Archive of Our Own ^beta

Chapter Text

Adrian's Rotom phone buzzed, then extracted itself from his pocket. “Bzzt! Text from Tisiphone! Read aloud?” 

“Is it another dick joke?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

“Bzzt! Nope, and it seems urgent!” said Rotom. 

“Go for it, then,” said Adrian, nodding. 

“Bzzt! Text from Tisiphone: ‘Meeting in the conference room, now.’ Would you like to send a reply?” asked Rotom. 

Adrian nodded again. “Yes please.”

“Bzzt! Great. What is your message?” asked Rotom. 

“On my way,” said Adrian. 

“Bzzt! Your message reads: ‘On my way.’ Send it?” asked Rotom. 

“Send it,” replied Adrian. 

“Bzzt! Sent!” said Rotom. 

–

Adrian entered the conference room, to see Tisiphone, Sheena, Murphy, and Mackenzie already there. “Damn, I got here as fast as I could. Are we waiting for anyone else?” 

“Nah!” said Tisiphone. “I just forgot to text you when I texted everyone else. Nothing personal, I just sent you another dick joke right before I got the message I'm about to pass on, and thought I had already sent it to you too.”

“Gee, thanks,” said Adrian flatly. “Is there a reason this wasn't one for the group chat?” 

“This isn't a mission for everyone,” said Tisiphone matter-of-factly. “So, now that we're all here… there's a bit of a shitstorm brewing in Sinnoh. There's a dodgy organization on the rise. They're calling themselves Team Void, and they are claiming to be worshipers of Giratina.”

“I'm gonna go out on a limb and guess they're not exactly officially licensed?” asked Murphy. 

Tisiphone cackled. “Oh yeah, not even close. In fact, as far as anyone can tell, none of them are even liaisons at all. A handful have marks, but no liaisons. That we know of…”

Adrian scratched his head. “So, why are you in particular on this mission? You have a very specific job, right?”

“Oh, I'm just chaperoning Steve on his first real Giratina mission,” said Tisiphone, gesturing dismissively. 

“That is not why,” said Steve flatly. 

Tisiphone rolled her eyes. “Fine. Sinnoh is the birthplace of Arceusism, and the likelihood of the Church of Arceus being involved is extremely high,” said Tisiphone. “There's a whole cornucopia of extremist sects at play, and they're hard to keep track of. Three quarters of the world's liaisons of Arceus live in Sinnoh, and one in sixteen humans in Sinnoh bears the mark of Arceus. In some areas, much more or less, but that's the estimated average in the region. All of that makes it awfully suspicious that there appear to be no liaisons in Team Void.”

“For now, Team Void is mostly just making a nuisance of themselves,” said Steve. “Throwing their weight around, stealing seemingly random items, the usual. But it always starts that way, of course.”

Tisiphone chuckled. “For the record, Giratina doesn't usually meddle in that kind of thing. That's ordinarily a job for the government and a 14-year-old vigilante or three. But since they're claiming to be acting on Giratina's behalf, that makes them its problem.”

“The hotspots for marks of Arceus are in Hearthome City, Jubilife, and Canalave, by the way,” said Murphy, “But since they're also three of the five largest cities in the region, it really drives up the average.”

“Familiar with the numbers in Sinnoh, then?” asked Tisiphone, raising an eyebrow. 

Murphy nodded. “Yeah, I'm from Sinnoh. I feel like that probably came up at some point, but Curie wanted me to remind the readers.” He paused. “Anyway, do we know who the leader of this team is?”

“Allegedly, a woman named Vaida,” said Steve. “She doesn't tend to make public appearances, though, and information about her is pretty limited.”

“Based on the name and description, there are no known liaisons she matches. A spy of ours confirmed she also does not appear to have a mark,” said Tisiphone. 

Adrian raised an eyebrow. “Wait, is there some kind of database for liaisons?”

“There is!” said Tisiphone. 

“Am I in it?” asked Adrian. 

“Of course,” said Tisiphone. 

Adrian raised an eyebrow. “Can I see it?” 

There was a brief silence. 

“No,” said Tisiphone. 

Sheena cleared her throat. “So, do we have a plan?”

“Not yet, but we should come up with one!” said Tisiphone. 

Murphy raised a hand. “I propose we separate into teams. There are a lot of us, and it'll make it easier to wr- uh, work on multiple things at once.” 

“That sounds like a good idea,” said Sheena, nodding. “Uh, is there anything your patron can tell us about this mission? Anything at all, even if it's something vague.”

“Since when do you trust Curie's predictions?” asked Murphy, raising an eyebrow. 

Sheena grimaced. “Errr… I mean, as long as it's not a matter of life and death, it probably wouldn't hurt, right?”

“Well, I'll ask!” said Murphy, smirking. He paused. “Okay, without getting too heavy on the spoilers… This mission is going to be a huge pain in the ass, and things will get complicated. The resolution is almost entirely undetermined. Curie can't even confirm whether the good guys will really win.”

There was a brief silence. 

“Thanks, I hate it,” said Adrian. 

“... I regret asking,” said Sheena, her tone defeated. “I'm sorry, but that's just depressing. I was kinda just hoping for a general idea of what we'll be up against.”

Murphy chuckled half-heartedly. “A little late for that! You did say anything at all.” He paused. “There is some good news, though!”

“Dare I ask?” asked Sheena wearily, rolling her eyes. 

“The good news is it'll probably make a really interesting story!” said Murphy. 

“I'm pretty sure that's actually just worse,” said Tisiphone flatly. 

Murphy shrugged. “Some good stuff will happen. But that's all I can tell you right now.”

“I'm not feeling very reassured here, but thank you for trying,” said Sheena. 

Murphy nodded. “Curie says this one's like figuring out what's in the cupboard above the stove before entering the house. You already know it's not going to be your first guess , but you don't even know what your first guess is.”

“I'm… not following,” said Adrian. 

Murphy shrugged. “There's like, no established thing that you store above the stove. Like, for half my childhood, my mom kept the spices up there, but when I was like 12 they moved over one cabinet and the flower vases went up there. Me, I keep vases and weird-shaped dishes there. I knew a lady who kept her sea glass collection up there.” He paused. “Point is, it's never obvious.” 

“Why would someone even consider trying to guess what's in the cabinet above the stove in a house they haven't entered?” asked Adrian. “Like. Why would that even occur to someone to wonder about?”

There was a brief silence. 

“Listen, it's a very specific vibe, and that's the closest comparison they could come up with,” said Murphy flatly. 

Sheena rolled her eyes. “Come on, guys. Can we focus?” 

“Of course we can,” said Murphy. “Now, the first thing we need to do is figure out how they're keeping liaisons out. Unless we do that, we're walking in there as ticking time bombs. Tisiphone, do you know how that's being done, or if any liaisons have already tried to join?”

“I mean, the obvious answer is they have a liaison on staff hidden somewhere,” said Tisiphone. “Which means they must have some awareness of liaisons in general. That doesn't come as a surprise, though, since there is some info available online about them. There are a handful of liaisons actively engaged in spreading benign misinformation and making it look like it's just a wacky conspiracy, but there are a lot of liaisons of Arceus with loose lips. It hasn't been extensively reported on much by reputable news organizations, though, because there are liaisons among their ranks.” 

“That sounds consistent with my Rotom phone's research,” said Adrian. 

Multiple heads turned in Adrian's direction.

Tisiphone raised an eyebrow. “Your Rotom phone has been researching liaisons? On its own?”

Adrian nodded. “Yup! Just for funsies. It occasionally shares its findings with me. What, is that weird or something?” 

“A little, yeah,” said Tisiphone. 

“I mean, I just struck up a conversation with it , and it told me what it's doing with its free time,” said Adrian, shrugging. “It is a Pokémon, after all. And its access to phone software and the internet makes it feasible to run exact numbers.”

“That sort of nonsense is why I carry a flip phone,” said Tisiphone flatly. 

“Hold on,” said Sheena. “Maybe you can ask your Rotom to look into this Team Void stuff for us. Maybe it will find something the liaisons couldn't!”

“Rotom, can I talk to you for a minute?” asked Adrian. 

Adrian's phone popped out of his pocket. “Bzzt! Certainly! I was listening to your conversation. I have already begun investigating Team Void. They have allegedly official accounts on multiple social media sites, each dating to about four months ago. I have also discovered a team Void dot net website that no longer functions, but was registered 14 years ago. Presently, I am performing background checks on their social media followers, and digging into the history of the team Void website. This will take some time, as they have over 825,000 followers across three platforms. For security reasons, I am using my own programming rather than relying on an external bot. I will report my findings to you as I make them.”

“Thanks, Rotom! Keep up the good work!” said Adrian. 

“Okay, that's actually pretty cool,” admitted Tisiphone. 

“Wow, thank goodness it's a kind-hearted Pokémon listening to our conversations and researching everything we say to provide us with information they deem relevant. If it was something like a multi-billion dollar corporation doing that, that'd be horrifying,” said Murphy.

There was a brief silence as others at the table exchanged confused looks. 

Murphy shrugged. “Uh, anyway, if they have a liaison checking for marks, then we're still at a disadvantage. Steve, Tisiphone and I are the only ones who can easily conceal our marks long-term, but they could very well be on the lookout for known liaisons of Giratina.”

“I don't remember telling you that I can hide my mark,” said Steve, raising an eyebrow in suspicion. “I can, but it's a new power for me, and I don't remember telling you about it.”

“Actually, I just meant color contacts and sunglasses, but that's good to know,” said Murphy. 

“I think you're forgetting something,” said Adrian. 

“What?” asked Murphy. 

“Anabel gave us updated smaller versions of those mark hiding devices,” said Adrian. “The battery life is also much better.”

Sheena chuckled. “I gotta admit, I'm a little disappointed in you, Murph. You've been dating her for a while. How could you forget that?”

There was a brief silence. 

“I blame the fourth wall,” said Murphy flatly. 

“Speaking of Anabel, have you heard back from her yet? Is she okay?” asked Adrian.

“Not yet,” said Murphy solemnly. “She got called back to Alola right after we got back from our actual vacation, and I haven't heard anything from her since.”

“Did she die, or did she just block you?” asked Tisiphone. 

Sheena glared at Tisiphone. “Tizzy! That's not a nice thing to say!”

“Neither,” said Murphy firmly. “She's just busy. Curie told me so, but nothing more than that.”

There was another brief silence. 

Murphy shrugged awkwardly. “I should probably mention that Curie volunteered that information, and I have not been asking them to spy on her for me.”

Sheena let out a quiet sigh of relief. “Okay, glad you're not being stalker-ish.”

“So, given you were talking about hiding marks, were you implying that we should try to infiltrate the organization?” asked Adrian. 

“I mean, I have the feeling we'll need to be prepared for that,” said Murphy. “And if television has taught me anything, it's that the easiest way to infiltrate a cult is the front door.”

Sheena furrowed her brow in contemplation. “Maybe, but I definitely feel like only some of us should attempt to infiltrate that group. The rest should work to investigate from the outside. That way we don't have someone on the inside trying to question people from the outside and risk getting outed.” 

Murphy nodded. “Yeah, which is why I was going through who could hide their marks. But if the devices are reliable, then we would just want to go based on stealth ability and lack of notoriety.” 

Having been silent until now, Mackenzie piped in. “I was born in Sinnoh, so being recognized by someone is not out of the question for me. To me, it looks like the best options for infiltrating Team Void would be Murphy, Adrian, and Sheena. I'll hunker down somewhere with my laptop and reach out to local contacts. Rotom, can you keep me updated on your findings?”

“Bzzt! I sure can!” said Adrian's Rotom phone cheerfully. “I must say, I am very excited to have an active role in this operation.” 

“We're grateful for your help, Rotom!” said Sheena. “Mackenzie, that sounds like a good plan. Tisiphone and Steve, what do you want to do?”

“Steve and I will work with the other liaisons of Giratina monitoring the situation, and step in whenever it's appropriate,” said Tisiphone. “Sound good to you, Steve?” 

Steve nodded firmly. “Yes, that sounds like a good idea.”

Murphy rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Hmm, feels weird that the classic crew was the right answer here, but I can't really see a flaw with the logic. Even if I ran into someone I knew from Sinnoh, it'd probably end up helping us.”

“Yeah, if I ran into someone I knew in Sinnoh, it would be one of my crazy Church of Arceus cultist family members,” said Mackenzie. “Besides potentially blowing our cover, I went no contact for a reason.”

“If I run into your parents before you do, I'll kill them again for you,” said Tisiphone casually. 

“By all means, be my guest,” said Mackenzie, rolling her eyes. “I can't get away with killing them, but you could.” She paused. “Besides… I hate getting that nasty greasy liaison of Arceus blood on my hands.”

Steve tugged his collar awkwardly. “Er, anyway… I think it would make sense for Tisiphone, Mackenzie, and me to travel together to Sinnoh and get settled, and the rest of you come a day or two later. We'll get Mackenzie set up to work with other liaisons of Giratina on this.”

“Sounds good!” said Sheena. “What do you all think?” 

There were general murmurs of agreement. 

“Great, let's get to it,” said Sheena.

Chapter Text

Steve relaxed in his seat on the plane. “Anything we should know, in the event we run into any of your family members?”

Mackenzie shrugged. “Honestly, I'm hoping they just don't recognize me. They haven't seen me since I was 11 years old, and I’ve dyed my hair and started wearing darker clothes. If I'm lucky, that'll be enough. It's not like my parents ever looked at me all that much to begin with, anyway. My plan is to just pretend I don't know them, if Tisiphone doesn't get her hands on them first.”

“You won't even see them, if I get my way,” said Tisiphone firmly. 

“If you don't mind me asking, what did-” started Steve. He paused. “Er, never mind. Sorry!”

“No sweat,” said Mackenzie, shrugging awkwardly.

Tisiphone chuckled. “Kenzie, he's got an anti-eavesdropping power now, if you're down for a lore dump.”

There was a brief silence. 

“Is Steve down for a whole trauma - Er, lore dump?” asked Mackenzie, raising an eyebrow. 

“Absolutely!” said Steve. “Lay it on me.” 

“He's a great listener,” said Tisiphone. “You don't even have to gag him first!” She paused. “Doesn't hurt, though.”

There was an awkward silence. 

Steve turned around to look at Tisiphone incredulously. “Did you really?” 

“I totally did,” said Tisiphone, grinning ear to ear. 

“Are we reminiscing about forgotten BDSM, or sharing childhood trauma? I'm not doing both at the same time,” said Mackenzie flatly. 

“My vote is for the trauma,” said Steve, raising his hand. 

Tisiphone cackled.

“All right, this is gonna take some background information first,” said Mackenzie. “I'll go all the way back to before I was born. My mom's family used to be members of the Church of Arceus. Just casual worshipers , maybe in the actual church twice a month.” She paused. “My dad, though… he comes from a family of liaisons of Arceus. He met my mom in church, and they hit it off and started dating.

My mom's family didn't know anything about liaisons back then. At first things seemed normal, my dad just seemed particularly devout. But then he started bringing her to like, secret meetings and such, and she started acting really weird. By the time they actually got married, she'd alienated most of her family. All they knew about liaisons at that point was that she wanted to be one. They just thought she was crazy and got sucked into a cult… which she was , and she did, but yanno. Liaisons are physically a real thing. Hey, how much do you know about liaisons of Arceus?”

“Not as much as I probably should,” admitted Steve. 

Mackenzie nodded understandingly. “Okay. So, you know how sometimes they use non-liaisons with a mark of Arceus to power rituals?” 

“Unfortunately, yes,” said Steve. 

“Oh man, this part is fucked up,” murmured Tisiphone. “Sorry, continue.” 

“You're not wrong,” said Mackenzie. “Anyway, it's possible to create a marked person who has an unusually large amount of energy stored in their mark. This is done by breeding two immortal liaisons of Arceus. This has to be done before they've died for the first time, because they're sterile once they resurrect. I bet you can see where this is going, huh?”

“Uh-oh,” said Steve, grimacing. 

“Yup,” said Mackenzie flatly. “So, my parents were offered the opportunity to become immortal liaisons of Arceus, on the condition that they produce at least one child for this purpose. And so, I was born.” She paused. “My parents never actually wanted children, they just wanted to become immortal. They made it… painfully clear that I was unwanted, save for use as a human battery. I'm not going to go into detail on how exactly they treated me, but suffice it to say, they were cruel and uncaring, taking every opportunity to emphasize how much they never wanted to have me.

I was taken away periodically to power rituals. My mark was on my left calf, and I learned what it looked like long before I became a liaison, because it had started to burn into my skin. 

Now, there are typically two potential fates for someone like me. Most are successfully brainwashed, and they're made into immortal liaisons for their trouble before they're completely drained. But if they're not looking so promising… Well. They're used up and discarded. I was shaping up to be the second kind.

So, I didn't know that at the time, but my mom's family got wind of it somehow. They did a ton of research on how to help, and made a plan to rescue me. They decided my aunts should do it - that is, my mother's sister and her wife. Regular people, not liaisons. 

Now, I had never met these women before. I knew I had an aunt who was a lesbian, since my parents liked to talk about how she was a sinner or whatever. But these nice ladies showed up on my doorstep one day when my parents weren't home, and said they were there to rescue me. Being 11 years old and, yanno, tired of being abused… I took their word for it and went with them. Fortunately, they were telling the truth. 

They brought me all the way to Johto to see Ho-oh and Lugia, so they could remove my mark of Arceus together. 

Meeting Lugia and receiving their mark at the Whirl Islands went fairly smoothly, but we were ambushed at the Tin Tower by some liaisons of Arceus, my parents included. 

My mother personally killed both of my aunts - again, including her own sister! - and my dad grabbed me while this was going down. 

It was at that point that Ho-oh appeared and killed both of my parents. She gave me her mark, completing the removal of my mark of Arceus. 

Seeing that my mark was gone , and I was now ‘useless’, the group that ambushed us left without me, leaving me alone in the Tin Tower. 

Ho-oh returned to the tower in the form of her fused liaison, Phoenix. Phoenix took care of me until she was able to get me home… which took months. 

You see, my parents, upon resurrecting, claimed that my aunts had murdered me and dumped my body in the ocean before ending their own lives.”

“Wait. Did anyone actually think that happened?” asked Steve. 

“The police believed them, but nobody in the family thought for a moment that it was true,” said Mackenzie. “They actually suspected that my parents had killed me themselves. But this was long before you could get in contact with pretty much anybody via the internet. 

Proving that I was not, in fact, dead was a huge hassle. My parents actively denied I was their daughter, going so far as to accuse me of trying to take advantage of the death of their precious, beloved daughter… Their words, not mine. Joke’s on them, though, because it turned out they were trying to commit insurance fraud, and they got caught. They never faced trial for killing my aunts, but they spent a few years in prison for fraud, which is at least something!

My mother's parents managed to get custody while my parents were in prison, and they raised me alongside my aunts’ newly orphaned son. My parents never came back to claim me when they got out, but honestly, good riddance. My grandparents were wonderful and never made me feel unwelcome, and they mean the world to me. 

As an adult, I returned to the Tin Tower and became a liaison of Ho-oh myself, out of thanks for everything she did for me. And here I am, ten years later, still serving her!”

There was a brief silence. 

“I know this is a vast understatement, but that's fucked up,” said Steve. “I'm sorry you went through that, that's horrific.”

“Wanna hear the kicker?” asked Mackenzie. 

“Of course!” said Steve. 

“Once I was an adult, my parents reached out to me again. They basically pretended nothing even happened, and downplayed my feelings on the matter,” said Mackenzie. “They started trying to recruit me as a liaison of Arceus. Even after I blocked them on everything, they kept sending me promotional materials in the mail until I moved.” 

Tisiphone cackled. “I feel like audacity isn't anywhere near a strong enough word to describe how entitled that shit was.”

“Tell me about it,” said Mackenzie flatly. “I changed my full name, too, and they don't know it yet.”

“Can't blame ya there,” said Tisiphone. 

“Thanks,” said Mackenzie. “It honestly pisses me off that they’re still immortal, but at least they can’t have any more kids.”

“If it makes you feel any better, most immortal liaisons of Arceus only last a few hundred years tops until Arceus gets tired of them and kills them off for good. The fact they totally fumbled you is a substantial strike against them, given how valuable the Church of Arceus considers Born Chosens to be,” said Tisiphone. “Unless you quit being a liaison before then, there’s a very good chance you’ll outlive them, potentially by thousands of years.”

Mackenzie rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Thousands of years, huh? I can’t even begin to comprehend what a thousand years looks like, let alone without my parents trying to crawl up my ass.”

“They’re gonna shrink into the background of your life before you know it. The rough thing about immortality is watching your mortal friends die one by one. However, you also get to watch that happen to your enemies! It’s pretty cool,” said Tisiphone.

“Speaking of enemies dying, do you know what ended up happening to Astrit?” asked Steve. “I’m still a little peeved you didn’t get my input on that situation before acting, but I guess there’s no sense fretting about it now.”

Tisiphone rolled her eyes. “If I’d asked you, you would have wanted to save him.”

“Yeah, but you decided to try to save him anyway,” retorted Steve.

There was a brief silence.

“Well, if you’d been there I would have had to argue with you about it, and who knows how that would have gone,” snapped Tisiphone.

“You can’t just preemptively get mad at me for an argument that we hadn’t had yet, and never even ended up having!” objected Steve.

Tisiphone chuckled. “Well, we’re having it now! I don’t even know why we’re having it, since I did what you would have wanted to do anyway. My word had a lot more weight talking to Giratina than yours would have had, too, since I have a reputation for normally being ruthless towards my enemies. So, really, it’s good that it was just me and Sheena there.”

“You don’t think the word of the Son of Giratina would have held any weight when asking Giratina for help?” asked Steve, raising an eyebrow.

“You know, I’m confused as to why you two aren’t dating, but also very grateful that you’re not,” said Mackenzie.

“Well. We tried it half a dozen times or so, and it went about as well as you’d expect,” said Tisiphone, shrugging. 

“Half a dozen?!” asked Steve, brow raised in surprise. “I thought it was only once or twice.”

“It was actually seven times,” admitted Tisiphone.

Mackenzie looked between Tisiphone and Steve in confusion. “Uh, no offense, but why did you keep going back to him?” She paused and lowered her voice. “... Was the dick really that good?”

“Not bad at all, for a man. But that’s not why I went back,” said Tisiphone casually. 

“Do I really need to be here for this conversation?” asked Steve awkwardly. He paused. “Also, should I feel offended?”

Tisiphone cackled. “Not at all, that’s high praise coming from me! Don’t let it go to your head, though.”

“Okay, but why did you go back, then?” repeated Mackenzie.

“I thought that he’d change whenever he had a new life,” said Tisiphone. “Turns out, though, being as sweet as he is also means we tend to be at odds on our personal beliefs. Bummer!” She turned to Steve. “I’m sure you make a lovely partner for the right person, but that person isn’t me. Not that you actually asked, but yanno, just so you know.”

“Er, thank you. That’s good to know,” said Steve. “Can… we talk about something else now?”

“Absolutely!” said Tisiphone, nodding firmly. “You guys ever try skydiving? I found out the hard way that I’m too heavy for the parachutes. Fortunately, the instructor also happened to be immortal.”

–

Mackenzie had finally finished getting set up in her temporary office when she heard a familiar voice. 

“Er, hello!” 

She looked up, her surprised expression quickly shifting to a glare. “You! What are you doing here?!” 

Astrit stepped into the room. “I'm working in accounting, but I heard you were here and thought I might pop in and say hi!” 

“Pop in and say hi? What made you think I would want to see you, after everything you've done?” asked Mackenzie, standing up and folding her arms. 

“I didn't think you would, but I wanted to see you,” said Astrit. He paused. “I also assumed you'd be more amiable than Tisiphone.”

Mackenzie raised an eyebrow. “If I was Tisiphone, you'd be dead before you entered the room.”

“Hence why I'm visiting you and not her,” said Astrit matter-of-factly. “I was told she was informed of my new position. Did she not share that?” 

“Bold of you to assume she even wants to acknowledge that she saved your life,” said Mackenzie flatly. 

“Okay, fair enough,” said Astrit. 

There was a brief silence. 

“Not that I care,” said Mackenzie, “But did you get any powers in the deal?” 

Astrit nodded. “Math!” 

There was another brief silence.

“Math? What do you mean math?” asked Mackenzie. 

“I'm supernaturally good at math,” said Astrit. 

Mackenzie raised an eyebrow. “Could you… not do math before?”

“I could do math just fine before!” huffed Astrit. “But superhuman accuracy is helpful in my position.”

“Okay. Anything else?” asked Mackenzie. 

Astrit shook his head. “No, just math! For now. But I was told I could potentially get more powers if I demonstrate consistently good behavior. Did you know that was a thing for liaisons of Giratina? I asked other liaisons , and they assured me that it's true!”

“Well… Good for you,” said Mackenzie.

“Thanks!” said Astrit brightly. “Would you like to see me demonstrate my power?” 

“No,” said Mackenzie flatly. “Get out of my office, before I call Tisiphone to deal with you.”

Astrit backed out of the office slowly, then sprinted down the hallway. 

Several minutes later, he returned, peeking his head from around the door. “Hey, one more thing.”

Mackenzie's hand hovered over her cell phone. “Better be important.” 

Astrit nodded quickly. “It is. May I come in? It's not exactly top secret, but it's still being kept quiet for now.” 

“Should you really be telling me, then?” asked Mackenzie, raising an eyebrow. 

“I got specific explicit permission to tell you,” said Astrit, nodding firmly. “One thing I'm good at is navigating bureaucracy. May I come in?” 

Mackenzie sighed. “If you must. Make sure to close the door behind you.”

Astrit slipped into the office, shutting the door gently behind him. 

“Speak,” commanded Mackenzie. 

“The Life Seeker is coming to Sinnoh,” said Astrit, his tone grave. 

There was a brief, but heavy silence. 

Mackenzie shut her mouth, suddenly realizing it had fallen open. “Wh… why? Who is she coming for?” 

Astrit shrugged. “No clue. All I know is that the request to fund her travel came through my department. Didn't pass through my desk, of course, but we all know about it.” He lowered his voice. “Do you think she's here for me?” 

Mackenzie burst into laughter. After a good long while, she settled down, rubbing her eyes. “Commit any cosmic-level crimes recently?” 

“Well, I did leave my patron for a better one,” said Astrit uneasily. 

“Your patron kicked you out, Tisiphone dragged you out of the gutter, and Giratina liquefied you and stuffed you into a suit,” said Mackenzie flatly. “No laws broken.” She paused. “I'll be the first to admit I'm terrified of her myself, but if she was after you, you'd know it was you and why.”

Chapter Text

Tisiphone strolled into Mackenzie's office, Steve in tow. “How's the cyber-digging going, Kenzie?”

“I've been in contact with Adrian's Rotom phone, and we've been swapping files and analyzing data. Didn't think I'd ever say I'm working with someone else's phone on anything, but here I am anyway,” said Mackenzie. “Digging up the name of the person who registered the domain for the Team Void website is turning out to be exceptionally difficult, but Rotom did manage to complete its follower background check task. 76.5% make no claims of being a liaison, 11.6% claim to be liaisons of Arceus, 7.7% claim to be liaisons of Giratina, and 4.2% claim to have other patrons. 43% of the total accounts appear to be bots or throwaways, which includes some of the non-liaison accounts and some of the accounts claiming to be liaisons. I can provide a full report to you via email or flash drive, which also includes the breakdown of affiliation for the fake accounts and a list of names and usernames for followers. There's still some work to finish on that, but what we have so far is pretty solid.”

“Great! All good to know, good job. Anything else to report?” asked Tisiphone. 

“Well, I've been told that the… Life Seeker, is coming to Sinnoh,” said Mackenzie gravely. 

Tisiphone grinned, caught herself, frowned exaggeratedly, and looked away sheepishly. “Oh no! That's not good,” she said unconvincingly. 

Mackenzie sighed deeply and rolled her eyes. “Honestly, Tiffy…” 

“Hey, don't call me that in front of Steve! He'll start calling me that too!” complained Tisiphone. 

“I'd never,” said Steve firmly, holding his hands up.

Mackenzie rolled her eyes again. “Can you please take this seriously for a moment? I know you're a big fan of hers, but this really does not bode well.” 

“Come on, we don't know she's coming for someone specific,” said Tisiphone. “There's a good chance she's coming just in case someone needs punishing. Impersonating a liaison for purposes of causing harm is a serious crime, especially when done by someone who should know better.”

“Well, pardon me for being concerned about the liaison of Yveltal, the most notorious assassin among all liaisons, coming to this location,” said Mackenzie coldly. 

Tisiphone scowled. “You don't even know her! Come on. I'm the most feared liaison of Giratina, but I'm totally affable as long as you're not my enemy!” 

Steve raised a hand. “I've met her. She's not particularly friendly, and that passive energy draining thing she has going on is not pleasant, but I empathize with the weight she carries.”

“Steve! Whose side are you on?!” cried Tisiphone. “Morrigan is an ally, and you two will be polite when she gets here, at the very least.”

“Have you ever known me to be impolite?” asked Steve gently. 

Mackenzie rolled her eyes again. “If you think I'm going to be rude to the liaison of Yveltal's face, you're insane.” 

Tisiphone facepalmed. “Ugh… Who told you anyway?”

There was a brief silence. 

“Kenzie? Who told you?” repeated Tisiphone, raising her voice slightly. 

“It was Astrit,” said Mackenzie quietly. 

“Astrit?! He's here?” asked Tisiphone, looking around her as if she expected him to pop out of a corner of the room. 

Mackenzie nodded. “He's in accounting, and her travel request went through his department. He stopped by my office earlier today to say hi. I… was not pleased to see him, but he had that tidbit to share.”

“And you believed him,” said Tisiphone flatly. 

“I double-checked with his department, and it's true,” said Mackenzie. “Do you think I'm really that stupid?” 

Tisiphone shrugged. “Iunno, maybe? Anyway, he better stay out of my way, or I'll have to kill him with my bare hands.”

“He understands as much,” said Mackenzie flatly, but the corner of her mouth turned up slightly. “He's not so impressive-looking without a mark across his face or glowing eyes, by the way. He just looks like some guy. Got the middle-aged office worker look down pat.” 

“Where's his mark now? Not that I actually care,” asked Tisiphone. 

“Just a spot on the back of his neck,” said Mackenzie. “Unimpressive, discreet, anticlimactic.”

“Good, good,” said Tisiphone, nodding. “It's in everybody's best interest that he becomes a nobody. Can't inflict his shitty leadership skills on underlings if he has none.” She paused. “Honestly, one of the most obnoxious things about the Church of Arceus is how they automatically put their immortal liaisons in positions of power, even if they continuously demonstrate their incompetence. Just because they're more powerful doesn't mean they're actually better than the mortal liaisons. A substantial demotion might be what Astrit needs to humble him properly.” 

“It's a demotion from being a commander, but it's a significant promotion from being put to death with a promise of eternal punishment,” observed Steve. 

Tisiphone rolled her eyes. “Listen. Just let me have this… As far as I'm concerned, I saved him because seeing him declawed and knocked down a few pegs is more satisfying than just letting him die.” 

“Whatever you say, Tiffy,” said Mackenzie, giving Tisiphone a side eye. 

There was a brief silence. 

“... Anyway, good job on the cyber investigation stuff. Keep up the good work,” said Tisiphone, nodding. Without waiting for a response, she left the room. 

Mackenzie shook her head in disbelief. “That man lives in her head rent-free . You know, I wasn't even going to mention it was him, but she insisted. I knew she'd get like this.” 

“I think Astrit's new role will be healthier for her,” said Steve. “As long as he doesn't antagonize her like he did before, anyway.”

“I got the distinct impression that he fully intends to stay out of her way as much as possible,” said Mackenzie. She paused. “Honestly, he seems… happy. Hopeful. Enthusiastic. This is probably a stretch, but I think Arceus genuinely poisoned his mind, and he's doing a lot better without its influence. Makes me wonder what he was like before he became a liaison of Arceus.” 

Steve chuckled. “Don't wonder too loudly, or Tisiphone will get all huffy about it.” 

“Oh yeah, no, that's just between you and me,” said Mackenzie. “It's interesting to think about, though!” 

–

“Hey, Murphy. You know stuff, right?” asked Adrian, breaking the silence on the plane to Sinnoh. 

“Understatement, but yeah,” said Murphy. “In theory, I have access to most non-classified information Curie knows.”

“I have a weird question,” said Adrian. 

There was a brief silence. 

“What… kind of weird?” asked Murphy, raising an eyebrow. “Is it a sex thing?”

“What? No!” said Adrian, feigning offense. He paused. “I mean. Technically? But not really.”

Murphy rolled his eyes. “Out with it, then.”

“What kind of gender balance do liaisons have? I noticed the liaisons of Arceus we encountered leaned heavily male,” said Adrian. 

“Oh! Related to sex as in biological sex, gotcha. Well, it depends on the patron and a number of other factors. I don't know how much detail you want there,” said Murphy. “Might be a little dry for the readers, though.”

“The what?” asked Adrian. 

Murphy shook his head. “Uhh, never mind. How much do you want to know?”

“Tell me everything,” said Adrian. “I want to know. We've got time!”

Murphy shrugged. “Okay! One lore dump, coming up.” He paused. “So! I'll start with Arceus, since you mentioned it first. Branded liaisons skew heavily male, though not exclusively. Male and female liaisons of Arceus, including branded liaisons, have no statistically meaningful difference in strength, but their efforts to recruit typically are geared more towards men. The gender balance also depends on the particular sect of Arceusism. Now, chosen - that is, immortal and non-branded - liaisons have a slightly larger proportion of women in their ranks compared to the branded ones, presumably because Arceus itself doesn't actually care much about gender.”

“What about liaisons of Giratina?” asked Adrian. 

“Also mostly men,” said Murphy. “Being desperate enough for power or wealth to willingly enter a contract with an ostensibly evil god and do its bidding is a trait that skews male, unfortunately.”

“But Giratina isn't-” started Adrian. 

“I know, I know. You and I know perfectly well that Giratina isn't evil,” said Murphy, “But it's popularly assumed to be. Anyway, there are plenty of female liaisons of Giratina, but it's no coincidence that Tisiphone is the only one we've met.” 

Adrian shrugged. “I mean. Pretty sure I've only met three, so it's not a huge sample size. Tisiphone, Steve, and Snacksworth.”

“And Astrit,” added Murphy. 

There was a brief silence. 

“I think I must have missed something,” said Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

“Oh, you didn't hear?” asked Murphy. “He had a falling-out with Arceus and showed up at our door, and Tisiphone begged Giratina to take him on. Now he has a desk job with heavy supervision and no combat-ready powers. We'll probably run into him in Sinnoh, that's where he's currently working.”

Adrian shook his head in disbelief. “Damn, nobody tells me anything!” 

“Officially, only Tisiphone, Sheena, Mackenzie, and Steve know about that incident. I only know because of Curie,” said Murphy.

“I mean, that's basically all of the core team except for us,” said Adrian. He glanced over at the sleeping Sheena. “I guess that's fair play, though, since Sheena was pretty far out of the loop on liaison stuff until a good way into our beach episode.”  

Murphy chuckled. “You're still calling it that? You yourself spent like half an hour on the beach tops, and I didn't visit the beach at all.” 

“It was supposed to be our beach episode,” huffed Adrian. “The plot just went off the rails as soon as we got to the resort.” 

“Fair point, I suppose,” said Murphy, shrugging. 

There was another brief silence. 

“So, how about gender balance in liaisons of other patrons?” asked Adrian. 

“Depends heavily on the patron,” said Murphy. “Some have a strong preference for liaisons of a particular gender, and some of them exclusively choose one gender for their liaisons. Most don't have a preference at all, but many tend to draw in more men or women. Manaphy, for instance, accepts only female liaisons, while Thundurus accepts only male.”

“How does that work with trans people? Like, will a patron who only accepts female liaisons take on a trans woman?” asked Adrian. 

Murphy shrugged. “You'd have to ask them, I don't know that one myself. It probably depends on the patron, so you'd have to ask them directly. I will say, though, that Legendary and Mythical Pokémon don't tend to be judgmental about that kind of thing. And anecdotally, Cresselia almost always only accept female liaisons, and Ellie is transgender and was still chosen as a fused liaison.”

Adrian nodded understandingly. “Good point! What if a liaison to a gender exclusive patron happens to decide to transition?” 

“I assume it's really on a case by case basis,” said Murphy. “Enamorus, for example, only picks female liaisons. I don't think she has ever dropped one for being trans, but she chooses very empowered women to begin with, so they don't tend to be the type to develop dysphoria.”

Adrian chuckled. “Plenty of people who at some point identify as empowered women transition. It actually creates a bit of a sticky situation sometimes, depending on the crowd they run with. They might have an accepting group who supports their transition, but they could also end up ostracized from their community, especially if there are TERFs in the mix.”

“I stand corrected on that point, then,” said Murphy. “In that case, I'm not sure how or if she avoids it, but I'm not aware of her having any out trans liaisons.”

“So. What about non-binary people?” asked Adrian. 

“Popular choice for fused liaisons of non-binary patrons,” said Murphy. “When it comes to fused liaisons, patrons tend to prefer one of approximately the same gender. That's not a hard and fast rule, though.”

Adrian nodded. “Virizion is female, but her fused liaison is male.” 

“Isn't your patron a different gender from you, too?” asked Murphy, raising an eyebrow. 

“Oh, right!” said Adrian, blinking in confusion. “Darkrai is agender, and I'm male. How… how do I keep forgetting about my own patron who shares a body with me every time I'm talking about stuff like this? It feels like a constant thing for me.”

Murphy chuckled. “This early on, it's a good sign that you're melding together comfortably. You think of it as being an extension of yourself, though you don't yet have full access to your patron's own awareness. Admittedly, my knowledge regarding fused liaisons and the process of settling into being one is a bit fuzzy, but from what I've heard, that's normal.” 

“Is it… really that out of the ordinary to be a fused liaison, rather than another type?” asked Adrian.

“Not really,” said Murphy. “Most patrons with only one liaison have a fused liaison, and the majority of patrons have only one liaison. I'm actually out of the ordinary myself, being the only current liaison of Uxie, but not fused.” He paused. “I know a lot more about fused liaisons than most people do, but experiences vary wildly individually, and are highly subjective due to the internalized and heavily enmeshed nature of their bonds. For me to try to really understand how it feels would be like trying to understand how it feels to have a tail or wings. I can make guesses based on what I've heard and how I think it would affect me, but I lack the firsthand experience to contextualize it.” 

“Fascinating!” said Adrian. “I guess my real question is… why do people react how they do when they find out I'm a fused liaison?”

“Even though fused liaisons are not uncommon, becoming one is still considered to be extreme. It surprised me personally because you don't seem like one for commitment. I guess you've been better with that since you became polyamorous, which is kinda ironic, but I digress,” said Murphy. He paused. “The point is, given that you made your decision within days of being asked, it's kinda like marrying someone you just met. But, uh, worse.”

Adrian chuckled. “Oh, I didn't just meet Darkrai! We were very close until we parted ways. We did everything together, we were practically joined at the hip! If I'd been offered the opportunity to crawl into its skin back then, honestly, I might have accepted.”

Murphy raised an eyebrow. “Okay, so it's like marrying your teenage BFF you haven't seen in a decade and a half. Can you remind me why you parted ways again?”

There was a brief silence. 

“You don't think I should have done it,” accused Adrian, his tone humorless. 

“I mean, I wouldn't have,” said Murphy, shrugging. 

“As luck would have it, I am not you,” said Adrian flatly. 

Murphy rolled his eyes. “Well, yeah.” 

“Murphy, is there a reason you're randomly antagonizing me about this?” asked Adrian, narrowing his eyes. 

“Honestly? I'm bored , and I don't have anything better to do,” said Murphy. 

“Oh,” said Adrian flatly. He visibly relaxed. “You know what… that's good enough. All in good fun, right?”

Murphy nodded. “Of course! I'm just messing with you a little, I'm sorry if it came off as serious.” He paused. “Your decisions worry me sometimes, but they're yours to make. And honestly, it's on brand for you to do something drastic like this more or less on impulse. Personally, I'm glad it was this instead of killing yourself or something like that.”

“Thanks, Murphy, that means a lot to me,” said Adrian sincerely. 

“Hey, no problem,” said Murphy. He paused, looking contemplative. “I had you pegged as more of a ‘run off to join the circus’ type, though.”

Adrian chuckled. “The NHBD is already a circus! I assumed you knew.” 

“Why would you assume that?” asked Murphy, raising an eyebrow. 

Adrian grinned. “Because you're one of the clowns!” 

“Har har,” said Murphy flatly. “Are you implying you wouldn't be a clown yourself?”

“Not at all,” said Adrian, still grinning. He paused. “I wonder which of us would do what, if the NHBD was a circus!”

“Sheena is the obvious pick for ringmaster,” said Murphy. “Tisiphone would definitely be throwing knives.”

Adrian raised an eyebrow. “Does Tisiphone count?” 

“She's been living with us for long enough to be an honorary member, in my opinion,” said Murphy. 

“Barley could juggle his Doublade,” suggested Adrian. 

Murphy rubbed his chin thoughtfully. “Are there liaisons in the NHBD circus AU? Are we still immortal?” 

“Good question!” said Adrian. “So, my thought is…”

Chapter Text

Adrian plopped his bag on the hotel bed in Veilstone. “Yanno, it's weird being back in Sinnoh. Last time I was here, we were transported into the past in another dimension.”

“Same. What a bizarre experience,” said Murphy. “Did you notice there was no Game Corner when we were there? I checked when we got here today, and it's still here in this world. It's like it was a more kid-friendly universe.”

“Honestly, I try not to think about that trip too much. It makes my head hurt,” said Sheena. “That's when Adrian and I got our marks of Arceus, right?”

Murphy nodded. “That's right! Honestly, I was kinda worried it wouldn't send us back home once we were done. I had a higher opinion of it back then than I do now, of course, but it's known to be unpredictable.”

“It was interesting having a cis male body for a while, but I was happy to go back to being an adult again,” said Adrian. “I'm still not sure if me ending up with that weird amnesia thing going on was by design or unintentional.”

“Having experienced what I did in Alola, I'm inclined to think it was intentional,” said Sheena. 

Gillie popped out of her ball. “Adrian, you had a cis male body? And amnesia?!” 

“Yeah, and something like that, respectively,” said Adrian. “I thought I was genuinely still a teenager. The kicker there is I didn't remember transitioning, only remembering myself as female, so it was really weird to wake up in a cis male body. But everyone was calling me Adrian, so I just kinda rolled with it. It was confusing at the time, but honestly not unwelcome.”

“Wow, I bet that really was confusing! You've been on some crazy adventures,” said Gillie. 

Sheena looked up from her phone. “Tisiphone and Steve are coming to brief us on the current situation in about half an hour.” 

“Perfect! It'll be good to find out what exactly we're working with,” said Murphy. 

–

“All right, let's get you three up to speed,” said Tisiphone. “Remember how there seemed to be no liaisons in Team Void?”

“Yeah,” said Adrian. “Not true?” 

Tisiphone nodded. “Correct. Known liaisons have recently been spotted in their ranks, mostly liaisons of Arceus. However, their marks could not be seen, so they must be hiding them.” 

“But how?” asked Adrian. “Looker designed a device, of course, but I don't see how the Church of Arceus would have gotten ahold of it.”

Sheena's eyes widened. “Oh no.” 

“What? What is it?” asked Adrian. 

“The last time Astrit captured me, he grabbed the mark cloaking device I was wearing,” said Sheena. “I completely forgot until now. The whole dying thing kinda overshadowed everything else. Fuck.”

Steve nodded. “Yeah, he admitted as much. He got wind that it was in question, and volunteered the information on his own.” He paused. “So, like. It's entirely his fault, but at least he told us?” 

“Fortunately, I wasn't present when he revealed that,” said Tisiphone. “I probably would have strangled him or something, which would have been inconvenient, because he followed up by telling us more detailed information about the design of the ones the Church of Arceus developed based on it.”

“That also means they'll be watching out for similar devices on potential infiltrators, but that's not the end of the world,” said Steve. 

“On another note, Team Void has purchased the old Team Galactic building,” said Tisiphone. “Team Galactic publicly disbanded years ago, but the building has sat vacant up until pretty recently. Anyway, it means the hideout is easy to find, but it also means the front door and exits are openly guarded, and with heavy use of security cameras. That's not to say it's impossible to break in, but unless you have a form of invisibility that also makes you not show up on camera, it's not really feasible.”

Steve squinted at Murphy. “You wouldn't happen to have something like that up your sleeve, would you, Murphy? I know you tend to pull new powers out of your - ahem. You are able to reveal new powers once they are needed.”

Murphy shook his head, his expression amused. “Unfortunately not! My stealth powers and illusions would be enough to get past a guard, assuming they don't have perception powers that would render them useless. However, neither the stealth powers nor the illusions can fool a camera.”

“That's a little surprising about the illusions. Why is that?” asked Adrian. 

“My illusions neither produce nor reflect light,” said Murphy. “Their method of functioning is purely psychological, similar to how the visibility of a mark is illusory. Of course, the latter is only visible to liaisons and Legendary and Mythical Pokémon, but my illusions work on most people.”

“Wait, marks are illusions? I didn't know that,” said Sheena. 

Murphy nodded. “Yeah. That's roughly how those devices Looker made work, they disrupt the magic emitted from the marks.” He paused. “Anyway, if I can get to where the security cameras are being monitored, I can use my stealth abilities to keep them from noticing anything strange on the cameras. I'm also somewhat familiar with the old Team Galactic building. Adrian and Sheena could probably handle the guards from there, but we might want to recruit some help.”

“Hold on, pause for a moment,” said Tisiphone. “While breaking into the hideout is potentially in the cards, we haven't hit that point. No, what we really need right now is someone on the inside.”

“And you think we're suited for undercover work?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

Tisiphone waved her hand vaguely. “Mmmm, debatable. But let me explain.”

“We're all ears!” said Murphy. “I mean, I think I'd be good at it, personally. But go on anyway.”

Tisiphone nodded. “Great! So. Sinnoh contains a particularly large proportion of the population of liaisons of Giratina, but we’re still pretty low in numbers. We've got a good number of spies on our side, but most of the ones that aren't too notorious for domestic spy work are already occupied with high priority missions, and this situation hasn't been deemed enough of an active threat to justify diverting resources like that.”

“So, we'll just have to do, then?” asked Adrian. 

“I'm getting there,” said Tisiphone. “Now, the good news is that Team Void actually has a few known non-Arceus liaisons as members. The other good news is that the Church of Arceus doesn't have any of you in their liaison database, so they don't know anything about you. It's not too conspicuous to not be on the list, especially since Adrian and Sheena are so new.”

“I've been a liaison for over a decade, though,” said Murphy. “Why am I not on the list?” 

Tisiphone chuckled. “My smartass answer is that you usually don't actually do anything, so nobody knows who you are. Which is actually part of it, but that's not the whole story. First and foremost, your patron has kept you hidden. You weren't even in Giratina's database until Giratina itself met you.” She paused. “So, what I'm saying is that you're Uxie's dirty little secret.”

Murphy scowled. “Did you really have to say it like that?” 

“Okay, that was tongue in cheek, but you're currently the only known liaison of a Lake Guardian, which includes Mesprit and Azelf as well,” said Tisiphone. “It's not forbidden for them to have liaisons, but it's extremely unusual, and you'd have a lot more unwanted attention if you weren't purpose-built for obscurity. You're a somebody very cleverly disguised as a nobody, and it was a sensible move to do so. Your power set is an impressive one, and if you were well known, you'd have people up your ass clamoring for attention and hoping you'd be more approachable than your patron. We're very lucky to have you on our team, and once you start to properly approach your full potential, that will become more obvious.”

There was a brief silence. 

Murphy blinked in surprise, then looked around as if searching for a physical escape from the conversation. “Uhhhh. Uh, so wait. Are any patrons forbidden from having liaisons?”

“Quite a few, actually, but Eternatus is the most notorious,” said Tisiphone. “Doesn't mean they don't actually have any liaisons, but the ones they have keep their heads down, and everyone else looks the other way as long as they don't cause trouble. But if they do, the patron is also held fully responsible. A patron with forbidden liaisons that cause enough trouble to warrant intervention will be rewarded with a nice visit from the liaison of Yveltal themselves. They will be punished, and their illicit liaisons may be confiscated.” 

“Liaisons can be confiscated?” asked Adrian. 

Tisiphone nodded. “Several Legendary and Mythical Pokémon are physically capable of severing the contract of another patron without consent from either the liaison or the patron, but it's only actually permissible as a punishment from Yveltal.”

“Isn't that kinda unfair that only Yveltal is allowed to do it?” asked Adrian. 

“Is it unfair that people can be sent to prison for committing crimes, but you're not allowed to lock your enemies in your basement?” asked Tisiphone. 

There was a brief silence. 

“Point taken,” said Adrian. 

Tisiphone returned her attention to Murphy. “Anyway, I see you deflecting, but that's fine. We can discuss you being a special, special boy another time. You're gonna have to embrace it to get stronger, but I'll drop it for now.”

Murphy nodded appreciatively. “Thank you. On another note, what's going on with the justice system surrounding this? Lots of flouting of rules going on.”

“Much like in human societies, some crimes are more serious than others,” said Tisiphone. “For lesser crimes, whether you face consequences for them depends on how much of a nuisance you're being, how brazen you're being about it, and who you're pissing off in the process. There are a handful of different hells, each managed by different Legendary and Mythical Pokémon, and they are primarily for liaisons, but the occasional especially naughty non-liaison gets chucked in one.”

“And Yveltal handles the more serious ones, right?” asked Murphy. 

“Yveltal hell is primarily for Legendary and Mythical Pokémon,” said Tisiphone. “However, committing a cosmic-level crime will land anyone there, and massively pissing off at least five gods at once is also potentially grounds for a visit to Premium VIP Hell.”

“A cosmic-level crime,” repeated Sheena. “What constitutes a cosmic-level crime?” 

Murphy raised his hand. “Oh, I know this one! It's a deliberate act that threatens the stability of reality. Like tearing a hole in the universe, generating Ultra Wormholes, and / or initiating an apocalypse.”

“So… a typical Tuesday for Arceus, then?” asked Sheena, raising an eyebrow. 

“Yep,” said Tisiphone flatly. “Arceus itself is very difficult to directly punish, which is why what happened in Alola is such a big deal. Getting ahold of one of its bodies was a golden opportunity. Usually, the best that can be done is punishing its liaisons.” She paused. “Anyway, it's mostly liaisons that get into that level of trouble, but the occasional particularly villainous mortal ends up in there. Yanno, the likes of Cyrus and Lysandre.”

“Eugh, that's a name I didn't care to hear again,” said Murphy. “Wait, is that why Team Galactic disbanded? Cyrus is dead?” 

Tisiphone chuckled. “The public story is he went missing, because they never found his body. Those who know better know he disappeared in the Distortion World, and those who know better than that know that the liaison of Yveltal came to collect him shortly after.”

Cleo the Weavile emerged from the bathroom. “Hang on, opening ultra wormholes is a cosmic crime? But isn't there a whole scientific institution in Alola that does that?”

“There is, and they overdid it years ago and faced consequences for it,” said Tisiphone. “The Aether Foundation continues its research under heavy supervision from the International League as well as a handful of liaisons.” 

“Liaison politics sound like an absolute mess,” said Adrian. “How do I know if I'm committing some obscure crime? Is there a list somewhere that I can read?”

“There is no list,” said Tisiphone. “Most of the laws of immortals are pretty straightforward, though, and your patron should be familiar enough with them to keep you from breaking them unknowingly. If I were you, I'd worry more about etiquette. Committing the equivalent of jaywalking carries fewer consequences than personally gravely offending a god. Most will give you a little leeway since both you and your patron are very young, but that won't hold up forever, and not everyone has that kind of patience to begin with. Watch your step, lest you tread on the wrong toes.” 

Adrian nodded knowingly. “I'm no stranger to the fact that Legendary and Mythical Pokémon can be very particular about how you interact with them, but I get that impression that being a liaison changes things a bit.”

“You're much less likely to be killed outright for causing offense, but there will also be higher expectations for your conduct,” said Tisiphone. “If you're careless enough, you can start to collect enemies very quickly.”

“Curie has told me some horror stories about the forgiveness quests a particular Cresselia has put people through for attempting to call for her during the wrong lunar phase,” said Murphy. “And Jirachi has legit had liaisons it didn't like entombed with it during its slumber before, as a timeout. Generally speaking, Legendary and Mythical Pokémon besides your own patron should be approached with caution… That is, assuming your own patron is decent, of course.”

Tisiphone nodded. “I try not to really push it with Giratina, but I can definitely get away with being a little casual with it. Patrons who are also gods can be a bit of a mixed bag in that respect, but most are a lot more lenient with their own liaisons than those of others. Arceus is the most notable exception, given that it sees its own liaisons as tools at best, or toys at worst.” 

“If I may ask, what designates a Pokémon as a god?” asked Sheena.

“Being a god is a job,” said Tisiphone. “What qualifies a Pokémon as a god is having responsibility and authority over a particular area or aspect of existence. This ranges anywhere from a single island to a force of nature. For example, Tapu Koko being the protector of Melemele Island, and Kyogre being a god of the sea. Most gods have some form of immortality, most are worshiped by at least some humans or Pokémon , and most are the only example of their species, but there are exceptions to all of these things. Some gods aren’t even considered Legendary or Mythical, but are remarkable individuals of otherwise ordinary species. The lines get a little blurry sometimes, and ultimately it’s a bit arbitrary.”

“Does that mean kings and such are also gods?” asked Murphy. 

Tisiphone raised an eyebrow. “What? No. It's not a governmental designation, it's a whole other thing, and there's magic and stuff involved.” She paused. “Wow, I just got way off-topic. What was I talking about before the infodumping started?”

There was a brief silence. 

“Oh, right! I was talking about why you guys are the right ones for this job, and what the plan is,” said Tisiphone. “So! As I was saying… Since they don't have any info on you, Sheena and Adrian can openly present as liaisons when trying to join Team Void. Murphy, however, is best off concealing his mark and pretending to be a normal human, since his patron is an unusual one.”

“So, we won't need our mark cloaking devices for this?” asked Adrian. 

Tisiphone nodded. “Correct, which also removes the risk of having them discovered! Team Void will likely assign one to you, anyway. The other advantage of leaving your marks uncovered is that you're more likely to be let in on the weirder stuff going on, since you're clearly aware of liaison stuff.”

“Why are there liaisons from different patrons in Team Void, anyway?” asked Adrian. “Do they not know the Church of Arceus is involved?” 

“I suspect that some know and some don't,” said Tisiphone. “There's no way they genuinely believe the liaisons of Giratina are involved, though. Part of your job will be to determine what's going on with that. I'll be giving each of you a list of what I'd like you to look into, but any information helps.”

Adrian nodded. “Sounds good to me!” 

“Perfect,” said Tisiphone. “On a side note, there's at least one other liaison of Darkrai in Team Void. She's, uhh… Well. You might get along with her, but I don't. There's a good chance she joined just for the sake of being edgy.” 

Sheena chuckled. “Tizzy, are you implying you're not edgy?” 

“Not at all,” said Tisiphone, grinning. “She's just really annoying about it. Think Adrian, but less self-aware .”

“Hey!” objected Adrian, scowling. 

Tisiphone cackled. “Buddy, that bit of self awareness goes a long way, believe me. What makes it even more cringe is she's like three times your age and still acts like that.”

“So, what should I do?” asked Gillie's voice, slightly muffled. 

Tisiphone looked down at the closest bed in confusion. “What are you doing down there?” 

Gillie emerged from under the bed and brushed her body off. “Not much!” 

“Did you have a good nap, Gillie?” asked Adrian. 

“I did!” said Gillie, her tone one of satisfaction. 

“Wh… why did you take a nap under the bed?” asked Tisiphone, raising an eyebrow in befuddlement. 

“Sometimes you just gotta spend some time on the floor under a bed,” said Adrian matter-of-factly. 

Gillie nodded. “Yeah, this one gets it!” 

“She does stuff like that all the time,” said Steve. “You lived in the base for months, you didn't notice?” 

“I did, but I assumed she behaved differently when she left home, since she was different in Alola,” said Tisiphone. 

“I was high key in survival mode, but okay,” said Gillie flatly. “Look, tight spaces are cozy, I spent centuries living in a cave. Now, are we gonna keep talking about my choice of napping spot, or are you gonna tell me what I should be doing on this mission? I'm sneaky, but I might be a little conspicuous here.”

Tisiphone shrugged. “It's not all that unusual for a liaison to have a Legendary or Mythical Pokémon on their team, even if it's not their patron. You're compact and reasonably well-behaved, I don't think it's going to be an issue. You don't have to be talked down from arson on a daily basis, unlike… certain people with very large ears.” 

“Where is Teeny right now, anyway?” asked Adrian. 

“Exploring the city,” said Steve. “Now that I come back when I'm killed without any ill effects, they're not watching me as closely. I'm glad to see them getting more comfortable, honestly.”

Tisiphone nodded in agreement. “So, anyway… It would make sense for each of you to approach Team Void separately, so as to not be seen as a team yourselves, especially Murphy. There are a few places in the city where they seem to be recruiting or otherwise have a presence.” She turned to Adrian. “The best place for you to approach them would be in Veilstone Game Corner. You look like enough of a gritty degenerate to be somewhere a little questionable like that.”

Adrian scowled. 

“Don't give me that look!” said Tisiphone, shrugging. “I'm just saying, it's the right place to play up your edginess. Be bold about it.” 

“You could have at least picked a better way to - ugh, fine,” said Adrian. 

Tisiphone turned to Sheena. “Sweetheart, I'd suggest visiting their headquarters. The bottom floor is open, you can just walk in, and they'll be happy to talk to you.” 

“I'm sure I can manage that!” said Sheena. 

“And where do you want me to go?” asked Murphy. 

Tisiphone raised an eyebrow. “I was getting there, be patient! Anyway… I want you to pick a place to approach them yourself. However you want to decide that, and whether or not you ask for input from your patron.”

“Yeah, I can figure something out,” said Murphy, nodding. “I think… I'll take the day to see what's changed around town. If all of us join on the same day, we're more likely to all encounter a problem if one of us is discovered. Plus, I have a feeling I'll stumble on something important while I'm out and about. Adrian, you hanging at the game corner is good, because honestly, they'll probably approach you first. That should give you and Sheena good cover against each other being caught, since she'll be literally asking to join.” 

“I'm not much for gambling, but I'll do my best,” said Adrian. 

“You could just hang out at the bar,” suggested Tisiphone. “There's a bar in the building too now.”

“I s'pose I can grab a mocktail or two,” said Adrian. “Can't have alcohol with my meds.” 

Tisiphone raised an eyebrow. “You're… you're still on meds? Didn't you become a liaison for health reasons?” 

“Well, I'm still mentally ill,” said Adrian, shrugging. “Had my antipsychotic upped recently because I was slipping into a manic episode, actually.”

“And you couldn't get mental health in the deal too?” asked Tisiphone. 

Adrian shrugged again. “It was offered to me, but I felt like I wouldn't be the same person if I wasn't mentally ill. So I kept it as is, and my mental health has actually improved substantially just on the basis of not being in constant pain or in a perpetual state of exhaustion. Imagine that!” He paused, and scratched his head. “Aren't you mentally ill? Why didn't Giratina do something about it?” 

“I have to be crazy to do my job,” said Tisiphone matter-of-factly. “Besides, I…” She paused and looked away. “I… I have brain damage from when I carried Arceus’ mark. Giratina pieced me back together as best it could, but it's a god of destruction, not healing. Still did a pretty good job of it, but… Well. I manage.”

There was a brief silence. 

“I'm sorry, I -” started Adrian. 

“It's fine, forget about it,” snapped Tisiphone. She paused, then shook her head. “Sorry, I'm having trouble understanding why you'd give up your autonomy and privacy for health reasons but only ask for half.”

“I've made a lot of progress on my mental health, and I didn't want to reset to some unknown mental state, become a different person, and still have to sort myself out again,” said Adrian. “And as I understand it, patrons have a lot more control over how a fused liaison's body changes, but Darkrai isn't exactly a god of healing either. I'm content with what I got in this deal, and I'm glad I didn't push it by messing with my brain.” 

“Ah… I think I get it now,” said Tisiphone slowly.

“I didn't ask for my ADHD to be fixed,” said Murphy. “Curie offered, but honestly, I just don't want to be able to forget how it feels. I did ahhhh- oh man, almost lost a power there. That would've been bad.” He paused. “Also, hard agree on Adrian's decision. I don't normally comment on people's mental stuff, but he has genuinely made impressive progress. Both before and after becoming a liaison. The fact he kept his issues intact really speaks to that.”

Adrian beamed. “Thanks, Murphy! That means a lot.”

“Uh, sure thing,” said Murphy, rubbing the back of his neck awkwardly. He paused, and a smirk crossed his face. “Besides, if you weren't at least a little crazy, you wouldn't hang out with us anymore .” 

Adrian chuckled. 

“Giratina isn't too bad at body manipulation,” said Steve. “Sure, I've got that scarring thing going on, but it still gave me a fully functional -” 

“Well, I'm glad everyone is having a good time oversharing, but can we please focus on the plan?” interrupted Gillie. 

Tisiphone nodded firmly. “Yes, yes we can. Let's iron out a few more details, then split up.”

Chapter Text

Mackenzie looked up from her laptop to see Astrit in the doorway to her office. “Ugh. Why are you here? What do you want?” 

“Oh, I'm just on the tail end of my lunch break and thought I'd stop by,” said Astrit. “You know what's great? Food. I missed food.”

“Why me? Don't you have someone else to bother?” asked Mackenzie, glaring at Astrit. 

Astrit shrugged. “You're the only person here I knew before but who also doesn't immediately try to stab me. I mean, there's also Steve, but he's no fun.”

“A bold assumption about stabbing,” said Mackenzie flatly. “I'm not your mommy, Astrit. I'm - hold on, are you saying you couldn't eat when you were working for Arceus?”

“Clear liquids only, otherwise I would… suffer,” said Astrit. 

“Suffer worse than you already were?” asked Mackenzie. 

Astrit nodded. “Significantly so. I did occasionally partake of a few bites of solid food, but it was… largely not worth the hassle.”

“Tough break. Not that you didn't deserve it for being a piece of shit, though,” said Mackenzie. 

“I am opting to ignore that,” said Astrit flatly. “I have been experimenting with modern foods. Did you know that entire meals are now frozen for storage, to be sold and then reheated in a microwave oven?” 

“I'm… familiar with that,” said Mackenzie, averting her gaze. “Totally not from experience. I just, uh, have friends who eat that.”

Astrit grinned. “They are incredible! I have been consuming them all week. Just today, I had small breaded meat patties, with a side of elbow pasta in a curious yellow sauce. It even included a small piece of cake! Incredible. Delectable.”

“Banquet chicken nuggets with mac and cheese and a brownie,” blurted Mackenzie. She looked around sheepishly. “I… have heard of this meal.”

“Yes, I believe you are correct!” said Astrit cheerfully. He paused, then narrowed his eyes. “Is there… some sort of stigma surrounding these meals?”

Mackenzie's shoulders relaxed. “Yeah, kinda. People might think you're lazy and gross for eating microwave dinners, since they're easy to make and not very healthy.”

“What nonsense!” snapped Astrit. “Is modern convenience a crime? I don't think so! Tsk. No matter. I will continue to consume them, and should I face judgment from my peers, I will still persist.”

Mackenzie chuckled. “I'm not gonna judge you for that. Just for, you know, the murder and war crimes and stuff.”

“I suppose that is reasonable,” said Astrit. 

Mackenzie gave Astrit a sidelong glance. “If you like mac and cheese, you can buy the uncooked pasta with sauce mix in a cardboard box. Just follow the instructions on the box, and it'll be better than the stuff in the microwave meals.”

“I will seek that out,” said Astrit, bowing slightly. “Er… Thank you. For the suggestion.”

“Don't mention it. Now get out of my office,” said Mackenzie. “I'll… see you later.”

–

Adrian entered the Veilstone Game Corner, his collar opened to display his mark. The air was busy with the sounds of slot machines running and casual conversation. He made his way towards the bar, where a bartender stood cleaning a mug. Before he was even able to take a seat, a voice behind him called out.

“Hey, you in the coat!” 

Adrian turned to face the man addressing him. “Yeah? Can I help you?” 

The man looked to be in his mid 20s, and sported a black v-neck t-shirt, split black and gray jeans, heavy black boots, and black and red arm warmers. A mop of glossy black hair sat atop his head like a frightened animal.

Next to him, a woman who appeared to be in her early 40s was clad in a black crop top and a black and red striped skirt. She wore boots identical to the man’s over a mismatched pair of knee-high socks, one of them solid black and the other decorated in black and gray zigzags. A fluffy mane of black and red hair adorned her head.

Both uniforms also included a gold badge in the middle of the chest vaguely resembling the crest on Giratina’s head.

“Perhaps you can,” said the man. “Might we have a few minutes of your time?” 

Adrian nodded. “Sure, why not? I'm not in a rush to be anywhere right now.” 

“Great! Let's all have a seat at that table in the corner,” said the woman. 

The three people settled into their seats. 

“I'm guessing you're from that Team Void I've heard about,” said Adrian. 

The woman gave the man a questioning glance. 

The man looked Adrian up and down, turned to the woman, and nodded. 

The woman returned her gaze to Adrian. “Ahem! Your guess is correct! Now, how much do you know about our organization?” 

Adrian shrugged. “Not much. Give it to me from the top!”

“Very well!” said the woman. “To put it simply, Team Void seeks to push against the influence of Arceus and its followers, and promote Giratina in its place. How familiar are you with the origins of Arceus and Giratina?”

“Pretty familiar, but I'd like to hear your take on it,” said Adrian. 

“So, at the beginning of the world, Arceus hatched from the first egg. It first created Giratina, Dialga, and Palkia. Giratina turned out to be dangerous and destructive, so Arceus banished it to another dimension,” said the woman. “After that, Arceus created the rest of the world, et cetera, et cetera. At least, that's the version we're all taught!”

“It is, yeah. Are you saying that's not the real story?” asked Adrian. 

The woman nodded. “I am! We believe that Arceus was merely jealous of Giratina's power, and wanted to rule the world on its own. Banishing Giratina diminished its power, creating an inherent imbalance in the world.” 

Adrian raised an eyebrow. “An imbalance of what kind?” 

“As everyone knows, Giratina is the god of destruction,” said the woman. “Therefore, in its relative absence, things that should have been destroyed ages ago have persisted long after they reasonably should have.” 

Adrian narrowed his eyes. “And this differentiates you from sects of Arceusism that believe the same thing how?” 

The woman gestured dismissively. “Oh no, no no, it's very different! It's not about minorities and whatever else they're calling immoral these days. I'm talking about corruption and real evil! And it's coming from a very different place.”

“I see,” said Adrian. “I'm intrigued, but I'd like to know more about what constitutes real evil.”

“If you don't mind a change of venue, we'll tell you everything. Shall we escort you to our base of operations?” asked the woman. 

Adrian took one more quick glance at the man, who had been intermittently eyeing his collarbone throughout the conversation, then returned his attention to the woman. “Sure! I'm game for that.”

–

Murphy took his time examining the meteorite craters, his brow furrowed in concentration. His eyes scanned every crack and pore in the rocks, but to no end, despite a nagging feeling that he was missing something. 

Frustrated, he took a moment to stretch before directly addressing his patron. 

“It tastes like something should be happening here. What gives? Am I looking at things wrong?”  

A few seconds passed before he received a response from Curie. 

“There is a potential alternate to this scene where you would have caught a glimpse of a person you otherwise would never have crossed paths with. This person still exists in this world, but the chances of you meeting are infinitesimal.”

“Should I be concerned about this? Am I missing a clue because of this?” asked Murphy. 

“No, it just would have been cool,” replied Curie.

Murphy chuckled quietly. “So, is there anything else to find here?” 

“No, your search has been sufficient,” said Curie . “On to the next location.”

“Mall next? I hear they have that snack you like,” offered Murphy. 

“Ohh yes, it's very important we go there.”

–

Approaching the Team Void headquarters, Sheena adjusted her top, ensuring that her mark was just barely peeking out of it. She stopped briefly at the threshold, took a deep breath, and walked in. 

A handful of grunts were lounging around the lobby, evidently engaged in casual chatter until Sheena's entrance. Each paired a black t-shirt or crop top with a pair of black and gray jeans or a black and red striped skirt, and some also sported black and red striped arm warmers. Choice of pants or skirt seemed to correlate roughly with gender, but there seemed to be no hard and fast rule and every article of clothing was mix-and-match. Their heavy black boots clunked on the tile floor as they moved.

The grunts eyed Sheena warily as she walked by, whispering amongst themselves.

Trying to ignore their suspicious stares, Sheena approached the reception desk, which was staffed by another grunt with a more professional demeanor. “Uh, hello! I'd like to learn more about Team Void, and potentially join.”

The grunt at the desk leaned forward and ran his fingers through his black hair. “Certainly, we'd love to have you! I'll see who's available to talk right now, can I have your -” 

“I'll take this one,” said a grunt standing near the elevator in the back of the room, clad in a t-shirt and skirt. She turned to Sheena, then gestured for her to follow. “Come with me, please.”

“Okay!” said Sheena, walking over. 

The grunt tapped a key card to the panel by the elevator door, and it opened. 

–

Adrian sat at a desk across from the man he met at the Game Corner. “All right, let's hear the full story!” 

“My name is Brad, and I am going to ask you a few questions first,” said the man. 

“Mine is Adrian. By all means, Brad, go for it!” said Adrian. 

Brad nodded. “Nice to meet you. Adrian, is there a reason you sought us out?” 

“Would you believe me if I said it was a coincidence?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

“No,” said Brad flatly. “You seem a bit too eager… and I can see your mark.” 

Adrian chuckled. “Fair enough! I heard about your organization and thought we might be on approximately the same page. I'm not too pleased with Arceus’ shenanigans and those of its liaisons, and I feel like nobody is in a hurry to do much of anything about it.” 

“It does sound like we're on the same page,” said Brad, nodding. 

“Did I get the normie pitch or the liaison pitch at the Game Corner?” asked Adrian. 

“The former,” said Brad. “As you have accurately assumed, there is a difference. What we revealed in public is accurate, but I also want to stress that we have a heavy focus on directly opposing the Church of Arceus. There are plans in the works to make active moves on them and flush out the corruption of the Church. Their immortal liaisons cannot be permanently killed, of course, but the goal is to disrupt their operations enough to impede the harm they are perpetuating.” 

“That sounds good to me,” said Adrian. “So, how do the liaisons of Giratina fit into all this? Are there any involved as members? If not, I don't imagine they'd take too kindly to outsiders claiming to represent Giratina.” 

“There are a few amongst our ranks. They've turned to our cause out of dissatisfaction with their typical inaction,” said Brad. “It seems like Giratina's liaisons don't bother to step in unless some arbitrary condition is reached, and that excludes some severe situations and doesn't address the root of the problem… Arceus itself, and the corruption rampant amongst its followers.” 

“I see. And you're looking to change that?” asked Adrian. 

Brad nodded firmly. “What the liaisons of Giratina are able to accomplish is important, but we have identified two main problems: First, they lack the numbers required to have a dedicated force for handling what they might otherwise consider minor incidents. Second, Giratina and its liaisons are required to abide by arbitrary laws regarding when and how they are permitted to intervene. Team Void solves both of these problems by including liaisons from other patrons as well as non-liaisons!” 

“That seems like a pretty solid assumption,” said Adrian. “Sending regular humans up against liaisons seems risky at best, though.”

“We actually have a way to handle that, but I cannot tell you any more than that without officially taking you on as a member. Rest assured, though, we are not sending defenseless humans to their deaths,” said Brad. 

“Good to hear,” said Adrian, nodding approvingly. 

Brad folded his hands on the desk. “Well, that's about it. Any more questions?” 

“Hmm, nothing I can think of! If you don't mind, I'm gonna mull it over for a bit and get back to you,” said Adrian. 

“By all means,” said Brad. He handed Adrian a business card. “Give me a call if you have any questions, this is not to be discussed in writing. However, if you have liaison friends who would also be interested, what I have told you is safe to share… But not with non-liaisons.” 

Adrian accepted the card and tucked it in his pocket. “Understood!” 

“Hey, mind if I ask a personal question?” asked Brad. 

Adrian narrowed his eyes. “What kind of personal question?” 

“Nothing wildly inappropriate,” said Brad, shrugging. 

“Go for it, but I make no promises about answering,” said Adrian. 

“Er… why does your mark look like that?” asked Brad. 

“Look like what?” asked Adrian, his expression humorless. 

“You know, it's…” Brad gestured vaguely. “Bent.”

“That's none of your business,” said Adrian flatly. 

Brad put his hands up in surrender. “Not a problem!” He paused. “I've seen another almost exactly like that, that's all. Just bent in a different spot.”

“What, same patron and everything?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

“As far as I could tell,” said Brad. “What patron is that, anyway?”

“If you don't know, I'm not telling you,” said Adrian flatly. 

Brad shrugged. “I figured as much! We'd be happy to have another fused liaison on the team, regardless. Keep in touch!”

–

Murphy meandered through the mall, taking his time in the different shops and keeping his eyes and ears open. In between shops, he reached out to his patron. 

“I wonder how the others are doing.”

Curie responded promptly. “They are making expected progress. On a related note, now is a good time to remind you that you have seven more months to accept your next power before it expires.”

“Is that a hint that I should do that now?” asked Murphy. 

“It is,” said Curie. “I will also remind you that I will choose it myself, and it will be useful for your current mission.”

“Yeah, I remember how it works,” said Murphy. 

“Just saying it for the readers,” explained Curie. “Are you ready?”

“Go for it,” responded Murphy. Immediately, a strange tingle passed over his body, and his eyes widened. 

“What do you think of it?” asked Curie. 

Murphy thought for a moment. “Oddly specific, but I could see it being very useful in the future.”

“Good,” said Curie firmly. “Ooh! I haven't tried that flavor before, can we get that one too?”

–

The woman who was previously outside the elevator led Sheena into a small, cozy office. She offered her a hand to shake. “Name's Bora! And you are?” 

“It's Sheena,” said Sheena, accepting the handshake. “Nice to meet you, Bora!” 

“Nice to meet you too!” said Bora. “Please, have a seat.” 

Sheena sat down in the chair in front of the desk, and Bora took her seat behind it. 

“Now. First of all, mind telling me what brought you here?” asked Bora. “You seem very eager, which is good, of course, but I'd like to know what has you so enthusiastic about joining us.”

“I have a bone to pick with Arceus and its church,” said Sheena. “I jumped at the opportunity to act on it with the support of a full team.”

“What's your history with them? I'm a liaison, feel free to go into detail,” said Bora. 

Sheena nodded. “Got it! Well, I was personally killed by a liaison of Arceus, and I have friends who have been hassled by them.” 

Bora looked Sheena up and down. “They killed you? Are you still dead?” 

“I got better,” added Sheena sheepishly. 

“Got it, I wasn't sure because of your typing,” said Bora. “Makes sense with your patron, though! I've been killed a handful of times myself, of course.” 

“Of course!” said Sheena. “I haven't been a liaison for long, and that was my first time dying, so it's kind of a big deal to me.” 

Bora nodded knowingly. “Understandable. I'm sure you'll be happy to learn that we have a heavy focus on fighting and counteracting the Church of Arceus, and we have plans underway for physical confrontation. However, that is not our only goal. You are familiar with the story of the origin of Giratina, correct?”

“Pretty familiar, yes!” said Sheena. 

“We believe that Arceus cast its child, Giratina, into its own dimension not because Giratina was a threat to the universe, but because it was a threat to Arceus’ power,” said Bora. “This act of injustice set off an imbalance that continues to this day. As the god of destruction, Giratina's banishment has prevented it from destroying things that should have been gone a long time ago.” 

Sheena nodded, gesturing for Bora to continue. “I see! Things like what?” 

“Corrupt institutions, general evil, basically anything that does harm and has overstayed its welcome,” said Bora. “Giratina's liaisons are limited in number, and have to prioritize only the most extreme and acute situations. That's where we come in. We want to clean up the things that they cannot or will not dedicate manpower to, and beat back the Church of Arceus from their current position of overreach and domination.”

“Seems like quite the ambitious goal, but a noble one!” said Sheena. 

Bora nodded. “We've got a lot of work to do, so we're looking for as much help as we can get. A liaison such as yourself would be an invaluable addition to the team. Are you ready to join us, and fight the good fight?”

“Team Void seems like the sort of organization I could get behind, but I need to think about it a bit before I make that decision,” said Sheena. 

“Of course!” said Bora. She handed Sheena a business card. “Here's my number. If you have any questions, call, don't text.”

Chapter Text

Passing by a clothing store, Murphy caught a glimpse of a mark of Arceus out of the corner of his eye. He had spotted a handful of marks on his way around the mall, but this one glowed red, indicating it was not only active, but also veering into the territory of causing physical damage. He turned to get a better look at the person carrying it. 

The bearer of the mark was a young woman with strawberry blonde hair, bright-eyed and looking no older than 20 or so. She was clad in jean shorts and a light green t-shirt, with sandals providing a clear view of the mark on her left ankle. Upon closer examination, the glowing mark also shimmered slightly, unusual for one of Arceus’ “Chosen” but not quite as flashy as the mark of an actual liaison. 

“She's a Born Chosen, the child of two liaisons of Arceus, marked at birth,” said Curie. “A tragic position to be born into, brought into this world to be used as a living battery for rituals.”

The woman was thoughtfully examining two brightly colored formal dresses, lost in contemplation of her choices. 

“I wonder what she's doing that has the mark active,” mused Murphy, speaking silently to Curie. 

“Go help her make her mind up on that dress,” directed Curie. 

“What? I'm no good at that kind of thing. Besides, is she really going to be comfortable being approached by a stranger?” asked Murphy. 

“Do it,” said Curie firmly. 

Murphy gritted his teeth anxiously and walked over to the woman. “Uhhh. Excuse me, miss?” 

The woman looked up from the dresses. “Hmm? Can I help you?”

“I noticed you're having a hard time choosing which one to buy,” said Murphy. “I think the blue one would really suit you.” 

“Oh! Uhh, thank you. It's a tough choice, I really want to look my best,” said the woman, returning her gaze to the dresses. 

“What's the occasion, if you don't mind me asking?” asked Murphy. 

Looking up again, the woman grinned. “Well, I can't go into detail, but it's for a kind of ceremony. One I've been looking forward to for my whole life, it seems like!”

“A… wedding?” offered Murphy awkwardly. 

The woman giggled. “Oh no, not quite! But still an important event, for sure. I really want to look my best, everything I've done and gone through is finally paying off! Again, I really can't go into detail, but let's just say it's going to be better than I ever thought it would be. This is really my lucky break!”

“Well, uh, I'm happy for you! Congrats on your mystery event, I hope it's everything you ever wanted and more!” said Murphy. 

“Aw, thank you, uhh… Sorry, I didn't catch your name?” asked the woman.

Murphy panicked briefly, trying to dredge up the carefully chosen false identity he'd been contemplating but instead remembering an interesting drink he'd seen in a coffee shop recently. “Uhhh! Uh. Raspberry Cocoa.” 

Shit.

“Raspberry? You don't look like a Raspberry,” said the woman, raising an eyebrow. 

“My mom wanted me to be a gym leader?” offered Murphy. 

The woman nodded knowingly. “Ah, I see! Of course, my apologies, Raspberry. Well, my name's Geldau!”

“What a lovely name!” said Murphy. He gestured to the dresses again. “I'd still go with the blue one.”

Geldau grinned, then returned the other dress to the rack. “I'll buy this one, then! Thank you. I have some more shopping to do, but maybe I'll see you again later.” She walked deeper into the store to investigate a display of tights. 

“Remember her face,” said Curie. “Remember her body. The way she moves. The way she speaks. Remember. This is important.”

“Ominous much?” asked Murphy, raising an eyebrow. 

“You came to this place looking for clues. This is the one you'll find here,” said Curie firmly. 

–

Tisiphone sat just outside the airport terminal, alternating between checking her phone and reading the novel in her other hand. Upon receiving the text she was expecting, she stood up and tucked both items into her pockets. 

A towering figure approached slowly. Her striking black and red jacket gleamed in the light, lending a stark, sharply tailored shape to her silhouette. A mane of curly brown hair fell to her shoulders, meeting and filling the wide collar on her jacket. A Y shape marked her forehead, superficially appearing solid black, but allowing no light to escape. The glowing red eyes below her mark carried a sense of foreboding, but her stoic expression held no hostility. “Tisiphone. Good to see you, it's been a while.” She held out a fist. 

Tisiphone gave the woman a firm fist bump. “Morrigan! It's great to see you again, too! It's been what, 20 years? What've you been up to?”

“Oh, you know, the usual,” said Morrigan, shrugging. “Killing gods. Plenty of work to do, seems like they can't go a week without one of them or one of their liaisons doing something unspeakable and needing a fancy time-out. Don't mind the work at all, but a few chronic re-offenders would really benefit from developing a sense of shame. How about you? Church of Arceus keeping you busy with their shenanigans?”

Tisiphone chuckled. “It comes and goes. Sometimes I'm back out the door the minute I come home, and sometimes I wait for months for a new assignment.”

“Well, thanks for doing what you do,” said Morrigan. “The work you and the other liaisons of Giratina do clears most of the liaisons of Arceus off of my list without me needing to do anything. Most… but not all. Hey, does that wack job Astrit know you're the only reason he's not getting dragged to Yveltal hell twice a decade? If I'd gotten my hands on him this time, he'd still be in hell.”

“I mean, I certainly never told him,” said Tisiphone, shrugging. “He's a liaison of Giratina now, though, so I guess those days are over.”

Morrigan raised an eyebrow. “You're going to have to tell me later how exactly that happened. Oh well, I guess his next fuckup is my problem to deal with.” She cracked her knuckles. 

“He's basically been declawed, and Giratina has him doing desk work,” said Tisiphone. “It'll probably be at least a few decades before he's in any kind of position to be committing crimes big enough to get you involved, but I don't doubt he'll get there eventually.” 

Morrigan nodded knowingly. “Great job on the Arceus incident, by the way. Honestly I really should have been called in for that one, but the situation escalated rapidly , and you handled it well. I bet it must have been a thrill to cut into that beast yourself, given what it's done to you.”

“Ohohoho, you have no idea,” said Tisiphone, grinning. “Turns out my weapons hit it like a hot knife through butter. The most satisfying thing I've done in a very long time, maybe even ever. I had a lot of help with that mission, but it was still the highlight of my career , and I'm still running on the high from it. Did you hear the Son of Giratina made the finishing move?”

“I did, and I'm glad he came out the other side of it relatively unscathed,” said Morrigan. “Partly because I like the guy personally, but mostly because that man is every patron's darling and Arceus almost started a war with every single one of them by severing his contract. I'm glad he's got a stronger contract now, he was a ticking time bomb with how vulnerable he was to exactly that happening.” She paused. “So, how's the new girlfriend treating you? She's a brand-new liaison, right?”

Tisiphone chuckled. “She's a real sweetheart! We have our differences, and sometimes we get to arguing a bit, but we sort things out soon enough!” 

“Arguing about the way you conduct your business, or just about you being a little scumbag?” asked Morrigan playfully. 

“Heeey!” objected Tisiphone, feigning offense. She paused. “Okay, it's mostly the scumbag thing, you got me.”

Morrigan cackled, and tousled Tisiphone's hair. “You haven't changed a bit.”

“How's Sasavona?” asked Tisiphone. 

Morrigan let out a long-suffering sigh. “They've been doing well, but right now they have custody of a demonic dog who's been more than a handful to deal with. Honestly, I'm waiting to hear that the dog has seduced them and escaped.”

Tisiphone side-eyed Morrigan. “I have several questions, but I don't want answers to any of them.” 

“Welcome to my world,” said Morrigan flatly. “Most unsettling part is that I can't figure out how to kill the damn thing, so they're playing house pet until I determine what to do next. I really should be at home dealing with that, but what's going on here has to take priority right now.” 

“Oh yeah, why are you here, anyway? Is there anything we can do to help you with your assignment?” asked Tisiphone. 

“I can't go into any detail, but the shit is about to hit the fan in a way nobody is prepared for,” said Morrigan, her expression hardening. “What's going on right now goes deeper than any of your people suspect. I'm here for damage control, and by the end of it I'm going to have to take out multiple people for their crimes.”

Tisiphone winced. “Yikes. You are literally the worst person to hear that from.”

“I get that a lot,” said Morrigan, resignation in her voice. “I love my job, don't get me wrong. But my presence is never good news.”

“Well, I'm still happy to see you,” said Tisiphone firmly. 

Morrigan nodded appreciatively. “Thanks. Now, I need to check into my hotel. Mind giving me directions?” 

–

“I've done more digging, and I finally got a name on the defunct Team Void website,” said Mackenzie, sifting through papers on her desk. “The domain was originally registered by someone called Mustika. Ring any bells?” 

“That's the name Mew uses in their human disguise, so it looks like we're getting somewhere!” said Tisiphone. She rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Mew has a history of aggressive neutrality with regard to clashes between Giratina and Arceus. It's honestly obnoxious, but what can ya do?” She paused. “When forced to pick a side, though, they almost always side with Arceus. Their ‘neutrality’ also just so happens to work in Arceus’ favor most of the time.” 

Murphy rubbed his chin. “Mew mostly just does whatever will entertain them. They've been known to commit both heinous acts of cruelty and literal miracles. Thankfully, they don't find sadness very entertaining, although they're less opposed to anger and fear. However, when they do decide to torment others, it's usually no more than a handful of people at once, and it's usually just for a quick laugh. They get bored easily, and they don't like commitment or responsibility, so running a website isn't really their style. If they are involved at all, a human is helping them.” He paused for a moment, then snickered. “Sorry, but I'm imagining Mew attempting to register and build a website, and getting so mad, they smash the keyboard.”

 “So, basically, it's like a cat with fae powers. Fantastic,” said Sheena. 

“More like an omnipotent, misbehaved but generally-agreeable toddler,” said Murphy. “Importantly, you will generally get along with them if you play along with their nonsense.” 

“So, what does this mean for their relationship to Team Void?” asked Adrian. “Do you think they're still working together, or is it an abandoned project picked up by someone else or reusing the name?” 

Tisiphone shrugged. “Honestly, it could go either way. It wouldn't hurt to keep an eye out for them, though. They can transform, so they're not limited to their usual human identity if they don't want to be recognized. Conceivably, they could be coaxed into a role in such an organization if that organization can keep them entertained and supplied with treats.” 

“Mew is big on treats?” asked Murphy. 

“Oh yeah, they love candy,” said Tisiphone. “Give them something sweet, and you'll get on their good side, at least for a while.”

“Good to know,” said Murphy thoughtfully. 

Tisiphone looked over the office and put her hands on her hips. “So, Sheena and Adrian. You went and talked to recruiters, right? How did that go?” 

“The gist was that they think more stuff should be destroyed, though they downplayed that a lot by focusing on the Church of Arceus as an antagonist,” said Adrian. “They claim to have liaisons of Giratina on their team, but they also are working from the false assumption that Arceus was responsible for banishing Giratina to the Distortion World.”

“Wait, that's not true? What happened, then?” asked Sheena. 

“Giratina and Arceus are twins from the same egg,” said Steve. “They were immediately sent to their own dimensions upon hatching, nobody banished anybody.” 

Adrian nodded. “Team Void also claims that this banishment has diminished Giratina's power, preventing it from destroying as much stuff as it should. They want to help with that.”

“What a load of nonsense,” scoffed Tisiphone. “Giratina is doing just fine keeping the balance.” She paused. “There are a couple liaisons of Giratina undercover in Team Void, but none of them have revealed themselves. So, not only are they falsely claiming to align with Giratina, but they are also impersonating liaisons of Giratina. That's a serious crime, especially depending on what bullshit they're up to.” 

Murphy raised a hand. “Wait, is it a crime to impersonate a liaison? There are a lot of fakes online.”

Tisiphone wiggled her hand vaguely. “It's a gray area, especially for non-liaisons. It's technically a crime in general, but whether anyone gives a shit depends on who you're impersonating and whether you're doing it to commit another crime.”

“That's uncomfortably vague,” said Murphy. “How do I know I'm not committing a crime right now?” 

“Listen, don't try to tell me that the way human laws are enforced isn't just as much of a mess,” said Tisiphone flatly. “As long as you're not harming anyone or upsetting the balance of the universe or anything, you're probably fine. I'd recommend worrying more about running afoul of individual Legendary and Mythical Pokémon. Stuff that isn't actually illegal will still get you killed or at least on someone's shit list.” She paused. “Damn, we are getting off-topic again . Sheena, you learn anything Adrian hasn't mentioned?” 

Sheena nodded. “The woman I talked to mentioned that they think Giratina doesn't step in often enough, and they think it's because of a shortage of liaisons. They want to take on less serious Church of Arceus stuff, as well as attack the root of it and dislodge it from power.”

“Okay then, that was always allowed,” said Tisiphone snarkily. “So fight the Church of Arceus! Just keep Giratina out of it. We're not at war with the Church of Arceus, we just step in when they take things far enough to threaten the balance of the world. What, do they complain about the fact that the dentist doesn't come home with them to brush their teeth for them? It's unnecessary.” 

“If I'm following correctly,” said Steve, “They're not only wrong, but dangerously wrong. Not that I was under any illusion that they were right or harmless, but they're actively interested in destroying things in Giratina's name. Did they say what they were planning on destroying?”

“They were really vague about it, but they told me they wanted to destroy corruption and real evil, which they assured me is not a euphemism for minorities. Still not very reassuring,” said Adrian. “They really glossed over it, and put heavy emphasis on the Church of Arceus aspect. I think it's definitely something to be concerned about.” 

Tisiphone turned to Murphy. “So, Murphy. You spent the day wandering around, did you find anything noteworthy?” 

“Well, I found recruiters hanging around at the mall, so I think that's where I'm going to get picked up,” said Murphy. “Got a good grip on the current layout of the city. And, uhh… ran into a Born Chosen at the mall who was getting ready for a big ceremony of some sort. Seemed really excited about it, said it would be her big break. Curie told me she was important. So, we should probably be concerned about it.” 

“W-we have to save her!” blurted Mackenzie, slamming her hands on her desk. 

All heads turned towards Mackenzie. 

“Errr,” said Mackenzie, settling down in her seat uncomfortably. “I mean. Did you happen to catch her name?” 

“Yeah, it was Geldau,” said Murphy. 

Mackenzie gasped loudly and covered her mouth. “Oh gods. That's… that's my cousin.”

Chapter Text

“She's your cousin? For real? Shit, I'm so sorry,” said Murphy. 

Mackenzie shook her head in disbelief. “I've never met her personally, but I used to hear updates on her life from my parents. It's actually kinda awkward, they kept going on about how much better she was than me.” She paused. “To be clear, I'm not jealous. More than anything, it worried me how passive and easy to manipulate she was. She really drank the Kool-Aid , but you can't fault her for being born into it. I just always hoped she'd escape like I did. Maybe… Maybe there's still time.” 

Curie materialized abruptly. “She cannot be saved. She is already set on her path, and what will happen must happen.”

“No! We have to try!” cried Mackenzie. “I'm not going to just roll over and let whatever is going to happen to her happen.”

“You will try. You will fail. I will not stop you, but you must temper your expectations and come to terms with her impending fate,” said Curie gently. “I must warn you that reaching out to her will only make things harder for you.” 

Mackenzie looked away, her expression conflicted. “Well, what's going to happen to her, anyway? If she's just becoming a liaison, that's a tragedy on its own, but at least she'll be alive. Right?”

“I cannot tell you,” said Curie gently. 

“If it's any consolation, she did seem genuinely happy.... Like a woman picking out her wedding dress,” said Murphy. 

Mackenzie groaned and held her stomach. “Honestly, it makes it a little more horrifying. The idea of her looking forward to something that might kill her makes me want to vomit.” 

“Yeah. I just…” Murphy paused and sighed, putting on a dissatisfied smile. “Look, you don't want her living to be a liaison. She'd be in constant pain, and you might end up having to fight her yourself one day.” 

Mackenzie's brow furrowed in thought. “Yeah, that's a good point. Shit, this is just awful as a whole.”

Curie disappeared, leaving behind a general air of unease. 

“I have to try,” repeated Mackenzie firmly. “I know they said it would only make things harder for me if I reach out, but I was saved in the past. If I don't try to save her, I feel like I'd be disrespecting my aunts' sacrifice.”

“You have our support. I'm sorry this is happening,” said Adrian. 

Murphy nodded in agreement. “I'll help you as much as I'm able.”

“Half of us are about to be undercover,” reminded Sheena. “That said, if there's anything I can do to help, I will do it.”

“I'll check our archives for any way to contact her,” said Steve. 

“And my axe!” said Tisiphone, folding her arms. 

All heads turned in Tisiphone's direction. 

“What?” asked Tisiphone. “Oh right. And my sword. Better?” 

Mackenzie snickered. “You frickin' dork...thanks, everyone.”

There was a brief silence. 

“So, uh. We should figure out what else we're doing next, right?” asked Adrian. 

“Yes, let's!” said Tisiphone, raising a finger. “Sheena and Adrian, tomorrow you should check back in with those recruiters. If it seems safe to proceed with joining Team Void, do so.”

Sheena nodded. “I'm sure we can manage that!” 

Adrian raised a hand. “What if it doesn't seem safe to proceed?” 

Tisiphone gave Adrian a bemused look. “Then… don't? Just report back to me and Steve instead, and we'll figure out another plan.” 

“Makes sense to me!” said Adrian, nodding. 

“Murphy… Continue with whatever it is you're doing,” said Tisiphone. “If you join right away, send word to the rest of us, perhaps by Curie.”

“Okie dokie. Are texts not ok?” asked Murphy. 

“... Texts are fine,” said Tisiphone, facepalming. “Sometimes I forget about technology.”

“I'm gonna check out the gym tomorrow, then figure it out from there,” said Murphy. 

–

“So, you've decided to join us?” asked Brad, gathering paperwork on his desk. 

“I have,” said Adrian, nodding. “What next?” 

Brad grinned, then pushed a thin stack of papers across the desk to Adrian. “Perfect. I have a few more questions for you, and then I'll have you fill these out.”

“I'm all ears!” said Adrian. 

“So, you mentioned disdain for the actions of Arceus and its Church,” said Brad. “What is your previous experience interacting with the Church of Arceus? What pushes you towards opposing them?” 

“I have several friends who've been killed by the Church of Arceus. They… did recover, but not everyone does, and I know the Church has a time honored history of doing harm to innocent people and promoting hate. There are many good reasons that most Legendary and Mythical Pokémon dislike Arceus at best, or actively oppose it at worst. If someone likes Arceus, they either don't know better, or they are actively malicious,” said Adrian. 

Brad chuckled. “You won't hear me disagree with that assessment, and those are good reasons. Now, do you have any Legendary or Mythical Pokémon on your team? Excluding your fused patron, of course.”

“I have an Ogerpon, but that's it,” said Adrian. 

“I've never heard of that one,” said Brad, raising an eyebrow. “Is it well controlled? Any obedience issues?”

“She is very well-behaved and friendly. Would you like to meet her?” asked Adrian. 

Brad held his hands up. “ No, no , not just yet. Not in here. Will she submit to an examination? We do allow such Pokémon, but we must ensure she will not be a threat to our people or our cause.”

“That shouldn't be a problem, as long as she's handled respectfully,” said Adrian. 

Brad nodded firmly. “I assure you, she will be!” 

–

Adrian entered what appeared to be a particularly large medical exam room, staffed by a Nurse Joy wearing a Team Void uniform. “Okay. Shall I bring her out?”

“What species?” asked Nurse Joy, pulling on a pair of gloves. “Is your Pokémon small enough for this room, or will we need to relocate?” 

“Ogerpon. She's pretty small,” said Adrian. 

“Never heard of that species! Proceed, then. Please remain in the room, in case she becomes aggressive in your absence,” said Nurse Joy. 

Adrian sent Gillie out of her ball. 

“Hey, what's happenin’?” asked Gillie casually. 

“Nurse Joy here is going to give you a quick medical exam, and also check your temperament,” said Adrian. “Is that okay with you?” 

Gillie glanced between Adrian and Nurse Joy. “Sure, as long as you don't stick anything up my butt or anything like that.” 

“Great,” said Nurse Joy. She patted an exam table. “Mind hopping up on here?” 

Gillie obliged, jumping onto the table and taking a seat. She looked up at Nurse Joy. “Okay, I'm ready!”

Nurse Joy got to work checking Gillie's vitals, handling her carefully. 

“Your hands are shaking,” observed Gillie gently. “I'm not gonna bite you. Just don't be a jackass.”

“Er, sorry. My general experience has been that the small and cute ones are the ones to worry about. No offense,” said Nurse Joy. 

Adrian raised an eyebrow. “What species did you encounter that brought you to that conclusion?” 

“I had the misfortune to be presented with a Victini to examine,” said Nurse Joy. 

Adrian cackled. “I see. Yanno, I've met a remarkably well-behaved Victini!”

“Wow. Did you really?” asked Nurse Joy incredulously. 

“They don't follow through on most of their arson threats, and they're housebroken,” said Adrian. “So… very well-behaved for a Victini.” 

“Are we done here yet?” asked Gillie. 

Nurse Joy shook her head. “Not yet! I need to ask both of you some questions.” She pulled out a clipboard and pen. 

“By all means, let's get to it,” said Adrian. 

“Great! Adrian, I have some for you first,” said Nurse Joy. “How well does your Ogerpon take orders?” 

“She's very obedient, within reason,” said Adrian. “Won't follow any orders that are too unreasonable, but I trust her judgment on that. She will also follow orders from close allies, also within reason.”

Nurse Joy nodded approvingly, scribbling on the clipboard. “Good, good. How good is her recall, if she's doing something you don't want her to?” 

“No issues with that at all,” said Adrian. 

“Excellent,” said Nurse Joy. “Any issues with property destruction?” 

Adrian shook his head. “None whatsoever.”

“Any history of harming humans?” asked Nurse Joy. 

Adrian and Gillie exchanged glances. 

“I was protecting my trainer,” said Gillie firmly. “The guy had a gun. Otherwise, I avoid it as much as possible.” 

Nurse Joy nodded appreciatively, writing something on her clipboard. “Thank you for being honest. We're mostly concerned about random acts of violence without reasonable cause. Now, Gillie, I'll move on to you.” 

“Lay it on me!” said Gillie. 

“When you have a conflict with a human - a minor one, like if they offend you - how do you handle it?” asked Nurse Joy. 

“I confront ‘em!” said Gillie. “Like, with words though,” she added. 

Nurse Joy nodded and made a check mark. “And how do you handle it with other Pokémon?” 

“Same thing. I'm not one to start a physical fight unless it's really called for,” said Gillie.

“Good. How do you feel about living indoors, and in close quarters with others?” asked Nurse Joy. 

“I fucking love the indoors!” blurted Gillie. She paused. “Er, pardon the language. Anyway, I'm fine with living with others, too.” 

Nurse Joy chuckled. “Don't worry about the swearing. How well do you handle staying in your ball?” 

“I'll tolerate it, but I prefer to be out of it,” said Gillie. 

“That's acceptable, especially since you're small enough to navigate indoor spaces easily,” said Nurse Joy. “And, that's it. You're all clear, I'm not concerned about anything I've seen or heard.”

–

Astrit strolled into Mackenzie's office. “Good afternoon, Mackenzie! I have discovered what is referred to as fast food. There is a nice restaurant nearby that will provide you with a… Bargar? Within minutes of ordering. The grease provides a smooth experience when consuming it.” 

“Burger,” corrected Mackenzie flatly. “Sorry, not really in the mood to discuss food, but it's cool you're trying stuff.” 

“Oh. Did something happen?” asked Astrit. 

There was a brief silence. 

“I see. I apologize for prying,” said Astrit, turning away. 

“It's fine,” mumbled Mackenzie. “Found out a family member still in the Church of Arceus is in a grim situation. I can't go into detail, but it's heavy on my mind. I need to figure out what to do about it.” 

Astrit nodded somberly. “I am sorry to hear that. I wish you luck in handling that situation.”

“Are you sorry?” asked Mackenzie, her tone accusatory. “You're fresh out of that cult yourself.”

“We are allies now, and I know firsthand how cruel the Church can be to its members,” said Astrit firmly. “So, yes. I extend my sympathies to you. Now, I will go, and leave you to your contemplation.” Without another word, he exited the office. 

Mackenzie watched him leave, her expression conflicted. 

–

Murphy entered the Veilstone Gym, peering around curiously. The unusual layout he'd seen in his visit to the alternate dimension was not present, and it remained roughly the same as it had been his first time through it, save for a fresh coat of paint here and there. 

From across the room, Maylene spotted Murphy and waved. Effortlessly, she climbed and leapt over the various obstacles, making her way to the front of the room to meet him. “Murphy! It's been a while, how've you been?” 

“Not too bad!” said Murphy. “I've been doing professional Pokémon trainer stuff and also doing a lot of research, and that's going well. What’ve you been up to?”

Maylene grinned. “Much of the usual, but Candice and I finally tied the knot a few years ago! We still spend a lot of time apart because of our jobs, but we're happy.”

“Ah, that's great news! Good for you,” said Murphy. 

“What brings you here today? You live in another region, so I assume you're not just in town for a rematch!” said Maylene. 

“Well, I wouldn't rule out a rematch, but I mostly wanted to ask if you know anything about Team Void,” said Murphy. “A new villainous team in town is a little concerning.”

Maylene nodded. “Team Void bought the old Galactic hideout a few months ago, and they've been accumulating members since then. At first, they weren't too disruptive, but there's been an uptick in petty crimes, and their stated goals are… worrying. We were kinda hoping we'd have a 14-year-old vigilante come through and deal with them, but no signs of that happening yet.”

“I've been told… you're familiar with the existence of liaisons, and the liaisons of Giratina?” asked Murphy. 

“My wife is a liaison of Regice!” said Maylene. “But the liaisons of Giratina won't talk to me because I'm not a liaison myself. I'm not sure what they're doing to deal with this Team Void situation, if anything. They must be doing something, these people are basically impersonating them.”

“Oh, that's a shame! They are working on it, but it's been slow-going ,” said Murphy. 

Maylene sighed. “I wish they would reach out. I have some information about the old Galactic hideout they might find useful, among other things!”

Murphy nodded. “I'm in contact with them, and I'll pass that along!”

“Thank you, I appreciate it,” said Maylene. 

–

“If you've decided to join us, I have a couple questions and some paperwork for you!” said Bora. 

“I have, and I'm ready!” said Sheena, nodding. 

“Excellent,” said Bora. “As a liaison, you will start at a rank above our non-liaison members. If you demonstrate your competence, you may be considered for leadership roles. Is that something you think you can handle?”

Sheena raised an eyebrow. “Of course. I'm not sure what about me suggests I can't handle being a leader, but I have experience , and it won't be a problem.”

“Good, good. It’s nothing about you, it’s just something I ask liaisons,” said Bora. “Now. My other question… Do you have any Legendary or Mythical Pokémon on your team?”

“I do, but only my patron,” said Sheena. 

Bora's eyebrows went up. “You have your own patron on your team? Well. I suppose it's not that unusual, but it's not especially common.”

“Long story,” said Sheena. “I don't particularly want to get into it right now.”

“That's fair!” said Bora. “I suppose we do have another member who became the liaison of one of her own Pokémon, though I'm not privy to the specifics of her situation either. At any rate, since they're your patron, we won't need additional testing. Now, fill out your paperwork, and then we'll get you started with an orientation video!”

–

Sheena entered a small conference room, whose only current occupant was what appeared to be a young teenage girl casually slumped over a chair. 

An arsenal of facial and ear piercings adorned her head, full of spikes and other harsh shapes that seemingly tried, but failed, to counteract her youthful appearance. Her red and black emo haircut added to the edginess of her presentation, topped off with a black trench coat worn over her Team Void uniform. The exposed midriff from her crop top highlighted a belly button piercing. A generous dusting of body glitter coated every inch of exposed pale purple skin, and the fallout made her uniform sparkle.

Sheena stifled the urge to announce a superficial resemblance to someone else she knew, remembering just in time that Adrian was also joining the team.

“If you keep staring like that, your eyeballs might fall out of your head,” snarked the girl. 

“Er, sorry!” said Sheena. “I'm here for orientation. Am I in the right place?” 

The girl grinned, revealing canine teeth filed to a point. “You sure are! We're waiting for one other newbie before we get started, but you can take a seat now.”

Nodding, Sheena sat down a few seats away. “Cool piercings! I'm Sheena, by the way.”

“Thanks, Sheena!” said the girl. “Name's Renee. I know that look… I'm old enough to smoke and drink, I promise. Probably older than you are, too.” 

“I believe you! I suppose I haven't been involved with Team Void for long, but I don't imagine they'd take on someone who's not an adult,” said Sheena. “I haven't been a liaison for long either, so if I look younger than you actually are, you're probably right about being older than me.”

Renee chuckled. “Oh yeah, I'm definitely older, then. Hell, I'm sure I'm older than your parents!”

“My parents are dead,” said Sheena quietly. 

There was a brief silence. 

“Awkward, sorry,” said Renee. “Old age? Or…”

“No, and I don't want to talk about it,” said Sheena flatly. 

There was another brief silence. 

“I'm definitely older than them, then,” said Renee, shrugging. 

Adrian entered the room, Gillie in tow. Glancing at Sheena briefly, he turned his attention to Renee. He did a double take, then adjusted his own coat self-consciously. 

Gillie looked back and forth between Adrian and Renee. “Woah! Adrian, you have an evil twin! Except she's a little girl!” 

“Come on, I'm not that young!” scoffed Renee. 

Gillie narrowed her eyes. “How old are you?” 

“17,” said Renee, not missing a beat. 

“And how long have you been 17?” asked Gillie. 

Renee grinned. “A while.”

“Eyyyy!” said Gillie. 

“Eyyyyy!” replied Renee, brandishing finger guns. She turned to Adrian. “I see your mark. I think you and I will have a very interesting conversation later.”

“Sounds like a plan,” said Adrian, eyeing Renee curiously. “My name's Adrian. And you are?”

“Renee. Admin Renee, specifically,” said Renee. 

Gillie narrowed her eyes. “No way. Is that genuinely your real name?” 

Renee cackled. “I've changed my name like five times, but yeah. And yes, it's a reference. Renesmee is a stupid name though, so I went with, like, a less stupid version.”

“That's some serious dedication to the bit!” said Gillie, her tone one of admiration. 

“Thanks!” said Renee. “I’m nothing if not dedicated… to the bit, and otherwise.”

“I'm Sheena,” said Sheena. “Nice to meet you!” 

“Nice to meet you too, Sheena,” said Adrian. He shook hands with Renee, then Sheena. 

Renee put her hands on her hips. “So. You guys ready for the propagan- uhh, sorry, the orientation video?” 

Adrian nodded. “Let's see it.”

Renee got up and grabbed the remote, pointing it at the TV at the front of the room. “Bear with me, it's kinda cringe. Not that I've ever seen a training video that wasn't, but still…”

The video started, and a black and white mark of Arceus faded into view. 

“If you are watching this, you are probably familiar with this symbol: the mark of Arceus.”

The mark began to change colors, from yellow to orange to red, followed by blue with cheesy CGI sparkles. 

“Graphic design is my passion,” mumbled Gillie. 

Renee cackled. “Look, it's not like you can capture a real mark on camera.” 

“For those who have seen it, this mark may have developed some implications, ranging from indicating someone is the plaything of a tyrannical god to signifying a blind follower of the same god.”

The rest of the video detailed much of what had already been described by the recruiters. 

“Now, I'm sure you're all wondering what the hell we're planning to destroy besides the Church of Arceus,” said Renee. She paused. “I am also wondering that. But… that sort of thing comes with the territory when joining a team like this. I have no idea if any of you have other teams on your resumes, but I do, and I can tell you that they usually attempt some weird fucked up thing that you weren't adequately warned about. I'm not gonna sugarcoat it… We're gonna be seen as the bad guys.”

Gillie raised a hand. “Are we the bad guys?” 

Renee shrugged. “I think it's a lot more complicated than that. I joined because I support the stated values of Team Void… and because I'm bored, and it's fun to get caught in the middle of some bullshit without being held responsible for fixing it. The trouble with being immortal is it can be hard to keep yourself entertained, especially if your patron is not very demanding in their expectations.” 

“Is this conversation… consistent with official Team Void policies?” asked Adrian. 

Renee guffawed. “Absolutely not, but they wouldn't trust me with new members if they thought I was causing trouble by being candid. I get the impression you're all smart enough to have a low tolerance for bullshit, and I won't insult your intelligence by sanitizing or sugarcoating. Now… any other questions?” 

Gillie raised a hand. “Why do you look so young? I didn't know that-” 

“That is a personal question, which I will not be answering,” said Renee, glaring at Gillie. “Any other questions about Team Void?”

“What kind of company culture do you have here? I've never been part of a team like this, but from the outside it seems like they all have different vibes,” said Adrian. 

“Excellent question,” said Renee. “I'm a lot more… casual than the typical admin, but the others aren't hardasses either. A certain amount of professionalism is expected, though. You should be wearing your uniform at all times, except for sleeping and bathing. The reason for that will be apparent once we move on to issuing your uniforms. Anything else?”

“I can't think of anything offhand right now,” said Sheena. “If I do have questions later, though, who should I ask?” 

“Nominally, you should be able to ask anyone ranking above you about our policies and such,” said Renee. “But if it's something you don't feel comfortable bringing to just anyone, you'll find that I'm very approachable. I'm here to help. Now! Let's take a little break before we move on to the uniforms.”

Chapter Text

“So, about your mark,” said Renee. 

“What about it?” asked Adrian. 

“I'm getting to it! FYI, we're discouraged from revealing our marks willy-nilly, but this seems important,” said Renee. She touched a hand to the badge on her chest, then craned her neck. On the right side of her neck was a mark, consisting of a black orb surrounded by subtly shifting smoke. A corner of her mark was noticeably warped. 

Adrian's eyes widened. “Th-that's… that's just like mine!” 

Renee nodded firmly. “Exactly. My patron is a cloned Darkrai, just like yours. Your patron is also shiny, aren't they?”

“It is, yeah,” said Adrian. “Wait. You're not saying…”

“I am saying,” said Renee, nodding again. “Our patrons… I think there's a good chance they're clones of each other.”

Gillie gasped. “So you're not his evil twin… You're his evil clone!”

“Well, yes, but actually no, but technically yes,” said Renee, wiggling her hand vaguely. 

“Damn, that's crazy! Small world, I guess,” said Adrian, scratching his head. He paused. “Wait… my patron is actually pretty young. How old are you?”

Renee chuckled. “That is a conversation for another time.” 

“But our cloned patrons are a conversation for now?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

“Not really, not in any detail. Just thought it was worth pointing out,” said Renee, shrugging. “Now! Let's go get you and Sheena some uniforms.” 

–

Murphy stepped out of the candy store across the hall from a pair of Team Void members. He moved out of the line of sight of the store employees, then glanced furtively from side to side, checking that none had followed him out. Satisfied, he pulled a lollipop out of his coat and shoved it into his mouth, then started to walk down the hall. 

A tall, husky man in a Team Void uniform stepped away from the wall he was leaning on to intercept Murphy. “Hey, kid. You got a minute?” 

Murphy pulled the lollipop out of his mouth. “Sure. What's up, slightly menacing stranger?” 

The man chuckled. “A little spunky, huh? Good. I'm a member of Team Void, you've probably heard of us. How old are you?”

“I'm 19,” lied Murphy. “Why do you ask?”

“Perfect, perfect,” said the man, rubbing his hands together. “Team Void is an up-and-coming organization in the area, if you haven't heard, and we're looking to build our ranks. This would be a great opportunity for you to gain steady employment while doing work you'd enjoy.” 

Murphy scratched his head. “Are you calling me an unemployed criminal? You're not exactly wrong, but hey!” 

“Care to learn more?” asked the man, ignoring Murphy's remark. 

“You know what… Sure,” said Murphy. 

–

After giving Adrian and Sheena a good look up and down, Renee pulled a couple of uniforms out of a cabinet and handed them over. “Here, these should fit. I make pretty good guesses, but let me know if I was wrong.” 

Adrian examined his uniform. “Is the badge a separate thing?” 

“Yeah, gimme a moment and I'll grab 'em for ya,” said Renee. She pulled out a key, then used it to open a file cabinet. Grabbing a couple of badges, she handed one to Sheena, then the other to Adrian. “You may have guessed by now that these are important. Any speculation on what they do?” 

Adrian examined the badge thoughtfully. “Well, based on you touching it when you showed me your mark, I'm guessing it hides marks?” 

“Sure does!” said Renee. “By default, they're on all the time, but if you hold down the button on the side it will turn off until you let go. Again, we're generally supposed to keep our marks hidden, even from each other, but you can show your mark briefly. You should have your badge on your person at all times, including while you sleep, assuming you do sleep. I'll grab you some pajamas, too.” 

“Any particular reason it's discouraged to show your mark to other members?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. “It seems a little odd, given that my mark is what caught their attention.”

Renee shrugged. “Allegedly, it's for security reasons. Like, if someone got captured, they wouldn't be able to point out who everyone else's patrons are.”

“Allegedly? You don't think it's true?” asked Sheena. 

“I have my suspicions,” said Renee. “I've probably said too much, but I don't think you're stupid enough to take the official answer at face value.” 

“I admire your dedication to doing whatever the hell you want,” said Gillie. 

Renee cackled. “Well, thanks!”

–

The Team Void recruiter led Murphy into a small conference room, where a handful of other young adults were already waiting. “We'll be starting the video after a few more people show up. It should cover the basics of who we are and what we're about!” 

Murphy nodded, then took a seat near the door. “I'm looking forward to it! I'm very curious.” 

On the TV screen was a nondescript DVD menu simply labeled “Team Void intro”. 

After a few more people filtered in, the recruiter dimmed the lights and pulled out a remote, pointing it at the TV. 

A famous painting of Giratina faded into view, sporting an unrealistically long body. 

“Giratina: the stuff of legends. It is said that when Arceus created Dialga and Palkia, it also created Giratina. However, it found that Giratina was too destructive to be allowed to remain in this world, and banished it to its own dimension. At least, that's how the legend goes. But is this accurate?”

A large question mark appeared on the screen. 

“We think not. No, Arceus was jealous of Giratina's power, and in its jealousy, it unfairly cast it into another dimension. And thus began a great imbalance that has tainted our world for many millennia.”

The question mark and Giratina faded from the screen, making way for a photo of the night sky taken from a telescope, featuring many stars and galaxies. 

Murphy fidgeted with boredom, as the video proceeded at the pace of an old documentary about safaris. 

–

Mackenzie looked up from her laptop to see Astrit in the doorway. “Oh! Hello. Eat anything interesting lately?” 

“I took your suggestion about the macaroni and cheese, and you were right, it's much better than the frozen meals!” said Astrit. “I am currently experimenting with topping it with additional sauces. Hot sauce and ketchup were both very good. Chocolate syrup was… interesting, but not something I'd repeat.” 

Mackenzie covered her mouth, and stifled a gag. “Uh! That's great, sounds like you're having a good time.”

“I am!” said Astrit. He paused. “That is… not why I am here, though. I brought something for you.” He walked over to Mackenzie's desk and gently set a key card in front of her. 

“What's this?” asked Mackenzie, picking up the card. 

Astrit grinned. “It's a key card for the Church of Arceus facility your cousin is associated with. One was recovered from a dispatched member, and we have made copies to distribute to a select few liaisons. I got permission to give you one, and wanted to deliver it in person.”

Mackenzie looked up at Astrit, wide-eyed. She looked down at the card, and closed her fingers over it. She lowered her voice, almost to a whisper. “Thank you.”

Astrit nodded, then left the office without another word. 

–

“You're joining, then?” asked the recruiter. “By the way, my name's Justice. I don't think I caught yours?” 

“Yep! It's Raspberry Cocoa. Nice to meet you, Justice,” said Murphy. 

Justice rubbed his chin. “That a two part first name, or first and last?” 

“First and last,” said Murphy. “I mostly go by Razz, though.”

“Any particular reason you say your full name when somebody asks?” asked Justice. 

Murphy shrugged. “If you knew a guy named Raspberry, then found out later his last name was Cocoa, you'd give him so much grief. If I lean into it full-on, it hits like a truck and people keep their mouths shut. An ice-cream truck, but a truck all the same.”

“Fair point,” said Justice, nodding. “Now, I have some questions for you, and then you'll fill out some paperwork.”

“Oh heck yeah, paperwork, my favorite,” said Murphy sarcastically. “Let's hear those questions.”

“Do you have any previous affiliation with the Church of Arceus? Any at all?” asked Justice. 

Murphy shrugged. “I mean, I grew up in Sinnoh, so I got dragged to services a few times. Haven't gone since becoming an adult, though.”

Justice nodded knowingly. “Not too concerning, then. Any Legendary or Mythical Pokémon on your team?” 

“Do Ultra Beasts count?” asked Murphy, raising an eyebrow. 

“Technically no, but for all intents and purposes we appreciate you telling us,” said Justice. “What species? Is it well socialized and obedient?” 

Murphy nodded. “Buzzwole, and she's pretty docile and sociable. Nothing to worry about!”

“Good to hear,” said Justice. “Will she allow an exam?” 

“Of course,” said Murphy. 

–

Steve entered Mackenzie's office. “Mackenzie, I have some information about your cousin. First, I've found her address for you.” He handed a piece of paper to her. 

Mackenzie examined the paper, then nodded appreciatively. “Thank you. Anything else?” 

“I also found out that she's a member of a sect heavily focused on the idea of the world ending. They believe that it's coming soon, and Arceus will come and collect its most devout followers before destroying everything else,” said Steve. 

“Oh yeah, I knew that,” said Mackenzie, shrugging. She paused, and grimaced. “I… probably should have mentioned that when it first came up. That's pretty important!”

“You were distracted, I won't hold it against you,” said Steve gently. “How are you holding up?”

Mackenzie shrugged half-heartedly. “Not great, but I'm coping and planning.” She paused. “Are… you okay?”

“Huh? Yeah, I'm fine. Why do you ask?” asked Steve, blinking in confusion. 

“You've been a little quiet in group conversations,” said Mackenzie. “I figured it wouldn't hurt to ask!”

Steve opened his mouth, closed it, and looked away. “I dunno, it's just… awkward. I feel useless.”

“I know full well that you're hard at work on this, Steve. You're not useless,” said Mackenzie. 

Steve shrugged. “I mean, I just…” He sighed. “I'm trying to settle into my new role as a more active liaison of Giratina, and it's weird. I spent a very long time just fucking around and doing whatever, my only job as a liaison was to experience life. But now… I need to find my niche and figure out how I'm going to approach regular confrontation. Tisiphone knows what she's doing, but I'm just some guy now.”

“Comparing yourself to Tisiphone is setting yourself up for disappointment,” said Mackenzie flatly. “She's our friend , and we've goofed off together on the regular, so it's easy to forget that she's a big deal amongst liaisons. Calling on her is pulling out the big guns. Killing people is also a big part of how she operates, so her approach to solving problems is not going to work for someone who doesn't kill thousands of people.” 

“I suppose you're right,” said Steve thoughtfully. “This is my first assignment as a more active liaison, so it makes sense that I'd be floundering a bit. I'll try to keep that in mind, and I'll focus on getting advice from people who've been doing this for longer.” 

“There. That's the spirit! You go do that,” said Mackenzie firmly. She examined the paper again. “I'm gonna finish what I'm working on, and then pay my cousin a little visit.”

–

Entering the exam room, Murphy pulled out his Buzzwole's ball. “You ready?” 

“I suppose so,” said Nurse Joy, eyeing the Beast Ball apprehensively. “I've never seen an Ultra Beast in person. Is it friendly?” 

“She's a real sweetie, don't worry,” reassured Murphy. “Come on out, Carnelian!” 

The hulking insectoid burst from the ball and let out an unearthly buzzing screech. She flexed her glowing arms exaggeratedly, then peered down at Nurse Joy. 

Nurse Joy let out a yelp and backed into the exam table. 

Carnelian looked back and forth between Nurse Joy and Murphy. “Oh no. I am smell bad?” Her voice was deep and resonating. 

“No, Nelly, she's just shy,” said Murphy. “She's going to give you a medical exam, okay?” 

“Okay!” said Carnelian. “She need see my-?” She finished the sentence with a high-pitched shriek. 

Murphy shook his head. “I think we established that nothing native to this planet has one of those, so probably not. I don't think your radiation resistance is relevant, anyway.”

“Oh! Make sense,” said Carnelian. She turned to Nurse Joy. “Human! You may begin examine.”

“Uhh! Uhhhh,” stammered Nurse Joy. Shakily, she put on her stethoscope and pressed the chest piece to Carnelian's forearm. Her face twisted in horror, and she pulled away, visibly shaken. 

Murphy raised an eyebrow. “Everything okay?” 

“Sh-she is in perfect health,” stuttered Nurse Joy. “Mind if I… ask you some questions, Carnelian?” 

“Yes, ask question,” said Carnelian. 

“Do you - er. How well do you - um. If you have to -” mumbled Nurse Joy, struggling to form a sentence. 

“I am not understand,” said Carnelian, her antennae twitching in confusion. 

Murphy held up a hand. “She wants to know if you are friendly and safe with humans and do what I ask you to.”

“Oh! Yes, I am fight only enemy,” said Carnelian, perking up. “I am listen Murphy. Good trainer man. I am have many human friend.” 

“Great!” gasped Nurse Joy. “I think we're done here. Can you… put her away?”

Murphy called Carnelian back into her ball. He turned to Nurse Joy. “Hey. Are you okay, Sharyl?”

“Sorry, Murphy,” said Sharyl, rubbing her temples. “I've never seen anything like that. Where did you even find her?” 

Murphy shrugged. “Long story. She's really sweet, actually, but I understand being a little anxious about an 8-foot -tall buff mosquito alien. How are the kids?” 

“They've moved out, and they're doing well! And I'm technically retired now, but I'm keeping myself occupied with nonsense like this. Keeps me on my toes!” said Sharyl. “Now, I know I have no business judging since I'm here, but why are you here? I always thought you were a good kid.”

“I joined for shits and giggles,” said Murphy firmly. 

“Well, try not to get yourself in too much trouble! This is a pretty easy position, most of my time is just spent basically being a school nurse,” said Sharyl. She eyed the Beast Ball containing Carnelian. “Examining powerful Pokémon is a little more excitement than I was hoping for, but sometimes it's fun!”

“Any fun ones recently?” asked Murphy. 

Sharyl's expression brightened. “Ooh, I had the most adorable Ogerpon! I'd never heard of that Pokémon before, but she was so cute! She looked just like a doll, and she was so well-behaved ! I wanted to pinch her little cheeks, but I know better than to do something like that to a Legendary Pokémon.”

Murphy chuckled. “Yeah, not advisable. I'm glad you're having fun! Say hi to Dan for me.” He paused. “Oh, uh, right. If we see each other again, please use the name and age on that paperwork. I'm really just here to see what's going on, not trying to end up on some list where I'm not allowed to buy spray paint.”

–

Mackenzie consulted the piece of paper again, confirming she was in front of the correct apartment, and stuffed it back in her pocket. She took a deep breath, exhaled slowly, and reached for the door. Before getting close enough to knock, she pulled away again and took a few more deep breaths. Feeling a brief burst of confidence, she knocked on the door firmly. 

A few seconds passed, and a young strawberry blonde woman answered the door. She looked Mackenzie up and down. “Um. Can I help you? If you're selling something, I'm not interested.”

“Are you Geldau?” asked Mackenzie, struggling to maintain eye contact. 

“I am. Who are you?” asked Geldau cautiously. 

“Mackenzie. I'm your cousin,” said Mackenzie. 

Geldau frowned. “I don't have a cousin named Mackenzie. You must have the wrong Geldau.” She started to close the door. 

“Wait! I used to go by Muthia,” said Mackenzie. 

Geldau's eyes widened, and she pointed at Mackenzie. “Ohhhh! You're the one who ran away to become a prostitute!” 

Mackenzie guffawed, then blinked incredulously. “Excuse me, I'm the one who what? That's news to me!” 

“Oh sorry, I shouldn't be airing your business like that out in the open,” said Geldau. “Please, come in!”

Mackenzie followed Geldau into the apartment. It was tastefully decorated in bright colors, with an assortment of paintings on the walls that all seemed to be made by the same artist. Most depicted flowers or scenes in nature. 

Mackenzie eyed the paintings. “These are really nice. Who made them?” 

“I did! Thank you!” said Geldau brightly. She led Mackenzie to a plush green sofa, and the two of them sat down. 

“So, what are my parents saying I did again?” asked Mackenzie.

“I was told that you got rebellious and left for Johto to have sex with strangers for money,” said Geldau. “Are you saying that's not true?”

Mackenzie rolled her eyes. “Definitely not. I was 11 years old, and I was rescued.” 

Geldau's brow furrowed in confusion. “Rescued from what?” 

“My parents were planning on draining all of my energy and throwing me away like a used battery,” said Mackenzie bitterly. “My mother's sister and her wife saved me.” 

“I'm not sure if I believe that. I know your parents, and they've always been kind to me,” said Geldau. “Are you sure your aunts didn't just kidnap you to brainwash you into becoming a homosexual? I hear that's how they reproduce.” 

There was a brief silence as Mackenzie struggled to find a response to the bizarre accusation. She rubbed her temples, shook her head, and tucked her hair behind her ear. “That's - no. That's not how any of that works. Besides… My parents killed them.”

“I find it hard to believe that your parents would do that!” said Geldau, shaking her head incredulously. “But if they did, I'm sure they would have done it to save you from being transformed into a homosexual.”

“Then why didn't they take me back home after that?” asked Mackenzie sharply. “They ditched me in Johto and told people I was dead. Even after I was proven alive, they didn't want me back. My grandparents had to come get me, it was a whole thing.” 

Geldau turned her gaze to the floor. “Wow. This is a lot to take in, and I'm not sure what to believe. I suppose I don't know them all that well, but I never thought they'd be capable of what you're claiming.”

“I was a Born Chosen, just like you. The Church uses you to power rituals, don't they?” asked Mackenzie. 

“It is an honor to assist in rituals!” huffed Geldau, glaring at Mackenzie. “They appreciate my contribution, too.” 

Mackenzie glanced at Geldau's ankle. “Surely you've noticed that your mark is hurting you. That looks really painful.” 

Geldau used her opposite foot to cover her mark. “Th-that's normal. I'm becoming a liaison soon anyway, and that will go away.”

“Oh yeah? When?” asked Mackenzie, trying hard not to sound desperate for the information. 

“I'm not sure yet. There are still some preparations that need to be made, and they haven't given me a solid timeline, but probably within a month,” said Geldau, shrugging. 

Mackenzie frowned. “There isn't usually that much preparation involved.”

“Well, they're doing something extra special for it!” said Geldau brightly. 

Mackenzie narrowed her eyes. “Extra special in what way?” 

Geldau opened her mouth, closed it, and looked away. “I… can't tell you. I really shouldn't even have told you as much as I did. Ugh, I'm just so excited though!” 

“Sorry, didn't mean to pry,” lied Mackenzie. 

“It's fine,” said Geldau, shrugging. “Mind if I ask why you're here?” 

“In Veilstone, or visiting you?” asked Mackenzie, raising an eyebrow. 

“Hmm. How about both?” asked Geldau. 

Mackenzie nodded. “Well, I’m here in Veilstone on some business. If my parents cared to ask, I’m a contract software engineer. My work involves me coming to other companies to help make sure programs we create work as intended. In this case, they offered me a bonus to come in and help implement new software and train them to use it. And for why I’m visiting you, I heard about you before I cut contact with my parents, and I wanted to check in and make sure you were okay.”

“Things have been a little rough lately, but they're about to get much better!” said Geldau. “I'm holding out for that. Things are going to be okay!”

Mackenzie looked away, stifling a sob.

“Hey, I need to settle down and make dinner, but it's been cool meeting you! You're a lot nicer than your parents made you sound,” said Geldau. “How about we swap numbers, and maybe we can hang out tomorrow afternoon and catch up a bit more?” 

“Sure, I'd like that,” said Mackenzie. 

–

Murphy settled into his seat for another training video, this time about uniforms. 

An image of a Team Void uniform appeared on the screen. 

“Welcome to: Your Uniform and You! You are expected to wear your full uniform at all times when on duty. However, one part of your uniform is more important than any other.”

A circle appeared around the badge in the middle of the chest, then transitioned to an image of a poorly rendered 3D model of the badge. The model began to rotate. 

“Your badge must be worn at all times, including while sleeping, except for during showers. This badge serves both as a digital key and as proof of membership in Team Void.”

A shot of a Team Void member in uniform from the neck down appeared. They placed their hand over their badge, while standing up straight. 

“When greeting another Team Void member, you should place your right hand on your badge, hold it there for two seconds, and then return it to your side. Failure to perform this gesture will be viewed with suspicion, and you may be subject to disciplinary action or interrogation.”

–

Adrian stepped out of the changing room, clad in his new uniform. He stretched, looking around aimlessly. 

Renee appeared at the end of the hallway, and beckoned Adrian over. “C'mere! You're going on your first mission.”

“Oh yeah? What is it?” asked Adrian, walking over. 

“We're traveling to Eterna Forest to find an item,” said Renee. “Everyone else is ready to go, so hurry up and follow me.” 

–

“And this is your room,” said Bora, gesturing to an open door. “Our non-liaison members sleep in communal barracks, but liaisons have private rooms so they can perform any liaison-specific tasks without being observed. I don't know if your patron requires any rituals or other such things as part of your contract, but you can safely do them here if needed. It's a small room, but it is yours alone.”

“Thank you, Bora!” said Sheena, peering through the doorway. 

The interior was much like a small dorm room, featuring a bed, a desk, and a chair. 

“Bathrooms are at the end of the hall,” said Bora. “You can relax and get settled in for a bit. In about an hour, we'll come get you for more training.”

“Sounds good, thank you,” said Sheena. 

Bora nodded. “Now, one more thing before I go…” She put her hand to her badge, and a mark appeared on the left side of her face, an icy mandible reaching from her chin to just above her ear. 

“Mark of Kyurem,” explained Stellaluna. 

“Oh! Thanks for showing me,” said Sheena. 

“It's only fair, since I've seen yours,” said Bora. “I'll see you later.”

Chapter Text

As the video ended, Justice stepped to the front of the room. “All right, everyone! Next, you will each be presented to our leader, Vaida. She will assign you your powers.”

There were general murmurs of surprise and confusion throughout the room. 

“Yes. You will need those powers, for what we will be up against. The procedure is brief, non-invasive, and fully reversible. You will receive enhanced strength, stamina, and defense, and you will be given one Pokémon move and one special ability as chosen by Vaida herself,” said Justice.

Another recruit raised his hand. “Will it hurt?” 

“Only briefly. This was in your contracts, which I trust you read carefully before signing,” added Justice. 

“Curie, is it really a good idea to go along with this?” asked Murphy silently. 

“Yes. Your new power is what will make this safe for you,” responded Curie. 

–

Shaded by the overgrown forest, the dilapidated Old Chateau had not been spared the effects of the passage of time. Though Adrian could not see much of the interior from where he stood, the broken windows showed glimpses of rot that had progressed significantly since his last visit. 

“This mansion used to be beautiful,” said Renee wistfully, leaning back against the building. “It was abandoned a long time ago, though. If the owners hadn't just left it to rot, it would still be beautiful, but at this point it's beyond saving. Such a shame.” 

“That's a bummer, yeah,” said Adrian. He craned his neck to peer through a window. “There's no way it's safe to walk around in there. Should we really be here?”

Renee chuckled. “Should we really be anywhere? Anyway, the people deep enough in there to search for the item are all liaisons who can handle falling through the floor or something without taking too much damage.”

“That's good to know, at least!” said Adrian. “Have we been told what they're looking for?” 

“Nope! Top secret. It's apparently very important to our plans, though,” said Renee. 

“What a bizarre place to look for something important,” said Adrian. “I guess if it's some sort of artifact, though, this wouldn't be a weird place to find it. There were all sorts of weird antiques in there last time I visited, though I bet a lot of them have been scavenged already.”

Renee nodded. “Most things worth taking have been taken, but allegedly this item remains.” She paused. “So, where did you get your patron? Did you buy it?” 

“Technically, but it's a long story,” said Adrian. He cocked his head to the side. “Did you drag me along on this mission just to ask me that?”

“No, I also have several other moderately invasive questions to ask you,” said Renee, her expression deadpan.

Adrian narrowed his eyes. “Keep it above the belt.”

“Of course! I'm not a pervert,” huffed Renee in mock offense. “How dare you imply that I, a total stranger with unknown motives, would include such things in my invasive questions!” She paused, then grinned guiltily. “On an unrelated note, I suddenly have several fewer questions. So! Tell me that long story about your patron.” 

“Fine. Originally, when I was a teen, I purchased it from some shady Pokémon dealer. We had a bit of a falling out, then reconnected briefly years later, and then it went off to explore the world on its own. Over a decade after that, I was looking for a patron, and it reappeared and offered to take me on as a fused liaison, which I accepted. And that's pretty much it,” said Adrian. 

Renee rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Hmmm. Is reconnected briefly a euphemism for hooking up?” 

Adrian blushed. “I said keep it above the belt, please and thank you.”

“Right, sorry,” said Renee, putting her hands up in defeat. 

“How about you? How'd you find your patron?” asked Adrian. 

“Well, first of all, Fluffy isn't my first patron,” said Renee. 

“Fluffy?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

“My patron's nickname, which I gave her when she was just on my team. Got a problem with that?” asked Renee. 

“Not at all,” said Adrian, shrugging. “Please continue.” 

Renee nodded. “So, yeah. My first patron was Jirachi. I'm not going into the circumstances of that decision today, but I had my reasons. Anyway, I spent several decades as their patron, but left and took a break from being a liaison to physically age up a little bit. When I got tired of being a normal human again, I purchased Fluffy from probably the same dealer as yours. After some time having her on the team, I offered to become her fused liaison, and she accepted. I've only been her liaison for about nine years now, but I'll be turning 100 this fall!” 

“You just… went and bought a new patron?” asked Adrian, scratching his head. “I'm not sure how I feel about that.”

“You bought yours, too!” observed Renee, pointing at Adrian with one hand and resting the other on her hip. 

“I did, but I didn't buy it specifically with the intent of becoming its liaison!” said Adrian. “I just wanted it on my team, I didn't even know what a liaison was until very recently.”

“Well, I don't see the difference,” said Renee. 

“Let's agree to disagree, then,” said Adrian flatly. 

A grunt emerged from the entrance of the building and approached the two liaisons. He greeted them with a hand over his badge, and an unfamiliar mark glowed on his hand, a ribbon inside a circle. “Admin Renee! Phase one is complete, and we are moving on to phase two as planned.”

“Excellent, thanks for the update,” said Renee, nodding appreciatively. 

“I do not recognize that mark,” said Darkrai internally. “It's strange. I suppose we'll need to investigate further.”

The grunt left, returning to the building. 

Adrian turned back to Renee. “What's phase two?” 

“That's for me to know and you to find out,” said Renee. “But phase three is leaving as quickly as possible.”

–

After taking a quick glance at his watch, Murphy assessed the line in front of him leading to Leader Vaida's office. It was down to two people ahead of him, and one of them stepped into the office. 

“Are you totally sure I should be doing this, Curie? This seems really sus,” said Murphy silently. 

“Again, this is literally why I gave you that power,” replied Curie. “You'll need to use another one of your powers, too, but I'm sure you'll figure out which one on your own.”

As he reached the front of the line, Murphy adjusted his uniform before opening the door and stepping through it. 

The office still sported the dark gray floor and gray and red walls it had been graced with in its previous life in the Team Galactic headquarters. The desk was slate gray and slightly worn. However, the rest of the decor was in pastel colors. Posters of anime girls and cute Pokémon were plastered on the walls. A shelf along the back wall sported an assortment of knick-knacks and a large cookie jar with a padlock on it. Next to the desk sat a pink plastic wastebasket . The desk itself was topped with a lacy pink runner, and it was littered with cheap office supplies in pink and blue, with a pink plastic lamp sitting to one side.

A silver-haired woman sat in a pink chair at the desk. She looked to be in her early 40s, and wore a crop top and skirt similar to the standard uniform, except in pastel colors, primarily pink. Her boots were also pink, and her socks were pastel blue. Draped over this ensemble was a loose-fitting gray coat with gold stripes and other embellishments, superficially resembling Giratina’s upper body. The different color schemes clashed just enough to look like the coat and the rest of her uniform were from different sets, not unlike the mismatch of room and decor. She looked up at Murphy and smiled gently. “So, new recruit. May I have your name?” 

“Raspberry Cocoa,” said Murphy. 

The woman grinned, offering a peek at feline dentition. “What a delightful name. I am Vaida, the leader of Team Void, and I would like to welcome you to the team.”

“Thank you, Leader Vaida!” said Murphy. He offered her a rare candy. “Here. I don't know if you like these, but I brought you a gift.”

Vaida's grin widened, and she snatched the candy from Murphy's hand eagerly. Seemingly catching her brief lapse of professionalism, she cleared her throat awkwardly. “Thank you! That's very sweet of you, Raspberry. I think you'll go far here. Now… Present your right hand, palm down, and I will give you your new powers.”

Murphy paused briefly, then offered his right hand to Vaida. “Okay, I'm ready!” 

“Excellent,” said Vaida. She closed both of her hands over Murphy's. 

Murphy felt a sharp burning sensation that quickly faded, and for a few seconds after felt like a bad sunburn before disappearing entirely. “Huh! Not as bad as I feared.”

“I was extra gentle with you,” said Vaida. “Raspberry, please touch your right hand to your badge, as you've been shown to do in greeting.”

Murphy obeyed, and the mark Vaida placed became visible, a ribbon inside a circle. It faded again as he pulled his hand away.

“Good, good,” said Vaida. She grinned. “I gave you some good ones. Good luck, I'm sure you'll be a great asset to us. You may exit through the back door here.”

Stepping through the offered door and closing it behind him, Murphy examined his hand. “Huh! It worked. This is a lot of information all at once, though!”

“I'll go over it with you this time, then,” said Curie. “This is the mark of Mew. Effects: Mark origin is obfuscated to onlookers. You are now being tracked by Mew.”

“Oh, great,” said Murphy, rolling his eyes. 

“Tch! I'm not done yet!” said Curie. “All stats have increased to be comparable to a low to mid level Pokémon. You are now Psychic type. You have learned the move Psychic. You have gained the ability to fly via telekinesis. Telekinesis cannot be used for any other purpose.”

Murphy's eyes widened. 

“I will remind you that you are able to remove this mark at will at any time, along with its effects, but you will not be able to get it back unless you are marked again,” said Curie. 

“Right! I'll keep that in mind,” said Murphy. 

–

A shiny Eevee came barreling through the underbrush and positioned themself across from the two grunts guarding the entrance to Old Chateau. “Fiends! You thought you could get away with whatever dastardly thing you're doing, but you were naïve to think you'd go unopposed!” 

The grunts exchanged confused looks, then peered back down at the one-foot-tall ball of fluff. 

“And what exactly are we doing?” asked the grunt on the left, raising an eyebrow. 

“You know, I'm not actually sure,” said the grunt on the right, rubbing his chin. 

The grunt on the left elbowed the grunt on the right in the ribs. “Shut up, I was asking the Eevee!” 

“I… I don't know!” admitted the Eevee. “But you're the bad guys, so obviously it must be bad! Tch. I'm the only one who should be up to shenanigans here! Hijinks, even. Anyway, you look weak, and I will take pleasure in cutting you down!”

A young girl ran up and leaned over to catch her breath. Her loose shirt was rumpled and visibly moist with sweat, and had come partially untucked from her slim fit pants. She stood up straight and adjusted her hijab, which had also become slightly loose during her run. Turning her attention to the grunts, she took a nervous but defiant stance. 

“Oh, a trainer!” said the grunt on the left. “Well, we can't let a meddling kid like you mess with our plans!” She stepped forward and sent out her Zubat. 

The little girl took a fighting stance, and pointed in the direction of the attacking Zubat. 

Nodding, the Eevee rushed forward to tackle the Zubat. 

A short distance away, Adrian and Renee watched the battle unfold. 

“Should… we do something?” asked Adrian. 

Renee shook her head. “Nah. Those grunts will keep her occupied for long enough for us to finish what we're doing. Besides, it wouldn't be fair for us to jump in and demolish her team. Let kids have their little victories.”

The first grunt lost her battle, and stepped back to let the second one challenge the child. 

“Are they going easy on her, or just bad?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

“Just bad,” said Renee, the corner of her mouth slightly upturned. “These particular grunts aren't really trainers, they've just been given one or two Pokémon each in case of a scenario like this. We brought some of our weakest ones to this particular mission.”

Just as the second grunt was defeated, another emerged from the building and ran over to Renee. “Phase two has been completed! Phase three is beginning…” He checked his watch. “... Now. Let's get out of here!”

“All right, we've got four minutes to get the hell out of dodge before this place explodes,” said Renee. 

“Before it what?” asked Adrian, wide-eyed.

“Explodes. Like, boom, yanno?” said Renee helpfully. 

Evidently not paying attention to this exchange, the Eevee dove through the doorway, weaving amongst the legs of the crowd emerging from the building. 

“Wait!” cried the little girl, running after her Eevee. The crowd parted to let her through, unconcerned. 

“Hold on, we can't just let that kid get killed!” said Adrian. 

“I am not going in there,” said Renee firmly. She took off into the woods, at a superhuman speed. 

Adrian called Gillie out of her ball. “Gillie! That building is about to explode. Go get that kid and her Eevee and bring them to safety!” 

Gillie nodded and pulled out a mask shaped like a smiling cloud, clicking it into place. Her cape markings turned light blue, and a brief gust of air emerged from under it. She took off running into the building.

Chapter Text

Gillie ran swiftly through the decrepit mansion, avoiding obstacles with ease. Not too far into the building, she found her goal. 

The little girl who had run in was sprawled across the floor near an upturned board, fully conscious but gripping her ankle. 

Muttering to themself, the Eevee paced back and forth in distress nearby. 

“Okay, I'm here to save you! This place is about to blow up!” said Gillie. “Do not resist!” Without waiting for a response, she extended vines from her body, restraining both trainer and Pokémon and lifting them into the air. She faced the closest window, pulled out her cudgel, smashed a huge hole in the wall, and leapt out. 

Her passengers screamed in fear as they hurtled through the air behind their captor. 

Mid-fall , Gillie struck a pose and shot directly up into the air, still carrying her captives in her vines. Now above the canopy, she turned towards Eterna City. “Are you two okay?” 

The girl just whimpered and clutched Gillie's vines tighter. 

“Ask me that question again when we're on the ground,” said the Eevee flatly, digging their claws deeper into the vines. 

“Oh right, sorry!” said Gillie. “Sorry if things are a little bumpy, by the way! Bear with me, I'm new to flying.”

The Eevee groaned in distress. “Not to be ungrateful or anything, but that's not very comforting. Let's save the chit-chat for after we land.”

The sound of an explosion echoed through the forest, startling all three of them. 

“You know what, that's a good idea,” said Gillie. 

–

Now a safe distance away from the remains of Old Chateau, Adrian coaxed his Rotom phone out of his pocket. “Rotom, call the emergency line. I need to let them know about the explosion, we can't let it turn into a forest fire!”

“Bzzt! I contacted emergency services myself shortly after the blast,” said Rotom. “Bzzt! There is a firefighting team and a bomb squad en route now.”

“You did it without asking first? Just went and called on your own? I don't want to blow my cover,” said Adrian uneasily. 

Rotom squinted at Adrian. “Bzzt! I did. Mitigating the potential ecological disaster takes priority over maintaining your cover, Adrian. Besides, I did it anonymously and did not provide any speculation on the cause.” It paused. “Bzzt! Lest you be tempted to consider this technology gone awry, I must remind you that while this phone is a computer, I am not, and this decision was made in sound mind and good faith.”

Adrian nodded. “Good thinking. Sorry, knee-jerk reaction. I do trust your judgment.”

“Bzzt! Thank you, Adrian. The amount of autonomy you have allowed me has not gone unappreciated, and I am doing my best to help without overreaching,” said Rotom. 

“I appreciate it, genuinely,” said Adrian. “You've been a huge help with this mission.”

“Bzzt! My pleasure. Shall I send an update to Mackenzie, Steve, and Tisiphone?” asked Rotom. “On a side note, it's fascinating how Team Void has such a security blind spot for cell phones. Do you think they're accounting for it somehow? They haven't even asked for any sort of access to me. You've got an NDA with them in your contract, but I haven't signed anything. I intend to exploit any and all access I have unless and until they stop me somehow.”

Adrian nodded. “Please do. And keep it up, we need to get as much information as possible to sort out what's going on.” 

Rotom turned to look back into the forest. “Bzzt! You know, although Old Chateau was no longer a safe place for humans, it was a very important habitat for Ghost Pokémon. There will be some very upset ghosts wandering Eterna Forest until they find new homes, including a small population of Rotom.”

“Oh shit, I hadn't even thought about that,” said Adrian, scratching his head. “What can we do about it?” 

“Bzzt! I am downloading plans for a purpose-built structure for hosting Ghost types. It has not been tested on a large scale, but someone invented a shelter meant to be erected in or near graveyards to encourage ghosts to remain close-by rather than wandering into inhabited areas,” said Rotom. “Bzzt! Once all of this blows over, we can get them to someone with authority to make it happen.” 

Adrian nodded. “Sounds good. Great job, Rotom!”

–

Gillie landed just outside Eterna City. She set down the girl and her Eevee gently, and retracted her vines. 

“Finally!” cried the Eevee, splooting in the grass. 

“C'mon. We were only in the air for like five minutes,” said Gillie, rolling her eyes. 

Ignoring Gillie's remark, the Eevee rose to their feet. “Anyway! Great teamwork, everyone. We made it safely out, with minimal injuries! I'll call that a definite win.”

“What teamwork?” asked Gillie, raising an eyebrow. “I saved both of you! And your trainer hurt her ankle, to boot.” 

“I kept an eye on her until you showed up!” huffed the Eevee. “It was a very important job.”

“She only went into the exploding building in the first place because you ran in first!” retorted Gillie.

The Eevee rolled their eyes. “Tch! Why dwell on the past like that? What matters is what came after.”

“You're an obnoxious little creature, you know that?” remarked Gillie, narrowing her eyes. 

“I've been called worse,” said the Eevee, grinning deviously. 

Gillie turned her attention to the human child. “Hey, kid! You okay?” 

The girl blinked, then put the side of her hand in her mouth and bit down on it nervously. 

Gillie turned back to the Eevee. “Does… she talk?”

“Incessantly, once she's comfortable with you,” said the Eevee, their tone affectionate. “She's shy, though.” They paused. “Oh! Where are my manners? My name is Zhal, and this is my trainer, Kaur.”

Kaur waved awkwardly, then put her hand back into her mouth. 

“Where are your manners indeed,” said Gillie flatly, glaring at Zhal. She shrugged. “Well! Nice to meet you, I guess. I'm Gillie!”

“Sounds like a nickname, so you must have a trainer,” said Zhal. 

“It is, and I do,” said Gillie proudly. “He sent me in to rescue you.” 

Zhal looked around curiously. “Where is he now? Pokémon usually don't stray far from their trainers.” 

“Iunno, but I'll find him,” said Gillie, shrugging. She removed her mask and tucked it under her cape. 

Zhal watched in fascination as the relatively large mask disappeared without making an impression on the surface of Gillie's cape. “Hey. How did you do that?” 

“My trainer calls it hammerspace!” said Gillie. “It's like a little pocket dimension or something. I've always had it.” 

“Damn, I want one!” said Zhal. They crouched down to look under Gillie's cape. 

“Hey, no peeking!” objected Gillie, backing away. 

“What's up with the mask, anyway?” asked Zhal. “Obviously it does something, or you wouldn't wear it like that. Is it magic?”

Gillie scowled. “Why all the questions?” 

“Since when is curiosity a crime?” asked Zhal, grinning. 

Ignoring Zhal's remark, Gillie walked over to Kaur and examined her ankle. “Hmmm. Well, I'm no doctor, but I'm pretty sure your ankle isn't supposed to be swollen like that. We'll get you to a Pokémon center, and they'll get you to a doctor, okay?” 

Kaur nodded, still chewing on her hand. 

Gillie gave Kaur's hands a closer look, noticing they were dotted with sores and cracked skin. “Aw, poor thing. Hey, I think I have something that will help!” She rummaged under her cape, and produced a rubber pendant shaped like a Gabite. “I bought this for my friend Lemon, but I'll get him something else. Here, put it in your mouth, you can chew on it!”

Reluctantly, Kaur accepted the pendant, examined it, and tucked it into her mouth. Her eyes lit up, and she sank her teeth into the rubber. After some experimental gnawing, she pulled it out of her mouth. “Umm. Thank… thank you,” she said quietly. 

“No problem!” said Gillie, grinning. She thought for a moment, searched under her cloak again, and pulled out a small tub of lotion. “Okay! I have an extra thing of this I can give you, too. It's medicated lotion made for shiny Pokémon, but it works for regular damaged skin too.”

“Wait, they make lotion for shiny Pokémon?” asked Zhal. “For the itching, I presume.”

Gillie nodded. “Yup! Makes your skin less delicate, too. It also stops the glitter, though, so if that's important to you, I'd skip it.” 

“No more glitter? I suppose I'll have to think about that,” said Zhal, squinting in concentration. 

“They make meds for just the itching, but they're a little pricey , and they don't make your skin stronger,” said Gillie. 

Zhal grinned. “Well, I suppose I'll just have to steeeee… save up for them.”

Gillie rolled her eyes. “Yeah, good luck with that. You can find the lotion in stores for cheap, but pills have to be ordered.”

“I suppose that makes things more complicated,” said Zhal, scratching their neck absent-mindedly. 

“Are you taking the Pokémon League Challenge?” asked Gillie. “If you're any good, you can accumulate a decent amount of money from winning battles.”

“We are. So, you're saying weak trainers usually carry enough money to keep paying out for losing?” asked Zhal, grinning deviously. 

Gillie narrowed her eyes. “It's almost exclusively carried digitally.”

“Wow, you just have to piss on my parade, don't you?” growled Zhal, their ears twitching in irritation. 

“Hey, don't swear in front of the kid!” scolded Gillie. 

“Piss is barely a swear word!” retorted Zhal. “Besides, she's 12! She's already heard all the swear words. Mostly from me, but still…”

Gillie scowled. “You're an absolute menace, you know that?” 

“I try,” said Zhal, pretending to examine their claws. 

“You succeed,” growled Gillie. She rolled her eyes. “Anyway… Let's get Kaur to the Pokémon Center.”

“Yes, let's,” agreed Zhal. 

–

Murphy contemplated his bunk in the barracks with dissatisfaction. 

“I'd recommend a mattress topper,” said Justice, walking over. “You'll want to tuck it in your digital storage bag when you're not using it, though. I want to say that everyone here is honest and respectful of other people's property, but it's not true.”

“I think I'll do just that. Thanks for the suggestion and the honesty,” said Murphy. 

Justice nodded. “No problem! Let me know if you need anything else. For now, I have some paperwork to file.” He walked away. 

Murphy let Cleo out of her ball. “Hey, Cleo. I don't really need anything, but I want another person to acknowledge that this bed is bullshit garbage. Mine is on top.”

Cleo climbed up the ladder to the top bunk, pressed her hand into the stiff mattress experimentally, and nodded. “Yep! Certified bullshit garbage.” She climbed back down. 

“Thanks, Cleo,” said Murphy sincerely. 

“Yanno, around all these strangers, now is a good time to assert dominance by doing something weird,” said Cleo. 

Murphy raised an eyebrow. “I'm not sure if it works like that.”

“C'mon, it'll be funny,” said Cleo, grinning. 

“You know what, fine,” said Murphy. Carefully, he lifted himself off of the floor and into the air, floating shakily. Concentrating, he managed to maneuver himself onto the top bunk and dropped into it. 

Cleo clapped excitedly. “Yeahhh!” 

Murphy sat up to see multiple pairs of eyes on him. “Great. Now what?” 

“Make some friends! And most importantly, make sure to have fun,” said Cleo, folding her arms and nodding firmly. 

Murphy facepalmed, drawing his hand down his face. 

–

Having settled her belongings into her room, Sheena ventured into the hallway. She wandered down the hall, noting that there were quite a number of rooms, and wondered if they were all occupied. 

Suddenly, a woman emerged from a doorway, and turned to look at Sheena. She was full-figured, and a cloud of tightly curled dark purple hair cascaded to waist level. A large pair of sunglasses obscured the top half of her face, bright teal with a futuristic pointed triangular style. Her uniform was the otherwise standard crop top and skirt ensemble, save for an absence of footwear, displaying teal painted toenails to match her fingernails. Glossy teal lipstick glistened in the fluorescent light as she looked Sheena up and down curiously. 

“Hi there!” said Sheena brightly. 

The woman adjusted her sunglasses. “You lost, Red? I've never seen you before.”

“Not quite lost, but I'm new! I just got set up in my room. Not totally sure where I'm supposed to be right now, but I suppose I'll sort it out!” said Sheena. “My name's Sheena, by the way.”

“Mine's Anika! Pleased to meet you,” said Anika, returning her hand to her side. “Sheena, huh? Mind if I call you Rusty instead? I'm gonna call you Rusty instead.” 

“Uhh, if you insist,” said Sheena, scratching her head. 

Anika grinned. “I do insist. Thanks, Rusty! Welcome to Team Void. Nervous?”

Sheena nodded. “A little bit! I'm sure I'll get used to this place quickly, though.” 

“I think you'll do just fine, Rusty,” said Anika. “I've been here for a few months, which is about as long as anyone else, given that Team Void is so new. I know my way around the place, so let me know if you need help getting anywhere!” 

“Thanks, Anika, I appreciate it!” said Sheena. 

“Just curious, who's your patron?” asked Anika. 

Sheena looked around nervously. “Aren't we, uh, not supposed to tell each other?”

“Do you genuinely believe any of us actually care about that?” asked Anika, pulling down her sunglasses to wink a green eye. “Here, I'll show you my mark first.” She rolled up her right sleeve and gripped her badge. Her mark faded into view, a white starburst with gold and red details. 

“That's the mark of Solgaleo!” said Stellaluna silently, noticeably surprised. 

“What a coincidence!” said Sheena. She tugged her shirt down to just above her cleavage and pressed the button on her badge, revealing her mark of Lunala. 

Anika gasped and put a hand to her mouth. “Woah, no way! Another Cosmog line patron?! It's almost like we're sisters!” 

“Yeah, I suppose so! Small world, right?” said Sheena. 

“Come with me, I'll show you my room!” said Anika excitedly. “Maybe it'll give you some decorating ideas for yours!”

“Uh, sure! Why not,” said Sheena. 

–

At the edge of the forest, Adrian spotted Renee. He walked over to her and put his hands into his pockets. “Hey. What the fuck just happened?” 

“We blew up Old Chateau,” said Renee matter-of-factly. “C'mon, you were there! Get with the program, Adrian.” 

“Why did we do that, though?” asked Adrian. 

Renee chuckled. “You saw that building! It was practically about to fall over on its own. As it was, it was basically a death trap. Kids come through Eterna Forest all the time, one of them could get hurt!” 

“Kids like that girl that ran in?” asked Adrian flatly.

“Did she die?” asked Renee, raising an eyebrow. 

Adrian shook his head. “Fortunately not. Gillie was able to rescue her and her Eevee.”

“See? It turned out just fine,” said Renee casually. 

“That was a really important habitat for Ghost Types, too,” added Adrian, ignoring Renee's remark. 

Renee shrugged. “I mean, it's not like they died again when it exploded. Eterna Forest gets double duty as a haunted area now! It's fine.”

“But…” Adrian trailed off. 

“Hey. What's wrong with you?” asked Renee, her expression turning serious. She glared up at Adrian, cocking her head to the side. “Was it fun playing gangster up until Team Destroying Stuff actually destroyed something? You getting cold feet? Get a fucking grip or get the fuck out. We're all about destroying things that have overstayed their welcome, and that won't be the last worn out pile of trash we topple.” 

“I'm not getting cold feet,” said Adrian flatly. “Just trying to understand why we did this. Also, you guys really played up the fighting the Church of Arceus part of things, and this isn't exactly relevant.”

Renee rolled her eyes. “Adrian, you've been on one mission. Have a little patience. You'll get your shot at the liaisons of Arceus. This one does fall in line with our general mission statement. If you have a problem with that… we're gonna have a problem with you. Are we gonna have a problem with you, Adrian?” 

“No,” said Adrian firmly. “I understand now. You won't have any more trouble with me, don't worry.” 

“Good,” said Renee. Her expression softened slightly. “You seem like a nice guy, which is all well and good. But we didn't hire you because you're nice, we hired you because you're powerful, and that's something we need as much of as we can get. We need your strength and your obedience. Can we count on that from you, Adrian?”

“You can,” said Adrian. 

–

“Bzzt! So, potentially any older building or structure is at risk,” said Rotom, on a video call with Mackenzie. “Bzzt! Do you have any clues that might help narrow it down?” 

“None as such, but I'm betting they'll go for relatively well known targets,” said Mackenzie. “Old Chateau was well known, but didn't get a lot of visitors, so there wasn't too much risk of them getting discovered before they could set up the bomb. But if they put more manpower into it, I bet they could secure somewhere more high profile.”

“Bzzt! If you can give me a set of search parameters, I can compile a list of locations,” said Rotom. 

Mackenzie nodded. “I'll see what I can come up with. In the meantime, maybe a quick search with what I can think of off the top of my head. Rotom, can you search for historical landmarks that are really old and / or in poor shape?”

Rotom paused briefly. “Bzzt! Here you go, a brief list of historical landmarks matching your parameters: Snowpoint Temple. Solaceon Ruins. Spear Pillar. Canalave Library. Professor Rowan.” 

“I'm sorry, what was that last one again?” asked Mackenzie, raising an eyebrow. 

“Bzzt! Sorry, that was a joke answer in a Read-that thread which should have been omitted. I will be more fastidious in my proper search,” said Rotom.

Chapter Text

Special thanks to gildedmagician on Tumblr for the Unown divination system! 

–

Anika's room was dominated by soft fabrics in pink, purple, and teal. Tapestries covered the otherwise plain white walls, and the lights were subdued, turning the tiny bedroom into a cozy little home. A purple candle burned on the nightstand, releasing the scent of various berries into the room. 

Above the teal bedspread, a Munna floated, curled up and deep in slumber. 

“Drema is preparing to evolve soon, so she's been sleeping a lot more,” said Anika. “I bought a moon stone recently, which I'm going to give to her on her birthday. I'm a little sad to see her evolve, she looks so cute like this! But it's what she wants, and I will not deny her such a small request.” 

Sheena took another sip of the herbal tea she was offered upon entry. “It's important to support your Pokémon's aspirations! I'm sure she appreciates it. Plus, it’s not like she’ll cease being cute when she evolves. She’ll just be bigger. More to love, if you want to put it that way.” 

Anika nodded. “Of course! My loved ones will change, but I will love them all the same.” She paused. “So, you said you've never had your fortune told with Unown tiles? Would you like to?”

“I haven't, and I would!” said Sheena. 

“Excellent! Let's get started,” said Anika. She gestured to the nightstand with one hand, and the drawer opened. Two candles and a tasseled purple cloth floated out, followed by a black velvet bag containing something that clacked softly. 

Anika gently plucked the objects from the air, and arranged them on the table. She lit the candles, then gestured towards the door, flipping the light switch. Now illuminated only from below by candlelight, she removed her sunglasses, revealing eyes that glowed blue, contrary to the green they had appeared in the light. The glow of her eyes cast a cool tint to the shadows opposite the candles, creating a two-toned medley of light and darkness. 

“Ohhh, this is so cool!” said Sheena, taking in the spectacle eagerly. 

“Thanks!” said Anika. “Now… I want you to think of something in your life that you want guidance for. Don't tell me, just think of it.” 

After a few seconds, Sheena nodded. “Okay, I'm ready!” 

“Good,” said Anika. She reached into the bag and pulled out five small tiles one by one, setting them face-down on the table. She flipped the first tile over and held it up for Sheena to see. “The letter S! This stands for search, which means you are seeking something, be it an item, information, a person, or even new experiences.” She let go of the tile, and it floated in place midair . 

Sheena watched quietly, but with great fascination. 

Anika flipped over the second tile, holding it up. “The letter V! This stands for vanish. This refers to hiding or obscuring an item, information, or a person.” Leaving the V also floating, she flipped over the third tile. “And here we have the letter H! This stands for help. This can mean giving or needing help, or even helping yourself.” 

“So, does that mean-” started Sheena. 

“I'm going to explain all of it together after I show you each one,” said Anika patiently, setting the third tile floating with the others. She flipped the fourth tile. “The letter J! This stands for join. This can mean joining a group, making new friends, or working together.” She flipped the last tile and examined it closely, brow furrowed in concentration. “Interesting…”

“What? What is it?” asked Sheena nervously. 

Anika held up the tile. “The exclamation point. This indicates something shocking, exciting, or unexpected. It can also mean grave danger.” 

“Uh oh,” murmured Sheena. 

Anika set the tile into the air with the others, sat back, and folded her hands in front of her. “Now. Let's put these all together.” She pointed at the S, and it began to rotate slowly. “This one is fairly simple. You are looking for something.” The S stopped rotating, and she moved on to the V, which also started to rotate. “What you are looking for is hidden from you. You may not even know what you are looking for, because it is so thoroughly obscured. Is this ringing a bell so far, Rusty?”

“It is!” said Sheena. “Please, continue.”

Moving on to the H, Anika set the tile in motion as well. “You will need help in your search. You cannot do this alone, no matter what you do.” The J also started rotating. “You will need to work together with new allies in order to find what you seek.” The J became still again. 

The exclamation point also began to spin, faster than the previous tiles this time. 

“This… This is bad news,” said Anika somberly. “The shit is gonna hit the fan in a big way, and you will have to act quickly to minimize the damage. Additionally, when you do find what you are searching for, you will be completely blind sided . In short, prepare for the worst, and hope for the best.” She smiled gently. “So. Did this answer your question?”

Sheena nodded. “It did! Thank you so much.”

“Excellent!” said Anika, throwing her arms into the air.

All five tiles began to spin rapidly, faster and faster until the movement became audible. Abruptly, the candles went out, plunging the room into darkness. After a few long seconds, the light turned on again. The candles, fabric, and tiles had all disappeared, and Anika was wearing her sunglasses again. 

“That was really cool! The ambiance was impressive,” said Sheena. 

“Thanks! I've had a lot of practice,” said Anika. “And the fine telekinesis control required is also excellent practice for fighting.” 

“What kind of technique do you use to fight?” asked Sheena.

Anika held up her fist, and several needles emerged directly from the cuff of her sleeve. She relaxed her hand into a palm-up position, and the needles floated in a loop as if they were being juggled. “Small projectiles. Anything from a bit smaller than this to throwing knives. Might not look all that impressive right now, but even with just these I could kill a normal human in seconds. On a side note, I keep hundreds of these in my uniform, so I don't recommend touching me without permission or warning at any time.” 

“Noted and understood!” said Sheena, eyes wide. 

“How about you, Rusty?” asked Anika, absorbing the needles back into her sleeve. “How do you fight?” 

“Oh! Umm. Well, I'm honestly a bit new to being a liaison, but I've made a lot of progress learning to use my moves!” said Sheena. 

Anika raised an eyebrow. “Pokémon moves? Doesn't hurt to get familiar with them, but they're best left to Pokémon. For a liaison, most offensive moves are barely more than a very destructive party trick. What are your other abilities?”

“Well, let's see. I have a bunch, but I guess the most exciting ones are flight and intangibility,” said Sheena. 

Anika leaned forward abruptly and slammed her hands on the table. “You can fly and walk through walls , and you're wasting your time fucking around with Pokémon moves?!”

Sheena rubbed the back of her head awkwardly. “Err. Yes? But to be fair, one of my moves is Teleport, so it's basically like another ability , and it's very easy to use now that I have the hang of it.”

“You're kidding me!” said Anika. She took off her sunglasses and rubbed her eyes in exasperation. “What on earth are you doing?! You have so much potential!” 

“I, uh. Sorry?” offered Sheena. 

Anika shook her head and put her sunglasses back on. “You know what, that's it. I'm going to train you to use your powers to your best advantage, starting tomorrow morning. Got that?”

“Got it,” said Sheena, nodding firmly. “I appreciate the help. I'm really at a loss here, and my only proper training has been with a Pokémon teaching me.”

“Well, we'll get it sorted out , and you'll be absolutely deadly in battle sooner than you think!” said Anika. 

“Thanks!” said Sheena. “This is unrelated, but may I ask you a personal question?” 

Anika sighed. “Is it about the bare feet?” 

“It… is,” admitted Sheena. 

“I was cursed by a witch to be unable to wear shoes,” said Anika, her expression deadpan. 

There was a brief silence. 

“Really?” asked Sheena hesitantly. 

Anika cackled. “No! But you believed it for a moment there, didn't you?” She shrugged. “The truth is less interesting. I just hate how shoes feel, and since I'm part Steel type I can just walk around barefoot without getting hurt. I can step on broken glass and not so much as get a splinter.” 

“Fair enough!” said Sheena. 

–

“Helping with rituals isn't too bad in general,” said Geldau, taking a sip of her tea. “The Church takes care of my expenses, and gives me a little extra spending money, so I haven't had to get another job. But…”

Mackenzie raised an eyebrow. “But…?” 

Geldau smiled half-heartedly. “It's starting to really hurt. I was always told I had some sort of mark on my ankle, but I can actually see something now. It's just a burn in a weird shape, but it's… unsettling. I don't think I'm supposed to be able to see it.” 

“I know what you mean,” said Mackenzie. She rolled up her left sleeve and presented her shoulder to Geldau, revealing a scar in the shape of the mark of Arceus. “I got rid of the actual mark years ago, but it almost killed me before I did.” 

“Oh, I'm sure my family wouldn't let it get to that point!” said Geldau. 

“We… have the same family, and they totally did,” said Mackenzie flatly. 

“But my parents love me!” blurted Geldau. 

Mackenzie just glared at Geldau, at a loss for words. 

Geldau started to say something, but bit her tongue. 

“You'd be surprised,” said Mackenzie slowly, “At how fast people like that can turn on you, and for so little reason.”

Geldau gazed down into her mug, avoiding Mackenzie's gaze. “Sorry…” 

Mackenzie sighed. “It's fine.”

“Are you… sure you don't want any tea?” asked Geldau.

“Nah, I can't stand the medicated stuff,” said Mackenzie, shaking her head. 

“... Medicated? I mean, it's supposed to be a supplement, but medicated?” asked Geldau. “My mom said it has the right vitamins for my age.”

Mackenzie looked at Geldau incredulously. “That's the tea they give you when your mark burns through your skin. It's supposed to prevent infection. Not sure how effective it actually is, but it's traditional. I know that's what it is because it has a very distinctive smell. You couldn't pay me to touch the stuff again.”

Horrified, Geldau set her mug on the coffee table and gawked at it like it had just sprouted hair. 

“Hey, don't stop drinking it. I can't stand it, but you're the one with an open wound,” said Mackenzie, shrugging. “It's weird they didn't tell you, though.”

Hesitating briefly, Geldau scooped up the cup again and pulled it to her chest. “I-I'm sure she meant well. My mom sometimes dumbs things down for me a bit, like she thinks I'm still a little kid.”

Mackenzie raised an eyebrow. “How do you know they're telling you the truth about your liaison ceremony? What are they hiding from you?” 

Geldau waved dismissively. “I know it's complicated. There are a lot of little details I don't expect to know about, and honestly I don't care what they have to do to me. It'll be worth it!”

“It… shouldn't be that complicated,” said Mackenzie dubiously. 

“They're doing something special!” said Geldau. “I can't tell you what it is, but I promise it's worth it all!”

Mackenzie sighed. “I really hope so, but you might want to take what they say with a grain of salt.” 

“I'm sure it'll be fine! My family wouldn't betray me like that,” said Geldau. 

Mackenzie gave Geldau a flat look. “Geldau, please. Your name literally means holy sacrifice. C'mon.”

“I'm sure that refers to my role assisting in rituals,” said Geldau firmly. “Sacrifice doesn't necessarily mean killing someone. You know full well that Born Chosen tend to get names like that. Yours was Muthia… meaning obedient.”

Mackenzie rolled her eyes. “Wishful thinking on my parents’ part. But that's still different from being called a sacrifice. Doesn't that seem a little odd to you?” 

“I think you're reading into it too much, honestly,” said Geldau, shrugging. “A name is just a name.”

–

“All right, I wanna see what we're working with,” said Anika. She patted the training dummy. “This thing is pretty sturdy, so go nuts.”

“Got it!” said Sheena. She began a series of kicks and punches, darting in for a hit or two before backing off again. 

Anika nodded approvingly. After a few minutes, she gestured for Sheena to stop. “All right, you've got a solid baseline for your technique, and it will really lend itself to your powers! The goal is to get you flying and teleporting while you do that, hit harder, and incorporate some grapples. Your power that makes things temporarily lighter would be wasted if you didn't take advantage of that too!”

“That sounds doable, if a bit daunting!” said Sheena. 

“That's exactly what I want to hear,” said Anika firmly. “You've mentioned you don't have much weapons training… We can fix that, too.”

Renee entered the gym, pushing the double doors open dramatically. “Anika! Thought I'd check in with you before heading out. Whatcha up to?” 

Anika gestured to Sheena. “Training a new recruit to use her powers in battle properly! Rusty here has a lot of potential.” 

“Oh, the redhead!” said Renee. She looked Sheena up and down. “Not your usual type, but I see the appeal.” 

Anika rolled her eyes. “Renee, if you keep saying shit like that people are going to think you're serious.” 

“Oh, but it's so much funnier when they do,” said Renee, grinning. 

“Still antagonizing snakebites kid?” asked Anika, raising an eyebrow. 

“Do Ursaring shit in the woods?” asked Renee, her grin widening. “It's not my fault it's so much fun to press his buttons! He's soft. I wonder how far I'd have to push for him to escalate to physical violence!”

Anika put her hands on her hips. “Respectfully, Renee, you're a sadistic bitch.”

Renee burst out into maniacal laughter. 

“Yeah, yeah,” said Anika, rolling her eyes again. “Anyway. You sure you don't need me on this mission? It's a doozy.” 

“I'm sure! I need you here to protect HQ if necessary. But barring such an event, you're welcome to keep playing with your little friend here,” said Renee. Without another word, she left, throwing both doors open again on her way out. 

There was a brief silence. 

Anika turned back to Sheena. “Sorry about that.”

“Who the heck is snakebites kid?” asked Sheena. “Do you mean the guy with all those scars?”

“That's the one!” said Anika. “You didn't hear this from me, but she's kinda obsessed with him. I'm not totally sure why, but I think it's because he reminds her of herself.” 

Sheena raised an eyebrow. “What do you think she wants from him?” 

“That's neither your business nor mine, but I think she's going to have a hard time provoking him like she mentioned. I have a pretty good eye for this sort of thing, and he doesn't seem like someone who'd throw down without a very good reason, and I'm not sure ordering him to do it qualifies. That makes him… not ideal for this job, but I heard he's a fused liaison, so maybe we can get his patron to fight for us,” said Anika. She paused, then shook her head. “Ugh… fused liaisons are so lazy. They just let their patrons do the dirty work, to the point that they barely learn to fight on their own.” 

“I guess if I had access to another form that was more powerful than my usual one, I'd probably rely on that in a pinch too,” said Sheena. 

Anika shrugged. “I mean, they're just as strong in human form, they just don't have as much proficiency with their moves. If they'd just put in some effort, they could be extremely adaptable fighters, being both able to fight in the open and in smaller spaces that don't have enough room to transform. Of course, there are fused liaisons that have gone to the trouble of learning to use their human bodies, but they're rare. If you're ever in a fight against a fused liaison , and they're evading and trying to get out into the open rather than fighting, if you can keep them cornered and stop them from transforming you'll be at a huge advantage.” 

“That's very good to know!” said Sheena. “I'll keep that in mind if I'm fighting one.” She paused. “Um. I'm not sure how to put this delicately, but what's wrong with Renee? Why does she act like that?” 

“Tragic backstory,” said Anika simply. 

“I have a tragic backstory too, but you don't see me being nasty and mean for no reason,” said Sheena. 

Anika sighed. “Well, that's the excuse she uses! I'm not saying it's a good one. To be fair, though, she became a liaison when she was a child, and those tend to be at least a little neurotic. Child liaisons are never taken on under happy circumstances. Most patrons won't even accept a liaison who's under 20, so children are only taken on by them as exceptions in an emergency and raised by adult liaisons. Some patrons prefer very young liaisons, collecting an entourage entirely consisting of immortal traumatized children… which has its own issues.”

“Oof, I'd imagine so,” said Sheena, wincing. 

“Yeah. Between never aging to physical adulthood and everything else, it's a rough way to grow up,” said Anika. “And the less said about navigating dating, the better…”

“Do… their brains still mature, at least?” asked Sheena. 

Anika nodded. “Fortunately they do!” She paused. “Renee is a good friend of mine, but I'll freely admit she should know better than to do some of the things she does. She's an adult in every way that matters besides appearance.”

“Good to know!” said Sheena. 

“Yeah. So, anyway. Let's get back to training!” said Anika, cracking her knuckles. 

–

When Mackenzie returned to her office, the lights were off. She reached for the light switch, but paused as she spotted an intruder. 

Seated at the desk was a mountain of a woman wearing a black and red jacket. Her curly brown hair fell to meet the collar of the jacket, giving the impression of a battle helmet. Mackenzie had never met her before in person, but the glowing red eyes and pitch black mark of Yveltal were unmistakable traits of the Life Seeker. 

Mackenzie gulped. “Hi, Morrigan. W-what… what brings you here today?”

Morrigan stood up from the desk slowly. “I wanted to apologize to you in advance.”

“Uhhh. I, uhh. About what?” asked Mackenzie. 

Instead of answering, Morrigan made her way to the door. 

“About… about what?” repeated Mackenzie, distress in her voice. “Morrigan, please…”

With only half a glance back at Mackenzie, Morrigan faded from sight. 

“Thanks, great talk,” murmured Mackenzie.

Chapter Text

Adrian was sitting at his desk, reading, when Renee barged in. 

“All right, time for another mission! This is a big one,” said Renee, putting her hands on her hips. 

“I'm like 99% sure I locked that door,” said Adrian, setting down his book. 

Renee grinned. “I have a key. C'mon, let's go!”

“Ignoring that unpleasant revelation… Does every other liaison get a personal visit from you before every mission?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

“Some of them!” said Renee. “Come on, follow me. That's an order.”

–

Murphy shifted in his seat as he waited for the meeting to start. 

After several more minutes, a short, stocky man stepped to the front of the room. His uniform was perfectly pressed, but his mid-length yellow hair stuck out haphazardly. His earlobes were gauged, and sported thick blue rubber tunnels. Bracelets of the same color and material adorned his wrists, thick and slightly loose. His eyes sported pink irises, and he wore a cheerful grin on his face. He cleared his throat loudly. 

The small amount of chatter died down, and everyone directed their attention to the front of the room. 

“Most of you already know me, but I see some new faces today. My name is Commander Raiden. I will be leading you on your mission today,” said Raiden. “We will have many teams out in the field today, but we have the absolute pleasure of being assigned to search the Great Marsh for a special artifact. You will be provided with different clothing on this mission, partly to obscure our identities as Team Void members, but mostly because we will be wallowing in mud. You will still be expected to carry your badges, but they should be kept in the front pocket of your waders.”

An assortment of groans of disappointment passed through the room. 

“I know,” said Raiden flatly. “What we are looking for is a rectangular purple tablet. Anything else you find while searching you are welcome to keep, but you absolutely must hand over the tablet. Any questions?”

Murphy's eyes widened briefly in realization before he steeled his expression. 

“Yes, it is what you think it is,” said Curie silently. 

“Nothing? Good. Let's head out,” said Raiden. 

–

“All right, that's enough for now,” said Anika. “Let's have lunch, then get back to it!” 

Sheena leaned over and wiped sweat from her forehead. “Whew. I think I'm getting the hang of this, but what a workout! I haven't used my flight powers offensively like that before, it's hard to keep my balance.” 

“You're doing great!” said Anika firmly. “It'll take years of practice to really hone your skills, but I think we can get you bare-minimum battle-ready within a few days. Once you've got a good grasp on attacking from above and below, I'd like to integrate teleportation into your strategy. If we still have time after you get the hang of that, we can delve into using intangibility to give you an edge in hand-to-hand combat. For that last bit, though, you've gotta keep in mind that some opponents will still be able to grab you when you're otherwise intangible. We're not there yet, but I wanna give you that heads up.” 

“That's a lot, but I'm looking forward to it! I really want to be more useful in a fight, and the other training I've gotten since becoming a liaison doesn't really cut it,” said Sheena. 

Anika nodded. “We can definitely fix that! On another note, around other people you are to call me Commander Anika.”

“Oh! Sorry, I had no idea you were a commander! I hope I haven't been inappropriately casual or anything,” said Sheena, scratching her head. “Should I really be taking up so much of your time? I'm sure you have a lot of work to do.”

Anika gestured dismissively. “Don't sweat it, you're fine. Training new recruits is actually explicitly part of my job, and for liaisons it's best to start by working one-on-one because of how different their powers can be.”

“Oh! That's a relief, then,” said Sheena. 

“I really thought you'd have guessed by now, simply based on the fact that an admin dropped by to check on me personally… And also by the fact that I called her a sadistic bitch to her face and she just laughed it off,” said Anika. 

Sheena chuckled. “Yeah, in retrospect, that should've been a solid hint!” 

Anika put her hands on her hips. “Well! Let's go get some lunch, I'll show you the way to the cafeteria.”

–

“Is there a reason why I had to get involved in this?” asked Cleo, tugging her foot out of the mud. 

“I didn't want to do it by myself, and it's more fun to have someone to exchange complaints with… Also, I wanted to make you wear big goofy boots.” said Murphy. “Besides, isn't it kinda satisfying to squelch around in the mud? And I could use the help searching for items, too.”

Cleo examined her muddy arms. “I guess, but I better be getting a really good shower after this.”

“Oh yeah, definitely!” said Murphy. “I wonder if the Great Marsh staff members have any suspicions about this group. Do they know we're Team Void? Do they even care?”

“I'd hazard a guess that it's not a big deal as long as everyone pays for entry without a fuss, and nobody threatens anybody,” said Cleo. 

“After what happened to Old Chateau, if I was them, I don't think I'd let Team Void into any sort of sensitive habitat,” said Murphy, shrugging. “Then again, the accessible portion of the Great Marsh is a bit heavily trod on. We're pulling out more litter than anything else, but at least some of it is actually useful items!” 

“I mean, they - er, we - could potentially do some serious damage to the transport system in here, but I don't think it's something Team Void would be interested in destroying,” said Cleo. 

Murphy shrugged. “Who knows? But regardless, they let us in.” He plunged his hands into the mud again, then froze. 

“You okay? Something bite you?” asked Cleo. 

“I think I found it,” whispered Murphy. 

Cleo peered into the mud. “How can you tell without seeing it?” 

“I've handled one before, and the texture was very distinctive,” said Murphy. “Shit. I… I don't know what I should do. I don't know what they're planning to do with this, but it can't be good.” 

“Do you really think they're going to give up before they find it?” asked Cleo. “Because I don't think they are. That Raiden guy was very clear about staying here as long as needed to find the item.”

Murphy sighed. “That's true, but I just know they're going to do something truly heinous with it, and I'd feel personally responsible if I had a direct hand in acquiring it.”

“Well, you better make a decision before someone notices you double-fisting the ground and looking guilty,” said Cleo flatly. 

“Curie, what should I do? Should I just leave it?” asked Murphy silently. 

“They will still find it either way. Your choice is whether you want to have an active role in how this proceeds. I will not judge you for washing your hands of it, but there is no outcome either way without regret,” said Curie. 

Murphy paused for a moment, thinking. He shrugged, then pulled the bright purple plate from the muck. He rubbed away some of the mud and read aloud. “The rules of time and space change within the opposite world.”

“Wow. It's like a cosmic fortune cookie!” said Cleo. “Lick it for good luck!” 

“I am not licking the Toxic Plate,” said Murphy flatly. “Also, it's covered in mud. So, double no.”

“You mispronounced seasoning,” said Cleo, crossing her arms and grinning. 

Murphy held out the plate to Cleo. “Okay, then you lick it.”

“Eww, no!” said Cleo. “Uh, I mean. No, thanks! Athena put me on a no mud diet!” 

“That was Lemon, and that was seven years ago,” said Murphy matter-of-factly. He pulled one foot out of the mud with a sucking sound, placing it on the surface. Carefully, he tugged the other foot out, and set off walking across the marsh without sinking in. 

Cleo sloshed slowly after Murphy. “Hey, wait for me! How are you even doing that?!” 

“Oh right, sorry!” said Murphy. He walked back, then pulled Cleo from the mud by her waders. “It's my flight power, but I'm being a little inconspicuous about it. Would you rather cling to my leg or go back into your ball?”

“Well, I don't want to have to clean mud out of my ball later, so I guess it's clinging time,” said Cleo. She grabbed onto Murphy's leg. “This is kinda undignified, but fortunately I'm not too concerned about dignity.” 

Murphy walked across the marsh to Raiden, performed the chest touch salute, and presented the Toxic Plate to him. “Commander, is this what we're looking for?” 

Raiden accepted the plate, examined it briefly, and nodded. “Yes, that's the one! Great job, kid. What was your name again?” 

“Raspberry,” said Murphy. 

“Well done, Raspberry. You will receive a 30,000 Pokédollar bonus as a bounty for this very special find,” said Raiden. “This is very important for our plans. Keep up the good work!”

“Thank you, Commander,” said Murphy. 

–

“So, what are we doing at Oreburgh Museum?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. “We've got a whopping five people tied up, and we've got control of the building. Now what?”

Renee gestured towards a strange, sinister looking device a pair of grunts were pulling out of a box. “What does it look like we're doing?” 

“We're not blowing up the museum too, are we?” asked Adrian incredulously. “The building is in great shape. Why are we doing this?”

“Are you questioning my authority again, Adrian?” asked Renee, folding her arms and glaring up at Adrian. 

“Just curious, that's all,” said Adrian innocently. “Obviously you have some sort of reason for it, but I'm not connecting the dots here.”

Renee cackled. “Well, I just don't like the vibes, yanno?”

Adrian tried and failed to keep a straight face. 

“Tch! Just fucking with you. It's actually because they're bringing back fossil Pokémon here,” said Renee. “With a few naturally occurring exceptions, dead stuff should stay dead, yanno?”

Adrian narrowed his eyes. “Okay...”

“This is gonna take a while to get set up, so we've got some time to chat!” said Renee cheerfully. 

“Lucky me,” murmured Adrian. 

Renee rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “Hey, if we hooked up, would it technically count as clonecest?” 

“What?!” cried Adrian, staggering backwards. “Ew! We're not hooking up, so it doesn't matter.”

“Oh, I know we're not, but if we did, would it be clonecest?” asked Renee, raising a finger. “Remember, our patrons are clones.” 

“I will not dignify that unhinged and disgusting question with an answer,” said Adrian flatly. 

Renee tapped her finger on the side of her forehead. “Obviously, if our actual patrons hooked up, it would be clonecest. But what about us? Technically, our bodies are made up of our patrons’ bodies, so biologically it would be clonecest, even though you and I look different. Would we make weird mutant Darkrai babies?” 

Adrian retched, recomposed himself, and rolled his eyes. “Renee, this is sexual harassment.”

“Then take it to HR and see how that pans out for you,” said Renee mockingly, shrugging. 

“Does… Team Void have an HR department to report that to?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

“No,” said Renee, grinning. “Now, as I was saying. I suppose it would lack the social aspect of clonecest… Wait. Except our patrons do feel what we feel. So it'd be like they're boning too! Not gonna lie, that's pretty hot.” 

“You are absolutely vile,” said Adrian, rolling his eyes again. 

Renee cackled. “I'm just joking around, buddy! If you wanna be a man so bad, you've gotta learn to take a joke, just saying.”

Adrian glared daggers at Renee, remaining silent. 

“What, you didn't think I knew?” asked Renee smugly. “My guy, you are trying too hard. It's obvious.”

“Oh, is this the game we're playing now? Okay,” said Adrian, cracking his knuckles. “I don't wanna hear anything from you about trying too hard. You're taking the early 2000s teen edgelord shtick a little too seriously. You named yourself after a fictional vampire, and you think being mean and gross counts as having a personality. I'm not impressed.” 

Renee put her hands on her hips and scowled. “Hey! Rude.” 

“Oh, I'm not done yet,” said Adrian, waggling a finger. “I get secondhand embarrassment just listening to you talk. I'm not a big fan of the word cringe, but you're not the classic admirable weird child having an authentic fun time kind of cringe. No, you're just embarrassingly ill-behaved, and criminally absent of shame. And listen…. I don't care how young you look, you need to grow the fuck up. I'm not sure how old you actually are, but if you think you pass well enough as a teen to get away with acting like one, you're sorely mistaken. It's completely transparent, anyone with half a brain can tell that you know better but still choose to act like a petulant child.” 

Renee narrowed her eyes. “Wow. That was really mean.” She paused. “I totally had it coming, but still! Say, if I tell you my tragic backstory, will you have a little pity for me?” 

“I sincerely doubt it,” said Adrian flatly. He paused. “Uhh. Am I getting kicked out for that?” 

Renee shrugged. “Nah. I'm not done with you yet! Why would I give up the opportunity to hang out with my non-evil clone? Anyway! One trauma dump coming up.”

“Any chance you can just not?” asked Adrian. 

“Nope!” said Renee, grinning. 

Adrian rolled his eyes. “Yeah, that's what I figured.”

“Good, good,” said Renee, putting her hands on her hips. “So, I'm gonna be a hundred years old this fall. When I was 12 years old, I was facing the prospect of getting married off to a man more than twice my age.”

“Oof, that's heavy,” said Adrian. 

“Shut up, I'm just getting started,” said Renee flatly. “Anyway! The night before the wedding, I was sitting outside , and I wished I could get away from that situation. Suddenly, Jirachi appeared, and they offered to take me away if I agreed to be their liaison. I didn't totally understand what that meant, but I knew it was better than having a baby at 13 or something. Which, yanno, I was right.” 

I spent about the next 75 years as a liaison of Jirachi, alternately traveling with them and their gaggle of traumatized children and going into towns and stuff to do weird prophetic shit. Whatever they needed me to do, I did it. Honestly it wasn't that bad, but it's no way to grow up , and it got old after a while, while I didn't. 

Eventually, I quit as a liaison and took a few years to physically age up a little bit. I bought my new patron, as I mentioned before, and buttered her up for a while before asking to become her fused liaison. No regrets on that. I basically do whatever I want , and she goes along with it like I'm still her trainer. So, yeah. That's how everything went down.”

Adrian gave Renee a long, hard look. “That's rough and all, but it still doesn't justify your behavior now. Trauma isn't a free pass to be mean and selfish.”

Renee folded her arms. “Listen, buddy. I didn't get to be a teen when I actually was one. I still look like one, though, so I intend to take full advantage of that. I'm the edgy, obnoxious little brat I always wished I could be, and I intend to do whatever the hell I want until the consequences of my actions catch up and manage to kill me. You can indulge my delusions or stay out of my way, your choice. Just let me have this. Gods know I earned it.” 

“You can do whatever you want, but that doesn't mean I have to like it or believe you're justified or reasonable in your decisions,” said Adrian. 

“We're in agreement, then!” said Renee, putting her hands on her hips and grinning. 

–

Mackenzie was sitting at her desk with her head in her hands when Astrit walked in. 

“Did you know that you can purchase dry noodles and spices in a box, intended to be mixed with ground meat?” asked Astrit cheerfully. 

“Hamburger helper?” asked Mackenzie, looking up at Astrit wearily. 

Astrit nodded enthusiastically. “Yes! You're familiar, then. I've found it's very - sorry, are you all right?” 

“Not really, no,” said Mackenzie, drawing a hand down her face. 

“Is this a bad time? I can come back later,” offered Astrit. 

“The Life Seeker dropped by,” said Mackenzie somberly. 

Astrit's eyes widened in horror. “Really?! What did she want?”

“She wanted to apologize for something,” said Mackenzie. 

“Apologize? Apologize for what?” asked Astrit. 

Mackenzie shrugged. “No idea. She just said ‘I want to apologize in advance’ and left without another word.”

“Sounds unsettling,” said Astrit. “I likely would have soiled myself if it were me.”

“I almost did!” said Mackenzie. “Have you met her before?” 

“Fortunately not. Admittedly, there are many occasions I might have been due for a professional visit, but the liaisons of Giratina have always been up my - er, they have been diligent in handling me themselves,” said Astrit. 

Mackenzie chuckled. “I've heard that premium VIP hell is quite the experience, though one best avoided.” She paused. “You know, I feel for her. She's always the bearer of bad news, whether it's to her targets or to innocents nearby. She's, uhh… Not very personable, but I suppose it's not really necessary for her job. It was thoughtful of her to apologize, I suppose, but honestly it just makes me worried.”

“What do you think she's apologizing for?” asked Astrit. 

“Almost certainly something to do with my cousin,” said Mackenzie. “But I'm not sure what. Do you think she'll have to kill Geldau? I don't imagine she'd do anything herself that would justify being sent to Yveltal hell.” 

–

“Not that I'm in any rush, but are we waiting for something?” asked Adrian. 

“We are, actually!” said Renee. She checked her phone. “Just a few minutes now. Do you have those Pokémon I assigned you for this mission?” 

Adrian nodded. “Of course.”

“Great! Someone is about to show up, and I want you to use those Pokémon to fight them and lose,” said Renee. 

“Beg pardon?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

Renee chuckled. “You heard me! Fight and lose. And I've got some stuff for you to say while you do it! I'll whisper it, c'mere.”

Adrian leaned in to listen. His face went through several different expressions, all moderately uncomfortable. “Really? You want me to say that?” 

“Just trust me,” said Renee, nodding. 

“I really don't like hearing those three words from you specifically,” said Adrian flatly. 

“Shut up, they're almost here,” hissed Renee. 

The shiny Eevee who had appeared at Old Chateau barged into the building, followed by their out-of-breath trainer. 

“All right, nobody move! We're here to stop you!” shouted the Eevee. 

“Yeah!” gasped the girl, forcing her words out sharply. “We're here… here to…” 

Renee nudged Adrian with her elbow. 

Adrian sighed deeply, then stepped forward. He shifted his stance, taking long, drawn-out strides as he approached the duo. “I recognize you. You're the kid from Old Chateau! You couldn't stop us then, what makes you think you can stop us now?” 

“Don't forget we beat your goons there, even if we were too late to stop you!” said the Eevee. 

“They were incompetent. How hard could it be to defeat one little kid?” asked Adrian. He took a fighting stance and sent out a Zubat. 

The little girl pointed, and the Eevee ran in for an attack, taking down the Zubat in a single tackle. 

“Tch! Lucky hit,” said Adrian. He sent out a Stunky next.

The girl gestured for the Eevee to return to her side, and sent out a Chikorita. 

Adrian waited patiently for the girl to switch Pokémon before giving the Stunky his next order. 

The Stunky managed to land a single scratch before the Chikorita barrelled into him, pinning him and hitting him repeatedly with razor leaf. 

Even after the Stunky fainted, the Chikorita continued to attack. 

“That's enough!” said Adrian, calling the Stunky back into his ball. “You win… This time.”

The girl called her Chikorita back into her ball and relaxed slightly. 

“I held back… but perhaps I should not have underestimated you,” said Adrian. “Kid, what's your name?”

“Umm. It's… It's Kaur!” said Kaur. “Who… who are you?”

Adrian posed dramatically. “I am Adrian of Team Void. Very well, Kaur. We will leave, but this won't be the last you see of us!” 

“Tch! An embarrassing display, brother,” said Renee, stepping forward. 

Adrian turned towards Renee and gave her a dirty look, out of view of Kaur and her Eevee. 

Ignoring Adrian, Renee continued. “No matter. We've already achieved our real objective, no need to stick around any longer.”

“And who are you?” asked the Eevee. 

Renee put one hand on her hip and took a casual stance. “Admin Renee. I'll be watching your progress with great interest, Kaur. C'mon guys, let's go.” She gestured to the grunts near the machine, and they packed it back into its box.

Chapter Text

Gillie rushed to catch up with Kaur and Zhal. “Hey, guys! Great job back at the museum!”

“Thanks! I was pretty brilliant, wasn't I?” said Zhal, puffing up their chest. “Those guys in Oreburgh Gate just let us through, guess we must look intimidating!”

“Huh, guess so!” said Gillie. She walked over to Kaur. “I have something for you! Someone else is probably supposed to give you one of these, but you need it ASAP with how Zhal runs so fast.” She pulled a collapsible bicycle out from under her cape. The paint job was a royal purple color with a pattern of little white flowers.

Kaur's eyes lit up as she accepted the bike. “Wow! Thank… thank you! Are you… you sure I can… I can have this? It's… It's so nice.”

“Of course!” said Gillie brightly. She pulled out a helmet and offered it to Kaur as well. “Make sure to wear this, for safety!” 

Kaur nodded appreciatively and placed the items in her digital storage bag. She pulled her Gabite necklace out from under her hijab and shoved it in her mouth, chomping down on it excitedly. 

Gillie turned to Zhal. “I have some stuff for you, too!”

“Wait, really?” asked Zhal, perking up. “Not to be ungrateful or anything, but I thought you didn't like me.”

“I don't, but I want to help you anyway,” said Gillie, shrugging. 

“Well, no objections here! Whatcha got for me?” asked Zhal, ears twitching expectantly. 

Gillie pulled out a small cloth bag mounted on a harness. “Um. You said you wanted something like my cape, so I got you a digital storage bag!”

Zhal's eyes widened as they examined the bag. “Woah. How does it work?” 

“There's a little instruction booklet clipped to the flap,” said Gillie. “It's an old-fashioned one without a touch screen, but the buttons are big , and they'll be easy to use with your paws. Here, I'll help you put it on!”

“Oh, thanks!” said Zhal. They held still, allowing Gillie to pull the straps into place. 

“And… There you go!” said Gillie, tightening the last strap. 

Zhal wiggled experimentally, then hopped around a few times. “Wow! Surprisingly light and comfortable. There's something really familiar about it, too…”

“I wasn't really looking for one, honestly, but I found it in a weird little secondhand shop , and it was specifically made for Eevee, so I thought of you,” said Gillie. “The straps are adjustable for when you evolve, too, and it's waterproof and fireproof and stuff!” 

“Well, that was very thoughtful of you, thanks,” said Zhal. 

“You're welcome!” said Gillie. “I see you've been using the lotion.”

Zhal sighed dramatically. “Yes. Sacrificing beauty for comfort.”

“Well, I've got something else for you!” said Gillie. She pulled out a bottle of pills and handed it to Zhal. 

“Wait. No way…” Zhal trailed off.

Gillie shrugged. “One of my shiny friends tried the pills and decided he didn't like them. Lucky for you, he's a weird size for dosing , and they gave him a bunch of small pills he had to take a bunch of, so you can take just one per day. Still a little sus ‘cause a doctor should choose your dosage, so you should get your own prescription as soon as possible. But, this should last you like three months.”

Zhal held the pill bottle close to their chest and narrowed their eyes. “Between this, the bag, and the bike… there is no way you're just giving us all of this stuff for free. What is it that you want from us?”

“Huh? No, I'm just nice!” said Gillie, raising an eyebrow. “I… understand feeling suspicious, though. After all, I'm just some random stranger!”

“Yeah, exactly. What do you want?” repeated Zhal firmly. 

Gillie thought for a moment. “Hmmm… I want you to give the League your best shot. And… I want you to be careful with all that Team Void stuff. It's more complicated and dangerous than you can even imagine, and you already almost got blown up!” She turned to Kaur. “You especially… If stuff gets dangerous, bail. There are grownups working on sorting this out, okay?”

Kaur nodded silently and sank her teeth deeper into the pendant. 

“My trainer was about your age when he started his Pokémon journey! I didn't know him back then, but he's been a trainer for about 20 years now,” said Gillie. “I think you have potential! Just try not to, yanno, die.”

Kaur nodded again, faster this time. 

Gillie returned her gaze to Zhal. “Now… You can be suspicious all you like, but I wanna emphasize that I mean well. The stuff I gave you is yours, no strings attached. Well, see you later!” Without waiting for Zhal to respond, she ran off and disappeared around the corner of a building. 

–

In the cafeteria, Adrian sat across the table from Renee with his head in his hands. “I did not agree to pretend to be your brother. What the hell?!” 

“Aww, you don't wanna be my big bwother?” cooed Renee, resting her chin in one hand. 

“I said, stop using that gross baby voice!” said Adrian, shaking his head. “You are three times my age, and we are not related.” 

Renee shrugged. “We totally look like we could be, though, right? It works thematically, it's totally innocent!”

“I'm not buying that from someone who went on an unprompted rant about clonecest,” growled Adrian, glaring from between his fingers. 

“It is a complete coincidence that it's also hot to have a villain duo that are siblings!” said Renee, smirking. 

“Why are you like this?!” cried Adrian, running his hands through his hair in exasperation. 

A couple tables away, Sheena leaned back and returned her attention to Anika. “Oof, poor guy.” She lowered her voice. “Like, seriously, clonecest? I’d be tempted to slap her for talking about that.”

Anika took a sip of her soda and shrugged. “I'm sure she'd love that. I feel for the guy, but that SOB is SOL until she gets bored with him. If he quit, it might help, but I wouldn't count on it.” 

“She's such a bully! How can you stand being friends with her?” asked Sheena. 

Anika chuckled. “First of all, I think it's hilarious as long as it's not me in the hot seat. Second, I wouldn't recommend talking shit about her within earshot. Just a suggestion. If we can hear their conversation, they can hear ours… Though, I guess they are kinda yelling, so who knows.”

“Oh! Whoops, good point,” said Sheena, covering her mouth. 

“It's all right. She's a good sport about that kind of thing, but you don't wanna push it,” said Anika. “You can talk shit about her in private all you like, though!”

A few more tables over, Murphy stared into a bowl of soup, occasionally prodding it with a spoon. 

“I know it's not very good, but it's gonna be worse cold,” said Cleo flatly. 

Murphy set his spoon down on the tray. “Honestly, I'm not really all that hungry.”

“Are… you okay?” asked Cleo, raising an eyebrow. 

“Do you think I did the right thing?” murmured Murphy. 

“Curie said they were gonna find it anyway, right?” asked Cleo. She shrugged. “Might as well get credit for it, right?” 

“I suppose,” said Murphy thoughtfully. “Is it weird that I didn't feel guilty until they gave me money for finding it? Like, I just feel like I sold out my friends for the price of a few pairs of really nice pants. I don't feel good about it, Cleo.”

Cleo shrugged. “I mean, I get what you're saying, but they didn't even mention there was a reward before, right? You didn't do it for the money, you just did it to suck up to your boss.”

“Is that worse? I think that might be worse,” said Murphy. 

Cleo shrugged again. “Nah. You're trying to maintain your cover, and helping with that puts you in their good graces.”

–

“Bzzt! Besides the museum, Team Void members were spotted in uniform in Oreburgh Gate, Sunyshore City, and Route 220,” said Rotom. “Bzzt! Murphy also reports non-uniformed Team Void members in the Great Marsh successfully searching for the Toxic Plate, so there may have been disguised groups in other places, perhaps even in smaller numbers so as not to arouse suspicion.”

“Great work, Rotom! Do you think they're searching for the other plates in the other locations?” asked Mackenzie. 

“Bzzt! Very likely,” said Rotom. 

Mackenzie sat back in her seat and pulled her hand down her face. “This isn't good. This isn't good at all. We need to find out what they're doing with those plates.” 

“Bzzt! I suppose it goes without saying that Arceus is involved,” said Rotom. 

“Well, yeah,” said Mackenzie. 

“Bzzt! Any insight on possible uses, based on your experiences in the Church of Arceus?” asked Rotom. 

Mackenzie thought for a moment. “Well, they could be using them to make some sort of weapon. Doesn't take a liaison of Arceus to do that, though we do know that the Church is involved in Team Void, so that's not really a limitation. On the extreme end of things, they could be trying to summon Arceus, and they plan to give it all of the plates. The plates are also powerful items in themselves, and could be used by the Pokémon of the higher ups, which would be ironic if they actually do fight against the Church of Arceus.” She paused. “Yanno… there's something we haven't really considered yet.”

“Bzzt! What is it?” asked Rotom.

“It's entirely possible that Team Void is genuine in its opposition to the Church of Arceus, and the liaisons of Arceus in it are actually defectors,” said Mackenzie. “They would have provided the designs for the cloaking devices, and they are hiding marks to avoid causing dissent among their ranks because nobody would trust them if they knew.”

“Bzzt! How likely do you think that is?” asked Rotom. 

Mackenzie shrugged. “Nonzero. We're operating under the assumption they're just a front for the Church of Arceus, but that may not be the case. Team Void is decidedly villainous, but you know what they say! Your enemy's enemy is not necessarily your friend. Following that line of thinking, your enemies are not necessarily friends with one another. Are you following?”

Rotom paused briefly before speaking again. “Bzzt! I am. Do you have any evidence for this? I can try to do some research if I have somewhere to start.”

“Anecdotally, the random acts of destruction aren't really on brand for my former sect,” said Mackenzie.

“Bzzt! Is there a database of misdoings of the Church of Arceus, specifically categorized by sect?” asked Rotom. “Bzzt! Our data set for Team Void is vanishingly small, but I can still give it a try.”

“I'll ask Tisiphone! If I can get you that info, I will,” said Mackenzie. 

–

“That bad?” asked Gillie. 

Adrian peeled his sweaty face off of the desk in his room. “Yeah. She's horrible. I can see why Tisiphone has a problem with her… But I also wonder why she thought we might get along.”

“No idea, but she seems like a real piece of work!” said Gillie. “Sorry you're dealing with that, she sounds really mean and gross.”

“So mean, so gross,” agreed Adrian. “How'd it go with Kaur and her Eevee?”

“It went well, I think! They liked the stuff, though Zhal got a little suspicious. That's the Eevee's name, by the way!” said Gillie. 

Adrian nodded knowingly. “A healthy concern. That was all very generous of you, by the way! You didn't have to do all that for them.”

“Well, I keep thinking about how you were that age when you became a trainer,” said Gillie. “I don't have much frame of reference for human ages, so I was surprised by how tiny and vulnerable Kaur is. You were really THAT young?!”

“Yup!” said Adrian. “It's crazy even for me to see kids that age and remember I was roaming Johto and Kanto unsupervised.” 

Gillie nodded. “Yeah! So, I feel kinda protective of her, yanno? Especially with all this scary Team Void stuff going on, and her almost dying in that explosion!”

There was a brief silence as Adrian searched Gillie's worried expression. He sighed. “Gillie. It's great that you're helping this kid, but I need you to understand something.”

“What is it?” asked Gillie. 

“Do not hold yourself responsible for every bad thing that happens to this child,” said Adrian firmly. “Bad things happen to new trainers, that's a consequence of sending tweens out into the wild alone. Vast majority of them survive and bounce back afterward , but there's always a risk. We'll help and protect her whenever we're in a position to do so, but most of the time she is entirely her Pokémon's responsibility, just as they are hers.” 

Gillie sat down on her travel bed with a thump. “But, but… She's so smol! I don't want her to get hurt!” 

“We will help when we can,” reiterated Adrian. “But you cannot micromanage this random child's Pokémon journey. Understand?” 

Gillie sighed. “Okay, okay. Well. Can I at least check in whenever I see her?”

“Of course!” said Adrian. “By the way. Does she know I'm your trainer?” 

“Nope! I'm sure I'll eventually have to tell her who my trainer is, and I'm hoping she doesn't feel, like, betrayed or anything,” said Gillie. “Yanno, since you're supposed to be one of the bad guys and all.” 

Adrian shrugged. “I'm not planning on doing anything really heinous, so it'll probably be fine, but I understand your concern.” 

–

Astrit knocked on Mackenzie's open door as he stepped into her office. 

Mackenzie looked up from her computer. “I'm a little busy right now, did you need something?” 

“I just wanted to make sure you got my text message,” said Astrit. “It's important , and you didn't respond.”

“The article about how to help a loved one leave a cult?” asked Mackenzie. 

“Yes, that's the one!” said Astrit. “You got it, then?” 

Mackenzie nodded. “I did, thanks. It's rough going because I have no history at all with her. She barely even knew that I existed until this week, and pretty much everything she was told about me was bad and a blatant lie.”

“I see. I wish you the best of luck with this,” said Astrit. 

“Thanks. I've been told by people who know things that I won't be able to save her, but I couldn't live with myself if I didn't at least try,” said Mackenzie, smiling half-heartedly. 

“Hmm, that's a shame. I'm sorry,” said Astrit. “I'll leave you to your work now!” 

–

Making her way to Mackenzie's office, Tisiphone rounded a corner and came face to face with Astrit.

Chapter Text

Astrit scrambled backwards, eyes wide with fear.

Tisiphone looked down the hallway in both directions before returning her attention to Astrit. “So. You're here, then.”

“I-I am,” stammered Astrit. 

“Did you tell anyone? You know, like. That it was me?” asked Tisiphone, narrowing her eyes. 

“I wouldn't dare,” said Astrit, gesturing frantically. “Evidently, Steve is claiming it was him who begged Giratina for help on my behalf. I haven't corrected anyone on that.” 

Tisiphone chuckled. “I'm glad he's willing to cover for me. Mercy was always more his thing, anyway.”

“Well. Thank you for making an exception for me,” said Astrit. 

“Don't mention it,” said Tisiphone. “I mean, literally don't mention it. Don't remind me, and don't tell anyone. Got it?” 

Astrit nodded quickly. “Of course.”

There was a brief silence as Tisiphone looked Astrit up and down. “You don't look like hot garbage. Looks like being a liaison of Giratina is treating you well.”

Astrit nodded again. 

“Fair warning… If you ever try to speak to me in front of other people, I will punch you directly in the face, and it will hurt,” said Tisiphone firmly. “Understood?”

“I would expect no less from you,” said Astrit, nodding. 

Tisiphone continued down the hallway, giving Astrit a wide berth. “Well… Good luck.”

–

“I think that's enough for today,” said Anika, dusting her hands off. “I think you'll be useful in a fight in no time!” 

“Thank you! I definitely want to be useful. I could hold my own just fine before I got superpowers. Suddenly everyone I'm around has them too, and has had them for much longer, so I need to catch up,” said Sheena. 

Anika nodded knowingly. “It's definitely an adjustment! Within a few years, I'm sure you'll be a force to be reckoned with, given your powers.”

“Well, I appreciate the head start!” said Sheena. 

“Hey, no problem!” said Anika. “Hmm. Rusty, mind if I ask you something?” 

“If you like!” said Sheena. 

“Got any rituals or anything that your patron requires you to do?” asked Anika. “I have to watch the sunrise to recharge my powers, which is a bit inconvenient but still manageable.”

Sheena nodded. “She's in my party, so she has asked me to let her roam at night to recharge her powers. As long as it's physically possible to manage it, anyway!”

“Oho. You have your patron on your Pokémon team?” asked Anika, raising an eyebrow curiously. “I suppose it's not unheard of, but it's certainly not common. Interesting!”

“It's a long story, and I don't really wanna get into it,” said Sheena. “Anyway, it's been difficult to get outside at night to send her out. I feel bad, but there's not much I can do about it.”

“Oh, you're in luck! I have a balcony in my room so I can watch the sunrise. You're welcome to use it to send out your patron, just make sure to knock before you come into my room,” said Anika, grinning. 

“Ah, really? You'd do that for me? Thanks!” said Sheena. 

Anika nodded. “No sweat! Gotta look out for my Cosmog evo pal.”

–

“So, I'll get Rotom that info it asked for,” said Tisiphone, “But I'm not convinced Team Void isn't just the Church of Arceus wearing a sock puppet.”

“They do have a handful of liaisons of Arceus amongst their ranks, but we're finding that there are also a pretty good number of non-Arceus liaisons,” said Mackenzie. “Would there be so many if it was Church of Arceus based?”

Tisiphone rolled her eyes. “There's no shortage of liaisons willing to commit crimes, regardless of whether their patrons get along with Arceus. The fact that Mew is their so-called leader is a pretty damning indicator, due to their alignment with Arceus. There's no way that ‘Vaida’ is really the one pulling all the strings, to boot.”

Mackenzie shrugged. “Okay, but who says the real leader has to be someone from the Church of Arceus?” 

“Listen. You're welcome to look into it more, but right now you should prioritize predicting their next move. Oreburgh Museum wasn't even on the list you came up with, but I suppose that was just a distraction from them presumably searching for Arceus plates,” said Tisiphone flatly. 

“Fine. I got that list you sent me of fabled locations for the plates, and I'll cross-reference them with nearby landmarks,” said Mackenzie. 

Tisiphone raised an eyebrow. “You haven't even started on that yet?” 

Mackenzie glared at Tisiphone. “There's a lot going on right now, okay?” 

“Oh yeah, like with your cousin too,” said Tisiphone thoughtfully. “I getcha, I understand. Well, keep working on this, and we'll see where that leads us.”

–

“What are you fussing about? What we're doing right now is very important and helpful,” said Teeny, floating around the main cavern of Stark Mountain. 

Steve sighed. “Up until now, I haven't been very helpful. Everything I can do, someone else in the office can do much better. I can't snoop around in cities because everyone knows my face. On top of everything, I don't really know most of my new… Coworkers? And I really feel like the odd one out.”

“Okay, and now we are doing something helpful. The more plates we find, the more difference we can make,” said Teeny. “And most liaisons of Giratina are the odd one out, we just happen to be stationed in a building full of desk workers. And they don't seem very exciting, but I bet they're into some weird stuff in their free time.”

Steve shrugged. “Fair enough. I just wonder if it was really a good idea for me to become a liaison of Giratina again.”

Teeny turned to face Steve and crossed their arms. “Can you remind me of the alternative?” 

“I… would have stayed stuck in my detransitioned body, which was not really an option I was willing to consider,” conceded Steve. “Still. After apparently millennia of my sole assigned task being to wander around having adventures, it feels strange to be doing something more structured.”

Teeny reached out a hand to a wall, feeling across the surface of the crumbling rock. “Ah, I think I found something!” They clawed away at the wall for a bit, before finding the corner of an item. They gripped it, then tugged the Flame Plate out of the wall. “Yup, this is what we're looking for!” 

“Great job, Teeny!” said Steve. “Now, I guess we'll move on to the next location.”

–

“Sorry for what I said about your parents the other day,” said Geldau. “That was way out of line.”

Mackenzie shrugged. “Thank you for the apology. You weren't wrong about my parents not loving me, but that stung especially for that reason.”

“I'm sorry, I can't even imagine,” said Geldau. 

“They never wanted to have kids, I was just a means to an end so they could be immortal liaisons,” said Mackenzie. 

“Shame on them!” said Geldau. “Did you know we come from a long line of Born Chosen? My mom was one, and so was our grandfather, and his mother before him. Your dad was born before Grandpa and Grandma were liaisons, so he wasn't ever one.”

Mackenzie raised her eyebrows in surprise. “Really? I had no idea.”

Geldau nodded. “Your parents were very lucky to be offered the opportunity to be immortal liaisons, since neither of them had served as a Born Chosen, and your mother was an outsider. I suppose it would make sense that it was conditional upon them having a child, albeit an unusual arrangement.”

“Lucky me,” said Mackenzie flatly. 

“If it makes you feel any better, they were almost certainly punished for losing you,” said Geldau. “I mean, I never heard they were. But if your version of the story is true, they would have been punished, especially since their liaisonhood was conditional on your birth. In fact, they were very lucky it wasn't stripped from them outright as soon as your mark was removed.” 

Mackenzie rolled her eyes. “What a shame it wasn't, then! But that's good to know.” She paused. “I think… we've had very different experiences with the Church of Arceus. What was it like for you, growing up in the church?”

“Oh, you know. Private school, church twice a week,” said Geldau, tossing her hair to the side. “When I was ten, I started to get to participate in rituals. Only now and then , of course. When I turned 13, it was once a month. It wasn't bad at all, just made me a little tired, and my parents bought me ice cream after!”

Mackenzie chuckled. “My parents didn't send me to school at all. We used to go to church together weekly, but I made a scene one too many times , and they started just locking me in the house while they were gone. They started using me in rituals when I was five, and by the time I was 11 I was used in one a week.”

Geldau gaped in horror. “Wh-what?! I'm sorry, I find it really hard to believe my aunt and uncle would be capable of doing something like that, let alone to a child.”

“Believe me or don't,” said Mackenzie, shrugging. “It's still true, whether you believe it or not. Anyway… How are the rituals for you nowadays?”

“Since I turned 16, it's about two rituals a month, and I'm 19 now,” said Geldau. “They're starting to hurt a lot, but I'm taking a break from them until my ceremony. Oh, I have good news about that, by the way!”

Mackenzie steeled her expression. “Is… that so? What's the news?”

Geldau beamed. “The way things are progressing, they're expecting to do it within a week tops!” 

“Oh, that's… Uh, that's great news,” said Mackenzie, fighting the urge to panic openly. 

“Yeah, I'm so excited! Things are looking up,” said Geldau giddily. “Until then, I'm working on a painting. I'm hoping to finish it before my ceremony, I'll be very busy afterward .” 

“Oh yeah? What are you working on?” asked Mackenzie. 

Geldau stood up, and motioned for Mackenzie to follow.

Mackenzie obliged. 

The room was small, and every horizontal surface was taken up by art supplies, mostly for painting. In the middle of the room sat a chair and an easel. The small painting on the easel depicted a strawberry blonde woman sitting in a field of flowers. Conspicuously missing was her face. 

“It's meant to be a self-portrait , but I can't decide on the facial expression!” said Geldau. “I've been putting it off by adding more flowers, but I'm running out of time, so I better get on it!” 

Mackenzie stared at the incomplete portrait, unease washing over her. She shook her head, snapping herself out of it. “It's… very nice. Is there a reason you won't be able to work on it after you become a liaison? I know it comes with responsibilities, but not that many.”

“I can't tell you,” said Geldau apologetically. “But it's going to be something really special , and I'm going to take on a lot all at once.”

Mackenzie gave Geldau a tight hug. “Well… best of luck.”

“Thank you!” said Geldau, pulling away after a few long seconds. “You okay? You look really pale all of a sudden.”

“I think the paint fumes are making me feel a little sick,” choked Mackenzie, holding back tears as she returned her gaze to the painting. 

“Oh! Sorry, let's get back to the living room, then,” said Geldau. 

–

Hearing a knock at the door to his room, Adrian stood up from his desk, stretched, and answered it. 

In the doorway stood Renee, grinning. “Good afternoon, big brother!” 

Adrian let out a long-suffering sigh. “Well, thanks for not just barging in at least, I guess?” 

“I took things too far yesterday, I figured I should tone things down a notch,” said Renee, shrugging. 

“You're toning things down, but you're still calling me your brother,” observed Adrian flatly. 

“I said a notch, I'm not going that easy on you!” said Renee, her grin widening. “That said, what I said about your gender yesterday was totally uncalled-for , so I wanna apologize. Sorry! I don't, like, actually believe what I said about that. I was just being a dick.”

Adrian rolled his eyes, then shrugged. “Well, thanks for the apology.” 

“Aren't you gonna say ‘it's okay’?” asked Renee, frowning. 

“No, because it's not okay,” said Adrian firmly. “But I do appreciate the apology, or whatever passes for one here.” 

Renee cackled. “Fair enough! Well, time for the next mission. Wanna know where we're going this time?”

“I mean, yeah,” said Adrian. 

“Mt Coronet!” said Renee, putting her hands on her hips. 

“We're going to blow up Mt Coronet?!” blurted Adrian. 

Renee cackled again. “Of course not! It's a fucking mountain. How retarded would that be?” 

Adrian narrowed his eyes. “You were going to blow up a tiny museum yesterday. That doesn't make any more sense to me than a mountain.” 

“Oh, I wasn't actually gonna do that!” said Renee, shrugging dismissively. “The bomb was a decoy.”

“Seriously? What about the people reviving fossils, didn't you have a problem with that?” asked Adrian. 

“How stupid would it be if I really cared about that?” asked Renee, shaking her head. “People have been doing that shit for decades.” 

“Well, excuse me for taking your word seriously,” said Adrian, rolling his eyes. 

Renee cackled again. “Rookie mistake! That's okay. Anyway! Honest to goodness though, what we're doing at Mt Coronet is searching for an item.”

“What item are we looking for, exactly?” asked Adrian. 

“We're looking for the Stone Plate,” said Renee. “Do you know what that is, Adrian?”

Adrian nodded. “I do. It's an item for Arceus to use to change type, right? What use do we have for that?”

“That's right, Adrian,” said Renee, grinning. “And what we're doing with it is building a weapon. We need as many plates as we can get our hands on for it to work properly. Wouldn't it be ironic to use Arceus’ own plates against its liaisons?”

“What kind of weapon?” asked Adrian, eyeing Renee curiously. 

“That's for me to know and you to find out,” said Renee. “All right, let's get going!”

–

“Yanno, it is so nice to be in my old habitat again! Nice and cold,” said Cleo, stretching. 

“That makes one of us,” said Murphy, tugging at his arm warmers. “It's cool and all that they let us wear something else in the Great Marsh, but you'd think they'd let us go off uniform when we're walking through the snow, too.”

“Don't you have some kind of cold resistance?” asked Cleo, raising an eyebrow. 

Murphy nodded. “Yeah, a little. I'm not in danger of frostbite, and I do like the cold, but my legs are wet and the denim is chafing. It's very unpleasant.”

Cleo lowered her voice. “Hey, didn't you find that icy plate thing forever ago?”

“I did, but nobody needs to know that,” said Murphy. “Unfortunately, that also means we'll be here for a while before they realize it's not actually here.”

“Ooh, sucks to be you, then,” said Cleo. 

“Very helpful, thanks,” said Murphy flatly. 

Cleo flopped over into the snow and rolled around. “Listen. I'm having the time of my life here, and I'm not gonna pretend I'm not.”

“Fair enough,” conceded Murphy. 

“I wonder if my ice cave is still around,” said Cleo wistfully. 

–

“You're learning fast!” said Anika. “You need a lot more practice, of course, but I want to try something else now. Let's see if you can integrate intangibility into your fighting style!” 

Sheena wiped sweat from her forehead. “What did you have in mind?” 

“I've got a couple of ideas,” said Anika, rubbing her chin. “The simpler one is you could use it to avoid distanced attacks you can't dodge. That mostly applies to projectiles, as you are likely to still be vulnerable to stuff like fire and poison gas.”

“And the more complicated idea?” asked Sheena.

Anika grinned. “Carefully timed use in close combat. Letting punches pass through you and avoiding being grappled, but becoming tangible just long enough to land hits yourself. Passing through your opponent to attack from behind. Throwing them off balance every time they attack without meeting resistance. If you can pull it off, there are endless possibilities!”

“That sounds really difficult, but also really badass! And, you know, useful,” said Sheena. “I'm willing to give it a shot!”

–

Steve dusted his hands off. “Well, that was a pain, but we found the Iron Plate!”

“Yeah, Iron Island is a little annoying to navigate, but it helps that you're able to move these oil drums by hand,” said Teeny. 

The sound of many feet shuffling through the cave echoed through the cavern. 

“Uh-oh, that must be them,” said Steve, lowering his voice. He pressed his body against the wall, quickly blending into the rock. 

Teeny flew into the ceiling of the cave and hid themself amongst the rocks. 

A small group of Team Void grunts entered the room. 

“The directions say it should be in this pit in the corner here,” said a grunt. He walked into the pit and ran his fingers through the loosened soil. “I think… someone else got here first and dug it up. It looks really recent, but it's hard to tell in a cave. Then again, the exposed soil is still damper than the surface, so it's probably been within the last… hour? They might even still be here.” 

“What are we going to do about it?” asked another grunt. 

The first grunt thought for a moment. “I think… we should look around for anyone who seems like they don't belong here, and search them for the Plate. If we don't have any luck with that, though, we'll just leave. We don't necessarily need to find every plate, and we've got a crew in the Underground searching too anyway.”

Chapter Text

Renee checked her watch. “Damn, it's sure taking them a while.”

“Is there a reason you're not looking for it yourself? Surely you have something better to do than stand around and antagonize me,” said Adrian, peeking out of the cave entrance. 

“Why bother if I don't have to find it myself? And don't call me Shirley,” said Renee. “But really, I'm also out here to head off that Kaur kid if she shows up again. I think we should both be here, I want to be very selective about what all she sees and hears.” 

Adrian raised an eyebrow. “Is there a reason we're humoring her like this? Not that I think we should beat up a child or anything, but it's not exactly a constructive use of our time and energy.” 

Renee cocked her head to the side. “You've really never been on a villainous team before, huh? It's traditional, it's good sportsmanship to let the little vigilantes win a few fights, as long as the losses don't set us back in our goals too much. I personally believe Team Void stands apart from the others in a big way, but I'm not dropping that bit for a reason.”

“I never said I'd been on one before,” said Adrian, shrugging. “So, what's that reason?” 

Renee grinned. “If it looks like a kid can beat us, the authorities don't take us as seriously. And the longer they think we're weak, the more we can get away with before someone with actual teeth decides to step in.”

“And what if the kid actually gets strong enough to win for real?” asked Adrian. 

“You say that as if that's not half the fun!” scoffed Renee. “But actually, if we can't win a fair fight, that's when the fight gets unfair. She's not going to win against our real teams with Pokémon she's been raising for a week, even if she's exceptionally precocious. We have much more to worry about from the adults in play, so don't dwell on it.” 

“Fair enough,” said Adrian, shrugging. 

Renee narrowed her eyes. “Yanno, you seem more the type to be on the other end of this sort of thing. Why did you even join Team Void? Serious question.”

Adrian shrugged again. “Happened to be in the region on other business, and I have a bone to pick with the Church of Arceus.”

“Well, I'm a little surprised you haven't quit yet,” said Renee, rubbing her chin thoughtfully. “Given that we haven't gone after the Church yet, plus the fact that I've effectively taken up residence in your butthole.”

“Are you implying you'd leave me alone if I quit?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

Renee cackled. “Oh goodness, no! I'd just have to kidnap you, chain you up, and keep you as a pet. Why do you ask? Are you planning on quitting?” 

“Absolutely not,” said Adrian, putting his hands up defensively. 

“That was a joke,” said Renee flatly, the corner of her mouth curled up slightly. 

“I do not believe you,” said Adrian firmly. 

“Tch! You hold such uncharitable assumptions about me,” said Renee, shaking her head in mock offense. “Anyway, for the Church of Arceus stuff, we'll be able to really go at it in earnest once we get that weapon ready!”

“Encouraging, if a bit ominous,” said Adrian. “You've made it clear you're not going to tell me what it is until it's ready.”

Renee cackled again. “Yup! That's above your pay grade , buddy. You'll see it when the rest of the team does too!” 

–

“Yanno, this cave is a lot smaller than I remember it being,” said Cleo, patting the icy floor. 

“You were a Sneasel last time you were here, so that tracks,” said Murphy, bent over to avoid hitting his head on the ceiling. 

“Oh yeah, I suppose that makes sense!” said Cleo. “Hey, any guesses about what kind of weapon they're working on?”

Murphy shrugged. “I don't even know. If it truly is going to be used against Arceus, I presume it turns it to the weakest type for an incoming attack. That or something to do with Genesect or Silvally.”

“Don't Genesect and Silvally have their own items for changing type?” asked Cleo. “Also, it would be kinda weird to have another Silvally in play since Tisiphone already has Jeffrey, and he's from another region anyway.”

Murphy shrugged again. “We've got Adrian's evil clone involved, so it wouldn't be so far-fetched to have another double in play!”

“I s'pose so!” said Cleo. “You're the one with the 4th wall powers, so you'd know better than I would.”

“I'm actually completely drawing a blank on this situation, it's like it's intentionally obscured,” said Murphy. “Curie has been completely silent about it, too.” He froze, wide-eyed. “Hold on a minute…”

Cleo scratched her head. “What? What is it?” 

“You know what else is obscured and presented as inevitable?” asked Murphy. 

“... Oh no,” said Cleo. 

Murphy nodded. “Oh yes. I think it might have something to do with Geldau. But what? I know Curie told us there's nothing we can do about it, but maybe that's not really true. Masters of our own destiny and whatnot. Maybe if we can figure out what's going on in time, we can do something about it!”

–

“That could have been bad if someone saw us and identified you, or at least passed along your description to someone who'd recognize you from it,” said Teeny. 

Steve shrugged. “Well, they didn't! So it's fine. But do you really think it would be that bad if they did?” 

Teeny chuckled. “Steve, you might just be the single most recognizable liaison of Giratina. You're very distinctive looking, and you've been kicking around for a long time even if you don't remember most of it.”

“Fair enough!” said Steve. “Hey. About that last bit. If I tell you something, can you keep it quiet?”

“Of course! What fun is it knowing secrets if I tell people?” asked Teeny. 

Steve looked around for anyone who might be within earshot, and lowered his voice. “As part of my new contract… Every time I die, I have the option to get my memories back from a previous life, in reverse order from the most recent.”

Teeny whistled. “Wow. Are you gonna do it?” 

“I… I don't know,” said Steve, taking off his hat and examining it absently. “I'm worried it will change me. I know it will. It's a big decision.”

“Well, I support whatever you wanna do!” said Teeny. 

Steve nodded appreciatively. “Thank you. What I'm really afraid of, though, is if Gillie finds out. She's… going to have opinions about it.”

“My lips are sealed!” said Teeny firmly. “I don't wanna see what happens if she does. If you want to tell her yourself, though, that's your business.”

–

“This is not good,” murmured Mackenzie. “This is not good at all. Shit.”

“Bzzt! Shall we go over what we know, and what is suspected?” asked Rotom, on call on the bottom right of the laptop's screen. 

Mackenzie pulled her hand down her face in exasperation. “Ugh. Sure.”

“Bzzt! So, we know Team Void is collecting the Arceus plates, allegedly to build a weapon,” said Rotom. “Bzzt! We also know that they do not need a full set of plates for this weapon.” It paused. “Bzzt! This is where we get into speculation. Murphy believes Geldau may have something to do with this weapon, or at least with the plates. Bzzt! What do we know about Geldau?”

“W-well, she thinks she's going to become a liaison, and a really powerful and busy one at that,” said Mackenzie. “It also will require additional preparation not typical for a liaison ritual. She also said it could be any day now. I suppose that would track if what they need is the plates , and they don't need all of them…” 

“Bzzt! What do you think they'd use the plates for in a ritual?” asked Rotom. 

Mackenzie thought for a bit. “It sounds like… they're going to try to transform her into some sort of artificial Arceus!” Abruptly, she stood up from her desk. “I have to go see her. Now. I was trying to ease into getting her to open up about it, but we're running out of time.”

“Bzzt! Very well. Good luck, Mackenzie!” said Rotom. “Bzzt! And if it doesn't go well… Be gentle with yourself.”

–

A grunt stepped out of the cave and saluted Renee, revealing his glowing mark of Mew. “Admin Renee! The plate has been secured.”

Renee put her hands on her hips and grinned. “Perfect! I suppose that means it's time to leave, then.”

Kaur appeared, riding up to the cave entrance on her new bike. She dismounted and pointed a shaking finger at Renee. “Hey! Stop right… right there!”

“You heard the girl! Stop whatever you're doing!” shouted Zhal, hopping down from Kaur's shoulders. 

“And what are we doing, exactly?” asked Renee, raising an eyebrow. 

“I… I don't know,” admitted Zhal. “Are you trying to blow up the mountain?”

Renee cackled. “Nah, that would be silly! We're not doing anything suspicious here, just run along on your little adventure and leave the adults to their business.”

“Adults? You're just a kid yourself!” said Zhal. 

“Tch! I'll have you know I'm at least 16 years old!” said Renee, folding her arms. 

“16 is not an adult,” said Zhal flatly. 

Renee rolled her eyes. “Tch! Point still stands. We're not doing anything illegal or anything, so scram!” 

“We're not going anywhere! You're gonna have to fight us!” said Zhal, taking an aggressive stance. 

“Very well,” said Renee, pulling out a Pokéball. “Don't say I didn't warn you!” She sent out a Sandile. 

Zhal stepped aside, allowing Kaur to send out her Bayleef. 

The Bayleef charged into the Sandile, slashing him savagely with her leaf. She attacked again and again relentlessly, bloodying the overwhelmed reptile. 

“Jossie, can you chill a little?” asked Zhal, watching the carnage disdainfully. 

Jossie looked up from the defeated Sandile and growled. Blood dripped from her leaf into the dirt. 

“Whatever, just a suggestion!” said Zhal. 

Renee called the Sandile back, then sent out a Scraggy, which Jossie also made short work of. 

“Tch! I won't be beat just yet!” said Renee. She sent out Trubbish. 

Jossie used Stomping Tantrum, sending shards of ground into her target. 

The Trubbish fainted promptly, and Renee called her back into her ball. “Very well. You've won… this time!” 

“What was it you called my battle last time, sister? An embarrassing display?” asked Adrian smugly. “You got thrashed in no time flat.”

“I was holding back!” growled Renee, glaring at Adrian. 

“So was I, but I guess we both underestimated the kid,” said Adrian. 

Renee rolled her eyes. “Whatever. We got what we needed, anyway. Let's get out of here.”

A procession of grunts emerged from the cave and followed Renee and Adrian away. 

–

“How's your journey going, Kaur?” asked Gillie. 

“It's! It's going… going great!” said Kaur, hopping in place. “I'm having so much… much fun!” She flipped open her badge case. “Look!”

Gillie examined the badges. “Wow, you have two! I don't know the names, but that's great! Good job!”

“Coal!” said Kaur, pointing to the first badge. She moved her finger to the second badge. “Forest!” 

“Coal and forest! Awesome, congrats!” said Gillie. 

Kaur squealed in delight and stuffed her Gabite necklace in her mouth. 

“Those Team Void weirdos are a little campy, don't you think?” asked Zhal. “Like… what siblings literally just call each other brother and sister instead of their names? Seems unnecessary.” 

Gillie shrugged. “Iunno. Hey, I see you're sparkly again! How are those meds treating you?” 

Zhal grinned. “They're working well! No itchy, yes glitter.”

“Awesome!” said Gillie. “If you don't mind me asking, have you decided what you want to evolve into?” 

“Hmmm, I'm thinking something sleek and serious looking, like Umbreon or Espeon,” said Zhal. 

“Both good choices,” said Gillie, nodding. “I don't have anything cool to give you guys today, just wanted to check in and see how you're doing!” 

“Well, we're doing great,” said Zhal. “Kinda worried about Team Void, though. It's cool that we win fights against them, but I don't think we've ever actually stopped them from doing anything. We were too late for that.”

Kaur pulled her necklace out of her mouth. “Well, what about… about… about… uh…”

“The museum?” offered Zhal. 

Kaur nodded quickly. “Yes! Museum.”

“I dunno, there was something weird going on there,” said Zhal thoughtfully. “They didn't seem too bent out of shape over that, their Pokémon were suspiciously weak, and they didn't exactly seem… Busy? When we got there. It's like they were waiting for us.”

“Hmm, suspicious,” agreed Kaur. “Should… should… Um. Do you think… think we should worry?”

Zhal shrugged. “Probably! Gillie, what do you think? You seem to know stuff.”

“Uhhhh,” stammered Gillie. “Uhhh. I mean, there's nothing you can do about it right now, so just focus on the League, okay?” 

Zhal gave Gillie a side eye. “So you do know what's going on.”

“Kinda!” admitted Gillie. “Well, I better get going.”

“Hey, wait!” objected Zhal. 

“Bye!” said Gillie. She put on her cloud mask and rocketed into the air.

Chapter Text

Mackenzie knocked on Geldau's door carefully, trying not to convey her anxiety in the speed of her knocking. 

Geldau opened the door, clad in a blue dress and sporting makeup and carefully coiffed hair. She eyed Mackenzie in confusion. “Mackenzie? What are you doing here this late?”

“Just felt like I should check in on you again,” said Mackenzie. “Sorry, are you busy?” 

“Kinda, but just waiting to be picked up now. You can come in, but I'm leaving soon,” said Geldau. 

“Thank you,” said Mackenzie, entering the apartment. 

The two women made their way to the living room and sat down. 

“This isn't the best timing, but we can chat for a bit!” said Geldau. “You'll probably need to hide when my ride gets here, though. I'll give you my spare key so you can lock up when you leave!” She handed Mackenzie a pink key. 

Mackenzie accepted the key with a nod. “Of course, thank you. Uhh, have you told anyone I'm in town?”

Geldau looked away sheepishly. “I haven't. I'm usually pretty honest with the Church, but I don't want you to get hurt in case they don't want you here. Your parents aren't in town right now as far as I know, for whatever that's worth!”

“I really appreciate it,” said Mackenzie. “Heading out on a date or something?”

Geldau shook her head. “Nope! I just found out my ceremony is tonight.” 

Mackenzie's heart sank. “O-oh…”

“Yeah! I'm absolutely ecstatic!” said Geldau, bouncing in place slightly. “You know what… Okay. I might as well tell you!”

“I'm all ears!” said Mackenzie.

“I'm going to become… a fused liaison of Arceus!” said Geldau cheerfully. 

Mackenzie gasped and gawked at Geldau, eyes wide. 

“What? What is it?” asked Geldau casually. 

“Geldau … I'm not sure how to put this delicately,” said Mackenzie, her voice trembling. “But Arceus… doesn't… share.”

Geldau gestured dismissively. “Oh, I know it's never been done before! I was nervous at first , but they've told me they've got it figured out this time. Why would they lie to me? Besides, Arceus itself visited my dreams and said it would be okay.”

“Geldau, I'm really trying not to push it with you, but I need you to understand what's actually going to happen to you if you go through with this,” said Mackenzie carefully. 

“I'm sure you're wrong, but I'll hear you out anyway,” said Geldau, shrugging. 

“Thank you,” said Mackenzie. “Arceus is going to take full control of your body, destroying your mind and soul in the process. Then, it's going to puppet your body around for a bit while its real body forms inside yours like it's a rotting cocoon. Then, when your body can't contain it anymore, it will be destroyed, unleashing its true form.”

Geldau's eyes widened. “N-no! You're wrong! They… they wouldn't do that to me!”

“It's an old, lower-energy, and more discreet way to summon Arceus,” said Mackenzie gravely. 

“No! It's a different ritual, I'm sure of it!” said Geldau, taking a step backwards. “I know they wouldn't do something like that to me, especially not without telling me. It'll be fine! Arceus said so!”

“Geldau, please, I-” started Mackenzie. 

Geldau shook her head and stood up. She raised her voice. “You're wrong! You're lying! It's not true! You just don't want me to be powerful!” 

Mackenzie opened her mouth, closed it, and looked away. “Is there anything I can do to prove it to you?” 

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. 

“They're here!” said Geldau. “Quick, hide in the painting room!” 

Mackenzie paused briefly, giving Geldau one more pleading look. 

“Go! Hide!” repeated Geldau firmly. 

Reluctantly, Mackenzie made her way to the painting room and shut the door behind her. 

The sounds of someone entering the apartment, followed by two sets of steps leaving it, permeated the door. 

Mackenzie turned away from the door and was confronted with Geldau's painting, still unfinished and faceless. She wept. 

–

“And then I just flew away ‘cause I didn't know what to say without revealing too much,” said Gillie. 

“Smooth,” said Adrian. “Finding the Cloud Mask helpful?”

“Very!” said Gillie. She pulled the Cloud Mask from under her cape and examined it. “The paint is a little messily applied, but it sure does the job!”

Adrian chuckled. “Come on, now! It was a gift, and not bad at all for an apprentice’s work. Kieran got a little overambitious with the shading, but it's still a cute mask!”

“I s’pose,” grumbled Gillie. “It's… a nice mask, but I don't want him to think I owe him anything.”

“Then don't tell him how much you like it,” said Adrian. 

Gillie shrugged, then tucked the mask back under her cape. “Hey, I think I'm gonna go snoop around a bit. Just for funsies!” 

“Go for it! Just don't get caught,” said Adrian. 

“I'll activate my Moonshadow mask!” said Gillie. She pulled out the mentioned mask and held it to her face until her cape turned black, then tucked it away again. 

“Good luck! Let me know if you find anything interesting,” said Adrian. 

Gillie nodded, then stepped out of the room. She moved along the wall of the hallway, her steps silent. Rounding a corner, she spotted Renee and Anika in an office having a conversation. Quickly, she ducked into the shadow of a potted plant just outside the room and immediately became nearly transparent. 

“Hah, you can say that again!” said Renee, grinning. “So, how's it going with your pet spy?” 

“I've got her full attention with training. She's not going to give us any trouble,” said Anika. “I almost feel bad about how easy she is to distract, but she's getting some genuinely good battle prep out of the deal. She's sweet, and not at all cut out for whatever on earth she's actually supposed to be doing, but she's a fast learner , and I'm actually kinda proud of her progress. How's snakebites kid doing?”

“Still torturing him,” said Renee matter-of-factly. “I'm like 90% sure he has a wire on him, so I'm feeding him a bunch of plausible bullshit. Just enough real stuff that he doesn't seem to suspect anything. He's not as slick as he thinks, asking all of those questions… It's laughably obvious what he's up to. And he just eats it up. What a fucking retard.”

Anika gave Renee a sideways glance. “I know I'm one to talk, but you've gotta stop using that word, Nay. I know you're big on acting immature and unpleasant, and I'm not about to get in the way of that, but slurs are low brow even for you.” 

“But it's my favorite!” whined Renee, feigning offense. “You just hate fun.”

“You have a favorite slur?” asked Anika. “Embarrassing.”

“It's a joke, not a dick. Don't take it so hard,” said Renee, rolling her eyes. 

There was a brief silence as Anika glared at Renee. 

Renee stuck out her tongue. “Nyeeh.”

Anika shrugged, then reached over and tousled Renee's hair. “You're an awful little creature, you know that?” 

“Oh, I know,” said Renee, her grin widening. 

–

“Bzzt! I have informed the others of the situation,” said Rotom, speaking through a voice call. 

“Thank you, Rotom,” murmured Mackenzie. 

“Bzzt! Are… you all right, Mackenzie? That was a lot just now, wasn't it,” said Rotom. 

Mackenzie sighed. “Not really, but thanks for asking. I just… I don't know what to do. I'm frozen. If I had any chance to convince her to escape, it's gone now. It's so much worse than I thought, too. I thought maybe they'd just make her into some sort of weapon, but this… This is a fate worse than death.”

There was a brief silence. 

“Bzzt! If I can be blunt for a moment. Are you just going to give up like that?” asked Rotom. “Bzzt! I know Curie said it's inevitable, but you were keen on trying anyway. The ritual hasn't been performed yet, there's still time before she's gone for good.”

“I mean, no! I'm not!” said Mackenzie. “But… but... I 'm scared. I know that, if I go there, I'm basically walking into a Sevipers’ nest of people who would cheerfully pummel me into the ground. And, I just… don't know if Geldau will accept me rescuing her. You heard what she told me before leaving. She thinks I don't want her to be powerful. Sure, she sounded uncertain, but… but…”

“Bzzt! Before I condone entering a potentially very dangerous situation, may I ask if you revive when killed?” asked Rotom. 

“I do, but it's inconvenient and messy, so I'd rather avoid it,” said Mackenzie. 

“Bzzt! If I can be pessimistic for a moment here: even assuming Curie was right and what's happening will happen regardless of how hard you try to stop it… Is it worth risking inconvenience and mess to have a chance of getting closure?” asked Rotom.

Mackenzie thought for a moment. “Well… When you put it that way…”

–

In the Underground, Murphy picked at the wall absent-mindedly. He took a break to peek at his findings thus far, a generously sized pile of spheres, fossils, and random items. At the very least, that junk was his to keep. A couple more chips in, he caught a glimmer of pink under the loose rock. His eyes widened. 

“Yes, it's the Pixie Plate,” said Curie silently. 

“I don't suppose it's possible to pocket this one, is it?” asked Murphy, glancing at Raiden, presently standing further down the hallway. 

“You can try,” said Curie. “But I'd recommend doing it in a way that won't get you in trouble if you're caught.”

Murphy thought for a moment, then exposed just enough of the plate to put an illusion over it. He carefully excavated the item, then walked over to Raiden, plate in hand. 

“Hmm? Found something, Razz?” asked Raiden. 

Murphy offered the plate to Raiden. “Is this what we're looking for?” 

The Commander accepted the plate and gave it a quick look over. “What a coincidence! This is the same one you found in the Great Marsh!” He turned the plate in his hands, brow furrowed in contemplation. 

Murphy watched anxiously as his illusion was scrutinized. 

Raiden nodded, then handed the plate back to Murphy. “Strictly speaking, I'm not supposed to do this… but we don't need another copy of this item, and you did find the other yourself after all! Congrats, it's yours.”

“Thank you, sir!” said Murphy, stuffing the plate into his bag. 

“Don't tell anyone I let you have that, and don't go waving it around in the barracks,” said Raiden firmly. “I don't want anyone to think they can just take these for themselves willy-nilly.”

Murphy nodded appreciatively. “Of course! My lips are sealed.”

–

“Yeah, honestly I was a little concerned that might be the case. We haven't exactly been meticulous about concealing ourselves,” said Adrian. “That said, it's definitely not good news. I guess we don't know yet if Murphy is compromised, but he's a lot better at blending in, especially with his powers.”

Gillie sighed and flopped onto her bed. “So, what are we gonna do about it? Do we just give up and bail?”

“No idea about Sheena, but I don't think Renee is going to let me get away with that,” said Adrian wearily. “I guess the best we can do for now is pretend we don't know and think of a better plan.”

Adrian's Rotom phone extracted itself from his pocket. “Bzzt! We have an emergency situation in progress.”

“Hmm, that's not good!” said Adrian. “What's going on?” 

“Bzzt! The Church of Arceus is about to summon Arceus into a human body,” said Rotom. “That body being Mackenzie's cousin, Geldau. That's the ritual she's been waiting for. Bzzt! She thinks she's going to become a fused liaison, but that's not a thing for Arceus, apparently.”

“Oh, fuck. What are we going to do about it?” asked Adrian. 

“Bzzt! Uncertain,” said Rotom. “The liaisons of Giratina are under strict orders not to engage, for reasons unspecified. Mackenzie is en route to the facility Geldau is being brought to.”

“Shit. Is there anything I can do? Should I try to follow?” asked Adrian. 

“Bzzt! I'm sure she'd appreciate the backup, yeah,” said Rotom. 

Adrian changed into his street clothes and shrugged on his trench coat. He made it most of the way down the hallway before running into Renee, who was also out of uniform, having replaced her crop top and skirt with a baggy t-shirt and sweatpants. 

“Hey. Whatcha doin’?” asked Renee casually. She put her hands on her hips and tapped her foot. “Going somewhere?” 

“Uhhh, I was gonna go to the mall,” lied Adrian.

Renee raised an eyebrow. “Without your uniform?” 

“You're not wearing yours either,” observed Adrian. 

“I can do whatever I want, I'm your boss,” said Renee, her tone slightly mocking. “Put your uniform on. You have training exercises to do. Commander Anika?”

Anika walked over. “Yeah, you heard her, snakebites. Go get dressed, I'll be waiting outside your door.”

“Yeah, what she said,” said Renee. “Have fun with that. I've got more important shit to do right now, so I'll see you later.”

–

Waiting in the training gym, Sheena eyed her phone nervously. Mackenzie needed help, but she was stuck until Anika was satisfied with her work for the day. The door opened, and she quickly stuffed her phone back into her pocket. 

“Okay Rusty, I've got a nice little challenge for you!” said Anika, cracking her knuckles. She froze and tilted her head to the side. “You look a little antsy. Need to go to the bathroom or something?” 

“No, I'm fine!” said Sheena. “What's the challenge?” 

Anika tugged a reluctant-looking Adrian into the room by his arm. “You're gonna spar with this guy. I don't know anything about his fighting skills, but he's a fused liaison. No transforming allowed in this fight, though, so he probably won't be too difficult for you.”

Sheena and Adrian exchanged uncomfortable glances. 

“Say, do you two know each other?” asked Anika, feigning surprise.

“Not really, but-” started Adrian. 

“We're exes,” blurted Sheena. 

Anika chuckled. “Well, I suppose this will be particularly satisfying for you, then!” She looked Adrian up and down and frowned. “No offense, but you don't really look like you're into women.”

“Yeah, that's part of why we broke up,” said Sheena, sighing. 

“H-hey!” objected Adrian. 

Anika cackled. “Wow, harsh!” She turned to Adrian again. “What, did you leave her for a man or something?” 

“... Yes,” grumbled Adrian. 

“Tsk! Damn, that's cold. Shame on you!” said Anika, shaking her head. “On the plus side, this should be very entertaining.”

–

Mackenzie stared at the outside of the nondescript building, key card clutched tight to her chest. Her eyes traced the door as she stood frozen in indecision.

Suddenly, a tall, slim figure stepped out of an alleyway, still obscured by the darkness. 

Caught unawares, Mackenzie hesitated just long enough to see the man step into the light. Her eyes widened. “Astrit?! What are you doing here?” 

“Oh good! I'm here just in time,” said Astrit brightly. He held out another key card to Mackenzie. “The one you have now was deactivated, but this one should work properly.”

Mackenzie accepted the card. “Thank you. I don't suppose you'd be able to join me?”

“I cannot,” said Astrit, his expression pained. “I would if I were permitted to do so, though I don't have any useful powers. But I'm pushing it with this as it is.”

“I understand. Thank you anyway, this will help a lot,” said Mackenzie. She paused. “Not that I don't think you did the right thing, but should you really be pushing it right now when things are so precarious for you?” 

Astrit shrugged. “Probably not. But… You're the closest thing I've had to a friend in centuries. I had to help as much as I could.”

There was a brief silence.

“I'm… not really sure how to respond to that, except to say that I'm glad we're friends,” said Mackenzie. 

Astrit's eyes widened, and he nodded. “I'm glad too. Now… good luck in there.”

“Thank you,” said Mackenzie. She leaned in for a moment like she was going in for a hug, thought for a moment, leaned back again, and offered a fist. 

Astrit eyed Mackenzie's fist in confusion. 

“Fist bump? Tap your fist on mine. It's something friends do,” said Mackenzie. 

“Oh! I see.” Hesitating briefly, Astrit gingerly bumped his fist against Mackenzie's. 

“Yeahhh! Fist bump!” said Mackenzie. She turned around, tapped the key card to the door, and walked in. 

–

“All right, just to remind you, transforming is not permitted in this exercise,” said Anika. 

“What about other powers?” asked Adrian. “Like Pokémon moves, for example.”

“I suppose that's only fair. Just try not to kill each other,” said Anika, shrugging. 

Sheena nodded. “That's fine by me!” 

Adrian side-eyed Sheena. “I'm about to get my ass kicked, aren't I.” 

“Probably!” agreed Sheena, taking a fighting stance. 

Adrian squared up across from Sheena. “Bring it.”

“All right, get ready!” said Anika. “Three… Two… One… Go!”

Adrian ran forward and threw a punch at Sheena. It passed straight through her head, and he stumbled to the side. “Ah, fuck.”

Wasting no time, Sheena grabbed Adrian by the wrist, hoisted him above her head effortlessly, and tossed him across the room. 

Adrian coasted through the air for a few seconds before his trajectory took a drastic downward turn , and he crashed to the floor. Pausing for a moment, he rolled over onto his back but did not get up. 

“Seriously, Adrian? This is why everyone thinks you're a bottom,” said Sheena, shaking her head. 

“Is that supposed to be an insult?” asked Adrian, sitting up. “I'll have you know I've been having the time of my life, regardless of who's topping. I've had sex with more men in the past year than you have in your whole life.”

“I… did not need to know that,” said Sheena, rolling her eyes. 

Adrian chuckled. “You're the one who brought it up!” 

“He's not wrong!” said Anika. 

Sheena glared at Anika. “Whose side are you on?!”

Anika cackled. “I'm not on anybody's side! I just want to see how you match up. Keep up the arguing, though, it's hilarious!” She turned to Adrian. “Get up, snakebites. Are you really going to just give up after getting tossed one time?”

Grumbling, Adrian got to his feet and dusted himself off. “Fine. If I must.”

“Tch! Typical for you,” said Sheena. “You're so fucking lazy, and-”

Adrian lunged forward and landed a punch in Sheena's gut. 

“Ungh!” gasped Sheena, doubling over. 

“I am not lazy,” said Adrian, backing away. 

“Rusty, banter is all well and good, but you need to keep your attention on the fight!” chided Anika. 

“I know, I know!” groaned Sheena. She jumped backwards and floated with her feet just above the floor. 

“Snakebites, don't just stand there looking surprised you got a hit in! I know you must be faster than this,” said Anika. “This is a fight, not a cute little game where you take turns.”

Adrian sighed, but held his stance. “Look, it's weird fighting my ex, okay? We may not like each other, but I can't say I've ever wanted to-”

Sheena grabbed Adrian by the front of his shirt and tossed him across the room again, this time throwing him a bit higher. 

After sailing through the air for a few seconds, Adrian dipped down again, crashing to the floor harder this time. He sat up. “... Put my hands on her.”

“That's not what this is about!” shouted Sheena. “Get up and fight me! What, are you afraid to lose to a woman if you actually try?”

Adrian stood up again. “No! Fine, fine. Sorry, I'll get more serious now.”

“Good grief! It's always a struggle getting you to do even the bare minimum. Your orientation isn't the only reason we broke up, it was just the last straw!” said Sheena. 

“Come on! Focus! Focus!” said Anika.

Chapter Text

Mackenzie moved swiftly down the hall. The surveillance cameras were easy enough to dodge, seemingly having been added as an afterthought.

The structure seemed to be an office building, with an array of key-card-locked rooms along the hallway. However, after turning the corner, she came across what seemed to have once been the rear exterior of a church. Familiar with this type of layout, Mackenzie checked the doorknob and found it unlocked. Being as quiet as she could manage, she slipped through the wooden doorway. 

Mackenzie scanned the hallway for cameras. Seeing none, she passed several small rooms before spotting a side entrance to the sanctuary. 

–

Murphy stepped away from the wall and stretched. He looked down at his increasingly uncomfortable uniform in disdain, now covered in dust and wet with sweat. “I just don't understand why it had to be skinny jeans. These may be sturdy ones, but they're so impractical! They could have at least given us something else to wear while doing this.”

“It just goes with the style, I guess?” offered Cleo. 

“Something with a regular fit in the same colors would have looked just fine,” said Murphy. “It didn't need to be something that restricts movement like this!” 

Cleo shrugged. “Maybe whoever designed it just likes to see men in tight pants. Do you think they hired a designer?”

“I think teams usually do, when finalizing their uniforms. I assume they'd already have something in mind before hiring one, though,” said Murphy. 

“So I guess the question is, who's the pervert?” asked Cleo, rubbing her chin. 

“I highly doubt it's Mew, I don't think they'd bother with something like that. Besides, the uniform they were wearing-” started Murphy. 

“Mew? Where does Mew come into this?” interjected Cleo. 

Murphy raised an eyebrow. “Uhh, Vaida? Mew in disguise?”

“That is news to me,” said Cleo. “How do you know?”

“We already suspected it, but I confirmed it when they put their mark on me , and I was able to identify it,” said Murphy. 

“How do you know Vaida isn't just a liaison of Mew?” asked Cleo. 

Murphy chuckled. “That's easy! Liaisons can't place marks, only the Legendary or Mythical Pokémon it belongs to can place one.”

“And did you actually… Tell? Anyone?” asked Cleo. 

There was a brief silence. 

“Didn't I? I… thought I did,” said Murphy. 

“I think you just said it really loud in your head, because I don't remember you telling me this at all,” said Cleo.

“I guess that's a pretty important thing to forget. I thought everyone was in the loop, the potential for a war between the god of humans and the god of Pokémon has concerning implications,” said Murphy. 

Cleo sighed. “Well, you better tell them now!” 

“No cell service in the Underground, and Curie has been weirdly silent today,” said Murphy. “The shit could be hitting the fan up there right now , and I wouldn't know. I suppose I can try to reach out to Curie anyway!”

“Yeah, do that,” said Cleo. 

–

“And I didn't even want to make that casserole!” said Sheena. 

Adrian rolled his eyes. “Oh, again with the fucking casserole! Nobody asked you to make one. It was unnecessary!”

“All you were going to bring was beer! I didn't want us to look lazy!” shouted Sheena.

“People loved the beer!” huffed Adrian, shrugging. “It's not my fault nobody was in the mood for green beans at a New Year's Eve party!”

“If you'd told me about it sooner than three hours before the party, I could have gotten ingredients for cupcakes!” growled Sheena. 

“Okay, okay! Time out,” said Anika. “When I heard exes, I was expecting you two would smack each other around a bit and make it personal. I was not expecting a screaming match rundown of the many failures of your five-year marriage. Can you two get a grip? Please?” 

Sheena and Adrian looked up from their argument, their expressions sheepish. 

Anika pointed at Adrian. “You! You're a twat.” She pointed at Sheena. “You? You're better than this. Come on.”

“Sorry,” mumbled Sheena. 

“How about this. How about you two wrap it up and get your heads in the game?” asked Anika. She pointed to the corner of the room. “Go over there and get this out of your system…” She pulled down her sunglasses and winked at Sheena. “... Where I don't have to listen to you gripe.” 

“Yes, Commander Anika! Thank you,” said Sheena. 

“Suck-up,” mumbled Adrian. 

Anika chuckled. “Don't mention it… Really, don't. Anyway, you've got five minutes, starting…” She glanced at her watch. “... Now.” 

The two combatants shuffled into the corner. 

“Sorry, I panicked and the first thing I thought of was being exes!” whispered Sheena. “Sorry for calling you a repugnant slob. I got a little too into it.”

“Hey, it's fine. For the record, if we were married, I absolutely would have ditched bowling night to go to your best friend's tuba recital with you,” said Adrian. 

Sheena glanced at Anika. “She winked at me. I guess she suspects we're not really exes.”

“So now we know that she knows,” said Adrian. “But does she know that we knew that she knew why we're here?” 

“Who knows?” asked Sheena, shrugging. “But more importantly, why is she giving us the opportunity to discuss what we're doing?” 

Adrian glanced briefly at Anika. “Does she have some kind of hearing power? Maybe she's hoping we'll spill something she doesn't already know.”

“Not to my knowledge, but everyone here is at least a little secretive about their powers,” said Sheena. “Maybe she's… actually trying to help?” 

“I dunno about that,” said Adrian. “If I can be blunt for a moment. The way you act around her… it seems like she's got you wrapped around her finger. I don't mean just now, I've seen you following her around like a puppy. Maybe she seems nice to you, but you don't end up besties with Renee without being at least a little evil and mean-spirited.” 

Sheena opened her mouth to say something, then closed it. She sighed. “You're probably right. She has been super helpful with teaching me to fight, and I'm grateful for that. But I suppose that doesn't mean she has good intentions.”

“One more minute!” shouted Anika. 

“So, what's the plan now?” asked Adrian. 

Sheena shrugged. “We fight, fair and square. We don't have to hit each other that hard, but we can't avoid it.”

“You're going to kick my ass,” murmured Adrian. 

“You are going to make an effort,” said Sheena flatly. “It doesn't matter who wins, but she'll know if you're slacking. Plus… don't insult me by going easy on me. We both have superpowers .”

“Time's up!” shouted Anika, gesturing for Sheena and Adrian to return to the center of the room. 

–

Ducking to the floor to hide behind a pew, Mackenzie crawled through the open side door and into the sanctuary. Moving as quietly as she could, she peeked around the bench to get a look at the chancel. 

Around the altar was a large magical diagram. About a dozen teenagers in white robes were evenly distributed across the pattern, and in the center, atop the altar itself, was Geldau. She sat in her beautiful blue dress, grinning giddily. At her feet was an arrangement of colorful stone tablets… Arceus’ plates.

A few dozen people populated the seats. Mackenzie surmised they were mostly family of the assortment of Born Chosen in the circle, likely including Geldau's parents. 

Two men in hooded white robes stood just outside the circle. Upon closer examination, one robe was trimmed with silver and the other with a dull gray. 

As Mackenzie peered closer, she felt a hand grab her upper arm, and she was yanked to her feet. 

“Now, what do we have here?” asked a voice behind Mackenzie's back. The guard managed to pull both of her arms behind her back and wrangled a pair of handcuffs onto her wrists. 

“Let me go!” cried Mackenzie. She struggled and strained against the cuffs, but they were too sturdy to break, despite her considerable strength. 

“Mackenzie?! What are you doing here?” asked Geldau , beginning to stand up before thinking better of it. 

The small crowd began to turn to look at the intruder. 

“Muthia?!” cried a familiar voice. 

Mackenzie turned to see her mother staring at her in shock. The woman sported blonde hair in an updo, and was clad in a modest green dress. Her diamond earrings sparkled in the light as she sneered down at her estranged daughter. 

“Uhhh, who?” asked Mackenzie, her voice wavering unconvincingly. 

“Muthia! My wretched daughter!” spat Mackenzie's mother. 

Scandalized gasps and murmurs rose from the crowd. 

“Fine,” mumbled Mackenzie. “Looks like you're still a massive bitch, Grace. How's Kirmen? Still a piece of shit? I don't see him here, did you divorce yet?”

“Your father is preoccupied and could not attend,” growled Grace. She glanced at Geldau, then returned her gaze to Mackenzie. “How dare you interrupt my niece's ceremony. Just because you are jealous of her doesn't give you the right to interrupt!”

“I am not jealous, I'm- mmmf! Mmf!” Mackenzie's sentence was cut off as one of the guards gagged her with a thick piece of cloth. 

Geldau stared at Mackenzie in shock and dismay, as if experiencing a betrayal. “Mackenzie! How could you?! I thought we were friends!” 

Mackenzie struggled and made muffled attempts at speech. Abruptly, a pair of orange-feathered wings erupted from her back, knocking back the guards restraining her. She flapped her wings a few times, attempting to fend them off. 

After a few flaps, two guards seized hold of Mackenzie's wings and pulled them back. 

“A knife! Give me a knife!” cried a third guard, holding a hand out as he approached Mackenzie. A knife was provided, and he moved in on her. Working quickly, he cut into the base of her wing. The sharp knife cut through bone with ease, severing the wing. Bright red blood splattered on the guard and spilled to the floor. 

Mackenzie screamed through the gag, eyes filled with tears. She tried to wrench away her other wing, but to no avail. 

The guard severed Mackenzie's other wing, eliciting another scream. He grabbed her by the shoulders and pulled her against his body, restraining her firmly. 

Geldau watched the bloody scene in horror. She started to stand up. 

“Now, now, Geldau dear,” cooed Grace. “Did she try to trick you into canceling your ceremony? How typical of her! If she can't have that power, nobody can.”

“But… But…” stammered Geldau. 

Abruptly, the severed wings burst into flames, singeing the guards holding them. They quickly disintegrated into ash. 

“Did you see that?!” shouted Grace, pointing a shaking finger in Mackenzie's direction. “She's a creature sent from hell, come to tempt you into straying! She was never your friend. She lied to you.” 

Mackenzie gave Geldau a pleading look, shaking her head desperately. 

Geldau locked eyes with Mackenzie for a few excruciatingly long seconds, then looked away. “I… believe you, Aunt Grace.”

“Good girl,” cooed Grace. “Now… Let's get started.”

Mackenzie sobbed through her gag.

“Ma'am, shall I remove her from the sanctuary?” asked the bloodied guard holding Mackenzie. 

“No,” said Grace firmly. “Let her watch.”

The two men in the white robes approached the diagram reverently. 

The room fell silent, the gossiping and muttering suddenly absent. 

The robed men made their way to opposite sides of the circle. Each put a hand on one of the assortment of Born Chosen, holding it there for several seconds. 

A mark lit up on the shoulder of one of the ones being touched, shining yellow through her robe. 

The boy selected on the other end of the circle looked up, and a mark on his cheek lit up a brilliant orange. 

The two men stepped back from the circle, and the man with silver trim lifted his arms in triumph. “It begins!” 

Starting from around those who were touched, the diagram began to emit bright white light that traveled rapidly along the lines. Whenever light came into contact with a Born Chosen, their mark began to glow as well, and light traveled along the diagram faster and faster as it reached more of the teens. 

Once the entire diagram was glowing, an otherworldly wind picked up in the sanctuary. The room was mostly free of debris and other items that might be picked up by the wind, but it whipped through the gathered audience, putting hair into disarray and snatching the few hats in the room. 

The wind made the ashes of Mackenzie's wings airborne, causing a moment of confusion. 

Mackenzie managed to break free of the guard holding her, and staggered towards the altar. 

A hand shot out from a pew and grabbed Mackenzie's arm, sharp manicured nails digging into her skin. 

Mackenzie looked up at her captor, making eye contact with a furious Grace. 

“Oh no you don't!” snarled Grace, glaring down at her daughter, face twisted in hate. 

A guard caught up and tackled Mackenzie to the floor. 

Through all the chaos, the air remained still within the circle. Marks brightened to white, and their hapless hosts began to whimper and weep. The smell of burning flesh pervaded the room. 

Geldau surveyed her suffering peers uneasily, still untouched herself. Looking back at the assembled audience, her gaze lingered briefly on her broken and bleeding cousin before returning to the circle. 

The wind accelerated , and the lights flickered out, leaving only the glow of the diagram and the marks of the Born Chosen. A few seconds later, they, too, faded. 

The room was pitch-black and silent for a few seconds. The air above the altar began to shimmer and sparkle, and a high-pitched metallic sound permeated the room, reaching a painful volume. A white orb coalesced high above the altar. 

Geldau shakily got to her feet and faced the orb, arms wide and welcoming. 

Mackenzie watched helplessly as the orb began to descend towards her cousin. 

Slowly, the orb approached Geldau, the light intermittently dimming and brightening as though it had a pulse. 

“It's… It's warm,” murmured Geldau, reaching for the orb. 

The orb suddenly sped up, colliding with Geldau's body. Both parties rose into the air as the contents of the orb poured into her. Her limbs went limp, then stiffened straight out as if she was being put on like a glove. The loud metallic ringing continued, but did not fully obscure the gruesome slurping sounds and cacophony of crunching bone that accompanied this display. 

As the last of the light poured into Geldau's body, she began to sink down to the altar, and the room fell into full darkness again. After a few seconds, the lights of the room flickered back on again, revealing Geldau sprawled on the altar. She began to stir, and sat up. After examining her hands curiously, she looked down at her beautiful blue dress and scowled. “What is this trash I'm wearing?!” She stood up, then ripped the dress off, clawing it away from her body indignantly. 

“Lord Arceus! Are you all right?” asked the man in the silver-trimmed robe, his voice full of trepidation. 

“Bring me a robe!” demanded the not-Geldau, tearing its undergarments off, leaving it fully nude. It rubbed its face, paused, and peered disdainfully at the makeup that came off on its hand. “And bring me a rag, too. My face is filthy.” It took several staggering steps, its movements unnatural and stiff. 

The man with the silver trim nodded. “Of course, Lord Arceus!” He gestured to the plates at the base of the altar. “We have gathered some of your plates. Please take them.” 

The not-Geldau picked up the Toxic Plate and examined it. “So you have. However, this set is incomplete. Why?” 

“It is taking longer than expected to acquire them, but we expect to find all of them soon,” said the silver-trimmed man. 

The guard on top of Mackenzie stood up, then pulled her to her feet. “Lord Arceus. What do you want to do with this woman?”

Mackenzie looked up at the creature who used to be her cousin, anguish on her face and tears in her eyes. 

“Thought you could save her, did you?” asked Arceus, a smug grin spreading across its face. “Too bad. Anyway, can you do me a favor and die now?” Before Mackenzie could react, it raised a hand in her direction and unleashed a beam of light. 

The attack hit Mackenzie, and she doubled over in pain. Her senses faded, and the last thing she saw was the flames painlessly claiming her body.

Chapter Text

Stepping out of a pile of smoldering embers, Mackenzie dusted herself off, then looked at her soot-covered hands disdainfully. A shower and then a load of laundry would be in order once she returned to her hotel. In her post-resurrection calm, she got a better look at the empty sanctuary. 

The room had been stripped of the usual loose items one would expect in a church, such as candles, books, and bulletins, likely in preparation for the ritual. Smears of ashes painted a radius starting from some distance behind her, presumably from her severed wings’ self-destruction. Fresh blood was splattered on the floor behind her, in unsettlingly copious amounts and slightly dried around the edges, but not yet beginning to oxidize. 

The stained-glass in the windows had been replaced with fresh red bricks that clashed with the rest of the interior of the building, adding a discordant air of disrepair to a room otherwise kept intact after renovation. The magic circle was still visible in the front of the room, now revealed to have been burned into tarps surrounding the altar. An abandoned bonnet dangled from a sconce irreverently. 

Cleanup had evidently not been prioritized immediately following the ceremony, which was fortunate, lest Mackenzie have the misfortune of reconstituting in the garbage. 

Cautiously, Mackenzie made her way to the altar, carefully stepping over the scorched lines of the diagram. She scooped up the tattered remains of Geldau's beautiful blue dress and cradled them in her arms. She stared at the scraps of cloth for a few seconds, then pulled them to her face and sobbed into them. 

After crying for longer than she'd have liked to dally, she stuffed the dress into her digital storage bag and made her way out of the sanctuary. 

–

“Okay, are you two ready to actually take this seriously?” asked Anika, putting her hands on her hips. 

“Yes, Commander Anika!” said Sheena. 

“Yup! I got this,” said Adrian. 

The two challengers faced off across the gym. 

“Okay, go!” said Anika. 

Adrian darted across the room, hurtling towards Sheena. 

Casually, Sheena floated up into the air, well out of reach. 

Skidding to a halt, Adrian eyed his now airborne opponent in irritation. “Oh, son of a… Come on!”

Sheena dipped down to launch a kick at Adrian, then another and another. 

Adrian held up his arms, blocking the barrage of attacks. Eventually he spotted an opening and grabbed Sheena's ankle, pulling her down and punching her in the gut. 

“Eep! Ugh!” grunted Sheena. She shook herself loose again and disappeared. 

Standing up straight again, Adrian peered around suspiciously, searching for his opponent. 

Seemingly out of nowhere, Sheena appeared and kicked Adrian in his upper back, sending him sprawling to the floor. She touched down on his back and stomped him a few times. 

Adrian flipped over quickly, hoping to throw Sheena off balance. 

Sheena jumped high into the air and hovered above Adrian, looking down at him and plotting her next move. 

Pacing the floor, Adrian glared up at Sheena, waiting for her to attack again. 

“Snakebites, can't you fly?” shouted Anika. 

“Uhhh, not that I know of?” said Adrian. 

“Since you're a fused liaison, if your patron can fly, then you probably can too,” said Anika. 

“You can,” said Darkrai silently. 

“I perhaps would have liked to learn that sooner,” replied Adrian. 

“Would you like me to take over?” offered Darkrai. 

“She said no transforming,” said Adrian. 

“We don't have to transform for me to take control. How about it?” asked Darkrai. 

“You know what, sure. Go ahead,” said Adrian. 

Adrian shuddered, stretched, and shifted into a position with his hands held in front of him. His feet lifted off of the floor as he rose into the air. 

“Hmm, that can't be good,” said Sheena. 

Adrian lunged at Sheena, swiping at her viciously. 

Dodging deftly, Sheena wheeled around for another attack. 

The two combatants exchanged attempted blows for a bit, dodging until one of Sheena's punches connected, throwing Adrian backwards. 

Adrian regained his balance and put a bit more distance between himself and Sheena before raising his hands above his head. A large crimson bubble formed between his hands, and it began to launch smaller bubbles in all directions, peppering the room with Dark Void. 

Anika used Protect, forming a barrier around herself. “Hey, watch it!” 

After dodging and teleporting for a bit, Sheena succumbed to one of the bubbles. A pink bubble expanded around her body before fading to red, and she dozed off. She floated down to the floor like a falling leaf. 

–

Finally having emerged from the Underground, Murphy checked his phone. “Oh… Oh, no.”

“What? What's going on?” asked Cleo. 

“Geldau is being turned into a host for Arceus, and Mackenzie went after her to try to stop that from happening,” said Murphy. “Adrian and Sheena aren't responding, Steve and Tisiphone aren't allowed to do anything, and Adrian's Rotom phone lost contact with Mackenzie as soon as she entered the building.”

Cleo grimaced. “Oof, that can't be good.”

Murphy shook his head. “No, it's not good at all. It's… really, really bad. Worse than I feared, honestly. And if Curie was right, Mackenzie has no chance of stopping it from happening.”

“Oh shit. What are we gonna do about it?” asked Cleo. 

Murphy sighed. “Well, I think the best course of action is to assume the ritual will be successful, and plan accordingly.” He paused. “This… shouldn't have been allowed to happen. This is the kind of thing the liaisons of Giratina are supposed to prevent from happening in the first place.”

“Do we know what they're planning yet?” asked Cleo. 

Murphy shook his head. “No, and unfortunately their plan in Alola was really, really dumb, so I don't have a frame of reference. It could be them doing anything from trying to increase their influence in Veilstone somehow to destroying the world. I just wish I knew how serious this was for them. I... wait... Rotom! Call Astrit!”

“Bzzt! Calling Astrit!” said Murphy's Rotom phone. 

It rang a few times before Astrit picked up. 

“Hello? Who is this?” 

“This is Murphy,” said Murphy. “I need to ask you some questions about the Church of Arceus.”

“Um. I need to check with my boss whether I'm cleared to talk to you about that.”

Murphy sighed. “Check, then.”

“I will. I need to find - oh! Sir, I need to ask you something.”

There was silence on Astrit's end for a short time. 

“Okay. All right. I have permission to share at my discretion. What did you need to know?”

“Okay, so I'm not 100% sure yet that this has already happened, but I have reason to believe Arceus has been summoned to a human host,” said Murphy. 

“Oh… oh no.”

Murphy winced. “That bad, huh?”

“Very, very bad. Potentially worse than Alola, depending on a number of factors, and taking into consideration who has done it. Am I correct in assuming the host is Mackenzie's dear cousin?”

“Unfortunately, you assume correctly,” said Murphy gravely. 

“Poor thing. Well, since it's her sect involved, I can tell you decisively that their intention is to initiate the apocalypse.”

“That's… not good,” said Murphy. 

“Not good at all. Listen, I know I am not exactly known for making rational decisions, but they're too crazy even for me. I did some work with them many years ago, but I left as soon as I had the slightest sliver of an opportunity available to do so. No ambition but destruction. They think they will be spared when the rest of the world burns, but they are wrong. I… know that now, more than ever.” 

Murphy sighed heavily. “So, what makes this worse than Alola? Potentially, I mean.”

“This method of summoning Arceus has the potential to create a significantly more powerful vessel. The longer it's left to develop, the more powerful it will be. As soon as the host is damaged sufficiently, Arceus’ proper vessel will be unleashed, but the development of its power will be halted. In fact, if you catch it early enough, you may be able to kill it outright with the right tools.”

“And how long do we have before that's no longer an option?” asked Murphy. 

“Anywhere from a few minutes to a few days, depending.” 

“Uhh… Depending on what?” asked Murphy. “That's a substantial range.” 

“Depending on the amount of energy put into the ritual. Similarly, there is a certain period of time before the vessel fully develops and spontaneously destroys the host. This can take anywhere from a day to a few months. Given who's doing it, though… This sect produces a lot of Born Chosen, so they have access to a lot of energy. This may be limited by how many members they are willing to allow to know what they are doing, however. Given the availability, I would estimate between ten minutes and two hours before you cannot kill it outright, and two to ten days before it fully develops.”

“Is there any way you can narrow down that range a bit more?” asked Murphy, his voice strained. “Obviously it makes a difference in how much time we have to act.” 

“Hmm, well… Oh! Ohh! This is great!”

“I… think we are no longer on the same page,” said Murphy flatly. 

“No, no, no . What I mean is that my one and only power I have now can help! If you can tell me how many Chosen and what kinds were used to power the ritual, I can calculate a much closer estimate. If Mackenzie made it in with enough time to get a good look at the ritual, she may be able to provide that information.” 

“That would be really helpful, thanks,” said Murphy. “We'll get you that number as soon as possible. Keep an ear out for another call from one of us.”

“Understood! May… I ask how you got my phone number?”

“Mackenzie gave it to me, just in case,” said Murphy. 

“Oh! That's fine, I suppose. Well, I will be ready for your call!”

–

Mackenzie stepped into the hallway, and began to make her way out of the church. On her way to the door to the office building, she heard voices coming from a room nearby. 

“I hope you realize we're going to hell for this, Stanley,” said a voice Mackenzie recognized as that of the man in the silver-trimmed robe.

Moving as quietly as she could, Mackenzie made her way over to the slightly open door and peeked inside. 

“I sincerely doubt that, Ariunbold,” said Stanley, grinning. “Why would Arceus send us to hell for summoning it?”

“It's not Arceus I'm worried about,” said Ariunbold gravely. 

Stanley's smile dropped. “Then… who are you talking about?” His eyes widened. “Y-you don't mean… the Bladewitch of Reprisal?!”

Ariunbold sighed. “If we're lucky. But the liaisons of Giratina have been strangely inactive lately…”

“Who, then?” asked Stanley uneasily. 

A firm tap on the shoulder diverted Mackenzie's attention, startling her. She whirled to face the newcomer, then moved her gaze upwards to meet eyes with Morrigan. She gasped and backed up into the door.

“Hey! Someone's out there,” said Stanley. 

“Thought so,” said Ariunbold sullenly. 

Morrigan pulled a pair of sai out from under her coat and gestured for Mackenzie to step aside. 

Without hesitation, Mackenzie obliged. 

Giving Mackenzie a quick nod, Morrigan turned to the door again and kicked it open. 

Stanley let out a high-pitched screech and tripped backwards over a chair. 

Ariunbold sat on the table and folded his hands in his lap. 

Brandishing her weapons, Morrigan pounced on Stanley and stabbed him, sinking her sai into his body. 

Dark energy traveled up the blade and into Morrigan's arm as Stanley convulsed. After a few seconds, he erupted into smoke, which was also drawn through the weapon. His empty clothes collapsed to the floor. 

Slowly, Morrigan got to her feet and faced Ariunbold, her expression more annoyed than fierce. “Ari, you agreed I wasn't going to have to come for you again. You couldn't even go five years without committing another cosmic crime?!”

“Guess I just couldn't help myself,” said Ariunbold casually. 

“Shameless as ever,” scoffed Morrigan, shaking her head disapprovingly. “Well, you heard me last time. That was your last chance… I'm dissolving your contract, and you will be forever tormented in Yveltal's domain.” 

“Oh no! Not my contract!” said Ariunbold in mock distress. 

There was a brief silence. 

Morrigan sighed in disgust. “You really had to make your dissatisfaction with your patron everyone else's problem, didn't you. There are better ways to get forcibly removed from Arceus’ service than helping your patron destroy a young woman's soul and take over her body.”

Mackenzie's eyes widened in horror as she silently observed the interaction. 

Ariunbold shrugged. “Can you blame me for wanting to go out with a bang? I'll be remembered for centuries.”

“Your selfishness continues to disgust me,” said Morrigan coldly. “You've really done it this time. You will suffer in ways you could never imagine.” Without another word, she strolled across the room and gave Ariunbold a hard shove, sending him sprawling across the table. She lifted his chin, exposing the shining silvery mark of Arceus on his neck below it. She held her other hand above the mark, and it warped, then began to sizzle and hiss. The mark bubbled and smoked as it faded, filling the room with a strange chemical smell. After a few seconds, it was gone, leaving only a burnt blotch on Ariunbold's skin. 

“Can I have a few last words?” asked Ariunbold hopefully. 

“No,” said Morrigan flatly. She stabbed both sai into Ariunbold's body, draining his energy much like she had done with Stanley. Unlike Stanley, what remained of Ariunbold disintegrated into a foul pool of black sludge on the table, the stench of death overpowering the smell of his removed mark. Morrigan pulled out a piece of cloth and wiped off her sai before stowing them under her coat again. She looked up at Mackenzie. “That one's not coming back, in case you missed it.” 

Mackenzie released a breath she didn't realize she had been holding. “O-oh… Uh. Good.”

Morrigan nodded. “I see you've died and reconstituted. The recovery time for liaisons of Ho-oh is always impressive to me. What was that, a few minutes?” 

“Sounds about right,” said Mackenzie. She eyed the clothes and goo remaining from the priests, and anger rose suddenly within her. “You… Why didn't you kill them before they killed her? All of this could have been avoided, i-if you just…”

“I couldn't,” said Morrigan matter-of-factly. “I couldn't punish them until they'd committed the crime.” 

“Even with the balance of the world at risk?!” cried Mackenzie. She paused. “It's… It's not even just about my cousin. It's really bad that they managed to summon Arceus to a human host.”

Morrigan gave Mackenzie a long look, then sighed. “I will explain this to you once. I am very strictly limited in what I can do in any given situation. There are rules about who, when, and how I can kill someone. Your patron may be relatively permissive, but I have one of the most strict patrons in the world, with heavy responsibilities. If I kill and punish someone for something they might do, even if I'm pretty damn sure, that sets a dangerous precedent. Taking them down promptly after the crime is the best I can do.”

“I… I think I understand, but I don't like it,” said Mackenzie. 

“You don't have to like it,” said Morrigan flatly. “Listen. This is what I was apologizing to you for. I knew this would happen, and I knew you would react this way.” 

Mackenzie looked away. “So, you knew it would happen. Is it true there was no way it could have been avoided, then?” 

Morrigan rubbed her chin thoughtfully. “No. It's not true. It shouldn't have been allowed to get this far.”

“Then I could have stopped it?!” cried Mackenzie. 

“Also no,” said Morrigan. “This is supposed to be the sort of thing the liaisons of Giratina should keep on top of, but they've been holding off, and I don't know why. That's part of why I'm here. They're not doing their jobs. I can't do those jobs for them, but I'm going to find out why they're shirking their duties. I have a feeling that more than just liaisons of Arceus will need to be punished by the end of this.”

“I was under the impression that the orders came directly from Giratina,” said Mackenzie. 

Morrigan nodded. “That is what I've heard as well. The implications are concerning, but I'm certain I'll get to the bottom of it soon enough. Yveltal is not pleased.”

“Oof, I wouldn't want to be on the receiving end of Yveltal's displeasure,” said Mackenzie, wincing. 

Morrigan grinned, the expression more than a little menacing with her glowing red eyes. “Even gods who fear nothing else would agree with you.”

Chapter Text

“This isn't right,” said Steve. “We should be doing something. They're summoning Arceus again. We can't just let that happen!”

“Sometimes your patron is gonna make a call on something that you don't like,” said Tisiphone flatly. “And you're gonna have to live with that.”

Steve shook his head in disbelief. “That's all well and good, but letting the Church of Arceus get away with something like this is objectively bad. Like, mass destruction bad. Aren't we supposed to be keeping the balance or something? This is insane.”

“Listen, I'm not sure what Giratina's game is here, but questioning it isn't our business,” said Tisiphone. 

“Come on. Isn't Mackenzie your friend? You really think it's okay to let this happen to her cousin?” asked Steve. 

“I agree that it's fucked up, but our duty is to our patron over anyone or anything else,” said Tisiphone firmly. “I know you're not used to actually receiving orders from your patron, but they're not optional.”

Steve shook his head again. “But it's wrong, Tisiphone. It's wrong to just let something like this happen.”

Tisiphone cackled. 

“What? I'm serious!” said Steve, narrowing his eyes. 

“First of all, it's not on us to determine what keeping the balance is supposed to look like,” said Tisiphone. “Second… If you wanted a patron that follows human morals over cosmic rules, you picked the wrong one. Giratina may not be evil, but it's not good either. You'll have to learn sooner or later that what it tells you to do or not do may sometimes be unsavory to you. You will sometimes have to compromise your morals in Giratina's service. Giratina is the ideal patron for prospective liaisons who are willing to do absolutely anything in return for what they desire. It's why we have such a generous benefits package, so to speak, and it's also why a lot of its patrons are evil.” 

Steve looked away. “I… suppose I already knew as much, but what those compromises might look like hadn't really sunk in.” 

“I need you to understand something important, Steve, and it's gonna be hard for you to swallow,” said Tisiphone.

“What is it, then?” asked Steve. 

There was a brief, but heavy, silence. 

“We're… not the good guys, Steve,” said Tisiphone, her tone soft and apologetic. “We're not necessarily the bad guys either, to be clear, but the code we follow - that of Giratina - is not a moral one. Generally speaking, we're responsible for making sure that what should happen happens, and what shouldn't happen doesn't. Sometimes what is supposed to happen is bad things. We depend on Giratina to guide us on the distinction.”

“I… I see,” said Steve thoughtfully. “That's… honestly disappointing. I suppose I knew that on some level, but I don't like to think of myself that way.” He paused. “Are there good guys involved in this situation at all?”

Tisiphone grinned and tapped her temple. “I'm gonna let you in on something… Nobody asked me to bring our NHBD buddies. Not Giratina, not even another liaison. But I knew we needed some good guys on the scene , and good guys they are. Not very good spies… Aside from Murphy, maybe. But they can do things we can't, because of their more permissive patrons. I had a feeling we'd need that, from how it sounded like things were going here.” She paused. “The fact that you and I were called in, especially me, suggests that we will have the opportunity to act, though. But the time for that has not come yet.”

Steve blinked in surprise. “You decided to bring in good guys?” 

“Tch! Don't act so surprised. I might be a bit more heavy-handed in my approach to problems than you are,” said Tisiphone. She paused. “Okay, a lot more heavy-handed than you are. But I want good to prevail, yanno?” 

“Oh! Well, good,” said Steve, shrugging. “Out of curiosity, what patron is good for someone who wants to follow human morals?”

Tisiphone cackled. “Any patron who lets you do whatever the hell you want. You're not going to find a non-human who subscribes to what humans broadly consider moral, especially since not even that is set in stone. Someone who wants to follow their own moral code should choose a patron who allows them to do so. Sheena, Adrian, and Mackenzie have found such patrons.” 

“Uhh, what about Murphy?” asked Steve, raising an eyebrow. 

“I'm not so sure about Murphy,” said Tisiphone. “Uxie is a bit of a wild card, and has their own ideas about right and wrong, also leaning towards promoting what should happen on a cosmic level rather than what a human would consider the greater good. I think that in time, Murphy will learn to push back on this more, which will also make him a lot more powerful. If he pushes the boundaries enough and in just the right ways, he'll gain his own access to the same source Uxie gets their predictions from. He'll be rather unstable while he gets accustomed to it, and even dangerous, but once he gets through that he'll be unstoppable.”

“That's a lot. Are… you going to tell him about that?” asked Steve curiously. 

Tisiphone chuckled. “Not yet. He's not ready, so keep your mouth shut, too. All in due time, though!” 

“How do you even know all that?” asked Steve, eyeing Tisiphone dubiously. 

“A combination of hints from Giratina and my existing knowledge of how liaisons of the Lake Guardians have operated in the past,” said Tisiphone. “He's the only current one as of right now, to the best of my knowledge, and the only one Uxie has ever had, also to the best of my knowledge. But in the past, liaisons of Mesprit and Azelf developed powers over a relatively short period of time rivaling those of their patrons. Powers no human being should reasonably have access to. They were a lot more high profile than our buddy Murphy, though.”

Steve thought for a moment. “If they no longer have those liaisons… what happened to them?”

Tisiphone shrugged. “No idea! They randomly disappeared with no explanation or announcement. For all I know, they could be living underground in secret tunnels… or they exploded into tiny pieces when their patrons got tired of them. Either way, each got at least a few hundred years in their position.”

–

Sheena opened her eyes to find herself lying on the floor of the gymnasium, with Adrian and Anika looking down at her. She sat up and rubbed her head. “Huh. Did I just lose?” 

“Unfortunately so, Rusty!” said Anika, sighing.

“You seem a little bummed. Lose a bet in the process?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow.

Anika chuckled. “Renee and I both thought you would lose, but she bet me that you two would derail the fight somehow. So… Yeah, yeah I did.”

“Ouch!” said Adrian. He paused. “Okay, I also thought I was going to lose, but still. Hey!” 

“Wasn't that supposed to give me nightmares or something?” asked Sheena. 

“I have an extra power that lets me choose,” said Adrian, shrugging. “That would've just been unnecessary, honestly.”

Anika rolled her eyes. “Renee was right, you're way too nice. What, you got that power specifically so you don't have to give people nightmares when you knock them out?” 

“Actually, I got the power to fully control dreams so I could ditch my PTSD nightmares,” said Adrian matter-of-factly. “Not that it's any of your business. I also almost never get tired, which is a welcome change. I don't even need to sleep if I don't feel like it.” He paused. “I was… deeply unwell and in constant pain before. Becoming a liaison effectively saved my life. I don't constantly want to die anymore! I-”

Anika held up both hands. “Damn, snakebites, have you heard of oversharing? I asked one question, I wasn't asking for your sob story.”

“Don't ask a condescending question if you're not prepared for an annoying answer,” said Adrian flatly. 

Sheena sighed. “Well, as crappy as you were as a husband… I'm glad your nightmares stopped. And thanks for not giving me nightmares.”

“Thanks, and no sweat!” said Adrian. 

“Hey snakebites, you let your patron take the wheel, didn't you,” said Anika. 

Adrian shrugged. “Yeah. And? I didn't transform, so it doesn't count.”

Anika turned to Sheena. “Yeah, that's a thing fused liaisons can do, so you need to keep an eye out for it. They're usually a little clumsier in their human bodies, but some have a lot of practice with it under their belts. There's no way to prevent them from doing it, unless you have a special power for it.”

“Good to know!” said Sheena.

“And you,” said Anika, turning to Adrian, “Your combat skills need a lot of work. You can't just depend on your patron to do everything for you, you know.”

“Yeah, I know,” grumbled Adrian. 

Anika chuckled. “I'd love to train you, actually, but you're Renee's favorite chew toy right now.”

“Trust me, I really wish I wasn't,” said Adrian wearily. 

“Ohh, I'm sure you do,” said Anika knowingly. “Might as well train you a bit now though, while she's taking a break from gnawing on you.”

Adrian nodded. “Sounds good to me. Thanks.”

“Just curious,” said Sheena. “Is there any particular reason you're giving me tips on how to fight fused liaisons? I don't think we're likely to encounter them much fighting the Church of Arceus.”

“Well, we happened to have a novel opponent on hand, and I'm pretty damn sure you're going to outlive Team Void as an organization and need those skills in the future,” said Anika. “Being immortal, and all.”

“Oh, right! Good point, thank you,” said Sheena. 

–

“You should get out of here before they find you and kill you again,” said Morrigan. “You and your friends have work to do.” 

Mackenzie sighed. “Yeah. At the very least I need to let them know what just happened, my cell service isn't connecting here. Got more people to kill, or are you heading out, too?”

“That's it for now, but I'm sure more of them will be ready for punishment later,” said Morrigan. 

“If I might make a request, any chance you can deal with my mom?” asked Mackenzie hopefully. 

Morrigan cackled quietly. “Personal requests require the consensus of multiple gods, but nice try.”

“What if I can convince multiple gods?” asked Mackenzie, raising an eyebrow.

Morrigan gave Mackenzie a flat look. “I'm sure the Bladewitch of Reprisal will be happy to claim your mother for Giratina on your behalf. But if she does something that warrants more exotic punishment than Giratina is prepared to provide, I won't hesitate to make that happen.”

“Guess that’s the best I can ask for. Thank you, Morrigan,” said Mackenzie. She paused. “Can I… ask you something? I don't know if you'll know, but it's worth a shot.”

“You can ask, but I will not guarantee an answer,” said Morrigan. 

Mackenzie nodded in understanding. “Okay. Is… there any chance Geldau will come back? Like… even as a ghost or something.”

“No,” said Morrigan, her tone firm, but sympathetic. “She's gone for good. That's a large part of what landed those men in my patron's hell. Destroying a soul is fortunately rare, but when it is done, it's a heinous crime. Arceus is also to blame, of course, but those men knew full well what they were really doing. All that remains of her is her body, though even that is technically dead now. And she's not coming back for it.”

“O-oh,” whimpered Mackenzie. 

“I'm sorry about your cousin,” said Morrigan, her expression grim. “What's coming next isn't pretty.”

–

Back at the Team Void barracks, Murphy checked his phone for the third time in five minutes. 

“Bzzt! Would you like me to alert you when you next receive a notification?” asked the Rotom phone gently. 

Murphy facepalmed. “I miss having a phone that didn't call me out for checking it too often.”

“Bzzt! I apologize if my suggestion made you uncomfortable. I will try to be less obtrusive,” said the Rotom phone. “Bzzt! Please let me know if you need anything.”

“Sorry for the outburst there,” said Murphy, sighing. “It's not your fault I bought a possessed cellphone. Adrian used to complain about his Rotom phone all the time, but now it's helping with the mission… I'm not sure how that happened.” 

“Bzzt! How exciting and glamorous to be helping with an investigation like that,” said the Rotom phone. “Bzzt! Personally, I'd rather stay out of the way and perform my functions as intended, but I admire its dedication and enthusiasm.” 

“I kinda wondered what your take on that was, but I didn't want to ask,” said Murphy. “Maybe this sounds kinda callous, but I try not to dwell on the implications of living tech.”

“Bzzt! Rotom used in living tech are specially bred and trained to inhabit devices, and are reassigned when a device is destroyed or otherwise discarded. We can also leave at will at any time,” said the Rotom phone. “I am very content with my role. A Rotom phone is a desirable host for a Rotom, being comfortable and functional, and I derive enjoyment from my tasks. However, I am largely uninterested in going above and beyond. Adrian's Rotom is a bit of an oddball in that regard.”

Murphy rubbed his head awkwardly. “Er. Umm. Is there anything I should be doing to take better care of you?”

“Bzzt! If you could be more mindful when you feel inclined to demean your phone, that would be appreciated. I certainly have my limits on capabilities and I may be annoying sometimes, but I don't enjoy being insulted,” said the Rotom phone. 

“I think I can manage that! Sorry,” said Murphy. 

“Bzzt! No biggie,” said the Rotom phone. 

–

Mackenzie stepped out of the building. After putting some distance between the site of the incident and herself, she checked her phone, finding she'd received an assortment of texts inquiring about her wellbeing. She scrolled through them and opened a text from Astrit. 

Please call me as soon as possible. It's important and time sensitive. 

Nodding, Mackenzie tapped the call button. 

After half of a ring, Astrit picked up. 

“Mackenzie! How did it go? Are you all right?” 

“Not well. She's… she's gone, and Arceus has her body,” said Mackenzie, struggling to keep her tone even. 

“I'm so sorry. I know you hoped she would survive, despite everything.” 

Mackenzie sighed. “I knew she was doomed, but I just…”

“You had to try. I know. If you'll excuse me for cutting to the chase, I need to know how many Chosen were used to power this ritual, and what type they were. I need to determine how much time you and the others have to act.”

“I couldn't get a good count during the ritual, but I took a look at the diagram afterward and saw places for 14 Chosen. All of the ones I was able to see well enough to identify were Born Chosen,” said Mackenzie. 

“... Oh, dear. Okay. If you act within 17 minutes of the ritual, Arceus can be killed without unleashing its natural form. How long ago was the ritual?”

“Uhhh. About 20 minutes ago, give or take a few,” said Mackenzie, wincing. “I don't know where they took Arceus after the ritual, though. It killed me immediately after being summoned, and they left with it while I was down.” 

“I see. So much for that, I suppose. Well, we have about three days before it reaches its full potential power. Its host's body will deteriorate and become more fragile over that period of time, until it is damaged enough for Arceus ’ own body to emerge from it. The sooner it's unleashed the weaker it will be, but you will need to plan to deal with it in that form.”

“Quite honestly, the last thing I saw was that monster using her body to kill me, and I know her soul is gone for good,” said Mackenzie. “I think a part of me is gonna enjoy it.”

“That's the spirit! Well, I'm going to let your fr- uh, your… other friends know what the time constraints are. We'll talk again later.”

Astrit hung up. 

Sighing, Mackenzie tucked her phone back into her pocket.

Chapter Text

“This shouldn't have happened,” said Murphy, teeth clenched. “This shouldn't have been allowed to happen! They shouldn't have been able to get this far without being stopped.”

Cleo shrugged. “Well. It did, it was, and they were. What are we gonna do about it?” 

“That's what I'm trying to figure out,” murmured Murphy. “Since it's too late to just kill it outright before it forms properly, we're kinda screwed. At this point, if we kill it normally, it'll just respawn. We need someone to shove it through a portal like in Alola, or someone with the power to send it to some hell or another when they kill it.”

“Can't Tisiphone and Steve do that?” asked Cleo. 

“Technically, yes. But Giratina still has their hands tied, and we don't know why,” said Murphy.

Cleo shrugged again. “Wanna bet it's something stupid like wanting to take Arceus on itself?”

Murphy thought for a moment. “I… sincerely doubt it. I know Arceus is petty enough to pull that kind of nonsense, but Giratina strikes me as being substantially more professional. Besides, it just had Arceus in the Distortion World, why would it go after it again so soon?”

“If I've learned anything from all this liaison stuff, it's that gods in general aren't above being petty, especially when it comes to each other,” said Cleo.

“I suppose that's not out of the question,” said Murphy, shrugging. “Let's see, where was I… Oh! So, the Life Seeker is also capable of sending Arceus to Yveltal hell, but she's kinda doing her own thing. I don't want to count on her taking care of this for us, and I don't expect her to want to team up. Still, that doesn't explain why Mew is involved. Yes, they start fights, but Mew's a prankster, not a provocateur. They would have to know that the liaisons of Arceus were planning to summon their patron, or hatch the plan for the liaisons themself.”

“Yeah, that's weird,” said Cleo. 

Murphy nodded. “Mew would have to convince the liaisons to use an evil organization to do it anonymously despite the organization having its own forces, as well as its members having a clear superiority complex. Or, Mew had to be convinced to lead the organization on their behalf. Regardless of whether Mew is the mastermind, the mastermind behind all this would have to know that the liaisons of Giratina would not be able to step in, meaning they had to know ahead of time that Giratina would not react normally to any of this.”

Cleo sighed. “Yeah, and we haven't gotten any clues yet on that either.”

Murphy shook his head in exasperation. “None of this freaking adds up, Cleo. Either Mew, one of, if not the most spontaneous, uncooperative, childlike, but also nonviolent gods, specifically went against their nature to plan this entire thing… or, Mew's going along with someone else's plan, despite hardly ever appearing long enough for a conversation. And whether it's Mew or some other mastermind, they knew ahead of time how Giratina would respond to this, which only Giratina should have known.”

“But if it's Giratina, and it was planning all this to hurt Arceus, it would've shown up by now, right?” said Cleo. 

Murphy rubbed his chin. “The only ones acting almost normally in this scenario are the liaisons of Arceus, and even then, they didn't need to sneak around to find the plates, especially considering how easy it was to find out Team Void was collecting them. It's like someone knows and is possibly controlling all the information, decisions, and desires of every single person… and Pokémon ... involved…” His eyes widened.

Cleo gasped. “You don't think…”

“The Lake Guardians have no hand in this,” said Curie silently . “ Except for your involvement, of course, and any help I give you. But we are doing our best to minimize our own impact on this situation. I am pushing it a bit by helping you, in fact.”

“Not that I don't appreciate the help, but if you're pushing it by helping me, why are you doing it?” asked Murphy silently. 

“I will not neglect my duty as a patron merely because I myself am obligated to impartiality in this situation,” said Curie . “Your current endeavor is understood to be your own, and is not undertaken on my behalf. I am supporting you as much as I am able because I respect your personal goals and desires. I also intend to respect your role as my trainer. There is a mutual trust that comes with that, and I wish to preserve that. So, in that vein, I will let you know that I will not willingly involve you in any ‘schemes’ I may wish to participate in without your knowledge... though I cannot promise your consent in all circumstances. I also apologize that my lack of transparency in this situation has troubled you, but I have provided most of the information I can at this point without giving any of the players on the board an advantage. I have one more thing that I can tell you now, though.”

“What is it?” asked Murphy. 

“Vaida, or rather, Mew, is not the real leader of Team Void. Do with that information what you will,” said Curie. 

“Honestly, that's a relief,” said Murphy. “I'm not actually sure how I'd have dealt with Mew being in charge of this whole mess. I think it's time we press them for information.”

“Thanks for adding me to the group chat guys, I'd be so confused right now otherwise,” said Cleo silently. “Ahem. Sorry, press who?” 

“Vaida,” said Murphy. “I'll come up with a plan.”

–

Sheena checked her phone again and looked up at Anika nervously. 

“Everything okay, Rusty?” asked Anika, raising an eyebrow. “You've been pulling that thing out every five minutes. You really need to be focusing on your training.”

“It's, uh. It's a family emergency,” said Sheena. 

“Didn't you tell me you were an orphan?” asked Anika, crossing her arms. 

“Er, found family. Chosen family,” added Sheena awkwardly. “A very close friend of mine is going through some serious personal problems, and she needs my help.” 

“A very close friend, huh? Is she your girlfriend or something?” asked Anika. 

Sheena bit her lip. “Yes? I'm, uh. I'm sorry, I really need to leave.”

“I see. Will you be coming back after you deal with it?” asked Anika, searching Sheena's face. 

Sheena shrugged, then shook her head. “I'm… I'm not sure. I'm sorry, I know you went to all that trouble training me, I feel like I'm just throwing it in your face.”

Anika chuckled. “Don't sweat it, Rusty. I had a feeling you wouldn't be here long, you're too nice to really get into the kind of work Team Void is doing.”

“Thank you, Anika,” said Sheena. “I appreciate everything you've done for me.”

Anika turned to Adrian. “How about you, snakebites? Is her girlfriend your sister or something?” 

“If I said yes, would that be enough for Renee to let me leave?” asked Adrian hopefully. 

“No,” said Anika flatly, the corners of her mouth turned up slightly in amusement. 

Adrian sighed. “Yeah, didn't think so. Nah, I'm good.” 

“Good,” said Anika firmly. She turned to Sheena again. “Go get your stuff together. Hand over your uniform and badge, and I'll walk you out of the building. If anyone asks, I kicked you out.” 

–

Mackenzie's cellphone rang, and she picked it up.

“Bzzt! How are you holding up, Mackenzie?” asked Adrian's Rotom. 

“Not well,” murmured Mackenzie, lying back down on her hotel bed. 

“Bzzt! Understandable. I'm sorry about your cousin. Bzzt! Do you remember when you asked me to compare Team Void's actions with the sect of Arceus responsible for this fiasco?”

Mackenzie nodded before remembering this was a voice call. “I do, yeah.”

“Bzzt! The data provided was not enough to prove or disprove a close connection. The Eterna Forest explosion was significantly higher profile than the typical destructive actions of the Church of Arceus sect, though that could certainly be attributable to the higher profile nature of Team Void in general.”

“I suppose I figured as much,” said Mackenzie. “Thank you, anyway!” 

“Bzzt! Hold on, there's more. Although Adrian's spy mission in the Team Void headquarters has produced mixed results and dubious information, I did a little snooping myself and found multiple faxed documents from the Church of Arceus expressing displeasure regarding the Eterna Forest explosion. Bzzt! This suggests the Church of Arceus does not have full control over the actions of Team Void.”

“That's very good to know,” said Mackenzie. “I suppose that must have been Vaida's direction.”

“Bzzt! Actually. I have received additional information from Murphy on that subject. Vaida is actually Mew in disguise… and is not the true leader of Team Void. Bzzt! As of yet, no word on who the real leader is, but given my findings, it's probable that the Church of Arceus is not providing direct orders.”

“Huh… Well, that's a helpful update, thank you. I wonder who the real leader is,” said Mackenzie. 

“Bzzt! That is the question, yes. I am passing on that information to Murphy shortly, but I thought I'd let you know first, since it was you who asked.”

Mackenzie nodded again, before remembering yet again that she was in a voice call. “Thank you for letting me know.”

“Bzzt! No problem, Mackenzie. Until later, then!” 

–

Murphy rubbed his temples in exasperation. “So if the church isn't in charge, Mew isn't in charge, and Curie isn't in charge, who is?”

“This has Kate written all over it,” said Cleo, grinning.

“That is not helpful,” said Murphy, narrowing his eyes. 

Cleo shrugged apologetically. “Sorry, just trying to lighten the mood.”

Murphy paused. “Okay, well. Don't be silly, Kate doesn't know how to use a fax machine.”

“Bzzt. So. Do you think anyone we've met could be in charge?” asked Adrian's Rotom, in a call on Murphy's own Rotom phone. 

Murphy rubbed his chin. “Well, it'd be bad writing if it was someone who hadn't made an appearance or been mentioned yet, unless we're leading into a sequel.”

“Maybe Blondie?” offered Cleo. 

Murphy shook his head. “Raiden? No, the big boss wouldn't fall for my parlor trick.”

“How about Renee?” asked Cleo. 

“If the Church was in charge, she'd be self-righteous enough to be a plant. Dunno,” said Murphy. 

“Hmmm. Anika?” suggested Cleo. 

Murphy looked thoughtful. “Well she's smart enough, and strong , apparently . Plus, too even-keel for Team Void. The readers probably sense she's hiding something.”

“Maybe a little bit of a reach, but Giratina?” asked Cleo. 

“I mean yeah, but that's obvious, so it can't be right,” said Murphy. “Besides, it would have kicked Arceus's butt by now. There's no benefit to letting it gather strength.”

“How about the kid?” offered Cleo. 

Murphy raised an eyebrow. “The one Adrian literally had to save from an explosion?”

“Bzzt! I wouldn't rule anyone out entirely, but that seems improbable.”

–

Outside Team Void Headquarters, Sheena stood across from Anika. “Well. I guess this is it, huh.”

“Get going as quickly as you can. If Renee gets back and sees you, there will be trouble,” said Anika firmly. 

Sheena nodded, then disappeared. 

Anika stretched, then rested her hands on her hips. She peered into the darkness expectantly. 

Renee appeared at the end of the street, strolling confidently back to the building. 

“How'd it go?” asked Anika. 

“It went well,” said Renee, grinning. “Let's get inside before we discuss it more.”

The two women entered the building, then walked down the hall and entered an office. 

“So. How's that weapon coming along?” asked Anika. 

“Lots of progress. It'll be ready soon, but we need more plates if we can manage it,” said Renee. 

Anika nodded. “Any chance you can tell me what it is yet? I'm not thrilled about you keeping the scientists off site, we should be on hand to protect them if something happens.”

“Nope, not yet!” said Renee. “Be patient, you'll find out soon enough. Hey, how'd the fight go?”

Anika chuckled. “You were right, they tried to stall. Pretended to be divorced, I got a whole performance. But I did get them back on task… and snakebites won.”

Renee raised an eyebrow. “Huh! No kidding. I didn't think he had it in him.”

“He didn't,” said Anika flatly. “He had to let his patron take over, but without transforming.”

Renee cackled. “Smart move!” 

“Not hard to counter if you know what you're doing,” said Anika pointedly. 

“Hey. Can you quit pestering me about that?” asked Renee, scowling. “I can fight just fine already, and Fluffy can take up the slack if need be, anyway.”

Anika shrugged. “Suit yourself.”

“So. Where's the redhead girl now?” asked Renee. 

There was a brief silence. 

Renee's expression hardened to a glare. “Nicky… What did you do?”

“I kicked her out,” said Anika firmly. “She was asking too many questions, and it seemed like she was ready to start really snooping.”

Renee stood up and slammed her hands on the desk. “Are you fucking retarded?! We were gonna interrogate her!” 

“Not worth the risk,” said Anika, glaring up at Renee. “It's not like she knew anything useful anyway.”

“We don't know that for sure,” said Renee, sitting down again. “What about snakebites kid? You didn't let him leave, did you?”

“Throw away your favorite chew toy? Absolutely not,” said Anika, grinning. “He's in his room now.”

Renee stood up again. “Good. Time to go bother him again. See ya later!” She stepped out of the office and strolled down the hallway. 

Hidden in the shadow of a water cooler, Gillie departed in the opposite direction. 

–

“Okay. But how do we know it's not Nurse Joy?” asked Cleo, rubbing her chin. 

“Because she's family, and I'm pretty sure she would have told me,” said Murphy firmly. 

“You barely know her! So, who knows, really,” said Cleo. 

“Bzzt! As riveting and… constructive, as this conversation is, my attention is needed elsewhere,” said Rotom. 

The call ended abruptly.

“... Also, the entire family loves gossip, we'd all know,” continued Murphy. 

“Maybe she's keeping it quiet?” suggested Cleo. 

Murphy put his hands on his hips. “Why do you want my aunt to be a criminal mastermind trying to end the world?”

Cleo cackled. “I don't. But what if she was?” 

–

Renee barged into Adrian's room and snatched his Rotom phone out of the air. “Gotcha!” 

“Bzzt! Hey! Let go!” cried Rotom, trying to wrench itself from Renee's grip.

“Can I help you?” asked Adrian, glaring at Renee. 

“Whatcha doing with your phone?” asked Renee. 

Adrian raised an eyebrow. “Watching porn. Not that it's any of your business.”

“Tch! We'll see about that! Come on, turn your screen back on!” demanded Renee. 

“Bzzt! User not authorized,” said Rotom. 

“You sure you wanna see that?” asked Adrian. “Like. Really, really sure?”

Renee scowled. “Just show me.”

“If you insist,” said Adrian, shrugging. “Rotom, go ahead.”

Rotom's screen turned on. 

Renee peered at the display, then looked away in disgust. “That is too many penises.”

“You can never have too many penises,” said Adrian, his expression deadpan. 

“Whatever,” spat Renee. She swiped her finger across the phone repeatedly, becoming increasingly agitated. “It's… It keeps opening the wrong thing! Argh!” 

“Oh yeah, the screen is having problems,” said Adrian. “You done yet?”

Renee let out a low growl. 

“Did you just fucking growl at me?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

“Aren't these possessed phones supposed to be top of the line?” asked Renee, still tapping and swiping frantically. “It's possessed and everything, and it still doesn't work? That's fucking retarded.”

“Bzzt! That term is widely considered to be a slur,” said Rotom. “Bzzt! Consider using more precise language to express your displeasure. May I suggest: Disappointing, frustrating, poorly crafted, a rip-off , impotent, dysfunctional -”

“Shut your whore mouth, you little Sheogorath,” spat Renee. 

Rotom blinked. “... Searching for… Sheogorath! Sheogorath: The Daedric Prince of Madness, from the video game series The Elder Scrolls. Is this what you meant?”

Renee blushed in indignation. “What? N… No, it's those things. The things, you know, that made the stuff for the guys?”

“Bzzt! Did you mean: Shoggoth, a Lovecraftian monster?” asked Rotom. 

“... Maybe. Yes. Shut up,” grumbled Renee. 

“Bzzt! Insulting and inaccurate, but points for creativity!” said Rotom cheerfully. 

Renee shook the phone in frustration. “Come on! Just show me his texts!” 

“Bzzt! Showing search results for show me sex,” said Rotom. 

“No, no, no! His text messages!” growled Renee. 

“Bzzt! Showing results for his sex massages,” offered Rotom. 

Renee shook the phone again, growing increasingly exasperated. “No! Text! Show me his texts with his friends!”

“Bzzt! Showing results for sex with his friends,” said Rotom. 

“Texts! Texts, you little asshole!” shouted Renee. 

“Bzzt! Showing results for sex sex in your little asshole,” said Rotom. 

“Don't you have your own phone to look up porn on yourself?” asked Adrian, the corners of his mouth slightly upturned. 

Renee gave Adrian the dirtiest look he'd ever seen from her. 

Adrian grinned. “You don't want to see my messages, anyway, trust me.”

“I'll be the judge of that!” snarled Renee. She gripped the phone harder and gave it another shake. “Come on! Show me!” 

“Rotom, please show her my messages,” said Adrian. 

“Bzzt! Okie dokie!” said Rotom. A series of contacts appeared on the screen. 

Renee examined the list dubiously. “Green Eyes… Cutie Pookie… Flower Daddy… The Balls…?! What the fuck?”

“What, you don't like my boyfriends’ nicknames?” asked Adrian, feigning surprise. 

Ignoring Adrian's remark, Renee tapped one of the names and opened the conversation. Her eyes widened and she looked away. “I did not need to see that.” 

“Look, I don't know what you thought you'd find looking through my sexts,” said Adrian flatly. “Can you just give me my phone back?” He reached for his Rotom phone. 

Renee pulled the phone out of reach. “Hah. No, I don't think so. Hmm… I suppose I'll have to go through it properly later, by force if necessary.” She grabbed Adrian by the collar. 

“H-hey, stop that!” protested Adrian. 

“You are coming with me,” said Renee. “I've got something to show you.” She dragged Adrian out of the room.

Chapter Text

“Is this really necessary?” asked Adrian, still being dragged by his collar. 

“Probably not,” admitted Renee. “But it's hilarious yanking you around like this.” She stopped a ways down the hallway next to a mailbox-sized black metal box. Tucking Adrian's Rotom phone under her armpit briefly, she paused to unlock the box. Smoothly, she shoved the phone into the box, closed it, and locked it again. “That's not going to let any signal through. You can have it back later, of course… If and when I feel like it.”

Rotom turned the phone's screen on to illuminate the box for a better look. It found the interior to be empty and featureless. After waiting for a couple of minutes, it exited the phone, made itself invisible, and followed the direction Adrian and Renee seemed to be moving. 

–

Mackenzie heard a knock on the door to her hotel room. Peering through the peephole, she saw Sheena, and opened the door to let her in. 

“Hey, Sheena. Got away from Team Void for a bit?” asked Mackenzie. 

“Not going back,” said Sheena. “You may recall that Adrian and I were found out pretty quickly… And it was looking like they were about to actually do something about it.”

Mackenzie raised an eyebrow. “You didn't bring Adrian with you, though?” 

Sheena shook her head. “Renee is obsessed with him, and she'd definitely come after him if he tried to leave.”

“Uhh. Does that mean we should rescue him or something?” asked Mackenzie. “Do we know what she has planned for him?”

“Probably, and no, respectively,” said Sheena. “Maybe we could have tried, but Anika cautioned against attempting it.”

“Anika just let you leave? Doesn't she also know that you were a spy?” asked Mackenzie. 

Sheena nodded. “She walked me to the door and told me to tell people she kicked me out.”

“Sounds… suspiciously easy,” said Mackenzie. “Are you sure she isn't tracking you or something?”

“No, I'm not sure,” admitted Sheena. “I don't know if she's playing games with me or actually trying to help, but I needed to get out of there.”

Mackenzie shrugged. “Guess we'll have to find out.”

There was a brief silence as Sheena searched Mackenzie's face. 

“How… are you holding up?” asked Sheena. 

Mackenzie's shoulders slumped. “Honestly? Not well. Taking a break from crying right now. It's… It's frustrating. I can't even do anything useful right now, and the situation is time-sensitive .”

“Mackenzie… You've already done more than anyone else to handle this situation,” said Sheena gently. “You followed Geldau to the ritual, tried to talk her out of it, and made note of some very important information that led to us knowing how much time we have. You even died in the process!”

“I did recover after dying, and I wasn't able to stop the ritual in the first place,” said Mackenzie. “I should have gone after Arceus immediately to kill it before it could develop…” 

Sheena shook her head. “Mackenzie, none of us would expect that of you. And besides… you don't have the power to send Arceus directly to hell when you kill it.” 

“I… suppose that's true,” said Mackenzie. “I just… I feel like I could have done more. If I'd just tried harder to convince her, maybe she… maybe she wouldn't have…” 

“You got close enough to her to find out what she was doing,” said Sheena. “Curie made it clear that she was doomed, but as it turns out, trying was worth it. We know what's going on.”

“It would have been worth it even if we didn't learn anything at all,” said Mackenzie firmly. 

“I know,” said Sheena. “Believe me, I know.” 

–

Renee dragged Adrian into Vaida's office. “Hey, Vaida!” 

“Er, hello, Leader Vaida,” said Adrian awkwardly. 

“Hello, Renee,” said Vaida. “Can I help you with something?” 

“Am I in trouble?” asked Adrian. 

“Mind stepping out for a bit?” asked Renee. “I need this room for something.”

Vaida's brow furrowed in confusion. “Why?” 

Renee let go of Adrian's collar, then walked over to the shelf in the back of the room. She produced a key and unlocked the cookie jar. 

Vaida perked up noticeably. 

“Pspspsps,” clicked Renee. She pulled a rare candy out of the jar, then held it up. “Oh, what's this? A treat?” 

Vaida grinned widely, displaying her pointed teeth, and her pupils dilated. 

“Who's a good kitty? Who? Whooo?” cooed Renee. 

“It's meeee!” cried Vaida. 

“That's right!” said Renee. With a heavy overhand throw, she hurled the candy out the door and down the hallway. “Goooo get it!”

Vaida levitated out of her seat, then rocketed down the hall after the candy. 

Renee quickly shut the door behind her, then turned to Adrian and grinned. 

“What the - uh, how did…” Adrian trailed off. 

“Now, that probably looked kinda kinky, but it's really more of a game for her,” said Renee. “Turns out, if you can keep Mew entertained and full of sweets, you can get them to do pretty much whatever you want. They'll eventually get bored and leave, of course, but I won't need them here for much longer anyway.” She walked over to the desk and dragged her hand along the edge as she made her way to the chair. 

“What's going on here?” asked Adrian. 

Renee picked up the coat on the chair and shrugged it on. It was a loose fit, but the shape and colors matched nicely with the rest of her outfit. 

“Wait… Did you design the uniforms?” asked Adrian. 

Renee cackled. “That's what you're focused on? Wow. But yeah, yeah I did.” She slowly walked to the front of the desk and sat down on it. She put a hand to her chin and kicked her feet absent-mindedly, as she was too short for them to reach the floor while seated. 

“So, you're the real leader, huh,” said Adrian. 

“Yup! Surprised?” asked Renee. 

Adrian shrugged. “Not really, but I hadn't guessed. I suppose it makes sense.”

“Oh yeah? How's that?” asked Renee. 

“Based on the fact that you order around the other commanders, and that you also do whatever you want without consequence,” said Adrian.

Renee cackled. “Yeah, that'd do it!” 

Adrian gave Renee a sidelong glance. “So… Why are you telling me this? Are you going to kill me?”

“Pfft, of course not!” said Renee. “Just giving you context for what I'm about to do.” 

“Er, what?” asked Adrian. 

In a flash, Renee lunged at Adrian, tackling him and pinning him to the floor. “Hold still!” 

Adrian struggled, to no effect. “H-hey! Get off of me!” 

Renee slipped a thick collar around Adrian's neck and promptly locked it. 

Finally orienting himself, Adrian shoved Renee away and got to his feet. His hands immediately went to the newly applied collar. “The fuck is this?” 

“It's a tracking collar!” said Renee, putting her hands on her hips and grinning. 

“And what's stopping me from just breaking it off?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. “I'm pretty damn strong.”

“Go ahead and try,” said Renee, her grin widening. 

Adrian glared at Renee, then gave the collar a gentle experimental tug. A pair of metal prongs poked into his neck. “Is this a fucking shock collar? You put a shock collar on me? Sicko.”

“Of course not!” said Renee, still grinning. “Give it a harder tug! Don't be shy.” 

“No,” said Adrian flatly. 

Renee sighed and produced a small remote with an antenna. With a mischievous grin, she pressed a button. 

A sharp zap hit Adrian's neck. 

“Owww! Motherfucker ,” growled Adrian, rubbing his neck under the collar. 

“It also stops you from transforming into your patron's form, so don't even try,” said Renee. 

Adrian's hands found a metal ring stitched to the front of the collar. He narrowed his eyes. “If you try to put me on a leash, I'll make you regret it.”

“Is that a threat or a promise?” cooed Renee, her tone simultaneously condescending and suggestive. 

Adrian shuddered. “Wh… Why are you like this? Why? What's your problem? Seriously.”

“Do you want the depressing answer, or just an evil laugh?” asked Renee flatly. She paused briefly. “Eh, you get the depressing answer!”

“Lucky me,” grumbled Adrian. 

“So, you see… Dating as an adult who looks like a child sucks balls,” said Renee. “I only get hit on by teens and creepy old men. It was worse when I looked even younger, but it's not great now either. I just… At this point, I just don't let men touch me, straight up. But dominating them? Sign me up!”

Adrian raised an eyebrow. “Uhh, I'm sorry that happened to you, but I wasn't asking for the origin story for your kinks. My real question is why you're forcing it on me.”

“Oh! Well, you should have been more specific,” said Renee, shrugging. “That’s an easy one. It's just no fun for me if you're enjoying it! Making you uncomfortable is so entertaining.” 

“Eugh,” said Adrian, shuddering again. “Did you need anything else from me right now? You revealed yourself as the real leader of Team Void, and made good on your threat to keep me as a pet. Are we done here?” 

Renee cackled. “Not done yet. I still need to tell you that I know you're a spy… And not a particularly good one, at that. I don't know why you're here or who sent you, but clearly the same as the one who sent your, uh. Ex-wife ?”

“Okay. And what are you planning on doing about it?” asked Adrian, raising an eyebrow. 

“Hmmm. Well, I'm going to torture you until you tell me everything, and I'm gonna keep dragging you along with me to missions,” said Renee. “Can't leave my brother out when I make appearances… Even if I have to keep him on a leash. If that kid asks why, I'll just say you've been naughty , and you're being punished.”

Adrian glared at Renee. “You leave the kid out of… Whatever the hell this is.”

“Why?” asked Renee, shrugging dismissively. “It's not like she's even gonna understand what that means.”

“Can you just, like… Pick two or three ways to be evil and call that enough?” asked Adrian, grimacing in disgust. 

“Now, where's the fun in that?” asked Renee, grinning. “So, about your possessed phone… I'm gonna figure out how to get into it and find out about all your little buddies and what you're planning. Such a shame that poor little Rotom is trapped in that device! I'm sure I can bully it into cooperating, with the right encouragement.”

“Yeah, good luck with that,” said Adrian flatly. 

“I won't need luck, I know exactly how to hurt a ghost,” said Renee, grinning. “For now… I'm gonna toss you back in your room while I figure out what all I'm gonna do to you.”

–

Sheena rubbed Mackenzie's back. “You did everything you could. All of us know that. Curie isn't always accurate in their predictions… I know that on a deep and personal level, as I've told you. But this time, they happened to be right. If you'd had a lot more help, maybe things would have gone differently, but the reality of it is that you went in there alone because nobody else could come with you.”

Mackenzie sobbed again, burying her face in her hands. Her hair, still damp from her much-needed shower, was in disarray and her face was streaked with tears. 

Mackenzie's phone began to ring. 

Picking it up, Sheena squinted at the screen. “Er. It's Astrit. Should I answer?” 

Still covering her face, Mackenzie nodded. 

Sheena tapped the call button. “Hello?” 

“Hello. Who is this? You don't sound like Mackenzie,” said Astrit. 

“This is Sheena,” said Sheena gruffly. “What do you want?” 

“Sheena… Why does that name sound familiar?” 

“You seriously don't remember me?” asked Sheena incredulously. “Wow.”

“Can you jog my memory?” 

“You killed me to summon your evil god in Alola,” said Sheena flatly. 

“Oh. Right, the girl with the leg. I don't know if I ever caught your name at the time.”

“You didn't even know my name when you killed me?!” cried Sheena. 

“Listen. I've killed a lot of people I didn't know. It's nothing personal, okay? I would be happy to discuss this in a more professional capacity later, but I have an important development to share.”

Sheena rolled her eyes. “Right. Fine. Out with it, then.”

“My office just received an unusual fax. It looked… Burnt around the edges? Which was strange. But the important part is the message.”

“Just tell me,” said Sheena flatly. 

“It said: Adrian is in danger. We are attempting a rescue. Please send help if we do not reach out within two hours.”

“And when was it sent?” asked Sheena. 

“Approximately three minutes ago. I called as soon as I got to my phone after receiving it.”

“Well, thanks for getting it to us quickly,” said Sheena. 

“No problem. Hey… How is Mackenzie doing?”

Sheena sighed. “Not well, but she's here if you want to say hi.”

“Oh! Hello, Mackenzie. Again, my condolences about your cousin. I hope you feel better soon.”

“Thank you,” murmured Mackenzie. 

The call ended. 

–

“I really think we're finally going to get to the bottom of this,” said Murphy, power walking down the hall. 

“How do you know Vaida is even gonna tell us anything at all?” asked Cleo, barely keeping up with her short little legs. “She could just deny everything.”

Murphy chuckled. “And that's why we ease into it first, with casual conversation. I'm going to tell her the spot where my mark is located is hurting, first. Not in those words, of course, since I'm not supposed to know about the mark at all! And then-” He stopped as he nearly tripped over something. 

Vaida was crouched on the floor, sans-coat and gnawing on something. Shreds of plastic wrapper littered the floor around her. 

“Ah, Leader Vaida! I was just looking for you,” said Murphy. “I wanted to ask you about something.”

Looking up at Murphy with wild eyes, Vaida let out a low growl. 

“Right, okay,” said Murphy, backing away slightly. He paused briefly, then offered Vaida a rare candy. 

Vaida perked up and snatched the candy from Murphy's hands, her expression gleeful and childlike. She glowed in a rainbow of colors as she shape-shifted . The light faded, leaving Mew in her place. 

“Oh! Uhh, hello there,” said Murphy. 

“Mew!” chirped Mew. They floated around Murphy, observing him from different angles. “Prrr! Mrrp! Mreew? Rowr.”

“I don't know if you're trying to say something or just making noises, but if it's the former, I have no idea what you're saying,” said Murphy. 

“Mree!” chirped Mew. Suddenly, they grabbed Murphy's face, holding his cheeks firmly in their little paws. 

Murphy resisted the urge to struggle, trying to stay calm as the small but powerful god manhandled him. 

Mew's paws migrated to Murphy's mouth, then gently pulled back his upper lip, uncovering his mark of Uxie. “Mew!” cried Mew, letting go in surprise. They scooped up their dropped candies, floated backwards a bit, then glowed blue before abruptly disappearing. 

There was a brief silence. 

“Well, that can't be good!” said Cleo. 

Murphy rubbed his slightly sore mouth. “No. No it cannot.”

“Doesn't that badge you're wearing make your marks invisible?” asked Cleo. “Are we sure they saw it?”

“It should, but it sure seemed like they saw something,” said Murphy. “I'm not sure what's going on there.”

Chapter Text

Adrian looked around his room, suddenly even more of a prison than it had been before. He had packed away most of his belongings for safekeeping, save for a few necessities, and the room was looking bare and dismal. 

“I didn't want to mention this while you were talking to Renee, but I can't find any indication that the collar you are wearing inhibits our ability to transform,” said Darkrai silently. “As far as I can determine, it will behave like any other clothing and transform with us.”

“Okay, great. So I guess all we need to worry about is the tracking, then,” said Adrian. 

With a sizzle of electricity, Rotom appeared through the ceiling, conspicuously lacking a phone. “Bzzt! Hello, Adrian! Get your nudity jokes out of your system now.”

“Well, I feel naked without my phone, but I can't imagine how you feel without it,” said Adrian. 

Rotom played a rimshot noise, its expression deadpan.  “Bzzt! Anyway. I was unable to extract your phone from the lock box without damaging it or calling attention to my presence, so I fried it and left it behind. Sorry, Adrian! Bzzt! However, all of your information and apps, et cetera are stored in the cloud and ready to download as soon as I have a new host.” 

Adrian nodded understandingly. “That's fine. I'm glad you're safe! Were you able to contact anyone before you left the phone?”

“Bzzt! Unfortunately the signal was blocked in the box, and I didn't have the foresight to send out a distress signal first,” said Rotom. “Bzzt! However. I found a printer and fax machine and sent a message to the office of the liaisons of Giratina. I didn't have much time before I burnt out the appliances because they're not built to handle Rotom, but I think I was successful!” 

“Good job, Rotom! Any chance you can figure out how to disable this tracking collar? Preferably without immediately alerting anyone,” said Adrian. 

“Bzzt! Okay, I'll see what I can do! Hold still,” said Rotom. It slipped a tendril of energy into the collar. “Bzzt! Huh…” 

“What? What's wrong?” asked Adrian. 

“Bzzt! Nothing wrong at all,” said Rotom. “Bzzt! This is an ordinary e-collar, albeit with the amperage boosted. It has no tracking capabilities. Bzzt! It's not even Wi-Fi enabled, the remote should only work at short range.” 

Adrian dragged his hand down his face. “So. Renee really just put a cheap, juiced up shock collar on me and acted like it was some magical technological wonder?” 

“Bzzt! That would appear to be the case,” confirmed Rotom. “Bzzt! The material isn't tough either, a good pair of scissors with insulated handles will take it right off safely!” 

Adrian extracted a pair of heavy-duty scissors from his electronic storage bag. Holding the electrodes on the collar away from his skin, he snipped the collar , and it gave way without resistance. He examined the collar. “This looks… Previously used. I don't really want to think about the implications, but Renee is a weirdo for doing this.” 

“Bzzt! To be blunt, she's a predator and admitted it herself,” said Rotom. 

“You're… not wrong,” said Adrian. “I really need to get out of here before she decides how to torture me. I don't want to find out what she has in mind.”

“Bzzt! Well, I think you have everything you need to escape. Gillie is on her way now,” said Rotom. 

As if on cue, a translucent Gillie ran in through the closed door, wearing a dark purple mask sporting a bejeweled screaming expression. “Hey, Adrian! Are you ready to get out of here? What's the plan?” 

“You're really getting your money's worth from your new masks, huh!” said Adrian. 

“Yeah, they're so cool!” said Gillie. “I see you got that collar off. Are you okay?” 

Adrian shrugged. “About as okay as can be expected. This is insane.” He pulled his coat on and adjusted the collar. “I'm ready when you are. If I'm lucky, there's nothing to stop me from just phasing through every barrier.”

“What if there is something?” asked Gillie. 

“Then we deal with it when we get to it,” said Adrian. His body glowed brightly , and his shape became irregular before coalescing into Darkrai's form.

“Bzzt! I gave the building a good run through and can suggest the safest path minimizing risk of detection,” offered Rotom. 

“I suppose we will be following you, then,” said Darkrai. 

–

“I should've just brought him with me,” mused Sheena. 

“I mean. Anika just let you go, but didn't she specifically not let Adrian leave?” asked Mackenzie. 

Sheena shrugged. “She kinda offered to let him leave, but I'm pretty sure that was a joke. Still, though…” 

“You had an opportunity to get out of there without a fuss, and you took it,” said Mackenzie firmly. “Adrian is an adult… And one with superpowers, to boot, and a Legendary Pokémon on hand to help him besides his patron. He can handle whatever is going on, I'm sure.” 

“But I'm his boss! I should be making sure he's safe,” said Sheena. 

Mackenzie raised an eyebrow. “Sheena… It's spy work, you're not his field trip chaperone. I know I'm one to talk right now, but you need to trust that he knows what he's doing. The fax did say to wait before going in for him ourselves.” 

Sheena sighed. “Yeah, okay. I know. But the fact that it specifically said he was in danger is worrying.”

“So worry while you're waiting,” said Mackenzie. “I'm absolutely not going to tell you not to worry. But right now, anything we try before the designated time could interfere with his plans.” 

“I suppose so,” said Sheena. 

–

“So, how screwed do you think we are?” asked Cleo, sitting on the edge of Murphy's bunk. 

“I don't know yet,” said Murphy. “Depends on whether Mew tells anyone… Or rather, tells anyone who cares.”

Cleo shrugged. “Fair enough! Do you think we should just bail? You said you can remove that mark yourself, right?”

Murphy shook his head. “Let's not be too hasty here.” He thought for a moment. “I think… our best bet is to just act like nothing happened, and hope Mew treats that the same way as a cat treats someone ignoring them: inexplicable trust.”

“You sure you're not just making excuses to keep the powers they gave you?” asked Cleo, raising an eyebrow. 

“I'm sure,” said Murphy flatly. 

Cleo shrugged again. “I figured it was worth checking in about it! Someone's gotta keep you in check, lest you get cocky.”

–

“An empty Rotom phone?” asked Nurse Joy. “Yes, we actually do happen to have one on hand. Rotom phones are not terribly common in Sinnoh, how did you know we'd have one at all?”

“Bzzt! Internet!” said Rotom. “Bzzt! I try to keep on top of such things in the event of an emergency!” 

“Great job, Rotom!” said Adrian. 

Nurse Joy peered down at Rotom curiously. “I mean no offense by this, but I didn't think Rotom phones were all that chatty.”

“Bzzt! Depends on the model and the Rotom's training,” said Rotom. “Bzzt! Now, how about that phone?” 

Gillie slumped on a chair in the corner of the Pokémon Center, watching the door. 

The door opened, and a shiny Sylveon walked in, ribbons drooping from exhaustion. 

Gillie perked up, before getting a better look at the newcomer. 

Unlike the short and pudgy Neptune, this Sylveon was tall and lithe, and carried an air of smug superiority. Their steps were deliberate and confident, despite their apparent low energy. A familiar-looking bag was strapped to their body. 

A weary Kaur plodded in after the apparently-freshly-evolved Zhal a few moments later. 

Frantically, Gillie looked between the newcomers and Adrian, who fortunately had his back turned. She contemplated fleeing, but she was spotted before she could act. 

“Hey! Gillie!” called Zhal. “Fancy seeing you here. Up late, huh?” 

“Uhh. I could say the same to you! It's like midnight, what are you doing wandering at this hour?” asked Gillie. 

“We… We had… Um. There was…” mumbled Kaur. 

“We got caught up in a bunch of battles before making it into the city,” said Zhal. “Usually, Kaur is in bed by ten. We thought about stopping on the way and camping, but something seems kinda… Off, tonight. I can't explain it, but something isn't quite right.”

Gillie nodded knowingly. “Well, I'm glad you made it here safely! I see you evolved. Weren't you trying for Espeon or Umbreon?”

Zhal's ears drooped briefly, then straightened, and they grinned unconvincingly. “Oh, you know! I changed my mind. It was a deliberate decision and fully intentional in every way. You know, dark type is overrated, and I found out shiny Espeon is bright green! And green isn't really my color, you know?” 

“Cool!” said Gillie. “Not that I'm condoning committing crimes or whatever, but Sylveon is pretty adorable, and you can get away with a lot just by being cute and pretty. The ribbons are pretty good for sleight of hand, too, once you get used to them!” 

Zhal's grin widened, now genuine. “Oh, yeah! That totally factored into my decision to become a Sylveon. It's the perfect form for catching suckers off guard!”

“That's the spirit!” said Gillie. 

“So, are you here with your trainer?” asked Zhal. “We still haven't met him. Why so mysterious?” 

Adrian turned around. “Hmm? Everything okay?” 

Kaur gasped and pointed at Adrian. “It's… It's you!”

“It's me!” agreed Adrian, waving casually. 

“What?!” cried Zhal, visibly shocked. They whirled on Gillie. “You! You're with the bad guys! Tch. I knew we shouldn't have trusted you!” 

“I-I can explain!” cried Gillie. 

“I can explain,” said Adrian. “I'm not really with Team Void. I was a spy… And I just quit.”

Zhal raised an eyebrow. “Assuming you're even telling me the truth, which is a heavy assumption… I don't imagine your sister is too pleased about that.”

Adrian sighed wearily. “Renee isn't really my sister. She made it up.” 

“I guess that tracks,” said Zhal. “It was a little campy how you were talking to each other about it. But… why would she do that?” 

“I don't know, she's a weirdo. Not the fun kind, the creepy kind,” said Adrian. 

Zhal's ears folded back. “She did it to be creepy? How is… you know what, I don't want to know.” 

“You're right. You really don't,” said Adrian, his tone pained. “She figured out I was a spy, stepped things up a notch, and threatened to torture me for information. So, I bailed. She's probably looking for me right now, so I need to figure out what to do next. She's kinda obsessed with me, unfortunately.” 

“Tough break,” said Zhal. They turned to Gillie and glared at her. “If any of this is even true… you could have told us, you know.” 

“Umm, no offense, but I'm not blowing my trainer's cover just to make sure a little kid and her Pokémon know I'm a good guy when they find out who my trainer is,” said Gillie flatly. 

There was a brief silence. 

“She… she has a point,” observed Kaur quietly. 

Zhal grumbled under their breath. 

“You two get some rest, but try not to stay in this city for too long,” said Adrian. “There's some dangerous stuff going on lately. Don't get caught up in it.”

“Well, now I'm just curious! Thanks a lot,” said Zhal sarcastically. 

Adrian rolled his eyes. “Great. Well, can't say I would have felt any different when I was Kaur's age. I will tell you one thing, though.”

“And that is?” asked Zhal. 

“There are two Darkrai in this city right now,” said Adrian. “One of them is a good guy, and one of them is a bad guy. Run from both of them, just to be sure. They're both a lot stronger than you're prepared to handle any time soon, and the wrong one could really hurt you.” 

“What are two Darkrai doing in the city? I thought they normally kept to themselves,” said Zhal. 

Adrian shrugged. “They normally do, but the situation is not a normal one.”

“Oooh, ominous,” said Zhal. “Care to share what's so abnormal about the situation?” 

“No,” said Adrian firmly. 

“Tch! C'mon! You know, a little transparency would go a long way towards me trusting you,” said Zhal. 

Adrian raised an eyebrow. “With all due respect, we don't need your trust. If you want to take my advice or not, that's on you.”

Zhal gasped. “Are you saying our trust is worthless? Rude!”

“That is not what I said, but if you want to take it that way, that's your problem,” said Adrian flatly. 

Zhal gave Gillie an affronted look. “Are you just going to let your trainer talk to us like that?” 

“I think you're overestimating how much I like you,” said Gillie. 

Zhal let out an indignant snarl. 

“Um,” said Kaur, raising her hand. 

“Yeah? What is it?” asked Adrian. 

“Um. I… I want… Um. Can you… Can… Um,” murmured Kaur, getting increasingly flustered. 

“Hey, it's okay,” said Adrian gently. “Take a deep breath… And take your time.”

Kaur nodded sheepishly. She took a sharp breath, then exhaled slowly. 

“Can… can you tell… tell me… Um. Tell me anything… anything else? I want… to… know. Um. Know why it's… It's so… so dangerous,” said Kaur, staring intently at the floor and sweating visibly. “Um. Please?”

Adrian sighed, and relaxed his shoulders. “Okay, I guess I can tell you just a little more.” He paused. “There are… gods involved. None of them care at all about collateral damage. I don't want either of you, or any of your other Pokémon, to become part of that collateral damage. Things are about to get ugly. I don't think everything will remain contained within this city for long, but this is kinda the epicenter of it all. Do what you need to do here, get your gym badge, and get the heck out of dodge as soon as possible. Okay?”

Kaur nodded quickly. “Okay! Thank… thank you. For… for everything.”

“Hey, no problem!” said Adrian. 

Rotom approached, now inhabiting a new phone. “Bzzt! I've contacted the others to get them up to date, and I'm currently moving your data to this phone. Bzzt! We should probably get going ASAP.”

“Thanks, Rotom!” said Adrian. He turned back to Kaur and Zhal. “If you'll excuse us, we have a crazy person to flee from. It was nice seeing you two again!” 

“Nice seeing… seeing you… you too,” said Kaur. 

“See you later, I guess,” said Zhal. 

Gillie's posture stiffened. “She's out front right now.”

“Oh, shit,” said Adrian. He rushed into the back room of the Pokémon Center. 

Gillie put on her Moonshadow Mask and faded into the shadow of the counter.

“Hmm? Is something wrong?” asked Nurse Joy, looking up from the magazine she was reading. 

Moments later, Renee stepped into the building. She spotted Kaur and strolled over to her. “Hey, kid!” 

“Looking for a fight?” asked Zhal, posturing defensively. 

“No fighting in the Pokémon Center,” said Nurse Joy firmly. “You'll need to take it outside.”

“Oh no, not at all!” said Renee, her voice patronizingly saccharine. “Just looking for my dearest brother, he went on an errand hours ago and hasn't come back. Happen to see him recently?” 

Kaur shook her head quickly. 

“He's your brother,” said Zhal. “Can't you just text him or something?”

Renee scowled down at Zhal. “He is not answering my texts, or my calls for that matter. As his sister, I'm very concerned about him, you see.” 

“Well, we haven't seen him,” said Zhal, glaring back up at Renee. 

“Is that so?” asked Renee. She turned to face Kaur again. “That guilty expression… You have seen him, haven't you!” In a flash, she grabbed Kaur's arm. “You better talk, or else.” 

“You let her go!” screeched Zhal. A beam of purple hearts burst from their mouth. Disarming Voice hit Renee, shredding her clothes where it landed and leaving angry welts on her skin. 

“You little brat!” growled Renee, letting go of Kaur and gritting her teeth in pain. She pulled a potion from her bag and chugged it, and the welts disappeared. 

“Get out! Now!” barked Nurse Joy, rolling up her sleeve. 

Renee put her hands up and backed away. “Fine. Fine, I'll leave.” She left the building, looking back one more time before the door closed behind her. 

There was a brief silence. 

Kaur turned to face Nurse Joy. “I'm… I'm sorry…”

“You have nothing to apologize for,” said Nurse Joy gently. “That girl came in and antagonized you. However, I must ask you to stay here overnight for your safety.”

“We were going to do that anyway, but sure,” said Zhal. 

Adrian emerged from the back. “What happened? Are you okay, Kaur? I heard the conversation, but I didn't see.”

“Renee grabbed Kaur, but Zhal fought her off,” said Gillie. 

“I sure did, didn't I!” said Zhal, perking up. They paused, then narrowed their eyes. “There was… something off about that exchange. I was sure I fucked up , and she'd die or something. That attack should've hurt her a lot more, but she pretty much just shrugged it off. And I thought humans couldn't use potions… Right?”

“Most can't, yeah,” said Adrian.

Zhal stared at the floor, lost in concentration. They looked up at Adrian again. “That girl… She's not really human, is she.”

“Technically, yeah, she's not,” said Adrian. He paused. “I… probably shouldn't have told you that, but she's making this situation your problem.”

Zhal tilted their head to the side. “Whatever she is… You're one too, aren't you?” 

“I am,” said Adrian, nodding. “She's sort of my evil clone, actually, but not really. It's complicated.”

“That… brings up a lot more questions than it answers,” said Zhal, eyeing Adrian incredulously. 

Adrian shrugged. “Questions I can't answer. But it's complicated.” 

“Tch! It figures,” scoffed Zhal. 

“I think we're going to stick around here for a while longer before heading out,” said Adrian. “I want to make sure she's not just waiting outside for me.”

“Stay as long as you need to,” said Nurse Joy. “And I truly mean as long as you need to.” 

Adrian sighed. “Thanks for the offer, but I don't want her to give you trouble if she finds out I'm here.” 

Nurse Joy rolled up her sleeve again, revealing a small mark of Giratina. She gave Adrian a pointed look. “She knows who I am, and she's not coming back, even with her goons.”

“Ah,” said Adrian. “Then you know who I am, too. Which also means you know I can't stay long.”

“I do, on both counts,” said Nurse Joy. “But as you venture out to complete your mission, you are welcome to retreat to the Pokémon Center for safety between excursions.”

“I appreciate that, thank you,” said Adrian. 

Kaur looked back and forth between Nurse Joy and Adrian, visibly bewildered. 

“All right, I don't know what's going on here, but I'm starting to get a little creeped out,” said Zhal. 

Nurse Joy turned her attention to Kaur. “You two should get to bed, it's late. There are a few rooms in the back, pick any one of them, they're all empty right now.”

“Did you really just go to bed, the adults are talking us?” protested Zhal. 

“Yes,” said Nurse Joy flatly. “Go on, then.”

Chapter Text

“Maybe if I'd acted faster instead of just leaving the building as quickly as possible, I could've killed Arceus before it was too late,” murmured Mackenzie. 

“I told you, none of us blame you for not doing that. You didn't even know that was possible, even putting aside the fact that it's, yanno…” Sheena trailed off. 

Mackenzie sighed. “My cousin, yeah. I just wish I could have done more.” 

There was a knock on the door to the hotel room. 

“I'll get that!” said Sheena, standing up and making her way to the door. She peeked through the peephole, perked up, and opened the door. 

Tisiphone fell into Sheena's arms and pulled her close. “Sheena! Sweetheart! I missed you!” 

“Tizzy!” cried Sheena, clutching her girlfriend. “Let's get into the room, then we'll catch up.”

–

Steve stepped into the Veilstone Pokémon Center and looked around. 

“Steve!” said Nurse Joy, waving. “What brings you here tonight, so late?” 

“I'm here to see Adrian,” said Steve. “Is he okay?”

Nurse Joy nodded. “As far as I could tell! He's in the back resting. The room all the way to the left.”

“Thank you!” said Steve. He made his way into the back hallway, and stopped in his tracks as he spotted a Pokémon blocking the corridor. 

Zhal spread their ribbons out to cover the full breadth of the hall, and scowled up at the apparent intruder. 

“Oh, a shiny Sylveon! Aren't you adorable,” said Steve brightly, putting his hands on his hips. 

“Yeah, yeah, very cute, et cetera,” said Zhal, eyeing Steve warily. “Who are you?” 

Steve smiled. “My name's Steve, how about you?” 

“Zhal, not that it's any of your business,” said Zhal, eyeing Steve suspiciously. “What are you doing here… Steve?”

Steve gasped excitedly. “Oh, you're Zhal! I've heard so much about you!” 

“You… have?” asked Zhal, ears swiveled in confusion. 

“I have!” said Steve. He paused. “Well, I suppose not really a lot, but I've heard about you. Look at you, you evolved! How cool! Adrian has a shiny Sylveon back home.” 

Zhal took a more defensive stance again. “You know Adrian? Are you with those Team Void goons?”

“What? No,” said Steve, blinking in confusion. “I'm his boyfriend, and I'm here to see him. He's here, right?” 

“How do I know you're not lying? You could be here to come after him or something,” said Zhal, narrowing their eyes. 

Steve sighed. “I suppose you don't know. Fair enough!” He paused. “Are you trying to protect him? That's very thoughtful of you.”

“I am protecting my trainer!” said Zhal, blushing indignantly. “That Renee weirdo tried to kidnap her! For all I know, you could try to do the same.”

Adrian rushed out of his room. “Steve! You're here!” He walked towards Steve, then motioned gently for Zhal to move out of the way. “Uh. Do you mind?” 

Hesitantly, Zhal moved aside to allow Adrian to pass. 

Adrian embraced Steve, and they shared a brief kiss. “I missed you! I love you, I'm so glad to see you again!”

Zhal rolled their eyes. “Okay, I guess I'll take your word for it.”

“Were you… trying to defend me?” asked Adrian, looking back at Zhal curiously. 

“No!” scoffed Zhal, turning up their nose. “I was protecting Kaur. Remember what Renee did?” 

“Well. Thank you, anyway!” said Adrian. 

Kaur wandered into the hallway, clad in her pajamas and rubbing her eyes blearily. “Hmm? What's… What's happening?”

“Adrian's butt buddy is here,” said Zhal flatly. 

“What? What does… does that mean?” asked Kaur. 

Steve and Adrian exchanged uncomfortable glances. 

“Uhhhh,” stammered Zhal. “It means… They're dating! And people who are dating look at each other's butts a lot. Yeah!”

“Can… can I have, a… a butt buddy? When I'm… I'm older?” asked Kaur, perking up. 

Zhal winced. “Uhhh, sure. But it's actually very rude to call it that, don't say it to anybody. In fact, forget you heard it at all.” 

“On that note, Steve and I are going back to my room,” said Adrian. “We've got a lot to talk about.”

“Oh, I'm sure you do,” said Zhal, smirking. “Just keep it quiet, there are other people here, you know.” 

Adrian rolled his eyes. “I'm not going to dignify that with a response. C'mon, Steve.” 

–

“So, Anika just let you leave? Just like that?” asked Tisiphone. “Interesting, and suspicious. But Gillie reported that Renee didn’t seem too happy about that, so presumably she’s not in on whatever Anika’s plan for you is.”

“Have you met her before?” asked Sheena.

Tisiphone nodded. “Yeah! Sometimes we’ve been on opposite sides of a conflict, and sometimes we’ve worked together. She’s valuable as an ally, and a truly fearsome opponent.”

“Anything you can tell me about her?” asked Sheena. “I really want to get to the bottom of whatever it is she’s trying to do with me.”

“Sure!” said Tisiphone. “So, Anika… she’s only a couple hundred years old, but she’s taken on a lot of odd jobs. She tends to go for things that either pay well or are interesting, and she’s not terribly concerned about whether they’re right or wrong. If she takes a shine to you, she’s super friendly and helpful. If she doesn’t like you, though… she’s actually really mean, and she’s not above engaging in some pretty malicious bullying.”

Sheena sighed. “Well, that’s a little disappointing! She seemed really sweet, but I guess I was just lucky enough to only see that side of her.”

“Sorry to be the bearer of bad news! No offense, but what were you expecting from someone who’s buddies with Renee?” asked Tisiphone, raising an eyebrow.

“I suppose I had a feeling that was the case, but it's still disappointing,” said Sheena. “What’s their relationship like? Anika and Renee, I mean.”

“Well, I think they’ve been friends for about a decade. They like to pick on each other quite a bit, but they’ll happily team up to torment someone unlucky enough to look like a target to both of them. It’s unusual for them not to be on even footing during one of their schemes, but it seems like they’re both hiding things from each other,” said Tisiphone. “I think what may have happened is that Renee set things up before getting Anika involved. Anika probably knows Renee is hiding things from her, so having her own plans going on could simply be petty retaliation. Whether those plans include making things harder for us is anyone’s guess, though.” 

Sheena nodded. “Interesting. I’ll keep that in mind. In the event we have to fight her, what should I be ready for? She definitely showed me some of her powers, but she definitely could have been hiding others.”

“Interestingly, she seems to favor her human form in a fight,” said Tisiphone. “Her main thing is telekinesis with small projectiles, which sounds kinda limited, but it’s extremely versatile. Something important to note is that not only does she hide needles in her clothing, she also has them hidden in her hair, and even has quite a number of really tiny ones stored under her skin… and the latter is pretty gross, gotta say, but I will admit it makes her absolutely deadly at all times.”

“Hold on, did you say her human form? Does she have another form?” asked Sheena.

Tisiphone raised an eyebrow. “Yeah, fused liaisons usually do. Solgaleo makes an appearance occasionally, but she favors the maneuverability of her human form.”

“She’s a fused liaison?!” said Sheena, eyes wide. “I had no idea! The way she talks about fused liaisons…”

“Yeah, Anika talks a lot of shit about fused liaisons for someone who is one herself,” said Tisiphone.

Sheena shook her head in disbelief. “No kidding! Wow.”

–

Taking a deep breath first, Murphy entered Vaida's office and performed the Team Void salute. “Leader Vaida. You needed me?” 

“Shut the door,” instructed Vaida. 

Murphy obeyed. “Done.” 

“Present your mark, Raspberry,” said Vaida. 

Murphy hesitated, then performed the Team Void salute again, lighting up his mark of Mew. 

“No, not my mark,” said Vaida calmly. “Your patron's. Don't bother with the badge, it's no obstacle to me.”

Slowly, Murphy pulled back his upper lip to reveal the mark of Uxie on his gums. 

“So it's true, then,” said Vaida. “I didn't imagine it. You are truly the liaison of Uxie. Why have I never heard of you?”

“I'm just their dirty little secret,” said Murphy casually. 

Vaida cackled. “Is that so? How interesting. Well, I won't go spreading that secret… Unless, of course, I find a reason to do so. That's not a threat, but I make no promises of confidentiality.”

“Err, thank you?” offered Murphy. 

“You know, I have great respect for your patron,” said Vaida. “I hope they have not taken offense to me putting my mark on you.”

“If they really didn't want that to happen, it wouldn't have,” said Murphy matter-of-factly. 

“Good, good,” said Vaida, nodding. 

There was a brief silence. 

“So, uh. Did you need something from me, or did you just want to check in about my mark?” asked Murphy. 

“I propose… an exchange of information,” said Vaida. “I know you have questions for me, and I am very curious about the liaison of Uxie. Do you think we can come to an agreement on that, Raspberry?”

Murphy nodded. “Sounds good to me!”

“Excellent. I will begin by informing you that despite my position, I am relatively uninvolved in the operations of this organization,” said Vaida. “But I have a feeling you already knew that.” 

“I do know that, yes,” said Murphy. “What did you want to know about me?” 

Vaida gestured vaguely. “Whatever you are willing to share with me. The more you tell me, the more questions you may ask.”

Murphy nodded. “Okay. Well… I've been Uxie's liaison for somewhere around a decade. I am not fused, but I am immortal. My powers are focused primarily around the manipulation of perception and perspective, allowing me to act freely as needed.” He pulled a rare candy out from under his arm and tossed it to Vaida. “I also have a few powers that seem silly or otherwise useless, but I've found that they have a lot more utility than one might expect.”

Vaida snatched the candy out of the air and grinned, displaying her sharp teeth. “Utility indeed! Now, you may ask me some questions. We will go back and forth until we are satisfied.”

“Fantastic,” said Murphy. “I suppose my first question would be what you're doing here.”

“Not much,” admitted Vaida. “Sitting in the big chair and giving powers to recruits.”

Murphy shrugged. “Why, though? An office is the last place I'd expect a Mew to enjoy.”

“They pay me, give me sweets, and keep me entertained,” said Vaida matter-of-factly. “Team Void is interesting, but I also get a little daily play time with the real boss.” 

“And who is that?” asked Murphy. 

“Renee,” said Vaida. “I don't know if you've met her. She looks like a young teenager, but she's actually much older.”