It was pitch black in the room when Weavile shot awake. A gasp left her throat as she tried swinging her claws, still believing herself surrounded. Except she was in a void, and her claws were tied; she’d been bound to a chair.

“Nggggggh!!”

Pulling and yanking, growling and hissing, she did her damndest to break through the ropes and leather straps keeping her in place. But try as she might, Weavile couldn’t break through. The Soldiers hadn’t left anything to chance. So tight were her bonds, it felt as if the life was being choked out of her.

All Weavile had left was her teeth, and enough anger to power Luminity city.

“Grrrrr! HEY! Get me out of here! I swear I’ll claw your face off and wear it as a MASK if you don’t come in here right now, and GET THESE DAMN BONDS OFF ME!!”

She lashed out, thrashing her arms and legs up and down, shaking the chair and making the legs wobble around. Her bonds were no closer to coming off, and no one outside paid any attention to her outburst. There was no need to.

A light turned on, revealing the crossed face of a Metagross, staring emotionlessly at Weavile as she struggled.

“Calm. The attitude you are putting up at the moment won’t get you far.”

Weavile panted. “Dritch… Dritch. Boy, do I feel honoured you’re showing your ugly mug to me right now. Am I really that special to you?” she said, then spat at the Metagross, hissing afterwards. Her loogie connected with an invisible barrier; Dritch remained dry, and unimpressed.

“To the contrary. I have a thorough approach to governing. The fight against terrorism is something I actively participate in. Including the interrogation of captives,” Dritch explained. She raised one of her legs, and put it down with a powerful thud, despite putting next to zero energy into the move. “And you are a terrorist. Weavile Letto is your name. We have been looking for you for quite some time now.”

Upon hearing her name, Letto spat at the floor. “Yeah? What’s it mean to you, huh? I’m just someone who’s fed up with living under a Tyranitar’s foot all day long. Ain’t anything more to it than that. If you can’t understand why I do what I do, maybe you should try not living under a rock.” She kicked her feet against the bindings. “Metagross.”

The candlelight between them flickered, as Dritch tapped one of her feet against the ground in an arrhythmic pattern. It sounded cold, and empty. Nothing you’d want to listen to if you were free.

“We know. Now, I have questions for you. And you would improve your situation considerably if you cooperated with us. To do so, all you need to do is give honest answers.”

Letto scoffed. “And what do you want to know?” she said, playing it cool, as if she was the one in control.

Dritch didn’t budge. “To summarise. First, do you like hurting other people? Second, who do you work for? Third, where exactly have you been taking orders from? And how did you take your orders? Four, how did you execute your orders? And fifth, do you truly understand what kind of world you are working to create?”

“Pfft…” Letto rolled her eyes at every last one of the questions. “Listen up, clanker. Why are you asking this garbage to me? We both know you’ve been squeezing the answers out of a dozen more sods before me. Don’t act all stupid like you don’t know the answers already. And don’t try and pretend you won’t just beat the crap outta me if I don’t wanna give the answers you wanna hear.”

“To the contrary, the answers differ considerably depending on the time,” Dritch responded, in a tone as formal and dull as a robot could make. “And many of you reply with fiction as answers to my questions. That is something I cannot work with.”

“Maybe you should rethink your technique,” Letto replied.

Dritch’ red eyes took on a bright, yet sinister glow. “It has served us well. Even the least cooperative stop weaving a web of lies after long enough. All we needed was the manpower to make the next steps possible.”

Letto raised an eye. “Manpower?” she asked, her claws digging into the chair while shiftily eyeing the void beyond the Metagross.

“Yes. Manpower,” Dritch answered. “One of my colleagues, the lord Gareda Steelhide, has been assigned to lend a hand in the area. She is notorious for her impressive tactics among you folk, isn’t she? Something about a clash near Agate Township, correct?” Her tone remained ever so emotionless.

Letto let out hiss after hiss, pressing her back upright against the chair after the name Gareda was mentioned. “H-her? That-”

“Yes. Her,” Dritch filled in. “I see no further explanation is needed. And it is a shame that your organisation’s loitering had to come to this. This could all have been resolved in a far less painful manner, yet you had to make it complicated. She is not as forgiving as I am.”

“Just, stop! STOP!” Letto panted out. “I’ll answer your stupid questions, alright?! Just don’t let her get involved!! Don’t let her hurt my friends!”

Dritch raised a leg, and a fierce yellow glow materialised around her hand. Slowly, she moved the tips of her fingers towards the Weavile’s arm. Like a meteor barreling down from outer space, right onto an unknowing world. Starry particles flew off when the difference between Dritch’s arm and Letto’s shoulder was little more than a few centimetres.

“Alas. With the attitude you have already shown me, I’m afraid that I cannot accept your proposal. You need discpline.”

Anyone stationed outside of the room would hear a bone-chilling shriek inside. One which pierced through metal and flesh alike, ripping through the walls until it reached the courtyard of the Bastion. Even some who were merely passing by the fortified complex stopped once it hit their ears, thoroughly stunned until a Soldier ordered them to move on.

No one was saving Letto today.

* * *

Snowviary lived up to its name today. Plenty of falling snow, and plenty of Braviary soaring through. Many of the other residents followed them, hoping to curl up by a fire, or at least find respite from the Whitiaran weather.

But of all the Pokemon who didn’t do the same, one Garchomp and her entourage stood apart. Her green scarf and tall grey cloak fluttered in the wind, as she growled at the front door of a large house, with zero decorations. Zero personality to speak of: The windows had been blacked out, and the wooden door looked so lonely. As if the people inside wanted no one to come knocking.

Gareda shifted a foot in the snow. “Vli. Is this the right address?”

“431 Othersider Barron Street. No mistaking it,” the Toucannon to her right said. Gareda grunted in approval.

“Good. Take some of the Soldiers to the back. Dritch wouldn’t lie about her intelligence. No one is leaving under my watch.”

“Aye.”

As half of the Pokemon in the entourage sneaked off, Gareda nudged the Magmar on her left on her shoulder.

“Luffy. Are you ready to do the deed?”

“Just as we practised, yes,” the Magmar replied with a wink. The Garchomp smiled back with all her teeth visible.

“Well then, what are we waiting for? Let’s see who has the stronger flames, shall we?”

Luffy could barely contain her excitement when Gareda held out a talon for her to grasp upon. She accepted her partner’s gesture with a claw, flames creeping up the back of their throats.

“Here goes!”

Adrenaline surged as the two unleashed massive flamethrowers from their mouths, Luffy’s just a smidge faster. The door was struck head on, cracking only a second after the impact from the sheer heat barreling down upon it. First the wood turned black, then to ash, leaving nothing but a smouldering pile of rubble in the fire’s wake.

By the time the two Pokemon closed their mouths, the way inside was wide open, marked by faint embers on the edge of the doorframe. No one had been caught on the other end, but yells could be heard from far in the back of the building.

“Get in! NOW!” roared Gareda. She charged right in, Luffy having let go and running right after. Her talons were glowing in anticipation of the fight that was to ensue. Alliance Pokémon never went down easy. Never without a fight, no matter how bad the odds.

Once inside, Gareda split her forces in half again, having them clear out the rooms on the side while she rushed upstairs. The halls were cramped, filled with planks and boxes and all sorts of other clutter no one had bothered to clean up. It was all dusty, thanks to a Sandslash awaiting Gareda at the top of a flight of stairs.

“GET BACK!!!” the enemy roared, slashing menacingly downwards with his claws. He’d tear a gash straight through anyone rushing upstairs. Gareda spat up, one foot on the stairs, both talons gripping onto a step above her head. She sucked in a breath, listening intently to the slashes. Soldiers came up behind her, and awaited her next move, no questions asked. There was a pattern to Sandslash’s attacks. One he himself didn’t notice; all the bravado and roaring masked just how dearly afraid he was.

‘Smile.’

Right as a slash finished, Gareda suddenly leapt up the stairs with frog-like reflexes, opening her jaws wide. Sandslash barely knew what was happening when the two hundred pound landshark rammed right into him, clamping down on his throat. She jerked her head back, and heard a snap, before jumping back to her feet.

“OI! It’s over, you fools! Surrender or else!”

Soldiers rushed up the stairs behind and past Gareda, kicking up dust and hair. Gareda breathed in deep; the adrenaline in the air had reached its peak, and it was oh so pleasant to relish in. She let out a satisfied sigh, then followed the rest of her forces.

Most of the Alliance cell was mopped up without any issue. Those who’d gone around the back had come crashing through windows on the upper floor, much to the surprise of the Ampharos and Walrein who were drinking tea there. Back in the front, a Froslass, a Glalie and several Snowrunt were tackled and restrained, blizzards and Snowrunt howling be damned. And downstairs, Luffy dragged a Lucario and several Sneasel out of the hole they were hiding in, every last one of them having singed tufts of fur.

All the surviving members of the cell were taken outside. Gareda gave them all one look over, trying to see if any were known to the authorities, for better or for worse. The red splotches on her teeth made most not even think about stepping out of line, even if they were right in their element. Defeated and thoroughly humbled, shivering and grimacing, risking their hide any more was akin to self harm at this point.

There was just one exception. Who else could it be, but the Lucario with the defiant look on his face? Gareda’s eyes crossed with his.

‘Bingo.’

She lashed out with her arm, striking the Lucario in the gut. All the air rushed out of his lungs as he was knocked to the ground, landing in the snow with a yowl. The other Pokemon didn’t react. Gareda put her foot below the spike on his chest, pinning him to the ground.

“Take the others into custody. Me and Luffy will handle this one myself.”

The Soldiers restrained the other captives, then marched them off to the iron bars. All the while, Gareda got onto a knee, winking at Luffy so she’d be the one stepping on the Lucario instead. He was too disoriented from being slashed to react.

One warm clawed feet on his chest. One spiked knee digging into his side. One talon pressing into his paw. To say Lucario wasn’t in any comfortable position was putting things mildly. The cherry on the top was missing. Gareda spat into his face.

“And look who we have here? Another one of your kind thinking he’s a big damn hero.” ’Miserable blue mutt.’

“It really is, isn’t it? It’s always the Lucarios that think they should be in charge!” Luffy chuckled, much to Gareda’s amusement. The canine’s eyes slowly opened, as he groaned in pain.

‘Ain’t that the truth… Always thinking their silly aura powers make them special. Never been a moment in time when that was true. In his dreams, maybe. Pfft.’

“Oh? He’s starting to recover!” Luffy pointed at his snout, her tail swaying back and forth. Gareda responded by leaning her upper body over his head.

“Good morning. Not having the best day already, I see?”

Slowly, the groans turned into a growl. Lucario glared at the Garchomp in his vision. Resisting even though it’s hopeless. Gareda scoffed.

“You knew deep down you weren’t evading the law forever, didn’t you? Running a terrorist cell, launching attacks and trying to spread shady riff raff… I don’t need to tell you that these are wrong things.” She leaned in until their faces were mere inches apart, the jovial tone of her voice growing increasingly dire. ”Especially in service of what you’re serving.”

“Not if it’s against you thugs…” Lucario growled. “You’re the real terrorists here… the real monsters! You ruined everyone’s life, you… I swore up and down that I wouldn’t rest until every last one of you were wiped off the face of Eravate, forever! You’re barely even Pokemon anymore… I sense it.”

Gareda spat in response, almost hitting Lucario in the eye. “Here we go again with the ‘sensing’. Nah, you can’t sense a damn thing. If you did, then why are we having this conversation right now? You wouldn’t even have been in this house.”

“Grr!” Lucario lashed out, trying to punch Gareda in the face. She dodged, and immediately pinned the arm down with a talon. “Graah!”

“Don’t be stupid, come on,” Luffy asked. Gareda shook her head in response.

“He isn’t going to play along nicely just by asking, you know.”

“I know, but-”

“Just look at him. He’d yank your head off if you gave him the chance.”

“And I’d be right HAPPY TO!” Lucario barked. “If there’s ANYONE on this damn continent who deserves as much, well congratulations Sharpedo head… it’s you.”

Gareda growled at the canine. ‘Sharpedo head? Really?’ “Well then, since you’re so eager…”

The Garchomp suddenly raised a talon, then slammed it straight into one of his palms. Lucario cried out, eyes wide as he kicked and thrashed to try and nurse his aching paw. Gareda wasn’t letting him, and moved the same talon dangerously close to the aura feelers on his head. Luffy shivered, worried what the steps her partner was taking would lead to.

“Let’s raise the stakes, shall we?” she said while tapping a feeler with the tip of her talon. “Either you’re spitting out everything, or I’ll remove these.”

Lucario’s fur bristled. “No… a-anyhting but that. Even you wouldn’t sink so low as to-”

“As what? That I woudn’t drag you down to how other Pokemon live? We don’t have your fancy aura giblets.” Gareda leaned into his ear. “It wouldn’t be so bad, living without them. Would it?”

The Lucario whined like a little lap dog. “N-no!”

“Please just cooperate…” Luffy begged.

“I WILL!!!” Lucario shouted. “Just… stop already!”

Gareda bared her teeth in front of his snout. “Then you’re going to spit out everything. And I do mean everything. Friends, family, contacts, plans, movements. Everything.” She placed her fins under all of Lucario’s feelers, ready to slice them off with a single scythe-like strike. “Is that clear.”

“Y-yes…”

“Good.”

* * *

Later that evening, Gareda watched the snow fall from a window, tail curled over a couch while she sipped on a mug of tea. Vli and Luffy had taken their own seats, each drinking different kinds of tea. Gareda liked Oran, Luffy had green tea, while Vli drank a kind of mint, which he loudly smacked around in his beak.

“Hm. Not too strong, not bad. Still prefer the Azzuros’ mint, though.”

Gareda cracked up. “Surprise of the century. Plants in cold regions don’t get too flavorful.”

Vli flapped his wings several times. “Oh, I know. Still beats green tea, though. How she drinks it, I-”

“Hey!!” Luffy’s cheeks inflated in an instant. “Don’t insult green tea!!”

“Hahahahahaha!” Gareda almost rolled off the couch “Ahahahaha! I told you she doesn’t accept those who go against the green tea gospel!”

“T-that’s not true,” Luffy pouted. “Just, don’t insult it.”

Gareda and Vli’s chuckles gradually came to a halt. “Ah… anyway, got any info out of that Lucario?” the latter asked the former, who shrugged back.

“About everything, yeah. Mind you, it isn’t much. But he confirmed what Dritch found out. Apparently the Alliance units have orders to get to Tirasford. Or clear smuggling routes to there. Something with ‘char’. Could barely make out what he meant. Guy bit his tongue several times trying to explain.”

“So they’re going to do something with the Bastion?” Luffy asked. Gareda nodded.

“It’s where the flute piece is, so it would make sense. But other activity’s suggested they’ll plan something involving that abandoned hole of crap in Mount Tenebrous. Where the Smaugus once set up shop.”

“Set up shop?” Luffy asked.

Gareda scoffed. “You’re asking the wrong person why they built a base into a volcano. Evidently, they discovered the hard way when Tenebrous erupted all that time ago. When Barron was still alive and kicking.” She sipped from her tea. “In any case… Dritch is confident the Othersider will be involved to some extent. If we hear news of activity at either of these two locations, we’re going there. Understood?”

“Understood.”

“Good.” Gareda pointed at Vli with a talon. “How are the other prisoners? And those two sods in the cell that got away?”

“We’re looking for them still,” the Toucannon said. “They probably went into hiding. It’ll be tough to find them.”

Gareda nodded. “There were fifteen or so in there. Don’t sweat it if you can’t find the two stragglers. We’ll drag them into the sunlight soon enough.”

The door to the room suddenly swung open; there was a pale Darmanitan on the other side. “Sir Vli! We’ve found the fugitives! Some help needed!”

Vli tossed his tea onto the coffee table, which was dearly lacking in coffee. “Right! I’m coming! You guys stay here, alright, I’ll deal with this on my own!”

“Good luck!” Luffy called after him.

“Put the busy sign up before you go!” Gareda shouted right after.

“Yes! Will do!”

The door fell shut moments later, leaving Gareda and Luffy alone in the room. The latter stood up to close the curtains.

“It’s cold in here… probably better to not leave these open, huh.”

“You could say that.” Gareda tilted her head further back. “Say, Luffy… I’m so cold. You know dragons need their heat.”

Luffy nodded. “Do you want a blanket?”

Gareda grinned. “Actually… I can think of something better than a blanket… or rather, someone much better than a blanket.” She patted herself on the chest with a talon. “Come here, you.”

The Magmar blushed. “Y-you mean…”

“What? Are you scared of cuddling?” Gareda teased.

“N-no, it’s just… it’s j-just…!” Luffy squeed. “Y-you’re putting me on the spot!!”

“Well, what are you waiting for? Come on here already!”

Giddy with excitement, Luffy leapt right on top of Gareda, nuzzling the Garchomp’s neck while trying to work her arms around her chest. In return, Gareda felt herself getting warmer by the second. She gently stroked Luffy on the back with her talons, all while leaning into her sweet nuzzles.

It was such an immense blessing to end the day on.