Author's Notes: Hello! Before this chapter begins, I would like to gather more reader data that could prove valuable to further developments of the story now that Part Two has concluded. Below are four polls that I would very much appreciate if voted in! Thank you for reading and please enjoy the latest update.

  FAVORITE CHARACTER SO FAR POLL

  strawpoll DOT com/mpnb1kNbby5

  FAVORITE CHAPTER FROM PART TWO POLL

  strawpoll DOT com/40Zm4D0Gwga

  LEAST FAVORITE CHARACTER/MOST DISLIKED SO FAR POLL

  strawpoll DOT com/3RnYXBebAye

  LEAST FAVORITE CHAPTER/MOST DISLIKED FROM PART TWO POLL

  strawpoll DOT com/1Mnwkqr3xn7

  Chapter Art Artist: PGH_arts

  Chapter 44

  Of All Gods And Heroes Across Time

  It happened in the blink of an eye.

  Bursts of orange plasma exploded from nothingness across the crystal clear floor. Three shadows emerged from the fluorescence of an expanding Entercard and took careful steps forward.

  Gloria took a deep breath, her heart still pounding in her chest as she looked around in a daze. "We're… inside a Mystery Dungeon?"

  Icy, crystalline walls surrounded them, forming a maze of chilly corridors. Frozen stalactites were suspended dangerously above them by a dark void of nothingness.

  "Sure are! Entercards have a mind of their own," Excadrill explained as he straightened out his tie. "They'll ride them ley lines the quickest route they can! This dungeon looks to be the fastest way for whoever placed down that pattern."

  Roark groaned, claws placed over his bent knees as he dry heaved. "Oh fuck… Now I remember why I don't use these things."

  Gloria rushed over to him. "Roark! Are you okay?"

  "Just peachy, sis. Sorry for swearing." He straightened up. "Let's get this show on the road, all right? Time to find some shiny hunk of metal."

  "I like the way ya think, foxy!" Excadrill proclaimed. "Boy, I can already sniff it out!"

  The sudden ringing of chimes startled Gloria as behind her cascades of orange light revealed multiple Entercards phasing into reality. The ghostly and wavy fur of a hunched-over Zoroark caused a chill to race down her spine, and her limbs to seize up.

  'Why does he have to come with us?' she thought. 'Why couldn't he stay where he was?'

  Where he belonged. Far, far away from her and the Pokemon she loved.

  The caped Zoroark lurched forward, tailed by a dozen Rescue Society and Grit Ruin Excavator members combined. Zoroark glanced around the icy chamber. "A Mystery Dungeon…" He motioned a few of his Pokemon with a wave of a claw. "Explore around and find the stairs," he told them.

  Excadrill approached the Ghost-type. "Y'all know exactly what we're lookin' for now, right?"

  Zoroark nodded. "The artifact. Golden color, shaped like a broken arch. I have let all my Pokemon know of its description and its grave importance to your cause."

  "Well alrighty! You Rescue Society folk, can't say I've heard of y'all, but you've been mighty kind and helpful to us lot so far."

  "We used to stretch across Celestic and even other continents, but are now focused on more local matters." Zoroark glanced at Roark. "Roark is much to thank for us still being around."

  Roark shrugged. "Hey, the Rescue Society saved my life before; had to return the favor somehow."

  "You did in many ways you didn't even know."

  Gloria shared a perturbed look at them both. She knew there was a history between her brother and Zoroark, but it irked her. Why was he so chummy with a murderer? He should be furious at him like she was. He should be angry at Zoroark for carrying the flag of the Pokemon he killed by his actions.

  'These negative thoughts… Why can't I shake them?'

  She forced herself to look away from the source of her inner turmoil, plodding ahead while the Pokemon behind her conversed. But with one flame doused, another sprouted in her mind.

  'It's been a while since I've seen Liam, and that Houndoom said the Council was looking for him… They couldn't have caught him, right? No, he's too stubborn to get caught. He's fine, and I'm just worrying like I always do.'

  Her heart rate increased as she placed a paw against her starry black scarf and her Never-Melt-Ice necklace.

  'But Braixen, Monferno, and Scizor… What about them? What about everyone else?'

  The pit in her stomach grew as her chilly breaths became uneven. She huffed in frustration at herself.

  'No, I've gotta be strong about this. We're here for a mission - a reason. Everyone is trying their best, and we have to do the same.'

  A pointy claw tapping her side ripped her out of her thoughts as she turned to see a smirking Roark. "Earth to little sister - you there?"

  "Um, yeah - just thinking," she said. "About all of this. About our friends and… Liam."

  He signed and knelt down to her height. "Yeah, I've been thinking about that blue furball for a while. If he's smart, he's been evading the Council and not going after Jackson like he said he was."

  "Do you think he'll come back?"

  Roark averted her hopeful gaze, scratching the back of his neck. "I'm not gonna promise anything, sis - not this time. But once we get the gang all back together, I'm sure your sidekick will get the memo and rejoin Team Requiem."

  It was such a small gesture, and one she was not sure if Roark even believed, but it gave her the tiniest affirmation that everything was going to be okay. She wondered how much she depended on his presence, that cocksure smirk he always wore regardless of how dire things were.

  She was positive she could not continue if Roark was gone as well, and that ate at her consciousness.

  "Excadrill's workers have found a way to the stairs!" Zoroark's voice echoed through the room. "Roark, Gloria! Let's all stick together to not get bogged down by dungeon Pokemon!"

  Roark looked behind him. "Sure thing! We're on our way!" He moved to follow, but her paw tugging on his ankle prevented him.

  "I still don't trust him," she whispered.

  "… Y'know, I didn't at first. I've met a lot of 'mons throughout my Rescue Society days, and I've learned to sniff out the fakers from the truly remorseful ones." He pointed a claw at Zoroark as he and the rest of the group went down a hallway. "For all that he's done for Kyuris Village and the Rescue Society, I don't think he's one of those fakers."

  Gloria scowled, not getting the answer her mind desired. "If you say so…"

  "Look, after we explore this place and find this artifact thing, you won't see him again. Now that I can promise, okay?"

  "Okay..."

  "Great. Now stick to me and pretend I'm blue, just as small as you, and talk real funny sounding." A flash of white light surrounded Roark as he morphed into the body of a Riolu. "Look good enough for you?"

  She giggled and pushed him forward. "Okay, okay, just go already."

  Perhaps there was something to look forward to.

  It felt strange to go through a Mystery Dungeon without her trusted partner beside her, swatting away foes with his Force Palms, and bantering with her as they overcame each floor and its obstacles.

  She missed those simple days of guild life dearly.

  A trembling Night Daze swept through the room with a dark shockwave, knocking down and defeating an assortment of dead-eyed Snorunts and Snovers. Roark grinned at his work, dusting himself off as he looked around.

  "What do you think? One more floor and we're out?"

  Excadrill waved a claw. "Don't be so sure, foxy. A dungeon could be twenty floors, or ninety-nine!"

  "Pfpt - ninety-nine floors? That's an old myth guild rookies spread around."

  "There's a kernel of truth to every story, Roark. Mystery Dungeons are quite unpredictable." Zoroark said as he wandered around the chamber. He stopped in front of a particular wall, cocking his head at it. "… This is strange. This couldn't be generated by the dungeon, could it?"

  Everyone turned their attention to the wall. Carvings in the smooth ice revealed what looked like an illustration. A swathe of figures shaped like Pokemon were gathered around a cave entrance. Behind the cave was a large mountain-like backdrop.

  "Well, I'll be…" Excadrill murmured. "This ain't somethin' you see every now and then, folks."

  Zoroark looked back. "What is it?"

  "Sometimes when a dungeon forms, it not only steals the natural environment but small things as well - like one of these murals."

  Gloria stared at the wall carving, the gears in her mind turning. "Wait! This happened before at Criss-Cross-Creek - during me and Liam's mission! We saw wall murals made by actual Pokemon in the Mystery Dungeon."

  Excadrill nodded. "That ya did, little miss. This looks like confirmation that some group was down here before us."

  Roark jabbed a claw at an icy staircase tucked away in one of the room's corners. "Are we done yammering about it? I'd let to get out of this ice box."

  The group took the stairs one by one. Gloria felt her vision wavering as she ambled up the steps. She saw total darkness before she walked straight out of a shadowy void. Her eyes readjusted to this new environment, expanding into wide disks at what she was now seeing.

  A long transparent bridge extending below an enormous, almost bottomless pit led to a grand structure. Long spiky ice crystals jutted from the cavern walls, extending upward into winding spirals like castle towers. An opening in the middle of the collection of crystals was sucking in air and a neverending flurry of snowflakes into its entrance.

  "This- this is a… It's a palace completely made of ice!" Gloria exclaimed.

  "A frozen palace…" Roark whistled, creating an echo. "You think you've seen everything on this rock."

  Excadrill strolled ahead casually. "Ain't the last of the crazy finds you'll stumble upon. C'mon, y'all - let's give this frigid place a lil' social call!"

  The group gradually made their way across the bridge. Gloria felt her heart drop when she peered down at the sharp stalagmites below, so she kept away from the sides. She was not sure why, but an uneasy feeling crept inside her gut about this place. Her musings were then cut short by a loud tremor that shook the bridge.

  "Remain still, everyone! It'll pass!" Zoroark barked.

  Gloria watched cracks form in the ice from the quaking. She stiffened, swearing she could hear a roar of something overlaying the tremors. When it ceased, she shifted to remain by Roark's side. He comforted her, pulling her close to his side.

  "Is everyone okay?" Zoroark questioned, getting concerned murmurs all around.

  "We'd feel a hell of a lot safer getting off this bridge!" Roark yelled, quickening his pace.

  The majority agreed with his consensus, a pitter-patter of footsteps resounding across the bridge as they made it to the other side. Cold steps drew them closer to the swirling vortex of frost within. Gloria's stare traveled up the vast castle structure, jerking a little as another shockwave rocked their bodies.

  Despite all the astonishing places she had been to throughout her time in the guild, nothing seemed so daunting as this palace.

  Was it because Liam was not there to support her, or was something else ladening her nerves with fear and uncertainty? It continued to elude her senses.

  Excadrill was the last to make it across, huffing and puffing. "Ah… I didn't realize I was so out of shape!" he said between gasps for air.

  "So I'm guessing we're not just gonna knock and see if someone's home," Roark commented, flicking his ear. "I mean, that is if any 'mon is crazy enough to live in a place like this."

  "This 'palace' looks like it was built for someone or something," Zoroark said. "Though I highly doubt Pokemon are living within."

  "Wanna take a guess yourself?"

  The Ghost-type smiled, striding toward the entrance. "You all came here for a reason and so did I. There's no point in heading back now." He turned. "Let's go, Rescuers!"

  As Zoroark and his followers entered, those who remained watched them be consumed by a frenzy of whipped snowflakes. Gloria found herself hesitant to take another step, but Roark was beside her the whole time as the group pressed on.

  Passing through the doorway was like entering a portal into a new realm. The first thing she saw past beyond a veil of blinding white light was an imposing yet crumbled ice sculpture of a large Pokemon. Flanked by two sets of spiraling staircases stretching to separate hallways leading into the unknown.

  But most peculiar was when she looked up and saw chunks of ice suspended in mid-air. They hovered close together in a ring pattern around stalactites sparking in a strange purple-hued energy.

  "It gets even weirder on the inside," Roark said as he walked around aimlessly.

  Excadrill rubbed his claws together. "Just think of how many goodies this fancy ole ice sculpture is hidin'! Ooh, I'm feeling tingly all over, and it ain't the cold!"

  "Hey, don't get any treasure-hunting ideas now. Only treasure we're after is the, uh… thingamajig." Roark chuckled. "We really need a name for the stupid thing."

  Zoroark's eyes flicked to the two hallways splitting the room in two. "I think it would be wise to split up."

  "Eh, splitting up might make this trip go faster, but this place might be a fu-" He glanced at Gloria. "-freaking maze and only Excadrill here has an ELE with him."

  "You bring up a good point; I can't risk my Pokemon getting hurt if we're not certain of what's ahead."

  Roark smirked. "Y'know, you're starting to act like Bisharp used to back in the day - always worrying about us like we were his kids. Made it feel like we were all in one big family. " He could barely see it - a small smile upon Zoroark's face that resonated with a semblance of pride.

  "… Thank you."

  Gloria scoffed at what she heard, tuning out their continued conversation as she wandered about. Despite all the oddities around her, she couldn't relinquish her gaze from the statue. All that remained of it were a set of feet with three sharp toe-claws. A pressure was building in her head the longer she stared.

  She was not sure why, but a sense of dread was crushing down upon her. It was foreboding, and she could feel her anxiety creeping in more and more.

  'What am I failing to understand? This place… I feel like I shouldn't be here. Why?'

  Before she could dig deeper into this feeling, the transparent ice beneath her began to vibrate. With much more force than before, a tremor blasted everyone to the ground. As the room swayed and shook around them, Gloria could hear the roar again - much louder this time.

  Then she saw it.

  A single crack in one of the walls. It spiderwebbed, splintering through the walls until it reached the ceiling. The floating chunks of ice above them lost their magnetism and began to fall.

  Gloria's instincts activated as she rolled to her right just before a boulder of frozen rock could smash her to bits. Entire layers of the palace walls came crumbling down as the tremor continued its raucous devastation.

  All she could do was place her paws over her ears and pray for safety.

  After a full minute of chaos she was blind to, the trembling ceased. Slowly opening her eyes, they grew wide at what she saw. An impossibly tall mountain of icy rock now occupied the spot where the rest of the group was.

  She panicked.

  "R-Roark!" She cried, running up to the wall of debris and smacking it with her paws. Tears built in her eyes. "Roark! Please tell me y-you can hear me! Please!"

  A few heart-pounding seconds passed by with no response. She feared the worst until she could hear muffled groaning from beyond the other side of the wall. Then she heard him - making all her fears for naught.

  "Gloria… are you… okay?" Roark asked.

  "Yes, yes! I'm fine! Are you?!"

  "Yeah, just a scratch! We're all just peachy over here! How about you!"

  She quickly glossed over her fur littered with scrapes. "I'm fine! But… But I'm-"

  "We're separated, sis, I know," he said in a calming manner. "But just relax, okay? We'll find a way to regroup."

  "W-what about Excadrill and his workers? Can't they dig through it?"

  "Uh, About that missy…" she heard the drawling voice of Excadrill through the small gaps. "This type of material here?" There was a tapping noise. "Even my workers here would struggle chewin' through without the proper equipment - sad to say. It could take hours getting through!"

  A quick glance behind her revealed the entrance was also blockaded. She was entirely isolated from the group. The fear she initially felt before developed into something else.

  Terror.

  "Gloria, we're counting everyone and we're not seeing Zoroark!" Roark's muffled voice yelled. "Is he… Please tell me he's with you, sis."

  "Tell him… I'm fine," a new voice spoke up from behind her.

  Gloria's fur stood up on end as she slowly swiveled around to see the ghostly white Zoroark pull himself up from a pile of frost-covered rocks. He dusted himself off before flashing her a smile and nodding.

  She whipped her head away, her body quivering as she began to almost hyperventilate. 'No, no, no, no, no! Why him? Why is he the only one with me?'

  She was alone with a killer - a monster. That's what her mind constantly screamed at her.

  "Sis! I hear you breathing! Tell me, is he there?"

  "He's… he's fine, Roark. W-we're both fine."

  She was anything but.

  A relieved sigh came through the wall. "Everyone is accounted for then. Only problem is that we're separated from each other; that's gonna make everything more difficult."

  "C-can't we use the Entercards to escape from here?"

  'Please.'

  "Excadrill thinks we should continue the mission, and I agree with him. Getting back in here with all this ice in the way would be a real pain. But we need you two to continue with us."

  Gloria wanted to say no, to get away from this horrible place and away from a horrible Pokemon, but she could not. Why should her personal feelings matter when Celestic and potentially the world were at stake?

  Heroes shrugged off their fears and inhibitions for the greater good. And no Pokemon would ever consider her a hero if she backed down like this.

  "I'll- W-we'll stay!" she shouted with a stamp of her paw. "We're going to stay and we're going to find the artifact!"

  A faint chuckle could be heard. "Now that's some pep I like to hear, sis! I know what you're thinking in that cute little head of yours."

  "You do?"

  "Yep, but I need you to be strong for your big bro. He's not… a bad Pokemon - you can trust me on that."

  "…"

  Through a narrow gap, she saw a blood-red claw peeking through her side of the wall.

  "Promise you both will get along," he said.

  She bit her lip before touching the claw's pointy tip with a paw. "I promise."

  Roark pulled his claw away. "All right. Worst comes to worst, all of us leave through our Entercards; I know Zoroark has one on him. You guys go down that hallway, and maybe we can find a way to regroup."

  "Okay…"

  "Good luck, sis."

  She listened to the sounds of the others picking up their gear and pressing on. Her heart lurched in her chest as she heard a scrape from behind - a shadow lurking beside her.

  "Gloria, I understand your… contempt for me, but I hope we can set it aside and work together as a team for right now."

  Gloria whirled around, her aqua-blue eyes twitching with rage. "Don't… talk to me! We're just-" She shook her head and stomped toward the staircase. "W-we'll do this, but you don't talk to me!"

  How dare he consider them a team? She had no team anymore, no one by her side but Roark, and it was all his fault. She did not care if it was childish; it was unfair to her.

  Everything was so unfair.

  She stormed up the stairs as Zoroark hung his shoulders and lumbered after her. Angry tears were blinked away before she entered through a sparkling hallway.

  She had to be strong and endure this, just like any budding hero had to.

  "On your left, Gloria!"

  A sour look formed on her face as she begrudgingly spun around her to her left. She strongly inhaled before spewing a twin beam of frosted energy at a Chimecho, freezing it solid.

  Zoroark swiped at a Glalie with Bitter Malice, the ghostly slash producing a malicious aura that swamped her senses and made her body shiver every time.

  Everything about him felt evil.

  From pools of frigid water came more dungeon Pokemon. A pinkish Knockout Orb rolled by their feet, exploding seconds later and blasting them across the chamber as they smacked into walls. Zoroark closed his saddlebag and grinned at their fallen foes dissipating into glowing orange energy. "You guild Pokemon sure know how to fight, huh?" he remarked.

  "I said don't talk to me," Gloria grumbled as she pressed on.

  "… Sorry," he mumbled back, trudging behind her.

  She was nervous having him trail behind her throughout the Mystery Dungeon. Any time he could attack her from behind when she was not looking, where no one could know.

  'I'm not being paranoid. He… He could try it, but I'm ready.'

  The eerie, reflective halls they silently traversed led them deeper into the empty palace. She had faced more small tremors, giant chasms where their current path ended, and dropping icicles that threatened to impale her. She chose to think of these obstacles as another test for her, just like so many other trials she had to overcome thus far.

  Rage was still clawing at the back of her mind when she saw his wispy fur in her peripherals, but she staved off any venomous words or thoughts from coming out. It was mentally exhausting - tougher to overcome than any dungeon Pokemon in her path.

  She took the final step up a translucent staircase and felt her perception flicker before she and Zoroark emerged from a shroud of black.

  Chipped, decorated pillars that rose to the very ceiling in a circular pattern dominated their vision. Along the walls burned spectral white and blue torches, forever illuminating treacherous shafts splitting apart a battered rotunda. A trembling of the earth beneath them caused precarious stalactites to quiver from above.

  They carefully navigated through this maze of hazards, hopping over pitfalls and crawling under felled pillar supports. Gloria kept her head on a swivel - not just because of the Pokemon beside her, but because she could sense something.

  Another tremor passed, and another instance of her hearing that terrifying roar overlaying it. Despite being an Ice-type, the biting cold in the air made her shiver intensely.

  'I can't just be hearing things? He… He can hear it too, right?'

  Keeping up her vow of silence felt foolish now, but she refused to say anything. Glancing around, rusty swords and axes stabbed the ground, melded to the ice. She instinctively ducked as arcs of plasma suddenly jumped to more of the mysterious floating chunks of icy rock hovering around.

  Passing a web of sparking crystals, her relief was cut short by a massive wall of ice that impeded their path. A corridor was just beyond her limitations, taunting her. She huffed in frustration as Zoroark approached the wall and gave an experimental tap. A grin then stretched across his face as he increased the force of his claws and they easily sunk in.

  He cleared his throat, throwing a hesitant glance back. "… Permission to speak?"

  Gloria averted his gaze before slowly nodding.

  "There's no apparent way across, but the ice is soft enough for me to get a good grip on it." He flinched upon seeing the grimace beginning to form across her muzzle. "You… understand what I'm suggesting, correct?"

  This felt like a cruel joke.

  Her legs struggled to move forward as she approached Zoroark. "... Go ahead," she mumbled softly. A shriek nearly escaped her as she was suddenly hefted over his shoulders. She pushed her head aside to avoid a face full of white mane and held on tight.

  "I'll try to do this as fast as I can without harming us," he said.

  'Please,' she replied in her head.

  The sounds of sharp claws slicing ice resounded throughout the room as Zoroark climbed.

  A moment like this reminded her of that day - distinct and life-changing. Where she lost everything yet gained someone so important to her mental wellbeing. She remembered Roark carrying her up a cliff just like this. Now she felt distaste for comparing Zoroark to him.

  She wished it was Roark carrying her now, and she could feel safe, and at ease. He was her strength, but also her weakness.

  Why did it feel that way? And why is she getting these feelings now? Her fur bristled as she shivered again, anxiety creeping in to swamp her senses.

  Zoroark grunted as he latched his claws onto the final stretch of the wall. He hoisted himself up onto solid ground and panted heavily. "It's… been quite a while since I've done exercise and not… paperwork," he said in between breaths.

  The story has been stolen; if detected on Amazon, report the violation.

  Gloria quickly distanced herself from him. "Let's, um, continue."

  "… Right."

  The sound of their footsteps was soon overtaken by gushing water as they went further down the hallway. More streams of water seeped through the cracks of the floor. The ice-cold rivers they followed led to something fantastic.

  Through the veil of a freezing mist, they saw it - a spectacular lake of water occupying a vast space. Sparkling crystals rose from the shimmering depths. Waterfalls gushed forth from openings in the walls.

  Gloria felt her breath stolen away by such a sight. She was too distracted by her gawking to see Zoroark slide down a slippery hill. He got close to the lake's edge until he could spot it - a flat iceberg connected to the shoreline by a narrow strip of ice.

  "Aha! We can use this to float to the other side!" Zoroark proclaimed, carefully stepping onto the plate of ice. He looked at her expectantly as she caught on to his thinking. "Er, unless you have another plan?"

  She said nothing and plodded over to him, jumping onto the iceberg. Zoroark then slashed the connecting piece of ice away as the iceberg began to float down the lake. Time passed by slowly, the both of them finding ample time to sit down and relax after an exhausting trek thus far.

  Gloria found the transparent ice of their vessel interesting as she avoided any eye contact. A slow-paced trip like this brought back memories of her and Liam's boat ride through Criss-Cross-Creek. With nothing to do but observe and converse with another, it made the time go by fast. A smile overtook her strained features; she adored those days of them starting off in the guild and taking on missions as rookies.

  From her introduction to Roark, to her partnership with Liam, she knew well her mental health was held together by them. But in these uncertain times, these memories felt like a bygone era.

  Drifting her gaze upward, she tried to look away, but they landed on Zoroark. More specifically, the many deep lacerations that did not have bandages over them.

  'I… I did that. I did that to him, and I wanted to do so much more…'

  She was not certain what would have happened if she was not pulled off. Would she have killed him right then and there? The thought sent a pang of terror in her chest. Was she even capable of that? She could not fathom such a concept as murder; it felt foreign to her.

  'But he is… He was-' She stopped that train of thought dead in its tracks.

  Zoroark noticed her burning stare and looked down at his form. "... It doesn't hurt that much. In fact, Zoroark like myself derive a greater amount of energy through pain."

  Her gaze lingered. She contemplated keeping her silence and looking away but did not.

  'No. I can't ignore this anymore. I can't keep all this bottled up; I need to confront this right here and now.'

  "Why did you come back?" she asked flatly.

  Zoroark blinked. "What do you mean?"

  "You heard me. Why? Why did you come back to Kyuris after you were let out?"

  "I…" He squirmed in place. "I felt I needed to correct a mistake I made. I couldn't just move on from what happened."

  "A mistake?"

  His referring to the destruction of her village and home as a 'mistake' sent shockwaves of anger through her. But she managed to quell this internal rage as he responded.

  "You're right. It was not a mistake, it was a true sin and an act of evil I committed. I've come to terms with that long ago."

  "So you came back… for what? To just apologize?"

  "To do some good in my eyes." He shifted his position and propped his back against a crystal. "I spent quite some time in Tyrantrum's Jaw, and seeing and experiencing the conditions of that terrible place made me realize that I needed to turn over a new leaf. I tried doing that by coming back, helping the Glacier Guiders reorganize, joining the Rescue Society."

  "I heard you speaking with my brother, but I couldn't believe it. I thought it was a trick, and you came back to pull some long con."

  "… Do you still think that?"

  She paused, trying to search for an answer she was not sure of. "I don't know. I want to…" She took a deep breath. "I want to believe that I can trust you." Getting nothing but silence in response, she continued. "Do you know what it was like?"

  "…"

  She sniffled, on the verge of tears. "B-being sent to an orphanage in a strange city? Not knowing any of the children around you? Not knowing what was gonna happen to you? You- you took away everything from me," she said through flowing tears. "I-I thought my life was over. And so did many of the Pokemon you hurt."

  He huddled his legs close to his chest. "… No, I don't know what it was like for you. I won't ever know, truly." He wet his lips. "I lost, too. The two Pokémon that helped me create an avalanche died creating it; they were my only friends in this world. My own mother did not want to see me anymore after she heard about it - not that I blame her. I was truly alone emerging back into the outside world, and Kyuris felt like the only chance I had to turn my life around. Your brother inspired me to do that…"

  "My brother?"

  He nodded. "I'll never forget that day at the very top of the Glacier Peak Mountains. He was as angry as you were. I was drunk, and I figured I could save him some trouble." His eyes were shimmering with emotion. "… He saved me from taking my own life."

  She was taken aback by such a claim. Never before did Roark tell her about this.

  Zoroark seemed to notice her shock. "He never told you about it?"

  "No…"

  He gave her a solemn look. "Maybe some Pokemon would have been happy, but I thank him every day for preventing me from making one final mistake."

  She was unsure of what to say. She had built up this Zoroark's character in her mind all this time as someone wicked and beyond good. But how could she see anything but that? But if both sides were bloodied, could she make peace with that?

  "You were part of an exploration team in a guild near Empyrean City, right?" he asked. "And in that team, you hunted down and captured outlaws, I assume."

  "Yeah… We did."

  "And when you turned in those outlaws, what did you think of them? Did you want them to be locked away forever, or for them to turn a new leaf and change for the good?"

  She slowly nodded.

  It was a no-brainer. Of course, she wanted them to do good - all Pokemon wished for that. At least, that was what she hoped of a world dreaming of heroism and noble intention. But in the back of her mind - when she thought of Zoroark's fate - she wanted him locked away forever.

  She wanted justice, peace, and mind. It was hypocritical in her heart, but it was personal to her mind.

  "Gloria, I'm not asking you to forgive me - you don't have to, nor should you. But I'd hope that you can think of me as one of those outlaws you put to justice and that I can change for the good as you hoped they could as well." He swallowed. "Can you… Could you accept that?"

  Her mouth opened and closed several times. "I…" His mellow gaze searched her eyes for an answer, and she felt compelled to give one. "I can live with that."

  And just like that, it felt like a weight was lifted off her shoulders, and she could breathe again. She could live with an idea like that, and she could feel good about putting all the bad memories behind her.

  "I'm glad we had this talk, then. We can, er, go back to the silence now, if you'd like," he said.

  "N-no. We don't, um, have to. I said what I wanted to say, and I think I gained some new perspective I didn't have before."

  Zoroark smiled sincerely. "... That's good."

  Wading through a small gap, the flat iceberg they were riding drifted toward the opposite shore of the lake. It stopped alongside the edge, allowing them to stand and disembark. Gloria took her first step onto the new land feeling invigorated. She walked forward now without any fear or apprehension.

  They continued their way through crystalline architecture until they happened upon a peculiar sight. Nestled in the center of the desolate halls was a pile of odd-looking prismatic ice crystals. More frozen swords and axes were strewn about.

  Zoroark approached the bundle of crystals and hesitantly plucked one from the ground. His curious features then lit up with realization. "These are… Frisms!" he deduced.

  Gloria cocked her head. "You know about Frisms?"

  He nodded, smiling. "There's a small girl in Kyuris that I befriended some time ago. She's one of the only Pokemon there that doesn't know my history." He gave the Frism a tap of his claw. "She absolutely loves recording messages in them and leaving them around for me to find."

  Gloria giggled. "Sounds like what me and Cubchoo did when we were kits. We would like to mess with our school teacher by placing them in cabinets or desks."

  "Hmm. Usually, you could find Frisms naturally forming above ground in this region. But down below, all gathered in this location is strange to see."

  "If a group of Pokemon explored this place before, maybe they brought them here?"

  "Most likely. Should we continue?"

  Gloria glanced around, noting the multiple entrances behind them. "If we're farther ahead than Roark and the others, then maybe we should use one of these Frisms to leave behind a message."

  "That's a great idea!"

  Gloria moved to pick up a Frism, a wave of nostalgia washing over her as she looked at her reflection through its mirror-like surface. She wracked her brain, trying to remember how she did it in her youth.

  'Oh, right! Warmth!'

  She ran her breath over the Frism, waiting for its blue color to turn slightly opaque before clearing her throat and speaking into its hollow opening.

  "So that's how you ended up looking like a mummy, huh?" Roark scratched his chin. "Can't say I remember those Rose Clan clowns using Mega Evolution or wearing armor, though."

  Excadrill snorted. "'It's 'cause they got a big boost in fundin', I reckon. And that sponsor of theirs must be your old boss - Jackson."

  Roark stopped in his tracks. "You serious? And he sent the Rose Clan after Garchomp and her team as well?"

  "You bet. That mutt tried to bury us both, but thanks to that resilient reptilian of a gal and her team, we sent the mercs packin'."

  Roark chuckled and slapped the Ground-type on his back. "Welcome to the 'being shot at and lived' club, mineman!."

  Excadrill hissed at the sudden contact. "Easy on the wares - these wounds ain't fully healed."

  "Oh shit, uh, sorry 'bout that."

  "We're square, foxtrot, but I got a burnin' question for ya. Have ya ever noticed Jackson actin' strange in the past?"

  "Mr. Glare acting strange? Doesn't exactly narrow it down," Roark said before sighing. "But come to think of it… I noticed on occasion he'd just… look at me."

  "Look at ya?"

  "Yeah, like a - I don't know - guilty look, or something mixed with pity. It was like he knew something that I didn't, and it's messed with my head ever since." The Dark-type shrugged. "Maybe it's something the kid knows about, wherever he is."

  "Mighty strange…" Excadrill crossed his arms. "I remember when three bright-eyed explorers wandered into my office and asked me to dig a big ole hole in the ground." He smirked. "Gave me my whole passion for treasure huntin'. I just can't see how the Lucario from that memory is the same one fracturin' the continent now..."

  "I've got my suspicions how, but-"

  "Boss! Boss!" a distant Drilbur yelled. "Check what we found lyin' around!" The tiny mole scurried toward them, an oddly shaped, opaque object in his grasp. "Some kinda treasure ya think?"

  "What a find - a frozen pinecone," Roark remarked with a smirk.

  "Not a pinecone, but a Frism, foxy!" Excadrill corrected, taking the object from Drilbur. "Good find, son! These little doohickeys have been used by them Ice-types for thousands of years! They record your voice, and the white ones have recordings in 'em."

  Roark noticed the Frism's white coloration. "So this one has a recording on it, I'm guessing."

  "Why don't we find out? Blow your breath on it."

  "Uh, what?"

  "Warm it up a lil!"

  "You're messing with me, right?"

  "No siree!" Excadrill said with a wide, almost comical smile

  Roark rolled his eyes before taking the Frism from him and exhaling over the top of it. To his surprise, the Frism began producing noises that slowly morphed into a perceivable, familiar voice.

  Gloria's voice.

  "Um… Hello. Roark, or Excadrill? I hope it's Roark hearing this," the Frism emitted. "I wanted to leave this Frism in hopes of you stumbling upon it, and knowing how to activate it."

  Excadrill shot a look at Roark, who rolled his eyes a second time.

  "But if anyone is hearing this message, I want to get something off my chest." There was a pause. "I want to move past the hate. I want to trust Zoroark like you do, Roark. I can't forgive him, b-but I want to believe he can do good. If I never gave him that chance, I'd never forgive myself either. What I did to Zoroark when I first saw him, wasn't me. I'm not that type of Pokemon, and I don't want to be. I… I want Pokemon to look up to me someday as a role model, as a hero - you know that. If letting go of all this pain helps me reach that goal, then it's worth it. Zoroark is right beside me, and we're going to find that artifact and bring it back to help keep this world safe!" Her voice crackled before the Frism suddenly stopped making noise.

  Roark was silent for a moment, digesting her message before he smirked. "That's my little sister for you."

  "Them young ones really are the future of Celestic, ain't they?" Excadrill suggested. "Not us or those old geezers in the Council."

  "Yeah, they really are." Roark placed his claws on his hips as he caught his breath. "Man, I'm so damn proud of her…"

  "Hold her close, foxy, 'cause-"

  A panting Linoone in a Rescue Society cape rounded a corner, stealing their attention away. "Bosses! There's something ahead you should see!"

  Excadrill sighed. "What now?" He reluctantly shuffled after the Linoone. "Y'all don't need us to hold your paw through everythin' now, do we?"

  Roark followed closely behind the Ground-type as Linoone led them across a narrow ice bridge connecting two large areas of the palace. Entering a new chamber, his eyes were instinctively drawn upward, expanding to the size of dinner plates at what he saw.

  What appeared to be the bodies of Pokemon were suspended from the ceiling, encapsulated in crystals of ice; their final, horrified expressions were permanently affixed to their cold blue forms. There were dozens - some stuck to the walls and others shattered into chunks that littered the floor.

  "... We should hurry and catch up," Roark mumbled.

  Zoroark waved the white ethereal torch around their surroundings, crouching underneath a fallen column. He scanned the vicinity, casting the flames of illumination at the walls until he spotted something.

  "Look over here! There's writing!"

  Gloria got closer so she could see it. Encased completely in translucent ice was a discolored spike of some sort. It was black, but also white and gray with a yellow shard jutting from the top of it.

  "What is it?" she wondered.

  Zoroark held the torch to the text carved into the ice below the object. "Footprint runes, hmm. It's a good thing some elders in Kyuris still teach it." He remained silent for a moment, seemingly translating the scripture in his head. "It says… 'The DNA Splicers will reunite truth and ideals with… the husk to become the original one of all virtues.'"

  'The husk… Why does that seem so familiar?'

  "This doesn't appear to be the artifact we are seeking," Zoroark said, glancing to his right. "There's a light up ahead. Perhaps there's further explanation."

  She gave the petrified item a passing glance before following Zoroark into a new chamber. Their eyes were immediately hit with natural lighting that flooded the vast and spacious room. Bubbling water flowed beneath their feet, a thin layer of transparent ice coating the floor. Purple plasma was jumping across a fortification of crystals at the far reaches.

  Gloria took in these mesmerizing sights with excitement before she saw it, stopping dead in her tracks. The unmistakable appearance of a Pokemon frozen in ice at the heart of the chamber. Her heart was hammering in her chest as she hesitantly began to approach, Zoroark following suit.

  Her paws were quivering as she raised one to place against the ice to get a better look inside. It was an Infernape from what she could tell, bracing uselessly against an attack from ages ago. Curiously, lying on the floor beside the statue was a white-colored Frism.

  Zoroark picked it up, inspecting it. "There must be a recording on it." He let out a tiny blaze from his Flamethrower across the Frism. As holes melted around the top section, sounds and voices reached their eyes.

  "... Oh blessed Allmother," a male voice spoke. Intermixed was a deafening roar and sounds of metal clashing. "... Lend us your strength, your guidance, your unwavering support." The roaring grew louder and closer. "Even if I fall, we all stand against the beast, to pry open the gates of paradise for all to see! My soldiers of paradise! Keep fighting for your Allfather! The taste of victory against these false gods shall be-" A fierce gale put an end to the voice's rallying speech as the Frism lost its opaque coloration.

  Before they could talk among themselves, a sudden echoing crack broke the stillness in the sir. A great tremor rocked the earth they stood upon, sending them to the floor. A shadow enveloped the area, sundering it into ominous darkness.

  Floating chunks of ice fell around them before entire sections of the ceiling crumbled away. Gloria peered up just in time to witness something horrific.

  A large Pokemon descending right on top of them.

  She quickly scrambled away before she could be flattened. The frozen Infernape was smashed into dozens of pieces as the colossal beast landed with a sweeping shockwave of frigid wind. Her heart leaped in her throat as she turned to stare at it.

  It looked draconic in nature, bipedal and awash with mixes of blue and grey. Two wings sprouted from its back, ending in plug-like bioluminescent spikes. Gleaming yellow eyes stared back at her as a thunderous voice boomed throughout the room.

  "PREPARE YOURSELVES FOR BATTLE."

  Gloria was frozen, locked in place. Her thoughts of fleeing were dissolving in a pit of sizzling acid deep in her gut as fear gripped her. She now remembered what disturbed her about this place, the roaring of a beast familiar to her.

  This was Kyurem of legend, known by all Pokemon from her village. The monster that eats Pokemon whole.

  "Gloria!"

  Her attention briefly switched between the looming Legendary and Zoroark. He was pinned beneath a layer of icy rocks, clearly unable to free himself. Still, he managed to unhook his saddlebag and slide it over toward her.

  "Use the Entercard inside!" he pleaded. "You can get out!"

  Taking the saddlebag, she considered the offer only for a second. Kyurem was still motionless, almost as if he was waiting for her decision, judging her with his cold, unblinking stare.

  "I… I can't leave you here, Zoroark!" she screamed, throwing the saddlebag over her side. "We can't give up when we're so close!"

  "NOW WE BEGIN."

  Gloria shrieked and dove to the right before a three-clawed foot smashed the ground where she once stood. She retaliated with an Aurora Beam, striking Kyurem's side. He shrugged off her attack with a flex of his wings.

  She had no time to react as pulses of draconic energy shot out from the spikes on his wings, slamming into her side and sending her skidding across the floor. She hid behind a large uprooted crystal.

  'Kyurem is an Ice and Dragon-type… That means…'

  Scarfing down an Oran Berry from the saddlebag, she charged out of cover just as Kyurem smashed it to bits with a single stomp.

  Pink energy built up around Gloria as she unleashed her Dazzling Gleam, a barrage of sparkling bursts exploded across Kyurem's body, causing him to flinch.

  She used this small window to run underneath the Legendary, ripping out a fiery orange Cluster Orb from her saddlebag. She smashed the orb against his underbelly before sprinting out from under his large tail.

  A series of mini explosions rocked Kyurem's underside, partly destroying the ground beneath him as the Legendary slid - halfway submerged into the icy waters below.

  Sudden inspiration struck Gloria as she retrieved a Voltage Orb. It had a purple hue - lighting bottled inside its glassy exterior. Before Kyurem could escape, she chucked the orb at him.

  It shattered along his neck, releasing bolts of electricity that arced across the rest of his body. A field of shocking static enveloped the waters. Kyurem was stiff as a rock when he completely sank.

  Gloria panted heavily as she waited with bated breath.

  'Did I… Did I do it? I-'

  Water erupted like a geyser as Kyurem launched himself back onto land, barely a scratch on him.

  "ENOUGH."

  A gale picked up in the chamber behind Kyurem that was redirected toward Gloria. She had no choice but to lock her paws and stand her ground against an ensuing Blizzard or risk getting blown away.

  Withering blasts of frost pounded her body with each agonizing second she endured. She could not see beyond piercing yellow eyes through a raging storm as sharp ice crystals lashed her fur. Blood trickled down her failing vision.

  Kyurem was approaching.

  'Can't see anything… Can't feel…'

  He was near, and her legs were quite literally frozen in place.

  'Is this the end? Is this… how I die?!'

  Kyurem was right in front of her. The blizzard raged endlessly in the background.

  "IS THIS HOW YOU CHOOSE TO PERISH? THEN I WILL GRANT YOU YOUR WISH."

  He raised a foot, and Gloria could see her life flash before her eyes.

  If this was her last moment on this earth, would she have felt fulfilled?

  'No…' she decided. 'NO!'

  She screamed and fought with every fiber of her being as the foot came down. All she heard was the cracking of ice as her body miraculously jumped forward. She looked back, a crater in the position she was previously in.

  Her vision was blurry, and her weary muscles were aching, but she was alive. That was enough to stretch a smile across her bleeding muzzle.

  "You can do this, Gloria!" Zoroark cried from afar, still trying to free himself.

  'I… I can do this!'

  It felt strange to get motivation from a Pokemon her mind desperately wanted to despise, but that mattered little now.

  Kyurem turned to face her. If he could somehow express emotion, she could tell there would be visible surprise on his face. His wings stretched outward as the room rumbled at his demand.

  "INTRIGUING."

  Pillars of ice began sprouting up all around Gloria. Not wanting a repeat of before, she stood on a rising crystal and jumped to another, trying to avoid an attack before it started.

  "CLEVER."

  Scrambling atop a pillar, she yelped when an icicle fell mere inches from her face. Looking up, she saw more dangerously tipped stalactites form and instantly drop. She leaped to another rising ice pillar to avoid them. At the very top, she looked down upon Kyurem, her heart pounding at what she was going to do.

  She jumped.

  The Icicle Crash following her every move made a beeline toward Kyurem as she jumped on his back. Icicles shattered all over Kyurem as he whipped his body around, trying to throw Gloria off.

  Another Dazzling Gleam seared his frozen armor before he was finally able to toss her off.

  "THIS ENDS."

  A forming whirlwind prevented Gloria from moving any further. From nothingness, pointed icicles formed and began to rotate in the direction of the chilling wind, increasing in size and speed each second. Her head was beginning to spin trying to keep track of each icicle.

  It was too fast. The icicles suddenly stopped, then sped toward her at incredible speeds. She did the only thing she could think of. Tearing open her saddlebag, she took out and smashed a Knockback Orb seconds before she was impaled.

  A wave of pinkish energy pulsated around her, reversing the direction of the icicles and sending them Kyurem's way. The impact was devastating, the shockwave from it toppling many pillars of ice.

  Gloria shielded her eyes, only opening them when the rush of the winds settled. Her hope of victory crumbled when saw Kyurem standing, still staring her down menacingly.

  Her breaths were labored, her saddlebag empty of items, but she stumbled forward, intent on continuing this fight to the very end - unwavering.

  "STOP."

  Her progress halted as she stared ahead. "... W-what?"

  Kyurem stomped forward as she readied herself for further battle. "YOU HAVE PROVEN YOURSELF IN BATTLE ENOUGH. YOU HAVE SUCCEEDED."

  "I…"

  Her limbs quivered - not from fear, or from strain, but from sheer joy. The only thing that prevented her from collapsing already was the adrenaline pumping through her veins.

  "YOU HAVE HELD YOUR OWN AGAINST A LEGENDARY, COMMONER. YOU WILL NOT BE SENT AWAY, AND I SHALL PROVIDE WHAT YOU SEEK."

  Gloria was too stunned to answer or to hear the echo of swift footsteps growing louder.

  Emerging from a hallway, Roark was the first to pop his head into the chamber. "Woah," he said, hesitantly stepping aside. "I guess we missed the party, huh?"

  Gloria's ears flicked to that familiar voice as she turned. "R-roark?!" She bounded after him.

  They met halfway as she barreled into his chest, squeezing him into a firm hug. "S-sis!" he croaked, wrinkling his nose and peeling her off him. "You're bruised, sweaty, and covered in blood! What the hell happened here?"

  "I won! I beat Kyurem's test!" she cried. "I won! I won!"

  "Okay, okay! Calm down! You're gonna have to explain this to me." His eyes drifted toward a silent Kyurem. He gulped. "And, uh, your friend over here."

  Excadrill and the remaining members of the Grit Ruin Excavators and the Rescue Society entered the chamber. They quickly attended to Zoroark, pulling him up from the rubble.

  "It's true, Roark," Zoroark said as he dusted himself off. "Gloria fought and withstood against Kyurem… all by herself."

  Gloria smiled bashfully. "I couldn't have, um, done it without your help, Zoroark."

  "By golly!" Excadrill exclaimed when he caught sight of Kyurem. He adjusted his tie and created some distance between him and the Legendary. "Ain't you a big, scary lookin' fella? I hope you're nice."

  Kyurem glossed over the new arrivals with a vacant glare. "YOU COMMONERS HAVE QUESTIONS. I MAY PROVIDE INSIGHT IF I AM CAPABLE."

  Gloria ended her embrace with Roark as she walked toward Kyurem, a purpose in her step. "You really are Kyurem, right?"

  "YES."

  "You don't, um, eat Pokemon do you?"

  "MY KIND DOES NOT REQUIRE SUSTENANCE AS COMMONERS DO."

  She found some relief in putting a village myth to rest, but there were far more important questions left. "What is this place?"

  "THIS IS THE GLACIER PEAK PALACE. UTILIZED BY THE MINDS OF LEGENDARIES FROM A FAR GONE ERA TO PROTECT THE ESSENCE OF ARCEUS."

  "... The essence of Arceus?"

  "CORRECT. ANY POKEMON THAT ENTERS MUST BE TESTED BEFORE THEY CAN BE BESTOWED THE KNOWLEDGE TO HEAL THE WORLD."

  'Healing the world… and the essence of Arceus?'

  "Is the essence of Arceus an artifact? Something physical here?"

  Kyurem nodded. "IF YOU SEEK THE ESSENCE ITSELF, IT IS NOT HERE. IT HAS BEEN PASSED OFF LONG AGO."

  A few gasps resounded from all the Pokemon present. Excadrill sneered, pushing his way past a few of his workers to the front. "Now wait a gosh darn second! You're tellin' us some lucky fella already nabbed it?"

  "THAT IS CORRECT."

  Roark crossed his arms. "There were a bunch of frozen Pokemon we encountered here. Do you remember giving this, uh, essence thing to that group?"

  Kyurem stared for a long time. "COME. IT IS BETTER TO SHOW YOU."

  Exchanging looks of apprehension, the now whole group followed Kyurem as he led them deeper into the chamber. The natural lighting dimmed the further they went.

  "I AM NOT THE FIRST AND ONLY ONE OF MY KIND. MANY KYUREM HAVE BEEN BORN AND HAVE DIED HERE, SERVING AS THE GUARDIAN OF THIS PALACE FOR EONS."

  They passed by what looked like dried-out husks of deceased Kyurem littering the floor. An odd glittering light was up ahead.

  "OUR DUTIES WERE TO HAND OFF THE ESSENCE OF ARCEUS TO A WORTHY POKEMON OR FACTION. THOUSANDS OF YEARS AGO, ONE OF MY ANCESTORS MANAGED TO FIGHT SUCH POKEMON."

  More frozen bodies of Pokemon emerged in the darkness. They wore faces of dedication and confidence to the bitter, frigid end.

  "THIS GROUP CALLED THEMSELVES 'THE ALIGNMENT'."

  Kyurem stopped at the very end of the chamber, where a pedestal of heavenly, oscillating light stood. Tiny motes and sparkles danced in suspended space. Gloria felt her gaze drawn to it, feeling that something should have been there that was not. Still, it was like the aftershocks of its presence were washing over her.

  "MANY WERE KILLED, BUT THEY PURSUED, INTENT ON CLAIMING IT FOR THEMSELVES. THEY SUCCEEDED. THEIR LEADER WAS LOST, BUT THEY FOUGHT ON AND CLAIMED THE ESSENCE. IF YOU HAVE COME HERE IN SEARCH OF IT, THEN I MUST APOLOGIZE."

  'The Alignment… THAT Alignment? The ones behind the Eden Theater? And this was thousands of years ago?' Her mind was still reeling from this revelation to notice the damper it had put on their mission here.

  "And y'all Kyurem don't know where the other Arceus thingamajigs are at?" Excadrill questioned.

  "WE AS GUARDIANS WERE DELIBERATELY NOT TOLD OF OTHER LOCATIONS."

  "And do ya know why you're doin' all this? What are these artifacts even for?"

  "TO HEAL THE WORLD, AND TO REVERT THE DEMISE OF ARCEUS. THAT IS THE MISSION THE LEGENDARIES OF THE PAST WISHED TO FULFILL, BUT COULD NOT." Kyurem paused. "COMMONERS, IF YOU SEEK TO RESTORE THE REMAINING ESSENCE, WHAT IS YOUR GOAL?"

  "To heal the world, like you said," Gloria spoke up. "To remove the Mystery Dungeons from this world."

  "A NOBLE CAUSE, BUT SO DID THE POKEMON OF THE PAST." Kyurem turned to face Gloria. "GLORIA… THIS IS YOUR NAME, VULPIX?"

  "Y-yes."

  "I HAVE OBSERVED YOUR EFFORTS SINCE I AWOKE UPON YOUR ARRIVAL. I HAVE WITNESSED YOUR PHYSICAL AND ALSO YOUR MENTAL LIMITS." He quickly glanced at Zoroark before returning his attention to her. "YOU HAVE SURPASSED THEM, AND HAVE PROVEN YOURSELF WORTHY OF THE SAME REWARD THE POKEMON OF THE PAST HAVE EARNED. GLORIA, DO YOU WISH TO BE A HERO?"

  "I… I do."

  "OF ALL GODS AND HEROES ACROSS TIME, THERE IS STRUGGLE. NOT JUST A STRUGGLE AGAINST EVIL, BUT AGAINST RESOLVE." Kyurem gestured to the empty pedestal of light. "YOU WISH TO BE SEEN AS A HERO JUST AS THE POKEMON OF THE PAST DESIRED. YOUR RESOLVE FOR THIS WORLD WILL CLASH WITH OTHERS, EVEN ONES CLOSEST TO YOU. BUT YOU MUST DECIDE IF YOUR RESOLVE IS A FORMULA FOR THE GOOD OF ALL, OR THE GOOD OF A FEW."

  She let his words of wisdom sink in, a shaky smile across her muzzle as a few tears slipped past. "... Thank you, Kyurem. That means a lot."

  "I WILL NOT SEND YOU ALL AWAY AS I DID MANY OTHERS. YOU ARE FREE TO STAY, BUT I CANNOT ASSIST YOU ANY FURTHER."

  Ribbons of deep blue and calm green light constantly ebbed and flowed through a starry sky. Smoke from the chimneys of wooden cottages drifted upward as orange fireplaces lit up Kyuris Village from afar. A light snow was drifting in the biting winds, blanketing the forest of pines and firs in white.

  Gloria remembered days as kit where her parents would wake her up to show her the wonders of an aurora. Seeing it again felt familiar, but different. She drew the same comparison remembering her monotonous life in Empyrean to now.

  "Quite a view, huh?" a suave voice said beside her.

  She brought her gaze back down to the earth. "It is, and I'm happy I get to share it with you, Roark. My parents would've liked that."

  "I don't think I need to do the whole 'they'd be proud of you' shtick anymore. I think that's pretty much said and done with."

  She giggled. "Yeah, I'd say so." She glanced over. "Um, did you happen to, uh…"

  He chuckled and shook his head. "Yeah, we found it, and yeah I heard it all right." His eyes found hers. "Do you think you're ready now, sis? Do you feel worthy yet?"

  "I do. I really do, but…" She frowned. "When we got arrested by the Council, you had it with you, and-"

  Roark smirked as he dug into his large mane, pulling out an icy stone that sent her mind into overdrive. "Those Council guards ain't exactly got the brains to find this?" He knelt down to meet her height. "I'm gonna hold this out, all right. And you do it if you really want to, okay?" Getting a short nod in return, he extended the stone forward. She swallowed and took a deep breath.

  Then she placed her paw on top of it.

  The first thing she noticed was a surge of energy arising within her, like an overflowing well. Her eyes instinctively closed as her breathing stalled. She felt herself growing taller in seconds, her pristine fur growing into long, curling locks that flowed in the direction of the wind. Her wispy nine tails unraveled and flexed.

  Her first breath felt like the most refreshing one she ever had. Fluttering her eyes open, she could see Roark taking in her new Ninetales form, and could even catch a glimpse of a few tears in his eyes.

  "You're not a little girl anymore… You're a woman now," he said.

  She stepped closer and nuzzled him, resting her head on his shoulder. This tender moment was unfortunately cut short as Excadrill made his presence known, an ELE glued to his ear.

  "Foxtrot! Got a lil surprise for ya!" the Ground-type exclaimed before he caught sight of Gloria, taken aback. "Woah! That's a new look for you, missy. I like it!"

  She smiled at him as Roark reluctantly stepped away. "And the surprise is…?" he asked the mole.

  "Why don'tcha speak to him yourself." Excadrill handed the ELE over to Roark and walked away.

  Puzzled, the Dark-type spoke into the Minun-shaped device's speakers. "Hello?"

  "Roark?"

  Gloria's heart thumped when she heard that voice. "… Scizor?"

  "Scizor? What the hell - is that actually you?" Roark quickly followed up. "How did you-"

  "I know you have your questions. I'm currently with Team Drarosteel outside of Elysium City." There was a pause of crackling static. "I… I'm, um, I'm okay. I'm safe with Garchomp and we want to rendezvous with your group and Excadrill's."

  Roark's grip on the ELE tightened. "You know, I'm still pretty damn pissed at what you pulled back there. We all thought you… you know."

  "I-"

  "Spare me it until we meet back up. There's a lot we need to go over after today."

  "I, er, suppose that works. How shall we conduct the rendezvous?"

  "I've got a place in mind that might just work. Keep in touch while I go over it with Excadrill."

  "Very well. When we meet again, Roark."

  "You too, Sciz." Roark flicked the side switch and let out a long sigh. "That damn bug…"

  Gloria walked to his side. "I'm glad he's safe. Aren't you?"

  "More than glad, sis. With Scizor back, maybe we have a fighting chance now."

  "You don't think you could've done a good job?"

  "Not as efficient as that guy. Trust me, this operation is better in his claws, uh, pincers - whatever."

  She giggled and pressed into him. "I thought you did a great job!"

  He waved her off. "Sibling bias. Do you really want a guy like me-"

  "Y'ALL!"

  Huffing and puffing, Excadrill returned with an excited look on his face. He gestured behind them to an encroaching figure. "Got another surprise headin' over to ya right now!" he yelled before hobbling away.

  Gloria tracked down this mysterious Pokemon and felt her heart stop when her eyes made contact.

  It was a Lucario.

  He was striding toward them with purpose in his step. Her mind failed to make the connection at first. A banjo was strapped to his back, and a white eyepatch covered where his right eye should have been. A shimmering golden scarf was wrapped around his neck. It looked like a stranger, but in her heart, she could tell.

  'It can't be… Is this really him?'

  Her paws moved without her even knowing, only stopping when the Lucario was directly in front of her. She wetted her lips, looking deep into his single crimson eye. "... Liam?"

  The Lucario smiled. "It's me, Gloria. I'm back, and I'm not leaving again."

  What happened next was a wordless hug as she wrapped her paws around his shoulder. Her emotions ran heavy, but there were no more tears to spare. She simply held tight as if she would lose him again if she were to let go.

  "I-I was so worried about you. About you going after Jackson, about the Council, and-"

  "I know, but I'm fine. I'm glad y'all are safe here, too."

  She pulled her head out from the hug, grimacing. "Your eye - is it really…"

  Liam nodded, brushing his eyepatch with a paw. "Snazzy, right? The Corviknight from the Council hooked me up with it." He jolted when a pair of claws clasped his shoulder, glancing over to see a smirking Zoroark. "Roark, it's good to see you as well."

  "Welcome back, kid," the Dark-type said, jostling him. "Shame about the eye, but remind me to get a new nickname for you, 'kay?"

  "Will do." Liam returned his attention back to Gloria. "You evolved, and you look… beautiful."

  She felt her cheeks burn. "You look, um, pretty cool yourself," she mumbled. "But you aren't wearing your Cosmic Scarf! What is that scarf you have on?"

  "Someone very special gave this to me," Liam said. "I can't- I won't take it off. It means that much to me."

  There was a strange twitch in his eye when he spoke, but she brushed this aside. She did not care how he looked now - only that he was here by her side again.

  "Geez, Purrloin would kill for a scarf like that - or steal it, most likely," Roark commented. He shoved the ELE into his mane. "I'll let you kids catch up while I speak with the moleman. Have fun, but not too much fun without me!" He chuckled to himself as he walked away.

  Now alone, they shared a warm look. Now was an opportunity she may never get again.

  "There's something I wanna show you," she said. "Care to come with me?"

  "With you? I'd go anywhere - even Sylveon's."

  She giggled.

  Gloria would take Liam through the sleepy village of Kyuris and beyond. Past a copse and snow-dusted rocks were undisturbed ruins of cottages and small buildings. She continued leading him until they reached the far edge of a cliffside. The full moon was shining down on, illuminating a single piece of raised wood - rotten and covered in snow.

  "I used to live in a village called Kyuris when I was just a small Vulpix," She explained, gesturing to the piece of wood. "This used to be my house… And one day, when my parents were out, an avalanche destroyed the whole town. I was sleeping when it happened, and I fell down this cliff."

  Liam shifted his gaze to the bottom of the cliff. "And that's when you met Roark?"

  She nodded. "He was just a part of the Rescue Society then, but he took me along with him across the Glacier Peak Mountains. We bonded, and laughed, and I felt safe with him. So… when I got the news that my parents had died, he came to Lopunny's orphanage in Empyrean and adopted me." She lifted her Never-Melt-Ice necklace for him to see. "He gave me this and said he promised to never leave me. After that day, he became my brother."

  "Corviknight told me that a Pokemon caused the avalanche deliberately. Was that true?"

  "It's true, and that Pokemon is…" She paused to find the right answer in her mind. "Doing what he can to fix something that may never be fixed, but he still tries."

  Liam scoffed. "People- Pokemon like that, I could never forgive. He destroyed your life here, Gloria, your home."

  He was right. She had every reason to despise Zoroark, and she did, but could not allow herself to be consumed by anger and grief anymore. It was not who she wanted to be any longer. It would not control what she does next.

  "He did, but he also gave me some irreplaceable Pokemon in my life." She threw him a wry look. "Y'know, before I met you, I didn't have to battle Legendaries - just the occasional Weedle or Scatterbug while I looked for dinner in the Sunshine Forest."

  He replaced his frown with a smirk. "I know you wouldn't have it any other way."

  "You're right. Joining the guild led me right here, and if I could change my path, I wouldn't." She nuzzled his side. "But you… You have your memories now, right? That's what Roark told me."

  "A little bit - not much. I know what I said back at the guild, but I wasn't thinking right. If I'm going after Jackson, then I need to do it with you guys beside me." He grabbed one of her paws and squeezed it. "With you, Gloria. Together, we'll defeat Jackson and change this world. We'll make it better than it ever was before. That's a promise I'll be sure to keep."

  She stared, unsure of what to think of his resolve, but did that really matter now? "... I promise, too. Together."

  He broke away from her, reaching for the banjo on his back. "Mind if I? For old time's sake."

  Her many tails began to wag. "I'd love to."

  "A little jingle to Team Requiem reunited."

  Sitting along the cliff edge, Liam wedged the instrument under his arm and on a shoulder. Gloria nestled herself close to his side, a smile plastered on her muzzle as she took in the visage of quiet snowfall over a pale moon.

  There was pure silence before the Lucario then plucked away the strings of the banjo. He played in a manner foreign to her, unlike how the Riolu she knew before played. And yet, it was still enchanting and relaxing after so long without it.

  Of all gods and heroes among time, there was strife, and when two incompatible resolves clash, there can only be one left standing to dictate.

  Want to discuss anything related to The Phantasmagoria with the author himself? If so, send a friend request to my Discord linked below!

  Discord: z2h2z

  Next Time: Dead End