Chapter 6 – Breakdown

Tracklist

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The courtroom was a mess of disorderly mutters and whispers, never dropping for even a second. Autumnal may have been entirely unknown to the town, but the Merx family was not, and more than a few townsfolk had decided to spectate the trial. Their unruliness was briefly cut when the clock tower made its loyal, hourly chime. 7 PM. Past sunset.

Thyreos growled, scraping his claws against the wooden railing that separated the gallery from the courtroom proper. Needless property damage.

“Look at that. They fled town to avoid the trial. I cannot believe you of all people let them get away. What part of the Chief’s orders wasn’t clear? ‘Monitor the pair and make sure the Vulpix is found properly guilty.’ Even after your stupid stunt last night, that should’ve been easy.”

Salute’s heads both remained still, jaws clenched as he watched the entrance dutifully. “Maybe I have a different idea of what ‘properly’ means.”

As he spoke, Salute’s eyes moved up to the statue of Zygarde looming behind the judge’s bench. In each of its massive, bronze claws it held the plates of a scale. One was red, one was blue, and both had massive flames inside. Justice was lighting up the room.

“Letting them investigate was the right call,” he continued. “Now this will be based on evidence. No matter how things turn out.”

“We had evidence. The Vulpix matched the description. The Chief said he was the culprit. We don’t question our superiors, Salute.”

Salute went silent for a moment. It might’ve seemed like he was defeated by Thyreos’s words. But the truth was, they simply gave him more to think about.

“…Then maybe I’m not really the guard type, either,” he finally muttered. “But justice doesn’t care what ‘type’ you are.”

He stood proud and tall, confidence returning to his voice. “Besides. They’ll show up.”

“You don’t know that.”

Salute turned to face Thyreos directly, locking eyes with his fellow guard. It didn’t matter that they were hidden under the scruffy hair atop his heads. The way the Excadrill paused showed that Salute’s glare was felt.

“I do,” the dragon announced. “There’s no doubt. Any moment now, they’ll show up.”

Salute managed to give a look to Chief Hiketeria as she talked to the prosecutor. Her back was to them.

“…And then, they’re gonna turn things upside down.”

Right on cue, the double doors of the courtroom slammed open with enough of a boom to get Salute to crack a smile. He’d stay prepared for anything, but with timing like that he had a feeling that justice was in good paws.

 

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Aw yeah, now that’s an entrance, Ennea thought as she let the door she’d slammed slowly close. One for her, one for Autumnal, it was perfect. They strutted on in, side by side, all eyes on them as they came to a stop behind the witness stand.

A Ledian sitting at their rightful spot atop the judge’s bench slammed a gavel, silencing the onlookers up in the gallery.

“Ennea Harmonie,” she lectured. “You have delayed this trial by nearly half an hour. A warrant was about to be issued for your arrest.”

“My bad.” Ennea adjusted her bag, heavy with evidence. “We got delayed a bit, and for good reason. We’re here now, though.”

She glanced over at the defendant’s table, where a Fletchinder was looking lost. Not even fully evolved, huh? They purposely got someone inexperienced to be the attorney. Wait, is that a bottle? They’re drinking?!

Ennea shook her head, a lopsided smile coming to her as she and Autumnal moved in front of the defendant’s table themselves. They weren’t about to need any drunken attorneys.

For a moment, she failed to keep her gaze from falling upon Hiketeria, now opposite of them at the prosecutor’s table. It was a miracle their eyes didn’t meet. Ennea was going to follow Kyniska’s advice, which meant she was going to have to play this carefully.

“Your blatant disrespect for this court and its proceedings are noted,” the judge informed her. “That aside, I believe it is past time to begin. In the name of the royal House Harmonie, I hereby declare that court is now—”

“Hold it!”

The judge scowled down at Ennea, but she didn’t flinch under the pressure.

“You do not have my House’s blessing for this trial,” Ennea announced.

The whole court reacted, a confused murmuring falling over the audience.

“Order!” The judge banged her gavel again. “Ennea Harmonie, you are to explain yourself. I was not aware that ninths had the authority to end the proceedings of a trial without due cause.”

“Oh, I’ve got due cause alright.” Ennea pointed out Thyreos from the witnesses behind Hiketeria. “It was agreed that due to the unknown status of the defendant here that House Harmonie’s blessing—which I was explicitly asked to provide—would only be given if no evidence could be found to prove his innocence. My family does not wish to be made to blame for the actions of Epiphany’s guards.”

“Chief Hiketeria.” The judge’s glare was redirected to the Sawsbuck. “Is this true?”

Hiketeria didn’t show a moment of weakness, only giving a polite bow of her head. “Your honor, I’m afraid it is. I take full responsibility for this disruption.”

“But I—!” Thyreos caught himself. “Your honor, sorry to interrupt. I was the one who made this deal with Miss Ennea. Foolishly, and due to her uncooperative nature. It wasn’t meant—”

“Mr. Thyreos, the court is not interested in hearing your excuses. Get to the point.”

Thyreos grit his teeth as he threw a claw out at Ennea. “She can’t just decide to call off the trial! Proof was needed! That Vulpix is guilty! I’m sure of it!”

“No, that’s wrong!”

Finally having some attention, Ennea continued. “’That Vulpix’ is Autumnal, he’s not guilty, and I can prove it!”

The audience began to mutter once again. Before they could overpower her voice, Ennea began to pace.

“Let’s start with a short explanation of the case, and the supposed reasoning that Autumnal is guilty. As you all know, the Merx family was robbed. The thief is known to have gotten inside the manor and past the safe before being found by Polaris Merx, who testifies that they were a quadruped with long hair.”

Some members of the court nodded in agreement, but what made Ennea smile was seeing Thyreos’s face twitch. Still didn’t know that last part, did you?

“Using Gravity, Polaris injured the thief as they left through a window. But despite that, they then vanished, completely evading the guards. Hours later, two members of the Town Guard, Thyreos and Salute, found Autumnal severely hurt outside of town and arrested him. This is true, isn’t it?”

“What was that about long—?”

“Yes.” Salute stood and interrupted Thyreos. “It is. We were informed of the situation when we brought him back to the Hall.”

Thyreos wasn’t one to let himself get talked over. “It was a clear case then, and it still is! He matches the description of the thief exactly!”

Good thing Ennea had someone to argue against. Made it easier to slip things by the real culprit.

“Does he? Then let’s expand our knowledge about that thief. There was a couple of major hurdles they had to clear. Sneaking through the garden, getting inside the manor, and slipping by the guards that were called on them.”

Ennea managed to spot a certain Meditite up in the gallery. “We determined that the thief used a particular part of the garden to remain undetected. Polaris, would you be so kind as to confirm?”

“Of course.” Polaris did a short curtsy as she addressed the judge. “Your honor, it happened to be a section I maintain myself. Ennea helped me to realize that the plants were disturbed.”

“But not damaged,” Ennea added, giving a meaningful look to Autumnal, supporting her from behind. “The thief was someone who could be rough with them without consequence. Unlikely to be a Fire-Type.

“It was found that no doors or windows were tampered with, and there are only two keys. The surrounding streets near Merx Manor are all populated and developed, and yet the thief managed to completely avoid a squad of experienced guards. How could all of that be possible for someone who’s never been seen in town before, and even still hasn’t been found to have any possessions?”

“But—!”

Thyreos was stopped by the prosecutor, a surprisingly stuck-up looking Blaziken whose arms seemed to be perpetually locked behind his back.

“All of that is conjecture,” the Blaziken countered. “It’s no evidence other than a single testimony. That’s hardly enough to object to the trial as a whole. Their possessions could easily have been stored in the same location as the fortune they stole; somewhere that still has not been found.”

“Maybe.” Ennea chanced a shrug. “But what if I told you it has been found?”

“Where.” It turned out Calvera was in the audience, and her demand cut through the entire room.

Ennea had to keep this ball rolling. She needed the court on her side before it was clear who she would accuse.

She turned to Calvera, easily found thanks to the rest of the crowd now giving her a wide berth.

“Your money’s down in the sewers.” Ennea smirked at the irony. “All of it’s accounted for, and it was Autumnal here who helped me get to it. I think we can all agree that’s not the kind of thing a thief would—”

“Ennea.”

Ennea struggled to keep her smile as she looked directly at Hiketeria, who gave an innocent tilt of her head and continued in a perfectly even tone.

“Where are you going with this?”

Rubbing her paw over the cool floor tiles kept Ennea grounded. “It’s doubtful that Autumnal could have done it. The state of the garden doesn’t line up, he wouldn’t have the knowledge required to execute the crime, and he didn’t have access to the sewers, which I have physical evidence were used.”

Hiketeria waited through the pause, her cool gaze piercing as she watched for any sign that Ennea would continue. C’mon, I can’t go any further without giving it away…! Just as she began to nod in agreement—

“However.”

Hiketeria’s eyes flew to the Blaziken prosecutor at her side. He didn’t notice.

“You yourself just stated that the defendant helped you get to the stolen money.” He held out his hand in a showy offering. “Wouldn’t that mean he did have access to the sewers?”

Perfect. Ennea put a paw over her mouth, pretending to think. “No, the sewers have been off-limits since the start of winter. And the maintenance holes are locked. We had to track down the man working on them, a Scrafty named Chim, to get inside. There’s no way someone uninvolved with the Renovation Project could’ve managed this.”

Hiketeria stepped forward, her hooves clacking against the tiles. “Remarkable. Then it seems like it truly is impossible for the Vulpix to be the culprit.” She gave the judge a weary smile. “I apologize for the mishap on the part of the Town Guard. I’ll be sure to handle the search for the real criminal personally so that the next trial does not waste your time.”

The judge sighed. “Yes, I believe there is not much reason to go on. If a member of House Harmonie has such cause to object to it, we will have to adjourn this trial.”

Her gavel rose once more, ready to bring the case to a close.

“But a Scrafty isn’t quadrupedal or long-haired!” Thyreos shouted.

He didn’t even get a look back from Hiketeria. “Thyreos, you have done enough.”

The Excadrill flinched, suddenly looking much smaller in the face of his Chief’s calm, dismissive fury. “H-huh? But I was trying to—”

“That’s a good point, actually.”

All eyes went to Ennea.

There was no way still could sit still now, so Ennea resumed pacing as she explained. “Not all that many people have access to the sewers. In fact, the process of hiring a team to work with Chim is still ongoing. That means there’s hardly any quadrupeds able to get down there at all.”

Thyreos moved to say something, but stopped when he looked at Hiketeria. Instead, it was the prosecutor to take up the reins.

“So you freely admit that they couldn’t have been used.”

“I didn’t say that. By virtue of the money being down there, they had to be used.”

“Ennea Harmonie.” The judge lowered her gavel. “You seem to have quite a lot of opinions about what is and isn’t possible in this case. Are you implying that you know how the theft was performed?”

Here it was. The point of no return. Ennea looked back at Autumnal. Ever the loyal assistant, he gave her a nod.

“Yeah. We figured out exactly how this crime was enacted. But not just that.” Ennea took a dramatic step forward, looking straight up at the judge. “I can tell you who the real thief is!”

The audience erupted into noise. But before the Ledian could call for order again, they were all stopped by a hoofbeat.

“Ennea,” Hiketeria advised. “Don’t forget what’s at stake here. I trust your judgement that the Vulpix should be innocent, but a hasty accusation from an untrained civilian will have negative consequences.”

“I agree.” The judge looked out to the whole room, which was already frenzied enough. “Ennea Harmonie, as I understand it, your involvement in this trial was about whether or not your House would give its blessing to the prosecution of an unknown individual. That matter has been settled. Chief Hiketeria, I trust that you will see to the search for the true culprit yourself?”

“I’ll try,” Hiketeria sighed. Only Ennea could tell it was in relief. “The town council has me completely wrapped up in their matters. It is why I wasn’t involved with the investigation already. Fortunately, this should convince them to give me the hours I need. Rest assured, this time I’ll be the one to find the thief.”

“Objection!”

Ennea’s shout managed to silence the court better than a gavel ever could. But there was no time to revel in the feeling.

“That won’t do anything. Even if you had all the time in the world, you’d never bring the real thief to trial. Because…”

Ennea threw out her paw, cornering the Sawsbuck in a point.

“Chief Hiketeria!” she yelled. “You’re the only one who could have stolen the Merx Fortune!”

Despite the explosive rumbling from the audience, Hiketeria simply smiled in response.

“Ennea, this is exactly what I was talking about. There’s no possible way I could have done this. Don’t you remember? I’m so busy that even during the early hours of the crime I have a provable alibi.”

“The thief broke in by exploiting a flaw in the top secret Merx guard plan, while managing to salvage some plants in the process. That sounds like the exact kind of thing a Grass-Type would be able to do. And you, Chief Hiketeria, were the creator of the guard plan being used! Isn’t that right?”

“Of course. I would never deny that.”

Yeah right. You just can’t because you already know Calvera’s here to fact check.

“But,” Hiketeria continued. “It’s a stretch to assume that only the plan’s creator could find a flaw. Prospective thieves have had three whole years to try and break it. I may be good, but a guard plan will always have limits.

“And claiming the culprit was a Grass-Type simply because of a few plants? That’s biased profiling. Miss Polaris also just said you ‘helped her realize’ they were disturbed. Sounds as if it wasn’t a conclusion she reached naturally.” Hiketeria’s expression turned cold. “It’s flimsy evidence. If you were a guard you’d be fired on the spot.”

“Ennea Harmonie. You’ve already disrupted this trial enough.” The Ledian was back to glaring at her. “Drop it. Baseless accusations are not looked upon fondly in here.”

“Your honor, trust me, I’m going somewhere with this! As Urania, one of the Merxes’ top workers and trusted aide attested, there was no possible way that lockpicks or psychic manipulation was used to get inside the manor! And everything was locked!”

“Then how do you believe they got in?”

“Simple! They opened the front door!”

The judge facepalmed. “Ennea….”

“I’m serious! They used a key to unlock it, which is why there was no sign of tampering!”

“A key they never could have had,” Hiketeria chided. “I was there for the trial three years ago. The Merxes destroyed every extra key to the manor.”

“Three years. You like to bring that up a lot. Which is convenient for me, because that was part of this, too! Three years ago, a key to Merx Manor was used as evidence in a case. For an entire week leading up to the trial, you had exclusive access to it! That’s more than enough time to make a secret duplicate! No one else had that kind of opportunity, and no other method to get inside the manor makes sense!”

“Several are still possible. Did the Merxes properly salt their entrance? A Ghost-Type could have easily broken in if not, and that would explain the supposed state of the plants. Ennea, please. You’re making a fool of yourself.”

“Yes, I can’t say I see the logic,” the judge agreed. “Of all people to accuse, Chief Hiketeria is undoubtedly the worst.”

“Mm!”

The judge raised an eyebrow at Autumnal. “Defendant? If you have something to say, speak up.”

“Your honor, he can’t. Something happened recently that has left him more or less mute.” Ennea smiled back at Autumnal. “It’s why I believe he was accused of this—he couldn’t explain himself at all.”

“Hm! And yet you’ve managed to prove him innocent anyway.” The Ledian closed her eyes for a moment. “That must have been difficult. So then, Autumnal, was it? What point are you trying to make here?”

Autumnal gave a grateful bow to the judge. Then he pointed at Ennea, nodded, and gave a tail-thumbs up.

The judge squinted. “…Well. I certainly can’t say I envy your position, Ennea. But if I were to guess… it would appear that he wants to make his faith in you known.” She took a deep breath. “Very well. Ennea, you will be given 15 more minutes.”

“Your honor, I don’t understand.” Hiketeria forced a smile as she pointed at the Vulpix she’d framed. Leaves of a laurel tree sprouted from her hoof. “Continuing to let unfounded accusations fly because the defendant wishes for it?”

“This is a place of justice, where those without voices may be heard.” The judge nodded down at Autumnal. “It would seem that this one has been lacking in that recently. I will honor his request to remedy that.”

“To remind you, I have an alibi corroborated by a trusted member of the community at the exact time of the crime.”

“Yeah? That’s Kyniska you’re talking about, right?” Ennea looked around the courtroom with a smirk. “And where is she?”

“She isn’t here if that’s what you’re wondering. I cannot claim to know what she’s thinking exactly, but she most likely didn’t see any reason to attend.”

“What, it doesn’t have to do anything with her misadjusted clock?”

Hiketeria’s mouth curled.

“Ennea Harmonie.” The Ledian’s glare was gone, replaced by a far more curious look. “Explain.”

“Your honor, she doesn’t—”

“Kyniska is real good friends with Hiketeria,” Ennea interrupted. “But she doesn’t get to see her much anymore. She’ll take any opportunity to meet up, even if it means getting beaten half to death in a sparring match that supposedly took place during the time of the crime.

“Why wouldn’t she show up to this? She’s the source of Hiketeria’s alibi, is knowledgeable about the previous theft at Merx Manor, and was part of my investigation. On a related note, during that investigation, why did she insist on eating lunch as late as 3 PM, and get the time wrong by exactly 3 hours when I asked her about it?

“I’ll tell you: it’s because her clock’s three hours slow, and her dojo doesn’t have any windows! When she thinks it’s 1 AM, it’s really 4 AM! Your alibi is for the wrong time!”

“Even if that was true, you can’t prove her clock was slow the night of the crime.” Hiketeria stomped in front of Ennea, leaves scattering in her wake. Now this was a showdown. “I don’t even match the description of the thief, apart from being quadrupedal.”

“Oh?” Ennea grinned. “Then let me explain exactly how this theft was performed, and it’ll all become clear!”

“This is ridiculous. Your honor—” Hiketeria moved to appeal to the judge, but the Ledian’s eyes remained on Ennea.

“The crime really began three years ago, with Chim’s arrest. The key he stole was kept as evidence for an entire week, giving Hiketeria time to create a secret copy that wouldn’t be destroyed. After just a year, she struck a deal to collaborate with Chim on the Sewer Renovation Project, but put it on pause this winter, giving her exclusive access to the system.”

Ennea continued pacing, beginning to circle around Hiketeria. “On the night of the crime, Hiketeria exploited the flaw she’d left in the Merx guard plan to sneak through the garden, and unlocked the front door. All she had to do next was get to the safe.”

Hiketeria slammed a hoof, stopping Ennea in her tracks and regaining the court’s attention. “Which you never explained how I supposedly opened. I happen to know from the past trial that it’s practically unbreakable.”

“Oh, well that’s easy. The same way you got through the front door: the intended way. You just used the code!”

“And how in the world would I know that?!”

“The same way I do, and Polaris does: Calvera said it out loud in her sleep the very night of the crime!”

“What?!” Calvera was digging her talons into the wooden railing at the end of the gallery.

“Ennea Harmonie.” The judge was looking skeptical again. She was losing her. “How in the world could you ever prove something like that?”

“With a bit of help. Hey, Polaris?” Ennea asked. “You were woken up by your mom’s sleep talking when the crime happened, right? It was why you were awake in time to see the culprit. Can you tell her exactly what it was she said?”

“I… I can. One moment.” Polaris got up on her tip-toes, whispering to her mother as Calvera’s eyes suddenly went wide, and she squeezed the railing hard enough to crack it.

“Seems like we’ve got confirmation!” Ennea slid in front the witness podium to again face Hiketeria directly. Laurel branches were curling around the Sawsbuck’s hind legs. “The safe was no issue! What was an issue was getting caught by Polaris just as you were leaving. She injured you, and suddenly your plan was falling apart.

“Luckily, you had the perfect escape route!” Ennea slammed a paw to the ground. “The sewers! You ventured through them, despite the fact that a Mystery Dungeon has formed inside them!”

That got the crowd talking, and not in a good way. Worry and confusion laced the mutterings that fell over the room.

“…That’s the real reason you had work stop, isn’t it?” Ennea frowned at the thought. “You didn’t want anyone to know. Is that why you did this? Because your excuse that the weather wasn’t right for it was about to run out?”

“Fear mongering to give weight to your accusation of a woman whose only crime is working too hard. House Harmonie will stoop to any lows these days, it seems.” The branches around Hiketeria’s legs tensed. “Or is that just you? Need I remind you that the thief was injured?”

“Oh, you got around that the same way you gained an alibi.”

“What?” the judge chimed in. “How could she have done that?”

“A sparring match! One that really hurt Kyniska. But weirdly, Hiketeria wound up without any wounds to speak of.” Ennea pointed to the Sawsbuck’s antlers. “Of course, that’s because you can heal yourself through fighting! Horn Leech even gave you a type advantage over Kyniska! Through sparring with her, you not only gained an alibi, but also covered up your injuries—at least enough to remain inconspicuous!”

“And then what Ennea, I just went along with my day? Left the money where it could be found and hoped for the best? Must I point out every hole in this theory?”

“Your guards meet by 6 AM. Your sparring match had to end past 4. You were out of time. You’d kept yourself inconspicuous, but it was too late to haul over one million Poké out of town. If you wanted to keep your crime under wraps, you’d need to return to your job and get someone else to take the blame.”

Ennea looked back at Autumnal. “And wouldn’t you know it, a mysterious Vulpix happened to be brought in. One who was injured in a similar way to yourself and couldn’t even talk. He’d be easy to frame.”

“That would be awfully convenient. Between this and the sleep talking, your entire theory hinges on coincidence.”

“It was awfully convenient. But what wasn’t was your mistake. In framing him.”

Hiketeria dropped all pretenses, giving Ennea an oppressive glare. “Mistake?”

“C’mon, don’t you remember? You failed to relay all the information to the guards when you told them to arrest him. You said the thief was injured and quadrupedal.” Ennea played with the crescent-shaped tuft on her head for show. “Aren’t you forgetting something?”

Hiketeria took a moment before letting out a mirthless chuckle. “Oh, you’re right. I have forgotten. You never even bothered to explain that unlike the thief, I lack any sort of long hair.”

“You forgot then, too. And you were too busy to correct them before they told me.” It was funny. That one misstep led to all of this.

“But why would Chief Hiketeria have forgotten about the thief’s most notable characteristic?” the judge asked.

“Once again, it’s the simple solution: she didn’t know it! And why would she? If she’s the thief, but doesn’t have long hair, why would she know that’s how they’d be reported?”

“Clearly this means I can’t be the thief! How would I be seen as having long hair? I hope you’re not about to claim something as inane as season manipulation!”

“I can explain exactly how!” Ennea brought a paw to her mouth. “One thing repeatedly confused me during my investigation. The Merxes didn’t realize they’d been robbed until they checked their empty safe. But isn’t that weird?”

“What was so strange about that?”

“The thief had been seen as they were fleeing.” Ennea held up a paw to offer up Polaris. “It may have been too dark for anything more than a silhouette, but 1 million Poké is a lot. Shouldn’t Polaris have noticed all the money they were carrying?”

“But I’m certain,” Polaris piped in. “I did not see anything more than what I told you.”

“You did! You just didn’t know it! It all makes sense once you think about how Hiketeira would carry that money! When you saw the thief, you saw something else!”

Ennea ripped out the bag of cash she had brought from the sewers, swinging it up before smashing it down to the ground, coins spilling out onto the floor as she did.

“Bags! Bags of cash hanging from her antlers! Bags that in the dead of night instead looked like long hair!”

At last, the courtroom went completely silent. Everyone stared at the bag now lying on the floor. It was easily long enough for the illusion to work. With that, Ennea had explained everything.

“Well, that certainly is something!”

Ennea’s eyes went to Hiketeria, a smile back on the Sawsbuck’s face.

“If nothing else, I applaud your imagination. I’m sure you could have a promising career writing detective fascicles. But come on, such a story is completely absurd!” Hiketeria looked to the judge, the audience, even the now silent prosecutor. Whatever she was trying to gain by glancing between all of them, it came off more like begging. “We can all agree, right? There’s no possible way anything like what she described could have happened in reality!”

“Chief Hiketeria.”

“I mean, goodness, it’s a creative idea, but you’ll have to work on some of the details before you get it published. You never even explained why Lady Calvera happened to leak the safe code in her sleep.”

Hiketeria pranced around, shedding the laurel branches and trying to force away whatever anxiety being cornered had left her with.

“And really, the idea that I would do all of this, when all I’ve done this past decade is try to improve the town any way I can! I practically gave up my life just to do more work! That I would throw that away over something wrong in the sewers is—!”

“Chief Hiketeria.”

Hiketeria whipped her head up to the judge. The Sawsbuck was the only one in the room still smiling.

“Please,” the judge continued. “Sit down.”

She ran a hand across her gavel as her expression twisted into something somber.

“…There’s a trial that must be held.”

Hiketeria blinked once. Then again. She took a deep breath. Didn’t seem to exhale. One more blink. Then she relaxed, slowly nodding as she did. She brought her gaze to Ennea, standing in front of her right in the center of the courtroom.

Ennea rose as Hiketeria took a step forward, meeting the defeated Sawsbuck head-on. She already knew what came next, the perpetrator losing their cool and cursing the Ace Investigator for thwarting them! And Ennea had done it! She’d won! She had saved the—!

Everything that came next happened too fast. There was a flash of movement. A familiar voice crying out. Then something slammed into Ennea’s side. And an impact to her back finally plunged her into darkness.

 

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Ennea groaned as she managed to come to. Her ears hurt; it was too loud. A deafening roar never seemed to let up. The pain made it hard to draw herself back up. Her back hurt, too. What had she hit?

She absentmindedly felt the wall behind her, wooden with intricate paneling. This was… the defendant’s side? That was where she was? Someone shoved her all the way over? Her eyes were still straining to adjust, leaving her with only vague splashes of color.

Everything stopped.

Ennea fought against the blur in the center of her vision. No, no, no, that wasn’t real. She was just tired. Not fully woken up yet. All she had to do was focus, and it would go away.

It didn’t go away. It clouded her eyes, refusing to disappear.

A mess of orange. And a growing spot of crimson under it.

“Wh…at…?”

Ennea shook her head, slow and jittery like that broken lever they’d pulled. It didn’t bring any clarity.

“Autumnal…?”

Ennea could only watch. Ennea’s body took a step forward. Ennea felt her eyes began to cloud again. Ennea’s body stumbled through the empty room. Ennea tried to blink the sight away. Ennea’s body nearly fell when something thudded past her. Ennea felt something wet dribbling down her face. Ennea’s body refused to stop.

“N-no…. This wasn’t… this wa-wasn’t s-supposed to….”

It was him. He pushed her. That was his voice she’d heard. There was an attack coming her way that she didn’t even notice. But he did.

In the silence they’d been left in, Ennea could finally see his body, limp on the floor. Pooling blood spreading out. It wouldn’t stop. Why wouldn’t it stop? It was bigger than he was now. Orange and cream hairs drifted down the stream, like lilies in the lake. His face was expressionless, eyes closed, locked in what almost looked like a sigh. Ennea sank into the sea of red surrounding him.

“I w-was supposed to s-save you….”

It wasn’t real. It wasn’t real. It wasn’t real. It wasn’t real. It wasn’t real.

The way his tails splayed out and uncurled. That wasn’t real. The shackles that would never be removed. That wasn’t real. The stillness in his chest. That wasn’t real. The gnarled pair of gashes in his stomach, endlessly adding to the ocean they were drowning in. Arceus, why wouldn’t it stop. That wasn’t real either.

Ennea’s paw reached out to Autumnal’s face. Ennea didn’t know why.

She was supposed to save him. To prove him innocent and give him freedom. He trusted her. Assisted her. Believed in her. And now he was—

An awful cough racked Autumnal’s chest, his eyes snapping open for one, far too short moment as he vomited blood all over Ennea’s outstretched paw. Some of it even got on her face.

Alive.

The world faded back in, returning Ennea and Autumnal to the courtroom. Autumnal had been thrown against the wall on the prosecution’s side. Everything else was complete pandemonium. Members of the audience pushed past each other in a chaotic stampede to flee the room where everything had gone horribly wrong.

Of course, someone else was trying to flee as well. Hiketeria was fighting through the courtroom’s guards as she too tried to reach the exit. It was 5 on 1. Utterly unfair odds. She was easily winning, tossing them aside in moments.

Ennea glared up at an Excadrill, standing dumbstruck by her side as he watched it all unfold.

“What are you doing?!” she yelled. “Why are you just watching?!”

“There… must be some kind of mistake.” Thyreos’s eyes were blank as he shook his head. “The Chief wouldn’t do something like this. She wouldn’t.”

Are you kidding me?! Dammit, you’re even more useless than I am!

“Hey!” Ennea smacked Thyreos’s leg, forcing him to look at her. “Don’t just stand there! Help him!”

Ennea thrust out her paw at Autumnal behind her, quickly bleeding out on the floor.

“There—” she choked. “There’s still time! Please!”

“I—I don’t….” Thyreos’s pupils finally narrowed. “Alright. I can do that.”

He knelt down and scooped the Vulpix into his claws. It was a surprisingly gentle motion for him. Ennea’s eyes still burned at the way he let Autumnal’s tails spill over.

“How will I… get him out?”

Both of them looked back at the exit, Hiketeria now down to just 2 guards in her way.

“Just go!” Ennea snarled. “I’ll be a distraction!”

Hiketeria downed the last of the courtroom guards in her way, leaving them in a crumpled heap on the ground. As others ran past her to escape, she tensed up, crouching down to leap off into an unearned freedom.

The moment she tried to pounce, two heads chomped down onto her hind legs, managing to use her jump to swing her around. Hiketeria was thrown back, twisting her body as she soared before landing into the center of the courtroom with perfect control.

A lone Zweilous now stood in her way, guarding the exit as the rest of the audience took their leave.

“Salute,” Chief Hiketeria ordered. “Stand down. This is bigger than you can understand.”

“No!” Salute dug his claws into the ground. “I’m right where I need to be!”

“Salute, that’s an order. I am your superior, and I’m telling you to back off.”

Salute bared his fangs, speaking each word in a low, deliberate tone.

“I only listen to justice.”

Hiketeria stopped, her brows furrowing in frustration. And then, a low chuckle escaped her as she bowed her head and gave it a slow shake.

“Oh, Salute….”

When she looked back up to Salute, a pained glare was on her face.

“Bless your simple heart.”

Without another moment wasted lamenting the loss of her loyal guard, Hiketeria charged in. Her blood-soaked antlers were coated in a blinding lime-green glow, sharpening and curving into something like a pair of pincers before she brought them down.

Salute strained to catch the Megahorn using both jaws. His claws tore out floor tiles as Hiketeria pushed him closer and closer to the door with each of her overpowering steps. He gnawed down even harder, even as the attack began to threaten his throats.

Ennea was moving before she even knew it, glaring at Autumnal’s blood dripping from Hiketeria’s head into Salute’s maws. She leaped up onto the witness podium, and with a lurch of her whole body released her best Swift yet.

Nine shining stars collided with the Sawsbuck’s flank, only able to make her flinch. But that was enough for Salute, who threw her by the antlers into the defendant’s wall.

The exit was open. Luckily, for once Thyreos was going to do his job right and clambered out with Autumnal still in his claws.

Hiketeria only gave his escape a moment of acknowledgement, before scowling at Ennea.

“Hey!” Salute scowled at Ennea as well. “Get out of here! You’ll get hurt!”

“I don’t care! She hurt Autumnal!” Ennea shook the tears from her eyes. “And do you really think you can beat her alone?!”

“I—” Salute was interrupted by Hiketeria springing past him towards the exit. He acted fast, shoving her with a shoulder check, but she simply redirected the momentum, straight to the witness podium.

A dive to the side was all Ennea had time for before Hiketeria utterly demolished the podium, a downwards swipe of her antlers tearing it to pieces. From the wreckage, she stomped down on a broken stake, sending it flipping up into the air.  Just as it reached its apex, she slammed her antlers into it like a bat, launching it down directly at the Eevee.

Thank Arceus Ennea used Quick Attack when she panicked. She pushed off from the ground just in time to only get clipped by the resulting splinters. She tried rolling through Hiketeria’s legs, but it was a bad call, as she got kicked on the way out for her troubles.

Salute managed to catch Ennea’s tumbling form just before she crashed into the prosecution’s wall. But he couldn’t spend a moment consoling her. He leaped in front of the exit again, stopping Hiketeria from taking advantage of the situation even if it meant tanking her onslaught.

Ennea watched the two trade blows as she uncontrollably shuddered on the ground. Salute’s jaws parried as many swipes of Hiketeria’s antlers as he could, but each time sent him further and further back, the clacks of antlers impacting his teeth ringing out each time. He didn’t even have time to fight back. He needed help. But Ennea couldn’t move. The whole time, she stared wide eyed through the window of her fear.

A drop of blood fell from Ennea’s chin to her paw. As her eyes wandered to the splotch it had left, she realized she didn’t even know whether this one belonged to her or Autumnal.

If Hiketeria escaped, his blood would have been spilled for nothing.

Salute cried out as one of his fangs was sent flying, Hiketeria’s attack too strong for even him to block. She shoved the dragon to the side and moved for the exit again, only to be slammed in the stomach by Ennea in a full-body Quick Attack.

Salute didn’t waste the opportunity, whipping his heads into a double Headbutt that sent Hiketeria sliding back to the destroyed witness podium.

“I said get out of here!” Only Salute’s left head talked. The other winced at its missing tooth.

“And I said you can’t beat her alone!” Ennea jumped out of the way of a flying chunk of wood. “You’ve got my help, take it or leave it!”

Salute roared, indigo flames licking from his maw. “Fine! But stay away and only use ranged attacks! Do not let yourself get hurt!”

As Hiketeria was rearing up to launch another stake of wood, her ammo was hit by a Dragon Rage, scattering it in a shower of sparks and woodchips.

A perfect opportunity! Ennea made a dash back for the prosecution’s bench while sawdust rained down. Her heart stopped when Hiketeria landed in front of her.

“I don’t think so.” The flowers on Hiketeria’s antlers bloomed, scattering petals as they began to glow. “You won’t be beating me with basic tactics like that, traitor.”

“I—” Ennea shook her head and began to let energy build at her base. “You framed Autumnal! Y-you nearly killed him!” Yes. Nearly. It had to be nearly.

Everything smelled like sap. “I was saving everyone here a lot of trouble! I let you continue because I thought you had some kind of plan for him, but clearly not!”

“Plan?! I just wanted to help him! To be his friend!”

Hiketeria swiped her antlers back, splattering a mix of Autumnal and Salute’s blood on the wall behind her. “The best way to help him would be to let him die! I’m trying to make the world a better place, and I won’t stop just because you’ve lost sight of that!”

Hiketeria lunged. Ennea barely dodged the Horn Leech in time despite knowing it was coming. As the Eevee dashed to the side, she turned and released the Quick Attack, leaping all the way to the top of the prosecutor’s bench.

She couldn’t catch her breath. Hiketeria spun around to Ennea, Horn Leech still ready and vengeance in her eyes.

“Hey! Don’t forget who you’re fighting!”

Clad in a crackling, Tyrian purple aura, Salute crashed into Hiketeria’s back. It was the first attack to draw a gasp from the Sawsbuck. And as she staggered forward then turned to face the dragon, she was pelted by a Swift to the skull from Ennea.

“Dragon Rush.” Hiketeria cracked a conflicted smile at Salute as she shook off the attacks. “You’ve gotten stronger. But you still won’t be able to beat me.”

Hiketeria jumped onto her front legs. Wait, what’s she—?!

With her back legs, Hiketeria kicked the prosecutor’s bench. Ennea had barely a split second to jump off before it crunched into the wall. The momentum carried her all the way onto the benches of the gallery above, but she didn’t have any time to regain her composure.

Hiketeria slammed the ground, sending tiles flying. From their holes, blades of grass sprouted up and twisted into vines that grasped the ruined mess of the bench and further crushed to bits. And during all this, she brought her still ready antlers down onto Salute, forcing the dragon to use his one good set of fangs to catch it.

Run. Through the shaking, Ennea managed to scamper off just as the first ball of shrapnel was launched her way. It decimated the benches behind her and shredded part of her tail. Ennea kept on running. Explosions of wood boomed behind her, getting closer and closer each time. Faster, you need to be faster!

It was half-formed, but Ennea used one more Quick Attack to jump out of the gallery and back to the floor just before it was completely destroyed. Even as she landed wrong, she stumbled back into her mad dash to the defense’s bench, ducking behind for cover.

Ennea trembled behind the bench, hiding backstage. Like a coward.

C’mon, get back out there! Do it for Autumnal! You still have his blood on you, dammit!

She managed to clamber halfway up the bench, only to be greeted with the horrible sight of a vine preparing to throw the last of the other bench right at her. Too late to dodge.

“Hey!”

Salute rocketed towards Hiketeria, the aura of Dragon Rush sparking over him once more. She was forced to turn, throwing the last of the shrapnel at him instead. Salute simply charged through, even as the hail of wood tore holes in his body.

He slammed Hiketeria’s chest, enough to send her sliding back to the judge’s bench. But she was ready, antlers blooming once more in an awfully beautiful glow. She swiped down, but Salute’s heads moved out of the way. She swiped to the side, but a pair of Dragon Rages burst from his maws, the kickback sending him whirling around. He turned the spin into a strike, smashing his heads against the back of Hiketeria’s.

It sent the Sawsbuck stumbling forward, but as Salute leaped in for another attack, she turned it around, twirling and scooping her antlers up to skewer his chest.

Just as the Horn Leech was sinking deep, a handful of stars cut it off, forcing Hiketeria to pull it out early. Another thing to thank the gods for. Swift was incredibly accurate, especially from a high vantage point.

Hiketeria growled at Ennea, the girl now atop the bench and already preparing another round of Swift. A horrid concoction of red and amber dripped from the Sawsbuck’s antlers. The Horn Leech must’ve been interrupted just in time.

Ennea whipped her body, throwing the stars at Hiketeria in a curve that would target her side. As they flew, Salute powered through his injuries and threw his heads at Hiketeria. She blocked his predictable attack, and just as Ennea’s Swift was about to hit, a grassy vine tore through the ground to flick the stars away.

But she was on the defensive! That was good! Ennea panted as she threw more and more stars at Hiketeira, easily deflected, but still a distraction. Salute pounced on the opportunity, sending his heads in different directions to finally get a good hit to Hiketeria’s chest even as it earned him a good slash from her antlers. They were finally doing damage!

A vine wrapped around Ennea’s leg. Panic? She didn’t even have enough time. Before even the whiplash to her head could register, Ennea was flying through the air, straight towards Hiketeria’s antlers, ready to impale her the same way they did Autumnal.

Just as Ennea was realizing that she was about to die, an indigo explosion burst at the edge of her vision. A Dragon Rage hit her in the side, knocking her away and sending her crashing down onto something metallic.

Ennea lay on her side, unable to think. She couldn’t feel anything but the sting of where Salute had hit her to save her life.

She blinked, and fire took up her whole vision. It was enough to remind her of where she was.

Ennea forced herself up, standing atop one of the plates the statue of Zygarde was holding. It was a miracle she didn’t wind up in the flames. She willed herself to see, looking down at the continuing battle between Hiketeria and Salute. 1 on 1.

Move. You need to move. You have to! Salute’ll lose if you don’t! Autumnal trusted you! You can’t let Hiketeria win!

Wait. Autumnal trusted her with something else, too.

Ennea ripped open her bag.

I hate her! So why the fuck am I fighting fair?!

Ennea leaped off the scales, a Quick Attack sending her flying down towards the fracas. As Hiketeria was completely distracted savaging Salute, Ennea took her shot. Using the momentum of the fall, she threw the Poison Spike as hard as she could.

The Poison Spike stabbed into Hiketeria’s hip, making a leg spasm and giving Salute enough time to bash her with his now bloodied heads.

Hiketeria went to counter, to give retribution to her guard, but flinched as she tried to step off with the leg the poison was now spreading through. She glared back at Ennea with just as much hatred as Ennea herself felt.

Ennea landed onto the ground hard, but ignored the pain in her own legs. With poison, the advantage was all theirs. As long as they could keep her here, their victory was guaranteed.

Something rumbled in Hiketeria’s throat. “I’ve had enough!” Twisting laurel branches burst through the ground, batting Salute away like a ragdoll.

Hiketeria stomped down with her injured leg, dislodging the Poison Spike. “You won’t stop me from doing what’s necessary!”

Ennea dove to the side as a branch of the Grass Knot slammed down at her, destroying more of the once pristine courtroom. “Wh-what could ever be necessary about framing an innocent person for stealing a fortune that doesn’t belong to you?!”

The glare in Hiketeria’s eyes deepened. But then, something gave her pause. “Wait….”

But a lapse in focus just allowed for Salute to come on in. He chomped down onto her hind legs, swinging her up, then right back down into the ground. The poison made her too slow to react.

She was still quick enough to recover. Grass Knots popped up below, springing Hiketeria back to her feet. With a far colder glare, she swung her head back, branch-like vines whipping out from the flowers on her antlers and latching onto the railing of the one remaining gallery.

Hiketeria ripped out stakes and gave a massive heave of her head, throwing them at Ennea and Salute. Before either of them had even landed from leaping out of the way, Hiketeria did it again, tearing out more and more of the building to use as weapons against them.

Ennea could manage to use Quick Attack just fast enough to keep herself safe. But Salute wasn’t so lucky. After the fourth missile, he finally dodged too slow, and was hit hard enough to send him all the way into the wall, crashing through a good chunk of it.

More attacks. They needed more attacks! Ennea charged up a Swift, but the glow was weaker. All she needed to do was to just distract Hiketeria long enough for the poison to take her down!

Ennea shuddered as she felt something behind her. She panicked, turned and launched the Swift at Hiketeria, somehow having circled around without her realizing!

The stars tore through Hiketeria’s form, shredding it into twigs and leaves. Ennea’s eyes widened as the fake Sawsbuck fell apart. It was just a hastily constructed copy. A Substitute.

No! Ennea turned around to see Hiketeria bounding towards the exit. Salute was still stuck in his hole in the wall. She was home free! Ennea ran forward, mind racing. Swift wouldn’t be enough to stop her. She only had time for one attack, and it had to be ranged.

Ennea thrust a paw into her bag, grabbing the mystery seed her and Autumnal had gotten back in Epiphany Sewers. C’mon, seed of instant death, seed of instant death!

She threw the seed, then pelted it in mid-air with a star to give it more speed. The seed hit right on target, colliding with Hiketeria’s back and bursting into a colorful powder just as the Sawsbuck broke down the double doors. Before she could take another step, a sparkling light surrounded her, and with a pop! she disappeared.

S-seed of instant death?!

The clack of hooves on tile sounded behind Ennea. Even while still turning, she was certain this one was real. It was just a seed that teleports you?!

No, she wasn’t about to look a gift horse in the mouth. She was about to hit a gift Sawsbuck in one.

Ennea forced all the energy she could muster into another set of stars and threw them right at Hiketeria. The Sawsbuck was still getting her bearings from having warped across the room, so she really did get hit in the teeth. It sent her stumbling back, and as she used her poisoned leg she flinched.

Not long enough to be taken advantage of, though. She stomped a hoof down to grow more Grass Knots, the branches stabbing at Ennea. They formed circles as she scurried around them, barely avoiding being snared.

“Hey!”

An indigo fireball tore apart a branch about to clench Ennea’s tail. Salute staggered back in, still standing strong despite leaving a trail of blood in his wake.

“Do not get grabbed! She uses Grass Knot to control the battlefield!” Salute tore out a branch that had wrapped a leg.

“I noticed!” Ennea zipped around Hiketeria, Quick Attack now barely fast enough to give the Sawsbuck the run around. Playing so close to her antler swipes was a dangerous game, but it kept Salute from taking any more damage.

A hoof smashed into Ennea’s side, the kick still having enough power to send her into the prosecution’s wall. For once, she managed to mentally recover immediately, her body now numb to the pain. But physically, she could barely move, falling back over the moment she tried to get to her feet.

She saw Hiketeria stalk forward, advance slowed by her poisoned leg. But Salute was at his breaking point, unable to do anything but pant as he watched Hiketeria’s antlers begin to flower once more. If she hit him with that attack, it was all over for them.

How? How did it come to this? How was she poisoned, unprepared, already weakened from fighting 5 other combatants, and still beating them?! Ennea had already used up all the items Autumnal had led her to!

But Ennea felt something hard still in her bag. She had used up all the items she’d gained on her adventure with Autumnal. That meant there was still one more.

Ennea tore out the Petrify Orb. Salute had said it would “just work.” He had better be right about that, or else he was about to pay with his life.

As Ennea smashed the Orb right into the ground, sending shards into her paw. A lightning storm burst out from the glass, moving out like a field of static across the whole room. As it passed Hiketeria, her movement stopped. She locked up, legs trembling as she fought against the paralyzing effect.

Salute turned to Ennea, the shock on his faces betraying he’d forgotten about giving Ennea that Orb. It seemed like he could still move. Wouldn’t you know it, it really did get whoever your enemies were.

“Salute!” Ennea called as she limped over. “I-… I have an idea!”

It had occurred to her as she thought about how screwed they were, and just how many handicaps Hiketeria was working with in this fight. But she couldn’t explain the logic of it to Salute. He’d never agree to it if he knew what Ennea was about to exploit.

Salute didn’t respond, his heads snapping back to Hiketeria as a hoof of hers clacked. Slowly, painfully slowly, she managed to take a step. But it wouldn’t be slow for much longer, she was getting faster. So damn strong that even petrification was something she could overpower.

Seeing their incoming doom, Salute turned back to Ennea. He gave an exhausted wheeze. Ennea had delt with Autumnal enough to be able to figure out that was an invitation for her to explain.

“We need to hit her in the hind legs! Both of us at the same time!”

“That… will end the Orb!” Salute panted.

“It doesn’t matter! If this doesn’t work we’re both fucked anyway!”

Hiketeria let out a cry from her throat as she began to stagger forward. They were out of time to figure this out.

“Do it now!” Ennea shouted.

She forced whatever was left down to her legs. Her energy, her life, her hope, all of it. Then she let it all go, launching into one last Quick Attack. On the other side, Salute charged forward as his body began to flicker with that same purple glow.

As the hold the Petrify Orb had on Hiketeria broke, the two slammed into her hind legs, perfectly timed down to the millisecond in a pincer attack. Ennea felt the muscles give way on impact, too weak to withstand everything they had.

And then, something underneath snapped.

Ennea fell back onto the ground, rolling off from Hiketeria. The Sawsbuck tried to bring a leg up to stomp the prone girl, but then that leg buckled. It hit the ground, then bent. The wrong way.

Ennea knew it. Hiketeria had been rushed the night of the crime. Just like Salute, she seemed to have an abnormally high pain tolerance. So in her hurry, she only healed herself just enough to look inconspicuous. Underneath the façade, her leg had been barely functional these last three days.

Hiketeria cried out as her hind leg was rebroken, leaving her on the ground. Vines, grass, and laurel branches burst out from underneath a tile, trying to wrap themselves into a makeshift splint on the ruined leg, but it was already too late.

“Sir.”

Hiketeria looked up at Salute, now taller than her as she was forced to kneel.

One of Salute’s maws hung open, completely limp, blood oozing from where his fang had been ripped out. But he managed to make it move for his Chief.

“…You are under arrest.”

In his other head, he pulled out a seed, then crushed it. He blew the resulting fine powder into the Sawsbuck’s face. It was a strangely dignified scene. Not a drop of blood or spit was in the dust, and Hiketeria didn’t flinch. Instead, as her eyelids began to droop, she gave a sad, shaky smile.

“…Good job getting your first win on me, Salute.”

“Yeah. Thanks.”

Hiketeria’s head slumped to the ground. As she fell, so did Salute, his body far too damaged to keep going.

Around them was a crumbling courtroom, the very picture of a ruined process. And yet that statue of Zygarde still stood strong, watching over the three that had been left behind. Perhaps justice still existed in the world. But it didn’t really matter, not anymore. What mattered was what was waiting on the other side.

“…Autumnal….” Ennea sighed, numbness finally spreading to her head. “…I did it…. Please… be okay….”

And once more, Ennea was plunged into darkness.

 

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CHAPTER TRACKLIST:

 

1. Ennea Harmonie ~ Dreamer of the Day                                                       END POINT

2. By Any Means Necessary!                              END POINT