Interceptor's Wish

by Masterdude21

What started as a young man's search for his abducted mother spirals out of control. Soon, he is fighting a desperate war for survival against greater odds than a more generous God would have allowed. The enemy is everywhere and allies are far too few. With the entire region at stake, who can prevail when fate itself seems set against you? - Novelization of Pokemon Rejuvenation.

43. Eventful Trip

AN: Happy holidays everybody! I'm slow-roasting a duck in the oven as this one goes live. Here's my holiday gift to you all: an update that didn't get out of hand! We are racing towards the GDC arc at a pace slightly faster than that of a snail, but slow is smooth and smooth is fast.

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Chapter 10 – Stopped In Our Tracks

Eventful Trip

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Melia, Venam, Kanon and Will hadn't even found their train compartment yet and things had already completely fallen apart

"How long did you say?" Will asked, certain that he had somehow misunderstood Melia's words.

"Two days!" Melia replied, not at all seeing the massive issue at hand. "It's a very scenic route, but it's also the safest."

"That's forty-eight hours," Will protested. "There's no way this is going to take that long."

"The waters between the Floria and Terrial regions haven't been stable since the Calamity," Melia explained with keen interest. "Between the irregular tectonic activity, pods of traveling Pokemon and a lack of solid infrastructure, the route from Gearen to GDC could never have been a straight line. So, it's a bit of a zigzag pattern. It's all to maximize the wellbeing of the passengers, you know? Besides! It's more like thirty-six hours at most."

"Hey, at least we get to see these awesome sights!" Venam added. "The marina tunnel, Wailord hatching grounds, a freaking underwater volcano! Shit's gonna be dope!"

"Not to mention, we are traveling with the luxury of first class tickets," Kanon joined in. "I think these are going to be two very calm, relaxing days."

"Forty-eight hours to travel five-hundred kilometers, guys," Will insisted. "I can walk faster. I can swim faster."

Kanon's brows furrowed. "You can walk ten kilometers per hour for two days straight?"

"The point is, what are we supposed to do in the meantime?" Will said.

"Dude, of all the dumb things to complain about, it's not having enough crap to do?" Venam sneered. "You get to sit back and relax for two full days. When that egg hatches, you get to take care of a baby Pokemon as well! And, food, drinks, sleep, entertainment - that's all paid for. It's like a vacation!"

A vacation in a metal tube going underwater for the majority of the trip. What if something went wrong? What if Team Xen had put their people on this very train already? It would be a repeat of the S.S. Oceana, except they'd already be at the bottom of the ocean.

"I fail to see the issue myself?" Kanon said. "We will have plenty of time to plan out our next moves."

"The issue," Will replied, trying to remain patient, "Is that we could use our time more effectively. We could fly - "

Venam groaned. "Again? You just spend two days flying all around the region doing whoever-the-fuck knows what! Team Xen's isn't gonna, like, escalate shit in GDC just because you're having some time for yourself for two days."

"You can't guarantee that," Will growled.

Venam did her patented exasperated head roll. "You are such a drama queen!"

"I think Will is just being careful," Kanon supplied.

Before Will could express his gratitude for that, Venam quickly said, "No Kanon, Will just keeps forgetting how to have fun every sunday."

"That's not true."

Venam shot him a bemused look. "Really? Then what are you going to do these thirty-six hours?"

Will sputtered for a moment, then looked between Venam and Kanon.

"Well?" Venam pushed.

"...I don't know," Will admitted in a quiet voice.

"Hah! I knew it. Come on Kanon. Which room was ours again?"

"Compartment two, I believe."

"Great. Lead the way!"

Melia stood leaned against the wall, her arms folded over her chest. She watched Kanon and Venam walk off, then regarded Will. "Venam's right, you know? You've been doing so much. You're allowed to take time for yourself and have some fun."

"I've been doing so much because so much keeps happening," Will replied. "I want to be prepared."

"I get that. Planning is really important. But, most plans tend to fall apart when the trouble starts, and then we're back to improvising," Melia said. "How's this? You start taking these two days as a little weekend break, and then we'll all start planning in earnest when we find Karrina's contact. We can even start taking a look at GDC's map between stops, get a little planning done on the train while we can."

Will knew that look in her eyes all too well."You're not going to take no for an answer, are you?"

Melia smiled mischievously. "Nope!"

Sighing in defeat, Will could only say, "Fine."

"Yay!" Melia cheered. "Come on. I'm sure we can make you remember how to have fun again."

"Melia I know how to have fun."

The two of them quickly went after Venam and Kanon to see what this luxurious compartment two was all about.

Karrina hadn't been messing around; their train coupe was more like a hotel room than anything else. A sizable dinner table complete with four large, wooden chairs stood in the bottom right corner, while three fluffy, comfy-looking beds had been placed in the other corners of the room. They had a window, through which they could see the inside of the tunnel zipping by. A big PC had been installed next to the upper left bed and a large television hung above the wall over the upper right bed.

"Heyyy…nice room!" Venam said. She looked around appreciatively. "I dig this."

"Yes, it's quite luxurious…how were we able to afford something like this?"

"Karrina helped us get the one way ticket," Melia said. "Really nice of her after…" She winced, and they all collectively remembered their role in that particular moment of violence. "Well, yeah."

Venam shrugged. "If this is the room we're in for the next two days, then it was worth it."

Looking around the room, Kanon frowned, then said, "There appears to be a problem, however…"

"Huh?"

"There are only three beds…"

Only three beds, huh? That…could be a problem alright.

"Kanon's right…" Melia sighed.

Someone would have to share.

Will caught himself glancing at Melia. For a second, his mind wandered, and he thought back to the evening in Venam's home. Melia's softness and warmth, her hair tickling his face as his body had relaxed against her, fully, honestly. When was the last time he'd actually fallen asleep in such close proximity to anyone at all? When was the last time he'd felt safe enough to just close his eyes and drift off?

Without nightmares?

He put his hand against the spot Melia had kissed him in Erick's lab, where he'd felt…he'd felt…

Uh-oh.

"Kanon!" He blurted out, and everybody turned to look at him. Putting up the biggest, most steel-faced air of confidence he'd faked in a while, he continued, "Move over. We're shacking up."

Kanon stared at him not with horror, but an utter lack of understanding. Horror would have been good. Horror would have conveyed to the rest that it wasn't serious and wouldn't actually happen. Instead, the poor idiot looked at him with the hesitation that suggested he was actually thinking it over.

"Are you sure?" Melia laughed. "I'm just saying, I've never seen you fall asleep faster than on the couch next to me, so wouldn't it make more sense if you curled up on - "

"Aaah! That's alright! I'll take the floor!" Venam yelled with alarm, cutting Melia off. "Will can take my bed!"

That really was awfully nice of Venam, to willingly take the floor like that. Problem was, Will really didn't feel comfortable letting a girl sleep on the floor while he had a bed to himself. Venam likely wouldn't feel comfortable sharing that bed with him, so shacking up with her wasn't an option either.

"Oh, well, that's a solution too," Melia said. Will wasn't sure if he imagined the disappointment in her voice or not.

"We can switch it up halfway, share the floor," Will offered.

"Hey, if you're offering to take the floor instead, I'm cool with that," Venam quickly said.

He should have seen that coming from a mile away.

"You know what? We can just ask the staff for some extra blankets," Melia replied. "I don't really want anyone to sleep on the floor, voluntarily or not."

Venam heaved a grumbling sigh. "Guess I'll just ask for all that now before it's too late."

"I think I'll take a stroll around as well," Kanon said.

"Don't take too long, guys!" Melia urged them as the pair left. "We should really group up and - oh, they were out the door before they could even process what I was saying."

"They're really excited for this trip," Will said.

"Yeah…" Melia smiled lazily. "So…shacking up with Kanon?" She shot him a questioning look. It was far too coy for his liking. "That's a choice."

"Uh…crisis management," Will mumbled.

She smirked knowingly and it was so freaking disarming to have her look at him like that. "Crisis management? What was the crisis?"

She could not be serious. "I wasn't…uh…so I wanted…"

"Yeeeees?" She started curling a lock of her golden hair around her finger.

Will needed more crisis management. He was pretty sure he was blushing again. "I was actually hoping he'd refuse," he said, and he realized how lame those words sounded the literal second they left his mouth.

"Yeah, I think everybody but him understood that," Melia hummed. She kept him pinned with her gaze like a predator toying with their prey.

Just like that, as confirmed by the expecting look in Melia's eyes, the ball was back in his court again. But what was he going to say to her, really? I would love to snuggle up against you and fall asleep? Because he did, and he would, in a heartbeat, because…because…

But this was Melia, she was his friend, and he was…

Will leapt to his feet again. "I'm gonna go check on those two." One second of silence. Two seconds of silence. His brain caught up and, suddenly struck by a moment of brilliance, he added, "Wanna come with?"

Melia made an "eh, why the hell not?" gesture with her head. "Sure. Lead the way."

They popped out of the room just in time to catch the rest of Venam's conversation with the conductor.

"...and only three beds. You think you can leave extra bedding for room two?"

"My apologies! I'll have someone take care of that this instant," the conductor replied. He fumbled with his bag, then held out a slip of paper for Venam. "I know this isn't much, but please accept this as well."

"Eh? What's it for?"

"It'a voucher for free meals and drinks for the night," the man explained. "There is a small restaurant aboard the train. I hope this will forgive us for our mistake."

Venam took it without hesitation. "Are you kidding? I wasn't expecting this at all! Thanks!" She turned around, spotted Melia and Will approaching and grinned. "Hey guys! You heard that right? Free food!"

"Nice!" Melia cheered. "Well done! Shall we put the kitchen to the test, then?"

"Reading my mind!" Venam said.

The restaurant mentioned was just one car further ahead. Venam took the lead and she pointed out the counter with the small, but very busy kitchen behind it. "I'm guessing this is it?"

Melia took a whiff of the air. "It smells delicious! If this is not it, then they're doing a good job pretending otherwise."

Running his gaze across the room, Will spotted Kanon sitting against the counter, staring into an empty glass. But he wasn't the only familiar person seated there. As Melia and Venam sat down at the counter to order some drinks as well, they did so literally a few feet away from April.

Will froze. Running into that woman once was an incident. Twice could be coincidence. But running into this strange woman three separate times?

That was suspicious.

It didn't seem like she'd noticed him. Just like Kanon, she was contemplating the bottom of her glass, too lost in her thoughts to notice him.

Uneasily, Will scanned the room again. He counted two ways into the train cart, including the one he'd just stepped through. There was Kanon, with his back exposed to the many other passengers who had boarded this train to Aevium's capital. Then there were Melia and Venam, sitting almost on top of this unknown element. They were right there, right next to her, and they really shouldn't be.

April the woman who didn't want Will to know her real name. April the woman who yearned for Garufan power, no matter the cost.

April, who had known Nim, but hadn't been there when she needed it.

No…I need this power. I need it if I'm going to accomplish my goal.

Those alarming words had made it clear that, whoever she was, she had ambitions with a capital A.

Who are you? Will thought as he stared hard at April's back. Who are you really?

"Will? You joining us?" Melia's voice, gentle as always, tugged him back to the present. He realized that he was standing in the middle of the walkway, and that people were struggling to get past him.

"...yeah."

He pulled out the seat to Melia's left and sat down on it.

"You okay?" She asked.

"Fine," he murmured. April still hadn't stirred. What was she doing here?

"Looks like missing that bed turned out to be a good thing, yeah?" Venam laughed. "Getting free food and drinks for the night is a worthy trade off."

"Personally I'd prefer the bed," Kanon spoke up. "But…"

Venam rested her elbows on the counter and gave Kanon her undivided attention, which was never a good thing. "Kanon just proved that bad opinions do exist!"

Will laughed a little.

The little gasp of betrayal Kanon uttered when he saw that was almost enough to make him feel guilty. "That's not funny!" He said sternly. "That's rude!"

April stirred. With a jerking motion, she pressed her fist against her mouth..and she snickered.

"Hey!" A hurt Kanon sputtered in protest.

Venam grinned. "She thought it was pretty funny!"

"Sorry, sorry!" April quickly said as she glanced over at the people seated around her. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop, but it's kinda hard not to in this spot."

"We don't care lady," Venam said with an easygoing gesture. "It's fine, really."

"Thank you - " April said, smiling at Venam before she noticed a certain wary trainer sitting two seats away. "A-Ah!" She stammered.

Hello to you too, April, Will thought.

"W-What is it?" Venam said, misinterpreting April's shock, hurriedly patting down her blouse. "Is there a bug on me somewhere?!"

"No, it's just that I know your friend there, Will!" April, waving excitedly at Will.

"Huh?" Venam hopped up from her seat to allow him a better look. Melia mimicked the gesture

"Hi Will! It's me…uh…what name did I say I was again?"

Will stared at the woman, perplexed. She was so brazen about the secrecy that it spun around all the way back to being not suspicious at all again. "Hi, April."

"Oh, right! I asked you to call me that!"

"Wow, look at you making friends on your own," Venam said, sounding genuinely surprised.

"Will is indeed a friend of mine," April replied. "We danced in Amethyst Cave, and then later met up again on Terajuma - "

"You two danced?" A shocked Melia gasped.

" - during the Team Xen In - err, the Battle for Terajuma. That was it, right?"

Wordlessly, he nodded at her. His instinct yelled at him to be wary of this woman. His heart, however, had a very difficult time mistrusting her. It wasn't even that she looked so much like Nim, everything about her was so…disarming. From the genuine fondness in her voice to the glee in her eyes. She even presented her dishonesty in a clear and open manner.

?Oh…" Venam murmured.

"It's been a couple of weeks since that's gone down…" April paused, seeing the looks on their faces when she brought that up. She winced. "Sorry, I didn't mean to bring the mood down…"

"It's okay," Venam said. She took her seat again. Melia remained standing, gazing at April with a searching look. "That was a depressing time. Anyway…I'm Venam, this is Melia, and that's Kanon. We're all on our way to Grand Dream City right now. "

Kanon got up from his seat and joined them. "Yes, that's where this train takes us, Venam."

His attempt at dissing Venam backfired in the most spectacular way when Venam began flailing with her arms, put up a ridiculous voice that was even worse than her "dramatic-Will" voice and went, "Duhhh, I'm Kanon! I'm gonna be rude as hell for no reason!"

Kanon's expression twisted in such outrage that Will had to hide his own snickering in turn.

"Will! Stop laughing! She's horrible!" Kanon said through gritted teeth.

Oh, he couldn't wait for Kanon to figure out his particular brand of humor…

"Barking up the wrong tree there, Kanon!" Venam said. "When it comes to humor, Will actually has good taste."

"When it comes to humor? What's that supposed to mean?" Will said.

"Will, don't make me bring up the travesty that was your boonie hat, I'm saving that one for parties."

"Jealous," Will angrily murmured. "You're just jealous."

Venam blew him a raspberry, which got Melia chuckling as well.

Meanwhile, April hadn't stopped laughing at them. "You two remind me of my brother and I. Though, I'm surprised you four are heading to Grand Dream City now of all times…"

"Oh?" Melia spoke up. "What do you mean?"

"Well, I know the festival is happening soon, but strange things have been going on down there," April hesitantly said.

"Actually, that's the reason why we're going to GDC," Kanon said. Will shot him an alarmed look and began gesturing for him to shut up, but Kanon was totally oblivious. "To investigate the stone phenomenon and find out who's responsible."

Will sighed. It looked like Kanon and him were going to have a little talk about sharing important information with people not currently in the loop…

April's eyes lit up with more than just alarm. "...this is really dangerous stuff, you guys…are you sure about this?"

"We've dealt with a lot!" Venam protested hotly. "In fact, Will and I were directly involved with the Team Xen attack on Terajuma. It was Will who drew up the plan to break that stupid blockade of theirs and he sank, like, half their fleet doing that himself!" She reached out and gripped his shoulder affectionately, and something like actual pride flickered through him. "This isn't anything we can't handle."

April glanced at Will again. "Well, I for one won't discount your experiences," she said, and Will knew she was thinking of his eye when she said that. "You never know what will happen next - "

The television screen hanging behind the counter suddenly changed channels, displaying Volta as she began talking about breaking news in GDC.

"It is with a heavy heart that I announce that our dear Flying-type Gym Leader, Talon Atriedes, has been completely encased in stone."

Wait, what?!

Will focused his attention on the image the screen displayed, alert and alarmed. It was Talon, petrified just like Nim, his arm outstretched as if he was trying to ward off unseen horrors, his expression frozen in…in fear. Naked fear. Was that because of his assailant? Or because his body was turning to stone? Had he even had the time to feel it coming?

Talon. Of all the people to take out, they'd picked a guy like Talon. Why? How? For what purpose?

"Talon was found in the Scholar District of Grand Dream City at approximately 7:54 AM this morning. Unfortunately, that is all the information we have at this moment. But of course, this is an ongoing investigation. We will report anything new as it comes in."

Anger and dismay spiked hot and heavy through his skull. Why Talon? Talon was nothing but a decent guy. Not a threat, certainly not an involved one.

Just…he couldn't imagine why.

"...the culprit strikes again," Venam sighed. "And this time, it's a Gym Leader." She slammed her first into the counter, hard enough that she nearly knocked several glasses over. "What is going on in Grand Dream City?"

Will couldn't tear his gaze off the screen. He didn't know the guy well, but Talon had been there. Talon had been right there when Team Xen came to destroy Terajuma and he'd risked his life fighting them.

Talon was the kind of guy who risked his life because someone he liked asked him for help. This world needed more people like him, not less.

He blew out a furious breath. He tried to hide the wave of anger that washed over him, but he must not have been as fast as he'd thought, as April turned her curious gaze back at him.

Roughly, he shoved himself back to his feet. What were they doing, taking days to travel to a city they could have reached by air? It was stupid. He could have been in Grand Dream City already, making a difference, starting the hunt for this monster that was stalking and maybe killing good people.

It was Team Xen, he knew it was them! Their mission of hunting down dangerous trainers hadn't changed, never would change.

"Will…are you okay?" He heard Melia ask him, her voice small and concerned.

"Yes, I'm fine," he tersely said, not even thinking about it. Then, he reconsidered. He didn't want to hide or downplay what he felt. It would cost him too much, and nobody would believe it anyway. He'd promised Melia not to do this. He'd promised her to talk. "No, I'm not," he amended with some difficulty. "Talon was my friend."

"Oh, shit," Venam hissed.

"Oh, Will…" Melia whispered.

He shook his head in quiet disbelief. "He helped us get to Valor Mountain. He fought for us."

"Will, I'm…I'm so sorry," Venam said, and he picked up on the softness and genuine care in her voice even through the haze of anger. "This sucks."

"Talon…" April said quietly, staring at the screen as if hypnotized.

Haltingly, Venam started talking , eyed the screen, then shot a somewhat helpless look at Melia. "I…okay, that really killed the mood. Like, actually." Venam abruptly stood. "Sorry guys, but I think I'm going to head back to the room…"

Without another word, Venam walked away. Melia watched her go. She got back to her feet as well, told Will, "Come on, we should head back together."

Will nodded along. Melia started heading back to the room and he followed -

"What is going on with our city?" One of the more older citizens grumbled. "The police can't do anything! Gym Leaders can't do anything! Where is our Champion?"

Will froze.

…that was a damn good question. The police were way out of their depth and the Gym Leaders were actively being targeted, but the Champion ought to be the one venturing out and crushing Team Xen whenever they appeared.

Two weeks. Two full weeks passed since Team Xen publicly announced they planned to wipe out all of Terajuma, which would have ended in the deaths of tens of thousands of people. And where was the Champion? Where was the public outcry, the support?

Nowhere.

Something in Aevium was really, really wrong. And this lack of Champion activity…was that a symptom or the cause? Did they even have a Champion? If they did, was that Champion even on their side?

"If only they would just act!" Another person replied hotly. "Half the things that happened would have been resolved easily!"

More cries of agreement, more sounds of discontent. It was getting louder in the car. It got so bad that April started getting antsy. Wherever she was from, she likely wasn't used to such clamoring.

"One thing's for certain…" another passenger said grimly. "Things are only going to get worse for us now."

Looking very glum all of a sudden, April turned towards Will and said, "I…I think I'm going to head back to my room as well," she said, uncertainty lacing her voice. "Sorry, everyone…"

April stood up from her seat and briskly walked off, brushing past Will and politely excusing herself to Melia, who stood waiting for him in the hallway.

"What was that about?" She asked.

Kanon, who hurried after them, said, "She seems upset. Did she know Talon as well?"

"Looks that way," Will replied. They began heading back to the cabin together. "Kanon, buddy, we need to talk about sharing crucial mission information with strange ladies."

"Really Will?" Melia said. Unlike Venam, Melia didn't even need to physically roll her eyes to convey her exasperation.

"What?"

"I…feel like she is not a stranger to us," Kanon said. "I feel like I know her, somehow."

"I don't think April was around when..eh, you and I met, Kanon," Melia said. "Since she did recognize Will…I feel like she would have said something, right?"

"Maybe…" Kanon conceded.

"Speaking of recognizing Will…" Melia then said, turning a look his way that was equal parts curiosity and equal burning judgement. Although she wasn't exactly smiling, he could hear it in her voice. Soft, sweet and dangerous. "You danced with her? In Amethyst Cave?"

Ah, right.

"I did," Will said. "She was looking for a way into Garufan ruin. I helped her out. We found some sort of Garufan artefact."

"You helped a strange woman get access to Garufan technology?" Melia asked incredulously.

He nodded. "She knew more about the Garufans than I did. I encountered her while I…so anyway, after we got through the massive vault and headed inside, we picked up a flute from an altar."

Melia looked even more appalled at that. "Will, that could have been seriously dangerous!"

In hindsight, yeah. But…"This was after we got the Earth Heart, in Carotos," he added.

Melia gazed at him, her eyes soft with something he couldn't quite place. "Oh…"

"So I was sorta eager to get in there, too," Will admitted. He took a breath, then decided to let the unsaid remain unsaid. "There, Aevium's happiest Solrock and Lunatone started dancing when we got the flute working. April got so happy to see them dancing that she roped me along. Just like that, we were dancing."

"Did you not just tell me to be wary of sharing crucial information with strangers?" Kanon said. They finally reached their cabin again. "And yet you danced with that very stranger in a secret vault you had to break open?"

"Yes Will," Melia hummed, amusement flickering in her eyes. "How is that remotely fair?"

He was already answering when his brain processed the playfulness in her voice. "Melia, do…you want to dance too?"

That got an instant blush on Melia's cheeks, and that confident look on her face faltered. "Uh, th-that's…well I don't not…" She coughed into her fist. "Don't change the subject on me, Will!"

"I did not think the dancing was the most significant part," Kanon protested.

Will and Melia shot the poor guy a look of amusement. "No, no Kanon, it was. Tell you what Melia? You're right. I owe you a dance."

That he managed to get it out so smoothly was nothing short of a miracle.

Lips parting in surprise, Melia said, "I think you do, yes. We can skip the Garufan artefact part, if you do not mind. A normal establishment would suffice."

Will felt his heart thump in his chest with anticipation. "Like a club or…you know? A place like that?"

Melia smiled and there was something in her eyes, something that set Will's heart ablaze with longing. "GDC is bound to have a place like that, yeah."

She turned and entered their cabin, and Will tried not to look at the way her hips swayed as she did. He mentally repeated the conversation in his head, silently confirming that yes, it really played out that way.

"What just happened?" Kanon said.

Will exhaled a shaky breath. Kanon was like a lightning rod for him; he was quite possibly the only man on Aevium who knew less than he did, and somehow that gave him the smoothness he needed to get this done with screwing up.

He owed Kanon a dance, too.

"I think something really wonderful," Will replied. "Coming?"

Things were peaceful and quiet the next hour. Melia lay on her bed reading a book, Venam lay on her bed doing nothing at all and Kanon sat at the table, staring off into the distance.

Will took that opportunity to take stock of things for himself. His recent brush-in with Dufaux and her ability to swap Narcissa with her younger self had jostled something in his memory. Though Vitus and Indriad were one and the same man and he refused to see them as separate entities, they had existed during differing moments in time.

Him messing up by freeing Dufaux meant that, somehow, Narcissa now knew him from her youth, meaning that when she first laid eyes on him, she'd already known who he was. That she hadn't then tried to tell him not to screw around in the old castle was something he couldn't wrap his head around yet.

But the thing was, it was like that for Indriad as well. He'd defied Indriad to his face during their second confrontation, which was the man's actual first experience. Indriad tormenting him by cutting away his memories was punishment. Punishment for something he would end up doing because Indriad had hurt him like that in the first place.

"I think I figured it out," Will said.

"Hmm?" Venam went.

"Figured out what?" Melia asked.

Will tapped his pencil against the table. "When we first met Indriad in his mansion in the sewers, it was the first time in our timeline, but the second time in his," he explained. He closed his eyes for a moment, trying to quell the rising pressure in his head. "He didn't recognize you, Venam, because your hair was still dyed, but it wasn't during his first meeting. He recognized my name because - "

"Dude, are you still going on about that?" Venam interrupted. That shit's in the past, isn't it? Literally."

"But - "

"Mulling over this will only fuck with your head," she continued. "Just let ir rest."

Let it…let it rest?

Will stared at her, confusion melting into anger. Maybe he hadn't said it right. Maybe she didn't get it yet. "No, this is important because - "

"It's important because you make it important," Venam continued. She rolled her eyes with annoyance. "Geez man, we both know how it ends now. It happened. No use dwelling on it."

"Guys," Melia started.

"I'm not dwelling," Will argued. "The guy's very dangerous and he's still out there."

Venam gave him a hard look, then snorted. "Don't you remember? Maria smacked him with that strange power of theirs. It's over. You really shouldn't be obsessing over this - "

"I'm not obsessing!" Will snapped. Suddenly he felt furious with Venam, so blindingly angry that it took him a moment to realize that it wasn't just that she didn't get it, but like she didn't care to get it.

Kanon was staring at him.

Then, Venam gave Melia the sort of "you seeing this" look she usually reserved for other people's behavior, when it regarded the outsiders who didn't matter, and part of the anger turned to hurt.

"I'm not," he said again, his conviction wavering.

"Look…obviously Gardevoir is still at large," Melia began. "And so is Vitus. They're dangerous. That said, they're not the focus right now. We should keep our eyes on the tracks ahead, so to speak." She gave them a little smile, but it wasn't met in kind. Venam just made a quiet sound of disapproval and looked away. Will felt the frustration coming around with a vengeance.

He didn't get it. Melia hadn't been there, but Venam had.

Why didn't they get him?

Because of Valor Summit, he realized. He'd died, then Crescent had put him back together and then something inside of his head had snapped…and that part of him might still be broken. Tesla and Amber had done everything they could to put him back together, but there were still parts missing and a puzzle with missing parts couldn't be completed, could it?

They want to care, he told himself. Venam wants to care. It's just you.

It was just him.

The train to GDC continued to chug along with its aging engine on the scenic route. Will wrapped his egg in blankets and studied it for a while to see if it started kicking, but it didn't. Whoever was inside, still didn't feel like showing his face yet.

He kept to himself after that. He fiddled with his journal, drew up some training schedules for Fraxure and Kirlia that ought to improve both of their weaker points at the same time and then listened as Kanon and Melia began reminiscing about things they'd seen and done during their Stormchaser training.

Two hours later they went for dinner which was nice and quiet. There, Kanon asked how Karrina was involved with this, which prompted Venam to break into a very dramatic retelling of their confrontation with Karrina.

Venam's vision of how that conflict had gone down differed from Will's own experience, but he let her enjoy herself.

Because they were two guys and two girls sharing a single room together, Venam had to put down some house rules that evening when they got ready for bed.

"We're gonna get dressed for the night. Will, Kanon, scram."

House rules established.

Will wasn't particularly concerned with Venam ogling him, but the thought of Kanon seeing the scars on his chest didn't sit right with him. He kept his shirt on as they all turned in for the night.

Venam fell asleep almost immediately. Her soft breathing mixed with Kanon's faint, quiet snoring and the soft rustling of Melia's nightgown as she turned from one side to the other. The night was a soft and quiet thing as the train calmly continued along its path. Will thought of Odessa and Teila Resort and Amber, until his thoughts finally settled on Tesla. He hugged a pillow to himself as he wondered what Team Xen had done to his mom's body, and if they had at least had the decency to give her a proper burial. That led him to Mightyena's memorial and the deeply personal message inscribed there. Who could have done something like that? Who would have known to do something like that?

It was a long time before he drifted off and when he did, Mightyena and Houndoom chased him endlessly throughout the train.

The soft, pained noise that woke him up was louder than anything Will had heard in weeks. It took his mind a second to process but when it did…when it did, Will was awake in an instant. He bolted upright in his bed.

He heard it again. An agonizing, quiet little moan, followed by frantic, scared breaths. "Melia?"

The world snapped together in an instant. Pieces clicked together into a coherent picture - Melia whimpering quietly to herself, her hands clenching her blankets tightly as she struggled in silence. Kanon lay in his bed. Asleep. Venam lay curled up in a bundle of blankets and pillows. Asleep.

Adrenaline pumped through his body as he leapt from his bed and fumbled for the light switch. Light flooded the cabin, illuminating Melia's pale, agonized face. She was shaking. Her entire body was shaking.

"Melia!" Will breathed. He dropped by the side of her bed, took her hand and pried her fingers open, intertwining them with his ."Melia, Melia!"

"Eh?" Venam grumbled. "Who…put…turn those lights off. Fuck."

Will slid his hand around to the back of Melia's head. "Melia! Wake up. You're safe. I got you, okay? I have you."

"What's going on?" Kanon whispered.

Melia gasped and shuddered.

"Melia's having a nightmare," Will answered. "Melia!"

Her eyes shot open and she woke with a start, choking back a frightened cry. She was breathing heavily and her right arm patted around, as if she were searching for something. "No…no!" She gasped.

"Melia!" Will said again. "Look at me! You were having a nightmare."

Her silver eyes were wide and terrified as she frantically looked around the room. "She…but…she…she killed you…she killed…she…"

"Wha?" Venam gasped. Will heard her bolt upright in her bed too. "Oh, shit, what's happening? Are we under attack?"

"No, Melia's having a nightmare," Kanon told her. "What can I do to help?"

"Gimme a moment," Will ordered. "Melia, hey, it's me! I have you! You're safe!"

Melia looked at him and this time, she saw him. Her eyebrows slanted down as she seemed to really start waking up. "...I…but…Will? No…you're bleeding…you're dying, we need…"

Will slid his arm around Melia's back and pulled her up, "It was just a dream," he told her. "Look at me. We are all unhurt. No blood. Kanon, some water, please."

"She killed you!" Melia groaned out. "How could she? How could she?"

Angie, then.

"She didn't kill me," Will said. "Nothing can kill me, okay? I'm here. We made it. We won."

Melia ran her hand across his chest, her touch feather light as she patted up and down his abdomen. "But…I saw you fall…afterwards, you fell…"

He swept her up in his arms and cradled her, whispering softly, "No. Of course not. I'm here, right? Indestructible."

She sucked in a deep, shuddering breath. Everything about her felt tense and scared and frantic and yet, she didn't struggle as he hugged her against him. She continued patting him down for blood or injuries, but he felt her raking her other hand through his hair as she slowly began to calm down.

Behind him, he heard Venam fully waking up. "Nightmare? Ah shit. Melia? Melia, are you okay?"

Will waited a few moments to see Melia slowly snapping out of it, slowly coming back to him again.

Kanon came back with a glass of water. He knelt down next to Will, glanced uneasily at Melia and then offered her the glass. "Here. This should help."

With shaking hands, Melia took the glass. "I…I should have done more…I should have protected you…"

"Melia!" Will sharply said. He wrapped his hands around hers, partially to keep her from spilling her water before she could drink it and partially to make her know, make her feel that he was there, that he had her. "Come on. You did everything you could." He searched the room. Found Venam's gaze. He silently pleaded her to help him. "We won. Okay? We won."

He continued whispering at her as she quivered in his arms, not knowing what else he could do.

Venam stared, frozen, as if she couldn't quite believe what she was seeing.

Kanon, too, had fallen silent.

Frustration tore at his heart. Why didn't they help him? Surely they'd had nightmares like these before. Bloody, haunting nightmares, but just that. Nightmares.

Melia held him tighter. "We won," she repeated.

His relief mingled with the visceral realization that the nightmares had now claimed his Melia too. That her nights wouldn't be peaceful any longer.

Goddamn you, Angie.

"Must have been some nightmare," Will whispered.

Melia squeezed his midsection, burying her face against his chest. "Angie…" she whimpered. "Angie…and you…"

Not a pretty picture, then.

"We're okay, Melia." Will planted a kiss to the crown of her head. "Angie failed. We made it out."

"That fucking ice bitch?" Venam said, seemingly shaking herself out of that stupor. "Man, nightmares blow. Do you want to talk about it, Melia?"

Melia shook her head tersely. "No…I lived it. I don't feel like spending words on it. It was…it was…" She pulled her arms back to herself and rubbed her face, moaning weakly. "I'm sorry, guys. I didn't want to wake you up…"

"Hey," Venam said, scurrying over towards her. "Hey, Melia, that's not your fault!" She clutched Melia's hand. "That stupid bitch shouldn't have haunted your dreams, it's her fault, not yours."

"Technically speaking, Will woke us, not you, if that's any consolation," Kanon supplied.

"Consider me thoroughly consolidated," Will deadpanned.

A weak little smile tugged at Melia's lips.

"I feel like I'm missing some context here?" Kanon said.

Venam gave him an annoyed look, but her eyes flicked towards Will almost immediately. "Uh, yeah. We'll hit you up on that another time. Shit was bad. Angie sucked. Nightmares suck."

Lot's of sucking all around.

"I'm okay," Melia pleaded with them. "I'm okay now…please don't worry about me."

"If you are sure…" Kanon said hesitantly.

"Hey, if you have another shitty nightmare, don't hesitate to wake us up, alright?" Venam told her. "I can always catch up on sleep later."

"That won't help anyone," Melia protested. "Then we'll all be tired and grumpy tomorrow."

"Still. If anything happens, you give me a call, okay? People shouldn't have to suffer nightmares alone," Venam said. "That's just too sad."

That one stuck with Will even as they eventually all headed back to their beds again. He hit the light switch and plunged the cabin in darkness again, mulling over that statement for the longest while.

He lay awake until Melia's, Venam's and Kanon's breathing all evened out. Eventually, at one point, he drifted off himself too.

With morning came the voice of one of the conductor's saying that breakfast would be served in fifteen minutes. Kanon and Will left the room to let the girls get dressed in private.

"Will?" His white-haired companion started after a few moments of silence. "About Melia's nightmare. It involved you, did it not?"

Will looked at him, not sure where he was going with that. "Yeah."

"She…spoke of an injury. And that…she felt it was on her, somehow," Kanon continued haltingly.

"It wasn't," Will assured him.

Kanon held up his hands. "I wasn't saying it was!" He hurried to say. "I merely wondered what it was that happened. It must have been recent. Melia never had nightmares, as far as I know."

His voice was innocent enough, yet Will couldn't help but feel guilt worming its way into his stomach. Melia never had nightmares before she went to Blacksteeple to bust him out. She was meant to return to Amberette Town after. Not risking death by hypothermia at the hands of a cruel, vindictive bitch like Angie.

Certainly not losing her father on Valor Summit.

"I was wondering what it was, that happened with this…Angie person?" Kanon asked.

"She kicked our asses is what happened," Will answered. The look of pure anguish on Aelita's face…what would she do if she found out what had happened on Valor Mountain? Not just how he'd gotten hurt fighting Geara - there was no hiding that - but that he'd actually died?

She couldn't find out. If Aelita found out what happened, she would blame herself for that and then, she'd drive herself nuts with the guilt. Better to keep that one secret.

"So…when Venam said that Angie, ahum, sucked, she was referring to…"

A certain someone successfully intercepting Angie's icicle spear with his chest cavity, yes. "Our fight that resulted in a lot of wounds, some more severe than others," Will said evenly and, hopefully, with finality.

Kanon didn't get the hint. "Bad enough to leave Melia with nightmares? That must have been a terrible battle."

"It was."

Thankfully, Kanon stopped asking questions then, and a minute later both Melia and Venam exited the cabin as well.

"Alright, ready to make this train unsafe!"

All things considered, breakfast was calm and uneventful. They enjoyed some coffee - Will was very disappointed to see that Kanon was the type who took sugar and milk in his - and kept themselves busy with small talk. Venam quickly took the lead in that conversation, which suited Will just fine. He rubbed the scar tissue underneath his eye, closed the right one to see if somehow, his vision had magically returned and was sorely disappointed when it hadn't.

At least the wound on his hand had scarred over nicely. His left palm was just a bit stiffer than the right one, but on good days it didn't bother him that much.

Had Val, Adam, Braixen and Saki safely reached that spiritual healer? Was Aelita in good hands? Was she safe?

God, he wanted to see her again. To know that she'd pulled through. Would she mind the scar? It was a big eye-catcher, hard to miss and presumably even harder to stomach. Although, a warrior like Aelita might not think it that bad. Karrina had said that it was "rugged" and Karrina was a warrior too, so…maybe Aelita would find a way to compliment it?

No, he was certain Aelita would spin it like some sort of awesome, well-earned battle scar like Nidoking had even if it…even if he'd…

But that was Aelita.

After breakfast, the train snaked up through the tunnel towards the surface again and that allowed everyone to take a good, long look at some sort of island jutting out from the sea. It was definitely an upgrade over the nonstop blackness of the underwater tunnel. Somewhere along the way, Kanon disappeared again, and Will had the sneaking suspicion that this time, Kanon wasn't wandering the train in solitude.

"Alright, we should be getting to Grand Dream City somewhere today!" Melia said cheerfully, once they had all gotten settled in their room again.

"The train's gonna stop at the Marine Tube first, right? So that people can take their stupid selfies or whatever?" Venam said.

"Oh right…" Melia said. "That slipped my mind." She paused to look around, her brow furrowing when she noticed the distinct lack of their number four. "Where's Kanon?" She asked.

"Probably hanging out with that train milf we were talking to earlier," Venam said, and she said it so matter-of-factly that Melia's appalled gasp was almost comical in comparison.

"The WHAT?" She breathed, a heavy blush creeping on her cheeks.

"You know the lady we met yesterday!" Venam said, shrugging. "What was her name again? Aprie or something?"

"April," Will corrected her. Something about Venam's lack of care annoyed him.

"Whatever," she said dismissively, which only exacerbated that feeling.

Melia narrowed her eyes at Venam. "Don't think I didn't hear what you said," she said in an almost pouty way.

"I don't know what you're talking about," Venam mumbled, turning her back towards them.

The next second, the device Will could have sworn was a computer began ringing like a phone, and all three of them turned to face it.

"What the?" Venam said. "Someone's calling us?"

Melia peered at the computer. "Looks like it."

"I thought this was a computer?" Will asked.

"Yeah…didn't even know you could call from these things," Venam replied.

"Well, we should pick up," Melia decided.

Apparently, it was one of those video call things. Will pressed a few buttons and managed to accept the incoming call.

A woman resembling Amanda popped into the screen. Tall and dark-haired, she was all lean and casual. Her skin and eyes were a rich brown, like April's, and she had a headful of dreadlocks loosely bundled and tied together into one long tail, going from a dark brown to silver to red at her waist.

"Hey guys, it looks like you got my call," the strange woman began.

Venam and Melia crowded around him in front of the screen. "Uh…? WHO?" Venam demanded.

Taken aback, the woman nevertheless replied calmly. "Alright, no need to be so aggressive. I'm Rhodea. You know, Karrina's friend?"

"Oh!" Melia said.

"I got your guys' info through Karrina, so I decided to call before you got here," Rhodea explained. "That way there's no surprises and stuff like that. Fair?"

"Sounds fair to me!" Melia replied.

"Now, I've gone through introductions myself, so it's your turn. Which one's Melia?"

Melia raised her hand. "That would be me! This is Venam, and this is Will. We have another friend as well, but they're not here at the moment."

Rhodes, who nodded at them as Melia introduced them, simply shrugged. "It's cool. I'll meet them soon enough anyway. You four will be staying at my house for the time being. Which is the penthouse at the Residential Tower."

"We're getting to stay in a penthouse?!" Venam shouted.

Rhodea grinned. "You sure are. I'm the Community Manager here in GDC."

What was -

"I manage community events. So, like, concerts, festivals, press meetings - "

Ah.

"Stuff like that." Rhodea sighed contently. "It's such a demanding job, but it pays damn well. As you could probably assume. At the penthouse, I currently have two other roommates."

On screen, two static images of a purple-haired girl and a red-haired, enthusiastic-looking boy appeared.

"They're Lavender and Huey, respectively. Lavender is the Psychic Gym Leader and Huey is…" Rhodea's voice trailed off as she struggled to find the right words to describe the kid. After much searching, she settled for, "Well, he's just Huey."

Will could relate.

"They are NOT Storm Chasers like the rest of us, so anything in regards to that stuff should stay confidential in the meantime," Rhodea warned them. "But yeah, let's see…if you guys have any questions, I'd say now is the time."

"What is GDC like?" Venam asked excitedly.

"Right, so Grand Dream City is the capital of Aevium. A city built by…" her expression hardened, and she coughed into her fists as she continued. "Ahem. Thomas Blakeory Senior and his wife Hazuki Blakeory."

Will would guess that Rhodea didn't have much love for the Blakeories either. He'd yet to meet anyone who actually liked that family.

"Grand Dream City is held underneath a dome. This dome has multiple functions. The city's weather and temperature are completely controlled by its citizens via daily vote. The vote is done at seven thirty sharp and ends promptly fifteen minutes later. However, it always rains on Thursdays. That vetoes everyone's votes. The dome itself can also simulate stars and cloudy atmospheres. Besides that, there's a ton to see and do in the city! It's almost like an entirely different region within a region itself."

A dome over a city. A city completely encapsulated by a dome? That would make flying into the place more difficult. It also meant that Team Xen could do some serious damage to GDC if they ever got control over that dome. It was something he needed to keep in mind for when the searching started.

Venam chuckled. "Heh. Guess you could say it's pretty - "

"Grand?" Rhodea completed her sentence. "Yeah, it is. But pro-tip…everyone in GDC has heard that joke once or twice too many sooooooo…if you don't want to get any disgruntled looks I suggest keeping that one in the back of ya head."

A grand suggestion.

Though Rhodea phrased it nicely enough, Will sensed a veiled threat in her voice. Venam understood though, considering she swallowed and said, "G-Got it…"

Will, however, lived for disgruntled looks at the tail-end of his jokes. He was going to ignore Rhodea's grand suggestion for the time being.

"What's the situation in the city?" He asked. "What should we expect?"

Rhodea, with the utmost seriousness, said, "Expect the unexpected."

Which, as suggestions went, wasn't nearly as grand as her previous one. If people could expect the unexpected, the unexpected wouldn't be unexpected and then people would simply be expecting the expected.

Thankfully the woman wasn't done yet. "I don't know how much of the region you've been through, but this is an entirely different beast. The people, the culture…it feels magnified by a significant amount. This is a direct result of the city prioritizing a person's potential to the fullest. That being said, the work culture here is pretty…rough. Even the best cities out there have their issues and GDC is no different."

Rhodea likely didn't realize it but that advice was kinda worthless. Maybe trying to expect the unexpected wasn't such a bad idea after all….

"Speaking of which, I'm sure you'll become familiar with Bladestar soon enough."

"Bladestar?" Melia asked.

"That's another can of worms that I will not go into right now. This call is timed, after all."

Bladestar. It sounded like a pretty cool name, but the way Rhodea phrased it didn't inspire much confidence. Another threat, then.

"What are the house rules like?" Melia then questioned.

"Ah, house rules! Let's leave those until you get here, alright? I AM the Community Manager after all. When you all start to live with me, your actions directly affect how I'm viewed. I'm not one to care about appearances much, but my job is on the line here. You guys are welcomed guests, but I won't hesitate to kick you out if you cause trouble. Please, let's not get it to that point, okay?"

"We're well behaved!" Melia reassured her. "Promise."

Rhodea nodded with approval. "Good. If you have no further questions…oh, by the way! Have you guys heard the news about the last victim?"

"We heard about it through the Breaking News report, yes," Venam said.

Rhodea leaned towards them more. "So you know that things are getting really serious now, right? This isn't a joke and people are getting seriously hurt. When you guys get here, we'll get you settled, and then we're jumping right into things, got it?"

Next to him, Venam went very still.

"Got it!" Melia said.

Will nodded along.

"Okay, good. Glad that's settled." Rhodea glanced over at another spot on her screen for a second. "Listen, the call's about to end. It was nice meeting you all, but I have to dip. I'll be there to pick you guys up tonight, okay?"

"Got it," Venam quietly said. "Thanks Rhodes."

"Rhodes?" Rhodea raised an eyebrow at the Poison-type trainer. "That's actually a new one…I like it! Well then, I'm off!"

Melia waved. "Bye!" When the call terminated and Will shut the computer off again, Melia hopped down on her bed and said, "That was nice of Rhodea to give us a call!"

"It's cool to have some inkling of what the hell we're up against," Venam replied, still talking with that uncharacteristic quiet tone. She crossed her arms, but the gesture seemed more nervous than anything else. "I'm starting to get a little worried…"

"Huh?"

"I mean…" Venam grimaced. "I guess hearing that report on Talon really had things set in. People going missing and then showing up again encased in stone?" She shook her head, struggled with her words a bit, and then admitted, "It's giving me bad vibes…"

"We'll make it," Will said.

Venam stared at him, her eyes searching. "How - ?"

"We always do."

Much to his surprise, Venam's face contorted in anger. "How would you know?" She bit at him. "How can you say that with such certainty? After what you just learned happened to your friend?"

"Because," Will said patiently. He studied her expression, wondering where her sudden emotion came from. "We have managed everything that came in our path."

"Like we managed Angie?" Venam then said, and it took him a few seconds to realize what she'd said to him. "Yeah, didn't think about that, did you?"

"V-Venam…" Melia quietly said

Will thought back to the mansion. To Lenny and Luca, traumatized for life. He thought back to the Theolia Church and the staggering difference in success between retaking the island with minimal casualties and the horrors everybody had suffered in Angie's world.

What Angie had almost done to Melia.

Didn't think?

And yet…was she insinuating that was on him, somehow? That he was to blame for that suffering? "Like we managed Angie, yeah. You're seriously telling me that I didn't think about something?" He said, sharp and angry. "You?"

Her lip curled in anger. "Yeah I am! And what the hell is that supposed to mean, huh?"

There was a tension creeping into the room that he didn't think he was imagining. "I'm just saying - "

"I know what you're saying!" Venam snapped. "But you don't know a thing about me." On a quieter note, she added, "How would you, anyway?"

"Venam!" Melia cried out in shock.

Those words bounced around his mind, hot and heavy. They stunned him into silence as something like a deep, deep hurt clawed its way into his chest and, he suspected, all over his face.

How would he?

He knew he wasn't…wasn't Ren. He didn't have the years and years of tight knit friendship and trust those three had had with each other. Venam didn't like him like she'd liked Ren. He knew full well that his presence could never take away from the pain of Ren turning his back on them, just like he knew that he was an outsider who'd just dropped into their lives one day.

He just…he'd hoped that…

Don't push it, Will told himself. He exhaled a frustrated sigh. She doesn't mean it. She's scared.

He didn't want this fight, didn't want things to go bad with Venam. Why was she even being like this? "I know enough to say that we're going to be alright," he forced out, and he was almost able to keep a quiver from creeping into his voice.

Venam snorted and it looked like she was about to make another angry remark, but she paused and looked at him. Really looked, like she rarely ever did.

Will didn't know what it was she was looking for and he didn't want to stay and hear her say more things. "I'm going to get some fresh air," he said, getting back to his feet.

"Hey, look - " Venam started.

Will didn't listen. He made to leave the cabin.

"Will, hang on, wait - " Melia started.

And he closed the door behind him.

The voices erupted inside the cabin the second the door shut, but Will didn't stop to listen. His feet carried him towards the far end of the train almost on auto-pilot. He was torn between wanting to walk away and fly to GDC himself or getting back in there and demanding Venam tell him what she actually meant.

He settled for a well-balanced compromise of just trying to open a window and breathe away the tight, hot feeling in his chest.

Was it because of something he'd done? Venam wasn't usually the type who stewed in anger for days and days if something bothered her. Normally, if something got under her skin, she announced that the second her brain processed that. Loudly. Angrily.

All the windows in the back of the train were locked. He began fidgeting with their locking mechanisms.

Try as he might, he couldn't think of anything he'd said or done outside of the obvious contender of Valor Summit. They'd talked about that, hadn't they? Venam had never lied to him. She wouldn't do that, would she? So it couldn't be that. It had to be something else.

He couldn't get any of the windows open.

Was that how she really felt about him? That he was still an outsider in her eyes? Just an outsider? Maybe he could get her to talk to him privately, admit to her that he didn't understand and ask if…if she could explain it to him.

The train began slowing down. There was no way they'd reached GDC already, so why - ?

"This is your conductor speaking! We have reached our first destination, the Marine Tube! The Grand Express will be stationed there for exactly one hour. Please make good use of your time. Thank you and enjoy!"

Just in time, too. He'd just been about to build himself a window that could open.

People began filing outside. Will was out the second the doors opened and he bounded outside…

…except it wasn't outside. They were at the bottom of the ocean in a massive tunnel made out of reinforced glass and meshes of steel and it was…beautiful. The vastness of Aevium's seas pressed down upon the people scurrying around down there like some sort of inverse aquarium.

Will walked past the policewoman who stood leaning against the side of the stairs, eying the people around her with a stern look of suspicion. The ceiling of this tunnel had to be a hundred feet above them. They could have flown an airplane through this tunnel, let alone a train. The tunnel was so vast that he couldn't even see the end. It just faded into blackness.

Water-type Pokemon of all species and sizes swam, scurried and glided past them. Clusters of Corsola wandered across the ocean floor as schools of Luvdisc and Goldeen swam by. Staryus lazily circled through the water and in the distance, the ominous shape of a massive Wailord drifted by, its dark outlines menacingly vague.

He headed up the stairs to the observation platform, grabbed the railing and just…took in the sights. No wonder Val was so enamored with the sea. There was something soothing about all the blue that surrounded him. So somewhere out there, at the bottom of the sea, Odessa's ancestors had built their civilization to serve Manaphy?

People crowded around. Some took pictures. Others excitedly pointed at the various Pokemon surrounding them. More still did what he did, and just enjoyed the sights in peace -

Was that a Toxapex, stalking those Corsola from behind those rocks?

So cool. Ominous, but damn. Cool.

Will leaned over the railing trying to get a better look. His angle wasn't good enough, but if he could just get a few more inches, he might…just…be able to…see if…

Someone fluttered their fingers along his side.

Will gasped and jolted. Somehow, he managed not to squirm over the railing and fall and instead, his body did a little startled hop to the side.

"Boo!" Melia said. That endearing twinkle of mischief in her eyes made his stomach do a summersault. "There you are! I couldn't find you anywhere in the train, so I was kinda hoping you'd be somewhere around here."

"I'm definitely around," Will replied lamely. "I uh, completely forgot that we were making a stop here, actually."

"This place is incredible, yeah," Melia agreed, casting a long, amazed look around the Marina tube. "I've never seen this before!"

"Then you and your father didn't go by train?" Will asked.

"Dad and I went to GDC by boat, so we only saw what's…" Her brow furrowed and she glanced up again. "Above all of this? So this is all new."

Behind her, a bickering Venam and Kanon passed by, too engrossed in their argument to notice them standing there. "Hmm."

Melia half-turned and followed his gaze. "I don't think she meant anything by it."

Will put his back against the railing and watched as Venam teased Kanon about him not having come back to the room after last night. "...she's been snappy, lately, and I don't know why."

"I noticed that as well," Melia said. "I'm not sure either. I asked her, but she said that nothing was going on. Still…I got the impression that last comment really bothered you?"

"I…" He trailed off, his eyes falling away from Melia's. Was he just that easy to read, or did Melia just know him that well? "I think she's not used to being scared."

"What was her name again?" Venam asked of Kanon. "Apricot?"

Kanon murmured something back.

"HE KNEW!" Venam then shouted and if her voice didn't scare away every Pokemon in a ten-mile radius then she must have at least put them all on high alert. "Oh my god. He knew!"

Will rolled his eyes.

"Hey Venam, I need you to bring it down a little," Melia said.

It didn't look like the two heard her.

On a softer note, Melia then continued, "Maybe you two need to talk this out. We've been through so much together, and I hate seeing you two fight."

"We'll figure it out," Will said. "I meant what I said. We'll handle it. So don't worry about it."

"If you're sure…"

"What, her name?" Kanon shouted back at Venam. "Knowing her name suddenly makes her my girlfriend?"

Melia sighed, gave Will a wink and then swept in to save the poor guy from something that he himself would have never fallen for, ever. "Kanon, you're falling for the bait," she said. "Hard."

"Yeah, I'm just teasing," Venam said. "No need to be so defensive. Unless there's something to be defensive about?" She continued eagerly.

Will turned his attention back to the Toxapex he'd spotted. It was gone now. He couldn't blame it; sometimes he wished he could just scurry under a rock when Venam got too loud for him.

Absentmindedly, he moved his hand down to where Melia's fingers had fluttered against his ribs. Again, his skin felt warm and tingly.

…he really wouldn't mind it if she did that again.

"There isn't!" Kanon argued. "We just talked for a while."

"Oh yeah? Where's she now?" Venam continued.

"She said she didn't feel comfortable leaving the train so she stayed behind."

Venam's voice was just filled with playful suspicion, he could practically hear her narrowing her eyes. "Is that so?"

It wasn't like Kanon had danced with April. Could Kanon even dance? April had said she couldn't, but she'd rocked some mean moves.

…could Melia dance? He might need to brush up on some things for when they headed out in the city to hit a club. The last thing he wanted was to embarrass her. Did the Stormchasers go out together at any point during the few years Melia spent in their midst? Was that what Crescent meant when she told Melia that the two of them would "get very close" together?

Something moved at the end of the tunnel. It started out as a little moving speck, like a smudgy star, but it was ever so slowly growing larger.

It was moving towards them.

"I see something," he called out.

Melia must have been paying attention to him, because she heard him over Venam and Kanon bickering. "You do?"

"It's coming closer."

Melia walked towards the railing and peered into the vast distance of the tunnel as well. "I-I see it!"

That got the attention of the others, too.

"Whatever it is…it's coming this way!" Venam said.

Will, knowing first-hand how dangerous it could be when something fast and powerful blitzed by with inches to spare, knew what was coming and hurried to back away.

It was a good thing he did, because an instant later, someone riding their Pokemon soared through the spot he just occupied. He caught a glimpse of a streamlined, blue and white body, a trainer with a mop of black hair and a split-second of eye contact before they were gone.

The wind following in the traveler's wake scattered papers and personal belongings, flung people off their feet and caused Venam to lose her footing and fall against the glass behind her.

Which…damn.

She went from shaken to pissed-off in half a second flat.

"Hey!" She shouted at the top of her lungs.

Somehow, the traveler heard her. He came to a screeching halt, pulled an impressive U-turn and headed back to the platform, giving Will a good look at both rider and Pokemon.

Whatever species that Pokemon was, it was powerful, he could tell that much. It exuded power and grace in a way very few Pokemon naturally did. Its body was shaped like that of a jet, and it regarded Will with cold, wary eyes. It wasn't actually blue, but a bright shade of purple.

"What?" The traveler demanded of Venam. He looked a bit like April, down to the same skin tone and hair color.

Unlike April, however, something about this guy just rubbed Will the wrong way. He took an instant dislike to the man.

"OI!" Venam screamed. "Watch where you're going! You nearly swept us away with that thing!"

"Sorry," the guy said in a voice that suggested he was anything but. Will noticed him sweeping the crowd with his hard, purple eyes, as if searching for something specific. Whoever this guy was, he wasn't with Team Xen.

So why was he here?

It took Venam's mind a second to process just how angry she really was. When it did…"WHAT DO YOU MEAN SORRY?" She snarled. "You could've really hurt someone you JERK! All you have to say is SORRY?"

One of these days, Venam would go looking for a fight and actually find it. When that happened…

Melia calmly walked towards her, grabbed the back of her shirt and began pulling her back. "Alright, calm down there…"

But the stranger looked like he hadn't even heard her. "Everyone!" He said, raising his voice so that the other passengers could hear him. "I have a question for you all. I'm looking for someone. A woman with dark skin, long black hair and purple clothes."

April.

"I'd give you her name," the man continued with an annoyed tone, "But knowing her…that'd be completely useless."

"Eh?" Venam said.

Then, the man's cold gaze found Will. "Have you seen her? She's hard to miss."

There was a moment of tense silence during which everybody turned their eyes towards Will. Behind him, Kanon sucked in a breath.

"Nope," Will said, glaring back at this stranger. April didn't want this guy - whoever he was - to find her. Whatever her reasons, he wasn't about to out her.

The stranger narrowed his eyes at him. "Is that so?" He asked suspiciously. Something in his body tensed up. "What if I'm not satisfied with that answer?"

In an even, measured tone, Will replied, "Then that's your problem."

Anger shone through those purple eyes. "How about I make my problem your problem then?"

This freaking guy.

That was when the Law showed up.

"Halt!" The officer yelled as she came running up the stairs towards the stranger. "You are under arrest for passenger endangerment! Please surrender yourself!"

The guy grit his teeth and rolled his eyes. His Pokemon snorted and the air crackled faintly with energy. Together, the rider and their Pokemon turned towards the lone policewoman.

"Surrender this Dragon Pulse," Will heard the man mutter and it was those words that jolted him into action. The ambiguity of the situation shattered and everything fell into place. With practiced ease, he slipped his hand into his pocket, found Fraxure's Pokeball and sent him out. "Fraxure, get their attention with Dragon Rage!" He shouted even as he backed away from the stranger, creating some distance to maneuver. "Low power, fast as you can!"

They were at the bottom of the ocean. A single breach would end up killing them all. This stranger could then simply speed away on his Pokemon, leaving them all to drown.

So keeping this guy pinned down here was the key. Then, Venam and Melia could join in, triple their firepower.

The low-powered Dragon Pulse slammed into the enemy Pokemon's right wing and the policewoman dove for cover. The pair of them spun around to face this new threat on their tail, and Will was satisfied to see the stranger's face lit up with anger.

"You son of a…" he growled.

Out of nowhere, a third party soared overhead. It was another Pokemon like this one, but instead of purple, it was red and white all over, with softer features and a second pair of wings protruding from its body.

"You!" The man snapped.

The other Pokemon uttered a reverberating cry and then sped off with incredible velocity.

"You know what? You're right, Officer," the man yelled. "I completely surrender to the power of the law. If. You're able to catch me. See ya."

Together, the man and his Pokemon took off. No rapid beating of wings, no gathering power or anything like that; his Pokemon went from zero to what had to be two hundred in a few seconds flat. Within moments, all three of them had disappeared from view.

"Wait!" The policewoman shouted, but even she saw that it was futile. "Damn, that man is fast," she murmured angrily.

Will glared at the departing stranger and the two strange, draconic Pokemon as they disappeared into the distance. "Douche," he spat.

There wasn't any point in giving chase on Pidgeot. Even if he could push his body harder than the stranger could and somehow catch up, then what? Any form of collateral damage to this tunnel would screw over the others. That was a risk he simply couldn't take.

"What the fuck was that guy's deal!" Venam yelled.

"He was searching for April wasn't he?" Melia replied with concern.

"That's what I plan on finding out," Will replied. April had a lot of explaining to do.

"Alright people, pack it up! We're heading out!" The officer called. She, together with the conductors and the other train staff, began herding their passengers back into the train. "Apologies for all the havoc," she later muttered to Will as he, Melia, Venam and Kanon passed her by again on their way back. "That man has committed multiple violations. As a result we are going to have to cut the rest of this trip short and head on our way to GDC."

"That is unfortunate," Kanon sighed.

"It is," the officer nodded. "But I have to put out an official warrant and report to the station. We'll be leaving in the next ten minutes. Please make sure you have everything and board the train again."

"When I get my hands on that punk, I'll give him the ol' one TWO!" A very angry Venam threatened.

"Venam…just let it go, okay?" Melia said. "He apologized and everything."

"Before he was going to physically assault that officer," Will said, finding himself in the questionable position of agreeing with Venam against Melia. "If nothing else, he's a threat."

"He's gonna experience a threat alright," Venam continued. "Getting sent flying against the glass hurt. And you know what? It hurt my arm, and also my feelings."

Kanon and Will exchanged a confused look.

"I deserve a little compensation…a single punch to the face will do," Venam decided.

And she called him dramatic?

"...that man was talking about Lady April, I know it," Kanon quietly said.

Will straightened in alarm. "What did you just say?"

"Lady?" Venam repeated a condescending laugh. "He said Lady. See, I knew it!"

"Wh-What? Wait…" The look on Kanon's face was anything but infatuation. He turned away. "Why did I say that?" .

"I think we already know the answer," Venam said, grinning wickedly as she walked off.

"Wait for us!" Melia cried out, quickly hurrying after Venam.

Will watched the girls leave, wrestling down the mounting frustration that Venam still didn't bother looking deeper into things beyond a surface level. Warily, he turned his attention back to Kanon again. "Lady April?" He asked. "What for?"

"I…it just dropped in my mind," Kanon quietly admitted. "Like that was the way it was meant. Like it just made sense."

Well. That wasn't disturbing or anything. "Careful with that, you're going to sound just like those murder-maids Angie used. Those creepy things Indriad used," Will told him firmly. Lady was rapidly turning into one of those words he could live his entire life without hearing again.

Kanon turned back to him. He looked troubled. "Will, could you do me a huge favor? Please check up on Lad - April. I think…I think she's not doing too well right now."

Of course she wasn't doing right. She had a flying douchebag after her, and she'd neglected to tell anyone. "Sure," he replied. "I'll drop by. Don't listen to Venam and don't call anyone else "Lady", okay?"

"Y-Yeah," Kanon muttered. "I'll keep that in mind…"

When everybody had boarded the train again, the conductors did one final sweep to make sure nobody had wandered off, then started the train back up. Satisfied that they'd at least be reaching GDC a few hours earlier than expected, Will dropped by April's cabin and knocked.

Someone audibly undid the lock, and Will let himself in.

April stood with her back to the door, gazing out the window. "Hey Will…" She timidly said without looking away. "Are you checking up on me?"

"April," Will said, quietly closing the door behind him again. "How are you holding up?"

April produced a sound akin to a pained moan and a sigh all in one. "I'm doing fine, I guess…just a little anxious at the moment."

"How come?" Will asked, though he believed he knew already.

April looked at him. She seemed oddly shy, at that moment. Vulnerable. She chewed on her lip for a beat, keeping her gaze locked on the floor. "A lot of things really, but you just encountered my most recent issue."

"The flying jerk?" Will asked

Her eyebrows came together in a light frown. She didn't approve of his words…which kinda suggested the flying jerk was someone she did not consider a jerk.

"Don't worry, he's not trying to hurt me," April told him. She sighed again. "If anything, I'm the one being difficult. He just wants the best for…well…it doesn't matter. He's gone, for now."

Will waited for her to elaborate, but instead she stiffly walked towards the table in the corner of her cabin. She eased herself into her seat, then pressed herself against the corner, as if trying to make herself appear as small as possible.

"Please," she quietly said. "Have a seat."

"Be honest with me here, April," Will said as she sat down in front of this enigmatic woman. He opened his mouth to ask her who she really was, what her real purpose on this train was, but when he saw how miserable and vulnerable she appeared, those words died somewhere in his throat. "How are you doing?" He asked instead. "Really?"

She avoided eye contact still. Her purple eyes were fixed to the scar on his face, or to his cheeks, as she said, "To be honest with you Will…No, I'm not really doing so well. It's because of what happened on Terajuma. With…with Nim."

Now it was Will who couldn't keep eye contact. Something inside of him froze at the mention of her name, and with it came the guilt and the shame he'd been struggling to stave off for the past few days.

"Remember when I told you I was traveling with someone for a short while? I…I did not tell you the truth when I told you that I didn't know Nim. In fact…it was Nim whom I was traveling with."

"Then…" Will said, and it took everything he had to keep the waver out of his voice. "When you and I last met…you knew…?"

"She wasn't someone I knew for very long, but I felt a connection with her," April answered. "From the very moment she was born in this world - she struggled. Struggled to find love, struggled to find acceptance…"

He…knew that Nim had struggled. Struggled with herself, struggled against the world…struggled to find something she could truly call her own, be that a home, or friends, or even family. And yet she'd still found the time and energy and empathy to be there for him - him, a total stranger - when he needed it.

Where had he been when she started needing him? When she'd been dealing with Geara and Zetta, when she'd been dealing with her powers starting to hurt her and…when she'd needed help. He hadn't been there for her.

"I'm sorry," he whispered.

April went very still before slowly dragging her eyes back to his.

He still couldn't bring himself to meet them. "We tried, but…I wasn't good enough and…" He swallowed. "I couldn't bring her back."

"I really wish you wouldn't say that," April started.

"I - "

"When I heard you and your friends were doing everything you could to save her…well, I cried." Her voice was impossibly soft. "I cried because that's what she always wanted. People who loved her for her and that's all."

Will didn't trust his voice not to break. The compassion in her tone…the kindness in her eyes…he had no right to them.

"I guess I was hoping for a fairy tale ending, but not everything is so simple and sweet," April continued. "You were there for her on that summit, Will. You fought for Nim. You bled for Nim. Meanwhile I…I know I could've done something, but I didn't."

"Why didn't you?" Will asked, his throat tight.

Her voice didn't change, but there was a new tension in her body as she looked away. After a moment, she said, "It's not what she would have wanted, but I could've done it anyway! What was the right answer? Why is it always so hard to pick the right one? I know what you would have done, Will. I should have…it should be me apologizing to you. Everyone wants me to be like her, but I can't do it…I'm a failure who isn't as strong as she was." Her face contorted into a painted visage of sorrow as she sobbed.

Somehow somewhere, Will realized that April wasn't talking about Nim anymore. "April…" he was at a loss for words. He wasn't sure what he had expected from this enigmatic, secretive woman, but not…not this. Such raw guilt and pain hidden behind a veneer of cheerfulness.

…just like Nim.

"...strong like who?" He asked, placing his hand on the table.

April sniffled. "Just someone in my past, I guess…A-Ah, just forget I said anything."

"If that's what you really want…" Will offered. "This person sounds important to you."

"S - yeah, they were. Someone a lot of people used to look up to. I still do." She stayed quiet for a moment. "Will, I know a lot of this is just me uncomfortably venting at you," April said, sounding like she was struggling just as much to reign her emotions back in as he had. "For that, I'm sincerely sorry…"

"Don't be," Will told her. "I guess we all need a moment to come to terms with…things."

April smiled weakly. "Thank you…I haven't really had the chance to vent about this to anyone, so…even if you don't know everything, I'm so happy that you're here." She reached out and folded her hand across his. "I think I'm going to be okay. I just need time to pick myself back up."

"If you need someone to talk to again…" he offered.

"Be careful. I might just take you up on that offer," April said.

"I meant it."

"Yeah." April nodded to herself. "I know you do. Thank you for visiting me, Will. I think…I just need some time alone, for now."

"Of course." Will got back to his feet and headed for the exit again. He softly pulled the door open -

A wave of dizziness washed over him and the world went blurry and blue, a deep, soothing, foggy blue. The room spun and he held on to the doorhandle as his legs went weak and his vision wavered.

He was vaguely aware of April leaping to her feet in alarm. "Will, did you just feel that?" She cried out.

"Wha…" he murmured. He leaned against the door to keep from slumping to the ground. "Yeah…" he shook his head, his body automatically revolting against the blanket of disorientation and confusion pressing down on his mind. "Yeah!"

"What was that?!" April paced around the room, peered out the window and then said, "Something's not right! We have to stop this train right now!"

Will wasn't sure it was the fear in her voice that cut through the fog in his head, or simply her voice itself, but April's voice struck around in his head regardless. Before he knew it, the woman rushed out of the room. She wasn't gone for more than ten seconds before she came back.

"It's no use…the conductor won't listen to me!" She said frantically.

"What do you need me to do?" Will offered.

"I need to think…think…friend, I need you!"

She sent out the fuzed Solrock/Lunatone creature they'd faced before. With the Dial in hand, she commanded, "Unfuze, please!"

A flash of purple light, a burst of immense energy and suddenly, the two Pokemon were back to their normal selves.

"We're stopping this train ourselves," April explained. "Do you have a Psychic-type Pokemon yourself?"

"I do, but she struggles with finesse and lacks control," Will said.

She grimaced. "I can stop the train with the help of my two friends here, but…we need to hold down both sides of the train or else the other half is just going to go flying from the force. Will, take Lunatone with you to the side of the train. That's all you need to do. Please!"

"Come on Lunatone, let's go!" Will said.

The moon-shaped Pokemon hovered towards him. When Will backed out of the room and held the door open, April's friend came with him. It seemed that Lunatone knew what it needed to do, then.

That strange dizzy spell that overcame him wasn't just him. April had sensed it, too. This wasn't just a gut feeling in the heat of battle. April had sensed something.

Will began running down the hallway, Lunatone in tow. He shoved his way past surprised passengers, his pulse quickening as he narrowly spun past a very confused conductor.

Venam and Kanon just came out of the restaurant cart. Venam's eyes widened when she saw the Lunatone following him. "Hey, what is - "

"No time," Will snapped. "Move, move!"

Kanon was much faster on the draw than Venam. He spun out of the way. "That Lunatone…I understand! Please help April as best as you can!"

The very back of the train came within sight. A conductor was talking into a radio there, likely communicating with one of his colleagues. Will paid him no mind, even when the man asked him what he was doing there.

"This is it," Will told April's Lunatone. "Do it!"

The floating Psychic-type wasted no time channeling an enormous amount of power in a very short window of time. Psychic energy surged through its body as it began glowing as bright and radiant as a star. Then, it swept that power outwards and the entire train began shaking. Metal creaked and groaned in protest as a second burst of energy erupted from the front, where April would be doing the exact same thing with Solrock.

Although Will had experienced much rougher rides the past few months, it still felt as if the process shook his bones apart. His body jerked roughly as the train decelerated violently.

The conductor cried out in alarm as he crashed to the ground. The metallic frame of the train screamed and groaned and jerked until suddenly, the entire thing came to a sudden halt.

As the conductor grunted in pain and shakily got back to his feet, Will hurried back towards the front of the train, Solrock in tow. The other passengers were flooding from their cabins, now. That included Melia, Venam and Kanon. The girls were looking around with confusion and shock, but Kanon merely looked at him and said, "Did you do it?"

"Of course," Will replied. "April?"

He gestured. "Over there. She was the first one out."

"Will?" Melia questioned. "What's going on? What did you do?"

At this point, he was wondering the exact same thing. "I hit the emergency brake," he replied in a deadpan voice.

"What the hell for?" Venam demanded.

"Some break," Melia muttered.

"Give me a minute and I'll find out," Will said.

They disembarked together amidst the chattering and gossiping crowd of passengers. As the conductors tried to get everybody to remain calm and orderly, Will got a good, long look at the consequences of failure.

"Holy…" Venam gasped.

About a dozen meters ahead, the bridge that they had been about to cross at full velocity had been completely leveled. A massive explosion had torn the bridge to pieces and if April hadn't made the call to stop the train herself, they would have derailed and plummeted into the river below. He couldn't imagine that ending very pleasantly for anyone involved.

"Oh no…" Melia breathed.

The passengers stared at the sight with varying degrees of horror, shock and fear.

One of the conductors whistled. "I don't know how the train stopped, but if it didn't…this would have been disastrous."

"How," Melia quietly asked, "Did you know this, Will?"

"What the hell…you knew this was gonna happen?" Venam said. "Was it that Pokemon? Whose was that, anyway?"

Will glanced over at April, who stood at the edge of the river and stared at the sight of the ruined bridge. Some pieces of wood were still smoking, as if whatever had destroyed the bridge had taken place recently.

"She did," he told them, lowering his voice so that the conductor couldn't hear him. He nodded at April.

"What, or who could've done this?" One of the staffmembers asked.

"I dunno, but it must have been big," another replied.

Venam put up her signature scowl. "Hmph…maybe it was that asshole we saw at the Marina tube. He didn't get what he wanted so he tried to sabotage the train."

"NO!" April gasped.

Melia, Venam, Kanon and Will all turned to stare at her. Evidently, April wasn't as lost in her thoughts as she seemed.

"Wh-Wha?" A confused Venam asked.

"He would never do something like this!" April continued. "NEVER."

"And how would you know that?" Venam asked, narrowing her eyes in suspicion as she approached April.

April, not realizing that she was not helping her case, replied, "I just know!"

"Just like you knew the train was about to crash, there?" Venam pressed on.

"Alright, that's enough!" Melia said. "We should figure out what the plan is now."

"We're sitting ducks out here until help arrives," Kanon said as he slowly scanned his surroundings.

Will liked the way he thought. "Agreed. Too out in the open. If this were an ambush, they could have wiped us all out."

"Not much cover, no," Kanon replied, rubbing his chin. "If they wanted to strike, they could blow us up along with the train. How would we avoid that?"

"Guys," Melia said. "Really?"

Will placed a hand on Kanon's shoulder and gently steered him further towards the south. "See that road? Its the only way in from that area."

Kanon nodded along. "I see it. Since we came from the east, we know that direction is safe. Our front, as it is, would be across the river and the south. I doubt any ambushes would come from the north, this close to the city."

"Are you two knuckleheads serious?" Venam said.

"We set up our Pokemon, split them across the south and west approach, there could be anyone hiding in the forest across the river," Will said, wandering towards the edge of the river. "Look - "

"Okay, okay," Melia said, physically putting herself between Will and Kanon and then dragging the both of them back towards the train. "I'm glad you two are bonding, but you are freaking everybody out like this…"

As Melia got them back together, Will spotted one of the other clerks exiting the train and approaching the conductor who stood next to April. "Sir, big problem. Our communications system is acting all funky. We can't contact GDC for help at the moment."

"Sabotage," Kanon whispered.

"They must be watching us as we speak," Will murmured back.

"What? it was fine just a minute ago!"

"We know, but it's been acting weird ever since we reached the island."

The conductor pinched the bridge of his nose. "Oi vey…"

"Okay, alternate solution," April said. "I have a way we can fix this. My father used to have a friend called Kelvin in a place called Oblitus Town. He's an architect and is probably the one responsible for building this bridge in the first place. If you let Kelvin know about the broken bridge…he can fix it in no time"!

"Perhaps…" The conductor mused.

Venam didn't sound impressed. "Mmk. If it was on the way anyway then sure."

"Yes! We'd be happy to help out in any way we can!"

April breathed a quick sigh of relief. "In that case, you can reach Oblitus Town by heading down south and then making a right. I guess I'll just be waiting here to explain the situation to Kelvin." A pause. "Assuming he's willing to help, that is."

"Okay, we'll be off then!" Melia hummed. "Coming, Will?"

"Yeah!" Will replied, happily falling in line with her and Venam as they began trekking southwards.

"Are you going to be okay by yourself?" He heard Kanon ask April.

"I'll be fine!" She replied a bit too fast for his liking. "Promise! Oh, and Kanon?"

"Yeah?"

Will glanced over his shoulder. April locked eyes with him. "Um…nevermind, actually," she murmured.

"...okay?"

Kanon hurried after them and Will paused long enough for the guy to catch up. Together with Melia and Venam, they set out towards Oblitus Town.

~~~~~~~(II)~~~~~~~

---

AN: Man, poor Will and Venam can't seem to communicate with each other to save their lives. Venam is noticing Melia and Will growing closer in a way that, to her, is completely unexpected and very concerning. Of course that arouses feelings of jealousy, but there's something more to it, something deeper and more profound than jealousy that's slowly sinking in.

Anyway, we are finally hitting the Darchlight Caves next chapter and that can only mean one thing. It's time to introduce one of my favorite characters to the cast! Or rather, introduce the cast to said character.

With that all said, I hope you all enjoyed this update! Please give that Favorite/follow button a wallop if you haven't already, drop me a review to let me know what you thought and I wish all a very happy holidays!