Chapter 39: The Return

  "Keep Auri and Yuki safe. That's an order from me, the princess of the Umbral Abyss and Lord Noctems daughter. I don't care what it costs. But if they are truly Noah and Ray, their lives have to be your highest priority!"

  Myra managed a nod and Sia allowed herself a short smile before looking at Auri and Yuki again. "We'll meet again and then we'll talk. I promise." Then she vanished into shadows, presumably searching for Shae.

  The silence that followed felt unnatural, as if the air itself held its breath. Auri sank to the ground slowly. The earth was damp, grounding, real. He tried to focus on that, on the cool air, the smell of moss, the dim lantern glow, anything but the sound of thunder echoing through his head.

  Yuki sat beside him, staring toward the horizon where faint lightning still clawed at the sky. "She's not coming back soon, is she?"

  "No," Auri said quietly. "She's not."

  Before Yuki could reply to that lanterns flared to life across the square, doors slammed open, and confused voices cut through the dark. Pokemon stumbled from their homes, eyes wide, demanding answers as they looked at Auri, Yuki and Myra who suddenly sat in the middle of the village. A sharp wind whipped through the square, carrying the metallic tang of residual lightning.

  Auri blinked against the daze still clouding his vision. His body felt like it had been torn in half and stitched back together wrong. Every breath came shallow. The echo of the battlefield, the clash of Domains, the light that could unmake the world, still burned behind his eyes.

  Beside him, Yuki coughed, feathers sparking faintly as she forced herself upright to face the incoming villagers. Said villagers were already gathering in a tightening circle. Shapes flickered in torchlight, Auri saw Fearow, Ursaring, Leafeon and a Machoke, their faces a mixture of fear and disbelief. Someone yelled for the guards. Someone else demanded to know where they so suddenly came from and what the unnatural thunder in the distance was.

  Before they could answer the guards entered the scene. Captain Kaen arrived first, his mane of fire flaring with controlled heat as his gaze swept over the chaos. Behind him came Risa, wings folded tight but eyes sharp. Then came Vira whose fur was crackling faintly with tension, followed by Zekel and Durro. Together with the guard trainees and some volunteers from the last week, they fanned out to form a barrier between the crowd and the group at the center.

  "Clear the square!" Captain Kaen barked, his voice cutting through the uproar like a blade. "No one gets close until we know what happened!"

  The villagers hesitated, murmurs rippling through them, but few dared argue. Even so, they didn't leave. Fear and curiosity held them in place.

  It didn't take long for three more figures to emerge from the crowd. The Elders had arrived to the commotion as well. Seori, her nine tails fanning like silver flame, eyes unreadable. Brenno, vast and unmoving, the roots along his shell faintly glowing with stored light. And, of course, Ilyra. Their arrival silenced what little noise remained. All eyes instead turned to the three Pokemon at the center of the square.

  Auri barely moved. His paws pressed weakly against the cracked stone beneath him, electricity flickering across his fur without purpose. His mind was still somewhere between the battlefield and the silence after it. The memory of thunder, Velari's defiance in the face of almost certain defeat, Zuko’s laughter. He truly hoped Velari was well and that, together with Vian and Nayru, she could put a stop to the absolute calamity that the Storm Menace was.

  Captain Kaen turned on Myra, his tone forcefully calm and professional. "Myra! You were with them, so I believe you managed to find them. Explain."

  But Myra didn’t answer right away. She was still shaking, her wings scorched and uneven, one side drooping as if the weight of everything still clung to her feathers. Her chest rose and fell too fast, her eyes unfocused. For a long moment, she just stood there in silence, the firelight catching in the ash along her wings. When she finally lifted her head, her gaze flicked between Auri, Yuki, and the crowd. Her beak parted, words forming with visible effort.

  "I'll… explain," she said quietly. Her voice cracked on the word.

  Auri felt every heartbeat echo against his ribs. He didn’t even notice his pwas trembling until Yuki pressed a wing against them. A silent reassurance in the middle of the chaos. But Myra was already stepping forward, toward Captain Kaen, the Elders, and the restless eyes of the village. Everyone held their breath, waiting for her to speak.

  "As you all know I flew off a few days ago to search for Auri and Yuki in the other Mythical's territory from the sky." she began softly. "It was going badly. Multiple encounters with Dungeon Pokemon left me drained and I had no trail whatsoever. I was already preparing myself for the bitter truth that I would have to return soon, without having found them."

  Her voice steadied a little, though it carried exhaustion in every syllable. "That's when I found Miu. Or rather, she found me. She just appeared in front of me and claimed to know where they had gone. That they were in danger. She claimed that only I could help them because the Mythicals were bound. Apparently Lord Noctem is in the process of finally awakening again."

  A murmur rippled through the villagers, confusion and worry, but also elation that their protector would soon wake up again twining like vines.

  "She gave me directions to some old ruins in the northwest that she claimed was the Stormspire Prison," Myra continued, eyes distant. "A place I believed to be nothing more than a children's tale. Like everyone else, who would've thought Zuko was actually just banished and not outright killed? Either way, Miu waited for me at the entrance and led me inside."

  Risa frowned. "She led you in? Not forced?"

  "No. She was calm then. Almost… relieved?" Myra shook her head faintly. "But once inside, I realized what she'd done."

  Her talons clenched against the dirt. "The Storm Menace was there. Zuko, apparently. He was trapped behind two great seals, blue shimmering barriers. And in front of them, Auri and Yuki stood. He was… talking to them."

  The villager's whispers grew sharper, more wary.

  "He couldn't reach them," Myra went on. "The seals, whatever they actually were kept his power mostly bound. But even the faint parts that managed to get through were enough to force all of us to our knees. Just standing near him felt like the air was tearing apart." Myra shuddered at the memory. "He's truly a monster, even just judged by his strength."

  The villagers drew back unconsciously. Even Elder Seori's nine tails flickered uneasily.

  "He spoke of the past," Myra said, lowering her gaze. "Of the Water Continent, before our time. He said he had once stood against tyranny and claimed to fight for the people. But he said that in the end he lost and that it was a human, aided by his partner, who defeated him. Noah and Ray, the heroes of that age, that had defeated the Dark Matter and saved the world. He claimed they turned on the world after that… and brought four of our worlds five continents to ruin. Then they followed him into the Umbral Abyss itself, where, together with Lord Noctem, they sealed Zuko for what they planned to be eternity."

  The villagers shifted, murmuring, disbelief battling curiosity. Myra’s voice trembled, but she pressed on. "Then he looked at Auri."

  The entire square grew still again.

  "He claimed Auri was human too," Myra whispered. "That he could tell from his energy alone. And that he wasn't just any human, but the same one that sealed him. Noah himself. Reborn, or returned. I don't know which. It's not like the details matter, even if I understood them, which I don't."

  A collective gasp tore through the crowd.

  Dozens of voices overlapped, everything between questions, accusations and denials, but Captain Kaen’s voice cut through them all like thunder. "Silence!"

  It worked, though barely. The crowd fell into a hushed tremor of whispers as Myra struggled to continue.

  "Zuko claimed that Auri's power could break his chains. That his type energy was the same that sealed him once, and could unseal him again. And… he was right."

  She hesitated. "I don’t know how. But the outer seal started to unravel as it came into contact with Auri's lightning."

  The crowd erupted again, fear this time, raw and unfiltered.

  "He freed the monster! He's a monster himself!"

  "He’s human! An otherwordler, not just a stranger! Of course something had to be wrong with him!"

  "We never should've trusted him! How could we have been so blind!"

  The guards moved in quickly, forming a line around Auri. Less for his protection, and more to contain a threat should it become necessary, Captain Kaen raised his paw for silence again, but this time the calm did not come as easily. Auri slumped down. His gaze was fixed on the ground, on his trembling paws, as though the noise couldn’t reach him at all. Of course. Even now, after months, he still was the stranger. The smallest flicker had been enough to paint him as a villain in the eyes of people he had trusted.

  Then Yuki stepped forward. "He refused him!" she shouted, her voice cutting through the chaos. "Auri said no! He didn't want to free Zuko!"

  Her eyes blazed with defiance. "Zuko lied! You all weren't even there, you didn’t see how Miu-!"

  "Myra," Captain Kaen interrupted sharply, his tone unreadable. "Is that true?"

  Myra hesitated. "Yes. He did refuse the offer the Storm Menace made him."

  Auri’s ears twitched faintly, but he didn’t look up.

  "But…" Myra continued, reluctantly, "Zuko still claimed that the seal still broke because of Auri's energy. I don’t know if he meant it literally or if he twisted the truth.

  Yuki took a step forward, feathers puffed. "That's not fair! It was Miu! She’s the one who attacked Auri first! The moment Zuko claimed Auri was actually Noah she turned on him in full force! She forced Auri to defend himself, thereby accidentally destroying the outer seal! And she was also the one who destroyed the second seal directly after!"

  All eyes turned to Myra again.

  "She’s telling the truth," Myra said quietly. "Miu betrayed us. The first seal broke due to Auri, but it was her power that shattered the second. As I understood it, she did so to secure Zuko's support to capture Auri."

  Elder Seori’s tails swayed slowly, her expression unreadable. "And then?"

  Myra’s feathers quivered. "That's when the other Mythicals came. Vian, Sia, and Nayru. They tried to contain Zuko directly after Miu broke the second seal, but…" Her voice faltered. "They couldn’t. Not even together. They didn't stand a chance."

  The murmurs softened to silence.

  "Then, just as it looked like Zuko would finish them, Velari arrived. That came unexpected even to the other Mythicals, I believe. As a Lesser Legendary, she was able to pressure her own Domain against Zuko and temporarely managed to fight the Storm Menace to a standstill. However then he activated his own Domain. That’s when Vian realized we'd all die if we stayed. He teleported the three of us here, just before both of the Lesser Legendaries Domains unfolded properly."

  This tale has been pilfered from Royal Road. If found on Amazon, kindly file a report.

  Myra’s voice cracked on the last word. For a heartbeat, the only sound was the whisper of the wind stirring ash from the ground.

  Brenno’s deep rumble broke the silence. "And the Mythicals? Velari?"

  "They all stayed behind." Myra swallowed hard. "Vian said he would hold Zuko off long enough for Velari’s Domain to stabilize. And they would hopefully hold out until Shae could join the fight as well. That was the last thing I saw."

  No one spoke for several seconds. The air was thick with unease. Even those who didn't fully understand what she had said could feel it, the weight, the dread, the quiet certainty that something vast and ancient had been unleashed again.

  Captain Kaen finally exhaled. "Thank you, Myra. You've done your duty."

  But even as he said it, his gaze shifted toward Auri, who still hadn’t moved. The villagers began to whisper again, quieter now, but sharper. Words like human, betrayal and curse threaded through the air.

  Auri finally looked up. His eyes reflected the lanternlight, but there was nothing in them. Not anger, not fear, just exhaustion. Every word he heard just drove a single fact home deeper. He had never been truly welcome here. Of what use would it be to try and defend himself if everyone here was more than willing to pile all the blame on him anyways?

  Beside him, Yuki’s feathers still bristled with defiance, but she stayed silent now. She saw what he saw, how the faces around them had changed. The same villagers who once smiled at them now looked at Auri as if he was no better than an especially hideous Dungeon Pokemon.

  And Myra, standing only a few steps away, could not meet his eyes. She had done her duty by mostly telling the truth. And yet, she had kept a few secrets, like Sia returning with them. Or how Zuko had clearly stated that Yuki was the reincarnated Ray. Because she was more than willing to protect Yuki. Just not him as well, for he was the stranger. She finally got a chance to get rid of him, just as she had wanted all the time.

  Captain Kaen stepped forward He had the look of a leader who would do whatever was necessary to hold a village together. He also had the look of someone who had just realized that someone he had trusted might have betrayed them.

  "Clear the square," he ordered, but it came out gentler than it probably should have. The crowd hesitated, then obeyed. Families retreated indoors, children were pulled by impatient hands, and the square grew sparse except for the guards, the three Elders, Yuki and, of course, Auri. Captain Kaen’s gaze swept the small group with an unreadable look on his face.

  "Risa and Vira flank him," he said, nodding towards Auri. "Keep him steady, he looks like he's about to fall uncouncious. No roughness unless he tries to flee or fight." He met Risa's eyes and saw her nod in agreement. Vira's jaw tightened but she inclined her head as well.

  Then Captain Kaen's expression softened, if only a fraction, as he looked at Yuki. She was actively glaring at Captain Kaen, making her displeasure with his orders more than clear.

  "Myra and Durro stay close as well," the Arcanine continued, turning to the Talonflame and the Donphan. "But keep a look at your surroundings. We don't want any more surprises."

  "And Yuki," Kaen added, catching the Torchic’s eye for a steady moment. "You're with me. We’ll have you held separately for questioning until its time for you to properly retell you version of what happened. You parents and sister are worried sick. We all were."

  Yuki’s feathers flared on reflex. "You can’t keep me away from him!" she blurted, but there was pleading under the anger, and Kaen's gaze softened more.

  "We won't," he told her quietly. "If Auri truy is innocent, you’ll be the one to prove it. Tomorrow. And if he’s not, then you won't be dragged into it by trying to fight the whole village on his behalf." There was the family steel in it. Yuki sagged a fraction, her fight tempered down by Captain Kaen's words.

  "Also, you're gounded," Captain Kaen added almost as an afterthought. "I'm sure Mira and Daigo are going to agree with me there."

  Before Yuki could reply the three Elders stepped forward. "The square is really not the place for this," Elder Seori said, voice smooth and precise. "Rumor will consume the truth if we do not give it a proper hearing."

  Elder Brenno’s slow rumble agreed. "The ancestral hall is sanctified. If this matter is to be judged, it must be judged there. Elder Gorun will forgive the incursion."

  Elder Ilyra remained silent, only staring at Auri with an unreadable look in her eyes.

  Captain Kaen inclined his head. "If that's what the Elders wish, we'll move this matter to the ancestral hall," he announced to the few Pokemon still in the market square. His tone brooked no argument.

  The guards formed tight, practiced lines. Risa and Vira flanked Auri as he was guided forward while Myra and Durro stayed close enough to intervene if necessary. Auri felt like he was dreaming a nightmare. Every step toward the ancestral hall felt like moving through water. Auri kept his shoulders rigid.

  Meanwhile Captain Kaen walked off with Yuki, likely to bring her back home. As they finally reached the carved steps of the ancestral hall at the edge of the village, Elder Seori’s voice carried one last order forward. "We will not act in vengeance tonight. We will act with duty."

  To those few still listening, her words promised process. To Auri, the same sentence sounded like a verdict already partly written. He doubted the Elder actually meant her words.

  The doors of the ancestral hall closed behind them with a sound that silenced even the wind. The thick stone and ancient wood swallowed the murmurs from outside until only the quiet crackle of the lanterns remained. The air carried a faint tang of incense and dust.

  Auri stepped forward when ordered, the soft pads of his paws sounding impossibly loud against the polished floor. His reflection shimmered faintly in the smooth stone. He looked small, ordinary, and terribly out of place among the engraved names of those who had once carried this village through centuries.

  He stopped where Risa soubtly indicated, near the center of the hall. Around him, the flickering lanternlight drew long shadows across the carved walls. The three Elders took their places at the elevated end of the chamber, their gazes sharp but not cruel. They looked tired, weighed down by duty. The guards kept their half-circle behind Auri, the four of them grim and silent.

  Elder Seori’s many tails curled and uncurled in restless grace. "Before anything else," she said, her voice carrying through the chamber, "we must ensure that he will be unable to resist. Especially with what Myra told us. We don't know what else his seemingly ancient type energy will be able to do."

  Elder Ilyra’s tone was dry and matter-of-fact. "Then seal his type energy and be done with it."

  Her words drew a ripple of unease through the room. Elder Brenno grunted his agreement, but it was Elder Ilyra who turned toward the shadowed rear of the hall and said, "Just get Juno. She knows [Imprison] after all."

  Durro gave a low rumble of acknowledgment and vanished through the doors. A few minutes later he returned, accompanied by Juno. The Guardevoir hesitantly stepped into the ancestral hall next to Durro, before briefly bowing to the Elders. Elder Ilyra didn't waste time.

  "Juno, we're in need of your help. I don't know how much of what went down you noticed, but we need Auri's type energy sealed. We have reasons to believe that he could otherwise pose an incredible danger to Newleaf Village."

  Hearing that, Juno froze. Her hands started to tremble faintly. "No," she whispered. "Not again."

  Elder Ilyra’s gaze softened, but duty remained in her voice. "Juno, we require your help. You are the only one-"

  She shook her head, backing a step. "You don’t understand!" she said, her voice breaking around the memory. "I'm a healer and not a torturer! I don't care what he did, I will not bring such pain onto someone!"

  Elder Seori stapped forward and opened her mouth but before she could say anything someone else spoke.

  "Luckily that won't be necessary. Because you have me." With these words, Elder Gorun, the ancient Dusknoir and guardian of the ancestral hall floated out of the shadows. "I was already wandering why you would dare invade the sacred ground of our ancestors. Especially you, Ilyra, Seori and Brenno. But based on the unleashed Domains I can feel towards the nothwest I can make an educated guess."

  Slowly Elder Gorun floated forward into the middle of the hall, his gaze first falling on Juno, before continuing to Auri. Each word he spoke was heavy with resignation. "I have [Imprison] as well. I understand that it must be done. And as a ghost-type I have no need to sleep that could let my control over the move slip."

  Juno turned away, biting her lip. She clearly didn't agree with what was happening at all. Seeing how everyone else saw that different... she quietly turned around and left the building. No one tried to stop her.

  Elder Gorun meanwhile raised one of his spectral hands. Wisps of violet light gathered at his fingertips, swirling into sigils that burned faintly against the dim air. The temperature dropped.

  Auri stiffened. Every instinct screamed at him to run, to move, to do something, but his legs wouldn't obey. His heartbeat thundered in his ears, out of rhythm with the slow pulse of the psychic-type energy around him.

  He could feel it before it struck, that sick, invasive weight crawling over his fur, seeping into his muscles, pressing against his lungs. The air felt like it thickened and the light seemingly dimmed. The shadows stretched like reaching fingers.

  It didn’t hurt, not at first at least, but it felt wrong. The kind of wrong that made the body forget how to breathe. His chest clenched. Sparks tried to crawl to the surface of his fur and died instantly, snuffed out by the spectral seal forming over his energy reserve. Then the seal closed.

  The pressure lifted, leaving behind a hollow ache. Auri’s paws trembled. His breathing came ragged, shallow. The glow around Elder Gorun’s hand faded, replaced by the faint ring of ethereal symbols hovering just above Auri’s chest before sinking into his fur.

  "It is done," the Dusknoir said, his tone unreadable. "His type energy is sealed. As long as I'm close enough to fuel the move that won't change either."

  Elder Seori inclined her head. "Then he will be watched until the morning session."

  Risa hesitated for only a heartbeat. "Understood. Then it's time for us to take our leave. Captain Kaen didn't give us any differing orders and Elder Gorun will be more than enough to keep watch."

  Myra’s wings rustled uneasily. "Risa-"

  Risa cut Myra off with a small shake of his head. "No Myra. You’ve done enough these last few days and you did good. Rest now, especially if you want to be there for the trial tomorrow. I'm not Captain Kaen and cannot make that an order, but you know he would agree with me."

  One by one, the guards nodded and withdrew, their steps echoing through the chamber. When the doors shut, the sound reverberated through the hall like the toll of a bell.

  Auri sat on the cold floor, staring at the faint shimmer where the seal had vanished into his fur. He tried to flex his claws, to draw even the smallest spark, but nothing answered. The absence was almost worse than the pain that had followed after he got completely cut off.

  "You should rest," came Elder Gorun's voice from across the chamber, low but not unkind. "Your type energy will not recover while the seal holds. Save yourself the jarring feeling and sleep."

  Auri flinched slightly, ears lowering. "You say that as if I could actually sleep after everything that happened today."

  Elder Gorun drifted closer, his single eye dim but steady. "That's unsurprising," he admitted. "It is not often that one finds themselves the subject of their own legend."

  Auri huffed, a dry, humorless sound. "Legend. That's one way to put it. 'Disaster' might be more accurate, I believe."

  For a moment, the elder said nothing. His shadow moved over the floor, long and patient. "You believe their fear is unwarranted?"

  Auri looked away, his voice low. "I don’t even know what to believe. I still don't remember ever being anyone else. I don’t want to be anyone else! But it's not like I can prove that. Not to them. Not even to myself." He pressed his paws together. "The things I apparently did in the past combined with what just my mere existence managed to unleash just earlier today? Maybe they’re right to be afraid."

  "Fear," Elder Gorun said, "is rarely about right or wrong. It is about uncertainty and how one chooses to face it."

  Auri frowned faintly, eyes lifting. "You sound the same as last time," he murmured. "By the stream. You told me not to let doubt decide my actions. That was just after I found out I was a human once, actually."

  The Dusknoir’s gaze softened, the faint curve of his eye giving away something like a quiet smile. "Then you remember. You looked quite troubled back then."

  "It's hardly something I could just forget," Auri said quietly. "Even if… even if parts of it feel distant now."

  "Good," Elder Gorun replied. "Memory is a fragile thing. But the lessons it carries are not." He turned slightly, looking toward the sealed entrance. "I had hoped you would not find yourself in this place again, weighed down by questions no one can answer for you."

  Auri’s voice trembled, though he fought to keep it even. "And what do I do now, then? Sit here and wait for judgment? Pretend I don’t deserve it if I cannot even convince myself of that?"

  "No," said the Elder, drifting closer until his shadow stretched over Auri’s small form. "Even if you for some reason cannot be honest to others, at least be honest to yourself. You do not need to justify your emotions and thoughts, only your actions. And how you act is conpletely dependent on you. The circumstances in which you are forced to act are not."

  For a long time, neither spoke. The torches crackled softly, their light flickering over stone and fur alike. Finally, Auri whispered, "…You think I didn’t free him, don’t you? Zuko. Otherwise you are way too open around me right now."

  Elder Gorun's expression didn’t change, but the faint vibration in his tone betrayed thought. "I think," he said slowly, "that intent and consequence are not always the same. And that you are not the kind of soul who would unleash calamity knowingly. I cannot claim that you are entirely blameless. But based on what you knew at the time you're no more guilty than Yuki and she will probably be let off the hook with nearly no consequences."

  The words hit harder than Auri expected. He swallowed, looking down at his paws. "I wish I believed that as much as you do."

  "You will," Elder Gorun said, quiet but certain. "One day."

  The Dusknoir began to drift backward, his form thinning again into shadow and mist. "Rest, young Pikachu. Tomorrow will test your resolve and your strength. You will need both."

  Auri looked up, meeting that calm, endless eye. "Elder Gorun?"

  "Yes?"

  "…Thank you," he said softly. "For… not looking at me like the others do."

  The ghost inclined his head. "No matter how small or big an action, I try to judge a situation always fairly. In the same vein, I will advocate in your favor tomorrow. But it is unlikely to be enough to overrule the other three Elders. Do not rely on me being able to save you tomorrow."

  And with that, the last wisp of his form faded, leaving Auri once more in quiet darkness. Alone, sealed, and suspended between everything he was and everything he might be. At least Yuki was probably safe.

  Important characters in the chapter:

  Pikachu (Auri) – Level 16

  Ability: Lightning Rod

  Battle Nature: Lonely

  Stats:

  TE Pool (Health/AP): 75

  Attack: 49

  Ranged Attack: 44

  Defense: 52

  Speed: 58

  Total: 278 (Strength Level: Teenager)

  Moves:

  Close Combat Moves: [Nuzzle], [Tail Whip], [Quick Attack], [Brick Break], [Thunder Wave], [Feint]

  Ranged Combat Moves: [Thunder Shock], [Electro Ball], [Swift], [Thunderbolt], [Discharge]

  Utility Moves: [Nasty Plot], [Charm], [Double Team], [Growl], [Agility], [Dig]

  Torchic (Yuki) – Level 17 (Evolution Requirements Not Met, Stat Boost Applied)

  Ability: Speed Boost

  Battle Nature: Hasty

  Stats:

  TE Pool (Health/AP): 84

  Attack: 49

  Ranged Attack: 49

  Defense: 57

  Speed: 42

  Total: 281 (Strength Level: Teenager)

  Moves:

  Close Combat Moves: [Scratch], [Quick Attack], [Feint], [Fire Spin], [Flame Charge], [Aerial Ace], [Counter], [Slash]

  Ranged Combat Moves: [Ember], [Sand Attack], [Overheat]

  Utility Moves: [Growl], [Detect], [Dig]