[M] Pokemon: Avarice Versus Justice! (Ashen and Headwrapper)

[Headwrapper]

Despite Clive and his team's efforts, Diancie quickly proved to be an overwhelming force in battle. Houndoom was quickly taken out by a Power Gem attack that it was unable to avoid, and as Clive recalled the unconscious Pokemon, a sudden burst of pain exploded in his head. A piercing voice, rather, a cacophony of voices, shrilled inside of his head.

What are you doing?

C'mon, get her!

Maybe you should just let us all go, huh?

When are you going to get serious?

Clive jerked a glance towards the backpack he had placed on the ground nearby, pushing the voices out of his mind. It was not time for this nonsense. Now back in a one Pokemon disadvantage, Clive needed to focus on how to turn the battle back in his favor. Diancie was a huge threat, but that did not mean the detective and his Pokemon did not have a few tricks left. He sent out his final Pokemon, the clever Shadow who Clive previously switched out earlier. "It's all up to us now!" Clive called out to the Gengar and Zorua.

After reaffirming the importance of avoiding Diancie's attacks, Clive commanded both of his Pokemon to take to the battlefield and take advantage of the strengths they had lying in the shadows cast throughout the cave. What they could not achieve through raw power they had to try to obtain through misdirection. Gengar sank into its shadow, vanishing completely, as Shadow sped up with increasing Agility. Focused completely on avoiding Diancie's attacks and heeding Clive's warnings, Shadow managed to avoid any direct hits during their opening bout.

Clive saw an opening to eliminate the Braviary supporting Diancie in its onslaught. Sorry about this, he thought. At Clive's command, his Zorua paused on a stalagmite, and its own shadow seemed to extend out down the rock. The black shadow quickly grew, writhing and slithering like a snake towards Diancie. Despite the darkness of the cave, the Shadow Sneak was too obvious of an attack, and had no hope of doing significant damage to Diancie. And that was not what Clive was counting on.

"Now, bring it down Gengar!" At Clive's command, a purple blur leaped from one of the stalactites above, transforming into Gengar. He wrapped his surprisingly dexterous tongue around Braviary as he flew by, and immediately descended towards the ground, meeting with the Zorua shadow as it sped across the cavern floor. Shadow vanished entirely for a brief moment before reappearing at the end of its shadow, readying a Foul Play as Gengar tossed Valkyrie towards the ground. Turning the Braviary's own strength against itself, Shadow finished knocked it out with a strong blow.

Hey look, he finally woke up! A voice chided inside of Clive's head. It was accompanied by... applause? He huffed as he pushed the sounds out a second time, swearing under his breath. It was down to the final two on two battle, and his bag of tricks was growing empty. If he was going to win, he needed to do it fast before he's revealed everything he had up his sleeve. The Gengar and Zorua reset their positions in front of Clive, and all of three of them watched as Zita entered the battlefield. Clive nodded knowingly, acknowledging the loyal Pokemon's discomfort. He addressed the Pokemon and its oppressive despot at the same time. "This will be over soon." Taking stock of the situation, Clive's gaze paused briefly on Gengar, reflecting on their private meeting that took place of their introduction to Freya.



Gengar had approached Clive after leaving Yulia's apartment.. "You want to show me something? Go on then, let's go." The trek proved to be long, taking Clive outside of town and into the nearby woods. Under the cover of the trees, the woods were dark, too dark to travel through safely, but he continued to follow Gengar's glowing red eyes into the mysterious nothingness. After stumbling over roots and low branches and blindly waving his arms to avoid collisions with the hidden trees, Clive eventually fumbled into a clearing, well-lit with moonlight.

The detective approached a stone obtrusion, only a few feet tall, jutting out of the ground like a gravestone in the center of the clearing. There were carvings in the obelisk, perhaps in a language he could not understand. "What is this?" he asked, turning back towards Gengar. Before he could completely turn around, a sharp, icy chill ran up his entire body, and everything faded to black.

Gengar slowly raised Clive's ghost from his body, allowing the physical body to sink to his knees and fall over to his side. Gengar watched, its grin unmoving, as the ghost -a silhouette of Clive made of blue smoke- awoke.

When Clive opened his eyes, he realized he was floating in the air, Gengar holding onto the cuff of his coat. Gengar gently released him, giving him a moment to glance around. He was still in the clearing, but he was... flying? And who was that below him? It was him, motionless. "What did you do to me!?" he shouted. Gengar simply shook his head once, and floated down towards the obelisk. It paused for a moment, before ushering Clive onward and diving straight through the earth.

Clive followed suit, growing used to maneuvering as a ghost a little too quickly. He paused, shuddering at the sight of his own unmoving body nearby, and pressed himself through the ground below him. There, he and Gengar floated inside of a large, dark room with walls of clay. The room was lit only by the strange blue glow of Clive's ghost, and Gengar's large red eyes. There was another stone, carved in the shape of a narrow dome, like a giant gum drop, sitting atop what appeared to be a stone coffin. Like the obelisk, an odd pattern was carved into this gumdrop-shaped stone, like a childish drawing of a frowning face. Surprised by this new discovery, Clive set aside his intial concerns as the observed the tiny room. As the detective approached the stone, over a hundred voices filled his mind, so overwhelming that even his ghost pressed its hands against its ears. Children, men, and women, cackled and shouted and screamed inside of his head, all at once. The sound was deafening, and it grew louder and louder with each passing second until Clive could feel his head about to burst.

Only when the sound suddenly stop did Clive open his ethereal eyes. We was met by the sight of a young girl placing her hand on the odd stone. He immediately recognized her as the strange, teleporting psychic he had met before. She mumbled something to the stone as she waved her hand overtop of it, staring straight at Clive's ghost all the while. A green puff of smoke, a wisp, floated out of the girl's chest before being aggressively sucked into the stone. If Clive could still feel his heart, it would have sunk. What sort of trick was he caught up in?

"You needn't worry, Clive," the strange psychic said. Clive noticed a faint, almost invisible, green glow float off of her skin in small wisps. Perhaps it was something he could now only see with this newfound perspective, or an afterimage of whatever sorcery she just practiced. "In fact, it is a very fortunate coincidence for us to find each other like this. I think you have found what you're looking for in this Odd Keystone." She giggled lightly as she stepped closer, her eyes never leaving Clive's ghost. "We should get you back to where you belong... before you get too cold. But I will leave you with one thing: some words you must remember."



Refocused on the battle, Clive issued his commands. Shadow and Gengar continued to prove to be quick and elusive, vanishing, dodging, disappearing and reappearing to confuse their opponents. Finally, the Zorua reappeared in front of Zita, sending another Shadow Sneak directly towards her. Quickly, the shadow zigzagged across the ground beneath the Beartic's legs as it beelined towards Diancie. Then, just as abruptly, the shadow forked, splitting in two as it surround Diancie. The two ends met, forming a circle around the mythical Pokemon. Shadow's form suddenly vanished from in front of Zita, dodging another powerful attack, and he reappeared from the shadowy ring around Diancie, striking the Pokemon.

The Shadow Sneak attack was weak, and the Zorua bounced off of Diancie pathetically, almost too pathetically, causing the small Pokemon to roll across the ground several times. In the process, it was detached from the shadow underneath Diancie. Silently, hidden by the distraction of the small fox-Pokemon's charade, the shadow ring melded together into the form of Gengar. The ghost revealed itself, its mouth open wide as toxic sludge formed within its maw. It loosed a Sludge Bomb from a recklessly close range, hitting Diancie directly with little room for either the mythical Pokemon or the ghost-type to escape.

[Ashen]

On the outside, Clive looked calm and unbothered, but Freya knew him too well to not notice how he stumbled. He almost seemed like he was struggling with something, and unaware of the voices he was hearing urging him on, Freya assumed he was frazzled by the direction their battle was going. He was losing, and he was probably only not realizing that he’d never had a chance at winning to begin with. All of her cocky assumptions went straight to Freya’s head, and as her confidence swelled until it was bursting from her smile, she disregarded her own strategy to back in her won glory.

Yulia had raised Zita to be a powerful Pokemon, and she didn’t have to worry about Diancie either, so Freya casually crossed her arms over her chest and watched on with a relaxed smirk. Even if the Gengar and Zorua pair fought well, able to play on each other’s disappearing abilities, they would never be able to do any real damage to either of her Pokemon. Still, their invisibility was getting annoying. Freya called for Diancie to summon rocks across the field, suspended in the air by its mythical aura. The ghost- and dark-type Pokemon would be unable to tread so freely around the cave now without cutting themselves on the rocks. Freya then turned to the other half of her remaining team. “Let’s change things up in here,” she said. “Beartic, Hail!”

Gusts of wind bellowed from the cave’s entrance, bringing with them a sheet of sleet that slammed against human and Pokemon. Freya was expecting it, so she shook it off with an easy smirk. In this weather, Zita would be able to land stronger attacks, perfect for finishing this quickly. But, more importantly, it would make it difficult for Clive and his Pokemon to see too far, so Freya’s team was just as invisible as his.

Or she thought, until his Gengar appeared in front of her Diancie, an attack already formed in its mouth. Freya called out to the Diancie, but it was too late. The Sludge Bomb landed with full force, and the Diancie was thrown across the battlefield, its crystals twinkling and a howl emerging from its throat. There it remained for several seconds, unmoving, until Freya was forced to return it to its ball. “Useless,” she snarled. “After everything I did to get you here. Useless.” She shoved the ball away and reached for another without looking, but when her fingers grazed only empty air, she swore. Zita was all she had left. “Fine,” Freya spat. She pointed across the field to the Beartic. “C’mon, you oaf, attack the Gengar!”

Zita summoned shards of ice from the air around her. They surrounded her, getting bigger and bigger until they were the size of a full-grown man. One after the other, Zita hurled them across the field. The first narrowly missed the Gengar, and it shattered dangerously close to Shadow. The next barely hit the ghost Pokemon, who was starting to show its exhaustion on its face. It disappeared, but Freya rolled her eyes. She was tired of this tactic. “Blizzard!” she commanded.

The psychic chuckled to themselves from their place away from the battle. They rummaged in their pack for a blanket, which they draped over the Alakazam. The Pokemon wrapped the blanket around its thin frame and joined their master in watching as the battle began its final stages.

The air in the cave got even colder, breaths hardening to mist instantly, as the hail picked up. Zita let out a roar and formed new ice around her, and then a wave of it was headed for Clive’s team. It slammed against Gengar and Shadow both, unavoidable in the cramped, cold space. Zita straightened and looked on in the storm, her expression tight, her eyes narrow. Clive’s Pokemon would pull through. They had to.

Freya shielded her eyes, but once the blizzard let up, she squinted through the storm to figure out the outcome of the attack. Gengar was unmoving, and Shadow was gone, likely obscuring its body with an illusion. Maybe the Zorua already had an attack planned. “Keep an eye out,” Freya muttered to the Beartic, who grunted her acknowledgment in return. At least now, they were evenly matched, though that might have been a stretch. Freya had a powerhouse of a Pokemon on her side, while Clive had only a tiny, wounded fox. It was time to end this.

[Headwrapper]

Gengar and Shadow's sneak attacks were more effective than what Clive had even hoped for. The super effective attack from Gengar was enough to knock out Freya's mythical weapon, one that she was surely counting on fully countering Clive's team. A chilly breath floated in front of Clive as he squinted across the battlefield in an attempt to keep track of his team through the blinding snow. Even as the chilling air stung his skin, he fought to keep focus on the battle. They were successful in taking out Diancie, but Freya was never going to give them a free victory.

The reckless charge at Diancie had placed both Gengar and Shadow in positions that were vulnerable to Zita's attacks. Blizzards and large masses of ice began to fly through the air before there was a chance for Clive's team to recover, suddenly placing them on the backfoot. The steep cost of taking out a Mythical Pokemon. Clive did not dwell on it. There was no going back now. The path taken to get here was0 scorched behind him, and it was this belief that he had to instill in his team as they fought to claim victory. "Move it! You need to stay in the battle!"

The detective braced himself against the bitter cold as he watched his Pokemon scramble to make distance from Zita, narrowly dodging her initial attacks. Zorua's earlier Agility helped it move quickly, but both he and Gengar could not make themselves invisible with such a vicious onslaught headed towards them. Hail racked them as they struggled to focus on the ice shards that soared from Zita's direction, but they pressed on, dashing to get back to their trainer. Just when it seemed like they would finally make it with minimal damage, Zita let out a powerful Blizzard attack that connected against both of her targets.

Ice formed on the hairs on the backs of Clive's arms as he shielded himself, the residual winds of the Blizzard rushing past him. When the gusts finally stopped, he lowered his arms, wincing as the frost nipped at his skin, and scanned the battlefield. Although his smile was still permanently fixed on his face, Gengar remained inanimate and clearly could no longer battle. Shadow began to limp along towards Clive, but upon observing Clive's nonverbal queues immediately vanished amongst its illusions before Freya and Zita could see. As he did so, Clive resisted the urge to gaze towards the ceiling of the cave. He still had cards to play in this battle.

Other than Freya's spoken commands to Zita, the cave was silent. Clive turned narrowly to pick up the trench coat he had abandoned earlier. As he pulled his arms through the sleeves, he briefly glanced down towards his bag. Then, without a word, he returned to his position, directing his focus on Zita and Freya while fastening his coat. Zita was still relatively fresh to the battle, her vitality apparent even through the concerned look on her face. Freya seemed less bothered than Clive would have anticipated. She expected the remainder of the battle to be easy, perhaps, though she must have been thoroughly annoyed of dancing with shadows. As Clive fixed his collar, he realized his hand no longer tremored. This was his battle to win, as long as he and Shadow stayed focused.

A shimmer of light flickered above the battlefield before descending downward like a raindrop bathed in light. At Clive's command, his Zorua reappeared with its Night Shade attack. A wall of purple, ghostly smoke appeared near Zita as Shadow vanished again. Suddenly, blood red eyes and matching crimson jaws revealed themselves through the violet portal, before instantly vanishing without doing damage. Immediately afterwards, with a loud boom, a mirage of the same image appeared at Zita's side, then again on her opposite side, then behind and above. The continued to appear and immediately disappear until the true Night Shade attack connected for some damage. As it did so, Shadow reappeared where the drop of light was falling, allowing it to strike him.

Clive sighed with relief as Umbreon's Wish reached Shadow, healing him significantly. They were still on the backfoot for this final one-on-one showdown. Clive was counting on flawless execution for them to win the battle, as the truth of the matter was that Zita possessed much more power than Clive's Zorua. That is not even speaking to the wealth of battle experience that the Pokemon possessed, possibly more than Clive and Zorua combined. Victory was well within reach for Freya, and yet Clive knew that it was his steal. Not just for himself, but for Yulia, for the entire Johto region, for even the world. Everything that had led them to this final bout, the friendship, the anger, the physical pain, the battles they won, the battles they lost, they all had to mean something.

That's right, he had to remember the reason he signed up for this crazy battle in the first place. "I'm coming, Yulia."

Another wave of ice attacks came hurdling towards Shadow. He ducked and dove to avoid them, before moving closer to start closing the gap between himself and Zita. The attacks became more erroneous and difficult to predict as Zita worked tirelessly to hit Shadow, using the placement of her attacks to corner him. "The ice!" Clive called, a command that would have been vague for any Pokemon other than the tricky fox. As large, man-sized boulders of ice surrounded the Zorua, a final one came hurdling his way. It connected exactly where the Beartic had aimed it, but by then, one of the ice shards had disappeared to present an escape route for Clive's Zorua. Mixed in with the sculptures of ice that Zita had flung around were illusions of ice, making it difficult for anyone but Shadow to discern which ice blocks were real and which were fake.

A shadow snaked along the ground, a Shadow Sneak attack that rose up from Zita's feet. Zita struck at the spot where Shadow would appear from the dark contour, having grown accustomed to this trick. It swiped passed the mirage of Shadow as the second, real Shadow ascended, squarely swiping the Beartic with its claws. A minor victory, as the frost from Zita's attacks, empowered with the snowstorm around them, began to tighten up Shadow's joints. He was slowing down, a significant problem against an opponent who has the potential to knock him out with a good square hit.

"Night Daze!" Clive quickly commanded. A black shockwave emanated from Shadow's mouth, hitting Zita as she struck the dark fox Pokemon with an icy blow. The Zorua tumbled before crashing into an icy boulder. Clive shouted to his Pokemon to move before Zita shook off the darkness that shrouded her vision. Covered in frost and bruises, Shadow struggled to move back towards its master, gritting its teeth as it crawled. Clive racked his brain for a solution, a way to recover after this misstep, but before he could think of anything, another Blizzard swept over Shadow and the rest of the battlefield before him.

Is this it? Clive wondered, clenching his teeth as the remnants of the Blizzard whizzed by him. As the winds yielded, the small black silhouette of Shadow appeared, rolled over on his side, his fur covered in frost. He remained completely still. Clive could hear his own heart beat drum inside of his ears as he called for Shadow to get up, to respond, to do anything. After several painstaking moments, Shadow's head turned towards Clive, as if awaiting another command from its master. "Can you get up?" Clive asked. The weight of the rocks that filled his stomach lessened as Shadow managed to get back on all fours, albeit in a shaky stance. Zita was readying one more, final attack, potentially an ultimate end to the battle. "Shadow," Clive began, gently. "Thanks for everything. You worked hard to help me with this case. I never would have made it this far without you, and Umbreon and Houndoom."

The detective flinched, looking down to see the mirage of a pair of arms that wrapped around him. Then another pair, and another. He recognized arms, even though he did not turn to see who they were attached to. They were the friends that supported him, even at his worst and nastiest moments. Those that showed him kindness as he and Yulia travelled the continent as they faced off against Avarice. He knew it was one of Shadow's tricks, an illusion, but they felt so real. Two more pairs of arms, one dark and thick and the other dainty and gentle, suddenly wrapped around him. "How do you..."

Clive's words halted as the illusion faded away, and a bright white glow began to overtake Shadow's figure. His silhouette glowed brightly, filling the cave with light and causing the Pokemon hanging above to stir. The stalagmites around them cast long shadows throughout the arena, and the light was so blinding that Clive shielded his eyes with his arm. He could barely make out the silhouette of the Zorua in front of him as it grew taller and stood on its hind legs. The light vanished as immediately as it came once the Zorua completed its evolution to the Illusion Fox, Zoroark.

Zita, spurred on by new urgency from its master, met the newly transformed opponent with a powerful attack, only to miss. Zoroark had shaken off the frost that covered its body previously, refusing to let Clive down. Suddenly, a second Zoroark swooped from the shadows, striking Zita banefully. As Zita fought back, her attack passed through the newly introduced figure, revealing that it was swapped with another mirage. What appeared to be the first Zoroark took advantage of the force of Zita's attack, using Foul Play to turn her strength against her.

Then, where there were multiple Zoroark, there were none. The serpentine contours of the shadows across the cavern snaked and coiled along the walls and the ground, and before long the dark figures of the Illusion Pokemon began their onslaught. A mirage would launch itself from one shadow, passing through Zita or her counter attacks, only for the real Pokemon to emerge from a different shadow to land a Night Slash attack with its claws. The figures viciously charged Zita in this fashion, and Clive could hardly keep up with the flurry of ice and shadow attacks that nucleated around Zita's position.

After Zita was struck with several attacks in a row, the ultimate moment came. The Freezing Pokemon was down for the count, but it prepared a final, viciously cold attack. Two Zoroark appeared from the shadows on either side of Zita, swinging claws that glowed in banefully purple light. The Beartic slammed its sheer cold attack to the ground, covering everything around it in solid ice. The two images of Zoroark remained still, floating inside of their icy prisons.

Purple and red shockwaves fulminated like lightning as Zoroark descended from above Zita, slashing downwards with both arms. The force of the slash echoed around the cave, stray shockwaves crumbling the ice around the Pokemon. The critical hit was enough to force Zita to stagger forward as Zoroark leaned down on one knee, its giant plume of hair wrapping around him like a blanket. Clive watched, his eyes moistening as the Beartic awkwardly stepped forward. Clive nodded solemnly, trying to make eye contact with the Pokemon, but only the whites of its eyes were visible. Zita's eyes rolled back, and she collapsed onto the floor of the cavern.

[Ashen]

Freya was getting more and more frustrated with each new imaginary attack, and she couldn’t keep the anger out of her voice while she called new commands to the Beartic. The Pokemon’s brow furrowed as she glanced back at her master’s double, snarling. Zita might have been able to fight better, maybe even enjoy the battle, if not for the incessant yelling from an insecure trainer who was starting to think this battle would not be as clear cut as she had hoped.

Zita dodged what attacks she could, but she was able to withstand all of Shadow’s feints. The attacks that actually hit her didn’t do too much damage anyway, and it would take a lot to topple a Beartic. Freya encouraged her to take them all and to not let such puny hits interrupt her own attacks, but as time dragged on, all of these moves were starting to wear on her. The snow had given her an advantage, but that was lost as she grew sluggish. But Zita tried to shake it off, and she kept going, even stronger in the face of impending loss. She hit the disappearing Zorua again and again. It wasn’t easy, but it was a fun challenge, almost like a game, trying to figure out which Shadow was the real one, which attack would end this fight.

The battle was wearing on Shadow, too, and Zita watched fatigue spread through his body. She was getting ready to end this, but then a blinding light filled the cave. Zita paused, bracing herself for some strange, unforeseen attack from the dark-type Pokemon, but she quickly realized this wasn’t a move a Zorua could know.

Behind her, Freya bristled. “You can’t—“ she started, turning towards the psychic and their Alakazam in disbelief. Of course, there had been nothing against evolving a Pokemon mid-battle in their agreement, so Clive was completely within his right to do so. That didn’t mean Freya had to be happy about it. She clenched her fists, looking at the new illusion Pokemon with a burning hatred. She couldn’t have predicted this, and now… No, what did it matter, anyway? Zorua, Zoroark, they were both weak Pokemon. This only proved how weak Clive was, to need so much help, like his healing and his tricks and this evolution. But none of it mattered in the end. Freya was still the better trainer, and she would still win.

The battle continued, and Zita remained steadfast, until she was staring down two identical Zoroark before her. She looked between them, concentrated, trying to determine for herself which was the mirage. Freya was yelling at her, telling her which one to hit, and how to hit it, how to finish this all, but… Zita remained still, stubborn. What Freya was saying was wrong. Freya wanted her to hit the Zoroark on the right, but the longer Zita stared between them, the more sure she was that the flickering illusion on the right was the fake. If she aimed instead at the left, this battle would be over, and Freya would win her freedom.

So, Zita prepared a Hyper Beam, focusing all of her energy into getting it just right, and when she unleashed it, she aimed for the one on the right. She was, of course, just obeying her trainer. When the fake Zoroark disappeared into the air, Zita smirked, knowing that the real one would come to finish her off. What she wasn’t expecting, however, was for Shadow to come not from the left, but from above.

Neither Pokemon nor trainer had seen the attack coming, so the Beartic was completely vulnerable to the newly-evolved Zoroark’s sharp claws. Zita took the attack straight-on, and instead of enduring it like she had every other, she staggered. There was far more force this time than in any attack before it, and despite this failure, despite her loss, a smile crossed her face. Clive had done it. Despite it all, he and his team had bested Freya. Zita didn’t know how things would go from here, if she would ever see her real trainer again, and though the thought brought a tear to her eye, she was proud, too. Proud of Clive, and of Shadow, and even of Yulia. Freya would finally be put to justice.

Freya blinked. The dust on the battlefield settled, and the blizzard was getting lighter too, so she couldn’t even deny what she was seeing. Was Zita really…? Freya ran onto the field and grabbed fistfuls of the Beartic’s fur. “Get up,” she hissed. But Zita was too wiped to respond, and her body slumped to the ground, fainted. “Get up you stupid, worthless bear,” she demanded again.

You will not insult my Pokemon, chided someone from deep within Freya’s mind.

Freya rolled her eyes. She didn’t need this. This had been a fluke, a convenient coincidence. Clive evolving his dumb Pokemon had been a circumstance she couldn’t have prepared for, and she deserved another chance before of that. This time, she would swap Yulia’s weak Pokemon for better, stronger ones, since clearly Zita wasn’t the undefeatable force she had been led to believe. Freya rose and looked over her Poke Balls. She did still have one, Yulia’s, a Skorupi that had been rescued from Avarice. She had made very little progress and was still a terrified, skittish thing. Would it make a difference? Using a seventh Pokemon was against the rules anyway, but…

Ivy landed on the battlefield with a scared shuffle and a startled cry. She glanced between Clive and Shadow before turning completely towards Freya. “You,” Freya called, but the Skorupi charged at her. Freya cried out when dual stingers lodged themselves into her leg, and as the poison settled in her bloodstream, she fell to the floor.

The psychic finally rose from their place and approached Freya, an amused smile on their face. They weren’t going to point out that she’d broken the contract; her present predicament was funny, and what would happen next would be worse than this anyhow. “They will be fine,” the psychic said to Clive, motioning towards Freya’s pained expression. “Congratulations on your victory.” They gave him a bow. “Now, there is just one thing left for her, isn’t there?”

[Headwrapper]

A deafening pulse filled Clive’s ears as the reality of his victory began to sink in. They did it. He and his Zoroark, and the rest of his Pokemon companions old and new. Even though he knew they would, knew they had to, the small amount of doubt nagged at him like a pebble inside of his boot. Now that he was relieved of such doubts, he felt relief.

While Clive was coming to grips with the victory, and what was to come next, Shadow marched back to his trainer, panting. When Clive finally acknowledged the Pokemon with a glance, the Zoroark smiled wide, tilting its head while raising its clawed hand. The detective exhaled lightheartedly and laughed soundlessly. “You’re much taller now,” he remarked with amusement. Clive paused for a moment, reflecting back on the final moments of the battle, knowing that Shadow’s loyalty and friendship was what made the difference in the end. “Thank you, Shadow.”

Clive picked up his bag solemnly, and he and Shadow watched in silence as Freya shook Zita in protest. The pair gave each other a knowing nod before approaching Freya and the psychic that administered the battle. Clive frowned at the sight of Skorupi, even more so when the Pokemon attacked Freya and the woman cried out like a child throwing a tantrum. This woman, this evil spirit that caused all of this havoc, was she really harmful now that she was defeated? Perhaps, like Sierra, she was just the product of the experiences the world placed her in. Did she deserve what came next? In fact, was it worth the risk? Clive’s experience with Gengar at the strange tomb beneath the stone obelisk did not exactly give him the confidence that his plans would not backfire.

When the psychic spoke to him, Clive did a double take. At that moment, he resigned himself. Whatever the answers were to his questions, he would never know them. Save for one. “Yes…” He returned his Zoroark to its Pokeball before kneeling to remove something from his bag. He struggled with the large object for a few moments before lifting it out of the bag with both hands and quickly setting it on the cold ground. The strange, smooth stone sat silently, its markings staring in Freya’s direction hungrily.

The rush of voices returned, squealing and yammering with excitement in Clive’s head. All one-hundred six of them were active now, drowning out even the trainer’s own thoughts. He fell to one knee and placed a hand on the stone, instantly silencing them all as he felt the iciness of the stone against his palm. The cave seemed so soundless that even a pin drop would echo throughout the hollow. When Clive spoked, his voice rumbled like a lower tremor across the cavern. “You underestimated me, didn’t you?”

It did not take long for Clive to lose patience with Freya’s retort. Their shared scars burned, reminding them that there was no denying the blood pact. “I just about went to hell and back to find this. A prison that can hold even you, Freya. I know you’ll miss your sister, but you’ll make so many new friends that I think you will cope rather quickly. Say your good-byes.”

Clive drew a deep breath, closing his eyes to try to remember the words that the strange psychic had told him. He began to recite the strange, foreign words, only opening his eyes when he felt something change in front of him. Despite any protest, green, flickering wisps, as thin as threads, began to pull away from Freya and Yulia’s shared body. They seemed to come from everywhere, gliding forth effortlessly and without resistance as they passed through their skin and clothes. They combined and formed a green orb that grew larger as more and more of the wisps eagerly nucleated with it, until it was slightly larger than a Pokeball.

To Clive’s surprise, the strange girl, the very same one who seemed to always have a hand to play, had appeared next to him. She giggled loudly upon being recognized by everyone around her, and she waved her fingers mischievously at Freya. “Au revoir! It’s been fun!”

Finally, the wisps completely filled the green orb, and Yulia seemed to lose consciousness. When Clive drew his hand away from the Odd Keystone, it glowed greedily, and the green orb was drawn into it. Clive stood, praying silently that the deed was done.

The psychic girl smiled from ear to ear as she knelt by the Odd Keystone, staring into its markings hungrily. Beneath the long bands that covered the girl’s eyes, Clive could barely make out her wild, greedy expression. She placed both hands upon the stone and looked towards Clive. “Come back to the Obelisk when you’re ready to see the true power of the Odd Keystone. It’s better that you and your Pokemon rest first.” She nodded her head towards Yulia, her eyes never leaving Clive’s. As the girl giggled, both she and the Odd Keystone vanished.

Later on, Clive emerged from the cave, carrying Yulia in his arms. He was shocked to realize that it had grown dark outside while he and Freya battled it out in the cave. The moon illuminated Yulia’s face, and Clive watched her with worry. She was breathing, but what was taking her so long to return to consciousness? Did he screw up the ritual or maybe fall for one of the creepy psychic girl’s tricks?

[Ashen]

So distraught about the loss of the battle, and the Skorupi’s poison running through her leg, Freya didn’t notice what Clive was doing. She only looked up at him when he spoke to her, talking about what he’d gone through to get… What was that? Terror settled in Freya’s eyes as she frantically glanced between Clive and the strange rock in his hands. Of course she knew what it was, but it couldn’t have been real. How would Clive have found an Odd Keystone, the item capable of trapping all of the souls of a Spiritomb? Say your goodbyes, he had said, but he couldn’t have meant to—

Realization dawned on her, and Freya ground her teeth as she tried to think of a plan. She needed to escape, but if she ran now, the psychic’s Alakazam would probably bring her right back with its telekinesis. She didn’t have any Pokemon left to help her get away either, not after exhausting all of Yulia’s worthless friends in battle. Freya looked down at the mark on her hand, the still-stinging cut that she shared with Clive. She had agreed to the terms so carelessly, failing to think of an outcome where she would not make it out on top. But now…

Freya felt like her core was shattering. Wisps of her soul fizzled from the body she had stolen, and as they tore from her, she let out a pained, animalistic howl. The sound carried on the green fragments, echoing in the cave. The last thing Freya saw was that stupid girl, laughing, taunting, before the screaming suddenly stopped.

Yulia wouldn’t wake for a long while after that. When she finally did, the world blurred in a dark swath of colors, impossible to comprehend. She blinked hard, willing her vision to focus, and her eyes fell on Clive. He was above her, close to her, closer than he’d ever been—was he carrying her? “Clive?” she said, but her voice was weak, and it came out in barely a whisper.

She couldn’t remember anything. Yulia fought through a budding headache for her memories, but they were too distant for her to reach. She could just barely recall that morning, going through the motions, and then heading to… a cave? It was impossible to think when it was so quiet, as if her ears had popped and she was hearing for the first time how sharp the world could be. The distant calls of a flock of Spearow, and the quiet nighttime coos of a Kricketune, the splashing of lively water-type Pokemon somewhere nearby. She could hear it all, as if the white noise she’d heard as long as she could remember was suddenly gone.

Freya.

Yulia startled, nearly knocking Clive off balance. It was only when he set her on the ground that she clutched her aching head and tried to find the familiar presence in her head. “Freya,” she called—aloud or in her head, she didn’t know anymore—but the only response she got was sweet, precious silence.

Yulia turned sharply to Clive as memories slowly trickled back to her. Yes, the cave, and the pact, and a battle. There were tears in her eyes, a smile on her lips, as she pieced together what must have happened. “Clive,” she breathed, joy lingering on her breath. “You won? But… how? And what…” The smile faded, and a look of worry crossed her pale eyes. “What did you do to her?”

[Headwrapper]

Just as Clive was beginning to put distance between his back and the exit of the cave, Yulia began to stir. In fact, she began to stir a little bit too much for Clive to continue carrying her. Worried he might drop her completely, Clive quickly dropped to his knee and lowered Yulia to the ground. He was unsure iif his presence or the sound of the voice would help Yulia reorient herself or just cause her more panic, so he remained silent, patiently waiting for his partner to regain her bearings.

The sound of Freya's name made Clive turn lean his head questioningly, but he continued to watch in silence, even when Yulia acknowledged him fully. His lips parted when she asked about Freya, as if the answer was stuck in his throat. Doubts haunted his decision, especially as he formulated a way to describe it to someone besides a a creepy psychic man or little girl. "Yeah, I won, and she's not a problem any more," he said dryly. It was apparent that was not a sufficient explanation, but he stood back up anyway.

"We have a long way back,. We can talk about it on the way. No sense in waiting around here."

Once Yulia was ready, they began their journey back to the nearest Pokemon Center. Clive placed his hands in his pockets as they walked, idly toying with the Pokeball that contained his Zoroark, the only Pokemon still fit for battle for the timebeing. "Turns out I'm not too bad at Pokemon battles after all," he finally said, glancing towards Yulia. "Not that Freya made it easy. Apparently capturing Raikou, Suicune, and Entei was just a side project. But anyway..."

They reached a clearing at the top of a hill, where they could see the lights of a nearby town below them. The familiar red roof of a Pokemon Center called out to them like a beacon. Clive halted his march as they took a moment to rest. He glanced down at the cut on his hand for a moment, before holding it up to show Yulia. "I'm still angry, you know," he said, though the gentleness in his voice did not do much to convey that feeling. As he brought his hand back down, he looked over the cut with fake interest. "But you were a victim of Avarice just as much as anyone else. It would not have been true justice to leave you to be tortured any longer."

"That girl, the one who gave you the bell. She taught me how to seal away mischievous spirits into a Keystone I found. She took off with the Keystone after I sealed Freya away." Clive paused to gauge Yulia's reaction, but cut in before her imagination got too far. "After we and our Pokemon have some time to rest, and we figure out what the hell we're telling HQ, we can go find the Keystone. Apparently there is still more to be done with it."

[Ashen]

She couldn’t blame Clive for being angry with her. Their entire relationship was built on lies, after all, and Yulia was sure, if the roles were reversed, she would have a hard time forgiving him. Yet his anger didn’t make her anxious. It was almost freeing, to be laid bare like this, to have no more secrets, and to know her blames were hers alone. She deserved this, and it felt good. She would try to make amends for the things she’d done, the lies she’d told, the monster she’d hosted, but for now, she was just glad everything was turning out okay. She felt hopeful about the future in a way she never had experienced before, and that was all because of Clive, his bravery, and his choice to protect her.

After he finished speaking, Yulia just stared at him, unable to form the words she wanted to say or even focus her emotions into something coherent. So, she did the next best thing. She pulled him into a hug, pressing his body so tightly against hers and holding onto him with all the strength she had left. “Thank you,” she murmured into his neck, and he meant that, more than he could begin to understand.

~~~

It was his idea to blur the truth. Yulia and Freya’s story was so ridiculous that the chief would never believe it, and besides, Yulia didn’t want her history so intimately showcased to the public either. So, when Yulia finally sat down to write a report of what happened in that cave, she took her time relaying the story she and Clive had crafted together. She wrote about her blackout, which wasn’t a lie, and Clive’s grueling battle, with a lot of help from him to fill in the details. She obviously left out the parts about the psychic and Clive’s blood pact. If anyone had yet asked him about his new scar, he hadn’t told her. When it came time to write about Freya, Yulia hesitated. She and Clive had agreed on what to say: Freya, so overwhelmed with grief and rage and dread following her defeat, had taken her own life upon the battlefield.

Yulia typed that out, then deleted it and retyped it twice more. Was it even a lie? Clive had told her what actually happened, and she knew Freya, if given have a chance, would have fled the battle after her defeat and started over, silently getting stronger and biding her time until she could return. It was because of Clive’s clever idea that she was truly gone. But Freya had agreed to the pact. And she had agreed to the consequences of that Ninetales’s prank, so long ago. Freya, twice, had chosen her own death. Yulia hoped, this time, she’d stay dead.

She was coming to miss Freya’s presence in her head, though. For so long, Yulia had listened to her snide comments, her taunting sighs, her pointed jabs, and the silence was unnerving as much as it was refreshing. She didn’t feel bad about what had happened to the malicious spirit, but she did wonder how she would ever get used to a life so alone.

With one final proofread, Yulia forwarded the report to Clive, requesting that he double-check her details and fix any typos. Then, she let out a long sigh. She opened a new document on her laptop, an official notice of registration addressed to the chief of police. Yulia wasn’t innocent, and she didn’t feel right continuing to work for the Goldenrod Police Department as if she wasn’t responsible for the most heinous criminal organization since Tem Rocket. But she had devoted her whole life to this. Ever since she was seven years old, she had lived with the sole purpose of banishing the spirit who had taken control of her life. She stared blankly at the document, wondering, Now what?

Her phone vibrated on her desk, and the sound startled a nearby Fritz, who was none too thrilled about having his nap interrupted. The Glameow got up and stretched, then walked over to press his head against Yulia’s legs. He’d been kinder to her since she’d gotten home from the hospital, and Yulia wondered if he knew that she was alone, now. She bent down and scratched behind his ears while she grabbed her phone, and a smile came onto her face as she saw the text from Natasha. The senior detective was inviting her to coffee, likely so Natasha could learn what had really happened. Yulia would miss Natasha and Jean, and since the pair had provided so much guidance to her, she intended to keep in touch with them. She was quitting, but she couldn’t stray too far from the GDPD after all.

She thumbed a reply, then pushed away from her laptop and stretched. She had agreed to meet with Clive today. There was more to be done with the keystone that held Freya’s soul, and Yulia had agreed to join Clive as he pursued that trail. It wasn’t entirely selfless; she had spent two decades with that woman, and getting rid of her without a proper goodbye didn’t sit right with Yulia. She had to be there, for herself as much as her partner. Or—perhaps not partner, not for much longer. Friend.

She got ready to leave, but just as she reached for the remote to turn off the TV, she did a double-take. Yulia hadn’t been paying attention to the Channel 9 news; she had kept it on more for the white noise than anything else. But there was a familiar face onscreen now. That reporter—what was his name? Oliver Burnstine? Yulia recognized him as the one who had provoked Clive all those weeks ago, asking such pointed questions about Avarice and spreading doubt among the public about the pair’s ability to take them down. Yulia smiled. That interview, for all the trouble it had caused, had aged poorly.

He was on TV now in another scandal. Apparently he’d pressed the wrong buttons, and the celebrity he’d been interviewing had hit him in the face. Shockingly, the public had sided with the celebrity, chastising Brunstine’s approach to the interview and his invasive questions. It was a blow to his career he wouldn’t easily recover from, and Yulia was glad he wouldn’t be reporting again any time soon. He’d done enough damage. She made a mental note to share the news with Clive when she saw him.

Oliver Burnstine had been wrong. So had everyone else who’d doubted Avarice could ever be taken down by a rookie detective and her stoic partner. In the days following Clive’s victory, several grunts and even an admin of Team Avarice had come forward to turn themselves in. Though there were likely many more of Freya’s underlings out there evading the law, without their leader, Avarice would continue to crumble until it was just a memory. It was all Yulia could have hoped for.

She turned off the TV, grabbed her purse, and headed out to meet with Clive.

[Headwrapper]

The Avarice case was now on its way to bed, soon to become a memory. To some, the disbandment of Team Avarice would simply mark the end of a chapter, a change in the tone and flavor in the news media and warnings put out by public officials. For many, it was a breath of fresh air, relief from the fear that the criminal organization created. The effects of the Great Storm would be remembered for generations, its long term effects still unknown. For the GRPD, the case was still not cold just yet. The district attorney would have their hands full amassing the evidence that was collected in order to press charges on those that were arrested. Even Clive and Yulia had yet to submit their own report.

Clive was not too worried about the report. Yulia had no trouble with writing them before, leaving him to make final tweaks before the final send off. There were more pressing matters on his mind, anyway.

He waited in the spot he and Yulia had agreed to meet, occasionally glancing over his shoulder. He was not nervous, not really. It was hard to imagine anything more nerve-wracking than the fateful battle in the cave just days before. Even still, he could not help be wonder just what that creepy girl had waiting for them... at an obelisk... in the middle of a dark forest. Even Gengar, the Pokemon that lead Clive to that spot in the first place, did not convey much information when asked about what to expect.

After mentally reminding himself that he would have his answers soon, Clive gave the area around him one more glance. Spotting Yulia approaching him, he bowed his head in acknowledgement. "Thanks for coming," he said. "I still remember the way. You ready?"

The trek through the forest was not nearly as daunting as it had been in the middle of the dark night after Clive had met Freya. Although the trees deflected much of the light, the forest seemed like an entirely different place in the day time. Still, Clive had no trouble navigating to the clearing where the stone construction stood. "There's no mistaking it," Clive said to Yulia, approaching the short stone pillar. The ground was almost completely barren of grass for several feet in front of the obelisk, above the tomb that was underneath the surface. Gravedigging was backbreaking work, and Clive hardly had the time to properly clean up after robbing the tomb of the Odd Keystone.

"You came!" An excited, high-pitched voice squealed behind Clive and Yulia. It was her, the creepy psychic, and on the ground beside her was the Odd Keystone. Her sleek, black hair draped over her small frame, like a waterfall of black oil. "I have so many new friends to play with now!"

"The Keystone?" Clive asked.

"Oh yes, I told you I would show you what it can do." The girls feet left the ground as she began to float in the air, as gently as a Drifloon. She circled the pair of detectives as she spoke, occasionally changing direction for her own amusement. "This grave belongs to a wizard from Sinnoh, who traveled here almost one hundred years ago in search of dark, mischievous spirits that had escaped from the Odd Keystone. When he found them, he would lock bind them to the cracks in the stone, very much like you did, Clive." A giant smile stretched across the girls face, so large that it was almost unnatural. "There was a little... accident, and he never brought all of the spirits together again. A few of them even got away to cause mischief somewhere else. But now, there are one-hundred seven spirits in the Odd Keystone again."

She floated backwards, landing on her feet just behind the Odd Keystone. "There are some very bad spirits in here, now," she said. "Like Freya!" She turned her large, toothy smile towards Yulia. "One more spirit will fill up the Odd Keystone, and we can have fun again in a different way." She giggled, and placed her hand on the Odd Keystone. Then, she began to recite a strange, ancient tune.

Clive jolted, recognizing the words and the same ones he used to bind Freya. Realization dawned upon him, then. The strange green light he could see floating around the psychic when Clive was a ghost was the same color as Freya's spirit when it was called into the orb. They were cut from the same cloth, in one way or another. Now, even in the land of the living, he could see the green light coming off of the psychic as it was drawn into the stone.

When it was over, the psychic's body fell to the ground with a wooden thud. "It's... a mannequin?" Clive wondered. "Was she not skin and bones a minute ago?" Before he and Yulia could question any longer, the Keystone began to glow. The markings glowed with a purple light, before a similarly purple cloud grew above the rounded stone. Green orbs of light circled the edges of the round purple cloud, and then the same light formed a menacing, green face at the cloud's center. The stone groaned with a long, metallic sound.

The new Pokemon that appeared was definitely dangerous. It went without saying that it needed to be subdued and captured. Clive looked towards Yulia. "Sorry if it's not what you were expecting... But she's in there. Maybe you should..." Yulia interrupted him, and after she said her peace it was clear that the Spiritomb was for Clive to battle.


They sat on a fallen log shortly after the battle, leaning on each other slightly for balance. Clive held the Ultra Ball containing Spiritomb between his to hands in front of him. "I guess we better hurry back and wrap up our reports," Clive said, but he did not move from their spot. He sighed. "I think I am going to take a break for a while, once things settle down." Now he actually turned to face Yulia. "I found information about the organization that Richie belonged to in Avarice's archives. I think it's about time I found him."

[Ashen]

The place where they were supposed to meet was creepy, and as Clive led her deeper into a nightmarish forest, Yulia had to remind herself to breathe. She wasn’t entirely sure where they were going, just that it involved that keystone Freya now resided in and some psychic Clive needed to speak to, but Yulia trusted him. After the past few weeks, now that Clive understood the things she had kept from him and still chose to be around her anyway, Yulia was sure he held no resentment for her. She trusted he wouldn’t lead her into danger, but as a tall stone pillar came into view, raising the hairs on her arms, Yulia wondered, however briefly, if her conviction was warranted.

The small girl’s voice startled them, cutting through the silence and seeming to echo around them. Yulia jumped. This must have been the psychic Clive had told her about; Yulia wondered if there was some unsaid requirement that all psychics needed to look as unsettling as possible. The girl rambled on about Clive’s Odd Keystone and its journey getting all the way here to Johto, and Yulia listened attentively. As much as she hated that cursed spirit, Yulia had spent most of her life with Freya, and she wanted to know what would become of her.

She was pulled from her thoughts when the psychic looked straight at her. Yulia choked, trying to cover up her surprise to not make the girl feel bad. When the psychic’s body began to glow, though, Yulia didn’t have the sense to mask her alarm. She hadn’t been conscious the last time something like this had happened, so Yulia watched, confused and wide-eyed, as the girl seemed to abandon her own body. When she slumped forward, no longer human but a wooden doll instead, Yulia only stared, mouth agape, trying to understand what had just happened.

The psychic’s soul went into the Odd Keystone, which seemed to come alive with a new, sinister, smiling face. The look of the Spiritomb sent chills down Yulia’s spine, but she tried her best to straighten herself and put on a brave face. “Yeah,” she mumbled in response to Clive. She was grateful for his presence; she didn’t know how she would have faced the weird girl or the strange ghost Pokemon alone. When Clive urged her to battle the new foe, though, Yulia only shook her head. Freya’s memory would always be a part of her, and she held a connection to Spiritomb as a result, but Yulia hadn’t been the one to banish Freya, nor to find the Odd Keystone. No, this Pokemon was Clive’s reward, his fight, and she would not take that away from him.

She happily cheered Clive on from the sidelines, and after the battle, once Spiritomb was snug in its new black-and-yellow ball, Yulia supplied Clive with some potions to nurse his Pokemon back to full health. She noticed then that the forest around them was getting brighter, the sunlight streaming more fully through the trees, as if the psychic’s presence had somehow cast a shadow across the woods. She shook the thought and let out a sigh.

“Congratulations,” she said as she sat beside Clive. The battle had made him weary, and she didn’t mind when he rested his head against her shoulder. They talked a bit about the battle, and when Clive mentioned taking a break from work, Yulia supported him. He deserved him, and besides, wasn’t she doing just that, too? The Goldenrod Police Department would struggle with the absence of two of its best detectives—they had brought down Team Avarice, after all—but with Natasha and Jean and the rest of the team, Yulia knew they would manage eventually.

Clive sat up and looked at her, and his words gave her pause. Yulia knew how important Clive’s father had been to him, and she knew how badly he wanted to understand what had happened between him and his best friend, Richie. A lead could mean nothing, or it could shine some light on Uncle Richie’s actions, an invaluable reward. “Oh, Clive, that’s great,” Yulia breathed, genuinely happy for him. She laughed to herself then; even when taking a break from his duties, Clive couldn’t really take a break. But Yulia couldn’t fault him, because she was exactly the same way.

She turned to look at the obelisk again. “You know,” she said softly, a small smile playing over her lips. “I’m about to have a lot of free time on my hands, and I have just a bit of experience playing detective. I graduated top of my class, and I happened to help bring down the greatest criminal organization of our generation. I might be a valuable asset.” She turned back to him, chuckling to herself. “If you’ll have me, I’d love to work on another case with you.” Yulia tilted her head, her pale hair falling over her shoulder. The sunlight streaming through the trees reflected off her eyes, making them gleam. “Well,” she said, a familiar excitement wrapping around her words. “Are you ready for our next adventure?”

The End