"But... but Rhys is cool," Owen said.
The Charmeleon had stopped walking the moment Zena told him that Rhys was a Hunter. It simply didn't make sense. No... no, it did. It added up. But it didn't make sense to Owen anyway. Rhys was too noble. He was an Elite Heart. How could he be a murderer, too?
"That Lucario is the one who nearly killed me." Zena's tail twitched, flexing the fan at the tip. "He is the reason I spent lifetimes sealed away."
"But... but he gave me the Orb! I mean, he didn't—I mean, he was holding the Orb, but he never claimed it, and, um, and also, like—when I took it, he didn't want to hurt me at all! M-maybe you're thinking of his great grandfather or something? Like, Rhys is just a really strong Lucario. He's not a Guardian or anything. He doesn't glow! So, he can't be, um, un-aging and stuff like us." Nevren had said that they didn't age for another reason. Was that because—
"Hunters don't age. He could easily be the same Lucario." She coiled around herself a bit tighter, staring intensely at Owen. "Tell me. Did he specialize in aura attacks?"
"I—I mean, what Lucario doesn't, right?" Owen tittered nervously. He shrank before the serpent. He knew that Zena could see the helpless defiance in his eyes.
The Milotic did not break her stare. "Are you sure? Do you truly believe that Rhys won't harm you, should you appear before him now?"
Owen gulped, looking at his chest. He was glad to be back to his fiery self again. It felt right. But would Rhys try to kill him? That Lucario.... He was stern, certainly. And perhaps he'd punish him with more meditation, or something like that. Perhaps, as well, he was a bit too harsh with his training regimen. But... he simply couldn't imagine Rhys wanting to hurt him. Something at the very core of his being was telling him that he could trust Rhys. But at the same time, why did he feel that way? He just met him, didn't he?
"I don't know." The words tumbled out of him, but they were the truth. "I feel like I can trust him! But at the same time, he could... if he wanted, he could easily... couldn't he? Well, I feel like he'd just force me to meditate, like he always di—" Owen blinked a few times. What? When did Rhys ever force him to meditate? That never happened. That was Demitri and the others. He grew up with Amia and Alex—his adoptive parents. They were the ones who—
"Owen? Are you okay?" Zena asked, tilting her head.
"H-huh? Oh. I'm fine. Um... b-but I really... I don't know! If you're with me, maybe he'll hear me out, and not attack you? If he's still like that? No... I—he's too nice. If he wanted to, he could've killed me right at the beginning, when I first got the Orb!"
"Regardless of his actions before," Zena said, "he may have second thoughts. He is still a Hunter, and it is their very purpose to track down and gather the Orbs at all costs. And right now, we are two Guardians, possessing two Orbs. That may be an opportunity too tempting to ignore."
Owen played with the scales at the base of his claws. Zena had a point. Why would Rhys be chasing after them in the first place? Why Rhys specifically, if he knew that this would be the Water Guardian? But Owen's gut still told him that Rhys was safe. He never sensed any ounce of malice in his body language. He was good at spotting those things, for as long as he could remember! But... what if Zena was right? What if he got tempted? What if that malice... came back?
Owen's legs felt weak. He walked to a nearby, sandy rock and sat against it. Waves washed upon the shoreline two times before he spoke again. "Rhys... could kill me..."
"He very well could," Zena said. She slithered a bit closer, but hesitated to get within arm's reach of him. "And you aren't nearly strong enough to defend yourself against him."
"But... b-but he's my... I trusted him," Owen said. "There's no way he'd....!"
"Are you willing to risk your life to see if you are correct?" Zena said.
The ocean brushed against the sand. Owen smelled the salt in the air. Wingull squawked at one another, bickering over a carcass. He clenched the claws of his feet a few times in the sandy grass. He felt hot. His face, especially. His chest hurt. Something in the back of his eyes burned. His vision blurred. The Charmeleon trembled, clawing at his knees. "Everyone I knew..."
"Owen..." Zena said softly. She finally broke past her hesitation and slithered even closer. She used a brow to rub his head. "It's okay. It's... okay. Even if Rhys is dangerous, the others are still your friends. And your mother, Owen. What Charizard would harm their own child?"
"Um, a-actually, my Mom's a Gardevoir... I don't know my real parents."
"Oh, I'm—"
Owen shook his head. "But either way, it's... it's all the same. You're right. There's no way she'd want to hurt me. She raised me! She—" Owen's heart skipped a beat. "Mom! She's with Rhys...! And she's a Guardian!" He sprung to his feet, as if that action would somehow give him an idea on what to do next.
He felt a strange tingling on the scales on his back. The air felt... sharp, like it cut into his lungs, and a sinking feeling twisted his stomach into a knot. What was this power that he could feel? He'd never had such a sensation before. He was used to having a vague sense of what was around the corner, or even in the other room. But this? This was new.
At the same time, Zena stared toward Kilo Mountain. "He's coming," she said. "How did he know we were here? Who could have...?"
Owen realized that what he was sensing was something Zena sensed, too. He closed his eyes. He heard the rapid footsteps of something bipedal. He recognized the pattern--it was Rhys, without a doubt. He also heard another sound, a lot more rapid, with smaller legs. Hard knocking on sandy dirt. Angry chittering. That pattern was equally familiar. It was a Trapinch, going much faster than it should for its species. "Gahi, too."
Zena coiled around herself, preparing to launch everything she had at the incoming duo.
"D-don't hurt Gahi. He's a Trapinch, and he's—he's not involved in any of this!"
Zena said nothing, but she was clearly aiming for Rhys. Owen turned toward the source of the sound again. Louder. He only had a few seconds to react. Was this really Rhys attempting to kill them? Why would he chase them all the way down here? Why couldn't he hear his mother's running pattern? Because she wasn't there. It was just Rhys and Gahi.
"Owen!" Rhys shouted, jumping between two trees, into plain view.
Zena fired. The beam of water was simultaneously wide and dense, and it was a perfect shot. Rhys held his paws forward with an Aura Sphere-like shield to deflect the blast. Gahi, trailing behind, dove behind a tree to avoid the scattered beams of water, shouting something angrily. When the Hydro Pump stopped, and the mist faded, Rhys remained. Zena's attack was completely neutralized by the shield.
Gahi stared in horror at the gaping hole left in the tree that he'd been hiding behind. The deflected beams had missed him by only a head's length.
For that one instant, the world stood still for Owen. It all clicked in his mind at once. He felt Zena's coils wind in defensive terror beside him. Almost out of empathy, his muscles tensed in a similar way. His heart was pounding against his neck. Rhys had deflected one of the most powerful attacks Owen had ever seen.
He had been ready for that attack. He was expecting it. He knew. Owen's claws dug into his palms; his tail blazed with a shining, green flame.
The last of the mist faded. Zena's words echoed in his thoughts.
Rhys is one of the Hunters.
The Lucario let out a pant. "Owen, I—"
The Charmeleon opened with a plume of fire. It was easily blocked, but Owen followed up by lunging forward. He wasn't using words anymore, just roars and grunts. Rhys deftly blocked every hit with little pulses of aura from his paws, stepping backwards with each lunge Owen made.
"Owen, enough!" Rhys said.
"You—what did you do—what did you do to Mom?!" Owen shouted.
"Your mother?! What in the world do you mean?!"
Owen roared and blasted Rhys with fire, point-blank. He couldn't deflect this one, and his upper body was briefly alight. This was too much for Rhys to tolerate. With a single blow and a grunt of anger, Rhys swiped his paw toward Owen and created a small sphere on his side. It exploded, and blasted Owen with a shockwave of aura force. He slammed into a tree and cried in pain when his left shoulder dislocated itself, and his left leg broke in two places. A few ribs probably got fractured, too. There was a large welt on his right side where the aura had exploded, and some scales had been blasted off, too. He crumpled to the ground; it hurt too much to move.
Zena spewed another beam of water at Rhys, but the Hunter jumped to the right in a blue blur. Zena blinked and lost track of him. She turned toward Owen and saw Rhys there instead, kneeling down. Rhys' eyes were narrowed with concern.
"You won't!" Zena shouted. "Get away from him! Or I'll fire again! I won't miss!"
"If you do miss, you will hit Owen," Rhys said calmly. He didn't even react to her.
"It's... it's a risk I'll take to stop you, you—murderer!"
"Murderer," Rhys repeated softly. He inspected Owen, who only glared. Flames danced out of his mouth. "Your mother is worried about you, Owen. Your father, too."
"You're a Hunter," Owen said. "Zena... Zena told me! You... you killed Guardians like me!"
"Owen." Rhys closed his eyes. "If I wanted to kill, then you two would already be dead."
"N-no way!" Owen said. "I'd totally beat you if... if I wanted to! I'm a Guardian! I survived drowning!"
"Drowning," Rhys said with a snort. "You took a quarter of the day, I imagine, just to recover from that. Do you really think a Hunter would kill a Guardian by drowning them?"
Owen gulped. "Y-yeah, well, I bet I could survive... a lot of things, now." His eyes darted to the left and right, searching for some sort of opening. Owen focused on a tree behind Rhys. The Lucario followed his gaze—just what Owen wanted. He spewed a wad of fire at Rhys the moment he looked away. In a single, deft motion, Rhys brought his arm up and blocked the blast with another aura shield.
Owen flinched, and Rhys looked at him with a knowing glare. Owen had no escape.
"You cannot survive much," Rhys said. "Divine energy from the Orb sustains you, even if your very heart stops. However, great injury to your body disrupts that flow. If someone wished to kill you... they would. And they can. Just because you are Mystic does not mean you are invincible. Look at you, Owen." He shook his head. "A body half broken already. If I aimed for your head," he pointed out, "the Grass Orb would be without a host once more."
Owen envisioned Rhys doing just that. Moving his paw just a bit further up. He would've been headless. Just like that. He thought back to the Aerodactyl. He still would have been paralyzed from the waist down from his strikes. And if he was rejected from the Dungeon, some opportunistic wild Pokémon still could have feasted on his unconscious body.
Owen's sense of mortality returned to him. When that happened, the Charmeleon thought his heart had stopped again.
"You can't even stand."
"I can totally stand!" Owen used his good arm and clawed at the air in front of Rhys.
Rhys waited.
He kept clawing and tried to sit. In the end, he couldn't. The most he could do was prop himself up. His arm trembled, and he fell again.
Gahi waddled out from the tree he'd been hiding in. "Lighten up, Firebutt," Gahi said. "Yer beat. And you! Pretty lady! You calm down, too! Rhys ain't gonna hurt anybody."
"P-pretty lady?" Zena flushed red.
"Can you stand, Owen?" Rhys asked again. Despite his neutral tone, Owen sensed that he was mocking him.
"Nrgh." Owen's tail twitched. "I don't feel like it." He exhaled a defeated plume of smoke. It tasted like roasted seeds.
Rhys sighed and looked up at the trees. He inspected the tops, and then looked at Zena. She didn't take her eyes off of him, waiting for any sudden movements. Rhys, recognizing this, moved slowly, gently, raising his arm to point up. Zena didn't change her focus. Right at Rhys.
"There is a ripe Oran Berry in the trees. I intend to harvest it for Owen. Milotic Zena, will you allow me to do this?"
"You will move slowly," Zena said.
Rhys obeyed. Every step was deliberate, and he pointed the pad of his paw toward the berry. The tiniest of Aura Spheres appeared there, and he fired, knocking it off of the tree. It landed nearby. Rhys took step after deliberate step toward the berry, and then leaned down to pick it up.
At this point, Gahi was shaking with impatience, pacing in a rapid circle nearby. He mumbled something about being able to do this seven times by the time he finished once.
Finally, Rhys returned to Owen and handed him the berry.
"How can a berry help him?" Zena said. "They're a pick-me-up. They only provide energy, as all food would. Oran Berries are useless for injuries like that."
Owen glanced at Zena confusedly.
"Is—is it not?" Zena asked.
Owen grabbed the berry and took a bite, chewing awkwardly while lying on the ground. A soft glow flowed from Owen's throat to the rest of his body, barely visible if it wasn't for the darkness of twilight.
"Hold still," Rhys said. With a firm push, he snapped Owen's arm back into its socket, eliciting a loud, suppressed grunt from the Charmeleon. He then moved to his broken leg. "Are you ready, Owen?"
Owen whimpered.
"I'll do it on three. One—" Rhys snapped them in place. Owen didn't cry out that time; his eyes watered, and he gritted his teeth, but the most noise that came was from the air rapidly moving through his nostrils.
"Thank you," he said in a high-pitched voice.
"Eat your berry."
Owen awkwardly ate at the berry using his good arm, still lying on the ground. A glow emanated from his throat that was only visible due to the darkness of twilight. It pulsed throughout the rest of his body—while bruised, Owen felt much better. Bones repaired themselves; he felt like he could breathe deeply again. He sighed and deflated after the final bite, idly licking at his claws.
"Oran Berries have been greatly enhanced since your time, Zena," Rhys said. "They have been blessed by Goodra Anam, leader of the Hearts, who doubles as a sort of... priest, if you will. Most Oran Berries you see in the world today carry that blessing. This is especially true for content found in Dungeons, which have, too, been blessed. Prior, they were much less welcoming."
"Blessing," Zena repeated. "Priest. What sort of cult do you run?"
"It's not much of a cult if you can see actual results, now is it?" Rhys asked, motioning to the fiery Grass Guardian. "For smaller Pokémon like Owen, a single berry is enough to fully restore them to fighting health."
Owen grunted and stood up. He didn't know what to think anymore. He'd gone past the panic and despair and slipped into frustration and anger again. The same anger that made him yell at Zena's spirits. Even if he was healed, his older thoughts returned to him, now that he no longer feared for his life. He glared at Rhys. "Who are you?"
"...I am Lucario Rhys, Elite Heart of Kilo Village. I am a former Hunter of the Guardians." Rhys looked to Zena. "Owen is very good at detecting lies and malevolence. He is very in-tune with body language, and he knows if I intend to strike him, even if it is as a surprise. Owen, do you sense anything from me that suggests I would want to hurt you?"
Owen looked up. He could feel it, yes. He didn't know it was some sort of talent of his, but he was always very aware of his surroundings, including those close to him. And he could sense Rhys' paw twitching irritably. His muscles were tense from the battle. His brow was furrowed with hidden impatience, invisible thanks to his fur, but the tension was there.
Rhys did want to hurt him... but not in the way Zena thinks. No. Rhys was holding himself back from smacking him on the head. He could imagine Rhys telling him to stop acting so immaturely, so rashly, so childishly. He wanted him to be a proper Heart. He could hear the lecture about how, had this been done on a mission, innocents could get hurt, or worse.
Owen finally straightened, but then brought his head down. He rubbed his nose with his arm.
Zena's eyes softened, just barely. "Very well. But do not think you've convinced me, Hunter."
"Great, great, that's all nice and good," Gahi said, clicking his jaws to get their attention. "But as yeh may've noticed, it's pretty much twilight at this point, and I'm tired, and I haven't had dinner yet, and maybe we can get this rolling along? Oy, Rhys, y'got yer Badge? I wanna go back ter Kilo. I hate rivers, and I hate oceans. I'd rather get eaten than drown someplace like this. We gonna go?"
"Why did you even come, then?" Rhys said in a hiss that was only half-controlled.
"Well, yeh had that story about Mystics an' all that ter tell me on the way," Gahi said. "Was the first story yeh ever told that wasn't boring."
Owen sensed Rhys wanted to hit Gahi, too. The left half of his lips twitched upward, and he couldn't hide his brightening flame. He shook his head to keep composed and looked to the Water Guardian.
"Zena," Owen said. "Even if Rhys is a Hunter... I mean, there's no way Goodra Anam would allow him to do anything. If we go to Kilo Village, we'll be safe. And I think Anam is way stronger than Rhys is."
"Perhaps not way stronger," Rhys growled. He looked at Gahi. "Very well. I have the Badge. If Zena will allow me to look through my supplies, I will get it."
"You may," Zena said slowly. "But if I am to follow, expect me to be ten paces behind you. I refuse to walk beside the likes of you."
Rhys winced. But Owen also sensed a tension in Rhys' throat, too. Owen gently rubbed at his own, trying to get an idea of what the feeling was supposed to be. The Charmeleon realized then that Rhys had a figurative lump in his throat.
"...What's a pace fer you?" Gahi said, observing her lack of limbs.
The Milotic glared.
"Feh." Gahi shuffled behind Owen. He tried to be casual, but Owen noticed his tremble.
Rhys pulled out the Association Badge.
"And that will help us home, how?" Zena asked.
"It'll bring us back to town," Owen said. "It can only really bring back four people at a time or so. We usually bring more Badges in case we have to rescue a bunch at once, so then we can still get back ourselves." Owen recalled what he'd read about the Badges functionality and limits. "You can key it in to other locations to warp to if you configure it while you're there, but by default, if you just tap the little heart button in the middle once, you'll go to the Central Waypoint. Easy. I'd've set my new Badge to go to Hot Spot Cave, but... it's been a really hectic few days lately..."
"Oh?" Zena tilted her head. "What's a Waypoint?"
"Oh, wow," Owen said. "You have been gone for a while. Um... it's... this thing where you have to stand on it, and then once you do, it will activate, and then you'll go to its corresponding tile somewhere else in the world—so, in this case, the one in Kilo Village. Nevren invented it." Owen looked at the Badge. "This Badge has the same sort of energy. It's weaker, and it has to recharge... but it is tied to the Waypoints or other areas you register with it."
"I see... Waypoints can be used as much as we want, but they're stuck at two specific locations. But these Badges can be used anywhere, but require energy. What an interesting system. Very well. If you are confident in this... thing, I will put my faith in you, Owen."
Owen caught a twitch of irritation from Rhys, but he figured he deserved that one.
"Owen," Rhys said, "why don't you use it?"
Owen nodded, took the Badge, and thrust it in the air. He clicked the button once. In a split-second, they reappeared in Kilo Village, just in time to see a small team, led by Anam, heading for Calm Water Lake's Waypoint. The others accompanying him were Decidueye James and Alakazam Nevren.
"Whoa, wait! L-look!" Anam said, pointing.
"H-hi, guys!" Owen hesitated. In the rush of events, he finally remembered what had happened. Wasn't he supposed to be angry at them? But, now that he had time to think... "I'm... I'm sorry for running off," he said. "I just—I wanted to clear my head, and—"
Zena stared, wide-eyed, at the countless buildings that surrounded her. Owen was glad they came when there weren't any Pokémon passing by, or the isolated Milotic would have been completely overwhelmed.
"A-and this is Zena! She's, um, she's the Water Guardian."
Zena tensed and looked away. "H-h-hel..."
"Hi, Zena!" Anam waved. "It's good to meet you!"
"Ahh, the Water Guardian, I see," Nevren said. He stepped forward and held out a hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, Zena. I am sorry if this is beyond your favored conditions."
"Y-yes, thank..." Zena held out an eyebrow for him to shake.
"Zena, are you okay?" Owen asked.
"Give her time, Owen," Nevren said. "She has not spoken to so many strangers in a very long while, I imagine. This will take time to adjust."
"She spoke just fine with Rhys..." But he wondered if it was easier for her to yell at someone she hated than to talk to someone new. Didn't explain why she spoke so easily with him, however. Owen figured it was because he was just one little Charmeleon, and this was a gang of elites and Gahi.
"Owen!" Demitri shouted from the top of the Heart stairway. "H-hey! You're back to normal!"
Mispy was next to Demitri, and both of them rushed down to meet with the rest of their team.
"Yeah, so much fer being funny ter look at," Gahi said. "How's it feel ter be Fire again, anyway?"
"Good," Owen said immediately.
Mispy glared.
"S-so." Owen avoided Mispy's eyes. "How did... Rhys find us?"
"He ran ahead ter get yeh," Gahi said. "Said he knew where yeh'd be. Maybe he sensed yer Mystic aura, y'know?"
"I am familiar with the underwater channel that Zena used," Rhys said. "Once I figured out where you had gone, I decided to follow you there. Unfortunately, there isn't a Waypoint designated to that part of the southern shoreline, as no Dungeon had ever formed in that location. I had to go on foot. Gahi was the only one who could realistically keep up."
"O-oh." Owen thought about what Zena had said. A Hunter had been chasing after them. Did Rhys chase her through those channels before? What stopped him from...?
Zena looked at Anam. By his species name, she knew he was the leader. "You... I'd... like to introduce myself," she said. "And... to your spirit."
"Oh!" Anam said. "Yeah! I'm Anam, and this is James! He worked with me for a long time, but when he eventually got too old, I brought him back as a spirit assistant!"
Owen squinted slightly. Anam sounded odd when he said that. Did anybody else notice? He glanced at Rhys. He noticed. But he didn't say anything. It must have been nothing. Anam wasn't the sort to lie, after all.
"Yes," James said, nodding. "Ah, and Owen, your parents are very worried about you. I will fetch them." He sank into the ground.
A brief, awkward silence filled the air. It was only broken when Anam said, "Wait! So... so that means right now, in this town... we have four of the Guardians in one place!"
"F-four..." Zena said, realizing this. "Water, Grass, and...?"
"Fire's my Mom," Owen said.
"And I'm the Ghost Guardian!" Anam said.
"Four of us, all in one place," Zena remarked. "Isn't that a bit worrying?"
"Not anymore," Anam said. "I think we're going to be changing strategies."
Nevren nodded. "Yes. It appears that the remaining Hunters have discovered a means of tracking the auras of Guardians with great precision, so we must now dedicate ourselves to gathering, rather than separating, the power before the Hunters do the same."
"Hmm." Zena looked at Nevren carefully. "You... give off a strange aura as well."
"Y-yes, well... that is..."
"Nevren," Owen said, crossing his arms. "I'm really sensitive to secrets right now, and I just... I just don't want to deal with it. Just tell me now so we can get it over with. And I think this Mystic power is making my perception go on overdrive, and I think I hate it? Because I'm feeling all the lies pouring from you guys. It's disgusting. Just... tell the truth."
Anam nibbled nervously on his fingers.
Nevren shook his head, eyes closed. "Very well," he said. "It's not much of a secret to others, but I used to be an active Hunter as well, yes. A... researcher; I was not much for fighting."
Owen expected this, the way Rhys was so familiar with him. "Are there any other Elites or, like... anybody else here in the Hearts that are former Hunters?"
Nevren shook his head. "Of the Hearts, only Rhys and I are affiliated," he said.
"Okay, just—what's the point?" Owen said. "What's the whole point of the Hunters? Why are you guys around for so long if you don't have any Orbs to keep you alive? How many of you are there, and...?"
"Perhaps," Rhys said, "this is something that we should discuss in private."
Anam nodded. "Mhm. The night crowd is gonna come soon, and I don't want them to overhear anything. Let's go to my office!"
Everyone agreed, though Zena trailed behind, as promised. Ten paces. In this case, those were ten intervals of Zena's weaving, slithering motions. The walk was a long one—it felt longer than usual. And Owen sensed it again. Rhys' tension. But this was a different tension... Owen shook his head. He hated feeling these things. He tried to dull it, but he still had the vaguest feeling of what the others were doing around him.
Rhys glanced back at Zena. Owen did his best to ignore it, but those glances were becoming very frequent. He wasn't getting tempted, was he? Was Nevren stronger than Rhys? No, he said he wasn't a fighter. And what about Anam? Surely he could handle Rhys. Then again, Owen never actually saw the Goodra fight before. In fact, if the rumors were true, he usually just hugged outlaws into submission.
Suddenly, Rhys stopped walking; Owen nearly bumped into him had it not been for how abrupt he had stopped. "Rhys?" Owen asked, leaning to the side.
Zena tensed, Mystic energy silently flowing beneath the surface of her scales, making the once creamy color glow iridescently against the setting sun.
"I... I wish to apologize," Rhys said, head down. "For what I put you through. I didn't intend for you to live in fear. And... for that, I'm sorry."
Zena's guard faltered, but then her glare redoubled. "Intentions don't mean very much, Hunter."
Owen and Rhys both winced, but neither had a counter. Zena had every right. Anam nervously nibbled at the tips of his fingers; Gahi clicked his jaws irritably, but it seemed that even he knew not to speak up. Demitri and Mispy, largely uninformed, only exchanged confused glances.
"I understand," Rhys finally said, cutting through the silence, but more agonizing emptiness took its place seconds later. Rhys' paws twitched, and that lump—Owen sensed it in his throat again. But no words came.
In the dying lights of evening, the group quietly shuffled into Anam's office. Demitri tripped and fell onto Mispy, who wrapped her vines around him and set the Axew atop her back. Nevren tapped his spoons twice; Luminous Orbs lit the corridors. "Could've done that in the first place," Demitri mumbled.
The Goodra sat in the pond in the back of the room; all of the others sat in simple nests of hay that James had materialized from the shadows, except for Zena, who coiled around herself, next to Owen. On Owen's other side was his mother—who refused to keep her hand off of the Charmeleon's arm, holding firmly—and next to her, Alex.
Demitri, Mispy, and Gahi jealously eyed Owen's new, Charmeleon form. Owen, noticing this, gave a teasing little smirk—he won that little game and, surely, he'll hit his final form first, too. The Elites were near Anam, though not too close; the gooey world leader tended to get in a grabby, cuddly mood at night, and the last thing they needed was to get covered in his slime.
"Well," James said. "Rhys, perhaps it is appropriate for you to explain... yourself to those who are not aware."
"Yes," Rhys said. "I... believe it is appropriate." He looked at the others—particularly at Zena, and then Owen, and finally, his students. "Nevren and I... are two of the five Hunters. Our purpose was to gather all of the Orbs into one being. We were meant to use this power to challenge Arceus, as we deemed him an improper god."
It took nearly ten seconds for Owen to fully process those three sentences; he didn't even react when Zena spoke first.
"Wh-what do you mean, challenge Arceus? Is that the power that these Orbs possess?" Zena asked. "Why in the world would Arceus allow such a thing to exist?"
"Because he created it in the first place," Rhys said, "and is powerless to stop it by his own design. At least, that is the story we are told; that Arceus used to be omnipotent, when the world was first created. But then, fearing his own power and temper, he delegated some of it to others that he could trust. Star was one; he gave her a third of his power. Another third became imbued into artifacts that represented Arceus' power; those became the Orbs. The remaining third is still with him."
"Okay..." Owen rubbed his head. "But... hang on. Arceus didn't like His own temper? Arceus has a temper?"
Rhys nodded. "Arceus does indeed become wrathful at times, and with absolute power, the results can be... devastating."
It seemed too simple. Why would someone with ultimate power give it up at all?
Owen pressed on. "So... so He basically... tried to save the world from Him, retroactively?" Even as Owen said it, there was a hint of skepticism in his tone.
"It seems so."
Owen grumbled. "But what about you? The Hunters? You want to challenge Him? Like, as in, usurp Him? Even though He did something so selfless?" Owen briefly paused, feeling a brief tinge of reverence in the way he spoke of the Creator. Just yesterday, he didn't believe in the existence of one at all. Now...?
The shock of it all left him feeling numb enough that he could focus on the conversation and nothing else.
Rhys closed his eyes. "We were... conscripted," he said, "by Star, to usurp him."
"Oh." Owen said. He blinked twice. "Wait—"
"You're lying," Zena said immediately.
"Do I look like I'm lying?" Rhys said just as quickly.
"That Torkoal said the same exact thing," Zena said. "You're lying, just as he was! Star would never—"
"Hm?" Amia looked up. "Oh, hold on, dear."
Owen glanced curiously at his mother; she held her hand forward, pushing out a blue ember. It coalesced and turned into a pink cloud, and then further solidified into a very faint, yet clearly visible, Mew.
"H-h-hi, Star!" Owen greeted.
"Hey, Owen!" Star waved. "Hey, good to see you got your old Type back. Maybe you can practice switching between the two later, huh?"
Amia sighed, shaking her head. "I'm sorry I couldn't make you any more solid, Star, but your spirit's just too much to manifest."
"Nah, it's fine. This works."
Owen gulped, knowing why Star wanted to be summoned in the first place. "Um—about... about what Rhys said."
"Star, are you here to disprove what that Hunter is saying?" Zena said. "Smite him."
Star held her arms up, waving her paws quickly. "N-no, no, I don't do the whole smite thing. I, uh, I mean, I'm kinda here to... back Rhys up."
Zena's coils tightened.
"I was listening in, and... he's right. I... did kinda... create the Hunters, in a sense." She fiddled with her paws.
The Milotic looked like she'd been stabbed in the chest. "Y-you... created them?" She expected Star to laugh and say it was a joke, another one of her pranks. But the Mew's downcast eyes said it all. "The very people that—that ruined my life—that ruined everything I had?!" Zena said.
Star kept her head down.
The lack of response was perhaps the worst reaction Zena could have received. The painful silence lasted for—Owen wasn't sure how many seconds. Too long. Even Gahi stayed quiet, his huge mouth slightly open in disbelief. Owen wondered if it was because the trio was witnessing Mew Herself, or because Star was behind something so horrible.
Silent through it all, Anam nibbled on his fingers and shrank back, eyes focused on nothing. It was like he was listening to a voice only he could hear, even while Zena spoke.
"I could have lived a normal life!" Zena whispered loudly. She was trembling. Her voice slowly grew in volume. "I... I could have lived as a normal Milotic, perhaps found myself a fine partner to have an egg with, to raise a child together, to become a family, to die of age like—like any other Pokémon! But instead...! Instead I lived... centuries... in isolation... with nothing but spirits that taunt me with their deaths, their ability to freely leave and pass on...! And I'm... I'm just stuck here with this Orb, some piece of our so-called all-mighty Creator's rejected power! And... and all for what?! All for you to take it back?!"
Star opened her mouth to speak.
"I don't want to hear another word from you! Leave my sight!"
Star bit her lower lip. She lingered, but when Zena's piercing, fiery eyes persisted—enough to rival Owen's tail—she disintegrated into a blue ember and returned to Amia.
Zena threw her head onto her coils, shivering and sniffling. Owen quietly looked around and saw that nobody was comfortable enough to approach her. He took initiative and quietly stepped closer to Zena and put a hand to her neck. She jerked her head away, but didn't resist when Owen tried a second time.
"Why?" Owen finally asked. "What's... what's it all for? Why does—or, did, why did Star want that power?"
Rhys shook his head. "I don't... I don't know," he said. "What she told us is the extent of her motivations behind trying to usurp Arceus. That he is an improper god; that the world is stagnating; that to save it, she would need the power. And... while I agreed with her at the time, the way the Hunters worked to do this..." He glanced at Zena. "It shook me. And I could not continue, and Star felt the same. Yet... well, as you can see, some of them still continue."
Zena pressed her eyes against her scales. She was well beyond anger at this point; it seemed like she was just closing herself off again, like she was hiding away in the base of her caverns all over again. The way she coiled against the rocks made her scales bend roughly against the jagged portions. Owen stared worriedly at this. Did Zena even realize it?
"Star was my friend," she said. "How could she lie to me? For so long?"
Owen held Zena's side, trying to prevent her from damaging her scales too much. It was enough to stop her, and she resorted instead to brushing against his side instead. She needed something to press against, and Owen recognized that much, even if he couldn't understand why. Her sheer size made it hard for the Charmeleon to remain stable; he gripped his claws onto the nest for some leverage. It wasn't very effective.
"She may have told you many times before," Rhys said, "and then erased your memory of it when the reaction was... less than favorable. Star can do that—it's what inspired, and helped, Nevren do the same to Kilo Village to maintain Anam's leadership without anybody realizing he never dies. But with all of us present, I doubt she can erase your memories again. Not effectively."
Zena sniffed. Her tail wrapped around Owen next; he was too slow to react, and he became enveloped somewhere along her abdomen. She curled around him, just to have something to hold. "I remember... oh, I certainly remember now...!"
"Y-you do?" Owen said. "How many times did She tell you?"
Zena shook her head. Her voice was only slightly louder than a whisper. "A number of times. Every few decades. I reacted badly. I threatened to leave, and she couldn't have that—I would get hurt." She shrugged her head and rolled her watering eyes. Owen sensed Zena's muscles make the same contraction pattern as before, threatening to brush against the walls again. He held her firmly, and her scales flinched away from the rocks.
The Milotic continued, "So, she had to undo it... and make me forget. She didn't want me to get hurt.... That's what she always told me. But..." Zena sniffled. She suddenly raised her voice, and it cracked. "But I'd rather die than live like this!"
"You don't have to live like that any longer," Rhys said firmly. "We will stay together as our own community. We will live among the mortals. And... we will gather the Orbs before the remaining Hunters can."
It didn't look like it was getting through to Zena, but she was at least silent. Her coils tightened further around Owen.
The Charmeleon squeaked, air escaping his chest. His bones creaked. "Can't... can't breathe...!"
Zena released him and he gasped for air. "I'm sorry," she said softly. She stared at Rhys, now, recalling his recent actions. "Yet, here you are, now. Claiming to be an ex-Hunter... Why? When that was what you were given that power for?"
"Because I don't believe it is helping anybody to keep the Orbs scattered in this way," he said. "Even Star agrees, I'm sure, that having us live together is much better than keeping us apart. It's unfortunate that we had to wait this long for that decision... but here we are."
"And she doesn't agree with the other Hunters, either?" Owen asked. "Like that Espurr?"
"Certainly not," Nevren spoke up. "The remaining Hunters are acting on their own, for their own gain."
Anam finally perked up, even if his usual, happy demeanor was completely missing, replaced instead by pained concern. "I—I trust Nevren. He's my friend."
Owen sank down, satisfied at least with this answer. While it was hard, even for Owen, to get a read on Nevren, what he said was reasonable. And if Anam trusted him, that was good enough.
"So that's it, then," James said, nodding. "We race the Hunters to gathering the Guardians. With Star's cooperation, perhaps we can find more of them."
Zena curled a bit tighter around Owen again; the Charmeleon tensed, readying for another crushing grip. "You can plan with her," she said, "I'm not ready to speak."
"Of course," James said. "Amia? If you can summon her, please."
"Oh—yes, dear."
Star appeared again, this time a bit more solid—but Star was too powerful for Amia to fully materialize, and she was still very see-through. "H-hey, everyone..."
Her head was on fire.
"Uh, Star, er..." Owen pointed.
"What?" Star tried to look up. "Oh, come on." She licked her paw and dabbed it on her forehead, putting out the flame. "Honestly, Amia. Fire realm's way too hot."
Amia tittered softly, but then fell back into a tense silence.
"Star..." Owen wanted to speak carefully, if only so he didn't get crushed like a Cheri Berry. "I—I don't get how you could create the Hunters and..." He glanced at Zena,."And let something like that happen, but... You seem like a good Pokémon! S-so, you're gonna help us, right?"
Star nodded. "I'll do what I can. But, the thing is... a lot of the Guardians don't talk to me anymore. They're doing their own thing, hiding away and making sure they don't, you know, get into any trouble. I'll need some time to prepare. And I think you all need some rest."
"O-oh." Owen nodded. "Right..."
Just then, the pure exhaustion of the day hit him. This day began with him dying while touching the Grass Orb. It ended with him dying again when he turned back to a Fire Type. And now this?
"Rest up for a few days," Star said. "I need to... gather everything I know. Alright?"
Rhys nodded. "That's fair enough. Demitri, Mispy, Gahi. Let's return home for dinner. Owen, I imagine you would like to go home with Amia."
"Y-yeah," Owen said. "Definitely. I'll—" He tried to get out of Zena's coils, but the Milotic held onto him tighter.
"Where will I go?" she asked.
"Oh, um, well." Owen considered this. Zena probably wouldn't be very comfortable in a slimy pool of water with Anam. And Rhys—that was certainly out of the question.
"You can come home with us, dear," Amia said. "Hot Spot Cave, despite the name, is quite cool if I'm not using my power. I'll make sure the central part of the cave is tolerable!"
Zena nodded. "Then, I will go there."
Rhys nodded. "I believe we should also move in," he said. "While Star prepares, we will gather our supplies and go to Hot Spot Cave."
"E-eh? Just like that?" Gahi asked.
"I have a responsibility to protect the Guardians. If they are going to live in Hot Spot, then I shall go there as penance."
"Oh! You know," Owen perked up, "there's actually building a lot like yours in Hot Spot! It even has a little sand pit from one of the other—" Owen winced, remembering that his entire village was dead. "You know, where one of the spirits used to fake-live."
"A sand pit? Fer me?" Gahi said. "Hah! Well, I ain't gonna complain. Figure we'll accidentally go ter our old home a lot in the next few days, though."
"We will be sure to register our Badges with Hot Spot Cave as its new personal Waypoint," Rhys said. "Come, you three. Let's go."
Owen rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Hey, um, am I part of Team Alloy, now?" he asked. "We never made it official."
"Eh? Oh, sure," Gahi said. "Figured we already were. Sure. It's official now."
Vines slowly wrapped around Gahi, lifting him off the ground. His tiny legs wiggled uselessly. Mispy turned the Trapinch around, staring at him with narrowed, red eyes. The Chikorita spoke with her whisper of a voice, yet it was firmer than anybody else on the team. "I'm leader."
"E-ehh..." Gahi's jaws shut tight. He nodded.
Mispy dropped Gahi and nodded at Owen. "You may."
Owen brightened. "Great! Then, um—I'll see you guys soon!"
With those parting words, Team Alloy departed again. Rhys glanced behind just once to meet eyes with Zena, only to be met with an icy glare. He bristled and hastily exited with the others.
Owen's tail dimmed, but Amia held his shoulder. She smiled and said, softly, "Give it time." She followed the others out.
Owen frowned, but couldn't find it in himself to argue. But the thought was there...
Wasn't giving it time what ruined Zena's life to begin with?
The Charmeleon realized, upon descending the stairway, that his flame was a lot more noticeable. The evening's final light disappeared behind the horizon.