GRACE'S POV

I'm on a fresh pen, so I should hopefully be able to write for a while. Things took a while to settle down after Laker was returned his memories. Rayne kept Kanom pinned down for a while until Sam's team of Gengar had to pry her off him...three of them to be exact. I continue to forget that she is a capable bounty hunter, and could probably kill a good portion of us if she wanted to.

I digress, a new issue has presented itself. Laker now had his memories, and he fully remembers helping Sam. His motive card also mentioned something about gathering us all here...is this how we ended up in the mansion? Something is off, though. Usually when someone uses a gem, they shift into a completely different person...but Laker only seemed to just look sadder.

We learned some new information on Hydra's status, and it seems to be inconclusive. Kanom mentioned he was neither dead nor alive, and I feel like he was either taunting us or being genuine. Loki didn't like that she had more questions, and Hydra's situation seemed to frustrate her greatly.

Kanom was escorted back into the cage walls and we were left to think about our situation. Ten of us remain, and it's scary to think that five of us have died. I'm not ready for any more deaths, I don't know how many more I can take. I had to tear Vanta's note off my diary and leave it on the bed he passed in.

After our rooms switched I ended up with Luster, which isn't too bad, as he usually motivates me to get up early and help make breakfast. By help, I meant eating the small scraps he gives me while he does the entire job.

"Still writing?" I heard a voice snap me out of my focus before I looked up to find out the source was Luster. "Oops, sorry..."

"It's fine, I was just finishing up." I dropped my pen to answer. "What's up?"

"I'm just checking up on everyone...a few of us are still shaken up after what happened." The feline approached the bed and faced me with a small smile. "Hope you're alright."

"I am." I answered flatly before staring blankly at the book under my paws. "Is Laker alright?"

"His situation is unique. Poor guy is uncomfortable with being around us but it's not like he wants to talk to Sam anymore."

"So nothing like Galant?" I turned to meet his yellow eyes.

He pondered about my question for a bit, his expression filled with hesitance. It figures; it hadn't been that long since both Galant and Vanta died. The fact that they were both gone was hard to accept, and it was going to take a long time before we could get used to their absence.

"From what I could tell, no." Luster's answer seemed to have some confidence, so I trusted him in that regard. "He did leave for some fresh air, though. I'm not sure when we'll see him come back today. I'll have to ask Loki when he returns since she's his roommate."

After a small nod of affirmation, Luster made his leave through the door.

"Don't close it..." I quickly added before leaping off the bed and walking past the Luxray, who held the door open with his tail. "Thanks..."

The living room was quite lively—no pun intended. It felt as if people wanted to try and improve their energy, that way we're not so depressed at all times. Sammy seemed to be examining Loki's legs, presumably monitoring her condition. I still feel bad about what happened to her...I'm not even sure Loki predicted to experience this pain. Earlier she was walking around fine, I'm beginning to wonder if her condition is worsening.

"You could have been honest." Sammy frowned at the black fox. I think I walked in on a scolding.

"There were a lot more important things to worry about." Loki crossed her arms, occasionally wincing as the fire vixen elevated her legs on a pillow.

"I've been reading a lot of what Hydra left behind in his office. What you're going through looks to be a premature decomposition of the body." Sammy turned to inform the Zoroark.

"Premature?" She tilted her head.

"In your case, it's premature because you didn't actually die. For the short time that you were dead, your body went through its first stage of processing death and released enzymes that essentially ate your cells from the inside out. Any further and your legs would be visibly rotting, but since you were revived so quickly, a good diet and constant blood flow should help your legs." After the explanation, Sammy took a deep breath and backed away to offer the dark type a glass of water. "And lots of water, too."

"Thanks..." Loki only leaned forward and took a generous sip. "I appreciate the hard work you're doing, I know it's hard without your brother."

"I can somewhat learn faster because my current profession isn't too far off from what he did." Sammy reassured her with a warm smile. "So it isn't too bad."

"Right." Loki's smile seemed to turn sour as her gaze locked back onto her now elevated legs. "I hope I can walk soon."

"I'm sure you'll be able to soon!" Making my presence known, I leaped onto the couch Loki was in to offer my best smile. "You're already a lot better than when you started."

"True...at least I don't live in constant pain—compared to before, I mean." Loki reasoned, her eyes still glued to her thighs.

"Exactly..!" I nodded and patted her arm. "You'll be good in no time."

The Zoroark seemed happy with my response, a small smile now present on her expression. After a few seconds of thought, Loki glanced up and spread her arms a little wider for me. I accepted her offer with a small giggle, walking up to hug the other fox as best as I could.

THIRD PERSON

"How does it look?" Sammy inquired at the sight of Leon examining something outside.

"As you predicted, the cave systems go quite deep." The jackal turned to face the vixen. "Are you certain we are able to speak out loud about this?"

"Outside? Yes, there are no listeners outdoors. Inside is where the privacy is minimal." The Braixen took to crossing her arms in thought. "Though, don't make it too obvious. She still has a few ways of seeing us outside."

"I see." Leon frowned. "Either way, there is not much I found that we did not know already.

"Hm, that's a bummer. Sam did mention something about a backdoor exit in the cave system, but you'd probably have to know exactly where it is." Sammy groaned in frustration, her eyes turned to gaze at the "sun" set in the sky. "I'm afraid when the time comes for you all, you'll have to be the one to lead them there."

"We'll have to do much more planning than that." Leon placed a thoughtful paw on his chin. "Sam has seen how we do our escape attempts."

"Correct." The fire fox hummed. "We'll have to be creative, I'll say that. I'm sure we can find something in time, especially since she's distracted by Hydra, according to what Kanom said."

"What did he say?" The Lucario, who wasn't there, had his curiosity piqued.

"Something about him being in a state of limbo, neither dead nor alive. Whatever that means, it reminds me of Sam's procedures. When she works on a creation, she can never guarantee they will leave dead or alive." The Braixen shuffled in place at the thought. "I can't believe she's working on him, what could have happened?"

"Nothing good, I suppose." Leon heaved a long sigh and sat on the grassy terrain below him. "Strange, I can clearly tell the sky above us is fake now."

"Hm?" Sammy tilted her head in curiosity before taking a seat close to the jackal.

"With my aura, the sky looks like a grid."

"I guess that's how she pulled off the illusion."

"It's so far up in the sky that it distorts seamlessly." The Lucario leaned back and shut his eyes to focus. "Each layer, a screen that displays and blends into numerous hues...mimicking a sky."

"We have quite the observation-maker here." Sammy teased with a small poke to the jackal's hip, snapping him out of his focus. "We already knew the sky was fake, so it's better to look in places we haven't explored."

She was right, and Leon knew that. It was better to distract himself from learning new things than waste time pondering on how the old information functioned. Though she mentioned bringing their efforts into more productive matters, the two continued to stare off into the deceptively beautiful sunset—without the sun, of course.

The vixen's eyes seemed to teeter for a bit before also shutting, her breathing growing regulated and calm.

"I can feel it getting colder." Leon noted, his paws bracing at the cold feeling coursing through the ground. "We should head inside."

"Just a bit longer..." The Braixen hummed lightly. "I like how silent it is..."

Sammy felt her arms tire before inching back towards the Lucario and laying her head on his lap.

"I won't complain." Leon didn't seem to mind this and kept himself up straight to allow the Braixen to get comfortable. "I suppose we are alike in that sense."

The vixen only offered a chuckle in response.

Though it was cold, the two didn't seem to mind for the time being. Sammy being a fire type only helped them keep warm, and it would definitely take a while before the two moved from their spots.

The outside was never populated, as most would rather keep indoors. However, this time was quite different, as it wasn't only just Leon and Sammy out there.

From the distance, in a more shady corner, sat a thoughtful Weavile. It felt as if he chose the least illuminated spot in the whole cage, and yet it didn't spot one bounty hunter.

"You're not very well hidden in there." Rayne called to the weasel who was sulking behind a large wooden shed.

"I'm not trying to hide." Laker muttered between his claws as he leaned against the wall.

"Then why run out here?"

"I just needed some space."

"Ah..." The Manectric said, taking a spot without permission next to the Weavile—Laker supposed she could; what was he gonna do, stop her? "How does it feel to have your memories?"

"Confusing." He scoffed at the idea. "I honestly thought I would end up like Galant, but this might somehow be worse."

"How so?"

"I'm in this weird in-between spot where I both care and don't care about you all." Laker uttered through his gritted teeth, and before Rayne could interject, he continued on his tangent. "Everything in my past is telling me I should say 'fuck it all' and rejoin Sam's team to survive this game...but the other half says I should just forget this side of me and help you all escape."

For a moment, Rayne reconsidered speaking. It was hard to describe how she was feeling...but it was as if she didn't have enough experience with her own emotions to give advice to others. The Manectric only had her emotions for two weeks at best, so anything she could say still felt...novice. Nonetheless, she still tried.

"If it were up to me, I'd just forget like nothing happened."

"That's a bit ironic." Laker chuckled and turned to the electric type. "Would you say the same about your emotions returning?"

"..."

He had a point, and it was a good question. Having emotions only made things more difficult to deal with, but would she say she would have rather kept herself emotionless?

"I think I'd keep them. Even in this predicament, emotions are a beautiful thing." Rayne uncharacteristically worded. "Even if I only feel sad, the occasional feeling of hope and joy makes it worth it."

"You don't even know what true joy is." The weasel harshly stated and tore his gaze from the Manectric.

How odd, it's as if their roles had been reversed. Laker was the one being cold and Rayne was the more soft-spoken one—at least compared to the other.

"Mhh...so that's what it feels like." Rayne smiled sourly. "Was I always that cold?"

"...yeah." Laker didn't want to admit it, but he had just realized he was being kind of a prick. "Sorry, I just don't like feeling this way."

"Then...maybe there's a way you can help us while keeping your memories? Even though you have a recollection of helping Sam, isn't experiencing the game you're endorsing enough to change your mind?" Rayne reasoned, her expression now more hopeful than attentive.

"No, I knew exactly what I was funding." He shook his head. "Everyone did, actually."

The Manectric's ears twitch at a few choice words. "Everyone? What do you mean?"

"Rayne." Laker turned to face her ruby eyes. The weasel bit his tongue for a moment, gauging whether or not he should say his next words. "The one part of me that cares about you and the rest of the group doesn't want to say this."

"If it's bad, I won't say a word." Rayne shrugged.

"Really? Are you sure you'd be able to handle it?" He raised a brow.

"Why not? Leave it to the emotionless bounty hunter, right?" She smiled warmly at him.

Even though he knew the canine was no longer emotionless, Laker still understood her clever wording. Rayne still holds many secrets about her and her previous life, dealing with that information constantly with emotions now included is something she's used to.

"Alright..." He trusted her.

Laker shuffled around to face the electric type. "For starters, you all must have thought, 'There's a reason for all of us to be here', right?"

"Correct." Rayne followed.

"Well, to be completely blunt, we're here because we all funded the project that Sam was working on; the ability to revive the dead."

Rayne flinched at the idea, multiple mental images of her and others funding this project made it seem ridiculous, but she didn't try and fight his words yet. If anything, she stayed quiet for a moment to think.

"Why would she put people who benefit her into this game?"

"There's a lot more to it." Laker frowned, his eyes not holding the bravery they once had. "All of this wasn't started by funding alone, it was an investigation for worthy Pokemon."

"Investigation? Worthy?" Rayne questioned, and it seemed like it was all she was going to do from now on—understandably.

"Worthy would make it seem like it's a good thing, but it's not." He crossed his clawed arms. "Every single one of us asked Sam to help them revive someone they knew."

"Objectively, how is that bad before knowing about the killing game?"

"Because each of you was willing to sacrifice someone else's life to do the job." Laker turned to offer the canine a bitter expression.

"I don't follow." Rayne ever so slightly reeled backward at the accusatory tone.

"Not even Sammy knows this, but in order for Sam to create a revival gem, she needs essence—is what she calls it. The energy and aura that creates all life in Pokemon, can be sucked dry into one small conduit. To you all, it might seem like a revival, but to her...it's a transfer. One life for another."

Now Rayne was understanding, her claws raking mindlessly on the grass as she thought. "Sam picked us for this game because we were selfish?"

Laker didn't answer, and his disappointed frown was enough to answer her question. "I was the only one that was willing to sacrifice my own life...that's why she kept me to work for her."

No more words were spoken from the canine, and she held a very focused expression. It was impressive how well she held it together, especially considering her emotions weren't very developed.

"Why the game?" Rayne muttered mindlessly.

"That's where Sam's curiosity is piqued. She truly wondered what made everyone who they were and what led to their choices. What truly makes someone selfish enough to kill another person for a different person's life? Well, moral or not, throw them in a killing game with amnesia and figure out if it's genetically predisposed or just societal."

"...but you cannot ignore the questionable morals of that action."

"To her, she just saw it as justice. In her tormented mind, both sides got what they wanted; the participants got to revive who they wanted but at the sacrifice of their own lives, and Sam got her research."

"She was actually going to revive them?"

"Yes, but she wasn't gonna let anyone actually leave this game." Laker frowned. "Murder was pointless..."

"Murder was pointless..."

Those words rang around her head for a while. Every death, every brutal execution, every ounce of despair felt...all for nothing? Even if it were bad choices, the choices never mattered anyway?

What a joke.

"And yet..." Laker continued with a bitter chuckle. "She still didn't bother to save me from the game. Sam was okay with me participating and probably dying."

"What are you going to do about that?" Rayne idly interrogated.

"I don't know, but I could leave this place if I wanted to."

"I'm sure she wouldn't let you do that anymore, considering you already refused Kanom's offer."

"No, you don't get it." The Weavile shook his head, his eyes lightly wandering under the rising moon. "I want to do neither, I just want to leave this place and forget about it. Forget I ever funded it, and forget about you all."

...

Rayne desperately hoped for there to be a 'but' in that statement, and for a while it seemed like she was never going to get it until...

"But I can't. There are two sides to me, and they both care and hate you all." Laker shuddered lightly—was he getting cold somehow?

"Do you think Sam cares about you?" Rayne tilted her head.

Laker held quiet about that question for too long, but eventually, he came to a middle-grounded answer. "I think she must have seen something different in me last minute."

Without any more words, Rayne stood up and faced the Weavile with a determined stare. "Why can't you just help us? Clearly, Sam doesn't care about you."

"I can't just throw away my entire life over people I've only known for months..."

In a way, he was right. Now that Laker had his memories back, what the group felt like was their entire life seemed like just a few months to Laker.

"I just..." Rayne suppressed the urge to let her emotions falter. "We need help, Laker. Desperately."

"A big part of me cares about you, Rayne. I wish I could help you all, but I cannot defy the other side of me." He turned to offer her a weak frown.

"Then forget." She ordered bluntly.

"What?"

"Forget. The newer memory gems let you forget, right? It hasn't been a full twenty-four hours yet." Rayne nearly pleaded. "You have time to get rid of your past memories."

"B-But why the hell would I do that? I know exactly who I am and why I'm here! Why the hell would I go back to this hell?" Laker was now on his feet to contest the Manectric.

"It's not gonna make a difference if Sam still wants you in this game!" The canine gritted her teeth in presumably frustration. "Why would you care about someone who left you to die?"

The Weavile didn't answer, instead, his gaze was now glued to the floor.

"Please, Laker. Please say it..."

"I-I don't know, I fear for my life, Rayne."

"I'll protect you, I promise." The Manectric took a step forward to curl her paw around his shoulder. "I won't let anything happen to you."

"You c-can't guarantee that." He shook his head. "Why would I trust you? Why would I listen to such a small voice in my head?"

"Just say it with me, please..." Rayne frowned. "I wish..."

Silence. She took a small inhale and continued.

"I wish..." She started.

"I-I wish..." He continued.

Rayne's eyes glimmered with hope at the words, and she didn't take it for granted as she resumed.

"To..."

A small moment of hesitance, but the Weavile followed.

"To..."

Rayne looked up at the weasel with a gentle smile before nodding. "Forget."

Laker paused, the buildup of tears in his eyes enough to trail down his cheeks. He nearly lunged forward to tightly wrap his arms around the Manectric for a hug and sob into her fur.

"Forget..." He cried into the last person this part of him will ever trust.

And his grip went numb.