Pokémon: Outcast of Comb Island (Ch7)

[previous: https://pastebin.com/SJXUb8AZ]


Chapter 7
Ending a Rivalry


	CIS4 had not given much thought to how much her evolution had strengthened her exactly, but she got her answer when it took her only one Slash to strike down a Masquerain. She watched speechlessly as the unconscious wild Pokémon fell to the forest floor. She raised her hands before her and looked at them as if for the first time. The white energy that had shrouded her claws as she used Slash faded. The brand-new attack had been much easier to use than she had expected, like she had known it forever.

	“Good job!” said Vincent. CIS4 turned to face him as he approached her, and he continued, “You’re definitely getting the hang of this. Just let me examine this Pokémon for a bit and then we can continue on our way.”

	The researcher passed the Vespiquen and went over to the fainted Masquerain. As he did, 23 and 25 suddenly came into CIS4’s view from above. She started; they had been hovering above her during the confrontation with the Masquerain, and only now did she remember as much.

	“Nicely done, Your Highness!” said 23 with a grin.

	“I don’t know how to feel about that,” CIS4 said quietly. “That was so easy, it almost felt wrong.”

	“You’re in a new body,” said 25, “so that’s not too surprising that it would feel strange to use it in battle. Our old queen told us as much after she evolved. She—”

	“Wait, hold on,” CIS4 interjected. “You said your queen—my rival—she evolved? Why didn’t you tell me sooner?”

	“You never asked,” said 23. CIS4 glared at him, and he backed away slightly.

	“In our defense,” said 25, “we had no idea that you didn’t know our old queen evolved. And because you never asked us about our past, or about her, the topic never came up.”

	“Well, I already had my suspicions that she’d evolved,” the Vespiquen said. “There were some hints here and there suggesting as much. I think Taranza said at one point that she was close to evolving, and more recently, Weavile told me the human was looking for an Amber Castle. Considering those are only made by Vespiquen, I thought that possibly meant my rival had become a Vespiquen and built it, because I always thought she was strong enough to evolve. But I didn’t know for sure that she’d actually evolved until you said so. How long ago did it happen?”

	“Pretty recently,” said 23. “It’s only been a few days, I think. And since you brought up the topic of castles, I might as well say: she did have a castle. She didn’t build it, though—we just found it abandoned and moved in.”

	CIS4 put a hand to her chin and looked down with an unfocused, contemplative gaze. She appeared to be deep in thought. 25 hovered closer and asked, “Is something the matter, Your Highness?”

	CIS4 did not reply, as she was still thinking. She found herself filled with a slight unease. The confirmation of her rival’s evolution and ownership of a castle got her thinking, and she wondered how to respond to it. If both she and her rival had both evolved, perhaps they were more evenly matched than CIS4 had thought. And with that came one question: was it time for a rematch?

	“Hey, you doing okay?”

	Vincent’s voice jolted CIS4 out of her thoughts. She looked to see him approaching, having finished his examination of the Masquerain sooner than she had expected.

	“You look like you have something on your mind,” he continued. “I hope everything’s going okay. Do you still feel like training?”

	CIS4 gave a nod, which seemed to satisfy Vincent. He held up his Silph Scanner and aimed it into the forest to search for wild Pokémon.

	“Something’s nearby,” he said, “but too far away to get an accurate reading. Let’s hurry over to it and check it out.”

	He led the way, and the three Pokémon followed him. 23 and 25 hovered close above CIS4’s head.

	“As I was saying before,” said 25 after a brief pause, “is something wrong?”

	“No,” CIS4 replied, “I’m fine. But once we take care of this next Pokémon, we can keep talking. Now that I know my rival evolved, there’s one thing on my mind. Here’s hoping it’s not a bad idea.”

	“Well, now, that just makes me worried,” 25 muttered.


***


	The human and the Pokémon followed Vincent’s readings and came upon a Venomoth. Like the Masquerain before it, it fell swiftly to a combined strike from CIS4 and her followers. The Combee and the human congratulated the Vespiquen, and while Vincent went over to the fainted bug to obtain a hemolymph sample, the three Pokémon hovered nearby to watch the forest for signs of other wild Pokémon.

	23 spoke up first. “So, Your Highness: are you ready to talk some more?”

	“I suppose so,” CIS4 answered. “Might as well get on with it before the human finishes whatever it is he’s doing. I have a few questions. First: do you remember where your queen had her castle?”

	“Of course we do,” said 23. “But why do you want to know? If you don’t mind my asking, that is.”

	“I was hoping we could go there. I want to meet with my rival.”

	The two Combee hesitated and began to avoid eye contact with the Vespiquen. She crossed her arms and asked what was wrong.

	“I don’t know if we can take you there,” 23 answered. “It’d be dangerous. The swarm doesn’t take kindly to visitors.”

	“He’s right,” said 25. “And we would know. We used to be sentries. We know the protocol for dealing with intruders. We deter or detain anyone who approaches the castle unannounced.”

	“And even if you could avoid all the sentries, you’d still have to reach the castle in the first place, and that’s pretty hard to pull off. It’s underground, and can only be reached through a confusing tunnel maze—which happens to be where all the sentries are, so you definitely couldn’t evade them all.”

	“Then is there any way to go there without running into trouble with the sentries?” asked CIS4. “Perhaps I could ask one of them if I could enter? Or do you always refuse requests like that?”

	“Unfortunately,” 25 replied, “we are told to refuse such requests, so you probably would not be allowed in.”

	“Even if they saw a Vespiquen like me?”

	25 paused. “Now that you mention it, I’m not sure. In the short time we were in the castle, we never got a visit from a Vespiquen. Many other Pokémon, but no Vespiquen. Perhaps the swarm would make an exception for you. Especially since you and the queen apparently know each other.”

	“It could be worth a shot,” said 23. “But... even if you are a Vespiquen, you may not be let in, Your Highness. I just remembered something that might be a problem. 25, if we go to the castle, do you think the swarm might believe we’re trying to steal the treasure?”

	25 spun to face 23, and his eyes turned red as he glared at his comrade. “Don’t talk about that!” he snapped, making 23 flinch. “That’s a secret!”

	“Treasure?” asked CIS4. “What treasure?”

	25 turned to her. “We really shouldn’t tell you about it,” he said quickly.

	“Tell me,” CIS4 said sternly, narrowing her eyes. “I want to know.”

	The Combee knew better than to refuse his new queen. “If you insist. Our castle has a hidden treasure. It’s a very rare and powerful substance, a certain type of honey that we call Flowered Honey. We call it that because Pomeg Flowers are the most vital ingredient in its creation.”

	“Pomeg flowers?” asked CIS4 in surprise. “That reminds me—I saw Taranza leading a group of Combee in harvesting a patch of Pomeg flowers recently. At the time, I didn’t know what they were planning to do with it, but I guess now I know: they wanted to make that honey. But why? What’s so special about it?”

	“Simple: if a bug eats it, then that bug will gain incredible power.”

	“They’ll become ‘FLOWERED’,” 23 added. “They get a glowing aura, and more importantly, they power up. I still remember when our old queen sampled some of the first batch to demonstrate it for the swarm.”

	“She became nearly invincible,” 25 said, “and her attacks became stronger than ever. Even when it wore off, she felt better than she had before, as if the honey’s effects still lingered.”

	“Not to mention, her Slash attack changed permanently: instead of just being an aura of energy around her claws, it became a pair of awesome energy blades! I wish I had something like that.”

	“Step one would be growing arms,” said 25 flatly. “And good luck with that.”

	“Don’t crush my dreams, 25!”

	“So, the treasure is some sort of special honey, then?” said CIS4, to get the conversation back on track. The kind of power that the two Combee spoke of was very enticing, but she resisted the urge to try to take some of the Flowered Honey for herself. Such an aggressive action would be suicide.

	“Exactly,” said 23. “And that’s what worries me. The presence of the treasure means that the swarm will be even more on edge about all this. They might not trust you, even if you are a Vespiquen, and they might refuse to let you in.”

	“But we won’t know unless we try, will we?”

	Once again, the two Combee hesitated and averted their gazes away from CIS4. It was 25 who finally broke the silence.

	“I suppose not,” he said. “If you truly want to take the risk and go to the castle, even though you might get turned away or possibly attacked by the sentries, we’ll lead you there.”

	“Thank you,” said the Vespiquen. “I’m glad you’re going to help me. This is something I’d really like to do.”

	“Speaking of which,” said 23, “I don’t think you ever said why you want to go to the castle and meet with the queen in the first place.”

	“I was wondering the same thing, actually,” 25 added. “Why do you want to take this risk?”

	“There are two reasons,” CIS4 explained. “First, I’d like to have another duel with my rival. I want to see how we compare to one another now that we’ve both evolved.”

	“A duel, huh?” said 23. “Sounds exciting! I just wish 25 and I weren’t exiled, so we could watch you two. I’ll be cheering you on, though!”

	“As will I,” said 25. “Our old queen is very strong, but you seem quite powerful too. I think you’ll stand a chance. I mean, if that scar of yours tells me anything, it tells me you’re tough.”

	CIS4 gasped. “Scar? What scar?” Then, she remembered, and calmed down. “Oh, right. I almost forgot about that. I was worried I’d gotten another one without knowing about it.”

	“I noticed it earlier, but I did not want to say anything.”

	“Me too,” said 23 sheepishly. “Hey, if you don’t mind my asking, can you tell us how you got it, Your Highness?”

	In as few words as possible, CIS4 recounted the story of how she and Vincent had gone out training in the wilderness of Comb Island, where she had encountered the Leavanny, almost been killed by it, and then been nursed back to health by Vincent and other humans. The two Combee listened closely, and smiled as she finished.

	“Neat,” said 23. “Thanks for telling us. I’m surprised to hear that human healed you up. I guess he really does care about you.”

	“It seems so,” said 25. “I guess this just shows not all humans are bad, even though Taranza always insists the opposite.”

	“Yeah, when we were still in the swarm, he’d always go on about how he hates outsiders, and especially humans. He’d say we’re warring states that can’t exist together without hurting each other.”

	“He’s been making that point of his abundantly clear to me, too,” CIS4 grumbled, unable to hide the anger in her voice. “He just can’t accept that humans and Pokémon don’t need to stay separate.”

	“To be fair, I can see where he’s coming from. Outsiders can be dangerous. Still, after a while, it got pretty annoying hearing him talk about it so much.”

	“You don’t need to tell me that,” CIS4 muttered.

	“Perhaps he will change his mind eventually,” 25 said. “But who can say? For now, let us return to the matter before us: what was the second reason you wanted to go to the castle, Your Highness?”

	“Funny we should come to that after bringing up humans,” said CIS4. “See, based on what I heard from Weavile before, I know the human’s been looking for the castle. I figure if he wants to see it, and I now have a way to know where it is, I might as well help him get there. It’s the least I can do for him.”

	“I’m uncertain a human would be welcome there,” said 25.

	“Again, we won’t know unless we try. Worst-case scenario, he gets turned away, and we’ll have to accept that. Still, even if he doesn’t get let in, I’d like to go there anyway. I want to see my rival again, just to duel her once more.”

	CIS4 stopped and looked at 25. She noticed he had stopped looking at her partway through her speech. He was now peering off to the side, into the bushes nearby, with a frown on each of his three faces.

	“Are you listening to me, 25?” she said, a hint of annoyance in her voice.

	“We have company,” the Combee said flatly.

	23 and CIS4 quickly turned to see what the Combee meant. They immediately saw it: hovering in the forest nearby were three small shadows. CIS4 and her Combee approached them cautiously, and the Vespiquen told the shadows to reveal themselves. They did not hesitate to do as she said, and slowly emerged from the darkness of the woods and revealed themselves to be a trio of male Combee. Save for their buzzing wings, they were silent.

	“How long were you there?” asked 25. “And how much of that talk did you hear?”

	One of the new Combee hovered in front of his two comrades. “We just got here,” he said. “We heard nothing. We were too amazed by what we saw to pay attention to what was said.”

	“Amazed is right,” one of the other Combee said. CIS4 realized he was staring very intently at her, and she backed away slightly in response. “Are you actually a Vespiquen?” he asked her.

	“Of course,” she replied. “Did you think I was just pretending?”

	“That wouldn’t be too hard to believe,” said the first Combee. “Vespiquen are so rare here. Other than the Crimson Queen, there aren’t any others I know of.”

	“That’s because there aren’t any others,” said the last Combee. “Which is why this one’s all the more important.”

	“‘Crimson Queen’ is a name for our old queen,” said 23, before CIS4 could ask who the Combee was referring to. “Most Pokémon just call her ‘Crimson’, though. And of course, all her followers referred to her as ‘Her Highness’.”

	“Speaking of following,” the first newcomer Combee said, “that’s why we’re here. We lack a warlord, and we’re eager to find a new one. We humbly request that you allow us to join you, Vespiquen.”

	The Combee looked at CIS4 expectantly, and each met with varying degrees of success trying to contain their excitement and nervousness. 23 and 25 eyed them suspiciously, unsure if they could be trusted, but CIS4 was happy to accept them, and told them as much. The newcomers let out a collective sigh and began to smile, while 23 and 25 stopped regarding the trio so cautiously. If their queen trusted them and wanted them to join, the two of them would not oppose her.

	“But there’s one caveat,” said CIS4 to the trio, as she pointed towards Vincent. “If you join me, you have to accept this human too.”

	The three Combee looked at Vincent. By now, he had already obtained some scan data, taken some notes and extracted a sample of hemolymph from the unconscious Venomoth without the other Pokémon noticing, and was now making his way back to CIS4.

	“He’s my friend,” the Vespiquen continued, “and if you want to join me, you must also be okay with being around him.”

	“He’s your friend?” asked one of the new Combee. “But humans are scary! Are you sure he can be trusted?”

	For an instant, CIS4’s scar seemed to throb with a slight pain, as she remembered how trusting and obeying him had ended badly once before. But the pain vanished as quickly as it came. She knew how to reply to the Combee.

	“I’m as sure as I can be,” said CIS4. “He’s helped me greatly. He’s the reason I managed to survive long enough, and grow strong enough, to evolve. I owe a lot to him. I’m sorry if you don’t like it, but I won’t let you join me if you don’t accept him as an ally.”

	The three new Combee begrudgingly acquiesced to her demands. Finding a Vespiquen to follow outweighed any risks of being around a human. And if she said that the human had been helpful and friendly thus far, they were inclined to believe her.

	They fell in line behind her as she returned to Vincent. The researcher observed the new Combee and scribbled a few more notes before grabbing his Silph Scanner again and telling CIS4 to follow him. He returned to the path and continued through the forest in search of wild Pokémon as CIS4 and her followers flew after him.

	Not long after, 25 came up to CIS4, and 23 joined him. “Your Highness,” 25 said quietly to the Vespiquen, “if you want to head for the castle now, 23 and I can guide you there.”

	“That sounds good,” she said. “Go ahead. I’ll follow you.”

	“But what about the human?” asked 23. “His kind can’t understand us. If we go flying off, he won’t know what we’re doing. He might think we’re trying to get away from him.”

	“Don’t worry about it,” said CIS4. “Just lead the way. I’ll try to get him to understand what’s going on.”

	23 and 25 did as they were told. They flew ahead, and the other three Combee went after them, asking where they were going and getting rushed responses. Vincent watched them in confusion as they buzzed past. Meanwhile, CIS4 came up alongside him, wrapped her arms around his right arm, and began to tug him onward. The researcher stumbled as the Vespiquen pulled on him—with surprising strength, given her thin arms—and asked what she was doing. She simply pointed at the Combee flying ahead.

	“What about them?” he asked. “Do you want us to follow them?”

	CIS4 nodded, and Vincent shrugged. “I guess we can,” he said. “Not sure where they’re going, but so long as we find wild Pokémon along the way, I won’t complain.”

	He did not say it, but he also hoped that they were going north, towards the rumored location of the Amber Castle. A quick check of his GPS confirmed this, after which Vincent hurried after his Pokémon.

	“What are the odds we’re actually heading towards the castle itself?” he said to himself. Then, he chuckled and added, “No, definitely not. That’s just too convenient.”


***


	23 and 25 led their group through the forest, and they encountered many wild Pokémon along the way, just as Vincent had wanted. Every so often, they also encountered the occasional male Combee outcast wandering in search of a warlord to follow. Each Combee was equal parts surprised and impressed to see a Vespiquen like CIS4, and begged her to let him join her group. She happily agreed each time, but she always made sure to tell them that they had to accept Vincent as a companion if they wanted to follow her. Luckily for her, they always accepted, albeit with varying levels of annoyance and hesitation.

	After close to an hour of traveling, CIS4 had obtained a sizeable following of almost two dozen of these outcast Combee. Despite most of them feeling some trepidation over being with a human, they seemed loyal to their new queen, and never complained openly or harassed Vincent. They also made sure to always come to her aid in battle, showing an eagerness to assist her. Perhaps too much so, as Vincent and CIS4 both realized; she frequently had to tell them to stay back, as they often got in her way and prevented her from practicing her own attacks and testing her own strength on the wild Pokémon they faced.

	“Just their instincts, I guess,” Vincent said to himself as he stood at the edge of the fighting and observed the behavior of the Combee. “They want to ensure the queen is safe, even if they suffer for it, or if it makes it tough for CIS4 to train. But hey, at least it lets me see how Combee interact with their Vespiquen leaders. And CIS4 seems to be getting in enough combat herself despite the distractions. She’s clearly grown stronger. At least that means she’ll be able to handle herself when I leave.”

	Vincent abruptly froze as his own words hit him.

	“When I leave?”

	Recently, he had forgotten that he would need to leave CIS4 behind once this was all over. As he watched the Vespiquen and her swarm, his wandering thoughts drifted back to that topic, and it finally occurred to him that he had yet to tell her this. It also occurred to him that he did not want to leave her.

	He did not have to wonder why that was so. He had spent only a few days with this Pokémon, but those days had been filled with enough danger and drama for him to form a sort of connection with her. The feeling had not been there when he first caught her, but now it was undeniable.

	He turned the issue over in his head and wondered if there would be some way to bring the Vespiquen with him, but he feared that removing a Pokémon as rare as her could upset the ecosystem of the island too much. In addition, if she left, where would her current followers go? It would be wrong to turn them loose on the island again after they had just found a new leader, and yet he could not take them all with him back to the mainland.

	With a shake of his head, he told himself, “I can think about that later. Maybe there’s a way around it, but I’d have to talk with the Institute about it first and see what they think. For now, I need to focus on the task at hand: getting as much observational data as possible, and finding that Amber Castle. All I can do is hope for the best... but I always hate it when it comes down to that.”


***


	“Your Highness,” said 25, as he and 23 suddenly came to a halt. “There are some more Combee approaching, straight ahead.”

	CIS4 looked forward and saw five male Combee flying towards the group. 23 and 25 moved aside to let CIS4 hover forward and meet the new Combee. She waited for them to draw near, then addressed them.

	“Hello,” she said. “Can I help you?”

	“No,” said one Combee, drifting forward. “But maybe we can help you. We have been sent to find you by Her Highness, the Crimson Queen. She would like to meet with you personally, and welcomes you into her castle. We are to escort you, if you accept the invitation.”

	CIS4 started. “Really?” she asked after a short silence. “That’s interesting. Why would she want to meet with me?”

	Another Combee replied, “Members of Taranza’s group, who recently returned in disarray, brought reports that you had beaten them and evolved. Her Highness was interested in this, so she wanted to meet with you. She sent us out to seek you and escort you to the castle, if you so choose. If you decline this invitation, we will honor your decision, but Her Highness hopes you accept.”

	“I do,” said CIS4, without a moment’s hesitation. “I was actually hoping to meet with her anyway, so this works out nicely. I’ll tell my followers the plan. Please, lead the way.”

	The five Combee turned and flew back the way they came. CIS4 turned to her Combee followers and Vincent. “These Combee have invited us to visit with the Crimson Queen, another Vespiquen,” she told them. “Let’s go. They’ll lead the way.”

	CIS4 flew after the five Combee, while 23 and 25 stayed on either side of her and kept pace with her. The rest of the swarm followed, all while talking amongst themselves excitedly. Each Combee was eager to meet another Vespiquen. Meanwhile, Vincent had no idea what was happening, but he played along and kept up with the group, staying close behind CIS4.

	“Seems like this is all turning out better than we expected,” CIS4 said to 23 and 25.

	“It seems that way,” said 25, “and yet I can’t help but feel suspicious.”

	“That’s just your old sentry self talking,” said 23. “Being suspicious of others was part of the job description. I don’t think there’s anything to worry about here.”

	“I agree with 23,” CIS4 said. “Crimson isn’t exactly a friend of mine, but she’s not an enemy either. We’re just rivals. Every time we crossed paths in the past, either by accident or intentionally, we dueled with no intention of seriously harming each other. So I don’t think there’s any chance she’s planning something bad now.”

	“I’m still not sure about that,” said 25. “Remember how Taranza tried to kill you?”

	“Of course I remember. I’ll probably never forget it. But why do you bring it up?”

	“Because Taranza always follows Crimson’s orders. If he tried to kill you, Crimson must have told him to do so.”

	“Actually, she did not,” a voice said from somewhere ahead. The Vespiquen and the Combee looked forward to see one of the five Combee leading them had turned around to face them. He must have overheard them talking, and now was flying backwards as he spoke to them. “Taranza actually disobeyed Her Highness by attacking her rival. He was not ordered to attack you. When Her Highness learned about this, she harshly reprimanded him for overstepping his bounds. But he argued his case and she decided to forgive him, as he believed he was acting in the best interest of the swarm.”

	“I don’t know if I would’ve forgiven him like that,” CIS4 muttered. “But I guess part of that’s just because he tried to kill me. It’s tough to forgive someone after that.”

	“I get where you’re coming from,” the Combee said. “Forgiveness can be tough to give out.”

	Another of the five Combee turned and looked at his speaking comrade. “Come to think of it, Her Highness only recently started acting more forgiving, didn’t she?”

	“Yeah, she always used to act pretty harsh, but lately she’s decided to start changing her ways. I guess that’s why she’s willing to let her rival come into her castle.”

	The other Combee bobbed up and down to nod, then turned to CIS4. “And that’s also why you shouldn’t worry about this. This isn’t a trap, and Taranza’s nothing to worry about. I’m sure he won’t do anything funny. It’d be suicidal to oppose the queen and the swarm inside the castle itself.”

	“I sure hope you’re right,” CIS4 muttered as the two Combee turned away and focused their attention forward once more. But then, to herself, she added: “Are they right, though? What if Taranza is so confident in himself that he doesn’t think what he’s doing is suicidal? What then?”


***


	“We’re here,” said 25.

	The group gathered in a clearing, nestled deep within the northern forest of Comb Island. True to 25’s words, they had arrived at their destination. There it stood on the other side of the clearing: a steep-faced and rocky hill, with a large hole on the side facing the group. It did not appear very significant, but its simple and plain exterior belied what made it special. What truly mattered was what lay beneath it, through the twisting tunnels to which it gave access: the Amber Castle itself. Or so said the five Combee escorts.

	CIS4’s followers stayed back and Vincent stood to the side while CIS4 hovered closer to the rocky mound. She looked at the hole curiously. She vaguely sensed a faint, yet strangely overpowering, sweetness from within, sweeter than any honey. Behind her, the swarm clustered together and began to quietly talk amongst themselves. Just like their queen, they were intrigued by the hole and the sweet scent from within. Vincent seemed interested as well, considering how he frantically began taking notes about it.

	Meanwhile, the five Combee escorts approached the tunnel entrance and hovered above it, all keeping an eye on CIS4. 23 and 25 came next, and hovered on either side of their queen, while CIS4 continued to eye the hole and gaze into its darkness. Only the very start of the tunnel was lit, and the rest was cloaked in shadows. It was impossible to tell how far it went. It could have gone for just a few feet or until the end of the world.

	CIS4 shuddered. She soon looked away from it and turned her attention to the five Combee instead, for they were a far less frightening sight.

	“The castle is through this tunnel,” said one of the five. “If you still want to meet with Her Highness, you must go through here, but we shall guide you.”

	“Then lead the way,” said CIS4. She turned to 23 and 25 and told them to go tell the swarm to follow her into the tunnel, but one of the five Combee interrupted her.

	“Are you planning to bring your entire swarm with you?” he asked her. “Her Highness told us that’s not allowed, unfortunately. They might be a security issue. You may only bring a few. She said no more than five, so they do not outnumber the escorts.”

	23 and 25 glared at the Combee, but CIS4 was more accepting of their deal. “I guess that’s fair,” she said, though not without giving a dejected sigh. “But what about the human? Is he allowed into the castle? I was hoping he could see it.”

	“He may enter on one condition,” replied one of the Combee escorts. “If you choose to bring him, you cannot bring any of your Combee. We apologize for any inconvenience, but one human is as dangerous as multiple Combee, so Her Highness considers this a fair compromise.”

	“And what about his Pokémon? He has two with him in those ball things. Could I still bring him if he keeps them with him?”

	“He can bring them so long as he does not release them. It will be up to you to ensure he complies. You would need to keep an eye on him and stop him if he tries to release them. Otherwise, the swarm may see them as a threat and attack them.”

	CIS4 gave a nod and pondered what to do. She immediately realized she was at an impasse. Her swarm and the human were both valuable to her, and she did not want to leave either one behind.

	She looked first at her swarm, all clustered together and watching her. They had heard what the Combee from Crimson’s swarm had said, and were waiting for CIS4’s reply. Part of her has a strong desire to bring them along. She was hesitant to leave them now, especially after barely spending any time with them. She had never imagined that she would grow strong enough to earn such a large following, and now that she had such a group, she did not want to leave them behind. At the same time, only five Combee was quite restrictive, so she would be leaving many behind anyway if she chose the Combee over the human.

	CIS4 thought over her swarm a bit more, then looked at the human. He was standing to the side and had put away his notebook. He stood with his arms crossed, looking at the five Combee before the tunnel entrance. Though CIS4 did not know it, he was wondering what was happening, and feeling annoyed at how he had no idea what these Combee and CIS4 were doing. But CIS4 could read none of this, and only thought about what the human had done for her so far. With his aid, she had succeeded in building such a large group of followers. Though she appreciated the Combee in her group, it was her evolution, aided by the human’s efforts, which had helped her gather them in the first place. Ultimately, the human was a major part of her success. The Combee were important to her, but she felt like the human was even more important. She would not have been there without him, and she had to show her gratitude somehow.

	“It’s your choice, Your Highness,” said 23, to break the long pause as CIS4 considered her options. “Your followers or the human.”

	“We care not what you do here,” said 25. “Remember, 23 and I are exiled from the castle, so we cannot enter no matter what you do.”

	“I hate having to make choices like this,” CIS4 said. “But I think I know what to do. I’ll take the human.”

	She felt a pang of regret as she voiced her decision, but she felt it was the best one she could have made. As her Combee heard her, they began to mumble and grumble, but soon fell silent. CIS4 had told all of them that the human was her friend and was to be trusted. They believed her, and were not about to protest her choice.

	“Very well,” said 25. “23 and I will stay back with the swarm. Your Highness, I wish you the best of luck in the castle.”

	23 drifted very close to her and whispered to her: “Same here. But also, don’t forget about the Flowered Honey. Crimson might be kind of testy with regards to it, so be careful. Please think twice before bringing it up.”

	“I will,” CIS4 replied. “Thanks to you both. I’ll see you all soon.”

	23 and 25 flew back to join the swarm, while CIS4 approached Vincent. The human watched her and asked what was up. She paused, then pointed at herself, him, and the tunnel.

	“You want us to go in there?” Vincent asked. “What about your swarm?”

	CIS4 shook her head. That perplexed Vincent, but he could only assume the Vespiquen had a good reason for choosing to leave her swarm behind. Unwilling to press her further, he walked towards the cave and fumbled around in his backpack until he withdrew a flashlight. He eyed the five Combee hovering above the cave cautiously, but they did nothing except eye him in return. He figured they were not a threat, and resumed what he was doing. He turned on his flashlight and shined its light into the tunnel. He frowned as he saw that it only illuminated a short distance before the path curved away and blocked the light.

	“Looks like this tunnel could go on for a while,” he said. He shut off the light and faced CIS4. “Alright, I don’t really know what you and these Combee have been discussing, but I have a few guesses. Are they here to show you something in the tunnel?”

	CIS4 nodded, and Vincent smiled. “First guess was right, eh?” he said. “Lucky. But still, I’m hesitant to go into a cave like this. I don’t know where this is going.”

	The Vespiquen narrowed her eyes slightly. She began to wonder if she would need to grab him and drag him along with her in order to make him cooperate.

	“That said,” Vincent continued, “I trust you. Just promise me we’ll stay together. Don’t wander off or anything, and I won’t either.”

	CIS4 nodded vigorously, happy to hear that Vincent was willing to join her. The human turned his light on again and aimed it into the tunnel. As he did, the five Combee flew in, but CIS4 stayed behind. She took one last look at her swarm. The Combee were all watching her, and she had to push herself to leave them behind. She regretted it, but it was something she needed to do. Crimson was her rival, and they had both evolved. She needed to go to the castle and see how they compared to one another now. She needed to know if all the progress she had made with the human over the last few days was enough.

	The Vespiquen finally looked away from her swarm and flew into the tunnel. Vincent walked beside her, aiming his light forward into the darkness of the tunnel whose twists and turns led to the Crimson Queen and her Amber Castle—though he knew it not.


***


	As Vincent walked with CIS4 through the tunnel, with three Combee in front and two behind, he noticed that he was surprisingly calm. He usually avoided spending much time in caverns and tunnels, even when he was sent out on assignments to research cave-dwelling Pokémon, because he tended to dislike them for being so dark, dangerous, and difficult to navigate. Luckily, this cave was different than most he had been in before. It was large enough for him to stand up straight and go beside CIS4 the whole way, and the floor was relatively flat, though the curved walls and ceiling were more irregular. The air, despite being quite stale and stuffy, was not overly oppressive. Furthermore, Vincent’s flashlight did a good job of lighting the way, so darkness was not an issue.

	The dark eventually became even less relevant, as faint yellow light began to shine from deeper in the tunnel. CIS4 looked at it curiously. She almost thought it was the sun, but they were too far underground for that to be possible.

	“What is that?” she asked the escorts.

	“Lightstones,” a Combee in front of her replied. “The tunnel is lined with them as we draw near to the castle. Soon the human won’t need that light stick of his.”

	The Combee was right, and as the group went around a bend, they saw that the walls of the tunnel from that point on were encrusted with small yellow gemstones, placed at irregular intervals. Their light, though dim, lit up the entire tunnel, and it only grew brighter as the group went on. CIS4 paused and looked at one of the gems with wonder, while Vincent gently pulled on her to keep her moving. He had seen these kinds of gems before, and though he still found their glow beautiful, he was more interested in where this tunnel led. And yet, even he stared in awe as the gems grew more frequent, appearing on the walls, ceiling, and floor until they illuminated the tunnel as if it were daytime. Vincent shut off his flashlight and put it back in his backpack, and looked around at the lightstones.

	“Looks like a bunch of stars,” he said. “I’ve seen lightstones before, but never seen so many in one place. Guess this tunnel is near a vein of them.”

	“You think this is neat,” said one of the Combee, “wait till you see the castle.”

	“He can’t understand you, 31,” said another Combee.

	“I knew that,” said 31 sheepishly, and he said nothing more.

	As they drew ever closer to the end of the tunnel, CIS4’s thoughts came to focus on what awaited them. 31’s words had made her think about the castle, and she fidgeted with worry as she pondered how she might be received, and how Crimson might treat her. And then there was the matter of Taranza. The escorts had claimed that he was not a threat, but she was not entirely inclined to believe them. She had a feeling that the orange-eyed Ledyba would not let go of his grudge against her so easily. She needed to be wary.

	“We’re almost there,” said one of the Combee in front, after the group had traveled a short while longer. “Our destination is around this next bend. I present to you: the Amber Castle of the Crimson Queen!”

	The group went around the bend, and Vincent and CIS4 froze. They stared in awe at the sight before them. The tunnel opened up into a massive, vertically oriented pit cave, with a colossal column made of a dull yellow material in the middle. The tower rose from the shadowy depths of the pit and reached all the way to the ceiling. It was several dozen feet in diameter all the way up, though it seemed to grow slightly narrower as it rose. Small holes dotted the column’s walls like windows, and each let out faint golden light, dimmer than the collective light pouring from the lightstones in the tunnel behind the group, but bright enough to illuminate the column. A narrow bridge extended from the cave wall where the tunnel opened to the castle itself, and led to a large hole that served as an entryway into the castle.

	As Vincent and CIS4 took in the view, they also noticed a constant buzzing that reverberated around the cavern, and spotted a great many Combee flying about. They were rendered partially as silhouettes due to the dim lighting, giving them an ominous air. Most of them were hovering in place throughout the cave and watching the newcomers warily. They made no hostile moves, and neither did the newcomers, who were too caught up in the impressive sight of the subterranean tower before them to care about the Combee.

	“This is it,” Vincent murmured. “This must be the Amber Castle. It really does exist after all.”

	He ogled it for a bit longer, then went to work. He wrote notes, made sketches, and took pictures as fast as he could. He would probably never have another chance like this, and he wanted to record as many details about the castle as possible. Meanwhile, CIS4 stayed in place and looked up at the castle resolutely. This was the abode of her rival, and it would become the site of their first duel as Vespiquen.

	The Combee waited and gave CIS4 and Vincent a bit more time to observe the castle. Soon, one of the three Combee in front turned and addressed the Vespiquen. “We should proceed,” he said. “Vespiquen and human: please, follow us into the castle. Her Highness awaits.”

	The group proceeded across the bridge, and Vincent stopped taking notes so he could focus on keeping his footing. The bridge was narrow and seemed to be built over a bottomless pit, though he was unsure just how far down it went. He thought it best not to check—he did not want to gaze into the deep darkness and suffer vertigo at this crucial moment, so he kept his eyes forward as he and the Pokémon entered the columnar castle at last.

	From the bridge, they stepped through the entrance and into an empty circular room, many feet tall and many more in diameter. A few dozen Combee hovered in this room and watched the newcomers for any signs of aggression, but the human and the Pokémon continued to give none. They instead just focused on examining their surroundings. They saw that the smooth walls of the room were encrusted with even more lightstones, though the floor and ceiling had none. A few small holes in the walls acted like windows to the outside, and they were large enough to double as ways for Combee to enter and exit. Besides these windows, there were five other larger holes, which all connected to tunnels within the walls of the structure. To the left, two went down; to the right, two went up; and straight ahead, the fifth went upwards as well.

	“The tunnel straight ahead leads to the throne room,” said a Combee escort. “That is where Her Highness would like to meet with you, Vespiquen. However, there might be a problem.”

	“What kind of problem?” asked CIS4.

	“Well... by any chance, can humans fly?”

	“Not that I know of,” said CIS4 slowly, trying to remember if she had ever seen such a thing before. “Why?”

	“This tunnel is completely vertical, and can’t be climbed. You’d need to fly. So if the human can’t fly, he’ll have to stay down here. And I don’t think any of us Combee could lift him, even if we worked together, so we can’t help him get up there.”

	CIS4 glared at the Combee. “Seriously? This means I’ll have to leave the human down here, and I can’t do that. Why didn’t you tell me about this sooner?”

	“I guess we just forgot about it,” said the Combee.

	CIS4 sighed and shook her head, then took to pondering what to do about this turn of events. Vincent could not scale the tunnel, and the Combee could not lift Vincent up it. CIS4 knew that neither of Vincent’s other Pokémon could help either, as Weavile also could not fly and Scyther’s blades prevented him from lifting Vincent safely.

	As the Vespiquen continued to consider her options, she hung her head and crossed her arms. And then she paused, for she had suddenly remembered that she had arms.

	“Okay, I think I have a plan,” she said. “I’ll need all you Combee to give us some space. Hopefully this works.”

	The gathered Combee backed away a short distance, while CIS4 looked at Vincent and pointed towards the tunnel. He looked at her confusedly, but walked over to the tunnel anyway, curious to see what she was pointing out. He looked up the vertical corridor and immediately frowned.

	“You don’t want me to go up this tunnel, do you, CIS4?” he asked. “It’s completely vertical, and the walls are all smooth. Besides, it looks like it’s quite a few stories tall. I can’t climb it.”

	Suddenly, he felt something wrap around his torso, getting under his arms and squeezing his chest. He looked down and saw CIS4’s thin black arms crossed over his chest. Confused, he glanced back over his shoulder, where he saw the Vespiquen’s head close to his. Her eyes were closed, and her head slightly bowed, as if she was preparing herself for something.

	“Hang on,” he said. He tried to wriggle out of her arms, but found them to be unexpectedly immovable. “What are you doing?”

	CIS4 ignored him, and with a grimace, buzzed her wings as fast as possible. Then, to Vincent’s surprise, he felt his feet leave the ground. He looked away from CIS4 and stared at the ground in bewilderment. Somehow, she was able to lift him—slowly, to be fair, but she did not falter, and the human and Pokémon steadily rose up the tunnel. As Vincent looked down at the receding floor, he saw Combee begin to file into the tunnel one by one and fly up after CIS4. Some of them hurried past her to enter the room above before she did, while others stayed below her and watched as she struggled to lift the human.

	Meanwhile, Vincent could clearly feel her strain. His backpack made a barrier between his back and her chest, but he was in contact with her arms, and through them he could realize that she was heating up by the second, as her wings beat faster and she used more energy to lift him. It quickly grew uncomfortable, but he did not move at all, for fear of disrupting CIS4 and accidentally making her drop him. The floor was still not too far away, but a fall from any height was not on his to-do list.

	Luckily, it was not on CIS4’s list either, and she was determined to keep it that way, no matter how hard it was to keep lifting the human. Though Vincent was not especially heavy, he was heavier than anything the Vespiquen had lifted before. Her arms and wings burned with the strain, and part of her wanted to give up and drop the human before her arms popped off or her wings buzzed their way off her back. She still retained the grimace she had made upon first lifting the human, and she started to worry her face might get stuck that way. She wanted to open her eyes and see how much distance was left, but she feared the distance might be greater than she thought, and that would only discourage her. And yet, she could take it no longer, and peeked with one eye up at the top of the tunnel. To her surprise, they were almost there.

	With renewed vigor, she opened both eyes and gave one last push. At last, she reached the end of the tunnel, which curved and led to a hole in the wall of a room. She paid no attention to what was in the room, and just focused on landing safely on the floor instead of dropping back down the tunnel. With one final effort, CIS4 flew forward and barely made it to the edge of the floor, whereupon her wings gave out and she toppled forward, releasing Vincent in the process. The human stumbled as the Vespiquen fell behind him, and the two landed in a heap on the floor.

	The Combee that had flown up after them passed overhead and entered the room. Vincent grunted in pain and tried to get up, while CIS4 continued to lay beside him, motionless except for her heavy breathing. The human rose to a seated position and looked down at the Vespiquen with concern.

	“Are you alright?” he asked.

	CIS4 nodded weakly, but she did not move from her spot. Still, her response pleased Vincent, and he smiled at her. At least she was well enough to respond to him and claim she was okay. But he wanted to help her somehow. He looked through his backpack and found a small plastic bottle with some little leaves within, which he had recently obtained from the apothecary back when CIS4 was still in critical condition after her encounter with the Leavanny. He took some leaves out and gave them to CIS4, who feebly grabbed them from him and looked them over.

	“They’re bitter,” he said, “but if you eat them, you’ll regain your energy. I think you could use that right now.”

	CIS4 only hesitated a few moments before eating the leaves. She winced from their flavor, but she also felt herself growing stronger within seconds. Strength flowed back into her body, and especially her arms and wings, which had been weakest of all after her struggle to lift the human. She got up on her own power and hovered over Vincent, who then stood and smiled at her.

	“That’s better,” he said. “You know, you didn’t have to do that. I could’ve stayed down there, and you wouldn’t have needed to strain yourself like that. But still, I appreciate it.”

	CIS4 nodded again, but with much more vigor this time.

	“That said,” Vincent continued, “the fact that you could lift me, a human well over twice your weight, and still fly up so high without faltering, makes me wonder: just what the hell did the Institute put in that Rare Elixir I gave you?”

	He shook his head and sighed. “That can wait until later. For now, we should take a look at this room.”

	They did so, and regretted not looking at it sooner, for what they saw amazed them. A multitude of Combee hovered against the round room’s windowless walls, which were encrusted with many lightstones that filled the room with a bright golden glow. The floor had two large pools set to the left and right, both filled to their brims with a thick golden liquid that appeared to be honey, whch glowed brightly as it caught the light of the gems in the walls. A single raised pathway ran between the pools from one end of the room to the other. At each end of the pathway was a wide landing, and Vincent and CIS4 were on one of them. The other landing formed a dais, and the wall behind it had another hole leading to a tunnel that curved upward. And before this tunnel, two Pokémon hovered side-by-side above the dais. One was a Ledyba with orange eyes, and the other, a Vespiquen with a crimson mark on her forehead.

	Finally, they had found the queen of the castle.

	The queen and the Ledyba regarded the visitors silently for a brief moment. Then, the Vespiquen spoke. Though Vincent could not understand her, he felt compelled to listen closely to the regal Pokémon.

	“Greetings,” said the crimson-marked Vespiquen. Her voice was slightly deeper than CIS4’s, but otherwise very similar. “Human and fellow Vespiquen, I welcome you to my castle.”

	As CIS4 hovered there and listened to her rival, she expected to be left speechless. But to her surprise, the sight of her rival did not fill her with fear or trepidation. Even the sight of Taranza did not worry CIS4. Instead, she found herself to be wholly confident, and she hovered forward slowly, ready to speak to the Vespiquen she had longed to meet again.

	“Crimson,” she said as she approached her rival. “Thank you for letting me and my friend come here. I’m glad to get this chance to meet you again.”

	“As am I,” said Crimson. “But before we say anything more, allow me to apologize for the difficulty you had bringing the human here. Alas, this castle was not built to accommodate flightless visitors.”

	CIS4 waved a hand dismissively. “Don’t worry about it. It wasn’t too hard to carry him up.”

	Crimson let out a quiet chuckle. “Really? I somehow doubt that. Still, I must say, I’m impressed by your strength. You’re stronger than I thought. Your ability to lift that human up here, that impressive battle scar on your face, and the fact that you’ve evolved... I think you might be strong enough to stand a chance against me for once. Maybe.”

	Some of the Combee hovering at the edges of the room let out stifled laughter. CIS4’s eye twitched. Those Pokémon must have known about her repeated failures against Crimson in their duels. Perhaps they had even been there to see the most recent one. The pain, the laughter, and the humiliation of their last bout all hit CIS4 again.

	And yet, she found the strength to shake her memories aside and speak firmly: “I don’t know if I’m stronger than you now, but I know I’m stronger than I ever have been before, thanks to the human. He helped me improve, and even evolve. In fact, that is why I wanted to bring him with me. I wanted him to have the honor of seeing this castle, and meeting a queen.”

	“Then I hope he enjoys this opportunity,” said Crimson, turning her red-eyed gaze on Vincent. He noticed her attention, and decided to give a small bow to show respect. Halfway through, he began to wonder if such a gesture might be considered obscene to a Combee or Vespiquen, and he promptly regretted it. Luckily for him, Crimson did not react negatively. She only regarded him with confusion, unsure what his action meant, before looking back to CIS4 and continuing.

	“However, I must ask you one thing before we proceed with our meeting: can the human be trusted? Taranza has insisted incessantly that he is not trustworthy, but I would like to hear what you have to say. Though I doubt you will give an unbiased opinion, seeing as he is your ally, I still want to hear what you have to say about him.”

	CIS4 finally looked at Taranza, who still hovered beside Crimson. One of the Ledyba’s elytra was still mangled and deformed; it had not healed since Weavile’s attack earlier that day. The look on his face, though not obviously angry, was clearly not happy. He appeared more annoyed than anything, as if being required to restrain his desire to attack CIS4 caused physical irritation in him. Still, looking at him, CIS4 did not believe that he was about to lash out. She tried her best to push away her fears about the Ledyba, returned her gaze to Crimson, and answered her inquiry.

	“Yes, he can be trusted. He’s trying to help Pokémon, and I couldn’t have evolved without his help. He is not here to harm you.”

	“I hope you’re right,” said Crimson. “I choose to trust you, and the human as well. Now, we should commence our meeting. Do you know why I summoned you here?”

	CIS4 shook her head. “The escorts you sent out only said you wanted to meet with me. They didn’t say why.”

	“Then I’ll explain. I heard that you had evolved, and that impressed me. I wanted to meet with you so that I could personally congratulate you on your progress, but I also wanted to do something else. I wished to have something I have not had in many days: a duel.”

	CIS4 looked with wide eyes at her fellow Vespiquen. Moments later, she began to laugh. The Combee in the room immediately glared at her, and she stopped as soon as she noticed.

	“Sorry,” she said. “It’s just funny that you’d say that. See, I’d actually been wanting to meet with you too, just so that I could duel you.”

	“Great minds think alike, I suppose,” said Crimson with a quiet chuckle. “This makes things even better. I wasn’t sure if you’d be brave enough to accept my request to duel, but it seems like you’re fine with it.”

	“Of course I’m brave enough,” CIS4 snapped, before any Combee had a chance to laugh at her. “I’m willing to fight. I want to see how far I’ve come, and if I can finally fight you as an equal.”

	Crimson nodded and hovered forward. “I’d like to know that as well. We are both stronger than ever before, and we are both about to face a foe stronger than any we’ve fought before—at least, I should hope so. The thought of fighting another Vespiquen is thrilling. I hope this will be an invigorating battle.”

	As she spoke, Crimson made it to the center of the path between the two pools of honey, and now hovered only feet away from CIS4. Their eyes met.

	“Are you ready?” Crimson asked the scarred Vespiquen.

	“I do have one question,” said CIS4. “When we fought as Combee, the winner would take the loser’s followers. I’ve acquired somewhere around two dozen of them today, and I’d rather not lose them all so soon. Will this duel be for followers?”

	“No,” said the crimson-marked Vespiquen. “This will simply be a friendly battle. No stakes, except our pride.”

	“Then I have no fear,” said CIS4. “I’m ready.”

	Crimson gave a nod, then turned to Taranza and gestured for him to move back, closer to the wall. He did so, though he did not take his eyes off CIS4. The scarred Vespiquen tried to remain unfazed, but she could sense hatred in his eyes, orange like fire. She was stronger now than she had been when she last battled him, and yet, something told her that if that fire burst forth, she would be in for a hard fight.

	As Taranza flew back and stayed near the wall, the many Combee lining the walls drifted back as well, to provide as much room as possible for the impending duel. Meanwhile, Vincent still had no idea what was happening, but he could tell that something important was about to occur. He watched as the two Vespiquen hovered face-to-face in the middle of the room, staring each other down. Though he had not understood any part of the conversation between them, he could tell from what was happening that it seemed likely a battle was about to commence. He was tempted to call CIS4 back to keep her out of trouble, but he figured this was what she wanted. He backed up against the wall, next to the hole that led to the tunnel connecting this room to the entrance far below, and silently watched the two Vespiquen. He trusted CIS4, and chose not to intervene.

	Even so, he couldn’t help but cautiously put a hand on Weavile’s Poké Ball, attached to his belt between Scyther’s ball and the bag of Quick Balls he had kept for this whole mission. The bag of balls reminded him of when he had used one of them to catch CIS4 several days ago. She had come a long way. It was time to see if she could stand up to another Vespiquen.

	“Let us begin,” said Crimson.

	“Yes,” said CIS4, “let’s go.”

	She summoned her Slash attack once more. Her claws glowed white, and she raised them before her defensively. Crimson closed her eyes and called upon the same attack. A pair of long and tapered blades made of white energy erupted from her hands. A low hum filled the room as the blades, which nearly touched the floor when Crimson held her arms at her sides, blazed to life. CIS4 stared in surprise, until she remembered what 23 had said about Crimson’s consumption of the Flowered Honey forever changing her Slash attack. Having remembered that, she continued to stare, but out of fascination rather than surprise. As she watched, Crimson swung her blades about in an elegant display before crossing them in front of her body. CIS4 maintained her Slash, but drifted back slightly as her rival showed off, earning a quiet laugh from Crimson.

	“Don’t tell me you’re already afraid,” she said. “Still, it looks like I might still be stronger than you after all, if this is how our Slashes compare.”

	“We’ll see who’s stronger,” CIS4 said with a voice shakier than she wanted it to be. “Come on!”

	She lunged, and the battle began. CIS4 furiously swiped her claws at her foe, while Crimson effortlessly zipped about and parried each swing with her blades. CIS4 staggered each time her rival beat aside her attacks, and she struggled to keep herself covered while also pressing the attack. Crimson did not return any blows, and merely stayed on the defensive, judging her opponent’s abilities while she blocked and dodged. The two of them drifted all around the room as they fought, but managed to steer themselves away from the spectators, who stayed in place and cheered them on. Taranza called for his queen to lash out without mercy, while Vincent yelled out advice to CIS4 whenever he thought of any.

	Their support mattered little. In the heat of battle, neither Vespiquen paid much mind to the spectators. They focused all their attention on the duel, and kept giving their all, even after it became clear that CIS4 was outmatched. She grimaced and continued to lash out with her claws as much as she could, but Crimson could not be overwhelmed. She parried each strike, and finally decided she had had enough. She beat away one last Slash, and finally delivered a fierce riposte. In stark contrast to Crimson’s own success blocking her foe’s attacks, CIS4 took the hit in the arm and cried out in pain. The crimson-marked warlord followed up with a series of swift jabs to CIS4’s thorax and abdomen, and the scarred Vespiquen blocked none of them. Crimson gave one final stab, which sent her rival reeling backwards, almost all the way to Vincent. She doubled over and clutched her thorax in pain, while Crimson quickly floated back towards her dais. The energy shrouding CIS4’s hands dissipated, and she looked up weakly at Crimson. Their eyes met, but the scarred Vespiquen could only hold her rival’s gaze for a few moments before she collapsed to the floor.

	Vincent ran forward immediately, shouting CIS4’s name. Crimson extinguished her blades and watched him with crossed arms, while her Combee murmured and, unseen by any, Taranza smirked. The human ignored them all, only caring about the defeated Vespiquen. He reached her and kneeled beside her before carefully rolling her over onto her back. Her eyes fluttered as she winced and buzzed weakly. She was still very much alive and conscious, though close to a dozen wounds glowed white on her body. Thankfully, only a few seeped hemolymph. Her exoskeleton had protected her from any serious injuries. Either that, or Crimson had been holding back.

	Vincent looked her over, then he took a potion from his backpack and sprayed its contents on all her wounds. Following that, he returned the empty bottle into its pouch and felt around for one more item: the special healing herb he had purchased at the apothecary in Costa Town while he was looking for the mixture that could bring CIS4 out of her coma. He figured it would not hurt to use it now. However, before he could find it, CIS4 stopped wincing and started to act more invigorated. She moved her head around and pushed herself up onto her elbows. Vincent stopped rummaging through his backpack and smiled down at the Vespiquen.

	“How are you feeling?” he asked her. “I’ve still got some healing items in here, if you think you need them.”

	CIS4 buzzed and shook her head. Crimson’s attacks had hurt, but not badly. She had collapsed more from exhaustion than pain, and after the human’s potion, she felt good enough to continue on without any more immediate aid.

	“That’s good,” said Vincent. “Seems like you’re doing better than I thought. You did well in that fight. I’m proud of you.”

	While Vincent healed CIS4, her rival returned to the raised platform at the other side of the room and hovered there, her arms still crossed. Taranza drifted close to her as if he wanted to speak, and she leaned her head towards him to hear what he had to say.

	“Congratulations on your victory, Your Highness,” he whispered to her.

	“It actually wasn’t too tough,” the Vespiquen replied, her voice as quiet as his. “Tougher than I’d expected, though. She really put up a fight—more than she did last time we met. I enjoyed that duel. And I’ll tell her that as soon as the human helps her up.”

	Taranza looked at the human and the scarred Vespiquen, and gave them both a scowl apiece. “Speaking of the human,” he said, “we really must consider one thing: now that he’s here, do we intend to let him leave?”

	The Vespiquen immediately glared at him. “You’re very persistent in acting so antagonistic, you know that?”

	“Only because I feel it’s what’s best. I have already made my case to you before, have I not?”

	“Of course you have. You’ve ranted about that exact topic so much that I hear your little voice in my head by default now. And all the time, it’s complaining about how outsiders are dangerous and humans especially so, and we can’t afford to take any risks with them. It drives me nuts.”

	“If that’s the case, then I apologize, but I don’t apologize for the content of what I have said. I still believe we should avoid taking risks when the livelihood of our swarm is on the line. I beg you, please do not let the human leave the castle.”

	Crimson intensified her glare. Even Taranza, her close friend and advisor, found himself struggling not to shy away.

	“Taranza, I’m disappointed in you,” said the Vespiquen. “Neither the human nor my rival are here to harm us. They present no threat to the swarm. Now that the duel has ended, they will leave us alone.”

	“Even if that’s true,” Taranza said, “if he leaves the castle, he could tell other humans about us, and they might not be so kind. The safest option would be to stop him, so as to avoid running that risk. We should not put our faith in such alien beings. I have told you all this before.”

	“And I have told you I disagree,” said Crimson, raising her voice now. “Taranza, I think I’ve put up with this hatred of yours long enough. You may be my advisor, but that does not mean you can order me to do anything. I appreciate your concern and your advice, but I disagree with you here, and you should accept that. I refuse to execute the human. He does not deserve to die. He has done nothing wrong.”

	“That may be, but he might cause problems in the near future. We cannot allow that, Your Highness. Please, do not let your morals hold you back from your logic.”

	“If my morals hold me back, then I do not want to be let loose,” Crimson snapped. “I will not kill the human, and that’s final.”

	The Ledyba fell silent. Crimson continued to glare at him until she was sure he would not speak up again, then she looked away from him and watched as Vincent finished healing CIS4. The scarred Vespiquen slowly got off the ground and hovered beside Vincent. Crimson saw that the wounds caused by her energy blades no longer glowed. They had mostly closed up, but a few still remained and left behind scars, though none were as gruesome, or likely as permanent, as the one on her face.

	“That duel was exciting,” Crimson called out as she hovered off the dais to approach CIS4 and the human. They looked over at her as she continued. “You fought well, I must admit. Your determination was impressive, and you kept me on my guard constantly. But your greatest flaw was a lack of balance: you focused on offense too much, and your defense suffered. In addition, you have yet to grow accustomed to your new attacks. You relied on your Slash when you have not yet learned how to execute it properly. Try to add variety and use other moves, and also practice your Slash to improve its power. That is my advice for you.”

	“Thanks for that,” CIS4 said, albeit slowly and with some effort, as she had yet to fully recover. “I’m very glad I got to fight you again, and see how I’ve improved.”

	“The pleasure was all mine,” said Crimson. “That was the most invigorating duel I’ve ever taken part in. Even though it was rather brief, it was an experience I will not forget.”

	CIS4 nodded, but froze up as something behind Crimson caught her eye. “Wait, what’s Taranza doing?” she asked, pointing behind Crimson.

	The Vespiquen spun around just in time to see the Ledyba disappear up the tunnel behind her. She gasped and buzzed angrily. She knew in an instant what was happening.

	“Taranza!” she shouted. “Stop! Don’t go up there!”

	As she spoke, many of the Combee gathered in the room shot towards the tunnel and flew up after the Ledyba. Their angry buzzing echoed down the corridor as they went.

	“What’s going on?” asked CIS4. Vincent grabbed both of his Poké Balls. He knew something was amiss, but he knew no more than CIS4.

	“Potentially something very bad,” said Crimson. She hovered towards the tunnel, both of her energy blades ignited, ready to follow her Combee. “I can’t believe it, but he’s heading towards—”

	An explosion cut her off. The castle shook, and the buzzing of the Combee in the tunnel fell silent. Moments later, the Combee fell back down into a pile, all unconscious. They were followed by Taranza, but he was much different than the Ledyba that had ascended the tunnel seconds ago. Now he glowed with a strange golden aura, rivaling the lightstones that lit the room. His eyes blazed like twin stars, shining brightly as orange energy overflowed from them and mingled with his aura. It was unlike anything CIS4 or Vincent had seen, and they both stared, dumbfounded.

	“It can’t be,” said Crimson, her red eyes wide. “You actually used the Flowered Honey?”

	“Flowered Honey?” CIS4 said, finally able to speak again. Her eyes went as wide as Crimson’s as she realized that she was actually witnessing what 23 and 25 had told her about earlier that day. If the honey was as strong as they said it was, then Taranza’s use of it had just turned him into a more fearsome foe than any she had faced in her life. She shuddered at the thought.

	“Of course I used it,” Taranza said to Crimson. His sibilant voice now echoed unnaturally, and filled all who heard it with unease. “What else could I do? I could not solve our problems diplomatically, and even resorting to threats and force failed. This is all I could do. This honey can give me the power to end this. If I am FLOWERED, I can solve our problem.”

	Taranza then looked past Crimson and turned his gaze on CIS4 and Vincent. The two of them could not look away, even as they began to feel hotter every second. They felt as if the glowing eyes were burning them like real fire. CIS4 landed on the ground and cowered, while Vincent grimaced.

	“What’s happening?” he muttered. “Is this Z-Power or something?”

	Taranza kept his eyes of flame on the duo for an eternity longer, until he decided they had burned enough for the time being. He looked away, and the pair gasped and tried to recover while he looked at Crimson again. She immediately found herself unable to move. His burning eyes paralyzed her as he approached her and stopped less than a foot in front of her.

	“Your Highness,” he said, “do not stop me.”

	“Do not command me,” she said back. “I am your queen, and you are out of line. Stand down or I’ll cut you down.”

	“I’m afraid that isn’t possible,” said Taranza. “Observe.”

	Taranza raised a hand, and walls of orange light instantly appeared in the room, dividing it into segments. One wall cut off the platform that Vincent and CIS4 stood on from the rest of the room, and another closed off the tunnel behind them. In an instant, they had been blocked in, along with few hapless Combee of Crimson’s swarm, who happened to be hovering along the walls near Vincent and CIS4. A third wall blocked off the tunnel behind the dais, which led upward to the Flowered Honey, so nobody could use it against Taranza.

	Once the walls were up, the Ledyba lowered his hand and flew past Crimson, towards the wall. Freed from his gaze, she spun around and gave chase, shouting for her Combee to help her, but they were all too slow to stop the Ledyba. He passed through the wall of light, while Crimson and her Combee slammed into it and reeled back. Taranza glanced back at them and shook his head.

	“As you can see,” he said, “The honey has empowered my Reflect and Light Screen. These walls are unbreakable.”

	Crimson refused to believe him. She beat her blades against the walls, and her Combee shot Gust after Gust to aid her, but the walls held firm. The Vespiquen soon gave up and extinguished her blades, and her Combee fell back. They contented themselves with buzzing angrily and filling the room with their wrathful drone, while Crimson laid a hand on the walls and looked at Taranza pleadingly.

	“Taranza,” Crimson said, “don’t do this.”

	“I have no choice,” he said flatly. “Protecting the swarm is my top priority, and it if means executing the human against your wishes, I must make that sacrifice. This human is a threat to us all, and he must be destroyed.”

	“No,” said Crimson. Her voice dropped and grew menacing. “The only thing here that should be destroyed is you.”

	“I’m sorry you think so,” he said, unfazed by her change of tone. He turned away from her and faced Vincent and CIS4, who had been watching him all this time, too intimidated to do anything else. And yet, now that they were trapped with him, backed into the most dangerous corner they had ever been in, they knew they had to act. Somehow, they found the strength to do so.

	Vincent grabbed his two Poké Balls and released Weavile and Scyther. They appeared on either side of him, and immediately took in their surroundings. They only spent a moment to act awestruck, before deducing that their trainer was in danger from the mysteriously glowing Ledyba hovering menacingly before them. The two Pokémon leapt in front of their trainer and stood on the defensive.

	As they did, Crimson looked at the Combee from her swarm trapped on the other side of the wall, then pointed at Vincent and CIS4. They knew what to do before she said anything. They flew between Taranza and his targets, and came together to form a wall. Their eyes turned red as they stared down the empowered Ledyba, even though they knew he could be the death of them.

	And so the defenses were built. Taranza watched as the Pokémon gathered to protect the human and the scarred Vespiquen, and the human and his three Pokémon companions peeked out around the side of the Combee wall to warily return the Ledyba’s flaming gaze.

	“CIS4,” Vincent said to the Vespiquen, without taking his eyes off the Ledyba. “You should get behind me. You’re still not recovered all the way. I don’t know what’s up with this Ledyba, but he looks like he means business. I don’t think you can take him.”

	The Vespiquen disagreed. Without a word, she flew in front of the human and got between Weavile and Scyther, who looked at her confusedly.

	“You really should hang back, you know,” said Weavile. “Boss is right.”

	“He probably is,” CIS4 said, “but it wouldn’t be right to stand back while he’s in danger. I have to help him.”

	“Your courage and selflessness are admirable,” Taranza interjected, shouting over the drone of angry Combee. “And not just yours, outcast. All you Pokémon are willing to risk your lives to protect this human. And yet, as I have said time and time again, it is imprudent to take risks. If you cannot understand that, perhaps a more forceful approach is required to show you how wrong you are. Let us begin.”

	A Mach Punch brought him to the Combee wall in an instant, and then he attacked with a devastating flurry of Comet Punches. His fists blurred and bursts of orange energy erupted with each impact against the helpless Combee. They had no time to even scream in pain or fear as their wall crumbled. One by one, the Combee collapsed to the floor or flew back with the force of the impacts into the wall of the castle behind them. It took seconds for Taranza’s attacks to destroy the defenses, and the Combee could not stop him.

	From the other side of Taranza’s wall of light, Crimson watched in shock. Her arms fell to her sides as she stared at the scene.

	“That was a lot less effective than I’d hoped it would be,” she murmured.

	With the Combee gone, the human and his Pokémon were exposed. Taranza raised his fists again, but hesitated when he saw CIS4 looking at him with a gaze more vicious and enraged than he had ever seen a Pokémon wear.

	“If you want to kill him,” she said, and she said nothing more. Her voice broke and shook too much to continue, even though her face remained set in its furious expression.

	“I must go through you?” Taranza said, finishing her line. “So be it. After all, I always did intend to destroy you, ever since you refused to do as I said and help the Pokémon of this island. You did not leave the human, and he will be the death of you. Now, our grudge will be settled at last.”

	Weavile bared her fangs and stepped forward. “Hey, your grudge ain’t just about you and her anymore, insect. You lay one hand on her, or the boss, or Scyther and me, and I’ll personally rip you limb from limb from limb from limb from—”

	“We get it, Weavile!” CIS4 shouted, suddenly able to talk again.

	Taranza turned his gaze on Weavile. She flinched and stepped back, burned by his fiery eyes. “You can do nothing to stop me,” he said. “Don’t you understand how foolish it is to fight me?”

	“It might be foolish,” CIS4 said, “but what else can we do? It would be even more foolish to sit here and let you kill me, or my friends. I have to fight. I owe them that much. The human and his Pokémon here accepted me into their group, and helped me become more than just a weak outcast. The human helped me when I was injured, and he even brought me back from the brink of death. And whenever his research meant pain, he did all he could to minimize it. He trained me, he helped me evolve. He is my friend, and I will not let you harm him!”

	Taranza stared at her with his blazing orange eyes. “Impressive resolve,” he said. “But it means nothing. You cannot stop me, no more than you can stop the storms that rage above and shake the island. And now, you will feel the wrath of a storm the likes of which this island has never seen! Have at you!”

	He struck.

	CIS4 cried out.

	One more hit did her in.

	She fell unconscious, her thorax dented. Vincent called her name in shock. Weavile and Scyther leapt into action. They lunged at Taranza and swung their respective claws and scythes at him. He quickly raised a pair of Reflects on either side of him to deflect their attacks, then lashed out at the two Pokémon. He jabbed Scyther in the thorax and left a deep dent in his exoskeleton, then spun and threw a punch at Weavile. She managed to dodge it, but Taranza followed up with a swift jab to her chest that she could not avoid. She fell back and let out a scream, which was quickly replaced by her coughing up blood. Taranza turned back to Scyther and dealt another blow to the reeling Pokémon. His chest’s exoskeleton cracked open with the impact, and shards of green chitin scattered everywhere as the Bug-type flew back. He crashed into the wall and landed slumped and coughing against the wall, hemolymph pouring from the ragged hole in his chest.

	Amidst the chaos, Vincent tried and failed to avoid panicking. He found himself speechless as each one of his Pokémon fell to the Ledyba, though he wanted to cry out in sorrow and rage at the sight. A cursory glance at each of his Pokémon showed that their wounds, though not immediately fatal, were serious enough to be deadly if he did not do something. For the time being, the Ledyba was still at large, so he could not heal them. Thinking fast, he determined Scyther to be in worse condition, so he grabbed his Poké Ball and recalled him in order to place him in stasis, where he would be safe until he could be properly healed. He then grabbed Weavile and CIS4’s balls, but before he could throw either, he realized that the Ledyba had turned on him now. Vincent felt the Pokémon’s burning eyes on him again, but he withstood their heat. His Pokémon needed him, and he had to deal with this wild one and save them. He returned the balls to his belt, slipped off his heavy backpack and crouched low, ready to dodge as best he could.

	The Ledyba raised his fists. They ignited with orange fire, but before he could attack the human, something sharp raked his back. He winced in pain and whirled around to see Weavile landing on all fours on the floor behind him, her claws wreathed in dark purple energy. The fur around her mouth and on her chest was tinted crimson with the blood she had coughed up earlier, though she coughed up no more, either because she was holding it back or because she had recovered.

	“I warned you,” she hissed, her bared fangs painted red with her own blood. Her words slurred, and she began to stagger as more blood dripped from her mouth. “I shoulda just squashed you last time we fought, insect, but I guess it ain’t too late to make up for that mistake now.”

	Taranza could not help but smirk. “You amuse me,” he said. “I could destroy you before you made a single move.”

	Weavile glanced past Taranza, and her mouth twisted into a crooked, blood-red grin. “You’d never get the chance” was all she could say before she lost consciousness and collapsed.

	Taranza did not have a chance to turn and see what she meant. He only had time to curse the Dark-type for distracting him from the human before something struck him from behind. He froze, and his eyes widened as everything suddenly went white and a tingling sensation flowed throughout his body. He struggled to move, but found he could not do anything. His last thoughts were garbled by rage as he lost all sensation and blacked out.

	A moment later, he awoke. He was still in the castle, and he spun around to face the human, not caring what had just happened. All he wanted was to finish the human before anything like that could happen again. But Taranza stopped as he saw that the human held a pouch in one hand, and was withdrawing a blue and yellow ball from it. He had seen humans use balls like that in the past, such as when he had been caught by one, back when he had learned to fear and hate them for their alien mindsets and powerful technology. He now knew what had just happened. He had felt that sensation before. The human had tried to catch him in one of those balls, and was trying to do so again. The aura around Taranza blazed more ferociously, as did the Ledyba’s rage. He could not let the human catch him.

	He prepared to throw a fatal punch, but he hesitated again, for he now spotted something odd behind his foe, something he had not noticed before: the wall of light blocking the tunnel was gone. And if it was gone, then the other walls—

	Searing pain surged through him as something impaled him from behind. He gasped. His wings stopped beating. He looked down and saw the tip of Crimson’s blade emerging from his body. Weakly, he glanced back over his shoulder. Just as he had feared, the other walls of light had vanished when he had been caught and lost his concentration. And that had provided just the opening for Crimson to run him through.

	She looked at him with narrowed eyes. There was not an ounce of pity or regret in them. They were the last thing Taranza, her once-trusted advisor, ever saw.

	Crimson extinguished her blade. Taranza’s eyes lost their flame, his aura vanished, and he fell lifeless to the floor.


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