he could tell they were bordering on the reaper's scythe with their haggard breathing. Babylas snapped his fingers, ordering two of his Shedinja to rise and project Flash from their crescent halos.

"…" Babylas grinned at the stranger. "Well, how serendipitous. Seems I was closer to the Broken Glass Alchemical Company than I expected. So, you two had a run-in with them? How'd you do?"

The figure in the two spotlights was none other than a battered and injured Vilgot, his bottom shell and right wing missing from his body. However, he carried himself in a replacement shell over his lower half: the skull of a Raichu.

Vilgot could only look up at the Banette in disdain, muttering a brief, "Fuck. You." He passed out as soon as the words left his lips.

"Hmm. A simple unpleasant or badly would've sufficed, but good to know."