“Did ya miss me?”

  Blitzer’s head throbbed, watching the Aggron’s disheveled form lumber around the chamber’s entrance. The orders he’d received had been clear. Even if impossible for him, even if it was more suited to someone less frightened by the prospect, he should’ve expected having to take charge. Yet here he was, shivering with a splinter of a Power Crystal in his claw, anxiously dropping it into his pouch.

  ‘Of all the Pokemon in the world who’d show their face here… why him? And why now?’

  “Aw, c’mon laddie. ‘Tis no hard feelings between us, is it?” the Aggron growled, his voice backed by a raspy echo that felt like ash upon the ears. “Didn’t get the chance for a proper bye-bye, why don’t we fix that?”

  Skal wasn’t one to leave a thread unwoven. Or a boulder uncrushed, rather: Arceus knows he’d never touch a ball of yarn in his life. Blitzer grimaced. The Aggron had made his true feelings clear enough back in Luminity, hadn’t he?

  “Why are you here?” Blitzer asked, stalling for time. “You wanted to go home when the fight was done, right?”

  The Aggron scoffed at him, scraping the floor tiles with the claws on his feet, before kicking the frame of the entryway. The moment his foot hit the stone, a boom echoed through the room, disturbing the dust that had been gathering on the pillars and the ceiling.

  “Did I ever say that? Can’t remember… but hey now, lad. Sounds like a plan for when the fight’s done, no? I’ll take it! I’d love to know why you think the fight’s done, though. Why d’ya think I’m here, eh?”

  Mere microseconds had passed since Blitzer recovered from his fall, before the Aggron set foot into the room. Each footstep crunched and cracked the tiles underneath. Skal took it slow, keeping his eyes trained on Blitzer the entire time; the Charizard scrambled back several steps, away from the Power Crystal hovering in the center.

  “It’s- It is over,” Blitzer choked out, his tongue getting in the words’ way. “The queen’s dead! Artanouk killed her, you saw that!”

  Skal clicked his tongue loud enough to produce echoes, slapping his chest with a fist right after. “That your definition of over, lad? Ye always were sloppy when trainin’, but this is somethin’ else…. Actually nah, it explains a lot. See, the thing about the queen is that she had this whole freakshow ‘round her. The Vined Crest? Heard of ‘em? Still alive and kickin’ up in the north, sadly? Same Vined Crest you just joined?”

  A growl escaped Blitzer’s throat as he continued his retreat, his tail perpendicular to his body. His heart kept beating against the walls of his chest, faster and faster as the Aggron drew in. They were walking circles around the crystal now, no one daring to break the status quo. Blitzer didn’t know what to say. He knew attacking was suicide. One look at the Aggron’s void-drenched grin told him enough. Skal knowing his fighting style inside out was but the Cheri on top.

  “Well?”

  “D-Do you think I had a choice?!” Blitzer shouted in self defense. “You all stabbed me in the back, all of you! The whole Alliance wants me dead! You yelled as much! And then your friends up north throw me in jail, beat the crap out of me, and, and-!”

  Even who;e walking in circles, Blitzer felt like he’d been trapped in the corner. Skal, like any good Alliance mentor would do, laughed in his face about it.

  “Haah! Sounds like we got some, what’s the right term for it again, ‘communication errors’. That right? Yeah! Sounds like it!” He palmed one of his fists and cracked his steel knuckles, the vapours flickering with anticipation. “I didn’t really mean to kill ya back there! ‘S just the adrenaline goin’ through my mind at the time! See, I knew ye and him weren’t gonna be all buddy buddy with the Renegade, ya both just sent ‘im outta yer lives whenever he tried to get in! Don’t know why, but I know Eravate’s got no room for that!”

  Blitzer bawled up a fist now. “You lied! You lied to us!” he cried, the pain of betrayal superseding his fears for the moment. Sefonia hadn’t arrived, and there was no sign of her yet. He had to stand up for himself. No matter how scary or frustrating, he had to.

  The Aggron shrugged. “Sorry kid! No hard feelings! But y’know what? I think we got a looot to go over. I can’t even do much with ya, yer dad wants a word or two outta ye! He ain’t a happy camper ‘bout ya runnin’ off, y’know?”

  “Shut up!!” Blitzer roared. “D-don’t mention him again! I swear!”

  “Why not?” Skal asked, tilting his head so Blitzer got a good look at his teeth. “Yer dad’s been missin’ ya! Says he’s gotta knock some sense into ya, and lookin’ at who yer hanging out with these days? ‘Tis well warranted! Look at yerself! The Blitzer, hangin’ out with the same folks who ransacked his home and kidnapped ‘is parents!”

  “I said… I said SHUT UP!!”

  The Aggron kept on pushing Blitzer’s buttons for several minutes. Blitzer pleaded, threatened, asked questions, tried all sorts of angles besides attack to get the Aggron to stop. But Skal went on, full steam ahead. Didn’t matter what came out of Blitzer’s mouth; as long as it wasn’t fire, Skal wouldn’t stop running his jaw.

  And that’s where the problems reached a fever pitch. No one had joined them in the room: Not any other Corrupted, nor Sefonia. Where was she? And how could she leave him? In spite of the frustrations, Blitzer struggled to do anything back. Couldn’t bring himself to. Not even the beast within reared its ugly head in a blue blaze.

  “Let’s cut the crap, shall we?” Skal growled, stomping his feet harder. Blitzer felt the ground vibrate underneath his feet. “See, ye’ve been runnin’ around like a dumbass, bangin’ heads with the Crest, the whole shindig. Why don’t ya stop with that, come with me, and we’ll get you right back on the right track, eh?”

  Skal palmed his other fist, cracking the knuckles one by one. His tail lashed against the crystal, the vapours covering his body surging high above his head. He smiled like a killer, purple pupil-less eyes staring right through Blitzer.

  The narrative has been taken without permission. Report any sightings.

  “Either ye’re comin’, or I’m gonna make ya come, kiddo. And believe me, ye’ll be wishin’ I was yer daddy when I’m done with ya. I’ll make him look tame by comparison.”

  Blitzer clenched his teeth hard, the scales on his skin shivering from something crawling around underneath. His tail flame dimmed. Fortune wasn’t smiling upon him; it circled down the drain much as he circled the Power Crystal, scared of what would happen if he so much as glanced over his shoulder, let alone turned tail and ran. For a moment, he swore he heard a cry in the distance, before it was stamped out underneath Skal’s feet.

  “Oh, I’m gonna enjoy this…”

  The way the pavement below cracked as the Aggron’s voice deepened made Blitzer’s eyes fly wide open. A wave of cold passed over his heart: Scenes of his wings mangled by stalactites, and boulders crushing his feet flashed before him. Then, he felt the touch of a giant stone claw reaching into his chest.

  “SEF!!”

  Blitzer leapt away from the crystal, towards a pillar in the corner. His tail lashed out behind; he cried out from a sharp pain that stripped the end bare, tearing three small gashes close to the tip before breaking free. He rushed behind the pillar as if playing hide and seek, the Aggron quick to pursue.

  He gasped for air, then ran yet again, His wings kicked up a storm in an attempt to gain speed, his stubby feet only capable of so much. Without looking back, he made it to the second pillar, then ran for the third. All the while his growls and gasps went up in pitch, until they sounded childlike. Right at the border of a Charmander.

  At the third pillar, he finally looked back. But Skal was nowhere to be seen where his tail had left a smoky trail. Which meant-

  “SURPRISE!”

  The Aggron’s breaths were going down the Charizard’s neck by the time he looked left. A scream left his throat as the vapours scraped by his chest, and he ducked on reflex as a fist made its way to his face. The fist unfurled, and grabbed Blitzer right by the base of his neck, pressing him down. In the blink of an eye, the air was forced out of his lungs, as Skal uppercutted him straight in the chest. It was as if he’d been run over by a carriage.

  Skal punched, beat, then kicked him straight in the belly. By the time he finished, Blitzer’s whole torso screamed out in pain. A swift kick to the belly, and Skal let go of his neck. The Charizard flew off and collided with the pillar behind him, first hitting his back, then his head, before he sank down with his tail curling around the back.

  Blitzer hadn’t had the time to breathe before Skal came at him again. The Aggron didn’t even run. Just stomped his way over, grin wider than ever, tail swaying back and forth. He glanced into those eyes. If adrenaline had a color, it would be purple.

  ‘No… can’t… go down like-’

  Fearing the worst, instincts took over. Blitzer reached into his body, pulling on his inner flames. Searing heat made its way up from his burning lungs, which he hacked out the second the flames reached his maw. Enough fire shot out to cover what was in front of him, for just a moment. Enough time to try and make it back to his feet.

  Alas, halfway across, Skal reemerged with a forearm blocking his head, still grinning.

  “That the best ya got?”

  Blitzer growled back, weak and feeble. “You tell me…” he choked out, backing around the pillar. One glance at the tips of Skal’s claws revealed what fate had in store.

  “I raised ya better than that, ya lil tyke!” the Aggron spat out, half laughing, half angered. Blitzer recognised the sentiment well. He’d seen it from his father. He’d seen it from Skal himself on the day everything went to hell.

  Skal came in swinging again. Blitzer didn’t plan on sticking around this time. He jumped out of the way, then backed into one of the tunnels leading out. His lungs had recovered enough for a second breath of fire; he spewed it all out with all the passion he had. This time, just before the flames engulfed the area, he spotted the Aggron using both arms to block. Adrenaline kicked in. He used all the strength in his wings and legs to get out, his aching gut be damned.

  He made it as far as his eyes could see, to an intersection in the tunnels. Gods knew what this place had once been used for. A fort, an inn: The answer had been lost to the winds of war, and time would bury it under a layer of sand. For Blitzer, all that mattered was getting the hell out of here, and not without his companion.

  “SEF!! Where are you?!”

  Cry as he might, the response wouldn’t fall on his ears. The ground shifted away under his feet, a rock jolting one foot up into the air, and swooping the other off the surface. Blitzer damn near sounded like a Charmander, squeaking as he tumbled down, tail flopping onto his back as he face planted.

  As he scrambled to get back to his feet, a rock the size of his claw collided with the wall in front of him. Molten, and deep red in color, Blitzer felt a devilish heat strike the side of his body, right from where the rock had landed. He hadn’t so much as set two feet in front of him, before the rock violently burst apart, sending fiery bits of shrapnel in all directions. The Charizard was struck on his leg and on his tail, searing heat boring through his scales.

  “OI, KID!”

  Howling, then wheezing, the Charizard ran away. A second rock hit the wall behind. He didn’t stick around for the explosion.

  “YA LIKE PINAB BERRIES, KID?”

  Blitzer took off running, Skal hot on his heels with molten rocks. Where in the name of Arceus had he learned to do that? Aggron had nothing to do with fire, that’s why Skal had to have Porov around to even mentor Blitzer in the first place! Was Porov even alive anymore? Did Skal even care as much as Blitzer did?

  His mind raced with all sorts of thoughts, the soul trying to drown out the pain burning up his body. Skal had just about beat him into a bloody pulp. Any longer, and he’d have been knocking on the pearly gates.

  ‘He’s trying to kill me. My mentor wants to kill me. My mentor… who-’

  The Charizard cut his thoughts off, then craned his neck upwards. “SEF!!! WHERE ARE YOU?!” he roared, putting his lungs under stress. If he needed his breath anytime soon, he’d just carved his name onto a tombstone. But this time, explosions and boulders and unsteady ground be damned, he was ready and well to hear the response.

  “Right here!!”

  Light at the end of a tunnel. She sounded angelic, the way her voice echoed. Turning the corner to a tunnel full of small inlets, the Dragonite waved over to him from the other side, her orange scales beaming in sunlight, her claws stained black with a trail of unconscious Corrupted lying in her wake.

  “Coast is clear! I’ve made a way out, don’t stop!”

  Blitzer leapt over the ‘obstacles’ in his way, his wings struggling to get through the tunnel. Empty torch stands covered the walls, and he had a mighty hard time keeping his wings furled up. Worse, he struggled to walk without a limp. His right foot did the heavy lifting, the left too weak to keep up. His best efforts still got him close to tripping over a beaten Miltank.

  “D-Damn…”

  “Hold on!”

  Seeing Blitzer’s struggle, Sefonia began closing the gap inbetween, kicking the two Pokemon closest to her, a Minun and Plusle, off to the side. By the time he got to her, her fears had manifested into a grimace, her antennae twitching.

  “Gods, you can hardly walk, quick!”

  “Just get me out of here, please…”

  “Through here! I’ve-”

  Yet again, the earth quaked all around, the snap of stone splitting in half reverberating through the tunnel. The hole in the mountain caved in, a giant rock falling where freedom’s light had once shone through.

  And who was standing at the lone way out, aside from that ever-so demonic grin?

  “Aw, c’mon. Don’t think yer gettin’ outta here so easily,” Skal cackled. “We got unfinished business to do! Both of ya!”

  “Keep it to yourself!” Sefonia spat back at him, audibly pushing back saliva to the back of her mouth. An orange light glowed from her fist as she winded up, then punched the rock as hard as she could. A crack spread inside the rock’s center. “Blitz! Help me out here!”

  The Charizard hissed; any conflict between a rock and his claws would end in the rock’s favor. Broken bones were one thing, bones turning into dust another. Skal wasn’t waiting for them; as a matter of fact, he came roaring down the hall, a metallic shine coming off his claws.

  Seeing no way out, the best Blitzer could think of was delaying the inevitable. Agonized as his lungs might be, he breathed in deep, let fires simmer in his windpipe, then blew them all out. For as long as his breath lasted, fires poured out of his jaws and sprayed across the hall. Whatever became of Skal, whether it be death or injury or worse, Blitzer didn’t care.

  With Skal distracted, Sefonia reeled back one last time, then smashed the boulder with a firm downward punch. As it broke apart in several pieces and rolled away, the light to freedom revealed itself once more. The two dragons wasted no time; they jumped out into the light, finding themselves on the side of a hill overlooking earthworks at the edge of a forest.

  “Come on, let’s go!” Sefonia called out, her wings whipping up a fierce wind. “Can you fly?”

  “I think!” Blitzer replied, carefully unfurling his wings. The struggle to escape had done their damage on them; his flight muscles were sore. Better than his legs, but what wasn’t?

  From the snowy wastes, they took off, hanging low over the trees to gain speed. Blitzer shot one glance back over his shoulder; Skal stood where the gap in the hillside once had been, staring without moving his arms. No grin, not so much as a finger raised. He only gazed on as his prey escaped. For now.

  Blitzer turned his head back around, frowning. ‘What happened to him…?’