Chapter 31: Venishing Acts a Plenty

Yuna didn’t even have time to properly wallow in guilt from Vegna’s revelation. With a snap of his fingers — and her classmates looking on and laughing — the dusknoir summoned Talonflame and his corviknight flunky. The birds hastily shooed Nikki and Yuna towards the elevators. Even Artemis and Noctum got swept up in the commotion.

One thing Yuna did manage to catch was two of the machoke waiters hastily loading the water containers onto a pushcart. But the gold elevator doors closed seconds later, leaving her squished against a metal wall with Vegna staring her down, one hand gripping the railing. She hastily grabbed the railing, too. Otherwise she would end up on the floor.

“What the hell? I wasn’t even finished eating!” Nikki protested.

“You are now.” Vegna’s eye smoldered under his hood. “You two will be staying in your hotel room while we locate your grovyle compatriot. Perhaps there you can reflect on your… questionable decisions.”

Nikki had no retort. Her mohawk shrank a bit. Yuna, however, finally managed to find her voice, “What do you mean by that? Are you talking about Professor Cid?”

“You are welcome to interpret my comments however you wish, exchange student.” Vegna turned around his crossed his arms. The elevator arrived at the thirteenth floor. “But I do believe he would still have a job were it not for your so-called team.”

“And why did we get dragged into this?” Artemis huffed.

“The attendants will, naturally, attend.” Vegna flicked his right hand dismissively as he floated out the elevator.

“Heh! Way to put ’em in their places, V.” Griffon clapped his black metal wings together.

Vegna flicked Griffon’s beak. He pointed to Noctum. “Bring them to their room. Now.”

Noctum gulped. “Y-Yessir!” He stretched his right wing. “This way, ladies.”

Scowling, Nikki wiped pizza grease on her already messy thighs. Jamming her hands in her pockets, she grumbled, “Great. And I bet Vortex put us on the thirteenth floor on purpose.”

“What’s wrong with thirteen?” Yuna asked.

“You live under a rock or something, wyrmy? It’s the bad luck number!” Griffon cawed, earning another flick on his metallic beak.

Yuna failed to see how a number could symbolize bad luck. However, given the recent turn of events, perhaps the corviknight had a point?

“Don’t fall down the well of superstition. We’ll never get you out if you do!” Reshiram whined.

The room door opened with a creak. Noctum held the door open so Yuna and Nikki could enter. Blue carpeting swished under the charizard and toxtricity’s feet. The walls were tan, resembling the very beaches whose sand sparkled in the distance under the moonlight.

Nikki tossed her jacket onto the far bed and then leaped onto it. The pizza sauce and grease on her legs immediately stained the white blanket. “Well, I guess there are worse places to be grounded. Still, this is so stupid. I can’t believe Twiggy’s dicking us over like this!”

Yuna quietly floated to the other bed. Its white, silk blanket was cool against her ectoplasm. The dreepy ignored Nikki’s complaints. Her mind drifted back to Cid. He had followed Yuna’s teammates to the Crowne Court out of concern. And she was the one who called them in the first place.

“Don’t blame thineself,” Rayquaza piped up. “Thou could not have predicted thine teacher would follow. Nor could thou expect the chain of events that followed.”

… still. He got devolved fighting to free you. Yuna suppressed a wince at the memory of a screaming blipbug. He hadn’t even returned to teaching his classes! To get fired when he’s not mentally okay… Her thoughts trailed off.

“Helloooo! Etherium to Yuna.”

A turquoise throw pillow landed to Yuna’s right. The dreepy’s head jerked up. “Were you listening?” Nikki said. “You and Twiggy went on and on about these damned Needles… and now he’s giving us the death knell. Whatever the Reaper does to him… there’s no way he’ll be in top shape for tomorrow.”

Nikki rolled onto her back, groaning. The sounds of torn fabric followed. “Stick a fork in us! We’re cooked!”

“… oh.” Yuna stared at her blanket. She hadn’t even considered that. If Vegna was now their advisor, what would it mean if their team finished last in the first leg? Would they fall under constant supervision from the dusknoir? How would she be able to track down the rest of the Needles?

“Uh, did thou forget thine ability to open up portals?” Rayquaza said. “Pray that foul dusknoir cannot simply chase you inside Eternatus lest he meet the same troubles as the orbeetle.”

“Whatever Twiggy’s doing can’t be more important than the fate of the freaking world.” Nikki threw up her hands in exasperation.

“Shh!” Artemis pressed his tailfins to his lips. “Vegna’s bound to have stationed someone outside the room. Do you want them to overhear?” Shaking his head, the milotic scooped a remote control off the nightstand by Nikki’s bed. He clicked it and the flatscreen PV on the other side of the room came to life.

“Ever diligent, the proud fishermon exercise the utmost care in ensuring their feral catches remain secure in the specialized fishing nets.”

The male, monotone narrator spoke over footage of two seismitoad and a quagsire reeling in a massive net filled with weakly flailing magikarp.

“The hell is this crap?” Nikki sat up and squinted. “‘The Learning Channel?’ What sort of killjoy had this room last?” She shot Noctum an accusatory look. “This isn’t your doing, is it?”

“Absolutely not.” The black charizard held his hands up. “As nice as a good grilled fish is, I don’t want to watch them getting swept away like that.”

Artemis, on the other hand, couldn’t take his eyes off the PV. Even as the feral magikarp spilled out across a specialized bucket in the middle of the ship’s deck.

“Err, everything okay?” Noctum held his left wing up in front of Artemis.

The milotic flinched and looked away. “It’s nothing.” His eyebrows shriveled. “You already know I was a fisher once. Seems like another lifetime ago.”

Nikki crawled forward on her bed, smearing some more pizza sauce. “I know we asked about this on the train, but I think you lied about it not making you uncomfortable. They definitely catch feral feebas.”

Artemis turned to the window. “Maybe this is hinting at your challenge tomorrow?”

“Don’t deflect,” Nikki huffed.

“It’s not a deflection,” Artemis growled. “Fishing is a central part of Venish. So, maybe the first leg involves fishing?”

“Well, that’d be easy!” Nikki raised her right hand. Sparks crackled in it. “I could fry a pool of those stupid fish in a heartbeat.”

“Something tells me it won’t be that simple.” Yuna laughed nervously while Noctum walked past the beds toward the washroom. “Besides, we can’t afford to think recklessly.”

Nikki grabbed her bed’s other throw pillow and squeezed it. “Then tell that to Twiggy.”

Yuna had no desire to go in circles on this subject. Luckily for her, Artemis offered a convenient alternative. “Forget thinking about how you’ll fish.” The milotic curled his ribbons. “I’m more concerned about the water quality.”

“You mean what you saw when you were setting up our room?” Yuna traced an arm around the Soul Dew. Now was as good a time as any to bring up the bit she almost missed. “When we left the lobby, I saw some of the bellhops carrying away the water containers.”

“And?” Nikki shrugged. “Maybe they realized no one was drinking it.”

“Or they learned about what happened up here.” Artemis turned and narrowed his eyes. “I think the water here is contaminated.”

“Guys?”

“Then I guess it’s time to pray Pillow Princess and his ilk decide to brush their teeth and spend the night puking their guts out.” Nikki flopped on her back again. Her waist spikes poked more holes in her bed.

“You’re missing the point,” Artemis huffed.

“Guuuuys?”

“I don’t really see how faulty hotel plumbing is our problem,” Nikki scoffed, crossing her legs and tapping her left foot against the air.

Reshiram shifted around nervously in Yuna’s mind. “I think he’s getting at the idea that if the hotel water is contaminated… other places might be effected, too.”

Yuna repeated that. Artemis pointed a ribbon at her. “Exactly!”

“Again… so what?” Nikki rolled her eyes. “We ain’t the Super Marill Brothers or anything.”

“Guys!“

“Eep!” Yuna hopped into the air, gills shooting into her head. Noctum stuck his head out the washroom door, frowning.

“There’s no water,” the charizard exclaimed.

Nikki sat up. “What?”

“Did you try the shower?” Artemis asked.

“The sink and the shower.” Noctum clutched the straps of his floral print apron. “Someone must’ve turned the water off.”

Artemis again fixed a scrutinizing look on Nikki. “Well?” He gestured to the air with both ribbons.

“Okay, sure. You got me.” The toxtricity tossed the throw pillow behind her. “Something stinks about this. But I’ve gone plenty of days without a shower. I’ll live.” She sniffed her armpit and nodded. “A spray-on deodorant bath and I’ll be good.”

“This isn’t about bathing.” Artemis’ face reddened. “What if the canal system is also contaminated? If they send you guys out on the water tomorrow, you could have a serious problem on your hands.”

“What do you suggest, then?” Nikki rolled over onto her left side, resting her head on her left hand. “Wanna call Stoutland Yard? The Radiant Guard? There’s a gemcom right next to you. Go right ahead.”

Yuna looked between the milotic and the crystal connected to a tan, triangular base with a numeric keypad. A lightbulb then went off in her head. The dreepy turned to Noctum. “Hey, Noctum. Can you try calling someone in the Qliphoth? Ask them if there’s anything suspicious going on.”

His eyes brightened. “Oh, that’s a good idea, Princess.” Noctum waddled out of the washroom and tilted his head. “Hello? This is Noctum, calling in from Venish.”

Silence followed, until Noctum’s purple flame grew a smidge. “Oh, M-Miss Valkyrie. Wasn’t expecting to hear from you.” He laughed nervously. “Why do I sound so nervous? Well, y’see, we think the water in the hotel we’re staying at has been contaminated. Some pokémon got very sick from drinking it and they shut our water off.”

He fiddled with the pouch on his apron. “Yuna thought I should ask if you’ve noticed anything weird on your end.”

Again, there was silence. Yuna hoped the answer would be no, but her gills drooped when Noctum’s jaw stiffened.

“What? The tar pits were poisoned?” the charizard gasped.

“I bet they’re connected,” Reshiram glumly said.

Me too. Yuna rubbed her temples. The last thing she wanted was to go diving into Eternatus again. Especially when there were already people looking into things on that side. Maybe she could convince—

“Huh? No way! Those are extinct, aren’t they?” Noctum’s tone grew more worried by the second. “I mean, yeah, I know things are crazy there, but—” He stopped, eyes progressively widening. “They’re walking skeletons?“

Yuna floated closer. “What is it? What’s wrong?”

Noctum gulped. “Skeletal rampardos are attacking Valkyrie and the others! They’re coming out of the tar pits!” He looked down. A purple tint showed through his pink apron. “We have to help them… don’t we?”

Yuna recalled the earlier comment about Vegna stationing someone outside their room. She desperately wished to use that as an excuse to stay. But the dreepy knew she couldn’t sit on this. There had to be a link between the bad water and the poisoned tar. And if the latter could animate skeletons, what could it do to Venish if it seeped out through the distortion?

“I’ll go with you,” she whispered. The Soul Dew twinkled in affirmation. She glanced over at Nikki.

“You want some extra firepower?” Nikki’s mohawk sparked.

“N-no. I think you two should stay.” Yuna wrung her arms. “I’m small enough that it should be easy to pretend I’m still here. We don’t need to be getting in more trouble with our teachers, right?”

Nikki lay back down. “Suit yourself.”

Yuna looked to Noctum and nodded. “Let’s go.”

Chiaki flagged a private carriage to get him to the amphitheater. The bumps of Venish’s cobblestone streets gave way to smooth pavement as the carriage drew closer to its destination. With the sun having set, the amphitheater’s arches bathed the surrounding area in pink and tan lights. No doubt tuned to match the color scheme of tonight’s performer.

The grovyle disembarked and dropped several coins into a pouch strapped to one of the three ninjask pulling his carriage. He weaved between multiple parked carriages and omnibuses, all with lavishly dressed pokémon funneling toward metal gates. Chiaki looked up at the electronic sign over the gates, which had Starlene’s face next to “One Night Only: Radiant Diva Waltzes Through Time!”

As a suit-wearing grimmsnarl shoved Chiaki to the side, he instinctively reached for a hat that wasn’t there. How he wished he could hide his face. It wasn’t that Chiaki was bad with crowds, but uppity ones like this made his scales crawl.

Why couldn’t this have been one of her normal concerts?

Glowering, Chiaki walked right, trying to get past the people funneling toward the entrance gates. “Cyril, you there?” he whispered.

Silence followed.

“Cyril?” Chiaki hissed.

More silence.

“Pick up, damn it.”

Crackles graced his right ear frill. “Huh? Oh, yeah, sorry. Was a bit preoccupied.”

Chiaki resisted the urge to facepalm. “With what?”

“Zardy was talking to Val,” Cyril replied. “Seems there might be a water contamination issue at your school’s hotel. And given the tar pits in the Qliphoth have turned poisonous, odds are the whole city’s water supply might be in trouble.”

Chiaki froze mid-step. An octillery in a top hat and monocle bumped into him. “Hey, watch where you’re walking, ruffian!” he spat. “The entrance is that way.” Octillery pointed a tentacle back toward the gates.

To that, Chiaki produced his ticket from his breast pocket. “VIP, jackass,” he growled, then stormed off. Chiaki stole a glance back at Octillery’s dumbfounded expression before continuing toward a single metal gate with a glass security checkpoint beside it. A placard atop it said it was a special entrance for press and VIPs.

“Is everyone okay?” Chiaki asked, imagining his garchomp assistant standing on a small piece of land with bubbling tar pits all around her.

“That’s… debatable,” Cyril replied.

“The hell’s that supposed to—”

“Ticket, please.”

Chiaki had reached the checkpoint. The togetic in the glass box stared him down. Chiaki fished his ticket out of his breast pocket again and put it in the box’s slot. Togetic took the ticket and put it against a scanner. A beep sounded and she handed it back to the grovyle.

“Enjoy the show, sir.” Togetic’s expression turned cheerful. “And tell Becca I can’t wait to read her piece on tonight’s show.”

The metal bars in front of Chiaki swung open. “Will do,” he muttered, returning the ticket to his breast pocket and proceeding forward. Unlike the stone steps several meters to the left, the ones in front of Chiaki were relatively empty. He jogged up them, trying to focus once more on what Cyril had told him.

Chiaki was ready to press the zoroark for more details when he spotted a salazzle standing at the top of the stairs, leaning against the railing and running her right, black-gloved hand along her tight black dress. Typical holowear fare for her, as far as Chiaki was concerned.

Salazzle spotted him and narrowed her eyes.

“Took your sweet time, didn’t you?”

A sigh escaped Chiaki’s lips. “Nice to see you, too, si—”

Red embers grazed Chiaki’s right cheek. Salazzle walked down two stairs, put her index finger under Chiaki’s chin, and tilted his head up.

“Don’t ‘sis’ or ‘Kyoko’ me,” she hissed. “You’re in my world now. What was our deal?”

Chiaki stepped back, shoving Kyoko’s hand away. “That I’m ‘your weirdo cousin from your deadbeat dad’s side of the family who happens to be a huge Starlene fanboy.'”

Smiling, Kyoko leaned over and pet Chiaki’s head. “Very good.” She pulled her hand away before Chiaki could swat it out of irritation. “Now, put on a smile and act like you want to be here.”

The grovyle pursed his lips. “This wasn’t what I was expecting.”

Rolling her eyes, Kyoko adjusted the black purse dangling from her left elbow. “It was all written on the ticket. Not my fault if you didn’t read it.” She turned around, flicking his snout with the end of her tail. “You’re not going to shake your dead weight reputation with that kind of boneheadedness.”

Chiaki’s blood boiled. “I’m not dead weight,” he hissed.

Kyoko was already back up the stairs. “You don’t answer Dad’s calls. Or his letters. Everyone thinks you’ve ghosted the family.”

“We both know that’s not true,” Chiaki growled.

“I’m not getting into this any further.” Kyoko held her right hand up. “I paid my dues as Kyoko Ryujin. Tonight is about Becca Fontaine, the pulse of pop culture, covering Starlene’s first foray into a new music genre.” She began to walk off. “Now, smile and come along, or we’re going to miss the start.”

An unpleasant tingle spread down Chiaki’s prosthetic arm. He pulled it close against his torso and walked after his salazzle stepsister, stance slouching.

“Act like you want to be here, dweeb,” Kyoko chided.

Chiaki sucked in a deep breath and forced a smile. The corners of his lips quivered, but he tried his best to hide that fact.

As soon as all eyes are onstage, I can sneak away, he told himself. Don’t let her get to you. Stay composed. Remember why you’re here.

He quickened his pace to catch up with Kyoko, gazing at the semicircular rows of seats stretching back for meters from the rustic wooden stage.

“You ever think about how they protect everything from the elements?”

Chiaki rolled his eyes. He was in no mood to entertain Kyoko’s pathetic attempts at small talk. But then he glimpsed the icy look on her face and awkwardly widened his forced smile.

“I don’t, but they’ve probably got giant tarps,” he replied. “Y’know, like they use at pokébase and baccer stadiums.”

“Eh, I guess.” Kyoko shrugged. “And maybe they have flying-types clean up the arches when the weather settles.”

The walkway curved left, away from the seats. They walked down multiple sets of stairs. The pavement gave way to wooden planks flanked by velvet rope and curtains.

Chiaki wasn’t sure what he expected to find backstage, but he figured an old structure like the amphitheater would have cramped quarters. Instead, the grovyle found it quite spacious. Large metal containers sat neatly stacked against brick walls several meters away; likely homes for the acoustic and sound equipment when there weren’t any performances. A couple of dozen other pokémon littered the area. Some commiserated, others tried to find the perfect angle to view the stage.

“Cyril, is the camera feed working?” Chiaki whispered.

“Yup,” he responded. “Just remember to be careful with it, especially if you use the watch’s EMP.”

“Noted.” Smiling awkwardly once again, Chiaki nodded to an umbreon in a lilac dress. The tuxedo-wearing toxicroak beside her glanced at him and winked. Chiaki quickened his pace, cheeks burning.

“Ooh, you should ask for his digits.”

“Shove it,” Chiaki hissed.

“Then how about telling him there’s a hot, single zoroark who wants to get into his area?”

The tingling in his prosthetic was back, but even worse. Chiaki took a deep breath. It didn’t work. Trying to maintain his smile, he headed toward Kyoko, who found a spot next to the base of a stage light. She produced a notebook and pen from her purse and looked out at the stage with a sense of purpose.

“Not interested in socializing?” Chiaki wondered.

The salazzle licked the corner of her lips. “What do you think I was doing before you showed up?”

“Fair.” Chiaki stood at Kyoko’s side. The stage had cardboard cutouts fashioned after waves and sand dunes. More waves and metal bridges ran across both the back of the stage and the pit between the stage and the audience. Squinting, Chiaki made out assorted shadows holding violins, cellos, and basses.

“What’s even the point of all of this?” Chiaki tilted his head.

Kyoko sighed. “Horizon’s really got you living under a rock, huh?” She chuckled into her hand while Chiaki grumbled under his breath. “It’s the hundred and fiftieth anniversary of La Filarmonica. They’re doing a special concert series. Tonight’s theme is a tribute to the waltzes of the last century and a half.”

Chiaki resisted the urge to cringe. Starlene’s obnoxiously cheerful pop music was bad enough, but he had no idea how anyone could stand to listen to waltzes. They put him to sleep. “Why not get some opera or theater star to perform, then?” he wondered. “Why Starlene?”

“Hell if I know.” The salazzle shrugged. “If I had to guess, it’s an attempt at staying relevant.”

Chiaki blinked. The stage lights made it impossible to see how full the audience actually was, but he could hear chatter. “Crowd doesn’t sound small.”

“Well, my colleagues at Rogue sure seem to think La Filarmonica is struggling to drum up support.” Kyoko clicked her pen repeatedly. “Between Polaris Vision, movie theaters, pop stars like Starlene, and underground groups like Crimson Cloud, fewer folks want to shell out for traditional forms of entertainment.”

“So, this is a desperation move by an institution on life support.”

Kyoko snorted. “Your hate boner for Polaris is showing. I don’t think things are that bad yet.”

Chiaki could have retorted that Starlene was managed by one of Polaris’ many subsidiaries, but opted for a different route instead. “Don’t you think it a bit strange that Starlene just so happened to drop a new single out of nowhere right after an aristocrat fell victim to the Grim Reaper?”

The salazzle’s snout scrunched up. She clicked her pen a couple of times. Chiaki leaned into her line of sight. “Did Rogue publish a piece on the Benedict trial and its aftermath?”

“Why do you care?”

The grovyle’s expression darkened. “I was there. I saw everything play out. The beast that accosted Benedict before his sudden death attacked me last week on our class trip to Herbrides. And he plans to hold some sort of demonstration there tomorrow.”

Kyoko pressed her pen so hard she nearly broke its clicker. “Does Dad know you were attacked?”

“Only if Valkyrie told him.”

The back of Kyoko’s dress fluttered. Her tail flaps curling against her hips, perhaps? She hastily wrapped her tail around her right leg. “Whatever you’re implying, I’m not interested in hearing it.”

“Come on, s— Becca.” Chiaki curled his left claws into a fist. Stabbing pain gripped his prosthetic. “Don’t tell me you don’t see it. They’re using Starlene as a tool. To keep people blind and ignorant.” He gestured on stage. “I bet this is part of it, too. Distracting people from that beastly cultist.”

The stage lights dimmed with audible clicks. Kyoko shoved Chiaki to the side. “You say you have a job to do? Well, so do I. Only mine is real and not chasing after some deluded fantasy.”

Chiaki’s snout scrunched up. The grovyle figured his stepsister would put up a wall. It was foolish to think he’d actually get through to her. With a shaky breath, he turned to the stage, squeezing his prosthetic tight against his torso.

“Good evening,” a soothing female voice exclaimed. “The Venishian Amphitheater is pleased to welcome you all to this special performance, featuring La Filarmonica and Starlene together for the first time. We invite you all to sit back, relax, and enjoy a tribute to the waltzes of the past. Join us in welcoming the Radiant Diva, Starlene!”

Polite applause followed. Kyoko and other journalists offered their own tepid applause between fumbling for their cameras and notepads. It was a far cry from the hoots and hollers Chiaki had heard at the Crowne Cup opening banquet.

Different crowd indeed.

The meloetta walked onstage from the other side, smiling and waving to the crowd. Her music note-like hair and ocean blue dress flowed behind her with every delicate step she took.

Chiaki was shuffling away from his stepsister, hoping everyone would be too focused on Starlene to notice him. However, the scrunching of the salazzle’s snout gave him pause. Kyoko’s grip had tightened on her pen.

The grovyle looked out on stage again. What had Kyoko seen to make her tense up? He watched Starlene approach a circular podium rising up from the floor. She still had the same, pristine smile on her face. That distant look in her eyes—

Wait a second! The tingling in Chiaki’s prosthetic intensified. He tiptoed back up to Kyoko’s side, lips curling into a frown.

“You see it, don’t you?” he whispered as Starlene reached the top of the podium and turned away from the two reptiles.

A part of him expected the salazzle to rebuke him, but she surprisingly nodded.

“Her eyes? Yeah.” Kyoko squeezed her pen tighter. “She’s smiling, but her expression couldn’t be any emptier.”