**Nathan's POV**

By the time our party of four makes its way out of the labyrinthine laboratories, most of us are quite tired. Risk is holding onto my leg for support, obviously still drained after the Gengar, who's currently nowhere to be seen, had performed "Shadow Claw" with his body. I do want to feel bad for him, but another thought convinces me not to show it.

It'd be like prodding Voltflare about his parents. Best to leave the subject untouched, honestly. It'll ease the tension for both Risk and I, especially since I don't know how the situation happened, besides a Dusknoir's involvement.

The only sign that the Gengar is still following us is a slight chill from behind me, although that's mostly abated by Hestia's warmth soaking through my arms like a sponge while she clings to me. Fortunately, the Flareon seems to have fallen asleep; I don't quite know how or why, but I'm not about to wake her. Even if the way she sits in my arms threatens to burn through my partially-tattered blue lab coat, I would rather have to repair it at a later time than cause her discomfort and forcibly wake her.

"Metaaa!" a monstrous roar echoes from a few dozen paces behind me, once the granite, dented walls give way to the forest in which all this commotion had taken place, followed by the unmistakeable sound of my stannic Pokemon's fist slamming into something. It takes me a few minutes to get my bearings once the sound devastates my eardrums, but a few officers stationed nearby, accompanied by Looker, quickly come up to me and explain what had happened during my time in the abandoned facility. Somehow, the Flareon in my arms still doesn't wake up or even budge in her sleep, despite all the raucous chaos. Speaking of Hestia, Looker seems quite relieved that she was with me, but the feeling doesn't stay for long.

"You've been down there for quite some time. I just hope what we've found is enough to crack this wide open, soon enough," Looker notes. He keeps his voice down, recognizing the sanctity of the sleeping Pokemon in my arms. But with the man's implication, I look up and witness an auburned sunset slowly slipping through the treetops of the forest. With it comes a heavy sigh, working its way past Hestia's tired frame.

They've had almost an entire day to work since the explosion happened. But for the first real day of investigation, I think we have a few good leads to pursue in the near future...

Meanwhile, Looker's tone becomes even more cautious when he adds, along with adjusting his brown trenchcoat with his hand,

"We've seen a few strange things up here, and I want to see if what you found down there matches them. First, as you can see, your Metagross, combined with a few of our officers' Pokemon, has successfully pulverized enough of the debris that we were able to safely get down to your position. However, after about an hour of waiting for you to return, something caught my eye that I think is worth pursuing. I've already sent one of my Pokemon after the source, but a Pidgeot was seen flying overhead at incredibly quick speeds. Now, I know this isn't uncommon in Johto, but those birds are not native to Kalos, especially not in this area. Beyond that, the bird was carrying a blue Pokemon with it- at least that is what I could make out before it and its passenger disappeared past the treetops."

The police officer's somber expression is starting to rub off on me, while the gravity of the situation continues to dwell in the back of my mind. He puts a finger to his chin, tapping it a few times.

"I have even more reason to suspect the Cosmos, as one of their best men, Cassius, bred a Pidgeot to be the fastest scout this Region has ever seen. I need you to investigate further, but I can't shake the feeling that the Pokemon belongs to him."

With a heavy sigh, he turns over control of the conversation to me. Dealing with all this so suddenly must be taking its toll on the man.

"I'll get to the bottom of it," I can't help saying, before I can even stop myself,

"I think I know what belongs to that blue Pokemon your team saw."

Looker freezes up, looking at me with a mixture of bewilderment and expectation. But beyond that, was there something else there? A longing?

It looks almost hopeful- like he needs to know that what I've found is going to get us out of this mess... Well, I've just got to hope that it measures up!

Without waiting for a response from him, I begin relaying my short tale.

"As you know, Hestia said that she was looking for Sombra. She had hoped that he would be in the wreckage of that place. My guess is that that's the last place she saw him, which prompted her to run in to investigate. However, we didn't find another Pokemon, or so we thought..."

"'Or so you thought?'" Looker stops me, there, raising an eyebrow,

"What do you mean? Did you witness a new species of Pokemon down there? Or..."

A gentle nod is all it takes to reassure him of the worst.

"I could not tell whether it was a new Pokemon or not, but all I know is that a large, sentient mass of water attacked us while we were down there. Risk and I were simply investigating a different part of the Lab when Hestia cried out for help, like something was chasing her. We ran towards the sound, but all we found Hestia transfixed on a decently-large puddle of water on the floor. Risk became uneasy when he sensed that the water had an Aura, I was trying to figure out how it got there... And that's when it attacked us."

"Hold on, Nathan..." Looker's gaze conveys nothing but sheer disbelief, but if his previous expression is to be trusted, he secretly knows that my testimony is all that we have.

"You're telling me that pure water attacked you while you were down there?"

He's holding out for me. There's got to be something unusual about this, then. Because if there isn't, we have nothing else to go off of... Hestia will lose Sombra, and the mystery bombers will get away with this and can cause damage to the Region elsewhere! We've got to avoid that.

A drop of sweat beats down my face- I'm growing increasingly nervous, and it's definitely showing. In response, Risk places a paw on my leg, holding it tightly in his grip. To my surprise, although it initially hurts, this seems to help calm my nerves just enough for me to continue.

"Precisely. If I were to guess, this water was also the culprit of Hestia's outburst, as the first thing it did was try to douse her. I leaped on top of Hestia, trying not to crush her or injure myself in the process, and the mystery attacker disappeared."

At that instant, the both of us have the same idea, and a smile crosses Looker's face. His confidence is restored, I can tell.

"Almost as if it didn't want to deal with your being there," he finally nods in acknowledgement,

"If you made it flee the place, then the only place it could have gone is out of the Labs..."

"Right back to its source- that blue Pokemon!" I finish triumphantly.

The idea feels like a bit of a stretch to me, initially, but Looker's pleasant expression, coupled with my own desire to help this poor Flareon, is enough to convince me otherwise.

Our next obstacle is tracking down that blue Pokemon. We can only hope Looker's own Pokemon is enough to follow a Pidgeot zooming around at such a high speed... But beyond that, what do we do in the meantime? There's no use just waiting around for a chase that may or may not result in failure.
"The question is, where do we go from here? We have Hestia, but haven't seen a 'Sombra' to help us further our case," I can't help but sigh, finally convinced that this is going to be a lot more complicated than I had initially judged the situation to be.

"But that's where I have an idea," Looker responds, and, for a second, I can make out a faint smile on his face.

"My troop and I will begin to pick through this place, ourselves, looking for anything that we can salvage from the wreckage. In the meantime, I want you and Risk to go east with Hestia to Geosenge Town and speak with Percival's mother. As our records are dated- the only intel we have is before the Cosmos disappeared- the only knowledge about Percival we have to rely on is what we can learn from her," the man plainly assures his delegation, almost like he's rehearsed it. Perhaps it's simply because he's used to assigning orders to police operatives of lower rank.

I turn to leave, when a thought that I hadn't yet addressed makes its presence known. I'm sort of thinking the same thing, but Risk is ultimately the one to suggest it. Since he'd been silent during the entire exchange, I had almost forgotten that he's still holding onto my leg.

"If she's related to this Percival, how do we know that he hasn't just told her what to say, in case someone talks to her about him?" the Riolu suggests,

"If he wanted to keep his tracks covered, wouldn't he just make sure that she lies?" Well, that was a rather blunt way of putting it. But still... Wouldn't he just try to confuse us, right when we think we had a lead?

Judging by the knowing twitch of Looker's face, though, he has something else planned, hopefully to prevent such a wild goose chase.

"I hate to do this... But I've met the man's mother a few times, myself," he sighs, sounding rather down about what he's about to say next,

"She couldn't lie about Percival if her life depended on it. If you ask the right questions, and she knows you're looking for Percival, she won't withhold a thing from you. While I don't want to suggest this sort of thing, she's far too invested in her son to do otherwise. My guess is that she's just as concerned about his whereabouts as we are."

Risk gives me an uneasy glance, but I shake my head. Looker's completely right about the ordeal; although asking a mother about his missing son isn't exactly going to end well, we can't afford to give Percival any more time to act. If anyone knows what he's been up to, it would be her, and judging by the nature of what we're up against, we don't have time to try anything else.

"Come on, Risk," I attempt to remain cheery, despite how tired I currently feel, turning and beginning to walk so he releases my leg.

"Have faith in Looker and his fellow police officers. They're trained for this!"

The Riolu sighs before finally following me. He matches my pace, but his gait seems much more trodden. He must be feeling the same thing Looker had been, or perhaps something else. Or he could just be as exhausted as I am from the day, I can't quite tell yet.

"I just hope that this all is worth it in the end..." he muses.

"What do you mean, Risk? We're going to figure out where Percival is, and we'll put a stop to him!" I try to confer, even though the idea sounds more and more ridiculous each time I bring it up.

"Not about Percival," he counters grimly,

"About Riku. When this is all over, I just hope we can find a way for him to remember..."

The Riolu's short speech sends a chill up my spine, and a new possibility presents itself, one that wouldn't leave me alone. Even the world seems to agree; the shrill cawing of a nearby Murkrow ominously cementing my point while heralding the moon's appearance. Despite that, I force myself not to heed the cruel reminder that night is about to fall and cause the Shaymin, even in his Pokeball, a great deal of pain.

Even beyond his diurnal transformations... I never thought of this, but... When Riku regains his memories of Risk, what if he forgets who I am? What if I have to choose between the two of us? After all this, what if I'm the one who gets to decide who Riku follows, never to even remember the other? I know what should be done, here... But that doesn't mean I like it. As much as Risk seems to be inseparable from him, I don't want to give Riku up like that... No, there's got to be a way! There's got to be a way for him not to forget one of us! There's got to!

Risk just continues to stare up at me with those two green eyes of his, saddened by the possibility of never truly meeting his friend again. But I could definitely seem something else there just gnawing at him.

Maybe he can read me like a book. But I think he's come to my former conclusion. If Riku can't remember both of us simultaneously, then one of us is robbing the other of a dear friend, and I don't think either of us want to do that to the other... That's why there's got to be a way to bring his memory back without making him forget me!

Dismissing my devil's advocate of a conscience, I continue to walk onwards, picking up my pace despite the night's cacophony slowly starting up around me. The cawing birds, the skittering spiders, and the ominous darkness that I know will soon encroach upon the forest- all of them set the perfect backdrop for the encounter with the mother of this crazed scientist we've been after this whole time.

...

Time seems to speed up, and foliage practically bends around us, turning what would an hour's walk into what feels like mere seconds. It isn't long before the trees part to reveal a small, secluded town surrounded by a broken fence of cobblestone. Risk perks up just slightly as he vaults the fence, but falters immediately. It's only when I catch up to him that I see what had stopped him, and I almost drop Hestia in my shock.

There, directly in the middle of this beautiful, quaint town, lies the biggest crater that I've ever seen, even rivaling the aftermath of the explosion in the forest. Beyond that, however, the entire rest of the town seems completely unaffected, as if life had simply adjusted to the fact that half the town's landmass had been swallowed up by a blackened crater that I don't even want to consider looking down. The houses are made of an amalgamate of different grades of wood, expertly stitched together to the point that it's hard to tell where one piece of bark ends and the next begins. Each roof is greened to perfection, further accenting Geosenge Town's connection to nature. Although I can guess that it had been much more lively before that massive crater had been carved out of the earth, even such a small community of seven houses appears quite homely. It slightly reminds me of the village where I first met Voltflare as an Eevee- small, yet close-knit and cozy- and that brings a slight smile to my otherwise-drained visage.

While I'm still surveying the town, Risk grabs onto my pants leg once again to get my attention, motioning to a small, exceptionally-tidy house about a dozen yards next to where we had left the forest. An short, brown-haired elderly woman sits on its wooden porch, robed in a flower-patterned gown that looks like she must have sewn it herself. She seems to be occupied with some sort of photograph in her hands, but I can't quite tell what it is. I can see sadness in her two blue eyes when I look at her, and a gut feeling tells me that this woman has to be Percival's mother.

Trying to be as friendly as I can while knowing that she'd be beyond perturbed the second I mention Percival, I take a few steps towards her, and she looks up at me almost immediately. Noticing my blue lab coat, her expression shifts from grief to unrequited joy.

"Is that... After all this time, you've come home!" she practically shrieks, tears immediately welling up in the old woman's eyes when she gets up and walks over to me. Although I still tower over her by at least half a foot, she doesn't seem to care, and a knot forms in my stomach.

She thinks I'm Percival, doesn't she? To be fair, I don't know what Percival looks like, so I could very well look exactly like him, but still... I feel so bad. If she finds out that I'm not actually Percival, it'll crush her. But at the same time, if she thinks I'M Percival, how do I ask about his whereabouts?

Before I can say a word in response, however, the woman is already ushering me towards the door to her home as fast as her short legs can carry her.

Noticing Risk, her smile brightens, and she motions to him, as well. However, she seems to completely glance over Hestia tucked in my arms, like she didn't even see the Flareon.

"Come, Percy! You can bring your little friends, as well, and tell me all about all your journeys along the way," she smiles warmly, directing me inside. The Riolu returns her amiable gesture with a smile of his own, but I'm willing to bet that he's thinking the exact same thing that I am.

So... How are we going to solve this one?.. Well, I'm not exactly sure. All we can do, now, is hope that this works out in the end.

...

The inside of the house is more-or-less exactly what I had expected from looking at its tidy exterior. The same floral theme as the woman's robe adorns each of the walls, adding large splashes of color along the forest-green walls of the main room. To one side, a small kitchen sits in its primordial glory, sporting a few cabinets here and there, a small black stove, and a countertop made of some sort of marbled rock.

Nothing is out of place here; not even a speck of dust to be found anywhere... Is she just that orderly, normally, or am I missing something?...

Two small cupboards, most likely to simulate a pantry, cheerily rest beside the stove as if to offer their moral support to it during cooking. Finally, on the opposite of the room, a large bookshelf, about the length of a doorframe, is pushed up against the wall. Deep scuff marks across the wooden floor to an ominous-looking locked door suggest that the bookshelf had originally been blocking the door, but had since been moved by someone or something. Apparently, this is quite interesting to Risk, because the Riolu pads over to it, kneels down, and places his paw in the marks' grooves, feeling about for who-knows-what.

I know for a fact that she couldn't have moved that bookshelf... It could have just been a Pokemon of hers, but what if...

Then, an idea strikes me, but I make sure not to show it, even though the gears in my mind are working themselves asunder.

Perhaps her definition of "all this time" was simply a day or two... And that would have been when the bomb went off in the forest. It's just a theory, but what if Percival set off his explosives, then fled here before realizing that he'd never avoid detection and left his mother? That would explain her mental state, her comment, and her exceedingly-tidy household. But how would I go about verifying that...

Without hesitation, the woman begins to hum, producing an innumerable amount of spotless kitchenware from a nearby cabinet before placing a pot on the stove. It's almost a marvel to watch her work- grabbing fistfuls of Berries, spices, and herbs; dutifully chopping them to bits with a knife; and neatly arranging most of them in her pot with some water.

In her haste, however, a single Sitrus Berry slips out of her grasp, landing on the floor, and splattering my pants leg in variegated juices. She turns, giving me such a guilty look that anyone who had seen it would have guess she had killed someone.

"Oh... Percy, I-I'm so sorry. I-I'll go get something for that right away," her calm voice cracks and stutters, each syllable causing my heart to bend for this old woman more and more.

She's so distraught... If she finds out that I'm not actually Percival, she'll be beyond crushed! I can't bring myself to lie to her, though- even if Percival is truly manipulating her or not. I have find a way to figure out what happened to him, without actually mentioning him because he's "me" but not me at the same time...

"No, no, it's fine," I console her quickly, trying to both ease her nerves and halt my anxious mind before I accidentally let something slip that I'd later regret. Luckily, even those four words of mine are enough to bring this fragile woman's smile back, and she hugs me once again.

"Oh, Percy, you know I could get that out in a second or two," she chides me, while her fingers dexterously close around one of the Pokeballs that I have strapped to my belt. That motion, however, is only for a second before she withdraws from me once again. I do take notice of this- I couldn't quite tell whether she had been trying to steal it off me or if Percival had worn his Pokeballs the same way. I have a hunch that it's probably the latter, though.

"And you've brought another friend with you, too!" the woman's warm smile brightens in its intensity when she proudly points to my belt, seating the Pokeball containing Voltflare and the Master Ball containing Riku. Since she had only mentioned one "friend," my guess is that she hadn't realized that Riku's purpled Pokeball is also a capsule. Silently, I hope that she never does- because that'll be one less thing that I have to explain to her, and every minute I spend here makes me hate Percival even more for what he's done.

But before anything else can prompt me to act, I nod in acknowledgement, allowing her to draw closer once again, remove Voltflare's Pokeball from my belt, and press the button on its metallic frame. Oddly, she still doesn't notice the sprawled Hestia in my arms, continuing to bequeath warmth to me.

That constant radiation is the only thing keeping me from losing my cool... Once I'm through talking to her, I never want to have to pretend to be someone's son again. I can't imagine how anyone would be able to deal with the omnipresent guilt of blatantly lying like this!

A bright flash of light fills the room for a second before dissipating to reveal my chromatic partner with a curious expression on his crimson face. The Umbreon's ears are folded back a few degrees, and his green eyes blink with concern; I can tell, just by looking at him, that he's a bit on-edge, even without knowledge of what is actually at stake in this moment.

"Nathan? W-where are we? I heard all of this noise- and water- and..." he begins to say, but he's cut off by an almost giddy sound from Percival's mother.

"Now aren't you just the most precious thing I've ever seen..." she looks down at him, slowly extending an age-marred hand to his head and ruffling his fur for few seconds. Voltflare doesn't move a muscle the entire time, some of the orange hairs on his head standing on end, but once he locks eyes with me, I give him a reassuring head tilt. This must have calmed him down considerably, because each strand of fur slowly settles back down to its normal position, and he starts wagging his tail. The old woman must have thought that the gesture of friendship is for her, though, because she starts running her hand through the fur on his head again and again.

"You like that, don't you?" she laughs, a light, hearty sound that causes my unrest and anxiety to completely disappear. However, it doesn't last for long because the old woman's face falls, and her pleasant voice becomes as dry and cracked as a withered plant.

"Just... Like my little Hestia. My little..." she whimpers, the wrinkles on her face darkening a shade while she tries not to cry.

"My- My..."

The old woman can't contain her sadness any longer, and she falls to her knees, wrapping both arms around Voltflare's torso in a vain attempt to re-live some past memory with her own Pokemon. The pain in her eyes hits me like a forceful punch to the gut, and I don't dare to look down at the Flareon still sprawled in my arms like a helpless child.

Hestia, the Pokemon that initially gave us the cue that would solve this case, is none other than the companion to Percival's mother. But that means I have to make another choice. If she stays with Looker and I, this poor woman continues to spend time without the only family she still has. On the other hand, if Hestia is left here, we no longer have a Pokemon that knows about Sombra. Neither of those two outcomes sound very promising...

"No, no, Mother..." I instinctively stammer, trying to help this poor old woman calm down, and immediately clasp a hand over my mouth. Blood rushes to my face once I realize what's come out of my mouth; and panic quickly seizes me, enough for Risk to look up from whatever he was doing by the bookshelf. Thankfully, his perplexed gaze is all it takes to snap me out of my trance.

I just affirmed that I'M Percival! Now what are we supposed to do?

"Nathan?" he mouths, but he's not able to finish his thought before a slight movement from within my arms causes what little stability I had regained to vanish once again. Hestia opens one eye and groans, trying to stretch herself out and needlessly flailing her back legs against the open air behind me. Feeling no solid ground in that direction, she freaks out completely. Her body temperature spikes enough to burn through a portion of my lab coat and into my skin, causing me to unceremoniously drop her to the ground. And to make matters worse, the sudden movement and registration of pain on my face is all it takes for a concerned Voltflare to wrench himself free from the woman's grip and rush to my side. This, she ascertains as a threat, as she futilely tries to calm him down while a strong chill seeps its way through her house's open door.

"Hey, it-it'll be alright," she coaxes the chromatic Umbreon, feebly holding her hand out to him once again. But he isn't paying any attention to her; instead, he leaps into my lap to assess my burns from holding an anxious Flareon, and I force my weakened arms open to catch him.

The entire operation had started to fall apart; between my slip about Percival's identity, my realization concerning Hestia, and the terrified expression on my partner's face, success is looking grimmer by the second. Thankfully, Risk discovers something that I can only hope will make sense of the chaos that I've inadvertently created. Dutifully, the Riolu takes me by the pants leg and tries to pull me towards the bookshelf he'd been fiddling with this entire time. I can see the obvious scuff marks, where he'd pawed at it for a considerable length of time, and glance down at Voltflare. Oddly, he's shivering, but he still summons the courage to smile back at me.

Almost simultaneously, Percival's mother realizes that her precious Flareon is limp on the ground, slowly opening and closing her eyes, and rushes over to assist her Pokemon. Torn between two alternatives- helping Hestia and her Trainer, or solving that hidden room's mystery- I can hope that Risk has found what we need and, against my gut instinct, decide to follow him.

By the time I've made the short trek to the other side of the room, I'm no longer strong enough to sustain Voltflare's weight, and he slips through my arms to land, deftly, on the colder floor below with a quick cry of pain. That single sound almost causes me to break down just as badly as Percival's mother had, but the Umbreon meets my eyes and silently tells me that it'll be alright. Even so, I still promise myself that I will make it up to him later. He's been carried around so much during this escapade that one might find it hard to believe that Voltflare's actually my partner!

At least, I feel that way, anyway... Poor guy- I really do feel bad.

Meanwhile, Risk is already directing me to his handiwork, reaching for something concealed behind the massive wooden blockade. I can't quite see what he's looking for; that is, until a sharp crack pervades my eardrums, and the wooden shelves soundlessly collapse on themselves, leaving a nice, neat row of books and boards right beside the door. My hands are slightly shaky, just staring at the ominous barricade like it housed some ancient secret about Percival or his family. Maybe it didn't, or maybe it really did. It's impossible to tell from just the pristine doorframe.

Risk seems to already feel my distress, as he gives me a reassuring look, despite the fact that he's probably incredibly curious about the colorful Umbreon that he had just seen. Both of us know, however, that waiting around and asking questions is a terrible idea when we will mostly likely only have this one opportunity to investigate the enigmatic room.

Taking a deep breath and checking behind me one last time to make sure that Percival's mother is still occupied with Hestia, I place my palm on the doorknob and turn it. Peculiarly, door swings right open, as if it had been expecting my entry this entire time, while Risk and Voltflare pile in right behind me, and then shuts. Unabashed, both sets of green eyes are already taking in every single detail of the room's interior.

The room is in a completely different world than the rest of the house. There's a single bed in the corner of the room, next to a desk and an open window. All three of them are as unkempt and chaotic as they can possibly be.

This must be Percival's room. There's nothing else that it can possibly be! It would make sense that it's not tidy like the rest of the place; I guarantee that she wouldn't want to come back in here and miss her son over and over again, so she just leaves it the way he left it. I really don't want to pry... But does this mean we might learn something else about him and his research?

My eyes glance over to the small desk, inundated with miscellaneous papers. I pick up a single manila folder with a faded label, and I'm just about to peruse it when Voltflare cries out once again. I immediately turn to the Umbreon and follow his gaze to a large, black-rimmed picture of a man hung over the top of the doorway. It would have been invisible while walking into the room, but if you shut the door and turn around, you could see it.

"Shhhh... It's alright, Voltflare!" I whisper as smoothly as I dare to, wrapping both my arms around his trembling body and gazing back at the picture that had frightened him. A tall man stands, rather proudly, in the center of what appears to be a forest, bearing a regal-purple lab coat, broken glasses, and a head of brown hair as messy as my own. He seems to have one of his hands behind his back, almost like the figure is intentionally hiding something.

"That man... He reminds me too much of Team Rocket," Voltflare whimpers, but I can feel his pulse rather quickly returning to normal in my embrace.

That's got to be Percival- I can't think of anyone else that it could possibly be. The real question is, why would Percival have a picture of himself hanging over his doorframe? Or could his mother have put it there after his departure?

Unfortunately, my time of reflection is cut short when the room's door swings open once more, this time opened by Percival's mother and Hestia. I only have time to stuff the single folder that I'd picked into the folds of my tattered lab coat before the old woman raises her voice starkly. She has a very sour expression on her face- the first time that I'd seen her frown- and her tone sounds more like sandpaper than the tender mother from before.

"What are you doing in here?!" she bellows, or at least as much of a bellow that an old woman can muster,

"This room is not yours. None of it belongs to you, your silly police force, your pets, or your research! I know who you are, cretin, and you are definitely not my son! Get out of his room and never return!"

She and her Flareon step out of the doorway, not enough to give our group a sense of comfort, but more than enough for us to pass. Luckily, she doesn't seem to realize that I have one of, hopefully, Percival's research files. I feel terrible about unceremoniously taking it, but I know I've got to help get this case under wraps as fast as possible, or we risk another mass-scale forest bombing in the near future. However, I do tell myself that I'll come back here, eventually, and apologize for the stress that this has put Percival's mother through. She doesn't deserve this in her old age, even in the slightest.

Bereft of our Flareon companion, frazzled, and safe in the knowledge that I had potentially secured a document of Percival's, the three of us head for the now-open door and leave the tumultuous house without a second thought. It takes me a few seconds to finally realize that I'm positively dripping with sweat, but a combined comfort from whatever Risk does while clinging to my pants leg and Voltflare nuzzling me from the other side turns all that anxiety into a long, tired sigh. I don't dare to remove the manila folder from my lab coat until we had moved into the forest; and even then, I'm not going to open it until Looker is right there staring at it. If anyone can make sense of its contents, it'd probably be him. That, and I don't want to risk someone seeing me with that file before the International Police get to leaf through it.

...

Trudging back through the night-time forest, my tiredness finally begins to take control of my body. Even my own thoughts are a mess, and I struggle to even keep myself upright. Thankfully, I've got two of the world's best companions to keep me balanced- neither Risk nor Voltflare deviated even remotely from their positions next to my legs, as they both could independently tell that I'm completely and utterly drained; without their support, I'd probably have lost my way in these woods and fallen victim to whatever could be lurking around here at night.

The caws of the Murkrow and skittering of unknown Pokemon across the ground doesn't really help my shaken nerves, and the moon seems especially dim, even though I can see what appears to be a full moon through bits and pieces of the forest canopy. It's almost like the entire world just wants to stop me from accomplishing my goal- returning to the blast site and handing off the folder to Looker and his force.

...

Each step I take, I'm reminded of my mistakes- my slip-up with Percival's mother, my alarming lack of communication with Voltflare- my trusted partner- during almost the entire day... Even leaving Hestia with her rightful owner is painted in a negative light.

Come on, Nathan... It's got to be around here, somewhere. We didn't stray very far from the impact site, I know that!

Fortunately, I can hear multiple voices talking, not too far away from our current position, and my spirits gradually begin to rise. We'd actually made it back in one piece, so I dutifully convey that fact to the two Pokemon beside me with a smile.

However, the confusion on Risk's and Voltflare's faces tells me all that I need to know- neither of them seemed to hear the same thing I did. I'm about to sigh in disbelief and attempt to regain my bearings when a piercing screech echoes through the underbrush, a sound that chills me to my core and causes both Pokemon to look up almost immediately. Risk's face goes white in an instant, Voltflare cries out in panic, and I instinctively kneel, awkwardly sheltering both the Riolu and the Umbreon beneath my arms. Meanwhile, some sort of force is quickly robbing my of my heat, like a howling wind is ripping through the forest- even though all the trees are perfectly motionless. Whatever had screeched like that didn't particularly seem to enjoy our being here.

It'll be alright, you two... Whatever's here, I'm going to keep you both safe, for as long as I can!

Another piercing screech resounds off the trees, and I actually do wonder, just for a moment, if I'm simply having a terrible dream. Then, a third screech crescendos right above us, and I can finally pick up its Ghostly undertones, right before the sound warps itself into that of... a balloon popping?

The harsh noise rebounds off my eardrums like a bombshell, and I shut my eyes, tightening the grip that I had on Risk and Voltflare. That is, until what feels like a piece of fabric lands directly on top of my head, and a familiar, bone-chilling laugh replaces the eerie screeching.

"Kekekek! Oh, no, you don't, you silly little balloon!"

Against my better judgment, I open a single eye to see Gengar, of all things, casually lounging in mid-air like he currently owns the world. At this point, I don't exactly know what to think, until he brandishes a purple piece of cloth at me, waving it in front of my wave for good measure. Voltflare, meanwhile, jumps a good four feet into the air, before landing with an unceremonious thud and scampering behind me. I'd forgotten that he had never seen a Gengar before, and this sudden appearance isn't very tender on his fragile nerves.

"Found the source of your problems," Gengar chuckles, "Just a Drifblim trying to spirit you away, nothing out of the ordinary."

The Ghost wistfully drops the object, letting it flutter to the ground, and I don't know whether to be grateful or dumbfounded or both- though I do give the purple apparition a look of disapproval. Although I hadn't seen what had happened, I can eye more and more bits and pieces of purple fabric on the ground at varying distances away from me, and Risk already is mouthing the exact same question that I'm slowly forming in my own head.

"Did you- did you just kill that Drifblim?" the Riolu asks, rather taken aback.

"Of course not!" the Ghost retorts, lazily twirling a purple finger through the air,

"I just forced it to rebuild itself. Remember, Ghosts can't actually die, at least not by conventional means. Your Shadow Claw is one of the few things I know of that could actually kill one... Now, something tells me that you're all better, now. Right, Nathan?"

As surprised as I am about the sudden implications, Gengar's definitely correct about the assumption. All the heaviness, all the negative emotions, and all the harsh remembrances of failure vanish completely from my mind, almost like they were never there in the first place. The color returns to Risk's face, and I immediately turn around to Voltflare. He seems to have noticed the abrupt change in my demeanor as well, and his eyes practically fill with sparkles.

Without warning, he jumps straight into my chest, bowling me over and resting his warmed paws on top of me so that I couldn't move. Heat immediately sinks through the folds of my lab coat, replacing the chill frequented by the Drifblim's antics and Gengar's appearance. Although Voltflare resting on top of me definitely feels a little overwhelming after all I'd been through today, mentally and physically, I'm not about to attempt to rob my partner of his moment. Just the way that his crimson face had lit up the second I had returned to normal fills me with unspeakable joy. I can tell that he's pushed the water from earlier, Percival's eerie image, and Gengar's sudden appearance all to the back of his mind- and I can't be happier for him.

While Risk and Gengar take a few steps away and begin to converse, presumably about the Drifblim's origin, Voltflare laughs like he's having the time of his life. And before I can stop him, he just begins to lick my face over and over and over. I don't exactly make a move to resist, laughing right along with him.

"There you are, Nathan!" the Equilibrium Pokemon grins between gentle strokes of his tongue, "I was really worried!"

I can worry about delivering the folder in a moment- I think with three capable Pokemon all assembled here, we won't be getting attacked in the forest anymore, anytime soon. And... Haha- Voltflare!... Ah, forget it. I'll just lie for a while; it's as good of a rest as any other, safe beneath the confines of the Pokemon that would give the world for me.