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After flying over the Stone Labyrinth, Tory began to see the signs of his comrade's passing below. Signs of battle made a distinctive trail, easily spotted by his keen eyes and giving him a direction to follow. It was only a matter of time, then, before he saw the large force riding on through the maze and made out Calhoun's form among them.

With that, the Decidueye fell into a steady dive, flying soundlessly through the sea of mesas. As he approached, he was intercepted by a Braviary that was watching from atop the buttes, but upon a closer look at him, it backed off. Calhoun had apparently made sure his new army had been made aware of his coming.

Gliding to the front of the group, Tory landed upon a stone and turned to Calhoun as the dark Blaziken, mounted on the back of a lizard-like Pokémon he did not recognize, approached.

"You found us," he said, nodding to Tory. "Where is Sash; is he coming?"

Tory shook his head. "No. He opted to remain at the fortress, to buy more time," the Decidueye replied, "I would assume he will come to join us if he successfully escapes..."

Calhoun frowned and then nodded to Tory before dispatching him to fly overhead for the remainder of the journey - and rest if he needed to, turning his gaze forward again. 'Sash was with us from the day Seji joined me,' he thought, with only Giratina to hear his thoughts, 'I had hoped he would stand with us at the turn of the tide. I mustn't squander this chance.'

The months of struggle, fighting a ground war with the Guilds, had visibly shaken Calhoun's confidence. Even the dark Blaziken himself was aware of it now; besides the change of his tactics, he had become overly cautious. If anything... He was more like himself when he was still a monk - before he had been corrupted, but whether or not he was aware of this detail was uncertain...

'We're almost there, aren't we?' he asked, this time deliberately directing the question at Giratina.

'A few more bends, and the last Nexus will be in sight,' Giratina answered. 'Take heed. The Guardian that is posted there will not be like the others you have encountered. This one will push your power to its limit in order to corrupt them.'

'You said before you didn't know who the guardian was,' Calhoun reminded.

'I do not,'_Giratina answered. _'I only know that they must be strong if their only mission is to keep me in this accursed prison.'

'How could you know that?' Calhoun asked as they rounded the last bend, coming to a wide, open area of the Stone Labyrinth, the mesas and ridges parting to create a valley.

The 'valley' was more of a crater at first glance, with multiple passageways leading in and out. The ground was wide, open and barren, with very little vegetation and no bodies of water visible to the eye. Out of the labyrinth, the sun bore its incandescent brutality upon the Crusade; most of the Pokémon present were accustomed to the heat, but there were those, like Tory and Sakkaku, who were not accustomed to such climate, and stayed in the shade.

The valley seemed to be an open expanse, except for one thing. At the very center of the valley, was a single stone - blending in so much with the dry sands that from above, it would have been easily missed. But the moment Calhoun's eyes fell upon that lone sandstone, he felt a thrill of excitement that he knew was not his; it was Giratina.

'There it is...' The dark lord of the Distortion World stated, his chilling tone still present despite his anticipation. 'The Final Nexus is within that crater...'

'Here?' Calhoun asked, focusing on the lone sandstone. 'But there's nothing here; it's just a valley...'

He looked around as he rode on, trying to see what it was Giratina wanted to see, but still finding his attention drawn to that long hunk of sandstone, like that was where Giratina wanted him to be looking. Calhoun directed his Cyclizar mount closer to the stone, and suddenly the lizard stopped moving; he felt it going rigid, and it refused to go any further, even when he kicked its flank to try to urge it on. Something ahead had the Cyclizar on edge...

With nothing else to do, he hopped down from Cyclizar's back, letting it go back the way he had come, before approaching the stone on foot. Then, he started to feel it... A chill, one that was very familiar to him, and growing stronger the closer he got to the stone. Yet he could not see the source of the feeling... Even as he stood beside the stone, it looked plain and featureless, eroded by centuries of wind and blowing sand to become smooth and rounded.

"I don't see anything here... But I sense the Nexus. It's like I'm right-" he stopped talking, and looked down at his feet. "...On top of it. It's below us; it must be."

It made sense; all of the other nexuses had been underground, hidden from sight. A sealed cave, the depths of a lone island, the catacombs beneath an ancient temple in the swamps - it was all underground. Whoever had sealed this Nexus, had also taken the time to bury it; Calhoun once again lifted his gaze to look at the valley around them, studying the walls closer.

"...This valley did not form naturally," he thought aloud, "Erosion had worn away all signs, but it's too perfectly round..." His eyes narrowed. "You said before that this was where you were defeated. Am I correct in assuming a great, catastrophic battle preceded your banishment?"

'Indeed it did... This was where my detestable father and his cursed sons defeated me and sealed me away in this prison...' Giratina answered, his voice dripping with venom. 'The Nexus is within your grasp, Calhoun... You know what you must do...'

Calhoun looked down at the ground again, taking a moment to study the stone again as he considered how best to approach this new obstacle before them. But he could only see one option. "I suppose we'll have to dig," he said.

"Calhoun."

Turning to the voice, the dark Blaziken saw Sakkaku and Tory approaching. The elderly Zoroark looked thoroughly miserable under the scorching sun; with his dark fur, it was understandable that he was not enjoying this hot climate.

"How much farther do we have to go?" Tory asked.

"No farther," said Calhoun, before he gestured at the ground. "What we seek is right here."

Sakkaku looked around at the barren crater around them, narrowing his eyes suspiciously before looking back at Calhoun. "...There's nothing here," he blatantly stated, crossing his arms, "I'm starting to think this whole trek has been for nothing, and you've led us on a wild Swanna Chase."

"The Nexus is below us," said Calhoun, "Every one of the Nexuses was always hidden underground. This is no exception; we simply need to uncover it."

"So, you expect us to start digging then..." Sakkaku stated, then scoffed in annoyance. "I am an assassin, not an archaeologist... My claws are meant for taking lives."

"Then it is fortunate we have a Krookodile and his gang with us," said Calhoun, "It may take some convincing but-"

The Dark Blaziken became silent. Sakkaku too, did not speak, nor did Tory. The red gleam of his eyes had returned; the shine they took when cast in shadow, usually under his hood or when standing in darkness. On such a bright, sunny day, that should not have been happening, leading all three of them to look up at the sky, expecting to see a cloud had moved overhead without them noticing.

But there was no cloud... The light of the sun was unhindered, the heat of its glow still blanketing the desert around them. But the light was dimming, visibly less than it should have been, unobscured as it was. It was as though the light of the sun itself was being drawn away by something, and all they received were the castoff rays that were not taken with them.

Suddenly, Calhoun felt a shiver run through his body. As before, it was not from him, but from Giratina. The Fallen God was suddenly filled with trepidation at the strange phenomenon. For even Giratina to be alarmed, Calhoun became alert, his eyes now on the watch for danger.

'Giratina... What is going on?' Calhoun asked, finding he could stare at the sun with barely a sting to his eyes, 'What's happening to the light?'

'It is him... The devourer...' Giratina answered. 'The king of those not from this world... I had the unfortunate displeasure of helping to stop him and his invasion from taking this world. Damn! How could my father have won him to his side, of all beings?!'

'Devourer of Light?' Calhoun repeated, 'I've never heard of such a thing... You say he's not from this world; is he another resident of your Distortion Realm?'

'No. He is from a world altogether alien to this one,' Giratina answered. 'The Devourer of Light... King of the Ultra Beasts... Necrozma.'

'Ultra Beasts...' Calhoun echoed. "Order everyone to stay alert, and prepare for battle... Something is coming," he ordered Sakkaku.

"Understood," Sakkaku responded with a nod, quickly leaping back to their forces and relaying Calhoun's orders to them.

"Calhoun... What is coming?" Tory asked.

The dark Blaziken only hesitated to answer for a few seconds, before he said, "Something that is not of our world."

From the nearby mesa, a figure emerged from deep within a cavern, awakened from its long slumber by the presence of intruders. As soon as it stepped into the light of the sun, it began to feed, drawing the light into itself and stealing much of the daylight that was intended for the land beyond. It could not charge itself to full strength, due to the restrictions placed upon it by those who had imprisoned it here in this forsaken place.

But now, the duty for which he was bound was about to be fulfilled, and Necrozma's massive, clawed hands lifted it out of the cave, where it began to levitate in midair. Then, between its enormous hands, it began to form a condensed ball of energy...

The glow of the imminent attack was all the warning Calhoun and Tory received before the Charge Beam struck; they jumped out of the way, narrowly avoiding the electrical beam of power, and saw the assailant coming out of one of the mesas. A crystalline creature, black as the night, with two disproportionately massive arms and clawed hands, two spindly legs, and a head with a long cranium covered in several spikes.

"What manner of monstrosity is that?" Tory asked, already forming a bow with his wing and notching an arrow.

When Tory let the arrow fly, the creature banked out of the way, and attacked with a second Charge Beam, forcing the Decidueye to drop his bow and take wing to avoid it. Calhoun retaliated with a Flamethrower at the creature; it held up one massive hand, and a pulse of energy exploded from its open claw before an invisible wave of telekinetic force pushed its way through the fire and struck Calhoun, sending him hurtling backward.

'What is that thing?! Is that _Necrozma?'_Calhoun asked Giratina.

'I... Cannot be certain. It feels like him, but his form is... Different than I remember.' Giratina answered in a puzzled manner.

'What is his weakness?' Calhoun asked, breaking into a run to dodge another Charge Beam from Necrozma.

'I am not sure... He was in a different form when I fought him. Whatever abilities and weaknesses he has in this state, I cannot say for certain,' Giratina answered.

'Then I shall have to improvise,' replied Calhoun, breaking into another sprint and circling Necrozma from below.

The crystalline monstrosity pursued Calhoun, floating effortlessly through the air and bombarding him with attacks. Calhoun proved too quick for him, moving and dodging his Charge Beams, but after the fifth missed attack, he changed strategy. Crossing his long arms over himself, the two limbs glowed brightly, and he swung them outward to send an explosive wave of Psychic power erupting from his body; Calhoun barely got out of the way of the attack, but the resulting explosion when it hit the ground sent the Blaziken hurtling through the air.

'I need to bring him down somehow!' Calhoun thought to himself. "Tory! Outflank him; try to force him to the ground!" he shouted as he landed on his feet and started running again.

Whether or not Tory heard him, Calhoun didn't know. But either way, the Decidueye was in flight, and attempting to get a better angle to attack the creature. Calhoun seemed to have its attention, and so Necrozma didn't see the Decidueye flying up at his flank until Tory shot an arrow at them; Necrozma put up its arm to block the arrow, and it ricocheted harmlessly off the crystalline surface, before he sent another blast of Psychic energy - like the one he nearly caught Calhoun with.

Tory was sent hurtling back into the mesa behind him, colliding hard with the stone face of the escarpment. The attack had hurt him, forcing him to use Synthesis to heal himself - though it was less effective due to the dimmed sunlight. Still, it was enough to get Tory moving again, in time to avoid Necrozma's follow-up attack, casting Psychic at him; the face of the butte where Tory had been a second before blew apart, as if struck by a bomb.

But Calhoun found his opening. Running up the side of another mesa, Calhoun gained some altitude, and when he was at the right elevation, he jumped. The dark Blaziken soared through the air, arcing toward Necrozma, catching them by surprise with a dropping Blaze Kick. The two went careening back to the ground, hitting the sand in a billow of dust, but Necrozma did not stay down for long. Throwing Calhoun off him, he swung his massive arms at the Dark Blaziken, slashing at him with his clawed fingers.

Calhoun managed to stay ahead of the swings, retaliating when he saw an opening and landing another Blaze Kick on Necrozma. But he answered for it when he was hit - this time directly, by another Psychic, sending Calhoun flying before he went skidding across the sand.

'Damn, he's powerful!' exclaimed Calhoun, coughing hoarsely as he tried to will his body to mend itself.

As Necrozma advanced on Calhoun again, Sakkaku returned, accompanied by several Cacturne and the Krookodile boss. Sakkaku struck with a Night Daze, successfully stumbling Necrozma, who turned to address the new threat. He struck back with another Psychic, but none of them were affected by the pulse, and the Krookodile charged in, biting down on Necrozma's upraised arm; a sound, like a scream, but as if emitted through a mouth closed by tape, came from the prismatic creature then.

Calhoun sat up, finally understanding. Necrozma wasn't just using Psychic-type attacks; it was a Psychic-type. "Pour it on!" he called. "Dark, Bug, and Ghost-type attacks!"

Sakkaku and his brigade piled on the damage, all of them using attacks such as Night Daze, Crunch, Pin Missile, and the like, attacking the large beast with everything they had and then some. Sakkaku even opted to get in close and slice along Necrozma's body with Night Slashes with blade, and Shadow Claws with his offhand claw to add to the damage.

Necrozma proved to be a tough opponent, taking the onslaught even when it managed to throw off the Krookodile chomping on its arm. It tried to levitate away again but was stopped when Tory shot a Spirit Shackle into its shadow, preventing it from escaping, and Calhoun made his move then, coming at the weakened Necrozma from behind, lifting his leg as it became enshrouded with a ghostly fog, and he slashed with the talons of his foot with a powerful Shadow Claw.

The surprise attack left Necrozma vulnerable, and Calhoun fell upon him again, this time with his hands coated in the power of the Shadow Curse, grabbing hold of Necrozma's head as it tried to get up, and the cursed power flowed into him. At first, the crystalline beast seemed to resist it, but eventually it overwhelmed its defenses; Calhoun felt his will asserting control over the alien mind of Necrozma, until its consciousness was at last forced into dormancy, allowing him to take full control.

Sakkaku gave the order to stand down, and the Cacturne lowered their arms. As they did so, the light of the sun returned to its full brightness once again, leaving them all bewildered again by the strange phenomenon they had witnessed. The Zoroark then dared to approach Calhoun after he finished corrupting the strange Pokémon, sword still in his claw as he stared down at it.

"It's done then?" he asked.

"Yes. He's under control now," said Calhoun, taking his hands away from the creature. "To be honest, I was not actually sure the curse would affect this one."

"What the hell is this thing anyway?" the Krookodile boss asked.

"He's called 'Necrozma'," explained Calhoun, "He is not from this world. He's something called an 'Ultra Beast', from a dimension outside of our own." He stepped back, letting Necrozma levitate to an upright position again. "The fact he's an alien is why I wondered if the Shadow Curse would affect him, but it seems he's just as susceptible to it as any Pokémon."

"So now you have an alien Pokémon under your control..." Sakkaku remarked, casting a sidelong glance at Calhoun. "What do you plan to do with it?"

At that, Calhoun smiled. "Why do you think an alien Pokémon was here in the first place, Sakkaku?" he asked.

As the Zoroark pondered the question, it was Tory - coming over to stand with them, who spoke up. "He is the Guardian," he answered, "the protector of the final nexus."

"Correct," replied Calhoun, "and the key to uncovering it. We won't need to dig after all, because, through his mind, I can now see exactly where it is... And how to bring it up from beneath the sand."

But then Calhoun's smile faded. "...Except, there seems to be a problem," he said.

Sakkaku rolled his eyes. "Great. Another complication..." He growled irritably. "Out with it. What's the issue now?"

"Necrozma feeds on light as a power source," said Calhoun; the information he was receiving was not coming from Necrozma itself, but from Giratina. "He's been here for hundreds of years; by now his power should be astronomical with all the sun's light he'd have been exposed to. This is not even his true form... It's as if his true power has been sealed away, somehow."

"He's weakened?" Tory asked, "After the fight he put up, you are saying he is not even at his full strength?"

"It would seem not," replied Calhoun, putting a hand to his chin. 'Any thoughts on how to restore his powers?' Calhoun discreetly asked Giratina.

Giratina was silent, but not because he was trying to be. He genuinely did not know how to properly restore Necrozma back to full power while he was under Calhoun's influence. 'If this is indeed Necrozma, he should have been gathering light the entire time you fought him,' he explained, 'that is why the sun went dark; he was stealing the light to give himself power... But I think you are correct; something is holding him back. My father's work, no doubt...'

'Is there a way to break this seal on his powers?' Calhoun asked.

'That I cannot be sure of...' The shadow dragon answered, 'Were I there, maybe I could remove it... But otherwise, only my accursed father or brothers could undo it.'

Seeing no other option, Calhoun turned his full attention to Necrozma, and gave him a simple command. "Devour the light," he said.

Once again, the sun dimmed as Necrozma began to absorb the energy carried in its glow; the Cacturne and the crocodilians all took a tentative step back, likely thinking Necrozma was about to attack again. Calhoun could feel Necrozma's power growing, feeling it spiking rapidly, yet there was something holding him back... Some block, deep within his core that kept him from gaining more power.

'Hm... I feel the block,' thought Calhoun, 'It must have been placed on him when they bound him to guard this place, so that he could never grow beyond their control...'

'Then that block must be removed... And as it stands I cannot manipulate such a block until I am released from this prison,' Giratina answered. 'Finding one of my brothers to undo it would not be ideal; you would have to return to the East Continent. Maybe the Lord of Order, Zygarde, could do it... But I know not where to find him.'

Calhoun narrowed his eyes in consideration. 'Can I do it? If you guide me through the process, can I somehow remove the block from him?'

Again, Giratina was silent for a time before giving his response. '...It would take quite a lot of time, but it is possible in theory; you have my_power, even if not much of it,'_ he answered. 'Of course, it would give your adversaries time to catch up to you and find this place...'

'Maybe... But, what about these creatures you said Necrozma rules over? These 'Ultra Beasts'?'

Calhoun could sense Giratina was puzzled.'...What are you implying, Calhoun?' He asked curiously.

Calhoun began to reach within Necrozma, deepening the effects of the shadow curse as he sought the block. "All of you, begin setting a perimeter," he said, "I will need some time with this, and I need to concentrate," he told his followers before answering Giratina.

'If the Ultra Beasts are still waiting for him... We might be able to use that,' he said, 'I assume he is capable of opening the rift between the two worlds... If we can remove the block on him, perhaps we can use him to summon the Ultra Beasts here - hold.' Calhoun put up a metaphorical hand to Giratina to stow the protests he sensed coming. 'Think about it... We know Necrozma can be affected by your Shadow Curse, giving me power over him... What about the rest of his kind?'

Then, Giratina understood what Calhoun meant. Even though he couldn't see it, Giratina would be grinning if he had a mouth. '...You continue to impress me...' He said, almost giving off a sense of pride in his chosen Blessed. 'In that case, we should get started right away... Once the seal is broken, you will have an invincible army at your disposal...'

Calhoun grinned at that. 'It is good to know you and I are of the same mind, Giratina,' he thought as he got to work, searching the core of Necrozma for the block that locked away his powers...

~~~~~

Luke sped through the corridors of the base as fast as he could, trying to follow the source of the shaking that was being caused by what he thought was Volcan's battle with Sash. To his dismay, the shaking was always in a different location than the last, and even with his aura sense active, it looked like Volcan was actively moving away from where he last sensed him, taking him further away and making Luke have to run for longer in order to reach him.

"Damnit Volcan, stop moving!" he cursed to himself as he reached another flight of stairs and began ascending them as fast as he could - slowed due to his hurt ankle; no matter how much he tried to ignore the pain his body was not letting him forget about it. "He's completely out of control... If this keeps up, him ending Sash will be the least of our concerns..."

It didn't help either that the fortress itself had a confusing layout; Luke hadn't been able to take the outside stairs due to them having been set ablaze by Volcan's ongoing battle with Sash, forcing Luke to use the stairs inside the fort itself, rather than risk the burning walkways. Of course, he did not know the layout of the fortress' interior, and it was costing him precious time.

Even more so when he found a pair of guards - two of them, on the fifth floor. One of them was a Sandslash, and the other was a Darmanitan. "Hey!" the ape-like Darmanitan shouted before he and his comrade rushed at the Lucario.

"Out of my way!" Luke demanded as he charged into them, Aura Spheres in each paw that he slammed into their chests as he rushed forward. The blasts sent them both onto their backs, allowing Luke to dash past them before they could get back on their feet. He had no time to waste in dealing with guards and sentries at this point.

Unfortunately, it would not be the last of the encounters, for even as he left the two dazed guards behind, another, more familiar one, was lying in wait for him. Out of a hole in the wall, the sandy snake emerged, cutting across his path and hissing loudly at him. The bag around its head was already swollen, and with a snort it sent a cloud of sandy particles into Luke's face as he tried to slow down.

Luke instinctively shielded himself as the sand hit him in the face, but that only served to irritate him even more instead of forcing him to back down. With a growl, he shot forward and slammed a Force Palm right into the strange snake's face, forcing it to recoil and cease its attack entirely.

"I don't have time for this. Out of my way!" Luke demanded as he attempted to run past his opponent.

The snake glared after him, and before he could finish running past it, its tail ignited with dark energy as it lashed out with a Brutal Swing, slamming Luke in the side and throwing him hard into the wall. He gasped as the wind was knocked out of him and was sluggish to respond when the snake struck again. In a blur, he was spun into its coils, wrapping tightly around him and constricting tightly, pinning his legs together and one of his arms against his side as it enclosed around him with a suffocating embrace.

Luke wheezed as he was caught in the snake's tight hold, eyes opening wide in shock before he clenched them tightly and tried to take a breath in, writhing against the snake's grasp and weakly hitting the scaled length around him with his free paw to try and break out or at least lessen the pressure. The snake's coils grew tighter in response, slowly crushing him in its powerful coils as he continued to struggle; looking up he could see its green eyes watching him, as though it was just waiting to see him perish.

Luke's face started to turn a deeper shade of blue due to a lack of oxygen. He was on the verge of passing out at this rate, and Volcan was still rampaging above. Luke slowly closed his eyes, looking as if he were finally succumbing to the snake's embrace, only for them to shoot open once more as he flexed his free paw, summoning his Metal Claw and driving it as deeply as he could into the snake's tail.

At first, the snake's hold became tighter as Luke stabbed his claws into it, but upon deciding the pain was too much to bear, it began to loosen; he felt its coils lift away from him, buying himself precious seconds to act before it could collect itself. Luke gasped once he was able to take in a deep breath, then grunted as he pushed the coils apart and jumped out of them, landing in a crouch and taking a moment to catch his breath and replenish his lungs with fresh air.

He then looked at the snake as it nursed its wound, slowly standing up right and reverting his Metal Claw back into a paw spike. "I told you... I don't have time to mess around. You brought this on yourself," was all he said before he turned and began running again.

Fighting with that snake Pokémon had cost him more than a minute, and Volcan's Aura had moved again; the Blaziken was moving fast, suggesting he was definitely in his Mega Form, and his target - undoubtedly Sash, was getting weaker...

He was running out of time...

Sash was outmatched...

In his fury-driven assault, Volcan was overwhelming him. Just rational enough to predict Sash's usual battle tactics, but so lost in his rage that he ignored most of Sash's attacks. The Blaziken was bloodied and bruised from taking many blows, yet he simply did not react to any of them, pushed on by adrenaline, and sheer hatred... All semblance of self-preservation had left him; all that mattered to him now was blood... Sash's blood.

Finally, Sash could do no more... He could no longer teleport; he had no power left to do it. He was exhausted, and his entire body felt like it was burning - in some places, it was, when Volcan had managed to catch him with his fiery attacks. When the Blaziken kicked him into a wall one final time, his exhaustion won out over his drive to fight...

The Gallade dropped out of his Mega form after his exhaustion took over, panting heavily, badly burned and covered in bruises and blood stains. He looked like he was at death's door, and yet despite being so horribly beaten down, when he lazily looked back at Volcan, he still wore that cursed grin on his face.

"There it is..." he wheezed softly before he spat out some blood and coughed weakly. "There's that killer instinct I've been literally dying to see..." He added, then let his shoulders slump before he continued. "Go on then... you have me dead to rights... Kill me. Take your vengeance... Let your killer instinct run free..." He continued to goad.

In response, Volcan slammed his foot down on Sash's head, slamming him against the wall again, and holding him there as he glared at him.

"You just don't know when to quit, do you?" the Blaziken asked, his voice still carrying that remorseless tone in his voice, "Even now, you still continue to provoke me with your foul mouth; you must really be a glutton for punishment."

Sash chuckled weakly in response. "No... I just know a killer when I see one," he responded, still grinning despite having Volcan's foot against his head.

Volcan's dark gaze only grew harder as he pressed his leg in harder, threatening to crush Sash's head against the stone wall. "If I could only make you suffer as you've made others suffer... But you've spilled so much blood that by now, you'd be dead before I was halfway through the list..."

He pulled his leg back and took one step back from Sash. "So... I'll just give you a taste of hellfire as I send you to the real deal," the furious Blaziken said, flames licking the corners of his beak. "May you burn forever you scum!!" he cried as he took in a deep breath, ready to unleash the most hate-fueled Flamethrower he had ever mustered, intending to burn Sash until nothing was left...

"Volcan!"

The sound of a familiar voice made the Blaziken stop. Extinguishing the fires in his beak by shutting his mouth and looking over his shoulder sharply to the source of the voice. The dark look never left his gaze, and Caulin and Serena - standing a short way up the corridor behind him, felt their spines tingle as they saw that murderous look in his eyes.

"By Lunala..." Serena whimpered, her legs shaking in terror as she saw that face, unable to see her captain behind it...

Caulin looked between Sash and Volcan, equally as shocked at what he was seeing as Serena was. His shock then turned into a heavy frown as he took a few steps forward, paws clenched at his side as he stared Volcan down.

"Get away from him, Uncle Volcan," he said in a warning tone, "I won't let you kill him."

Volcan slowly turned his gaze away from the two. "Get out of here you two," he stated, "You don't need to be here for this. I'm ending this murderer once and for all."

To Caulin it was like looking at himself during his last battle with Sash, knowing that back then he had nearly been consumed by vengeance as Volcan was now. Caulin held firm his glare and took another step closer.

"He's playing you, Uncle!" he suddenly exclaimed. "He wants you to kill him out of hatred! He's trying to turn you into the very thing you're fighting against!" He tried to reason with Volcan. "I know because he tried that with me during our fight, and he nearly succeeded too! Mom had to snap me out of my rage before I... before I added another to my kill count at the time..."

"It doesn't matter now," the Blaziken's response, coming without hesitation, surprised Caulin. "Because of this bastard, I've already got blood on my hands..." he lifted his hands to look at them; his palms were bloody and battered from the fight with Sash and were even trembling as he stared at them. "That blood will never come off... Because the moment it was on my hands, my heart went with it..."

He lowered his hands and looked at Sash again. "One way or another, this creature's manipulations and murders end, NOW!" he bellowed as he breathed in again, and started to let loose that Flamethrower...

But as he angled his head forward to exhale, an unseen force pulled his head back, sending the gout of fire into the ceiling. The flames scorched the stone, and embers rained down around the Blaziken as he pulled against the Psychic hold.

"Caulin...!" he growled, "Let go of me, right now!"

"No!" Caulin shouted back, straining to keep Volcan's head back. "What part of 'he's playing you' are you not getting?? He's trying to turn you into a killer just like him! Are you really ready to mercilessly murder someone out of pure hatred and throw away everything you are??"

"He already made me kill Luke!" Volcan shouted, "I'm already a murderer, Caulin... Difference this time being, I won't regret it!" He continued to try to pull against him. "Damn it, Caulin, let me go! He deserves this; he deserves _worse_than this!"

"No one deserves to die, Uncle!! You and Uncle Luke taught me that!!" Caulin growled, then he let out a yell as he threw Volcan against the opposite wall with his Psychic, then stood between him and Sash, paws clenched tightly with sparks surging around his body. "I won't let him try to turn you the way he tried to turn me. He's unforgivable, but you'll only be giving him what he wants. Can't you see that??"

"Caulin's right, Volcan!" Serena stepped in, backing Caulin as they tried to talk him down. "This isn't the way to get justice for Luke; whatever he's done, if you go down to Sash's level, you'll never come back!"

Despite their words, Volcan was still fighting Caulin; deep down, he could feel their words getting through to him, but at that moment his heart was in turmoil, desperate for that release... Caulin found he still had to concentrate on holding the Blaziken back, even if his resistance had lessened.

"If you really want to go through with this, then I'm not afraid to throw hands with you, Uncle," Caulin threatened, then his power exploded around him as he let his anger loose, reining it back under control and letting it burn around him. "But before you do, you ought to look in a mirror!" he stated, pointing at Volcan with one paw, "Get a look at yourself; is that the face you want everyone to see when you return to Gladiator City - that you want Ignus to see when you go home?! Is that what you want to be, Uncle - _another_monster?!"

The mention of Ignus finally struck a chord with the Blaziken; he stopped fighting Caulin's hold, and stood frozen in the corridor, still glaring down the side of his face at Sash but no longer trying to finish him.

"Are you willing to turn into a rabid beast?" came another voice, which caused all heads to turn toward the corridor. There stood Hageshi, staring stoically at Volcan from within his hood, the tip of his sword visible from the bottom of his cloak. "All for the sake of revenge; knowing that killing him wouldn't fix the damage he caused?" He asked in a rhetorical manner. "If so, then go right ahead. I won't stop you from doing what you please."

Caulin sputtered at Hageshi. "Ah-HEY!! What the hell man?? We're trying to stop him from-"

"What right do we have to stop him from taking vengeance on the man who caused him so much pain?" Hageshi pointedly asked Caulin.

The Lucario grit his teeth and growled at the Greninja. "...I really don't like you, man."

"Whether you like me or not is irrelevant." Hageshi shot back, his eyes never leaving Volcan. "That being said, I shudder to think what your colleagues would think when you return with his blood on your hands, because you gave into your hatred and lust for revenge..." He then scoffed. "Luke would be so ashamed of you were he standing here right now."

At that, Volcan seemed to finally come back to himself... His shoulders relaxed, and his hands fell open at his sides. The onlookers could see the fight draining out of him at that moment as the truth of their words slowly began to sink in for him.

But just as Caulin began to relax his hold on him, Volcan turned sharply, and let out a rather explosive Flamethrower - followed by an agonized scream, down the empty corridor to his right. He let out all of his rage at once in that burst, the intense heat still washing over him and the barely conscious Sash lying in front of him, having remained silent as the others tried to talk the furious Blaziken down.

As the flames petered out, Volcan slumped against the wall Caulin had previously slammed him into... And sank to the floor, as all of the strength in his legs suddenly vanished. Only then did the others dare to approach him, and saw the tears streaming from his eyes, sobbing quietly. Anger had given way to grief, and all Volcan could do was surrender to it, having not the strength to hold on anymore...

"I killed him..." he whispered, only audible as they came near enough to hear him, "Luke's gone... Because of me... It's all my fault..."

"It's not your fault, Uncle..." Caulin answered, powering down and placing a paw on Volcan's shoulder. "I know Uncle Luke wouldn't blame you for what happened... It's on Sash's head, not yours."

"I wouldn't be so sure about that..." Hageshi remarked absently.

Serena turned on Hageshi, thinking he was making another jab at Volcan and ready to ream him for his heartlessness. But then she saw what he was looking at and gasped in shock.

"...Volcan?"

Caulin's ears pricked up at the sound of the voice, making him turn and stare in shock and disbelief at what he had seen. Behind Hageshi, at the other end of the corridor, stood Luke, panting softly after running for so long, staring with deep concern at Volcan from where he stood.

Slowly, Volcan turned his head toward the voice, looking past Caulin, Serena and Hageshi to the Lucario standing in the corridor "Wha-" Volcan asked, his eyes going wide and his beak falling open, looking as though he'd seen a ghost.

"What... What is happening?" he asked, slowly climbing to his feet - prompting Caulin to help him stand as the Blaziken rose on unsteady legs, never taking his eyes off Luke.

The Lucario slowly stepped closer to Volcan, moving around Hageshi and quickly eying Sash as he came to stand in front of the Blaziken, just staring at him in silence and allowing Volcan to come to terms with what he was seeing. Volcan reached out a hesitant hand to Luke's face, slowly bringing it to his cheek until he rested his palm against it, and once again tears streamed from his eyes.

"It's really you," he said, barely audible. "But... I saw you fall..."

Luke closed his eyes and leaned into his hand, lifting a paw up to touch it, relishing his touch before he opened his eyes to look at Volcan again.

"I was saved; you can thank Jora and Hageshi for it," he answered softly, then he frowned slightly at the Blaziken. "Honey... were you really going to kill Sash knowing it would accomplish nothing...?"

"I...I thought I... I had killed you," Volcan struggled to get the words out, "I was so mad with grief I... I couldn't stop myself... I wanted to kill him so badly, I just..." he trailed off, unable to find the words to describe what he had been feeling.

Luke sighed softly and shook his head gently, then he leaned up toward Volcan and took him into a soft kiss, placing both his paws on the Blaziken's face to hold him there. Volcan tensed as he felt Luke's lips meet his, further breaking the disbelief he felt, and knowing without a doubt that this was indeed his husband before him. Volcan threw his arms around Luke, kissing him passionately and hugging him so tightly...

Luke slid his arms around Volcan in return, letting him pick him up as they kissed each other passionately for a long moment before they parted, and Luke rested his chin on Volcan's shoulder as his husband continued to hold him tight.

"It's all gonna be okay, honey..." He kept whispering to him gently. "It's not your fault, and I don't blame you in the slightest about what happened... I'm just glad I didn't lose you to that monster within you..."

Volcan sobbed heavily as he held Luke in his arms, his tears flowing down his beak to soak the back of Luke's neck as he cried. "I'm so sorry, love..." he whispered, despite Luke's assurances. "I'm so... So sorry..."

"It's ok..." Luke kept repeating back to him, patting his back softly in reassurance.

Sash spat on the ground next to him, disgusted at the sight. "...Pathetic..." He muttered weakly. "You really are... nothing more than a weak-willed fool... if that's all it took to bring you back..." he jabbed at Volcan, then glanced hatefully at Caulin. "You and the boy... neither of you deserve to be called warriors."

Volcan would have turned to glower at Sash, and retorted strongly, but Serena beat him to it. The Vaporeon's back bristled, her fins becoming ridged as she turned on Sash, breathing in deeply and expelling a powerful Hydro Pump so large that her body swelled before she expelled the water. Sash was pressed into the wall by the water stream, sputtering and coughing as the force of the water repeatedly pounded into him, slamming him against the wall again and again. Serena did not stop until he had ceased moving, slipping into unconsciousness with his eyes rolled back into his head.

"_You_have made Volcan suffer enough, you heartless son of-!" she stopped, all rage vanishing from her face as she seemed to come back to herself. She blinked, and slowly turned to look at the others.

All of them - even Hageshi - were looking at her as if she had grown a second head, having never seen that side of her before.

"...D-Did I do that?" she asked, meekly.

"...Damn. Never knew you had it in you," Caulin remarked in surprise. "And I thought Momma Bird was scary when she's pissed."

"Hell hath no fury like a woman's scorn," Hageshi added, raising an eye ridge in a show that he was impressed.

Volcan lifted his hand to rub his eyes, pushing away the tears before he sucked in a long, calming breath and finally turned to Hageshi. "...Tell us you found something," he said, his voice weak and raspy, "Do you know where Calhoun has gone?"

Hageshi glanced at Volcan, then he stepped forward and pulled something out of his cloak; a rolled-up piece of paper tied up in a string. "See for yourself," he answered.

Volcan gingerly took the piece of paper, uncoiling the string from it before he unrolled the letter to read the contents. He studied it carefully, before turning it over to look at the back, only to scowl.

"Well, this confirms Calhoun has found the last Nexus, and he's heading there now," said Volcan, "But the map this letter mentions isn't here; Tory must have taken it..."

"Then... We don't know where the last Nexus is?" Serena asked, worriedly.

In response, Volcan lowered his arm, still clutching the letter as he slowly turned his head to look at Sash, still lying unconscious against the wall. "..._One_of us does," he said, a sour note in his voice.

Luke also glanced at Sash with an angry glare of his own. "...I get the feeling Romulus is going to enjoy prying the information out of him," he added with as much venom in his tone as Volcan.

"We'll need something to restrain him with in case he regains consciousness," Hageshi stated.

"I saw a length of Siphon Chain in the Trident," said Volcan, his voice neutral and devoid of all emotion, "I'll... I'll get it. The rest of you, keep an eye on him; make sure he doesn't try to crawl away. He shouldn't be able to teleport in his current condition. Just be sure not to let your guard down around him..."

"No argument here, Uncle," Caulin answered, looking at the unconscious Gallade spitefully.

Any of the others could have easily retrieved the Siphon Chain; Volcan wanted it as an excuse to get away from Sash, and was sure they all knew it, but decided to humour him so that he had time to clear his head. Luke was of course hesitant to leave Volcan alone, but decided to give him his space until he could get his head back on straight.

Before too long, Volcan returned with the chain; they tied Sash up with it and used rope to secure his legs before they carried him back to the ship. Volcan dropped the Gallade unceremoniously in the single holding area aboard the ship, located at the bow; it was a tiny space, with bars to keep a single captive confined, just in sight of the kitchen but far away from any kitchen utensils he could use to mount his escape.

In the aftermath of the rescue of Keldeo, plus Volcan's destructive battle with Sash, the rest of the Crusade's soldiers fled from the fortress and disappeared out into the desert. Knowing that pursuing them would be futile - not to mention having nowhere to keep them even if they caught any of them, they left the now abandoned fortress behind to begin their voyage back to Gladiator City.

As Volcan took the helm of the Trident, Luke spoke with the boys and Serena about how the rest of the rescue of Keldeo had proceeded. The older Lucario was floored to find out that not only had Keldeo been another Shadow Pokémon, but Caulin - despite having no experience doing so, had managed to extract the Shadow curse from the Sword Protege and destroy it, without being taken over himself...

"I... Don't know whether to be upset, concerned, or amazed," Luke began after Caulin finished his explanation, "What you did was extremely reckless, but at the same time you managed to pull it off on your first try without being affected yourself."

Caulin shrugged. "I couldn't let him stay like that, and we thought you were... You know. I couldn't sense you anywhere, and we couldn't take Keldeo back to Gladiator City like that. It seemed like the only thing to do in the heat of the moment."

"Either way... Well done, Caulin," said Jora, "From the sounds of things, Calhoun left a dormant seed of the Shadow Curse within Keldeo in order to use him to spring a trap, just like he tried to do with me..." She shuddered at that, "I dread to think of what would have happened if we'd taken him back to the city, without ever knowing that he was infected. We may be fortunate Calhoun did not wait to unleash it, or maybe acted prematurely in his desperation."

"Damn that Calhoun..." Luke growled. "There really is no limit as to how low he'd sink to get what he wants..."

A short silence fell over the group for a moment, until Serena broke it by asking. "So... What are we going to do with Sash?" she asked, "He's never going to tell us willingly how to find the last Nexus... I don't want to resort to forcing him to talk."

"We won't have to," Volcan called from his place at the helm, apparently catching the conversation over the motor of the Trident. He was still speaking with little emotion in his voice, still lost in his own thoughts but maintaining awareness of the ongoing conversation.

"I have a different plan in mind... One that shouldn't lead to any bodily harm to Sash..." As much as the Blaziken likely would not have opposed such a thing...

"What're you planning, Uncle Volcan?" Caulin asked both out of curiosity and concern.

Hageshi seemed to catch on to what Volcan meant. "You plan to use the prisoner to read his mind," he stated.

"Something like that, yes," replied Volcan.

"Seji can do that?" Jora asked.

"He's done it before," explained Volcan, "when he probed Fisher's mind back on the South Islands, and found out through him about the location of the southern Nexus," he looked over his shoulder, at the Zeraora seated next to Caulin, "The same place where we met Koa; Kage's team had stumbled upon the island where the Nexus was while trying to find the Crusade's base, and Fisher's knowledge of him led them back to it."

"...Would Seji even be up for that though?" Luke asked. "Sash is his apprentice. He might have doubts about probing into his mind due to lingering loyalties to the Crusade."

"It's all I can think of," Volcan admitted, letting reluctance seep into his voice, "If he refuses to do it... Then we're out of options."

"He better do it..." Hageshi coldly spoke. "We've no time for pleasantries at this point. We've wasted enough time as it is with this endeavour."

"It's not like it was a waste, Hageshi," said Serena, "We succeeded in rescuing Keldeo. I'm sure now the Swords of Justice will be willing to help _us_when we find the Nexus."

"If they can," Volcan reminded, "Recovering from that curse seems to take a while depending on the Pokémon affected. Still, if they're able to help us, that gives us some additional muscle for the final battle - I'm certainly not going to say no to that."

At the hearing of his name, Keldeo began to stir. He was placed in one of the bucket seats, which thankfully bent back like a recliner; they did not want him down in the bunks, so close to Sash. His eyes fluttered open as the conversation continued, his eyes slowly opened, and his ears - hidden in his mane of red hair, flicked as he listened to the voices. He realized he didn't recognize any of them - except for one... One of them sounded very familiar to him.

Slowly, he sat up - nearly falling out of the reclined bucket seat as he did and lifted his head to stare with bleary eyes at the group gathered in front of him. "H-Hello?" he asked, weakly.

The conversation stopped, and suddenly everyone turned to look his way upon hearing him speak. Caulin smiled when he saw Keldeo was stirring, quickly trotting over to the young Protégé.

"Hey there." He began, giving Keldeo a quick check over before speaking again. "How ya holding up?"

"I... Feel tired," he replied, his eyes half-lidded even as he raised his head to look at Caulin. "Your voice... It sounds so familiar. Have we met before?"

"I'm the guy that pulled the Shadow Curse out of you," Caulin answered, still smiling at Keldeo. "My name's Caulin."

Keldeo's face seemed to light up at that. "That was... You?" he asked, "You saved me?"

"Yup yup, but I can't take all the credit," Caulin said, gesturing to Koa. "He helped me keep you held down while I pulled the curse outta you."

Keldeo looked between Caulin and Koa, taking in what the former was telling him and feeling more at ease when the Zeraora smiled and gave a rather innocent tilt of their head. Keldeo, in return, smiled as well and nodded his head.

"I owe both of you a debt," he said, "I... I cannot remember much about what happened; I was at a watering hole, near our homestead, and when I stopped to get a drink, something hit me from behind... All I remember after that is floating in darkness. I tried calling out for my teachers-"

His head jerked up, suddenly alarmed. "Cobalion! Virizion and Terrakion; do you know where they are - are they okay?!" he demanded, suddenly panicked, and trying to scramble out of the seat, though he had already been secured to it by the seatbelt. His hind legs kicked out, slamming into the seat in front of him, which was thankfully vacant or else its occupant would have been catapulted across the cabin.

"Whoa whoa easy, Keldeo," Caulin exclaimed, gently holding him against the seat.

"They're recovering, but they'll be okay," Luke chimed in, stepping over to Keldeo. "They were all afflicted with the Shadow Curse just like you, but my mother, my friend's teammate and I managed to free them. They're resting at Gladiator City as we speak."

Keldeo looked at Luke, aghast. "Gl-Gladiator City? But... How'd they get all the way down there? That is days away..." He then looked out the back door of the boat, seeing the open sea beyond them, with occasional glimpses of the coast of the continent. "Wait... Where are we now?"

"It is a very long story, Keldeo," said Serena, coming over to stand beside the equine Pokémon. "We'll explain everything. But in the meantime, would you allow me to examine you for any injuries? I am a physician; Serena of Team Phalanx, serving as their scout and medic."

Keldeo stared at Serena for a moment and then looked at Caulin, who gave an affirming nod. With that, Caulin removed Keldeo's seatbelt and helped him out of the chair to lie on the floor to make it easier for Serena to check him. He then laid his head down on the boards shut his eyes to rest more as Serena began to examine him, her paws gently pressing into his joints and sides for any signs of reaction from him; whenever he winced, she would ask him questions, and occasionally applied her healing waters to him to ease whatever discomfort he was experiencing.

Luke came to stand beside Volcan, who was staying focused on his driving. Sensing that the Lucario wanted to talk, Volcan chose to begin. "Sounds like Keldeo's okay?" he asked.

"He's awake and confused, but he's going to be alright," Luke answered, gently leaning against Volcan as he steered the boat down the canal. "What about you, though...? Are you ok?"

Volcan breathed in sharply through his nostrils, before breathing out slowly again. "...I don't know," he replied, "What happened to me back there... When I thought I'd lost you... It came from somewhere deep within me; a side of me I didn't even know existed before, but I've been feeling it more and more lately... I don't think it's this 'warrior's instinct' Torolf mentioned - it's something much darker... And looking back on it now, I'm terrified. I'm back to my old self now but..."

He took a hand from the ship's wheel, looking at it, still seeing the blood from the beating he'd given Sash even though he'd long since washed his hands; he knew in his mind that the blood was not really there, but he could still feel it. "...I don't know what I became back there, or if I'm back to normal now... What if something like that happens again?"

"It won't happen again, because I'm right here," Luke said as he lifted a paw and gently grasped Volcan's hand. "You lost yourself because you believed I was dead... As long as I'm still around, I promise I won't let you lose yourself again..."

Volcan frowned at that, and Luke could tell that his husband was not sure he believed that. "Thinking I lost you brought it out... But it was already there. We saw it before, when I saw Seji back in Gladiator City. I completely lost control..."

"If it starts to bubble back to the surface, I'll be there to push it down," Luke firmly stated, touching Volcan's chest. "What kind of husband would I be if I didn't look out for my one true love?"

Volcan lowered his hand back to the wheel, and after a hesitant moment, he put his arm around Luke, pulling him closer to him. Luke noticed another tear drop from his husband's eye as he gently stroked Luke's back, hesitant to let go.

"When I thought I'd knocked you off that balcony... When I thought it was _my_fault, I..." he choked. "It broke me... It was even worse than back when I saw Arc Island. The guilt, the grief, the sense of failure - it all came back, stronger than ever... And it broke me."

Luke responded by leaning up and giving Volcan a soft kiss on his cheek, then stroked his chest idly as he stared up at him. "It wasn't your fault. Sash played dirty and you were an unfortunate victim to his foul play... I don't blame you one bit for what happened," he said reassuringly. "I know what happened broke you... But we can fix it together."

Volcan held Luke a little tighter. "I hope so..." he said, "What I became after that happened... I don't want you, or Ignus, or anyone else, to ever see that side of me again..."

"You make yourself sound like Eberon," Luke remarked. "You aren't... You're far better than he is... Was," he added as he gripped his hand in his paws. "You're Volcan of Team Phalanx... You're the father of our son... And you're my husband."

"And that's all I want to be," said Volcan, still holding Luke tightly as he steered the boat. The Blaziken was tearing up inside, afraid of his own mind at that moment, fearing what he could become if he were ever pushed too far again. Luke continued to hold Volcan just as tightly in both paws, pressing his face into his chest and nuzzling him to help him stay calm. Deep down, Luke was somewhat scared too... He knew that were he in Volcan's position, there was no telling the damage he'd do, or the amount of anger he'd feel for being forced into the same situation. Luke already knew that if he lost Volcan now... His heart would never heal.

That thought made him cling all the tighter to his husband, and stay by his side as they sailed back to Gladiator City...

The remainder of the voyage was largely spent in silence as the Trident made its return to Gladiator City. Nobody has much to say, aside from their captive in the lower hold, who was constantly trying to goad them. They did their best to ignore him, despite his attempts; a few times he almost got under their skin, with his words ranging from insults to threats, to claims that they were doomed to fail in their quest to stop Calhoun. It got to the point that they slammed the hatch shut to dull his voice, and no one wanted to go down into the lower decks after that...

Finally, they returned to the city, and Volcan guided the Trident to its dock, where Hageshi cast the line to the dockworkers. They caught it, pulling the boat closer before tying it to the wharf, and then laid the plank across from the boardwalk to the ship's deck to let the passengers disembark. Caulin crossed first, followed by Keldeo; though the equine Pokémon was walking again he was still unsteady on his hooves, and Caulin stood ready to catch him in case he fell.

One after the other, the rest of the group stepped off the boat. Volcan was the last to step off and took a long look at the Trident, his hands lifting to rest on his hips as he took it in, smiling fondly.

"Damn fine boat," he said, silently missing his own boat and promising that the next time he got one, he wanted it to be like the Trident; sleek, and fast but spacious enough for his whole team.

He rejoined the others, following Luke and Koa as they escorted the bound Sash along the docks. Several guardsmen came to join them and led them toward the Colosseum. There, they were taken down to the cells, once the home of indebted Gladiators who were forced to live in the arena while trying to pay off their debts, but now they sat empty.

One of the guards opened a cell, and two others fitted Sash with a collar like the one Seji wore upstairs, locking access to his powers. As soon as the rope and chains were off, they roughly pushed him into the cell, giving him no chance to strike at them with his now freed hands; even if he couldn't call upon his psychic powers anymore, his arm blades were just as sharp as ever. Fortunately, by the time he turned around, they had already slammed and locked the door.

Sash finally became silent then, standing with his arms crossed as the guards stormed away, passing Luke and Volcan by the stairs. Sash cast one final glare at them before they turned away and started heading back up to the main level.

"We better go debrief with Romulus," said Volcan, "Do you suppose he's back on his feet by now?"

"I hope so. We're going to need him for the battle that's coming." Luke replied with a heavy sigh. "He's not going to like the news we bring him though..."

"No... No, he's not," agreed Volcan, "Can you see where he is; is he up in his office?"

Luke closed his eyes and tuned into his aura sense, starting his search in Romulus' office for any sign of the Houndoom. "C'mon, please be on your feet again..." he pleaded softly.

Relief flooded him as he found the Houndoom's familiar aura present in the room. Also present was another Aura he knew well, standing just across from the Houndoom; it was the life energy of his mother, Luminara. But also outside the office were two others that looked familiar - although not as much as the first two to identify right away. Either way, his search confirmed that Romulus was back in his office again, and that was a good sign if he was well enough to get back to work - and well enough to convince Luke's mother that he was.

"He's in his office," Luke stated, breathing a sigh of relief afterward. "He must be well enough to stand on his own, or at least with help - it looks like my mother's with him again, so she's probably keeping an eye on him."

"Then that's where we're going," said Volcan.

Making their way up the stairs, ascending the next two floors, the two came to Romulus' office. But outside of it, they ran into a pair of familiar faces; Minato and Lashanne were standing in the hall, talking. It was Minato who first noticed the two coming up the stairs, pointing them out to Lashanne before he rushed past her, heading to greet them even as she turned to see them herself.

"Look who's back." Minato remarked as they regrouped with each other. "How'd the recon go?"

"Ended up being a lot more than recon; we'll fill you guys in," said Volcan, managing to keep his tone level despite the traumatic events at the fortress.

Behind Minato, Lashanne arched an eyebrow, clearly not buying Volcan's act; as always, she saw right through him, but the pleading look from Luke prompted her not to draw attention to it. Changing the subject before it started, she asked, "Did you guys find Keldeo?"

"We sure did," Volcan replied, "and, you both ought to be very proud. Caulin really came through out there."

"Really? What happened?" Minato asked.

"Well, he managed to take down Keldeo by himself; turns out Calhoun had cursed him, but that's not even the craziest part." Luke answered. "He performed a cleansing all on his own and succeeded on his first try!"

"Wait he did what??" Minato exclaimed, eyes wide in shock.

Lashanne's surprise was brief, overwhelmed promptly by her anger. "You let him try that?!" she demanded, taking a threatening step toward the two. "He just evolved!"

"Whoa, whoa, cool down, alright?" Volcan put up his hands, "They were kind of left with no choice - let us explain."

When Lashanne made no move to continue advancing toward him - though the scowl never left her face, he began. "After we sprung Keldeo, Sash attacked; Luke and I stayed to deal with him but while we were doing that, Keldeo... Well, woke up, and the curse drove him to attack Caulin and Koa. After they subdued him, Luke was..." he grimaced, "He wasn't available... So, Caulin took it upon himself to attempt it, and he succeeded."

Minato looked between Luke and Volcan, shock slowly ebbing away as he calmed down. Then he started to shake his head and chuckle softly, unable to hide his pride in his son.

"Hehehe... That's my boy," he muttered softly, then lowered his gaze for a moment to recollect himself before he spoke. "Well, in any case, you guys saved Keldeo, and I take it you beat Sash. Anything else to report?" he asked.

"Well..." Luke looked off to the side. "Not exactly... Hageshi found a letter detailing directions about the last Nexus, but that's it... no location, no map... Just a name of a landmark."

"Where?" Lashanne asked.

"Somewhere within the Stone Labyrinth," replied Volcan.

Lashanne's expression flattened. "You're kidding..." she stated, looking between the two. When neither continued, she let out a groan. "Well damn it! Then we're screwed... We could search that place for weeks before we find anything!"

"There... Might be another solution," began Volcan, "Though, this part you're going to hate... About Sash? He's... Well, he's down in the cells. We brought him back."

That made Lashanne's face pale slightly, her ears drooping as her arms fell flat to her sides, a noticeable twitch in her left eye. "That lunatic is here?" she asked, pointing down at her feet, "_Right_below us?"

"Yes."

"Why?" Minato demanded. "Why did you bring him back with you?"

"Because he may be the only one who can tell us how to find the Nexus," Luke quickly answered. "And we think Seji can help in reading his mind and making him tell us where it is."

Minato and Lashanne shared a look, their faces unreadable, and then Lashanne spoke again. "You really trust him to help us?" Lashanne asked.

"His intel on where to find the fortress was solid," said Volcan.

"No, I mean, Sash is his protégé - his student," Lashanne went on, "You're going to ask him to rip into Sash's mind to help us find the last Nexus? Not to mention, Sash is a Psychic-type too; he'll fight back... What if Seji can't get the intel we need?"

Volcan, having already run out of patience, gave Lashanne a hard look. "Lashanne, if you have a better suggestion, even an unlikely one, please, share it. At this point, I'm making shit up as I go here... We're out of options, we're out of time, and if Calhoun frees Giratina... We're just out. So, if you have an alternative plan... Go right ahead."

Lashanne could hear the desperate tone of Volcan's voice, and the equally pleading look behind his eyes despite his stern face. He wanted her to give her an alternate idea because even he did not like this plan he had hatched now. Everything was coming down to just one man's willingness to cooperate... All it would take was Seji saying 'no', and they would be finished...

She let out a long sigh, her head falling back as she groaned. "You got me over a box, Volcan," she said, "I don't have another idea..."

"...Is it just me, or does Volcan seem even more tense than when you guys left?" Minato whispered to Luke.

"I'll explain later. Right now, we have more important matters to look into," Luke whispered back.

"I guess it's time we go talk to Romulus," the Blaziken stated, "We'll need his permission to get to Seji, and go from there... Let's go see him."

With that, Volcan led the way over to the office of Team Phobia's captain. As they approached his office, they found the door was partially open, and they could see the shadows of movement inside. Volcan announced them by calling out the Houndoom's name as he approached the door, pushing it open to step in.

"Romulus, we're ba-aaaah?!" Volcan trailed off as his beak fell open, aghast at what he saw.

Romulus was seated in his chair as usual... But he was not alone in it; pressed in right with him was Luminara, and at the moment Volcan had opened the door, they had all seen - just in time, the older Lucario's lips pressed to the muzzle of the Houndoom, in a deep, passionate kiss. The two looked up in alarm as the four came in, both sides staring wide-eyed at the other.

"...Well, this is awkward," Romulus remarked dryly.

"Erm..." Luminara blinked a few times before she managed a sheepish smile at them. "...Surprise...?"

Then, beside him, Volcan heard Luke drop to the floor, making Minato jump when the younger Lucario fell past him in a dead faint. Hearing Luke fall and seeing his comatose form out of the corner of his eye, Volcan whirled around and dropped to his knees beside his husband.

"Luke?! Luke, speak to me; are you okay?!" the Blaziken shouted, panicked.

"You've got to be kidding me," Lashanne muttered, running a paw down her face. "Of all the shit we've been through," she gestured at Luke with both paws, "that was the one that was too much for him?!"