Outside the gates and the forest, there was a sound like gunfire. Probably because it was gunfire. "Something tells me we'd better check this out. Might be the ambassador that guy was talking about." Rico deduced. "What ambassador, what guy, and Why didn't you tell me anything about this?" AJ asked, nudging Rico to try and get his attention. "Because it wasn't any of your business." Rico grunted. "Kiro, Shane, Ari. Come along, I may need backup." The Gallade, Zoroark, and Lycanroc all nodded, ready to see what he needed help with. "I'm coming too!" AJ jumped up, which seemingly made Ari's demeanor a lot more positive. "I'll go too. Wouldn't wanna miss this, could be some action for once!" Alexis stretched her legs as she stood up, ready to go."So what's this all about? That gun ruckus earlier?" Kiro, sparring partner and friend of Rico's, curiously wandered through the thick forest, slashing vines out of the way. "I think so. I don't know if it's worth it, they're probably just passing by..." Ari questioned. 

"No. They're here for us. No doubt about it." Rico seemed razor focused. Rico felt the presence of more than just the five of them. "Raymond. O'Reilly. I know you're here." Rico grunted. "Damn, he's good." Justin's voice sounded from nearby. It was hard to see him, but then again, he's a Grovyle, he blends in well with the forest. "Just don't make too much trouble. 11 more are at the camp, we can't put them in danger." Rico ordered.Upon coming out of the forest, Ari grew afraid and hid in the shallow forest. Why was she afraid? About 500 mons, most of which armed with different types of guns or other weapons, had amassed outside their forest safe haven. "Okay, not what I expected..." Lexi shrugged. "Does this mean we have no choice? Cuz that's not fair that they got guns and we don't." Justin grumbled. The soldiers didn't seem to give two shits about their conversations. A Servine, dressed as if he had some importance, barked an order, and guns were raised. "That's not good..." They had time to think before the sound of shots filled the air. Strangely, no bullet even made it to them, let alone hit the them. They were all frozen in the air, as if something was holding them in midair. 

"Commander Langston. Here I thought you were rational. My, My, this is such a mess." A new female voice filled the awe-struck and silent air. It belonged to a tall, slender Espeon, who dressed in much finer clothing than the rest of the survivors. "We're here under a flag of truce, Langston. That means no shooting everyone you see." She didn't seem mad, but more of a calm... almost scarily calm. Like an angel's voice singing sweet lullabies while digging sharp nails into your neck. She simply acted so nice that it was scary. After the Servine seemingly retreated into himself, standing to the side, looking down, the Espeon engaged conversation. "You must be Omega. As you're aware, I have been sent by the Glorious King of The Reckoning, Keston Kross. I am his queen, Charlotte. It's a pleasure to make your acquaintance." The Espeon grinned, not making a motion to shake hands, keeping her distance. "Queen, huh? We aren't bowing." Rico snarled. "And as and Advocate, I don't require you to... not yet at least." She shrugged. "You look like someone who doesn't rule by force." AJ somewhat Blurted.

"What do you know? We have a smart one here. We don't rule by force. We're fair rulers." Charlotte didn't get what AJ was trying to say, however. "I mean you don't look like one who would fight herself." The Espeon chuckled. "Oh, young Riolu, I have no need to Fight. I'm not the violent type. I much prefer seeing others do combat, on the other hand...""Gimme two of your strongest! I want em both, 2 on 1!" AJ blurted out quite eagerly. "That would not be fair, child. You must be no older than 12..." Charlotte got interrupted by the Riolu. "16. Almost 17. I can hold my own." With this discovery, the Espeon motioned to a nearby Hitmonchan and an Incineroar. "Tyson and Lucas, fight this kid." She ordered. The two stood for a moment before they reacted. The latter was going on about how easy it would be while the former complained that it was a waste of his talents. "Just Fight already!" Charlotte barked at them.

"So, 16? I've killed younger." Lucas smirked sadistically. "And how old are you?" AJ asks. "31" Lucas responds without a change in emotion. "I've killed Older." AJ had lost his cheerful demeanor. It was "Go time". Tyson tried to get a cheap shot from behind, striking AJ in the back of the neck with a Mach Punch. Rather than drop the kid due to impact, AJ barely even flinched. "What a pity." The Riolu calmly turned around, slowly. "I even gave you a free shot and that's the absolute best you can do?" This line caused Charlotte to laugh. Clearly, she allowed this for her own humor's sake. "My turn." AJ swung upwards, and the fist of AJ met, and also cracked, the Jaw of Tyson. "DARKEST LARIAT!" said Lucas from behind as he charged forward. AJ turned, then ducked as the Incineroar tripped and fell over. "Professional tip. Don't loudly yell what attack you're about to do before you do it. Also, probably not the best to use a Dark type move on a fighting type." AJ nonchalantly shrugged, the kicked him in the back of the knee, then to the back of the neck. AJ grabbed both legs and helped him up. Then Lucas decided to fight back. Lucas scratched and clawed at the young Riolu, who did his best to defend, but the claws still connected and left marks, as they were sharp. AJ then countered out of nowhere, punching him with a lot of force packed into the blow. As a result, the Incineroar staggered around for a few moments. But the next series of events went by in a blur. AJ lifted Lucas, hoisted him up above his head, turned his body in midair, and dropped him. It just so happens, he accidentally released Lucas in an awkward position due to the height difference between the two, resulting in the worst possible result occuring. Lucas landed on the top of his head, as a sickening popping noise made a wave of silence wash over the whole army. AJ stood over Lucas, breath heavy, arms bloody, but Victorious. "Wonderful!" Charlotte clapped. The Servine from before rushed to Lucas' side. "By Arceus... His neck's completely shattered..." Charlotte's ears perked up. She walked over to AJ and Lucas, with The Shadow right behind her, as if he were a personal bodyguard. "A Shattered Jaw from one punch, lifting a 185 pound Incineroar over your head like he's a ragdoll, and rumors I've heard regarding what happened to poor, poor Zeta team's leader. They're true then. You are one of them." She deduced. "I'm sorry, one of who?" Kiro asked. "I've seen this kid's skill firsthand. I know he isn't normal." Shane muttered. "Well What's so special about em anyways?" Justin rolled his eyes. Charlotte looked to The Shadow. "It's time." The Shadow immediately unmasked, deactivating the modulator. AJ's eyes widened. Rico stepped forward. 

"So you weren't kidding. Keston went balls out." Rico stood face-to-face with Luke. "Oooh, Another brawl?" Charlotte asked hopefully. "If you're looking for us to kill each other, that would take forever. Plus, we're twins. We aren't fighting today." Luke grunted. "tsk. What a pity. Anyways, now to business. Omega, does anyone wish to join us?" "Fucking what?" Alexis, who had been watching from a nearby tree, now making her presence known, seemed incensed by the invitation. "Join the Reckoning. Your bunch would not be low rate, common soldiery. It would be a high rank bestowed upon you." She tried to entice them. "No. I'm not leaving the sisterhood behind." Alexis growled. "Sorry, but I'd rather stay out here. I'm not one for soldier's duties." Kiro shrugged. "I have a sister to protect and some Zeta ass to kick. Its nothing against you. It's personal." Shane shook his head. "AJ?" Ari shook him, as the Riolu had almost been in a kind of trance ever since Luke unmasked himself. She wanted his input. The Riolu just stood there and kept shifting his gaze around the army, to Charlotte, and then his friends. He repeated this visual cycle a few times. "I can't. Not at the moment." AJ concluded. "And why not?" Charlotte asked, obviously a bit peeved. "I have shit to deal with first. Shane said it first, Zeta's still a thorn in our sides. We need to take them out, then we'll think about it. Or at least I will.

"Rico never broke eye contact with Luke. "You know I want to fight by your side, Luke. You know we're an unstoppable unit. You know the mass carnage and ruin we can wreck upon the overworld if we fight side-by-side. Which is the exact reason I can't join you." Luke nodded once, then turned his back to Rico. "Understood. I'll be checking up on Omega tomorrow night. Don't make me wait." The Purple Lucario growled. Justin also chimed in, "Count me out. I don't know enough about y'all yet to join."

"Lexi, who are these people?" Maya had snuck out and followed Alexis. "You shouldn't have come, Rios." Rico scolded. "Joining is easy. Just turn on your friends here and join our ranks!" Charlotte proclaimed. Maya had her back turned, as Lexi explained the whole situation. And then, it happened. A long cut opened on her back, as the result of a blade. More like a claw. A Scyther's claw. Jaxson's right claw was now covered in blood. The Omega team was in pure shock. Not one of them so much as moved. "I'm In." Jaxson said loud enough for her to hear. The shock quickly turned to anger from Lexi. "YOU SON OF A BITCH! I'LL SLAUGHTER YOU WHERE YOU STAND!" But before she could carry her threat out, the front line of soldiers raised their guns and Charlotte spoke up. "Touch him, and I declare you hostile, giving these soldiers permission to fire." Lexi clenched her fist. "Dammit..." She wanted to throttle the Scyther, but it would come at the cost of the lives of everyone there. Jax slowly made his way to Reckoning's side, but AJ met him halfway. They didn't look at each other. Jaxson stopped right after passing AJ. They stood close to each other, facing opposite directions. "Why?" AJ asked. "I have my reasons." The scyther grunted. "You betrayed us. You haven't changed one bit. You're every bit the criminal you said you used to be. Get out of here, Raymond. Because next time I see you, I won't be merciful. I will kill you." AJ scathingly berated the apparent traitor. The scyther glanced over his shoulder at the Riolu. A long pause followed. Without a word, he slowly flew to the side of Charlotte Kross. "One wise one has emerged! Glorious day!" Charlotte proclaimed. The 500... well, now 499, as Lucas had stopped breathing and no one really cared, turned around and began marching back where they had come from. "I wish to speak with the leader. Alone." Charlotte commanded. Rico sent everyone back to camp, however, AJ and Arianna stayed with him. "I'm the older brother, but AJ was named next Leader by our now deceased leader Jayce. However, I'm holding things down until he can improve his decision making. And Arianna seems to have a little separation issue after AJ's brushed with violence. They'll stand at a distance so it's still just us." Charlotte rolled her eyes. "Fair enough. Anyways, let's be serious for a moment, shall we?" Her smile didn't seem friendly anymore. It almost seemed devious. "Keston was right. You ARE a persistant one. What'll it take, Mr. Rhodes?" She deviously laughed to herself. 

"I won't join. I have other obligations. Pokemon I care about to take care of. I don't think you get it, Reckoning isn't my type of group to join. You rule it. Something tells me there's something you aren't telling me, so I think I'll have to see for myself before I even so much as consider joining you. Don't get your hopes up, because if you're just a trap in the floor waiting to drop out and kill us, it'll be on you for what happens. If you harm anyone close to me or my family, by Arceus, it'll be your fault. And where there's a grudge, there's revenge." Rico warned her. Charlotte's gaze turned vicious. "Listen, Rhodes. I couldn't care less about your family. I am the queen of Reckoning. I seek expansion. You'd be joining the Noble cause set forth by my King, Keston." Rico scoffed. "You're stuck in a fantasy. This King & Queen Bullshit won't help you in the long run."

Charlotte sighed. "Who else is there to rule? To provide order? To make decisions to advance the life to follow?" Rico retorted with, "Maybe we're fine without single rulers. Maybe surviving as a team leads to stronger bonds or better cooperation. So go back to Keston. Tell him I'll be there should anything happen to us if we need any help." Rico growled. Charlotte smiled. "I'll forward it. Should you need assistance, our gates are opened." She motioned to Luke, who followed her after giving Rico one last look. The Silver Lucario stood, watching them walk off. AJ and Ari approached Rico. "Bro? What is it?" AJ asked, lightly punching Rico's arm. "Something isn't right. I can feel it. But what?"

--------------------

Later that night, Ari and AJ sat by the fire, being the ones in charge of making sure the fire was tended to that night. AJ, stress free and careless as always, added more wood to the fire while Ari sat on one of the log benches. AJ took a seat next to her after adding the wood. "So, some day, huh? I've never seen an Army that size before." He had tried to just start a normal conversation. "Well, I won't lie, it was terrifying. You've dealt with multiple enemies at once before, so I wasn't too nervous." She smiled, which made AJ do the same. "They had guns. Hand-to-Hand, it's me against the rest in the betting pool. Add weapons, and that's an equalizer." He sighed. The Riolu got a bit tired and removed the shirt he had been wearing, because he honestly hated keeping the thing on. It limits movement! Ari blushed and turned away for a moment. "H-hey, can I ask you s-something?" She stammored briefly as her blush faded and she composed herself. "Huh? Oh, yeah. Go right ahead." AJ placed another log on the fire. "Have you ever met someone that being around them just feels... I dunno, just different?" AJ plopped back down on the log bench. "Different how? Like 'I do not like this' different, 'they're your long lost sibling' different, 'I saw him shit on his lawn in the name of Earth Day and now he won't talk to me' different..." The last one made Ari laugh, as it was obviously AJ just going on one of his Comedic tangents where he'd slowly go from legitimate ideas to absolute nonsense that's intended to make you crack a smile.

"Different like you couldn't imagine how your life would've been if they weren't in the picture?" She hinted. AJ, being the dense little brick of a pokemon that he was, failed to pick up on this. "Look, outside of my family, I've known, like 'been friends with' known, like 50 pokemon. Honestly, without any of the other 49, I wouldn't have changed too much." Ari tilted her head. "49? but you said..." AJ sighed with a faint smile. "I wasn't done. I've known you a long time. I just don't have childhod memories without you. You've been my best friend for probably the entirety of 13 years. I regret none of those days." He watched the starry sky, Ari looking up with him, feeling happier after hearing his words. "Y'know, that Ambassador mon... uh, what was her name? Kross, I know that part but... hmmm... Cheyenne?" Ari snickered. "Charlotte. I can't tell if that's you being a goof or your short term memory dropping out again."

"Anyways, She's kind of like that star in the sky." AJ pointed at the brightest one he could see. "Is it because she's so bright and lively when she's doing her thing?" Ari asked with a slightly disappointed sigh. "No. Because I wish she'd stay 93 million miles the fuck away from me. She kinda freaks me out." Ari found this hilarious, but couldn't bring herself to laugh. AJ noticed this, standing up now. "What is it? I mention one person who kind of seemed like a black box of a thousand secrets and you shut down?" He was curious, as she never really closed off emotion around him. "By Arceus, how are you this clueless?!" She got up and stormed around for a bit. "What? What am I missing here?! You usually tell me everything on your mind, Ari." He stopped her angry pacing by standing in front of her, as she didn't want to knock him over. "Do I have to tell you everything? No. Do I? Yes! But some things are harder to say than others, Austin!" She stormed past him, into her shelter for the night. They didn't need tents anymore, as they had built stable structures for sleeping underneath with walls for privacy. AJ sat alone by the fire. About another hour passed. Shane and Emily were about to head out for the night watch when Emily noticed AJ and went to sit next to him. "Hey, J. You alright?" She asked. As her older brother's girlfriend, he saw her as an older sister. "Ariana's mad at me. She says it's because she tells me everything yet I can't tell what she's saying." He said somewhat quietly. "What did she say, AJ?" Emily asked. "She asked if I've met anyone that feels different. Like your life would be different without them in it..." AJ had only began when Emily gasped and almost squealed. "J! It's obvious!" She seemed excited, yet AJ just blinked and maintained his blank expression. "Do i gotta spell it out for you, bud?" She asked in a playful, lighthearted tone that made him smile a bit. "Be my guest." He shrugged. "She likes you, J." Emily said with a load of optimism. "So? Lots of people like me. I'm a likeable kid." Emily rolled her eyes at his comment. "Jeez, when Rico said you can be more dense than a nine pound brick, I thought he was just speaking in metaphors." Emily shook her head, then regained her optimism. 

"She *like* likes you. AJ, open your eyes and see what's right in front of you!" Emily motioned to Ari's shelter. "Wait, you mean... she was talking about... Ooooooooh. That makes much more sense now. Shit... I usually think about stuff after it's happened. Usually never as it's happening." He chuckled nervously. "I can tell." Emily sarcastically huffed as she stood up and went to the gate. "Good luck with McAleister, J." She said as she opened the gate. "Good luck on night watch." AJ said in return. Emily bit her lip. Like she needed the reminder? Night watch almost got her gangf*cked, so she wasn't too enthusiastic about it again. But this time at least Shane was there. What's the worst that could happen?

--------------------

Shane looked around. "Damn. If only there was some more action around here." The Zoroark thought to himself. Emily sat nearby. She looked up every time a bush rustled or a tree branch shook, either fearing attackers or expecting the Shadow. "You seem so sure that this mysterious figure will return." Shane scoffed. He hadn't seen the figure yet, so he wasn't too sure it even existed. "Shut up. I just have a lot to think about, that's all." She pouted in a semi-childish manor. "I would too. There's nothing going on right now, so let your mind wander." Shane chuckled.

"Comfortable?" A third voice said from the darkness. Emily nearly jumped up to her feet. Shane instinctively readied his claw for protection, but sitting on a tree branch, arms nonchalantly in the air in an "I come in peace" manor, sat the former "Shadow" that we now know as Luke Rhodes. Emily felt her heart skip a beat. "Hello again." He says in a cold, Yet endearing tone. Shane grinned upon seeing his old friend. "Those Reckoning people treating you alright, or do you disobey to come see us?" The elder Rosario asked. "They don't control me. They're lucky I was desperate and possess a special skill set." He fiddled with a knife, which he tossed to the ground, landing at Emily's feet. The blade had a Crest of a wolf engraved into it. "Keep it. You should protect yourself, Em. Once this all blows over, Everything can go back to how it was." She seemed reassured, Picking up the knife and studying it briefly. A warm smile crossed her face for the first in what seemed like forever. The last words she heard from him were, "hasta que nos volvamos a encontrar, mi amor"

And in an instant, Luke vanished into the night. Shane watched closely, and before long, he was looking off into the distance. Emily followed his gaze. "Fireflies? But... they're so small... and bright from such a distance..." Shane quickly scampered up a tree. His eyes widened when he saw what it really was. He found a shadow in the tree and jumped into it, reappearing next to Emily. "Those aren't fireflies. We need to go, like right the hell now!" He grabbed her by the wrist and shadow jumped through the camp walls.

"AJ, wake everyone up." Shane ordered. "GUYS! WAKE UP! THIS IS NOT A DRILL!" AJ yelled, since being loud wasn't really Shane's forte. Some groggily, some readily, and Rico was cracking his knuckles saying "Finally!" the other 12 woke up. "What is it? Zeta? Alpha? Any team from the Dome?" Justin rubbed his eyes. "Worse..." Shane growled. Loud shouts and clattering of makeshift weapons were heard a mile away at least.

"It's a Raiding party. They don't seem to be armed too well, those weapons sound like they're not the best quality." Justin deduced. "You can tell how good it is by the sound it makes when hitting something?" Nora said in amazement. "You can't?" Justin looked puzzled. "I mean, it isn't hard. There's just a bit too clunky to be hand-crafted-to-perfection weapons and personalized battle tested shields." Justin finished. "Dude knows his stuff." AJ shrugged. "W-What do we do now?" Ari shuddered, staying near her shelter doorway. "We fight." Rico slung the katana over his shoulder. "Austin and I will go. Anyone else? We could use a few extra bodies..."Lexi raised her arm. "I'm down. Kiro, Justin, If you're not too scared, you'll come too." She smiled as she challenged them. "We're in." Kiro nodded. "I never verbally agreed... but psychic boy over here quite literally just read my mind!" Justin shrugged, Cracking his knuckles and ready for a brawl!

The ones not ready to fight escaped out the back, while the remainder of them were standing ready to deliver ass beating of a lifetime!