I couldn’t believe my eyes.

We’d just emerged onto the shores of Firespit Island and had just about finished sighing in relief as Glaceon’s cooling air began to soothe the heat away from our slicked skin when Palina let out a gasp that broke past her otherwise smooth demeanour.

I followed her widened eyes and gaping mouth to-

“Cyllene!” Irida bolted past me and jogged a few paces towards the Galaxy Team Boss. Cyllene looked as stern and frigid as always, stood with her hands laced behind her back in the same Survey Corps blue kimono and black tights she always wore. I was taken aback at sighting her, truthfully. She was the last person I’d expect to see. Laying eyes on her was like gazing back into a life I had long lost. I just could only wish it was Laventon or Akari… even Arezu or Mai or, heck, even Adaman would’ve done. “What are you doing here? What’s wrong?”

Irida looked flustered. Like a child caught stealing. But Cyllene didn’t seem to care. Her dead, emotionless eyes slid onto me before focusing back on Irida. In a voice that somehow sounded as if spoken directly into me, Cyllene answered. “I’ve come to ask you to return what is mine.”

“I’m sorry? Yours?” Irida genuinely sounded baffled, but she quickly caught on. “Ohhhhh… Rei.”

Her tone suddenly shifted. “I liked that about you, Cyllene. You always were so quick to put your foot down. You were still like that when you left, even though no one knows why,” she started to stalk towards Cyllene and we skittishly followed behind her.

“What is she doing?!” Palina exclaimed in a hushed and reverent tone. “Has Irida gone insane?! That’s Cyllene she’s speaking to!”

Iscan held onto Palina’s arm in a display of support. But Irida continued her deranged villainess speech in that same sultry tone she had used on Mai back in that valley after The Heartwood. “Sending him to help Adaman was a surprising move, I admit. Our own ex-clan leader playing politics against us? How scandalous. And you even managed to deceive me into removing my own Kleavor. I’m still figuring that one out.”

Cyllene’s expression never changed. “He’s property of the Survey Corps. Under Commander Kamado’s orders, you must relinquish him back to Jubilife village this instant.”

Property? That was just rude. But I wasn’t exactly in the mood to be offended at the time.

Irida was close enough now that she could reach out and shake Cyllene’s hand if she wished. The grass below her feet started to ice over and our breaths became visible in front of our mouths. But Cyllene wasn’t even affected at all. “What did Adaman offer you?” Irida cocked her head, getting up into Cyllene’s personal space. “What did he say to sway the immovable Cyllene? Whose deadened emotions leave room only for cold logic. And why do you care so much about a random boy that you’d fly into Pearl Clan territory just to ask him back?”

Cyllene’s stare remained neutral. “Why do you care so much about the ‘random boy’?”

Without warning, Irida’s arm flashed out and grabbed Cyllene by the throat. Ice wreathed its way around her hand and started to spread across Cyllene’s skin. The Galaxy Team Boss’s eyes widened in horror.

Looking back, Irida probably had Glaceon ice over her own hand to give the illusion that she could exude ice from her own skin, but at the time it was actually pretty scary. “Nice try,” she snarled. My jaw hit the floor when Cyllene shimmered and exploded into a bright light. In her place, a struggling Zoroark thrashed around, sending its dishevelled fur into a showering display of white. It was not like any Zoroark I’d ever seen before. Baneful yellow eyes contrasted its snow-white body. Its tiny pinprick pupils focused onto Irida as it calmed in her hand. “Calmed down, have you?”

Palina looked as though she’d just watched a live murder and Iscan had a similar expression on his face. I, for one, was simply frozen in awe. “Rrrragh!” the Zoroark snarled and yapped into Irida’s face, but the Pearl Clan leader wasn’t at all fazed.

Irida leaned into Zoroark’s ear. “Tell Cyllene,” she spoke in a low tone, “that the next time she dares demand anything from me, that she should at least give me the decency of confronting me herself.”

Zoroark renewed its struggling, but Irida’s hand was frozen onto its neck. It wasn’t going anywhere. “Do you understand?” Irida raised her eyebrows and watched it expectantly. “Do you?”

In response, Zoroark erupted into shadows and I felt a spine-chilling resentment emanate from its body. It wracked through my nerves and froze my muscles as it tore through all logic and feeling. I fell to my knees uncontrollably and couldn’t even work my hand enough to grab one of my Poké Balls. Everything felt so numb save for the terror-inducing bitterness erupting from Zoroark’s pinprick eyes. It was as if I were a mere child bawling at my own failures and my parents’ disappointment. I couldn’t think. I couldn’t even breathe right. My chest was as tight as a vice and my own nails were drawing blood within my clenched fist. It hurt. It really, really hurt!

Palina’s alarmed cry was cut off as her jaw locked and Iscan squinted in pain. Irida was flung back but managed to stay upright as her shoes kicked up a load of sand into the air. She raised her gaze to Zoroark with a feral snarl. Before either Irida or her Glaceon could move, however, Zoroark flung itself with the speed of a charging Tauros into the water and it exploded into a bright light once more. In its place, a giant blue Gyarados disappeared into the ocean, leaving behind a splashing torrent of swirling water.

“Pathetic,” Irida huffed, checking over Glaceon to ensure it was okay. She turned to us and casually inspected our frozen bodies from afar. “It’ll pass soon. Bitter Malice is particularly nasty on humans.”

I felt so powerless it was actually embarrassing. Now that Zoroark had escaped, its resentment no longer coursed through my veins. But my muscles still refused to move and my chest felt locked in place, partially inhibiting my breathing. When it finally broke, I fell like a ragdoll onto my stomach and gasped for air. I heard Palina and Iscan collapse next to me a moment later. “What…” Palina wheezed. “… was that?”

“Cyllene has a Zoroark,” Irida answered while staring out at sea with a frown. “She can transform into any girl or woman she lays eyes on and has the capability to disguise itself as any of Cyllene’s Pokémon.”

I raised my head for a moment before deciding to give up and let myself recover some more. “How did you know…?”

“Zoroark can’t physically speak. She can only mimic it through lip syncing to her telepathy. She’s very convincing- not a lot of Zoroark can pull it off- but there’s an obvious tell. No matter where you are around her, she’ll always sound like she’s right next to you.” Irida’s frown deepened. “It’s also obvious when you take into account travel times. There’s no way Cyllene could’ve gotten news of your kidnapping and made it to Firespit Island this fast. Only a Pokémon could manage the constant high-speed movement needed to do such a thing. Likely, Zoroark disguised herself as Honchkrow and used her wings to fly the majority of the way here.”

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

“Oh… jeez,” Iscan exclaimed breathlessly. “I- I think I’m going to hurl.”

Irida tsked in disgust. “Do it somewhere else, then.”

We ended up recovering and rallied up with the Magmar/Magby family to wait out the rest of the day. Irida sulked off to her lone spot as usual and Braviary seemed ashamed that she’d been fooled by Zoroark’s disguise. Palina told her she didn’t have to feel guilty at all and I concurred. I would’ve definitely been fooled by Zoroark, too.

That night, we returned to Arcanine’s lair- ready to sneak past him to scout out the Lava Dome Sanctum- but we left dismayed upon sighting the Noble Pokémon still awake and pacing in the same manner it had earlier in the day. After some fairly heated whispering, we agreed to try again early the next morning. So, we got our sleep and tried again just after the sun started to illuminate the darkened sky. But Arcanine was still awake.

“Does it ever sleep?” I wondered aloud.

“He should, but with all that energy…” Palina let out a small whimper.

Iscan pulled her into a hug. “It’s okay…”

We were forced back to shore.

I could tell Irida was growing incredibly impatient. She likely had duties she needed to attend to elsewhere and I feared she would force us to act soon. But, for now, she seemed willing to dance to Palina’s tune. I was also getting quite antsy. Every day spent here was more and more hours those bandits could discover us. Just what were they doing in that cave?

The next night, we tried again.

I almost sighed aloud in relief when my eyes fell upon Arcanine’s sleeping form. If it weren’t for the slight rise and fall of its abdomen, I’d have probably been convinced it’d died somehow. “We sneak past and investigate the cave,” Irida’s mood had lifted considerably now that we could actually act. “If Arcanine wakes up, you all get behind me.”

“Please don’t hurt him,” Palina begged with a pleading expression.

Irida pursed her lips. “I’ll try. But if it’s between permanently injuring Arcanine and letting it permanently injure you, I’m always choosing the former.”

Palina seemed to begrudgingly accept the compromise. With that agreed upon, we started sneaking our way towards the left of Arcanine’s lair- all of us keeping a close eye in case he woke up. The lava rivulets that ran through the ground were an annoying problem, but Glaceon was able to cool the area enough that it solidified into rock, allowing us through. Still, it was wasted time stationary that gave Arcanine more opportunity to awaken.

I resisted the urge to release Riley. His heavy footfalls would be too risky to cope with and I wasn’t about to subject the others to this heat, either. Glaceon aside, only Palina’s Growlithe seemed content with the sweltering temperature.

It took ten minutes to draw near to the cave- a wide open maw of darkness carved into the base of the volcano. And all the while Arcanine slept only a hundred or so metres away from us. To say I was calm would’ve been a lie, despite my outward appearance. I was horrified of confrontation with something that seemed so much larger and stronger than Lilligant. Even Irida’s unflinching confidence failed to soothe my frayed nerves.

A noticeable dip in temperature arose as we drew ever so close to the cave entrance. A wafting draft of cold air was spewing from within. I caught glimpses of sparkling snowflakes flitter outwards before instantaneously melting in the heat. Inside, I could hear faint voices. Palina raised a hand to halt us and we all leaned closer to listen in.

An arrogantly smooth voice, sounding annoyed. “- are the best we’ve ever been.”

A second voice, childlike and sulky, replied in a displeased manner. “But Abomasnow hates it here and we’re stuck in this horrible cave all the time! And all for her petty revenge.”

The third voice sounded more controlled, but had a hint of anger as she spoke. “Don’t speak out of turn. Remember who actually controls Arcanine out there.”

A silence ensued. Irida huddled next to us and whispered. “We go in and I’ll freeze them all.”

“No!” Palina rebuked the very thought. “It’ll take a few seconds to run in. What if they manage to set Arcanine on us?”

Irida scoffed. “I say we risk it.”

“Guys…” Iscan, always the voice of reason spoke up. “I… I think we-”

Something terrible happened after that. Something that would send everything into one giant, dangerous, mess. As he nervously spoke, Iscan instinctively put his hand on a rock to support himself and immediately jerked it back with a surprised yelp. “Argh!”

My eyes widened. My heart froze. Instantly, we all refused to move a muscle as if the lack of movement would make it all okay. Iscan’s yelp was loud. But did the bandits hear? The Diamond Clan member was clutching his hand with gritted teeth. I could see dark patches of burnt skin with pale-looking slashes streaked across his palm. Then, the young voice. “What was that?”

Arrogant. “Someone’s here!”

Controlled. “Check it out!”

“Stay still and I’ll ambush them the second I see!” Irida hissed with a fierce gaze- daring us to panic and act out.

We nodded and Iscan’s face twisted in guilt. I grabbed onto Riley’s Poké Ball for reassurance. He was immune to lava and could withstand even Reshiram’s flames. He’d buy us enough time to escape if Arcanine awoke. But I prayed and prayed the Noble Pokémon wouldn’t.

For a moment, nothing happened. Then, just as I was about to burst with anticipation, I heard a low cackle from behind Iscan. We all jumped and whipped around. A Gengar hovered just behind Iscan’s head with a sinister smile on its face. With a practised backflip, it leapt upwards and disappeared into the air. Irida instantly stood and threw caution to the wind. “Go, go, go!”

“I’m waking up Arcanine!” the arrogant voice suddenly screeched. I heard an Abomasnow bellow and the icy wind erupting from the cave intensified.

“Clover!” controlled voice started barking orders. “Help me fend them off! We’ll trap them between Arcanine and our Pokémon!”

My sweat-covered skin suddenly went cold as Arcanine stirred and started to twitch. A feral snarl escaped from his lips, but we still had time before he started to fully wake. “With me!” Irida took control and bid us to stay close together. “We’ll blast past them and figure out how to wrench back control of Arcanine!”

We all nodded and ran into the cave opening. A dark and slightly damp tunnel met us in its cold embrace where it lurched downwards into an unseen cave. A faint but heavy pounding noise from behind me spurred me on. Arcanine was rising to his feet, but maybe his groggy state would buy us some time before he found us?

I released all of my team members and yelled my commands. “Riley, help Irida and her Glaceon. Bibi, defend them! Edith, fly high out of Arcanine’s reach and get Braviary to come help! Hisoko, keep an eye on Arcanine and Teleport to me immediately if he starts to head towards us!”

A faint voice rang inside my head. “Y… es.”

I jerked in surprise, but didn’t have time to think about what had happened. With a chorus of cries, my loyal friends complied. Edith flew out of the cave and Hisoko followed with a Teleport. Riley stomped with Irida and Bibi stayed close to us in case we needed any of his Protects. “Arcanine’s deathly afraid of water!” Palina called to me with panic in her eyes. She was clutching onto Iscan’s arm for dear life. “Get your Bibarel to spray water at him and he should back off!”

“That’s assuming they haven’t overridden his fear of water!” I barked back, but took in her advice and relayed her orders to Bibi. “Spray Arcanine with as much water as you can if he gets near, got it?!”

“You!” I heard Irida’s venom filled voice fill the walls of the tunnel. She was staring straight into the eyes of a lady with strangely styled blue hair and bright blue eyes who had a prideful-looking Toxicroak by her side. Face paint adorned her eyes and she was smiling in satisfaction at Irida. “Oume!”

“It’s Coin, now.” The bandit smiled devilishly.

Next to her, a shorter woman that looked like an utterly deranged iteration of Candice- Sinnoh’s ice type Gym Leader- was barely holding back her aggression. “Argh! Enough talk! Let’s get on with this!”

There were heavy stomps behind her. The icy wind billowed and beckoned us towards its grasping tendrils. Abomasnow loomed behind the bandits. Its cold eyes stared in rage towards us.

“I agree, Clover,” Coin’s smile widened. “Let’s show Irida what it feels like to take responsibility for her actions!”

“Pay for your insolence!” Irida snarled. Her Glaceon growled and hissed and the air grew so cold that it became hard to remember we were actually inside of a volcano.

Accompanied by a howling blizzard that filled our ears with its deathly screams, Glaceon attacked.