The stairs creak dangerously below us, promising hell if we stumble. I can feel golden lace string around my fingers, and for once, it's not invisible to everyone but myself. I feel Bronze clench his hands in the darkness. He knows how we're connected. It's something deeper than love, than blood, than necessity.

Perhaps it's so strong because it contains all three.

Rune's nose flares, releasing embers. Though I've never seen it before, my mind immediately murmurs, stress.

"Are you okay?" I call out to Rune, whose claws scrape the wall. He growls. "We aren't alone."

The lights flicker on and off overhead, and the ugly ceiling lamps swing as if being stirred by a distant wind.

Behind us, the door slams shut. "Shit!" yells Toxis, turning around and slamming the door. "There's a metal door behind us! We're trapped!"

"Rune! Can you tell..."
My eyes burn gold and I feel my consciousness attacked by another as Rune speaks through my lips.

"What are you doing?" I ask, staggering forwards.

Trust me. he says, and we walk down the rest of the stairs.

Shauna stands at the edge of another door, her shivering hands about to close around the handle. We grasp her hand and shake her head. "He's right behind the door."

Shauna nods. "I can deal with him. I want you guys to run. There will be a bunch of grunts if we're really in their hideout."

"I know."

Rune's presence seeps from me.

"Was that necessary?" I snap, turning around. The others are trying to get around him before he returns to his body and falls down the steps.

"Are you doubting me, Lilly? I'm a Psychic type. We're very smart." he boasts, though there's something unfamiliar in his voice.

"Are you... scared?" I try not to snort.

"Maybe a little." Rune whimpers, clutching his stick.

"You two do realize there's a potentially genocidal maniac planning something dangerous behind this door, right?" Ferro yells.

"We know." Rune and I say at once.

Shauna takes a deep breath. "So this is it." She reaches for the door, but it swings open.

"Come in, come in." purrs a voice from past the door. Lysandre smiles at all of us. "I see you've made it past my grunts. What do you say we talk it out?"

We file into the room, all of us with our Pokeballs ready.

A Pyroar sits at Lysandre's feet, purring as it rubs up against him. "Well, well, well. Diantha's band of heroes, right?"

"Like hell we are." Bronze half growls the words himself.
Lysandre ignores him, walking up to Shauna and caressing her face. She slaps him away and Thistle springs from his Pokeball, thorns sharp. Lysandre's Pyroar opens its mouth, revealing a bright molten light shining from within, but neither attack. The air in the room is electric with tension."You must be the pretty little flower that AZ was talking about." Lysandre finally says. "It's such a shame he'll never find you, isn't it?"

"I have no idea who you're talking about." Shauna tells him.

"Are you sure? White haired man. Frighteningly tall. My ancestor, your master... responsible for the greatest genocide ever known to man or Pokemon. What a shame."

Shauna gasps. I recognize the description. It's the man I've seen in my dreams.

Lysandre throws a Pokeball upwards, releasing a Meinfoo. "You and me. If you win, you and your friends have a fighting chance. If not, I give my colleagues the cue to load the weapon. By the time you get to me, it will be too late. Anyone else interfere? Same deal."

"How do I know I can trust you?"

"We're both Goldeneyes, aren't we? You haven't heard my master plan yet. I plan to wipe out all the humans on this goddamned planet. Fortunately for us... we're not Pokemon or human, are we? You know we'll never really be like them. Why would we want to be? Nature has order. Humans are stupid enough to believe our lives are any more valuable than theirs, to abuse and neglect them, when we're the worst of all... because we'll never admit we're feral, snarling beasts."

My heart burns within my chest. Everything he's saying is so clearly wrong, but his conviction is lethal. What conditions could have produced a monster like that?

"Is that what you told Diantha?" Shauna asks, her tone just as sharp as his.

"Of course not!" He laughs. "That's what she told me."

"Y-you're lying!" Shauna cries. "Diantha would never say anything like that!"

"You don't know anything about your beloved champion!" Lysandre yells. For the first time, he's raised his voice. He takes several deep breaths before continuing. "No. You're right. You deserve to know the truth, Floette. If you defeat all the grunts and my colleagues, I'll give you a fair chance to end this. After all... if one Goldeneye got me into this, it's only fair another could get me out. Wouldn't you love to play the hero? Your name would be remembered for the rest of history. Immortality is sweet, isn't it?"

"I don't care about that. I'm here to protect my blood family. My team. This team. Everyone else in the world who has something this beautiful, this powerful... all of those people deserve to live. There's so much beauty in a world like this, and if you can't see that, you're blind."

"If you say so." he purrs. "Meinfoo, High Jump Kick!"

"Faye!" Shauna sends out Faye, who grins and waves. "Moonblast!"

A huge burst of bright pink energy hits Meinfoo in the face, sending it backwards. Between that and the rebound from High Jump Kick, the tiny Pokemon is almost defeated. Without hesitation, Shauna yells, "Don't let up!" Another Moonblast goes soaring through the air- a direct hit.

Shauna clenches and unclenches her fists, holding back her Goldeneye powers.

Lysandre only releases his next Pokemon, completely undisturbed. A Murkrow flaps into battle, cawing happily. "Alright! Lemme go! Lemme go! I'm gonna do it good!"

"Murkrow, use Wing Attack!"
"Faye, Thunderbolt!"

Faye blows a kiss. "Anything for you, darling." Bright lightning crackles from his hands and the Murkrow corkscrews above him, slashing him with one wing down the back.

"Double Team!"

Dozens of Murkrows do a hairpin turn in unison, all of them diving back at Faye. Faye uses Protect, bracing himself, but another slew of them turn again and fly back. Faye turns to receive a direct hit to the face, falling backwards to the ground. "Sorry, Shauna..."

Shauna withdraws Faye, exchanging him for Escargot the Goodra. The enormous dragon cooes as she aims straight for the center Murkrow, and it falls like a stone. The copies dissolve around it and it lets out a sad crow before fainting. Lysandre withdraws it and sends out a massive Gyarados.

"Dragon Pulse!"

Escargot takes the hit straight on, barely disturbed.

"Power Whip!" Escargot's tail glows bright green as she whips around, turning upwards and slam upwards into the Gyarados's throat. It growls, but Shauna's brought herself close enough for a critical hit.

"Watch out!" I yell, but it's too late as Escargot's eyes widen and it sinks its teeth into her throat. She falls to the ground, bright green ooze mixed with blood seeping from her neck. Shauna hastily withdraws her and I hold back a choking sob as the Gyarados turns to me, teeth bared in a savage smile.

Rage's guilt is my own, the hatred and guilt both hurting me just as much as the uselessness as I stand there and watch Shauna fight.

However, the smile is wiped right of the Gyarados's face as Luna's Moonblast slams it right into the mouth. It falls to the ground just in time for Thistle's Wood Hammer to come slamming down into its chest.

Lysandre scowls as he returns Gyarados, but Shauna looks more determined than ever. "Pyroar, will you do the honors?"

The Pyroar slinks forwards like a snake, its expression ravenous, and it goes into a deep crouch, ready to pounce. Thistle stands with his Spiky Shield readied, and the Pyroar lunges up and jumps only to slam back into the ground, launching a Fire Blast skywards. The enormous star of fire wipes over the room, stirring dust and steam as everything goes white.

"This is what happens when emotion clouds your vision. Any trainer would tell you never to put a grass type up against a seasoned fire type." Lysandre says coolly.

For a second, Shauna freezes up, but golden eyes peer through the silver mist, undaunted. When the smoke clears, Thistle stands with one burned arm and bright eyes, grinning like a maniac.

"Yes, we are a grass type..." Shauna says through Thistle's mouth, "But we're also a fighting type."

Thistle rams into Pyroar, knocking it over, and his unburned arm raises up as far as he can before it slams downwards with one powerful Hammer Arm. Pyroar goes limp and Shauna's face lights up in a smile. "That was actually really easy." Shauna says, half laughing. "That was REALLY easy! We did it, guys!"

"It would appear that way, wouldn't it?" Lysandre's eyes burn gold and his voice comes out of his Pyroar's mouth. "I'll admit I prefer to play fair. If you really want to find Diantha, defeat everyone in the room. One of my executives has the key to the next room, where AZ and... what you seek... both lie." His large teeth bare into a snarl. "Now get out."

The team walks through the door, the cold rage burning like fire inside us all. I can feel our bonds vibrating like violin strings. Bronze turns around to slam his fist into Lysandre's face and instead hits the wall next to it. He draws it back, swearing angrily, and Lysandre smiles.

However, that disappears as he turns back to us with a sad sigh. "I pity your naiveté. Regardless, I wish you luck."

"One last question." Shauna says, "How did you ever get all of these people to work with you?"

"Easy." Lysandre says. "They still think they'll be spared."

With that, the door slams shut.