Chapter Nine

##

Upon emerging from the magnagate, Zira immediately scanned her surroundings. She and her companions stood in the middle of a rocky clearing surrounded by a forest on three sides with the forth side seemingly being the edge of a cliff. From what she could see beyond the cliff, they were quite high up, easily 2,000 meters if not significantly more. Athena was waiting nearby a few meters away from the magnagate's perimeter. Zira walked toward Athena along with her teammates.

"There was no dungeon," Lance noted.

"Well, at the risk of sounding full of myself," Athena said, "I'm quite skilled at the creation of entercards."

"That's master-level skill right there," Lance said. "Bypassing the dungeon isn't an easy task from what I've heard."

"You've heard correctly," Athena said. "It took me the better part of 10 years before I could finally pull it off consistently."

While Zira was interested in the conversation, she was even more curious about their location. Were they even in Andara anymore? After watching the magnagate collapse, Zira walked over to the edge of the cliff to get a better look. She dropped down to her hands and knees and peered over the edge. To her shock and amazement, there appeared to be nothing beneath the ground upon which they stood.

"Hey guys, come check this out!" Zira said. "I think we're on a floating island!"

Athena smiled. "Indeed, we are."

"Kaiser certainly had a fascination with places that are hard for most Pokémon to get to," Cyril said while he and the others walked toward Zira.

"For good reason," Athena said.

Lance stopped a few meters from the edge. "Oh gods," he said, stepping back. Lance had never been comfortable with heights, but this was the first time that Zira had seen him truly terrified. To be fair, however, they'd never been this high above the ground.

Cyril grinned at Lance before looking over the edge himself. "Wow, that's incredible. Talon, come check this out!"

"Naw, I'm good," Talon said. "I'm gonna stay back here with Lance."

"Talon hates heights too," Cyril remarked to Zira.

Zira smiled at Cyril before returning her gaze to the ground far beneath them. She positioned herself as closed to the edge as she dared, admiring the view. The engineer in her wondered how the island could possibly float, but she was mostly just in awe.

"Zira, you're awfully close to the edge," Lance nervously stated.

"I'm all right," Zira said, standing up. Lance's concern was understandable, though. She'd never liked heights up to this point. She should be terrified, and yet here she stood, totally without fear. Zira turned her gaze up to the sky. She longed to be able to touch it, to gracefully soar among the clouds.

Zira winced as the strange surge from earlier had suddenly returned. The feeling was much stronger this time, and it wasn't going away. Zira took several steps back from the edge of the island as a precaution in the event that she passed out. She didn't know what was happening to her, but she didn't wish to fall to her death if she were to faint. Her heart was pounding in her chest, and she was breathing quickly. The surge was growing in intensity, and Zira began to fear for her life.

"Uh, guys, something's happening to me," Zira said. All eyes turned toward her, but before anyone could say a word, Zira's body began to glow a bright bluish-white. Her fears immediately subsided as she realized what was happening to her. Evolution! She was evolving!

"Oh, wow!" Cyril exclaimed.

"Indeed," Lance said.

Zira found herself unable to move or speak while the evolutionary process was running its course. A wave of euphoria washed over her as her Charmeleon body began to change form. It was a curious sensation. She'd always wondered what it felt like for a Pokémon to evolve, and now she was getting to experience it first-hand. There was no pain or discomfort even as she grew additional horns and limbs. If she had to choose a word for what she was feeling at that moment, it would be bliss.

After several seconds had passed, the bluish-white light vanished, and Zira could move again. She immediately performed a cursory inspection of her new body. She had retained her bright white belly from her Charmeleon phase, but it didn't clash as much with her new orange skin than with her previous crimson skin. Her unusual coloration had been a source of curious looks from those who'd never seen her before. Her new arms had excellent reach, which would serve her well in combat, and her long legs meant that she would be speedy on the ground. Like her Charmeleon body before, her new Charizard body seemed to be optimized for maximum speed and agility.

And then there were her impressive new wings, a pair of limbs that she'd always wanted since becoming a Pokémon. Zira spread her wings to get a better look at them. Her wingspan was incredible! With wings such as these, she'd be just as capable in the air as she would on the ground. She probably couldn't match Shar's agility in the air--his compact wings gave him excellent maneuverability--but she could certainly outrun the Flygon.

"And now we have two strange evolutions," Lance said.

"Huh?" Zira said. She folded her wings as she faced Lance. "What do you mean?"

"Well, you look like a Mega Charizard Y," Lance replied, "but you're missing the wings on the arms and the spike at the base of the tail."

"You're missing the ridges on the tail as well," Cyril said. "Now that I think about it, you look just like The Unknown Charizard from Dakota City," Cyril said.

"Yeah, she does," Lance said.

"You guys aren't yanking my tail, are you?" Zira asked, moving her hands to the back of her head. She could feel the two horns... and a longer third horn in the center. "Oh."

"Yeah," Lance said. "I wonder if there's a connection between you, Cyril, Dakota, and The Unknown Charizard."

"The same thought had just crossed my mind," Athena said.

Zira looked down at the ground. What should've been a happy moment suddenly felt like something else. Why did this happen? Why did she and Cyril evolve into partial mega forms? A cloud of uncertainty had descended upon her. Her new form was going to attract a lot of attention just as Cyril's form did. What would other Pokémon think of her? Would she be seen as a freak?

"Well, I for one thinks that she looks stunning," Talon said, smiling warmly at Zira.

"Oh, thank you!" Zira said. Her spirits were buoyed by Talon's nice words.

"Well, unusual evolution or not," Shar said, "you've got to give those new wings a try."

"Now?" Zira asked. This was an odd time for a joyride.

"There's no time like the present," Shar said. He looked as though he could barely contain his excitement. "Come on. Give them a try."

Zira smiled at Shar. The Flygon was positively overflowing with enthusiasm, which bolstered Zira's spirits further. It was no wonder why Lance loved him so much. As much as she wanted to fly, however, they had somewhere to be. Zira looked at Athena, who smiled at her in return.

"Go on," Athena said. "We can wait for a bit."

Zira smiled brightly as she turned toward the edge. This was something that she'd been looking forward to for months. Zira took a deep breath, and then she sprinted toward the cliff. She spread her wings as she neared the edge, her heart pounding with excitement. Zira couldn't keep herself from smiling especially with her friends cheering her on. She leapt off of the cliff, and with a flap of her hefty wings, she soared into the air.

This is like a dream come true, Zira thought, feeling the air beneath her wings for the first time. She flapped several more times to gain more altitude, still smiling as she did so. This was exhilarating! Oh, how she'd long for the gift of flight! This experience was everything that she'd hoped it would be. Zira looked down at the ground far beneath her, the sight filling her heart with joy. She wanted to stay up here forever, but she and her friends had work to do. Zira banked to the left, performing a 180° turn. She'd planned on landing so that they could get on with their task, but as Zira drew closer to the island, she realized that she just wasn't ready to stop yet. She wanted to keep flying!

Perhaps it wouldn't hurt to fly a little bit longer, Zira thought. She waved to her friends as she passed over them, a gesture which they enthusiastically returned. Over the forest now, Zira flapped her wings to gain even more altitude, ensuring that she would clear any trees in her path. It would be quite embarrassing--not to mention deadly--to crash into a tree on her first flight. At her present altitude, she was getting a good look at the island. While it was mostly covered in trees, there were some rocky areas scattered about, and there was a beautiful lake in the center. This island seemed like a perfect vacation spot for a flying Pokémon such as herself.

A Pokémon such as myself, Zira thought. It had only been three months since she'd been transformed into a Pokémon, but she was already beginning to refer to herself as one rather than Human. After a rocky first week on the Pokémon world, she'd made the decision to commit fully to living as a Pokémon, assimilating herself into their culture and adopting their customs. It had initially been a means of survival in a strange land, but she was just now beginning to realize that she preferred her new life to the life that she had--what she could remember of that old life, at least. There were still a few things that she wasn't totally comfortable with yet. She still wasn't sure if she'd ever get used to having her nether regions exposed for all to see, but perhaps she just needed more time. All things considered, she'd adapted to her new life quite well.

Passing over the other side of the island, Zira went into a steep dive, angling her wings back to streamline her body. She grinned wildly as she accelerated, which turned into laughter as she picked up speed. Diving past the cliff, Zira performed a 180° roll, then she spread her wings and flicked her tail upward, taking her beneath the island where she encountered an incredible sight.

Oh wow! Waterfalls! Zira hadn't expected to see waterfalls. There were quite a number of them scattered along the bottom of the island, which brought some natural beauty to the otherwise bland scene. Still decelerating from her dive, Zira glided between two of the waterfalls, covering her in mist. Though the mist chilled her considerably, Zira was having so much fun that she didn't care.

It was then that Zira spotted movement out of the corner of her right eye. Turning her head, she saw that Shar was flying beside her with a smile plastered on his face. The Flygon suddenly performed a barrel roll over her, coming to fly along her left side.

"Welcome to the club!" Shar shouted.

Zira smiled. "Thanks!" she shouted back.

Reaching the point where the flight began, Zira and Shar climbed toward the cliff where their friends were waiting. For Zira, this would be an event that she would remember for the rest of her life. Her first flight! What a joyous event! Upon rising over the cliff, Zira executed a gentle landing amidst her friends, who gathered around her.

"Zira, I'm so happy for you," Cyril said, giving Zira a hug.

"Same," Lance said, smiling warmly.

"You guys..." Zira said, hugging Cyril in return. "You're going to make me cry."

"Congratulations, Zira," Athena said. "The gift of flight is liberating beyond belief. The whole world is open to you now."

"I'd like to offer my congratulations as well," Talon said. "It's always nice to see a Pokémon newly-capable of flight take to the air for the first time. To be honest, I'm kind of envious."

"Ah, it's no big deal, Talon," Lance said.

"Pfft," Talon uttered. "Says the Golduck who can at least make himself float in the air."

Zira turned her head toward Lance. "How come I've never seen you float?"

"It takes a lot of effort," Lance said. "Besides, I don't like to show off."

"Well now," Athena said, "I believe it's time to return to the task at hand."

"Right," Zira said. It was time to get back to work. "So, where is this research lab?"

"It's somewhere deep in the forest," Athena replied. "Well, _jungle_would be a better word. It gets quite dense and the dungeon entrance can't be seen from the sky, so I'm afraid that we're going to have to search for it."

Cyril sighed. "Well, let's get started then. Um..." Cyril paused for a moment as he glanced at Zira. "We should split into groups to search the forest more effectively. I'll go with Zira. The rest of you go with Athena."

"Well, fancy that," Talon said. "I've always wanted to chat with a legendary."

"Please..." Athena said, appearing somewhat embarrassed. "I'm no more important than any other Pokémon."

Zira found it interesting that Athena appeared to be uncomfortable with being addressed as a legendary. She made a mental note to ask about it another time when they were alone. For now, they had to get on with the mission at hand. Kaiser's lab awaited.

"Wait a second," Lance said. "Why are we splitting up into teams of four and two?"

"It's okay, Lance," Talon said. "Those two have some things to discuss."

Zira had a bad feeling about this. She glanced at Cyril, who looked extremely uncomfortable. Whatever Talon had told him earlier was clearly still affecting him, and she was about to find out what it was. Zira had already made some predictions.

"Ah..." Lance said, rubbing the bottom of his beak. He'd likely already made some predictions of his own. "Well, I guess we'd better get moving."

"Wait," Zira said, reaching down toward her travel bag, which was currently lying on the ground. The strap had broken during the evolutionary process when her wings formed. She reached into her bag, retrieving her rescue team badge. "Take my badge," she said, tossing it to Lance.

"Excellent thinking," Lance said. "At least now we can keep in touch."

While Lance's group headed off into the forest, Zira watched with trepidation. She looked at Cyril, whose eyes were firmly affixed on the departing group. His expression was that of a deeply trouble Pokémon. A knot formed in Zira's stomach as she turned her attention back toward the others. Lance looked back briefly before disappearing into the forest. Zira and Cyril were alone now.

"Let's go," Cyril quietly said. "We'll talk along the way."

Zira sighed heavily as she and Cyril walked into the forest. A warm, gentle breeze rustled through the trees, and the sounds of birds and insects permeated the air. It was a beautiful scene. However, the natural beauty did little to offset the tension.

"Zira," Cyril said, finally looking at her, "you know that I like you, don't you?"

"Well, you would not have kissed me if you didn't," Zira replied. "What's on your mind?"

"I messed up," Cyril said. "Do you recall our conversation about Rika, my ex-girlfriend?"

"Yeah," Zira replied.

"I, uh... I left something out," Cyril said. "The night before she broke up with me, Rika took me to the beach where, um... we had sex."

"That's not so unusual," Zira said. "That kind of thing happens all the time."

"Yeah," Cyril said. "But what I didn't realize at the time was that she was in her fertility cycle. And about two months ago, she laid an egg."

"Oh," Zira said, though she wasn't totally surprised. That had been one of her predictions.

"Yeah," Cyril said. "That's what Talon came to talk to me about. Zira, she hasn't been with any other guys. I'm the only one who can be the father."

Zira didn't know what to say. This was quite the turn of events, and she had a feeling where this was going. Granted, she hadn't been seeking a relationship before they kissed on the night of the attack, that kiss had turned her around to the idea. Was a relationship still possible?

"I'm sorry, Zira," Cyril said. "I though that chapter of my life was closed. I never meant to mislead or hurt you."

"I know," Zira said. "What do you plan to do now?"

"Well, I need to talk to Rika," Cyril said. "I need to patch things up with her. That egg will hatch in about another month, and I really should be part of the child's life." He hesitated for a moment. "That means... you and I..."

"I understand," Zira said with a sense of finality. Cyril had made his decision, and she didn't want to complicate matters for Cyril further than they already were.

"You're all right with this?" Cyril asked.

"I'd be lying if I said that I was happy about it," Zira said, "but I feel that you're making the best decision."

"I'm so sorry," Cyril said. "If there wasn't a child involved..." His voice faltered as he suddenly looked down at the ground. After a moment, he looked at Zira once more. "I'm sorry."

Zira sighed as she looked away from Cyril. "Don't worry about it."

"I just hope that this doesn't ruin our friendship," Cyril said. "You, Lance, and Talon mean so much to me. I'll make it up to you somehow. I promise."

He's trying so hard to make things right, Zira thought. There was no doubt in her mind that Cyril never intended to deceive her, and she wished him well despite her unhappiness with the situation. This whole mess had to be tearing Cyril apart inside. She wasn't going to walk away from him, especially at a time when he really needed friends. That being said, there was one thing that she still wasn't clear on.

"So, let me get this straight," Zira said, recalling the moment that she and Cyril kissed on the night of the attack. "You and Rika skipped the kissing part and jumped right into having sex?"

The edges of Cyril's mouth curled into the faintest of smiles. "I guess that should've been a red flag that something wasn't right."

"Well, as you deal with this turn of events that life has thrown at you," Zira said, "I want you to know that you can always talk to me if you need a friend."

"Thanks, Zira," Cyril said, his eyes beginning to water. "I honestly don't know what I would do without all of you. You've all..." Cyril suddenly stopped dead in his tracks as he began to look around.

Zira wondered what had Cyril so spooked, but just as she was about to ask, she began to feel the ground beneath her feet vibrate in pulses. As the pulses grew stronger, she began to hear what sounded like heavy foot steps along with the sound of trees and other plant life being disturbed. Something quite large was approaching. Before she could lay eyes on it, Cyril suddenly grabbed her arm and pulled her down behind a nearby shrub.

A droid of some kind emerged from the deep forest, swatting at anything that happened to be in its way with a pair of arms that ended with cannons instead of hands. The body had a roughly trapezoidal shape in a horizontal configuration, and it stood upon a pair of legs ending with feet featuring three digits, two in front, one in back. Atop the body, there was a third cannon of a different type, a projectile weapon by the looks of it. The droid was somewhere between four and five meters tall, about the size of a Lugia. Rather curiously, the droid appeared to be wearing scarves on both of its arms. As it passed by, Zira noticed something printed on the side of the body, an alphanumerical identification along with the words Snowpoint Research Facility.

"Snowpoint Research Facility..." Zira quietly said. Those words jogged her memory. The facility that she'd worked in... that was its name! And this droid... she'd seen it before. It was one of the security droids that guarded the facility.

"My gods," Cyril said. "It's a mechanical monster. The kind of thing you'd see in a comic book, or--"

"It's a class five combat droid," Zira interrupted.

"What?" Cyril said, turning his head toward her. "You know what this thing is?"

"That's Human technology," Zira said.

"You're sure?" Cyril asked.

"Absolutely," Zira replied. "Except for those scarves on the arms. Do you know what they are?"

"They look like a defense scarf and a zinc band," Cyril replied.

"Will those work on a machine?" Zira asked.

"They work on Magnamites," Cyril replied, "but those are at least Pokémon."

The droid continued along its present course, either not noticing Zira and Cyril or not regarding them as a threat. Curious as Zira was to find out what it was doing here, she was just as happy not to engage with it. Getting shredded by the autocannon or vaporized by the pulse cannons would ruin her day.

"Listen. That thing's extremely dangerous," Zira said. "We should avoid it if at all possible." A feeling of dread suddenly descended upon her as she thought of Lance and the others. "The others... where's Lance's group?"

Cyril hastily pulled his badge from his bag and activated its badge-tracker ability. A single red blip appeared toward the top edge of the crystal, the same direction that the droid was headed in. "Shit! It's headed straight for them!" Engaging the badge's communications ability, he said "Lance! Watch out! There's a mechanical monster headed your way. Zira says it's extremely dangerous!"

"We hear it," Lance replied. "Get back here fast!"

"Stay out of its line of sight!" Zira said.

"We'll try," Lance replied.

The loud sound of an energy weapon discharging could be heard in the distance, followed by an explosion. A plume of smoke could be seen in the direction of Lance's group. The droid had engaged them in combat.

"Oh gods," Cyril said, standing up. "Come on!"

Zira and Cyril bolted through the forest as fast as they could. The sounds of combat could be heard in the distance. There was a hyper beam, followed quickly by another hyper beam, and then what sounded like a draco meteor attack. Lance's team was giving it all they had. Zira hoped that would be enough, but the sound of the pulse cannons discharging again shattered that hope rather quickly. It would seem that the defense scarf and zinc band were effective on the droid after all.

Damn, Zira thought. Those droids were tough even without defensive enhancements. What were they going to do now?

Zira panted as she tried to keep up with Cyril, who was beginning to pull ahead of her. While she was fast for a Mega Charizard Y, or at least a partial one, Zira just couldn't keep up with the partial Mega Sceptile. Cyril was just too fast. Zira ran between a couple of shrubs that were in her way, her wings brushing the two plants as she passed by. Wings! Why was she running when she should be flying? Zira spread her mighty wings and launched herself into the air.

"I'll attack from above!" Zira shouted as she passed over Cyril.

"Be careful!" Cyril shouted back.

No shit, Zira thought. If she got hit by those pulse cannons, there wouldn't be much left of her except for ashes. She didn't have much of a plan at the moment, but she hoped that she could come up with something. Maneuverable as she was, and considering that she did have some knowledge of this droid, she was the best equipped to deal with it. Those cannons, although extremely powerful, had a rather nasty drawback in the form of heat generation, which required a cooldown period after several consecutive shots or a single charged shot. Perhaps she could exploit that somehow.

Something suddenly smacked Zira's left leg, breaking her line of thought. She looked back to get a glimpse of what it was, only to realize that it was just her travel bag fluttering in the breeze. She was still holding it by the end of its broken strap, and it was moving about all over the place. This simply would not do. She was going to have to get herself a new travel bag, something more suitable for a flying Pokémon.

Zira was closing in on the location of the battle, a clearing with columns of smoke rising from the surface. She could already see Shar, who was firing dragon pulses at the droid from the air. The undamaged droid seemed to be ignoring Shar, however, in favor of the others on the ground. It fired its pulse cannons toward the tree line presumably where her friends were taking cover. Curiously, the droid didn't seem to be using its autocannon, which would be more effective against small, unarmored targets. Perhaps it was out of ammunition. Zira hoped that was the case, just as she hoped that her friends were all still okay. From her vantage point, she could clearly see the scarves on the droid's arms. If they were removed, the droid would be much easier to damage.

Let's see what this new body can do, Zira thought. She dove toward the droid and released a couple of flamethrowers in the form of fireballs toward the scarves, exploding upon impact. Zira pulled out of the dive and passed over the droid, looking back to check out her handiwork. The droid didn't seem damaged, however. Undeterred, Zira turned toward the droid for another attack run. Switching to her dragon pulse attack, Zira fired at the scarves again. This, too, had no effect.

"Shit!" Zira said as her strategy fell apart. Those scarves had to be removed, and it was going to have to be done by hand. Zira attempted to circle around the droid so that she could approach from behind, but it was now tracking her. The droid aimed its pulse cannons directly at her, the emitter assembly within the barrels glowing a bright shade of blue.

Oh no, Zira thought. She pulled up sharply with not a moment to spare. The energy pulses came so close to hitting her that she could feel the heat emanating from them. Zira looked down toward her legs to see if she was truly all right. Her legs were fine, but her travel bag had been incinerated, and she was just holding on to what was left of the strap. Zira quickly dropped the strap in horror. That was too close.

This is suicide, Zira thought. It was a wild stroke of luck that she was still alive. The next shot could very well be the end of her. She needed to regroup with the others. Zira signaled to Shar to follow her, and then she flew toward the tree line where the droid had last fired. She was relieved to see that Lance and Talon were still alive. Zira made a hasty landing before them, stumbling as she did so, with Shar landing beside her.

"Where's Athena?" Zira asked.

"She went off on her own to cover more ground," Lance replied. "Where's Cyril?"

"He was headed this way," Zira replied. "He should be here by now."

Lance quickly turn his head to look at the approaching droid. "Damn," he said. "Let's go. We don't stand a chance against this thing."

"It soaks up whatever we throw at it," Talon said as the group started running.

"We need to find Athena," Lance said. "We could certainly use her aeroblast right about now."

"It's worth a try," Zira said. Athena was far more powerful than any of them. Perhaps she could stop the droid. While Zira ran, she looked back at the droid, which was targeting the fleeing group.

"Scatter!" Zira shouted.

Everyone immediately bolted a different direction. A mere moment later, the droid fired its cannons. It was hard to say which of them was being targeted at that moment, but the energy pulses came the closest to hitting Talon. He'd barely managed to avoid the pulses, but the resulting explosions knocked him off of his feet. Talon quickly got back up, but the droid was marching straight toward him. He was in trouble!

"Talon!" Zira shouted as she ran toward the Feraligatr. "Watch out!"

Right at that moment, a solar beam suddenly flashed by Zira, striking the droid in the right shoulder. The droid was undamaged, but it did stop its advance as it turned its attention toward the source of the solar beam. Zira stopped dead in her tracks and looked back, a wave of relief and hope washing over her. Cyril had arrived, and he had Athena with him.

Talon wisely chose this moment to get away from the droid, sprinting toward Zira. "Take it down!"

Athena reared her head back as she powered up her aeroblast attack, then thrusting her head forward, she released her signature move toward the droid. The aeroblast had the appearance of a seriously souped-up hyperbeam, and it was accompanied by a powerful vortex of wind that blew Zira right off of her feet. The powerful attack struck the droid with an explosive fury, the resulting smoke and debris completely obscuring what had become of it.

"Fuck yeah!" Zira jubilantly shouted as she got back onto her feet. Surely, the droid couldn't survive that. However, her celebration turned out to be premature and happiness quickly turned to horror.

The droid had been knocked off of its feet, and the nose of its body was dented and scorched, but it was still functional. It targeted Athena and unleashed a charged burst from both pulse cannons. Athena managed to surround herself with a shield just before she was struck. The resulting explosion sent her flying into a rocky outcrop, where she violently tumbled before coming to rest on her right side.

Zira was mortified at what she'd just witnessed. Athena lay motionless before her, and Zira feared that she might not have survived. Zira was in such a state of shock that she hadn't noticed the droid getting back onto its feet. Talon grabbed her hand and pulled her away from the scene as the group fled. Running for her life once more, Zira looked back at Athena before the fallen Lugia left her line of sight, hoping that she was all right.

"What do we do now?" Talon asked, releasing his grip on Zira's hand.

"We should lure it to the edge of the island and knock it over!" Lance replied. "I think that's our only chance!"

"It's worth a try!" Cyril said. "We know it's not invincible!"

No, but it sure can take a beating, Zira thought. The droid had just taken an aeroblast to the face, and all it suffered was the equivalent of a bloody nose. She wasn't sure how Lance intended to execute his plan of knocking the droid over the edge of the island. Being a Golduck, Lance's psychic abilities weren't nearly powerful enough to toss that much mass, and none of the group's other attacks were any more effective. They needed Athena's psychic abilities. Zira hoped that Athena would rise like a phoenix and put an end to this threat.

"Phoenix," Zira said quietly. That word rang a bell. She thought back to her mind-probing sessions with Lance, recalling that that word was rather prominent in her more recent memories. Was it a password? A code name? Think! What was it? Then it finally dawned on her. The word _phoenix_was a component of her security authorization! But would the droid recognize it? She had to try. Lance's plan wasn't going to work without more power. Zira came to a stop and turned to face the approaching droid, hoping that she wasn't making a fatal mistake.

"Zira!" Cyril shouted.

"Take cover!" Zira shouted back, holding up her hand to make sure that the others got the hint to come no closer. She had no idea if this gambit of hers was going to work. If it didn't, Zira wanted to make sure that the others would not pay for her mistake. This was literally a do-or-die moment, and if her hunch was wrong, then she was about to be vaporized. Her heart pounded furiously in her chest as the droid approached her, its pulse cannons ready to fire.

"This is Zira!" Zira shouted. "Authorization phoenix thirteen eighty-one alpha!"

The droid came to a stop. "Identity acknowledged," the droid said in a masculine voice, its pulse cannons moving to a neutral position. It was no longer targeting Zira.

A grin broke out on Zira's face as she breathed a nervous sigh of relief. It worked! "Weapons hold. Cancel current program and await further instructions."

"Command accepted," the droid said.

Zira turned to face the others, seeing that they were all still behind cover. She didn't blame them, of course. None of them truly had any way of knowing that there was no longer any danger. "You can all come out now."

For a moment, none of them reacted, but then Cyril cautiously approached. The partial Mega Sceptile shifted his gaze between Zira and the droid, but he mostly kept his eyes on the droid until he was standing beside Zira.

"Are you okay?" Cyril asked. Zira nodded in return. Upon seeing that the droid wasn't reacting to Cyril, the others then walked toward the two of them.

"Zira," Lance said, "that was very Cyril-esque of you."

"You're an ass, Lance," Cyril said.

Zira smiled at Cyril's comment before addressing Lance. "I'll admit that it might've seemed reckless, but I had to try something. Ever since I saw that droid, I've been remembering things about my past life. I had good reason to believe that this would work."

Lance sighed. "Just promise me that you won't do this too often."

"I'll try not to," Zira replied. "We should check up on Athena now."

"I was just about to suggest that," Shar said, moving in Athena's direction. "If she's still alive, she could be badly injured."

Zira looked at the droid. "Follow me," she said before jogging after Shar.

Athena was still where she'd been left when the group arrived. She was beginning to stir as they approached her much to Zira's relief. Athena was alive at least, though with considerable injuries. Her body was covered in cuts, scrapes, and bruises, and she was bleeding quite badly from a gash on her head. Zira could hear the Lugia moaning in pain as Shar inspected her body. Judging from the questions that Shar was asking and his focus on her extremities, he seemed to be assessing Athena for a possible spinal injury.

"Let's sit you up," Shar said, apparently satisfied with his assessment. Looking back at the others, he said, "I could use some assistance here."

Moving Athena into a sitting position was a team effort. While Lance used his psychic ability to gently nudge Athena upright, Shar and Zira helped her to reposition her legs, and Cyril was in back moving her tail out of the way. All the while, Athena was groaning with a pained expression on her face. She was in rough shape.

"My head..." Athena said.

"Athena, I know you're not feeling well," Shar said, "but I need to ask you to do a few things to assess you for a concussion."

Shar must've had field medic training, Zira thought. She was impressed with Shar's medical knowledge given the fact that he was incapable of learning any healing moves. It made sense to her though. A Pokémon who couldn't learn a healing move could at least stop bleeding in the field or assess someone's injuries like he was doing now.

Shar ran through his tests such as asking Athena to repeat back a sequence of numbers or words, but it was clear that she was having some difficulty with her responses. The verdict was clear.

"Concussion," Zira said.

"Yeah, I'm afraid so," Shar said.

"Fantastic," Athena said, rubbing her head.

"It's hard to believe that anything could do this to a legendary," Cyril said.

"We're all just Pokémon," Athena said. "I'm just as mortal as any of you."

There it is again, Zira thought. For whatever reason, Athena seemed to dislike being referred to as a legendary Pokémon. She was reminded of her intention to ask Athena about it, but for now, they still had a task to perform. "Can you walk? We still need to find that lab."

"I can try," Athena said. She slowly stood up, but it was clear that her balance was off. "I'm not sure that I can make it like this. Cyril can show you where it is. He came across me just after I found it."

"I'd rather not leave you here," Shar said.

Zira had an idea. She looked at the droid and said, "I need you to assist this Lugia. Steady her while she walks."

"Acknowledged," the droid said. It slowly moved toward the injured Lugia and offered one of its pulse cannons as a hand hold. It was a scene that looked just as comical as it sounded, except that Athena didn't find it amusing.

"You've got to be kidding me," Athena said, staring at the droid.

"It's the best equipped to help you," Zira said. "It's not like you can lean on any of us."

"If I must," Athena said, placing a hand on the offered pulse cannon.

"And now, if you'll all follow me," Cyril said, "the dungeon's this way."

The group followed Cyril into a dense part of the forest. The vegetation was so thick that traversal was becoming difficult. It was a beautiful scene, but walking through such dense vegetation slowed their progress. Zira was grateful for the damp conditions on the island, for that meant that she wouldn't be starting any fires with her tail's flame.

After a short while, the group came across another rocky outcropping taller than what Athena has been injured on. Cyril led them around to the other side to the shimmering entrance of a mystery dungeon. The scene beyond looked strikingly similar to the final floor of the dungeon they'd encountered near Seneca Village. The grassy landscape was quite beautiful as Zira recalled, though she also recalled its dangers.

"Will the droid fit through here?" Cyril asked, apparently taking note of the entrance's low ceiling.

"It should," Zira said. She turned to look at the droid. "It'll just have to duck..." Her voice trailed off as her eyes drifted over to Athena, who was beginning to look quite ill. "Are you okay, Athena?"

"I'm feeling a bit nauseous," Athena replied after a moment's hesitation.

"We'll get you to a hospital as soon as we're finished here," Cyril said. "This shouldn't take long."

"Assuming that Kaiser didn't leave any surprises for us," Lance said.

"I'd say this droid was a surprise enough," Cyril said. "Let's just get this done so we can get out of here."

With that said, Cyril stepped through the dungeon entrance, his form disappearing from view as he crossed the threshold. Zira was next, followed by the others one by one. Athena and the droid were the last to come through. The poor Lugia had to crawl through the dungeon entrance, and she needed some assistance getting back onto her feet.

As it turned out, the landscape wasn't just similar to the final floor of the dungeon near Seneca Village, but exactly like it, right down to the cottage by the pond in the center of the dungeon floor. Zira took a moment to get a better look at the scenery. Off in the distance, she could spot a familiar landmark, a mountain range that she'd seen so many times before. She couldn't believe that she hadn't noticed it previously.

"This is the Sinnoh region on the Human world," Zira said. "Or at least a replica of it."

"How can you tell?" Shar asked.

"That's Mount Coronet," Zira said, pointing toward the mountains. "Probably the most famous mountain on the Human world. And then to the north of that is Snowpoint City. The research facility wouldn't have been far from that."

"This is incredible," Talon said, looking all around him. This was his first time seeing one of Kaiser's creations.

"It's truly fascinating," Athena said. "To be able to get a glimpse at another world is quite remarkable, even if it is just a replica."

"This cottage and this area must've been important to Kaiser for him to go through all the trouble of recreating this scene," Lance said.

"He probably just wanted a piece of home with him," Cyril said. "I can understand that feeling."

Home. That word stuck in Zira's mind for a moment, and with it, a hint of doubt. She was happy as a Pokémon, especially now that she'd been gifted with the ability to fly, but seeing the Human world once again made her ponder on the life she'd left behind. Did she have friends or family back on the Human world wondering where she was? Why did she and her colleagues come to the Pokémon world? And would she return to the Human world if given the choice? But she couldn't be distracted with this now. Whichever way she was leaning, the only way to get answers was to keep moving forward. Purging the doubt from her mind, Zira turned to face the cottage.

"Let's go get that artifact," Zira said, walking toward the cottage.

"Yes, ma'am," Lance said as he and the others followed.

Upon reaching the cottage, Zira cautiously opened the front door and peeked her head inside. While she didn't think there'd be any traps or someone waiting in ambush, she couldn't be totally certain especially after what happened the last time. Once she was confident that the main living area didn't seem to be harboring any dangers, Zira stepped inside and scanned her surroundings. Like the last time, the main room of the cottage was set up like a laboratory complete with chalkboards and notebooks scattered along tables. Along the back wall sat another one of Kaiser's pedestals upon which were two shiny objects of equal shape and size. Zira began to walk toward the pedestal, but she stopped when she heard a door to her right open.

Lance had opened the door, and he was peeking his head into the room beyond. After a moment, he closed the door, and then he turned toward the others. "I was just making sure that there were no bodies in there."

"Bodies?" Talon asked.

"Uh, yeah," Cyril said, rubbing the back of his neck. "There were quite a number of bodies on that last mission."

"That mission got Cale into quite a lot of hot water," Shar said. "I was shocked to see him emerge from that relatively unscathed."

"I'm sorry for the trouble I've caused," Athena said, "but it was for the greater good. The Entity must be stopped, or the future that I revealed to you all may come to pass."

"Well, let's hope that these artifacts do some good then," Zira said, resuming her course toward the pedestal. She was a bit nervous as she neared it despite her previous success. Zira hoped that this retrieval would be just as drama-free as the last. Now standing in front of the pedestal, Zira reached through the force field with both hands and retrieved both artifacts. She breathed a sigh of relief as she examined the two objects that she now held.

The silver artifacts appeared to be bracers, and like the helmet they'd recovered at the previous lab, they each had a red crystal mounted onto them. Zira pondered the significance of the crystal on each of the artifacts. Was it a power source? Perhaps a regulator? There was no way to know at the present time. Curious as to how well they'd fit, Zira strapped one of the bracers into place around her right arm. It was a perfect fit.

"Zira, you really shouldn't..." Lance said with a concerned expression on his face.

"They can't hurt me, Lance," Zira said, now working on the other arm.

"That's not entirely true," Lance said. "After that superpowered attack last time, you were pretty drained."

"Well, I have to carry them out of here anyway," Zira said, "and it's not like I have a travel bag anymore." She now had the other bracer strapped to her left arm. "No chance of dropping them during the mad dash out of here."

"Mad dash?" Talon asked. "Is there something I should know about?"

"If it's anything like the last dungeon," Cyril said, "this dungeon is going to collapse as soon as she takes those artifacts out of this building."

"I guess it's a good thing that I'm an excellent runner then," Talon said. Then something seemed to catch his eye. "Athena, are you all right?"

Athena didn't respond as all eyes turned toward her. The Lugia stood near a wall with a hand pressed against it as though to balance herself. She seemed to be staring at nothing in particular. Then she suddenly bolted for the door, retching as she did so. The moment she was outside, Athena unleashed the contents of her stomach onto the ground.

"We really need to get her to a hospital," Shar said. "She's obviously got a concussion, and there's always the possibility of intracranial bleeding."

"You all get Athena out of here," Zira said. "I'll wait here until you're all out, and then I'll fly out of here."

"I don't like the idea of leaving you here alone," Cyril said. "What if something goes wrong?"

Cyril had a point. Any number of terrible things could happen once the dungeon started to collapse. There could be another monster blocking the way, or an unforeseen environmental hazard. It was better to have some backup.

"Yeah, you're right," Zira said. "Shar, could you stay? You're the only other one who can fly aside from Athena."

"Sure," Shar replied, walking toward Zira.

"Oh, one more thing," Zira said. "The droid is going to remain here."

"Why's that?" Cyril asked. "We could really use something like this on our side."

"This technology doesn't belong here," Zira said. "It must be destroyed. Besides, I've got some questions that need answers."

"All right then," Cyril said, the disappointment evident in his voice. "See you two on the other side."

"We'll be there," Shar said.

Zira and Shar watched as the others filed out of the cottage. They gathered around the ailing Lugia, who was still on her hands and knees, and helped her get back onto her feet. Athena was still a little unsteady, but she seemed to be able to walk at a slow pace. With the others now on course for the exit, Zira walked over to the droid, hoping to get some answers.

"I need to know the locations of Kaiser's other labs," Zira said. "Where are they?"

"No data available," the droid replied.

"So much for the easy way," Shar said.

Undeterred, Zira then asked, "What is the location of the Gateway Project team?"

"No data available," the droid repeated.

Zira sighed. The droid either never knew those answers, or someone deleted that information from the droid's memory. Given the sensitive nature of those questions, Zira could understand why Kaiser or someone else would make those deletions. If those answers fell into the wrong hands, that would be catastrophic. "When was the last time someone with security access spoke to you?"

"Five months, 17 days by Doctor Kaiser," the droid replied.

Zira raised her eyebrows upon hearing that. "That would've been around the time that I arrived on this world," she said, turning to face Shar. "He must've been waiting for my colleagues and I to arrive."

"I'm confused," Shar said. "Kaiser allegedly lived about 400 years ago. How is he interacting with this thing just months ago? Is he a time traveller?"

"I think that stasis is the more likely explanation," Zira said. "He's been putting himself into a state of suspended animation for long periods of time."

"But why?" Shar asked. "Why go to all this trouble? He had the artifacts. Why didn't he just go after The Entity?"

"I don't know," Zira replied. "That's a question that I'd like to ask him, though. He could still be alive."

"That's a very real possibility given what we've just learned," Shar said. He turned his gaze to the door and to the dungeon's shimmering exit in the distance. "The others are out now."

"Well..." Zira said, looking back at the room one last time. "I guess it's time to go. Ready?"

"Ready as I'll ever be," Shar said.

"When I say 'go,' you run out first, and I'll be right behind you." Zira turned to face the door. She took in a deep breath as she prepared herself. "Go!"

Zira and Shar sprinted through the door, taking flight immediately upon exiting the cottage. As before, the collapse of the dungeon immediately began. While everything around her dissolved into the void, Zira tried to keep her focus on the exit ahead. However, the turbulent wind was making flight difficult, and she struggled to stay on course.

Fuck! I forgot about the wind! Zira thought.

It took everything that Zira had to maintain her heading. Shar was having similar difficulties. The two of them bobbed and weaved as they rapidly approached the exit. With just a short distance left to go, a sudden updraft violently lifted Zira toward the dungeon's ceiling, causing her to lose most of her momentum as she made contact with it. Zira's heart jumped as she executed a dive to get back on course and to pick up some much-needed speed.

Shar was waiting in front of the exit, only crossing the threshold into the normal world after Zira had landed safely. Zira wasted no time in crossing the threshold herself, sprinting through the exit with all the speed that she could muster. Emerging on the other side, Zira bent over and rested her hands on her knees, panting loudly as her heart thumped in her chest. Finally, the nightmare was over.

"What happened?" Shar asked. "One moment, you were behind me, and then the next, you weren't there anymore."

"I got caught in an updraft," Zira replied. "Flung me right up to the ceiling. I think we should stick to the ground next time."

"Yeah, that wind was awful," Shar said.

"The good news is that you're both all right," Lance said, walking toward Shar. He placed his hands on Shar's shoulders and kissed the Flygon, while Shar wrapped his arms around his mate, holding Lance close.

They sure are a great couple, Zira thought. She had to admit that she envied their relationship. Why couldn't she have something like that? Zira looked at Cyril and then at Talon, who watched the couple with some interest. Cyril had apparently picked up on this as well.

"Didn't know that they were a couple, eh, Talon?" Cyril said.

"Not at all," Talon said. "I'm happy for you, Lance."

"Thanks, Talon," Lance said, still embracing his mate.

"I hate to interrupt such a wonderful scene," Athena said, sitting on the ground, "but I would really like to see a doctor."

"Ah, right," Lance said, releasing his grip on Shar. Walking back toward Athena, Lance said, "While we were waiting for the two of you to escape, we were getting ready to open a magnagate to Dakota City. We're just figuring out the last card."

"It's this one," Athena said, holding the card in her giant fingers. Rather than use her psychic abilities to place it on the tablet like before, she simple handed it to Lance, presumably because she didn't want to stress her injured brain. Athena looked awful. Zira could empathize with the Lugia, for she'd also had a concussion many years ago with some of the same symptoms.

A blinding flash suddenly enveloped the group, causing everyone to shield their eyes until it dissipated a moment later. Zira knew what it was, of course. The dungeon had collapsed. Zira turned her eyes toward what used to be the dungeon's exit, seeing only solid rock now. She regretted not being able to spend more time in the cottage. Who knows what they could've learned by studying Kaiser's notes?

"I still say that we should've taken the droid with us," Cyril said.

"It's for the best," Zira said. "This world isn't ready for that technology, and there was always the possibility of it falling into the wrong hands."

"Well, let's go home," Lance said, placing the final entercard on the tablet. He stepped back as the magnagate began to form. As before, the tablet became obscured by a bright light, following by the formation of three rings, and then there was a bright flash, dissipating a moment later to reveal the fully-formed magnagate.

"Let's get you through first, Athena," Lance said, using his psychic abilities to help the Lugia stand and to balance her.

"Gods, I need a vacation," Athena said, stepping into the magnagate.

"Don't we all," Lance said.

Athena vanished from view, but not before she flashed a smile at Lance. Zira and the others stepped into the magnagate next. For everyone, this was no doubt an exciting moment, but it was even more so for Zira. Cyril and Lance spoke often of Dakota City, and Zira was eager to see it. She couldn't help but smile as she waited for the magnagate to transport the group.

Dakota City, here we come...