Chapter 76: Hot Off the Press

~I Pilastri dell’Eternità

The halls of Aeon Castle were abuzz with dragons scuttling about. A few kommo-o carried large crates brimming with berries, seeds, and assorted orbs. Two noivern flew on either side of a salamence, pulling wagons containing harnesses fliers could use to store equipment and supplies.

Yiazmat floated at the end of the hall, amidst several stone pillars and black tapestry with white variants of Bahamut’s star sigil woven into them. She pointed toward growing crate stacks and gave orders to the kommo-o.

Sighing, Yuna turned away from them. She landed on a small table, taking care not to knock over the purple vase. While the drakloak was glad her mother had listened to her pleas to get Aeon’s fighters more involved in things, a small part of her feared she was asking way too much from a bunch of dragons not well suited to what the Eterna Empire was cooking up.

“They do have that move you call Cosmic Blessing, though,” Rayquaza pointed out. “They art not truly defenseless. And thou art not looking to fling them onto the frontlines.”

True. Yuna took a deep breath. This was supposed to be a good thing. Especially with Yiazmat passing along news that their work had temporarily suppressed the rifts. Yuna really was getting a break from anomalies and fighting Phantoms.

“Would you prefer a chair to lie down on, Princess?”

Yuna looked up to see Baraz’s bulky frame waddling into view. “I can’t imagine lying around a vase is all that comfortable. Even for a ghost.” The dracozolt chuckled.

“True.” Yuna didn’t move. “But I think I’m all right.”

“If you say so.” Baraz shrugged his tiny arms. “When do you plan on heading back into Eternatus?”

“Not sure.” Yuna rubbed her right shoulder. She knew Yiazmat asked Baraz to come home, but didn’t think she’d actually run into him. And now that he was here, she couldn’t help recalling the pictures from the museum in LaRousse.

“By the way.” The drakloak looked up at Baraz. “Um, have you thought at all about Eternatus and this Malice stuff?”

Baraz raised a brow. “You mean do I think I look like this because of those things?”

Yuna flinched. He’s good. Guess wisdom really did come with age. “Yeah.”

“You saw something in the anomalies, didn’t you?” Baraz sounded like he knew the answer already.

Sighing, Yuna lazily ran a nubby hand across the table. “I did. One of the other dimensions had a pokémon like you, but the top and bottom half actually matched. Can’t help but wonder if it’s what you’re supposed to look like.”

“Maybe.” Baraz leaned over. “Maybe not. I never could remember anything before I showed up in Aeon, so it’s hard to say.”

“Don’t you want to know?”

“I’ve asked myself that before,” Baraz admitted, glancing at his bulky lower half. “And then I always think about whether knowing the answer would actually make me happy.”

Now Yuna had a read of her own. “I’m guessing that’s a no.”

Baraz nodded.

“So, you think it’s better if I don’t look into it?” Yuna asked, rubbing the right side of her head.

“That’s up to you. I trust your judgment.” Baraz shifted his weight. “I simply ask that if you do learn something, you don’t tell me.” He paused, a pensive look on his face. “Unless me not knowing would put you all in danger, of course.”

“Right.” Yuna focused on the vase. Some of the purple paint had chipped off it at some point. Pity. “I can work with that.”

“Glad to hear it.” Baraz smiled. “Now then, I think your mother’s waving me over.”

Yuna shook her head. “I hope it’s to tell you to get some rest.”

“Ha.” Baraz’s smile grew. “These bones may be old, but they’ve still got some pep left in them.”

In some ways, the Radiant Beacon hub mirrored the Ryujin building at the center of Scale City. Namely in being a large tower that looked out over a city. Casaroja, in this case. The one-way glass windows surrounding the building gave Igneous a sense of exposure despite knowing full well no one could see inside. He looked at Casaroja Station in the distance. Still as gaudily red and orange as it had been the other day. No protestors gathered in the circular plaza, though.

The grovlazzle fixed his gaze on a set of one-way glass doors. A red light atop them indicated they were firmly locked. Either Sakaki was busy… or he wasn’t here. Though Igneous called ahead of time. Better be the former.

“Can’t believe the Grim Reaper’s been sitting on this,” Scarlett said, coiled on a circular chair with no back. “Given his reputation, you’d think he could blow the whistle.”

Igneous was a bit surprised with how quick Vegna okayed him taking these materials to the Beacon. Cyril scanned them into his computer and they were off to Casaroja before they knew it. As much as Igneous wanted to think this was a good thing, fortune hadn’t been kind to him of late.

“Maybe it’s the opposite,” he said, humoring Scarlett. “Maybe that reputation tied his hands. He had to play nice or Isola would throw him under the bus. Just like Vortex.”

Seifer, too. Though the keldeo wasn’t rotting away in a jail cell.

“Hmm.” Scarlett tapped her tail against the side of the chair. “You didn’t ask Vegna how long he’d known about this, did you?”

“I didn’t.” Igneous looked at her. “Why?”

“Err… it’s nothing. Just thinking crazy.”

The grovlazzle raised a brow. “Well, now I’m more curious.”

Scarlett laughed nervously. “It’s stupid.” The dragonair’s tiny right wing fluttered in place. “Like a cheesy episode of a PV show.”

“Doesn’t answer my question.”

“What if Vegna’s whole Grim Reaper reputation developed after he learned Isola’s secret?” Scarlett shrank back a little, clearly thinking her theory wild. “Like either she’s the reason… or Vegna targets her inner circle on purpose?”

Igneous blinked slowly. Many of the names attached to the Grim Reaper rumors were high-ranking nobles. Hell, Igneous watched it happen in real time to that awful slurpuff. Shimmer called the guy his uncle.

Still, the idea that Vegna would turn serial killer right under Isola’s nose was out there. Making all those deaths look accidental? Even Valkyrie wasn’t that good. And she had unnatural poisons to fall back on.

Then again, he practices necromancy. Who really knew what Vegna was capable of, other than the dusknoir himself?

The red light above the doors shifted to green. Igneous sat up straight as they opened. Sure enough, Sakaki stood in the doorway. Garbed in his usual black blazer with the Beacon’s golden R sewn on the breast pocket. The nidoking gestured for them to come into the office. Igneous gathered up the evidence and marched through the door.

Sakaki’s top-floor office had a long oak desk in front of the one-way glass wall. Igneous saw the tiny slits in the black carpeted floor where metal sheets could emerge if Sakaki were to ever call a lockdown. There were similar tricks with the antique wooden shelves to the left and right. The blown glass baubles and trinkets were there for show. He knew full well those shelves hid a waypoint and some other sensitive items.

What gave the grovlazzle pause, though, was a small wooden drinking natu, rhythmically bobbing into and out of a tiny glass of water. Igneous tensed a bit. He had made that drinking natu in elementary school as a Father’s Day present for Sakaki. Igneous always assumed Sakaki trashed it a long time ago.

“Anything about Tulpise?” Scarlett wondered, coiling up beside a square glass table. She looked at her blurry, fragmented reflection.

“Nothing from the scouts,” Sakaki responded. “Are you sure this intel of yours is credible? I had to shift around more than a few ‘mons to accommodate this.”

“It was someone who’s had a run in with Eternatus forces already.” Igneous tightened his grip on the evidence. He wasn’t about to drop Shimmer’s name into the conversation.

Sakaki stuck his hands in his pockets and walked back toward his desk. “And did it occur to you that, perhaps, they fed you a false lead as a trap?”

Igneous inner flames sparked a bit. Thankfully his head leaf and tails didn’t catch fire. “They’re the same person who gave me these.” The grovlazzle marched up to Sakaki’s desk and placed the stack of pages down. He was a bit more forceful than necessary. “I don’t think someone looking to launch a serious accusation against the crown would lie about Tulpise being in danger.”

“Unless they want everyone distracted so they can, say, carry out an assassination attempt.” Sakaki spread the laminated pages out along his desk. The nidoking eyed them, tapping his chin in thought. “Deploying Radiant Guard there would leave Dazzels vulnerable, depending on the number of people.”

“And if the Radiant Guard isn’t going?” Igneous wasn’t in the mood to hear Sakaki play devil’s advocate. When Sakaki raised a brow, he continued, “The same source was controlling the robot bugs that fought with the Eternatus Troopers.”

That got Sakaki’s expression to soften a bit. He grabbed one of the evidence pieces and held it up, gaze focused on the code. “These were in some sort of filing system.”

“A secret restricted section in Horizon Academy’s library,” Igneous said. He saw the flicker of skepticism in Sakaki’s eyes and tried to anticipate the likely follow-up question. “I have no idea why they’re not secured in Dazzels. Perhaps they were taken to Horizon by someone else?” Like Vegna.

Sakaki continued scrutinizing the papers. “They seem authentic.” He rested his right hand on his desk and tapped a claw against the glazed wood. “So, the conclusion here is that every Radiant Queen is actually some sort of body-snatcher who’s jumped from generation to generation?”

“Yes.” Igneous glanced at the papers. “I realize none of this directly proves the theory, but it does point to a very concerning pattern. Every male transitioned, in eras when such things weren’t possible. Always marrying another lady. The Radiant Queen dying not long after her daughter weds. It sure looks like one person doing the same thing over and over.”

“I get that.” Sakaki frowned. “But surely someone would’ve picked up on it.”

Igneous would’ve countered that, but Sakaki held up his left hand. “These papers did pick up on it. But I don’t think any of them still exist today. The stories were probably quashed.” The nidoking put his hands back in his jacket pockets. “I can try to run this… but it’s going to be a significant risk. It would really help if I knew the source.”

There it was. Luckily, this was much simpler than dealing with his source for Tulpise. “Vegna.” Igneous produced the instructions the dusknoir had given him and tossed them on the desk. “He’s been investigating the matter.”

Interest flickered in Sakaki’s eyes. “I see.” He sifted through the laminated papers. “There’s always been a rumor around the office. That the Grim Reaper deliberately targets nobles close to Isola. A strange sort of vigilantism, in that it deters criminals while taking Isola’s allies out of the picture.”

The nidoking shrugged. “But I leave such gossip to the tabloids. Do you need these back?”

“We made copies.”

“Then I suppose I’ll get to work on this.” Sakaki gathered the papers together, though his movements were sluggish.

Igneous glanced at Scarlett and tilted his head toward the door. They were done here and could leave.

“And how is… everything else?”

The grovlazzle tensed. Sakaki wasn’t serious, was he? This wasn’t some sort of casual father-son chat. They both had work to do.

“Fine.” Igneous’ reply was curt. “We need to get a move on.”

“Right.” Sakaki’s sigh was heavy. Papers shuffled behind Igneous. He gestured toward the door again. Started walking toward it.

“I’ll be visiting her grave in a couple of weeks if you want to join,” Sakaki said.

Igneous froze, right hand stuck out to press the button for the door.

“With everything that’s happened, I thought you might’ve forgotten her birthday’s soon.”

You mean ‘would have been soon.’ Igneous fiery scales prickled. He shut his eyes and took a deep breath. “Yeah. Thanks for telling me. I’ll keep that in mind.”

He ignored the worried look on Scarlett’s face as she slithered out of the office ahead of him. Igneous instead turned on his X-transceiver. “We’re done in Casaroja. Someone get us over to Tulpise.”

Igneous and Scarlett passed through a couple of rifts in silence. They didn’t even acknowledge Noctum back at the outpost. Instead they pressed right on through to Tulpise’s outskirts. Seifer, Quetzal, and Cid were stationed behind some trees on a grassy knoll overlooking the city. Its green and yellow buildings, many decorated in bushes and arrays of colorful vines and flowers, sparkled in the setting sunlight. Outside of rifts occasionally opening and closing at random in the otherwise clear skies, things were calm.

“Nothing?” The grovlazzle jumped up, grabbing a thick tree branch and swinging himself on top of it. He sat on the branch and stared ahead, following railroad tracks toward Tulpise’s outdoor train station. The dirt roads fanning out from it had a few scattered pokémon walking down. He couldn’t make out their species from this distance, though.

“Nothing.” Spots glowing, Cid braced himself against the tree trunk. The lights faded from the orbeetle’s head spots. “Sorry. Need a break. I can only keep my Dynascan active for so long away from Cyril’s machines.”

“You’re fine.” Igneous waved Cid off. He didn’t take his eyes off the city. Sure, Igneous didn’t hold the highest opinion of Shimmer. But Shimmer sounded confident the Eternatus Troopers were readying a strike.

“I don’t like it.” Seifer paced around the foot of the tree. “Shimmer told you he’s working with Demerzel, right?”

Igneous nodded.

“What if Demerzel’s trying to play both sides?” Seifer wondered. “Conning Shimmer into focusing on Tulpise while the empire attacks a more important city?” The keldeo stopped pacing to wince. “Err, not that I’m saying Tulpise isn’t important. Just from a military standpoint—”

“We get it, sir.” Sitting next to Cid, Quetzal crossed one leg over the other. “Tulpise is a strange spot to attack. Does the empire want all its plants and farmland? One would think they could conjure plenty of that.”

“Thing is, I brought up similar concerns to Shimmer.” Igneous crossed his arms. “And Shimmer assured me that he didn’t need to move any troops around for this. It sounds like the Radiant Guard are staying where they’re stationed.”

He glimpsed confused stares from Quetzal and Seifer. Neither said anything. Silence fell over the group, save for the sounds of Cid gulping down an elixir like he’d hit a pub after a hard day.

“I take it whatever happened to your mom’s a touchy subject?”

Igneous’ head leaf caught fire. He spun around. When had Scarlett climbed the— oh, right, dragonair. She simply flew up.

“Is this part of trying to feel me out?” the grovlazzle mumbled. This was one trip down memory lane he wasn’t up to take.

“Guess so.” Scarlett corkscrewed herself around the branch so she was at eye level with Igneous.

“I’d rather not.” Igneous looked away. “It’s personal.”

Silence. Igneous assumed Scarlett was finding a different way to press him for details.

“Fair enough.” The dragonair lowered her head, resting it on the tree branch.

Igneous blinked slowly. That was it? She actually backed off? He hadn’t planned for that. And now the silence was awkward and oh god he should really say something.

“Thanks.” He shifted nervously on the branch. “For respecting my boundaries and stuff.”

“You’re welcome.” Scarlett looked like she wanted to say more, but went back to resting on the tree branch.

Igneous began to relax a bit when Cid shot forward, spots pulsating pink. “By the station! People are pouring out of a train!”

“What?” Igneous sprang to his feet, careful not to slip off the branch. He squinted, but couldn’t make out more than blurs streaming out of the station and onto the streets.

But when orange fireballs ignited some of the buildings on the dirt road, it was quite clear what was happening. “The attack!” Igneous dropped from the branch. “We’ve gotta go!”

“Hold on.” Cid stuck an arm out. “They’re not Eternatus Troopers. This is strange.”

The fwoosh of large fireballs sounded in the distance, followed by screams. “Does it matter who it is?” Seifer galloped past Cid. “The city’s under attack. That’s what we’re here for! We have to get a closer look to see if it’s safe to send in reinforcements!”

“Understood.” Quetzal dashed after Seifer, leaving a trail of orange sparks behind him.

Igneous looked up at the tree. “Up to you whether to come with.” He turned to run after the others when Cid hovered in front of him.

“Hold on. I’m sensing one peculiar aura. It definitely has Eterna energy.” Cid’s spots flickered erratically. “No one else does, though.”

“Only one aura?” Igneous frowned, but then his eyes widened. “The Medici! Back in Venish they seemed like they were working with a brainwashed Charles.” He dashed around Cid and headed down the knoll toward the city.

So, maybe it wasn’t Troopers attacking Tulpise. But the Medici were clearly armed with something flammable… and in a place catering to grasses and bugs, that was a recipe for disaster.

“Aren’t they beautiful, though? Flames can signal rebirth. Something greater rising from the ashes!”

Igneous’ fiery wings burst from his back, stopping him in his tracks. He turned left and glared at the cloaked, helmeted chimera. How did Xeromus manage to pop up in the middle of a grassy field without so much as a spark of light? Igneous tapped his X-transceiver, only for static to greet him.

More screams rang up behind Igneous. Bundles of flowers clinging to taller buildings caught fire. He tried to turn away. Tulpise was what mattered. Xeromus was here to distract him. Just like in Vellguard.

Or he’s the real source of this attack. After all, Xeromus preceded the Seekerskorch’s appearance. If Igneous left him unchecked, Xeromus might pave the way for some other monstrosity!

The grovlazzle stopped himself from summoning his Leaf Blades, recalling how useless they’d been last time. “Whatever you’re trying won’t work.” Igneous’ tails simmered. “You and that stupid pile of floating discs can piss off!”

“But I won’t.” Xeromus coughed loudly. He shambled toward Igneous, the chains around his legs rattling with every step. “Just as you can’t tear yourself away to go protect the ether-wielders.” A wheezing laugh rumbled behind his mask. “To think you care so deeply for this lowly omen. It would be touching were these not the fates Natus has affirmed for us.”

“There you go spouting off about fate and choices again,” Igneous growled. He needed to strike from a distance. Could he pull off a Flamethrower instead of Bullet Seed? Burning Xeromus would help tremendously. “You’re a threat, so I’m choosing to make sure you don’t go anywhere.”

Xeromus sighed and shook his helmeted head. “Ah, such conviction. And turned upon someone as worthless as me.” His wheezing grew louder. “That’s what makes you so interesting.” Xeromus took another step toward Igneous. “You flail about, but you refuse to accept you are walking Natus’ path. That your actions will let His love blanket the world.”

The chains rattled on Xeromus’ legs. Shadows bubbled under his cloak. “Every spark. Every flame. They push you along the one true path. To Natus!”

At the mention of flames, Igneous finally latched onto that twisted power. Fire gathering in his mouth briefly made him want to hurl, but he was able to spew the Flamethrower straight at Xeromus. His cloak rippled and a crimson, vaguely canine shield materialized in front of him. The flames spread across it before Igneous had to stop and catch his breath. It was much harder maintaining a Flamethrower compared to Bullet Seeds.

“Yes, good!” Xeromus’ canine shield didn’t disappear. Instead it drifted behind him like some haunting specter. “I can feel your spirit striking at me! It’s your love for Natus! A love He will return tenfold!”

“Shut up!” Igneous swapped over to Bullet Seeds, hoping the faster speed meant Xeromus couldn’t block it. He had to stay calm. Had to trust Seifer and Quetzal were making headway with Tulpise.

Xeromus’ chains unraveled and sliced through the Bullet Seeds, filling the air with a dull green haze.

“It won’t be enough.” Xeromus’ raspy laughter percolated through the mist. Igneous knew he was out there and chose to spew more flames straight ahead.

“You need to close your eyes. Cover your ears.”

Igneous whirled around. How the hell did Xeromus get behind him? Igneous summoned his red honedge to block a strike that never came. Xeromus merely stood there. The strange, wispy red canine loomed over him. Hollow yellow eyes peered right through the grovlazzle.

“Ĺ̶̡ỉ̵̜s̷͜͝ẗ̶̞́e̸͜͝n̶̜͝ ̸̟̎w̷̧̍i̶̦̊t̸̘͌h̶́͜ ̴̳̇ẏ̸̮ŏ̵̤ṷ̷͐r̶͓̆ ̴̙̚ś̸͍ȯ̴̖u̵͉͊l̴̩͛.̵̜͑ ̸̺͝B̴̟̿e̶̖̓c̸̟̈́a̸̻͠u̵̙͘s̴̳͛ḛ̸̔ ̸̥͋t̴̥̀h̵̤͝e̷̥̿ ̸̮͛s̴̰͋p̷͍̾i̶̭̚r̷̯͐i̶͋͜t̸̓͜ ̸͔͒ń̴̜è̷̤v̶̩͒e̶͈͝r̷̤̎ ̶͕͝ḟ̴̹o̴̝͝r̶͇͛g̸͕͘é̸̠t̵̳̿s̸̨͐.̷̭̐”

Xeromus disappeared. Eyes widening, Igneous sucked in a sharp, involuntary breath.

The circular entryway felt just a bit brighter than usual. It was like the weather knew today was special and blessed them with of extra sunlight. Igneous’ white fur fluffed up a bit. The volcanora happily bobbed through the air, heading toward the spiral staircase in the back of the room.

“So, you’re abandoning your plan after all?” There was some faint teasing behind Igneous’ words. He turned around to glance at the riolu walking behind him, resting her paws behind her head.

“Har, har.” Riolu rolled her eyes. “I always knew trying to master Aura Sphere before evolving would be a tough sell. And I’ve got a good enough reason to set that plan aside.”

She looked left. The icy vulpix awkwardly trying to keep up stumbled. Her tails frazzled. “M-Me? I’m a good enough reason?”

“I’ll admit, it is surprising.” Igneous came to a stop by the spiral stairs. “Don’t usually see ice vulpix this far from the Invern Mountains. Especially not in the summer.”

Vulpix stared blankly at Riolu. Chuckling, she put a paw on Vulpix’s right shoulder. “Nickie’s not gonna know what that means, Ig. She’s not from here… because she’s human.”

The volcarona’s wings buzzed excitedly. “Really?” He looked Nickie over. “I guess she does look a bit confused…”

“No amnesia, though.” Riolu pet Nickie’s shoulder. “That’s different from the fallers you guys usually deal with, right?”

Igneous nodded. “So, you want your parents to weigh in?”

“You know it.” Riolu thumped her chest. “Figure she’s here for a reason. If they don’t know, then the guild has the resources to point us to someone who does.”

Nickie’s tails curled up. “Um, maybe we should get going?” She flinched. “Not that I don’t appreciate the escort or anything, Mr. Volcarona.”

“No, I get it.” Igneous gave the icepix some space. “I’m a big fire-type and you’re a tiny ice vulpix. It’s instinctual. Even if your human brain doesn’t think it.”

Relief flooded Nickie’s face. Riolu nodded. “All right. Try not to trip and tumble down the stairs!” She clapped Nickie on the back before sprinting ahead, jumping onto the railing and surfing it down.

“Ah, wait! Tessa!” Nickie stumbled into a run after her.

Igneous watched Nickie’s tails vanish into the depths of the spiral staircase. Then the stairs twisted and contorted into tiny butterfree that coalesced into a void resembling Leo’s wheel.

With a sharp cry, Igneous violently lurched backwards. He stumbled, falling back onto the grass and staring at his trembling arms. Arms? Don’t I—

“Only a glimpse, then? Unfortunate.”

Xeromus’ wheezing sent the grovlazzle scrambling to his feet. He spied the red honedge on the ground and reached toward it. It vanished in a puff of fire and reappeared in his right hand.

“Fight it,” Igneous growled. “Nova, I know you’re in there! Gene’s waiting for you! You have to stop this!”

“There’s nothing to fight.” Xeromus took a step back. “The ether can only slow your steady march toward the truth. Just as it fights a losing battle to stop this world’s affirmation.”

Igneous launched another Flamethrower, but cut it off seconds later. Xeromus took the bait, sending his spectral guardian to intercept. Igneous dashed left and spat Bullet Seeds at the helmeted silvally’s right flank. This time they struck home. But Xeromus’ expression was unreadable. If he gave any pained cries, his mask muffled them.

“I see. I see.” Xeromus jerked his head back and forth. Did Nova actually hear Igneous? “So, this is what sets us apart. What makes me so lowly compared to you. Your role is still a ways off.” Xeromus hacked out barking coughs. “There will be much to endure before Natus can shower you in His love. But that will make the payoff all the grander!”

“Like hell it will!” Igneous spat out another Bullet Seed stream. Xeromus’ chains unraveled from his legs. Igneous’ volcarona wings propelled him into the air where he spat fireballs as opposed to a Flamethrower. The canine specter moved to intercept one, while a second and third struck Xeromus’ helmet.

Igneous couldn’t help but smirk. This was going far better than last time.

And yet he’s still not actually attacking.

“Haah.” Xeromus wheezed loudly. The specter melted back into his cloak. “I can’t see what future Natus has affirmed for you. But I know my place. This lowly omen will let you reach the end of your path. To accept Natus’ glorious love!”

Igneous was ready to divebomb Xeromus when his tail leaves curled up. Was something… buzzing?

Yes, Igneous heard buzzing. Getting closer. Louder. The grass rippled uneasily back and forth.

The grovlazzle glared at Xeromus. “What are you up to?”

“Me?” Xeromus shook his head. “That’s not me.” He slowly turned away from Igneous. “But there is distortion about fifty kilometers in that direction. If something or someone wanted to drop by for a friendly visit, they’d have to come this way.”

The sun had vanished over the horizon. But even though dusk had fallen, Igneous could see two large circles getting even larger. The buzzing definitely came from the circles. From their strangely triangular wings.

Volcarona. Robot volcarona.

The empire was coming! And as long as Igneous hung around Xeromus, he couldn’t warn the others with his X-transceiver!

Biting his lip, the grovlazzle rocketed toward the city, frantically willing the static to go away. And the moment it did, he shouted, “Imperial robots outside the city!”