I suppose I should explain. What drove me to such madness was not greed, or envy or wickedness.

It was love.

A naive love for my country, which I myself helped propel into soaring new heights of glory.

A burning love for my brethren, without whom the flame of my willpower would have never grown strong enough to bend fate itself.

A young, idealistic love for honor, for blood, for the strength of my arm and the weight of sharp iron upon my hand.

And finally, a deep and boundless love for my family; for my brother and my mother, the latter of which had brought me into this world in order to protect it.

And yet, in my foolishness, I failed to see the darkness growing from within that love, like a towering shadow born from the brightest of flames. Some philosophers claim that love and hate are two sides of the same coin. Those are simply charlatans. Papery scrivs who know nothing past the pages of the books they write. Love and hate have nothing to do with each other.

Love and fear, however, do. After all, what can you do after you finally obtain your heart's desire, except fear it being taken away?

My love was so ferocious that, should anyone ever raise a hand against them, I would have willingly burned down the entire world and soaked myself in the blood of thousands just to set things right. I would have ripped mountains off the ground and brought down the stars from the firmament. I would have ripped a hole through reality itself, with nothing but my anger and my willpower.

And, once I lost everything, that is exactly what I attempted to do. Truly, foolish love is the most terrifying force of all and I, its wicked instrument of destruction. A fool who didn't know she was a fool. A simple tool of the fate I sworn to fight with every ounce of my being.

Now, here, at the precipice of the end, I stand with nothing, not even myself. As such, even if no eyes ever land upon these words, let them ring true, as my final act against fate.

Cursed be my name, and all who ever bear it. Cursed be my spirit, and its ever-burning flame. May they forever roam this world, unable to find peace, until the sun turns black and the moon falls, dead, from the sky.

----------------------------------------

To Inyssa, there was no feeling more frustrating than that of a battle she knew she couldn't win.

Earnest cheers and drunken yells bounced off the walls of the small room as the two trainers yelled out their orders. Whoever was the owner of the ferry had thought this well. Almost a week of being stuck in a boat meant that the passengers needed good entertainment to stomach such a trip, and what better way to build up that excitement –as well as profit from it– than to have a small tournament every day and charge a modest sum to any trainer who wished to participate in it?

Both her and Barry had agreed, of course. As much as she enjoyed spending time alone with him, it was time she started building up her reputation, instead of waiting for the media to do it for her. Unfortunately, it didn't go as she expected. The boat had more than its fair share of experienced trainers, and what she thought would be a nice and metaphorical walk through the park turned into a fierce contest of grit and will. Barry had been eliminated the round before, and now here she was in the semifinals, fighting with tooth and nail not to be utterly dominated by her opponent.

A sharp screech was heard, and Steven crashed against the wooden floor unceremoniously, crackles of electricity arching off his feathers. Inyssa clenched her teeth in frustration.

In theory, she expected to win handily. In practice, however, she was being painfully reminded that there existed trainers out there more talented and accomplished than her. One said trainer was the Johtonian woman standing proud before her. The lines on her face and the elegance with which she and her Pokemon carried themselves betrayed her as a veteran trainer, and a damn good one at that.

"Fly up as high as you can!" yelled Inyssa, swiping at the air with one hand. "Use Agility to dodge his attacks!"

"Knock him off the air, Ino." The woman's thick accent filled the room. "Let's put that lil' birdie to rest, yes?"

Steven slammed his wings against the floor, sending himself upward as a coat of light covered his body. In an instant, he was gone. Blurry after-images filled the room and the sheer speed of his flight brought up a potent torrent of wind all around the room. His opponent, however, did not seem fazed.

Inyssa couldn't help but gulp as she saw the Pokemon move. At first, when the woman had released him, it looked like a simple, normal Raichu. Maybe a little pale and with a weirdly-shaped tail, but a Raichu nonetheless. She couldn't have been more wrong. The memory of their fight against Cynthia came to her; that of the odd Vulpix who possessed the power of ice instead of fire. This case wasn't as extreme –the Raichu still was part electric– but the added psychic type definitely made things trickier.

The hundreds of thin, yellow energy bolts covering the middle of the room shot up as Ino did, flying on top of his tail as though he were surfing on waves of electricity. His bright expression never changed as he chased Steven. The Staravia did his best to dodge the innumerable lightning bolts crashing all around him, but if being able to put out such power weren't enough, the Raichu's secondary type also allowed him to telekinetically control every individual strand of electricity, making it almost impossible to avoid his assault.

Inyssa's cries for Steven not to give up were drowned by the cheers and the snap-like boom of thunder as one of the strands finally connected. Immediately, every single ounce of electricity flew directly toward Steven. His body lit up like an Ampharos' tail, and then an explosion shook the room. Even while covering her eyes, Inyssa heard as her Pokemon's unconscious body fell before her.

Every clap and cheer directed at her opponent felt like a needle poking at the lump of bitterness inside her chest, like adding gasoline to a fire. She wasn't used to being on the wrong side of such noises.

Then you'll have to get used to it, the prudent part of her said. She nodded, and returned Steven to his Pokeball, sending a few unheard words of encouragement his way.

"It was a good battle, girl."

Inyssa looked up, finding her opponent an arm's length from her. The woman had taken off her glasses, and a thin yet warm smile spread across the proud valley of her face. Both her outfit and the way she carried herself were steeped in elegance, and her beauty was the kind one could only achieve through years of hard-earned experience and cultivated strength. It was a beauty like that of a sunset.

Strangely, Inyssa felt her bitterness evaporate at the sight of her. Smiling, she raised her hand with the stoicism of a dignified loser. That's right. She was Inyssa Dawn. Mt. Coronet would be flattened into the ground before she gave those who hated her the satisfaction of seeing her throw a tantrum just because she had lost.

The woman's hand gripped hers. It was strong and calloused, yet pleasant to the touch, like the leather-bound steel of a sheathed knife.

"Yeah, it was fun," she said. "Though you should expect a rematch tomorrow."

"I'll be looking forward to it," she replied. "Um…"

"Inyssa Dawn."

"Mikan Kondo," she introduced herself in kind. "May we fight again where the…"

"…winds of a new beginning blow." Inyssa finished her sentence with a smug look on her face. The woman's eyes went wide in surprise. "New Bark, right? I recognize the accent."

A light giggle left the woman's lips. "Cultured little thing, aren't you? Now I'm definitely looking forward to our next meeting."

The rest of the tournament proceeded expectedly, with Mikan winning in the final against the guy who had beaten Barry the round before. Still, it was nice. It wasn't often they got to be on the other side of a Pokemon match, not since they had become trainers at least, and she had forgotten how fun it could be. She remembered herself a few years younger, flat on her stomach on the floor of her living room and staring up at the T.V with eyes full of excitement as the latest League matches occurred on the other side of the screen.

She'd known it as early as then. Being a trainer was in her blood.

Dinner came right after the tournament, which was good since all the excitement and screaming had worn most passengers out and they were ready for a nice, hot meal before the sun went down.

Barry held a fork in each hand as he ate, one for feeding himself and the other to give to Inyssa as she was busy brushing Kuro's fur with the special rubber brush she'd bought in Canalave. He and the rest of her Pokemon sat around their table, nibbling on their respective meals. Steven and Bret seemed to be making small talk as they ate. Kuro and Shadi were on each side of her chair, leaning against her comfortably, while Johnny simply stared at nothing as he stuffed his face with no regard for anything else.

"Agh… crap." Barry made a face as he almost dropped Inyssa's fork. "Sorry. Still get some pain on that arm sometimes."

She felt a pang of guilt and showed him a look of regret. "Sorry… I'll be done in a moment; I just need to finish brushing his back."

"Why'd you… wait, hold on." He veered off the conversation as Auri came flying to him, a cheery smile on her face. Barry booped her nose and patted her on the head. "There you go. Anyway, why are you brushing his hair now? Couldn't you do it later?"

A laugh left her lips. "Yeah, that's not happening. Meal time is pretty much the only time this asshole stays quiet and lets me brush him." Kuro let out a playful snarl, a crackle of electricity running down his fur. "Agh, shit! I told you no more shocking me or I'll shave you!"

Kuro let out a sound kind of like a giggle before focusing on his food again. Inyssa shot him a cold glare, wishing she could be more annoyed than she was, her lips struggling not to curl into a smile.

"Pain in the ass, I'm telling you." She shook her head, turning toward Barry. "You're lucky you have a normal team and not… these weirdos," she said, a clear love and appreciation behind her words.

Barry raised an eyebrow at her statement, glancing over his shoulder toward his team. Pedri and Wrathia sat together, unflappably taking small bites of their food as Auri flapped around them, wishing to play. Kitsune's head tilted forward as he tried to keep himself from falling asleep, while Razen slowly sneaked behind him, eyes determined and hands doing grabby motions toward the Kadabra's food bowl.

"Right… normal," he said. "They're probably tired from all that battling, though."

"They'll have to get used to it; I don't plan on stopping until I get to the top of that tournament at least once!" declared Inyssa, grinning wildly. "I was so close today…"

Barry opened his mouth, then closed it. "I don't know if I'd say close…"

"It was a bad matchup, I'll give you that," she admitted. "But I'm feeling confident about my chances tomorrow. I'll beat Mikan no matter what!"

"Mikan this, Mikan that…" Barry made an exaggerate mimic of his voice as he said that, tilting his head from side to side. "Gosh, Niss. You're so bad about hiding when you're…" He paused, frowning. "What's that called when you see someone beautiful and kinda freeze up?"

You mean us? a part of Inyssa's mind said, and she quickly grabbed it by the collar and punched it in the face for being so fucking corny.

"Infatuated?" she offered, cheeks reddening. "I wasn't… that. I just think she was an interesting person."

"You're so transparent, it's adorable," said Barry, sticking his tongue out at her. "Should I be worried?"

She shot him a meaningful look, lips curling into a tiny smile. "I'm sure I'll disappoint the hundreds of trainers who are infatuated with me," she said, voice thick with sarcasm. "But unfortunately for them, I'm already taken. Besides, who do you think I'm planning on facing in the finals? I deserve a proper rematch for that embarrassment of a battle last time."

"You didn't do that bad," he said. "Now that Shadi can fight I'm sure it'll be a much fairer fight."

"Is that fear in your voice?" she teased. "It's fine if you don't want to; must be nice to be ahead of me so I wouldn't wanna take it away…"

"Hey, that's not what I said! I'll happily kick your butt again if that's what you want!"

Their conversation continued throughout the rest of the meal, the ambience light and their laughter bubbling just beneath the surface the whole time. Inyssa knew it was sickeningly sweet, like Pecha berry juice. The kind that would easily clog her palate, yet she didn't care.

And someone noticed, and it stared, judgmental.

Mesprit observed the two from within the depths of Barry's soul, thought it didn't make much difference exactly where it was. It could see everything around the boy, as though it were outside. And see it did, with a strange mix of curiosity and anxiety that had its own spirit somewhat shaken.

Then, after a few minutes of that, it heard another voice next to it.

"Eavesdropping, Mesprit?"

A sigh exuded from Mesprit as he heard its sibling's voice. It didn't need to turn to know that it had materialized just behind, its eyeless stare burning into its back.

"There's not much I can do to entertain myself these days," it replied. "Besides, watching these foolish humans prance around with their emotions in such a way is… interesting, if nothing else."

This story has been stolen from Royal Road. If you read it on Amazon, please report it

"You can admit that you're happy for your chosen human, you know. I won't judge."

"Hmph. I see no reason to celebrate, Uxie, and neither should you. That bright-eyed girl of yours is nothing but trouble."

There was a hint of surprise, of annoyance, in the way Uxie's spirit shifted and moved, the bright yellow of its soul moving closer.

"Inyssa is a good kid. Intense and somewhat unstable, perhaps, but good nonetheless." Uxie's tone was hesitant, as though it weren't sure of the veracity of its words. "I see no reason for you to scorn her."

Mesprit didn't answer. It wasn't easy; describing the reason for its uneasiness, for the pang of cold it felt every time it gazed upon that girl. And yet, its pride urged him to say something.

"It's strange, you know," said Mesprit, flatly. "Despite your link with her being stronger than mine's with Barry, it seems she hasn't quite gotten the hang of your abilities. One might get the impression that something is afoot."

Despite Uxie being nothing but a spirit at the moment, Mesprit could almost imagine it looking down with a somewhat resigned expression on its face. Wood and stone, these humans never ceased to amaze it. It seemed their own theatricality had rubbed off on it somewhat over the past hundreds of years.

"Her shortcomings are not entirely her fault," said Uxie. "She is dedicated and willing, but impatient. But most importantly, she is too young. Her mind is so much sharper than her common sense that it's inevitable she ends up harming herself with it once in a while."

"Those are nothing but excuses. You know full well the true reason behind her inability to draw forth your power." Mesprit looked back, its tone completely serious. "You should tell her."

The hint of a nervous smile could be felt exuding from Uxie's spirit.

"You are always so perceptive when it comes to matters of the heart. It never ceases to amaze me."

"Fah. Even someone with less wits than a Quagsire could tell."

"…And blunt, too."

"I can be even more blunt than that," said Mesprit, a smile in its voice. "Here: You'd have to be a shit-for-brains not to realize it."

"Mesprit!" Uxie snapped, urgency in its tone. "Language!"

"What? Cussing is fun; you should try it out sometime."

The siblings exchanged a wordless, eyeless look, and then broke into laughter simultaneously, the kind that is born from the soul and ripples outward like the water of a pond after a stone was thrown into it. Oh, how long it had been. How much Mesprit had missed its older sibling. Even now, amidst all this chaos and confusion, it did. And it almost, almost, kind of missed Azelf too. Kind of.

"It eases my spirit to know that, even in times like these, I can still hear your laugh, Mesprit," said Uxie, solemnly. "I look forward to the day all three of us can be together again, laughing like old times."

"Hmph. You're certainly full of yourself, aren't you? I am the original optimist, my dear, oafish sibling, yet you believe you can act more optimistically than me?" Mesprit's spirit floated around in a nonchalant way, while Uxie observed. "I am all for happy endings, believe me, but not to the point of impossibility."

"I believe I am the most realist of us three, actually."

"Really? How so?"

"Easy. I am Uxie the wise," it said matter of factly. "And with great wisdom comes the ability to see the faint spark of hope in even the most dire of situations. I'm not an optimist, Mesprit. I simply state what is true; we shall emerge victorious, partly thanks to that poor girl you've taken such a disliking to."

Mesprit's invisible smile dropped, as it turned to focus on the two youngsters, still laughing and enjoying their time together. It felt as though a cold needle had pierced its soul. Why did that girl evoke such an anxious feeling?

"I suppose time will prove one of us right, eventually," it said. "I just… don't think someone as mentally unstable as that girl should have access to your power. Memories are no trifling matter, as I'm sure you well know." There was a short, sharp silence. "Especially memories she might not even be aware of."

"She will know about those eventually," replied Uxie, a tinge of irritation in its voice. "And once she does, I trust her to draw from them only what will strengthen her, and leave the rest behind."

Mesprit couldn't help but smile a resigned smile. Of course. Convincing Uxie of an unfortunate truth was harder than striking the moon with a pebble.

"You've always had so much faith in humans… it's what makes you the best of us." It left a little pause in the conversation, before saying the rest. "And the most foolish. I sense great darkness within that girl, and I know you do as well."

"Not all who possess darkness in their heart act upon it," argued Uxie.

"Maybe, but most do. Especially those who can't feel things halfway, like her," Mesprit snapped back. "Or like Nyss."

The silence which followed that name was heavy and all-encompassing, as though it had taken all the air with it as it vanished. Neither of them said anything for what felt like eternity. Mesprit, ever the empath, knew that it had gone too far just then. It didn't care. Sometimes the harshest truths were the most necessary.

"She is nothing like Nyss," Uxie finally said, its tone deliberately slow and controlled. "You know nothing about her, Mesprit."

"Maybe not her, specifically, but I know emotions better than anyone else." Just then its eyeless glare came to rest on Inyssa once more. "Look at her. At the way she looks at my chosen human, as though the thought of him being taken away would shatter her. She is always like that; always one bad day away from going off the deep end."

"That… thing you are talking about is called love, Mesprit." Uxie's tone came to harbor the barest hint of spite. "Something you most of all should know is not a bad thing."

"Love? Is that what you think it is?" replied Uxie, baffled. "There a little bit of it there, yes, as it tends to happen when two humans spend so much time together. However, that tiny nugget of love is enveloped in a massive ball of pure, unbridled infatuation." It paused, once more, for effect. "I don't blame you for mistaking the two. They are very similar."

Mesprit could feel its sibling's glare drilling into it, barely restrained.

"Is that your problem? You believe she is not good enough for him?"

"Hardly. I couldn't care less about their feelings for each other," Uxie replied instantly. "Besides, it hardly stops there. Surrounding that rather impressive ball of infatuation, as anyone with a pair of eyes would see, is an absolutely gargantuan time-bomb made of... appropriately enough, the mind killer. Fear."

"You are over exaggerating, as you always do." Uxie attempted to sound collected and nonchalant, though Mesprit could sense its hesitation. "I trust Inyssa, and that is enough for me. I will hear no more on the subject."

Of course. The warm, fuzzy feeling of appreciation from just a few moments before began to evaporate, like Mesprit knew it would, eventually. It always happened like this. They got together for a small time, barely getting to enjoy each other's presence before their strong ideals clashed and soured any semblance of kinship they could have been working toward.

Maybe that was why Azelf never visited anymore. Maybe it had figured it out, long before. Or maybe Azelf was just a jerk. That worked just as well, as far as Mesprit was concerned.

Mesprit glanced one last time at Inyssa before starting to dissipate back into the depths of Barry's soul. The way she looked at him… such longing, such boundless fear of what she had achieved being taken away… Sweet Arceus above, how could Uxie not see it when it was as clear as polished silver? Hers were the same eyes as Nyss'. Bright. Determined. Dangerous.

The eyes of someone who would burn down the whole world, should that love turn to anger.

Mesprit couldn't help but sigh. Young love was, as always, the most terrifying thing of all.

"I certainly hope you're right, Uxie," it said, its voice vanishing as it did as well. "Otherwise, I fear for us all."

----------------------------------------

Inyssa knew jack-shit about love, which really made it difficult when strolling through the bow of the ship, holding hands with Barry as they stared up at the glow of the half-moon, hiding behind a sea of dark clouds. To her credit, she tried. And… that's about as much as one could say about her style when it came to these things.

Just like with everything else in her life, she decided to see it as a challenge. A puzzle. And so she played with her cards close to her chest, closely observing Barry as she thought hard about her every action, word and lack thereof, fearing that she may say too much or too little. She'd read and seen plenty of stories in the subject, so it couldn't be that hard. She was the girl destined to be the future Champion goddammit. Carrying out a relationship couldn't be that difficult in comparison… right?

I can't believe I'm thinking this… but I almost wish I could ask mom for advice.

"Whoa! I never knew this river was so big." Barry's expression gleamed with excitement as he leaned on the rails surrounding the edge of the ship's bow, looking all around. "It looks so small in the map but I can barely see the shores at my right and left!"

"Some maps adjust the proportions of stuff like rivers and lakes," she explained. "It all depends on what the map's for. The ones that sailors use, for example, have a ton of detail when it comes to aquatic routes, including exact distances and small bodies of land that might be relevant."

Barry's mouth formed a tiny 'O'. "That's so cool… I wonder if there's a map full of treasure locations!"

Inyssa let out a raspy sound, lips pressed against each other in order to contain laughter. Yeah. That seemed like something he'd be interested in.

"I mean… maybe? Even with satellites there's only so much you can map out." She raised her Poketch in front of her chest and tapped the screen with one finger absentmindedly. "That's why maps have painted holes."

Barry frowned. "I… what?"

"It's what they call it." She shrugged. "They're like… think of a map of the inside of Mt. Coronet. Even though everything's filled in, most of the stuff in there is probably a guess or just plain inaccurate because no one's ever been able to fully explore the insides of the mountain in full. You call those spots painted holes."

"Wait! But, that means…" Barry grabbed his head with both hands, his eyes going wide. "That means not everything's fully explored! There could still be cool treasure hidden around the world!" He gasped, as though stricken by a sudden revelation. "I could find a chest with a magic sword inside and become a cool legendary hero!"

Inyssa stared for a moment, lost for words. Then, like steam from a geyser, a burst of laughter exploded from her chest upwards and she began shaking uncontrollably, grabbing Barry by the shoulder as to not fall. It was a wild laugh. The kind that overtook her entirely and turned her legs to jello. A laugh she hadn't laughed in a long time.

"Come on Niss, I'm serious!" Barry pouted. "Can you prove that there's not a magic sword hidden somewhere in the world?"

"U-uh… I can prove that there is," she said, still shaking somewhat from laughter. "It's called the Honedge evolutionary line, dude. You know… ghost swords?"

"Ugh; I said magic, not ghost! It's like you didn't even listen!"

"Not much difference between the two, really," she said. "Also… aren't you already kind of a legendary hero? You know… 'cause Mesprit?"

Barry's frustrated scowl was replaced with surprise as he opened his mouth.

"Oh, yeah! I forget sometimes." He laughed, scratching his cheek. "You think Mesprit can teach me how to make a magic energy sword?"

Inyssa raised an eyebrow. "I… don't see it happening, but never lose hope I guess. That's what makes you… you."

"Come on, Niss. Why do you never have faith in my dumb ideas?"

"…Say what you just said again, slowly, and think about it."

His declaration seemed to have attracted the attention of a couple other passengers, who turned their heads toward them in bewildered confusion. Inyssa simply shook her head, a delighted smile on her face.

"I'm afraid you might have to wait a bit," she said." We're stuck in this boat for a few more days and I don't think there's any ancient artifacts hidden in here."

"…Oh. Guess you're right." Barry leaned back against the railing, grabbing his chin with a pensive look. "Hm. Then we'll just have to hang out 'til we make it to route 216! That's not so bad." His hand reached over, closing around Inyssa's. She felt her heart skip. "Anything's a cool, magical adventure with you."

Inyssa intentionally placed her free hand against her mouth, feigning having been wooed by his words.

"So romantic… oh, be still, my heart!" She fanned at herself all ladylike, earning a chuckle from Barry. "You're a dingdong. You know that right?"

"Heh. 'Course I do." He slipped a hand under her arm and grabbed her by the waist.

It felt like the air was taken from her lungs as Barry pulled her into a sudden kiss. Inyssa startled for a moment, but didn't complain. There were very few things she was willing to swallow her pride for, and luckily for her idiot of a boyfriend, a bit of unprompted smooching happened to be at the top of that particular list.

She only broke the kiss because of the sudden rays of moonlight falling on their eyes. They both squinted as they looked up, the shining, pearly white of the moon breaking through the edge of the clouds, finally coming into view. Inyssa untangled her fingers from the hair on the back of Barry's head, though she didn't step away from him, still feeling his breathing on her cheek as they stared up in silence.

Barry let out a tiny laugh. "Guess we have company."

"Please. I doubt we showed the moon anything she hasn't seen already," she said, putting a hand around him and leaning her head onto his shoulder. "Besides, I'm sure she has better things to do than spying on us."

"Yeah… you're probably right."

They held each other for a while, enveloped in the sharp, welcoming cold of an early winter night, as well as a silence so comfortable it made Inyssa a bit sleepy. Good sleepy. Which was rare for her, as evidenced by the ever-present bags under her eyes. Still, she had been getting better.

There was a pause, and her narrowed eyes went slightly wider. She… was getting better, right? It was hard to determine; not much time had passed, but she felt like sleep, hunger and energy came slightly easier than before, felt like the tight knot in her stomach had loosened just a little. And just like a hand that's been curled into a fist for years, the numbness and stiffness that came with finally relaxing those muscles was expected, and kind of relieving.

Looking up, she caught a glimpse of Barry. His eyes were closed and his lips curled into an easy, comfortable smile that reminded her of a sleeping Pachirisu. His hair moved with the wind like the branches of a willow. She could have stood there, staring at him for hours.

Still… there was stuff to do. Sighing, she looked down and focused on the black of the ocean, only broken by the pillar of white the moon cast on it. With her new freedom and comforts came also a very heavy responsibility. She needed to make him proud; to make the region and everyone outside of it proud, to show the world what she was made of and also find enough time to be the best girlfriend in the world in the meantime. She had to. Failure would not be acceptable.

Nodding to herself, she turned to Barry once more, who seemed to have broken off his stupor and stared back at her with sleepy eyes. Inyssa felt her heart skip a beat.

Might as well…

"Hey, Barry?"

"Hm?" he asked, looking on the verge of yawning. "What?"

Her eyes lit up gold out of nowhere. She parted her lips, and tried to speak the words with the softness of a feather's kiss. "I lo–"

Sharp, icy fingers closed around her throat, and she froze. For a moment she didn't move, and a part of her imagined this was what people must feel like just after being shot, before the realization of what had happened set in.

But she hadn't been shot. There was no physical pain; only a heavy and deep sense of unease, like an icicle setting down at the bottom of her stomach. A gust of wind hit the back of her neck. Weak and slightly warm. A though it were someone's breath. Inyssa blinked, coming back to reality, and turned around to meet what she hoped would be the empty deck of the ship.

A pair of bright, green eyes met hers, attached to nothing. No… it wasn't nothing, it just seemed that way because of the sudden darkness as the moon hid behind a cloud once again.

"Wh-wha…"

It was a person made entirely out of shadows, with the exception of a couple things. A pair of green eyes. A long, messy curtain of hair the color of ash. A single, skinny pale arm at the right side of its body, dangling lifeless, attached with nothing to the mass of concentrated darkness. All three familiar. All three identical to Inyssa's.

Her heart felt like it stopped. As Inyssa took a slow, shaking step back she looked toward Barry, expecting a look of bewilderment directed at her, wondering what the hell was she doing. That would have been reassuring, in a way. It would have meant that she was just hallucinating, that the creature of shadows in front of her wasn't real. She was sorely disappointed, however, as she found him staring forward with wide, terrified eyes, his mouth hanging open.

No one moved or said anything. Inyssa just stared, feeling as though the ground under her were made of thin ice, and any sudden movement would send her down to the dark waters below.

The shadows hunched over, eyes narrowing ever so slightly. There was effort in those eyes. Kind of like… it was trying to do something, but couldn't.

Then it spoke.

"Come…"

It took a step forward, raising its pale arm toward Inyssa. She screamed and jumped back.

Then it was gone. Halfway through her jump, Inyssa felt a small sense of relief as she saw the shadows dissipate into the night, light of the moon falling upon them once more.

Then her waist hit the railing, and her feet left the ground. Panic filled her mouth as she screamed out something incomprehensible, flailing her arms forward as her body made an arc toward the other side, toward the waters below.

"NISS!"

Through the edge of her vision she saw Barry lunge toward her, and then a sharp pain exploded throughout her body. A scream tore through her throat. There was a second of confusion and panic, and then she set foot on the boat once again, falling to her knees not a second after.

Her heart beat like a drum and every muscle in her body shook as though it'd been soaked with ice cold water. Barry stood in front of her, a terrified look on his face. One of his hands was still closed around her wrist. The other held a few strands of ash-black hair.

"I-I'm sorry!" he cried out, voice shaking. "I… I panicked and could only grab you by the hair and…"

She couldn't find it in her to answer just yet. The panic and shock combined by the still present pain on her head where Barry had grabbed her by the hair was too much. Through the edge of her vision she saw a few people sheepishly approaching. The other passengers. They must have seen what had happened. Inyssa closed her eyes tight and shook her head, unable to move a muscle. No, they didn't matter. What mattered was…

"Wha… w-what the hell was that?" Her voice came out brittle. "Y-you saw…"

Barry held her gaze for a moment, a fear like she'd never seen in him clear in his eyes. Then he nodded.

"Yeah… I saw it too."