LOKI'S POV

The idea was so distant to me; the thought of being forcefully confined to one area. No matter how large the mansion was, everything still felt claustrophobic. Even after exploring the vast hallways we still did not feel comfortable, so looking for a possible escape was a number one priority.

So here we are, finally leaving the doors of our hell...only to figure out that we were just stuck inside a bigger prison. Like finally digging out a hole and seeing the sun is gone forever.

Nothing special greeted us on the outside. The only thing we could see for miles was tidily cut grass. Looking past that, our entire environment was merely a ginormous birdcage. Inu was the only one willing to run a mile to reach the end of the plains, only to find a steel wall about thirty feet tall—very thick too. And just in case any of us could fly, in between each cage ring was a tough-looking glass.

Sam had everything prepared to have us stay here for the rest of our lives until someone decided to murder again, but not everyone had lost hope.

"Everyone!" Galant called as he made his way to the group gathered in front of the battered front doors. "There are some things this way that are worth looking at."

"Is it a way out?" Vince muttered under his breath.

Galant only flashed the Greninja a frustrated frown before shaking his head. "No, but there are dangerous things everyone should know about."

"Right, show us." Leon leaned off the wall he was on before stepping towards the Gallade.

Leon seemed a lot more serious ever since he figured out we were truly stuck in this game. It's as if a switch flipped towards survival rather than escape.

I decided to follow along the gravel path the two were trailing. I soon found myself in front of a row of sheds, each having its respective purpose.

Dismissing the fruits and toys, the Gallade pushed a door—that he had clearly broken down himself—open.

Inside were two things; a shovel and a sickle.

"This was laid out for us to take." Galant noted as he brushed his blade across the empty shelves. "There's nothing here but tools to assist in a murder."

"I see. Hiding it would be ideal, yet very dangerous if anyone found it and accused us." Leon added and placed a thoughtful paw against his chin. "Seeing as how it's already revealed, it's best to leave it."

"I agree...maybe it could be useful outside of harming someone, they are tools after all." I jumped in to agree before turning to face a nearby fruit stand. "It's also so strange to see so many stands unoccupied."

"Almost as if this location was previously inhabited..." Leon hummed.

"You might be onto something with that." Galant huffed and stepped out of the tool shed. "I feel like there are things around that we can't use."

I took my time to think about what he said—the thought clearly was too confusing for me. Any semblance of normality had vanished the moment we stepped foot in the mansion, so I'll just have to deal with things being mentally out of reach.

I tore off the path that was following Leon and Galant to find Sherwood quizzically picking at the ends of a wide aluminum door.

"What's wrong?" I stepped closer to peer over his shoulder.

"You recall this material?" Sherwood turned to back up in front of the large door and knock his talons against it. "It's the garage door, I can tell."

"Oh..! It is!" I mimicked his actions and grazed my claws against the rough surface. He was right, if we broke through we would have figured out where we were earlier.

"Maybe here?" The Sceptile eased his way to the corner of the frame and tinkered with a small machine.

After a few seconds of toying, the garage door suddenly began rolling up after a loud click.

It was only then that I realized that the garage was where the body was found, so whenever the door slowly swung up to my chest I had already prepared my stomach for what was to come.

Everything seemed to make even less sense now...

"It's gone?" Sherwood muttered under his breath and stepped inside.

The body was gone...along with every speck of blood possible. Everything was cleaned up so professionally in just a day—even the furniture was brought back to normal.

"Fuck..." The Sceptile furrowed his brows in frustration. "How did they..."

"Don't waste your time thinking about it..." A familiar monotone voice reassured us from the corner of the room.

"Sammy..." I could only manage those words.

"I know." The smaller Braixen offered me a small frown. "I can only imagine how you feel."

"Ya knew it the whole time too, eh?" Sherwood shot her a side-eyed glare.

"I can only do so much for you..." She was completely unphased. "I'm trying to do my best for you without dying myself."

Without dying herself..?

"Hm...Sam would do somethin' like that?" The Sceptile huffed.

"Look at this place and then ask that again..." The Braixen shrugged and paced closer to the two of us. It had only occurred to me just now that she was holding something.

"What's that?" I curiously leaned down to focus on it.

"Don't get too close, you weren't a big fan of it at first." She warned.

"Is that...do you mean..?" Sherwood stammered.

"Yup. This is a memory gem—a gem Sam used to return Loki a portion of her memory."

I don't know why but I physically flinched. The thought of receiving another memory like that was very appalling right now.

"Are ya offering?" Sherwood was very quick to ask, his gaze locking with the Braixen's.

"That's what I'm here for right now. I was given this gem to offer someone a memory." Sammy held out the gem to the Sceptile, who seemed to stare at it blankly. "Just hold it and say your name."

"Is that it?" I heard Leon's voice from behind us. The Lucario was listening for a while but seemed to only speak whenever he realized how easy it was to return a memory. "Is it as simple as that?"

"Yes." Sammy answered flatly.

"Hm..." The Lucario heaved a stressed sigh. "Are you taking it, Sherwood?"

The Sceptile silently nodded and turned back to the Braixen. He gingerly extended his talons to grip the pale gem, his eyes locking with the vixen's for any sort of affirmation. Upon earning a small nod from her, he took a deep breath.

"Sherwood."

...

Then he collapsed.

...

...

THIRD PERSON

"Sherwood!"

The voice was all too familiar to him, a high shriek loud enough to reverberate around the thick forest.

"Sherwood! Where are you?" The closer it got, the more details he could make out. "Don't tell me you're hidin' again!" It was a feminine voice, but one young enough to be a teenager.

An expected Sceptile was settled on a thick tree branch, his eyes narrowed with exhaustion as he heard his name be called for the last time.

"I'm here..!" Sherwood yelled out as loud as he could with his sleep-dried voice.

The voice soon followed him to encounter the reptile.

"There you are..." A Grovyle would leap out of the shadows to approach Sherwood, who had now stood in the moonlight.

"Estra, I was just sleepin'..." The Sceptile shrugged nonchalantly.

"For the whole day!" She giggled and whacked the side of his leafy tail. "Come back to the cave, there's some berries ready to be picked!"

"Aight..." Sherwood chuckled and soon led the way back to their home. They had to cross many forks in the path to even reach there, but it didn't take long for the two at all.

However, something immediately felt off to them, and upon further investigation they found themselves staring at a silhouette in the shadows.

"Not again..." He hissed under his breath before hovering his claws in front of the Grovyle. "Estra...get in the cave..."

Estra didn't question his intentions one bit and instantly made a dash toward their home.

"Hey! What I tell you about comin' back here?" Sherwood called out to the shadow, who soon stepped forward to reveal himself.

A rather medium-sized Lucario revealed himself with a bag full of presumably berries. "I have said numerous times I do not wish to hurt you." He replied, his voice calm and collected.

"Yeah, yeah...and take our shit too!" Sherwood hissed as he readied his claws. "If you don't get the hell out I'll make you!"

"We do not have to do this, Sherwood." The jackal muttered and gently slugged the bag over his shoulder to ready himself for battle.

"I don't wanna hear shit from you...fuckin' creep!"

Hatred boiled in his blood as the Sceptile leaped forward and began clawing at the jackal. The two rolled across the grassy hill, each attempting to claw and jab at each other.

In the heat of the moment, Sherwood felt a tightening sensation around his neck...until suddenly everything seemed so bright.

...

...

"Sherwood! Stop!"

He finally returned to a normal state of mind, but not a very comfortable one.

"Gh...S-Sherwood..." A strained voice hissed from below the Sceptile—who had pinned and strangled Leon in his memories.

Sherwood finally released his grip, and the tension in his throat seemed to ease. He rose to his feet and craned his head to glare at a magical ring of energy wrapping around his neck.

"I don't know what happened, but you need to calm down." Vanta's voice ordered from behind the Sceptile. It was only then that Sherwood realized the Umbreon was using a move to hold him back.

"He..." The reptile started, his voice still tainted with anger. "He's the one who hurt my sister..."

"Huh..?" Loki tilted her head. "You know him?"

"Yes, he stole everything I had..." Sherwood's fist balled at his thoughts.

"What..?" Leon regained his composure and rose to his feet. "What do you mean?"

"Just you wait till you get your memories back, jackal." The Sceptile tossed the weed in his mouth to the side. "Watch your back."