Third person pov

Shadow decided to go back to bed. It's no use trying to find an answer to this question. He thought to himself and went to bed. He had a nice dream after he'd fallen asleep. When he woke up it was mid day. He got out of his room and just ignored everyone as he left the den to find berries for himself. I know Night probably already has some prepared, but I can't be bothered to talk to anyone today. He thought to himself. Question is why didn't Sylvia contact me last night? I don't know how to enter the dreamscape on my own...hopefully I can ask her tonight if she doesn't answer me today. He thought to himself, I hope she's not upset. He thought to himself once more.

He got some water and thought about things. They don't need me, they just want me around. He thought to himself, hiding this thought from Sylvia. He was thinking about running away which he also hid those thoughts from her as well. He headed back but just kept to himself when he got there. He ignored everyone. "Something's up, he's never been like this." Lilly said. "What do you think is going on with him?" Comet asked. "I don't know." Lilly responded. "According to Terra, Sylvia doesn't know either, it's as if he's hiding his thoughts from her." Night explained. "He's ignored all of us today, he's even ignoring Violet." Aqua said.

Yeah, they're functioning just fine without me, I mean they've got Night. He's got more skill than me, he's got more power than me, heck, it's all been him. He's been the one protecting everyone this whole time. So I can just run, go find a place I'm needed. Even if they'll end up missing me, eventually they won't and then they'll forget I even exist. Which is better for them than me sitting around doing nothing to help. Shadow thought to himself, also hiding this thought from Sylvia. When it becomes night time he decides that it's best he run away. Okay Sylvia, I've been deciding all day whether or not I should run away, and I've decided that I'm going to, and since it's night time, it's the perfect opportunity, I'm of no use here, not when they've got Night..He thought, this time letting Sylvia hear his thoughts.

He left quickly and quietly making no noise. Goodbye everyone... Shadow thought. The moon was shining high in the sky and bright. The good thing here is that we'll actually be alone, Sylvia. He thought to her. Come on, answer me please! I need to know you're alright... he thought. He still didn't receive a response so he began to worry. Uh Sylvia?! He asked. "If you're wondering where I've gone, don't bother. I've asked Night to make me separate from you, since you seem set upon leaving. He is hosting me till you come around again, and I don't mean this state of being, I mean the Shadow I fell in love with." Sylvia said, on the verge of tears.

So she's going to abandon me then...fine, I guess she never needed me either...they don't need me, I don't need them.......I-I don't need anyone but myself.... He thought to himself, clearly upset. I don't care how exhausted I become, I'm not going to rest until I get miles away from here. He thought once more, proceeding to walk away. "Maybe this is for the best. Even so, I'll miss you. Everyone will. You don't realize how much everyone here needs you, but I can't make you see that, you have to find that on your own. Night, of all people, needs you" Sylvia said, not even joking around a little bit. Eventually they'll forget I even exist, plus they only need Night, he's strong enough for them.

I am pretty much useless there, so I'm either going to find a place I can be useful, or get miles away and stay on my own. He thought to himself. "You need to realize this before Night loses his..." whatever she was going to say was cut off by Violet's little voice, "Bye uncle Shadow" she said, giving him a hug on the fore legs. She doesn't sound sad at all, so I was right. "Bye Violet." He said, leaving when she released. She should know her way back, I didn't get that far from the den and I hadn't made any turns either. He thought to himself as he continued to walk away. This is a good decision... He reassured himself. "Either I'll see you in a month or we will all be dead." Violet said, surprisingly calm about all of this.

Either I'm dreaming an extremely off dream or this child doesn't care at all if she never sees me again. He thought to himself, not even looking back. "Neither of those are true, we both know that. don't we, Jake?" She asked in a dark tone. Jake? Jake is gone...what is this messed up dream?! I need to wake up! How did I fall asleep in the first place?! He asked himself. "Why must you turn into something worse than Jake?" Violet asked Shadow, more serious this time. "Worse than?! No, I am doing this because I'm of no use here, I'm doing this for everyone, and for myself. 'A team is only as strong as its weakest link.' " He said.

"Well Jake never doomed us all to eternal torture at the paws of my father." Violet said. "Torture?! This isn't anything close to torture, maybe a small amount of suffering only while you think about it yes. But like I said, eventually you'll all forget I exist. Goodbye young one." Shadow said. "We will only survive a month. Keep that in mind as you travel." Violet told him. "Now you're just trying anything to get me to stay, you guys have Night to protect you from any and all danger." Shadow explained. "Nightmare can't protect us against himself." Violet said, walking off.

"Against himself?! Last time I checked he had no intent on harming anyone. She's bluffing." Shadow said to himself, shaking his head and continuing to walk off. And I can easily smash any drones they send to me out of desperation, that way they can forget. He thought to himself.

The Next Morning...

The first day is gone and I'm already extremely tired, strange. He thought to himself. One thing he hadn't noticed before was that these woods were heavily populated, so he was hearing all kinds of sound he hasn't paid attention to before. I guess the forest is it's own band heh heh. Shadow chuckled to himself as he walked along the riverside. I don't know where I'm planning on going, I guess I'm just going wherever my internal compass tells me to go. He thought to himself. "Ahh, my mind has never felt so clear before. Guess this is why they say it's a good thing to 'reconnect to your roots' or 'reconnect with nature' which both mean the same thing." He said to himself.

Even if I miss them, and really want to go back, I've not only already made my decision, but also I'd become useless again. But it'd still mean I'd get her back....no, no, don't think about it, she decided to leave you just because you were choosing to run away from everyone else. You've made your decision and she made hers. He reassured himself. "Oh look what we have here! It's a shiny umbreon, and it looks like a strong one too!" A voice said. Oh no, not a trainer.... Shadow thought to himself as he turned to where the noise came from and started to snarl. "I know I have a fairy type somewhere in here." The trainer said.

"Ah got you Ivy!" The trainer said and sent put a pokéball, and out came a sylveon. If only I could just vanish I wouldn't have to deal with these trainers... Shadow thought to himself. "Huh?! Where'd he go?! He was just right here! Guess I was seeing things, I knew I shouldn't have drank coffee before bed last night." The trainer said to himself. huh, I'm right here, wait...I can't see my paws, did I go invisible?! He asked himself. "Ivy return!" The trainer said. "Sorry for dragging you out here for nothing." The trainer said. Shadow didn't bother sticking around any longer and made his getaway while he still could. He found a hillside and climbed it.

That was more of an extremely tall cliff than a hill, the days already gone, might as well rest a bit I guess. He thought to himself as he curled up and went to sleep.

Night and the others

The night Shadow left, a few things could be noticed instantly. One of Night's eyes had turned black, unerveing the others; two, Night's physical form was phasing in and out of existence. Terra couldn't even enter his mind at all, Violet either. It was like something was keeping them out. Other than that he was normal as could be, other than the loss of connection to Shadow. "Well, this sucks. Not only once, but TWICE, I have lost a brother." Night said gloomily. "Honey, it won't be forever." Aqua said, trying to give Night a hug. "No!" Night yelled, surprising everyone. Usually he would be the LAST one to say 'no' to physical attention.

"Night, are you feeling okay?" Terra asked, concerned. "Gem take everyone to the lab and protect everyone there, don't ask questions, just do it!" Night yelled, jump starting Gem's brain. "Nightmare, I know what is going to happen If you don't get your connection back. I tried to warn Shadow, Sylvia was there when it happened, I told him we could keep you stable for a month. So I'll do that. No matter the cost." Violet said, putting Night on edge. Then something happened that made Terra wonder what Violet exactly is. A strand of black started pouring from Nights paw into Violet's paw and started to form a sphere and a bit of purple intertwined with it.

Then, as quickly as it appeared, it exploded into little lights that disappeared. When everything came into focus, Night's eyes had returned to normal and he stopped phasing. "Who wants a hug?" Violet asked. Night simply hugged her in response. "Whatever you did, it helped a lot." "I won't be able to hold this connection for very long, a month at most. We need to find Shadow, and quickly." Violet said, "don't worry dad, we'll fix this. I will not let The Nightmare take you, Avery." Night shuddered at this, "How do you know that name?" "Just one of the many I have from you." Violet said nonchalantly.

"Please don't call me that, I wish to avoid that name." Night told her, "also, can you get off of me now, there are things that I need to do." "oh, jah." Violet said in her usual cheery tone. "Gem, You know how to run the main computer, right?" Night asked. "Yeah I do, why?" Gem asked. "We are going to be looking for Shadow." Night replied.

30 minutes later

"Okay, we're here" Night said, reaching the door to the lab, "lab access 13." "Welcome Nightmare. What can i do for you today?" the computer asked. "Can you get a ping on Shadow?" Night asked. "Yes he is in the town of Sugarsand, in your current state, Night, you should catch him in three to four days time." the computer said. "Thank you computer, can you send this to the shard?" the little device around Night's neck buzzed once, "thank you, computer. I really don't want harm to come to anyone, and you are helping me with that. Oh and while i'm here can you dig up all the files on Gemstone here, ID number 06232." Night said, catching Gem off guard.

"How do you know all of that?" Gem asked, bewildered. "I have read everything this facility has to offer, and the only espeon that they worked on was one that went by the name of Gemstone," Night said, a deep sorrow in his voice. "They never tested on me as an Espeon, Gemstone was my...my sister." Gem said, breaking down into tears. "Oh...I didn't mean-" Night said. "It's fine." She interrupted. "Let's not tell Shadow when we find him okay?" Night said. "Why not?" Gem asked, confused. "He thought he was the only survivor before he met you, so if he found out he'd probably blame himself for escaping alone, again..." Night explained.

"So that's why. Alright then." Gem said. "Welp we're at the room." Night said. "This is just an empty room." Gem told him. "Huh, this place looks a lot more organized than before." Night said. He pressed a button and the door to that passage opened up. They went into the room with the mainframe computer in it. "Hm? These files are still here, I thought Shadow would've taken them, or at least hidden them." Night said. "Why? Are these files important for something?" Gem asked, walking up to them. "Test subject 0347." Gem read. "Read more." Night said. Gem then read over what Shadow ended up reading already when he was here the third time, she even read a little more too.

"Successful test subject being moved to experimental lab outside this very room. Commander in chief will keep tabs on it and reports from other scientists, admins are to report back on its condition. Just a few more experiments on it and we're done here, it'll be released into the wild, it'll be surveyed by a cloaked drone, if this succeeds completely, all other test subjects and failed test subjects will be terminated." She read out loud. "These are....these are his files...aren't they?" She asked. "Yes, they are, now, let's get to the task at hand, find Shadow before I get taken by darkness." Night said.

"These computers should help a lot, we might be able to pinpoint the exact spot he's in." He finished.

With Shadow.

"Right, time to get going." Shadow said getting up. "Even if I do rest it'll only be for a half hour." He said to himself. "There's a big world out there, a world to explore." He finished, trying to ignore his yearn to go back. No, there's nothing for me there, besides they don't need you, they only need him. He thought to himself. He walked and walked, every time he saw a trainer he'd think vanish and then he'd go invisible.

24 hours later

"So I'm a day away...wow this is going to take much longer than I thought." He said to himself. He was tempted to go back but he kept forcing himself to keep going. This is better for everyone. I'll forget eventually, so will they. He thought to himself. These feelings I'm getting have only caused me trouble, time to start ignoring them, and ignoring my wants, even my heart. He thought to himself as he kept going. I really want Sylvia back though....my heart aches without her here with me... I guess she didn't need me though seeing as she left anyways. Even if she didn't need me, I need her... He thought to himself, getting more and more sad with each thought, and the sadder he gets the more he slows down.

They have probably already moved on. Shadow thought, pushing forward. Despite his efforts to get the thought of Sylvia out of his mind, they kept returning with more feeling than before. I realized I liked Sylvia, but this is deep. How long can I keep this up before I have to see her again? Shadow questioned himself. Pushing them aside prompted feelings he wanted. Unfortunately it also brought feelings he hasn't had in years, Loneliness and longing. However he ignored the feelings even more.

Night and the others

"Feeling any better?" Terra asked Night. "Not really, but I'll manage." Night replied, walking out of the room. "hey Comet, how are you?" He questioned the shiny charizard. "I'm fine but I'm worried about Shadow. Maybe I could help you look for him. I can get a Birds eye view and fly ahead," he replied. "None of this would be happening if I hadn't abandoned him..." Sylvia said, "especially when he needed me most..." "you did what you had to do, maybe he will come back because he wants you," Night said, trying to cheer up Sylvia.

"I'm not so sure about that, he's a stubborn one, the kind that, depending on what's going on, may try to convince himself the opposite of what he truly wants." Sylvia replied. "That does sound like him, but if the feeling is strong enough, he will come back." Terra said knowingly. "Maybe, but there is a strong chance that even if it's strong enough he may still stay away, he's one to try to ignore his feelings as well, and at this point I'd say that's what he's currently trying to do, plus he left here because he felt useless here. He's trying to find a place he feels he'll be useful." Sylvia said, "we just have to hope for the best at this point."

"Well, we need him here. Dad can't stand up against the Nightmare for long." Violet said, entering the room. "Well, if we can't pinpoint his direct location rather than the area he's in, it's going to be like finding a needle in a haystack." Lilly said. "True, but we don't have anyone else who can keep the Nightmare back." Violet stated, scared for her father.

A few hours later, Shadow's first person pov.

I walked around the wooded area I was in, not a single scent of berries anywhere. "UGH DAMMIT!!! I'M GOING TO HAVE TO HUNT A STUPID PREY POKÉMON!!!" I screamed to the sky, frustrated with the option I was forced with, frustrated that I couldn't find any berries or apples. "I really don't want to, I'd almost rather starve...but what would the point in running away be if I'm to die out here, well it would certainly prove that I am useless. Still, there is no point in running if I am to die." I said. My body filling with confidence and determination. "And if I have to hunt and eat another pokémon, then so be it, rattata would do well, or even magikarp." I said.

"Before I turn to that option however, I'll wait till I absolutely have to eat or else risk death by starvation." I told myself. Why, why am I like this?! I asked myself, just then as if on cue, I heard a flapping followed by someone/something landing. Comet. "Go away, I'm unneeded there." I said without even turning around. "You are, please, just come back with me, everyone's worried about you." Comet said. "They certainly weren't before I ran away, why else would she have left me...alone..." I said lowering my head. "You're coming with me, even if I have to force you to." Comet said. "Not if I have anything to say about it." I said.

"I may be weaker than you in power, but my physical strength is higher than yours, how could you possibly do anything about it?" Comet asked. "Vanish." I said ensuring he heard it. "Wha-" he cut himself off. I assume he was about to question why I said 'vanish' until I went invisible. "What the!" He said. "You'll never find me when I have this ability, all I have to do is say or think the word 'vanish' and I'll turn invisible, I found it a little bit after Sylvia left me." I explained. "Goodbye old friend, by the way, feel free to tell everyone what I can do, and have them give up on finding me." I said, running away. I heard the sounds of his wings flapping.

"Now to wait out the invisibility timer." I said to myself.

10 minutes later

"Now I'm visible again. It's kind of nice that this ability lasts 10 minutes." I said to myself. Hearing the flapping again I said, "vanish" but nothing happened. Comet landed Night appeared off of Comet's back. "Never do that again, okay?" Night said to the charizard, dizzy. Something was off about Night, but I couldn't put my claw on it. "So now you've gotten desperate? You guys don't need me there, you only want me around. Stop coming after me, it's making it harder on all of us." I said.

"you may think that, but none of this would be possible if you hadn't been there. this entire continent would be a living hell." Night said looking at me with pearly black eyes, not only that but his normily white scruff has gone to a deep purple hue, and the voice didn't sound like Night at all. something has happened to him. Why does he sound and look like this all of a sudden? Is this some sort of ability I never knew of?! I asked myself. "No, it's not an ability. it's the Nightmare side of me, the side I never want to show." Night said in a demonic sounding voice. "...I guess I don't have a choice, I suppose the only use I am there is to keep you sane...I-I'll go back..." I said with a sigh.

"Sylvia will be happy, and you are a lot more useful than you think you are... Shadow, go with Comet, and comet, I swear to Arceus, If you do what you did to me I will rip your pelt from your body in the most painful way imaginable. When you land I shall be there, waiting." Night said, returning to normal, a tiny bit. "Ok, ok, I get it...I won't run away again." I said with a slight chuckle. "well, off you go." Night said, electrocuting himself and dashing off. "Alright then Comet, let's go." I said.

A few hours later, third person pov.

When Comet landed, the first thing Shadow did was run to a bush. "Comet, I thought I told you to go easy on him..." Night said, walking over to Shadow, "you okay, brother?" "yeah, just starving is all." Shadow said. "Well grab berries from that bush that you are in, peachas I think. well there are bbq'd berries back home so..." Night said. "I figured. I just needed something to eat at this moment." Shadow said. "I hope you like pie!!!" Night exclaimed. "How did you--? I'm not even going to question your abilities anymore." Shadow said. "oh ****, the pie!!!" Night said, dashing towards the den. The hell did get an oven? How the hell is he even able to use it?!

WHERE THE HELL DID HE EVEN GET INGREDIENTS MUCH LESS MIX THEM TOGETHER?! Shadow screamed in his mind, about ready to laugh at it. "he can do things that would make you question reality itself" Sylvia said in Shadow's mind. Oh hey! You're back! Shadow thought, beginning to get really excited. "Yeah, I did say when you came around I would." Sylvia said. Yeah, I know, I really missed you, I really wanted to come back but I thought that there would be no use coming back, well, until I found Night couldn't keep himself sane without me around. Shadow thought. "you have no idea what has happened to him in the past thirty-six hours, anyway how was Sugarsand?" Sylvia asked.

A lot of trainers, except I didn't know I was so close to a town. Shadow thought. "How do you think Night gets all of the things he does? He goes there on a daily basis," Sylvia asked, bewildered. I thought he stole things from trainers like I do... Shadow thought. "not at all, he buys them like you should, and he is famous there, how did you not realize?" Sylvia asked. Well, I mean, I'm not exactly human, so I don't really have a way to buy things, I'm honestly surprised he is able to and still have the humans understand what he wants. Shadow thought. "I don't know, but if you ask, he'll probably tell you," Sylvia said.

Yeah I suppose, but that's really the only way I've been able to gather books, and knowledge as well, I just steal from those dumb enough, and if I happen to get caught, I just leave the item behind at the spot where I got caught. Shadow thought. "From what he told us, he has enough money, Poke if you will, to buy a house flat out on the spot, we have been discussing it for some time now" Sylvia said, clearly impressed at the amount that Shadow has paid attention to her. How the hell has he even gained Poke?! Last time I checked he's also a pokémon so I don't exactly see how he could possibly hold a job, and even then so, I doubt humans would allow a wild pokemon to buy and own a house, at least unless living alongside a trainer, and I don't trust humans one bit, not after what they did to me, not after they murdered my father. Shadow thought.

"I really don't know. If you really want to know, ask Night, and you should eat, I can hear your stomach," Sylvia said nonchalantly. I bet the only reason he's famous there is because of the fact that he's a hybrid, because all humans are vile creatures, and if a pokémon they caught doesn't do as they wish, they simply get rid of 'em. All humans are vile beings. Shadow thought, finally grabbing some of the pecha berries and eating them. "that is only one of the five reasons he is famous," Sylvia stated. Only one of five?! Eh whatever, I'm not going to bother trying to figure out what the others are, well anyways, we should head back now. Shadow thought, heading to the den.

He prepared himself for both extreme awkwardness and to be scolded by someone. He entered the den and saw everyone in the main area. For a moment, to him, there was awkward silence as if time froze for a few seconds. "Well, look at who finally decided to return." Gem said. "Yeah well, I didn't have a choice, the only use I have here is to keep Night sane, so like I said, I didn't have a choice." Shadow explained with an awkward chuckle. This is one of those awkward moments heh heh. He thought to himself. He then proceeded to go back to his room, he sighed and laid down. welp, I discovered a new ability, I'd say Comet will probably be telling them about it right about now. Shadow thought to himself.

"Huh? What ability?" Sylvia asked. The ability to go invisible, the invisibility lasts for about 10 minutes. Shadow thought. "Oh, that's amazing!" Sylvia responded. Yeah, it is, it's also very useful for avoiding trainers. Shadow thought. "Let's join the others shall we?" Shadow asked out loud. "Yeah, why not?" Sylvia asked. Shadow got up and went back to the main area. "I wanna see it." Lilly said almost as soon as I came out. "See what?" Shadow asked. "Your ability!" Lilly exclaimed. "I can't, it lasts for 10 minutes...and it seems to have a cooldown of 30 minutes." Shadow said. "It, as well as my other ability, is only for a last resort." He explained.

"I'm going to go for a walk in the forest, please, no one bothers me." He finished, leaving the den. After some time of walking around he spotted what appeared to be a trainer's camp, but it seemed to be abandoned. must've been in a hurry, I wonder if they left anything behind. He thought to himself walking up to the camp. He looked around the camp, there was nothing there except for something in one of the tents. There was a book, it had an interesting design, there was no title for it either. Curiosity took hold of him and he slowly opened it. "GYAAAAAAAA!!!!" He screamed before passing out, strange images speeding by.

When he came to he was in his room, unconsciously gripping the book tightly. "The hell?! I don't remember grabbing this book, I don't even remember walking here!" Shadow exclaimed. "You're finally awake, you wouldn't let go of that thing no matter what we tried." Night said. "Get this thing away from me!" Shadow exclaimed, throwing the book at the wall. Night went to pick it up. "No! Don't touch it! Not while it's open! Or do you want to experience extreme pain before passing out?" Shadow asked, this made Night back away. "The things I saw...that thing is evil, i-it shouldn't belong in this world." Shadow said. He got up and went to close the book.

But upon touching it he heard a voice, "don't destroy me, I can help you in more ways than one, I can even transform the very world around you." "It spoke." Shadow said. "M-maybe, I should keep it, analyze it." He finished. "Are you sure?" Night asked. "Yes." Shadow said. "Based on these words and designs in this book, if these things are real, I guess I'm a mage now." He said after flipping through the pages. "Not only that, the text, it's ancient text, however, I can understand ancient text." He finished. "something about this book seems wrong... what the, Terra you alright? Terra!" Night yelled. "I looked through every page, there's nothing wrong with it." Shadow said.

"Something else is probably going wrong." He told Night. "You were right when you said that it doesn't belong in this world." Night said solemnly. "Well, it couldn't have done anything to you or Terra because neither of you touched it." Shadow explained. "I didn't need to, I can feel the power resonating off of it. Nothing in this world can produce that kind of power..." Night said, trailing off. "Well it's a magical relic/artifact, what else do you expect? For all we know there could be more of these things, and if that's the case we should find them before someone truly despicable finds any." Shadow explained. "As long as you're safe with it... just come home when you're done with it." Night said.

"We are home." Shadow replied. "from the lab... after you examine the book." Night explained. "Yeah, I suppose it would be a good idea to have the computer analyze it." Shadow said, leaving the room. "Just come back home when you're done" Night called after him. Shadow went to the lab, "computer, take this book to the analysis room and have it analyzed." Shadow said. "Alright." The computer said, a claw came out of a panel in the ceiling and slowly grabbed the book and brought the book into where it came from. Huh, must have some conveyors or something up there. Shadow thought to himself. He went to the analysis room.

"Error, unknown technologies, no data can be found." The computer said. "Dammit, guess I have to manually analyze it." Shadow said to himself. He grabbed the book and left the lab and went to the den. It's night time. Dammit, I wanted to spend some time with Sylvia all night...not just part of the night, to make up for what I did. He thought. "Welp, time to put this book with the other relics/artifacts." He said to himself after going to his room. He opened a hidden compartment and put the book there and then quickly and quietly closed it back up. He then went to sleep. He ended up in the dreamscape again, he proceeded to enter the house.

He found her in the bedroom he made for her in this part of the dreamscape. "Hey Shadow, I've been waiting for you." Sylvia said with a small grin. "Hey, I wanted to make up for what I did the other day. So, I want to spend as much time with you as I can." Shadow said, moving to the red and black patterned bed, sitting down next to Sylvia. "Well you're here now aren't you? That's all that matters, that you came back." Sylvia said, putting her paw on his.

The next day.

Shadow got up and stretched, "that was a pleasant night, seeing as I was in her company again. Feels nice just to see her again." He said to himself. He quickly grabbed that book and went to the main area to eat as he looked through it. "What's that?" Lilly said. "I think it's relic, this is the first relic/artifact I've found that I actually haven't hidden." Shadow replied. "Also, don't touch it." He instructed. "Why not? You're touching it right now." Lilly responded. "Yeah that's because I already went through that agonizing pain the book put me through." Shadow told her. "You can touch it while it's closed, but if it's open when you touch it, you'll also go through that pain." He explained.

"The computer failed to analyze it, so I'm doing it manually." He finished. "So how's Sylvia?" Night asked. "I don't want to say." Shadow replied, sounding like something bad happened. "What the **** did you do to Terra's sister?" Night asked. "Her sister?!" Shadow exclaimed. "Yes, her sister, anyways, answer the question." Night commanded. "I don't want to talk about it." Shadow said. "How's Comet?" Night asked. "He's fine, he went out to survey the land, I tried to tell him he didn't need to but he did anyways." Shadow said. "What about Sylvia?" Night asked. "I don't want to mention it." Shadow said, getting irritated.

He won't reverse psychology me that easily. Shadow thought. "I will find out." Night said. "No you won't, me and Sylvia agreed we wouldn't tell anyone, so she won't tell you." Shadow told him. "It will come out eventually." Night said. "No it won't, my lips are sealed." Shadow said. "Yes 'it' will." Night said ominously. "Why did you emphasize that?" Shadow asked. Night simply smiled, remaining silent. Shadow was very confused. "You will understand soon enough." Night said. "What aren't you telling me?!" Shadow demanded. " 'it' may not be real right now but it will be." Night said ominously. "WHAT DO YOU MEAN BY 'IT'?!" Shadow screamed. Night simply smiled again.

"The hell? Why won't you say why you're emphasizing that word?" Shadow asked. "Let's chat in private." Night said. They stepped outside, ensuring no one was eavesdropping. "You're about to be a father." Night told him. "Wait how did you figure out what happened?!" Shadow asked, surprised. "Besides, that's impossible, that is merely the dreamscape, even if things can feel real there and you can touch things there that doesn't make it reality, so 'it' can never become real." Shadow said. "How do you think Violet came to be?" Night asked. "Well, you did say that you found Violet, not that you two are related." Shadow explained. "She is mine and Terra's biologically." Night said.

"I thought you said 'you found Violet about the same time we found Gem.' You never said you two were related." Shadow said. "Here's the thing, neither me or Terra planned it, and when it happened, both of us wanted it. when it is ready I will become a being of its own and escape the dreamscape," Night explained. "Oh...wait...uh..." Shadow stuttered. "Yeah." Night said. "DAMMIT!" Shadow yelled. "Have fun." Night said. The expression on Shadow's face showed he was in some distress. "I........if.....if I had known........I would've declined.........GOD DAMMIT!" Shadow yelled. "Well, you can stop it." Night said. "I don't know how she'd feel about it though." Shadow said.

After night left him he sighed and asked himself, "what am I gonna do now?" He decided he could try to get his mind off it by continuing to analyze the book. "Hmm." He said, still studying it, except this time he's doing it outside. "Ah! Here's a good spell I could try. I mean if I'm going to find out if it's safe or not, I might as well try to use it." He said to himself. Transform an object into another object. "Lemme test it out on this tree here." He said to himself. Let's start off simple, turn it into an apple tree, that way I'm not changing much about it. He thought to himself. He chanted the words in the ancient language's pronunciations and put the image or thought of an apple tree in his mind.

Just like that, the normal, plain, oak tree transformed into an apple tree with fully grown apples. "So this thing is for real. Guess I'm officially a mage now." He said to himself. He remembered the rules in the cover. For most spells in this book you do not need a magic circle if you pronounce the words in the ancient language. For the ones you require a magic circle for, you need a sacrifice. "Yeah, I'm going to avoid the ones requiring a sacrifice." He said to himself. Ugh, no matter what I do I can't get my mind off of what Night told me. Dammit, why can't I get it out of my mind? He asked himself. "get what out of your mind?" Sylvia asked.

You know very well what I'm talking about, you were there when Night had that little chat with me. Shadow thought. "Not really, I was making a place for the egg that will arrive soon, oh..." Sylvia said, realizing what happened. "Dammit....." Shadow said. See he was secretly hoping it wasn't successful, so now he's kind of frustrated. wait Night did say that there was a way to... but what would sylvia say about it? I'm at an impasse on what to do. aghh, what do I do. He thought, hiding that thought from Sylvia. "Guess I'll have to prepare myself...mentally, and supposedly physically as well seeing as I'm going to end up having to take care of a child." Shadow said to himself.

I mean the others would be there to help me. He thought to himself. Shadow felt a tug on his pelt, but when he looked no one was there. odd, I could've sworn something pulled on me, Shadow thought. He felt a tug again, stronger this time, and he could identify where the tug was pulling him. why the den of all places? Shadow questioned himself. why would something be pulling me to the den? Unless... Shadow started running at full speed towards the den. When he reached the den he knew something was up. "Night!!!" Terra screamed, obviously scared. Of what, Shadow couldn't tell. "What happened to Night?" Shadow asked.

"About five minuets ago, dad fell and passed out. Actually the same time he fell, I felt a power transfer so large it could have created a crater about ten meters wide." Violet said, walking up to Shadow. When he looked he didn't see Violet, but another espeon. "who are you?" Shadow questioned the espeon. "that's right, you don't know about that yet..." the espeon said, transforming back into Violet, "yeah another weird little thing I can do," Violet said, smiling. (Shadow read my mind on this. -Night) "Understandable, I mean look at Night, he's a hybrid, and you were born under... special circumstances." Shadow said.

"Yeah, ooh, hold on hold on" Violet said, turning into a spiting image of her father. "Now that.....I am willing to question that but I'm not going to bother." Shadow said. "yeah, that is weird, but being taught how to use my powers by my father is a bit more weird. At least for me," Violet said, returning back to her normal self. "How is that weird? Why wouldn't your father try to teach you all he can while you're still young?" Shadow asked. "Well it's weird because he can't do any of the things that I can." Violet said. "Well he is your father so I'd say he would know your potential, it's just how parents are.

When we are young they know more of our abilities than we do, and in most cases, they will try to push us along to reach those potentials." Shadow said. Great, I already sound like a parent. He thought to himself. "What the heck happened?" Night said, waking up. "NIGHT," Terra screamed, giving him a hug. "I don't know, all I know is that I felt some unknown energies, and I think Violet did too." Shadow said. "I don't know what happened, but I'm tired. Good night..." Night said, walking towards his bedroom. "Alright then, good night." Shadow said, he then turned to the others and asked. "So, what now?"

"Maybe don't mess with that book, I got a strange reading off of it. Energy readings are precise, but this is all over the scale and off of it." Violet said. "Too late, I already tested out one of the spells, and it worked." Shadow said. "and that is what caused Night to pass out." Violet stated. "You can't be so certain, there is no way it's affecting Night, he never touched it, I even instructed him not to when I woke up the other day." Shadow explained. "that isn't why he passed out, it was because the spell you cast used his energy reserves and a little bit of his physical self as well. It got it because of the bond you two share." Violet explained.

"You have a point, but it shouldn't though, I read it's contents, and the rules inside the cover, it's only supposed to use up the energy of the caster, not the one who's bonded with the caster." Shadow explained. "because the normal bonds cant use that much flow of energy, the one you two share is an industrial pipeline between yall's energy reservoirs effectively linking the two to become one." Violet explained further. "Then why isn't my energy drained?" Shadow asked. "Have you ever mixed water and alcohol, then burned it?" Violet asked. "No, I've never stolen alcohol from trainers seeing as it's dangerous for us, maybe even poisonous." Shadow said.

"Well the alcohol burns all the way, and a little water too. that is what it did, my father being the alcohol, you the water and that spell the fire." Violet explained. "Oh, I guess I'll have to leave this with my other relics and never touch it again." Shadow said, realizing he mentioned having other relics he covered his muzzle with his paw. "Other relics?" Lilly asked. "Uh, I don't know what you're talking about, I don't have any other relics, I never mentioned having others." Shadow said playing dumb, trying to brush it off. "You said 'leave it with my other relics'." Lilly said. "I don't remember saying that." Shadow said still playing stupid.

Lilly slapped him in the face with her tail. "Ow, what was that for?!" Shadow demanded. "Don't play dumb with me! You know better than to try fooling me, you're a bad liar." Lilly said. "Fine, I have other relics, most of the time I find them lying around, it's very seldom I find them in an abandoned trainer's camp." Shadow explained. "And how many do you have?" Lilly asked him. "I have 15 relics, including this one." Shadow replied. "like this sword?" Violet asked, pulling out a blade made of grass. "Uh no, I've never seen that before, all my relics are hidden in a secret compartment in my room, follow me." He said, leading the others to his room.

He grabbed a certain pen he'd stolen before and put it in a small unnoticeable hole and then pulled out a drawer looking thing (hope you got the reference), there were 14 relics in the drawer-like compartment, all neatly organized. "well I'm keeping the sword, and before you ask, I know what it can do." Violet said. "How do you know it wasn't the sword that drained Night's energy instead? The book takes a person's energy but not enough to knock them out." Shadow said, turning the accusation onto the sword and away from the book of spells. "because the sword has its own energy reservoir" Violet said.

"I am still suspect of it because like I said, the spell I used only takes a little bit of a person's energy, not all of a person's energy." Shadow said. "little for those with big a reservoir, but he doesn't have a big one like you and I. Next time you want to cast a spell, come get me okay?" Violet asked. "How is his maximum energy not the same as mine?! I thought we were on the same power level." Shadow said. "no, he has less energy than you, but can conserve it better than you, nothing against you." Violet explained. "Conserve it? I barely even use my energy." Shadow replied. Except for when I ran away. He thought to himself.

"I barely even do anything in the first place, minus the almost constant passing out from all these different things happening to me, so what do you mean by that when we both barely do anything, wait no, he's actually done more things than me, so how could he possibly 'conserve it better than' me?" Shadow asked. "You use it more than you know, Shadow" Violet said. "What do you mean? How could I possibly unknowingly use my energy?" Shadow asked. "You tell me, I'm not you." Violet said. "If you don't know then how could you possibly have reason enough to say that I use it 'more than' I 'know'?" Shadow asked. "I can feel the use of energy, not what's using it." Violet said.

"Well I don't know how I could possibly use it that much when I barely do anything, maybe your energy senses are flawed." Shadow suggested. "No, they are very accurate." Violet objected. "Then maybe someone or something is stealing it from me without me realizing it, because, like I said, I barely do anything." Shadow suggested. Unlock your mind for a second, I'm going to attempt to try to identify where, or how, your energy is being consumed," Violet said, transforming into an espeon. "Unlock?! What do you mean by that?" Shadow asked. "you know how you let Sylvia in and out of your mind?" Violet asked.

"I don't really let her in and out, she just comes and goes as she pleases." Shadow explained. "How does it feel when she does this?" Violet asked. "I don't know, I never noticed a feeling, except for when we're together, but that's because we're in a relationship." Shadow said. "you know what, I give up!" Violet said, morphing back into an eevee, then she realized why he couldn't feel anything when some 'mon traversed his mind, "oh my god..." "what?" Shadow asked, confused. "you said you can't feel Sylvia when she does anything right?" Violet asked. "Yeah, what about it?" Shadow asked.

"Normally when an entity traverses a mind, the mind can feel it and tries to prevent it, yours is a different story..." Violet said, trailing off, "I need to think on this." Violet then walked to her room. Shadow stood there tilting his head in confusion. "Well now I think I have a headache from this confusion." Shadow said to himself. "Same, how do I even GET a headache?" Sylvia asked. "I don't even know, now my headache is worse." Shadow said, he thought about what just happened and just started laughing. "what are you laughing about?" Comet asked, entering the room. ".....you don't wanna know." Shadow said, controlling his laughter.

"If you're laughing about it, I wanna know," Comet said. "It'd only confuse you, and you'll end up with a headache too." Shadow said, about ready to start laughing again. "Comet, you coming?" Lilly asked, giggling. "yeah, I'm coming," Comet said, going to Lilly. I suppose I might as well go to bed as well. Shadow thought to himself before laying down. Nothing bad can happen anymore, we've already gone through all of it. Nothing bad can happen. Shadow thought to himself.

the next day...

When Shadow got up he was tempted to mess with the book of spells but he resisted the temptations. He went out to the main area of the cave, Gem appeared to be thinking about something, Night was chatting with his parents about something and Lilly and Comet were having a conversation. Shadow decided to leave them to their own things and get some fresh air while thinking about things, from old memories to new memories. Night saw him leave and went after him. "Hey, you okay?" Night asked. "Yeah I'm fine, everyone was just doing their own things so I thought I'd leave them be, while I had some time to have a trip down memory lane." Shadow explained.

"Do you mind if I join?" Night asked. "No not at all." Shadow answered. "Do you have a place in particular, or..." Night asked. "No, usually I just sit on top of the den when I go to think about things." Shadow replied. "I have a place in mind, if you want to remember old friends," Night said. "I wish to go through all my memories, even the bad ones, basically so I can clear my mind." Shadow said. "Then come with me, we are going to my old den... and the final resting place of my brother," Night said. "I assume Comet told you where Grayson died." Shadow said. "Yeah, then I gave him a proper burial, one he would be proud of, if he were here," Night said, his voice dropping.

"Where did you do that?" Shadow asked, amazed at Night's dexterity. "You'll see..." Night said in a low tone. "Let's go then." Shadow said in a calm tone. Night didn't respond, just started walking, Shadow following behind him. After a few minutes of walking, a dark colored tree appeared and Night stopped suddenly. "Here we are..." Night said Solemnly. "It's alright, there's nothing anyone could've done to save him, if he's dead it was within the world's plan." Shadow said placing a paw on Night's shoulder. "Hey Comet, here to reminisce?" Night asked the charizard."I wish I could've protected him.

I wish I was a better friend, instead of keeping you safe, Night, I got selfish I wanted revenge, I'm sorry." Comet said. "Hey, it's okay. You did what you could. I'm not blaming you. heck, it's because of you that Lilly was found and that she is now happy." Night pointed out. Night proceeded to give Comet a hug. Comet started to protest but stopped and started to think about what he said. "Yeah I guess you're right thanks Night I just feel like I could've been better, I should've been there for you. But we're here together now, that's what matters. But I'm still gonna try and get stronger." Comet said, hugging him back. "he was a good brother..." Night said, shedding a tear.

"Like I said, there was nothing anyone could've done to save him, we just had a bad roll of the die, for the longest time. Now, hopefully, nothing bad can happen again." Shadow said. "When will that happen, Shadow? We have many years ahead of us, anything could happen," Night said. "Yes, however it's been a few days and nothing bad's happened. At this point, what's the worst that could happen?" Shadow said. "don't jinx it... the ancients are coming..." Night said in a deep tone. "You mean the Ancient ones?!" Shadow said, surprised Night knew about them, "I wouldn't worry, from the books I've read and what the book of spells told me.

It is not their way to harm others, and when they do it's only under certain circumstances, so I wouldn't be so worried about them." "But by the tone in your voice I don't imagine that the ancients are good though, so..." Comet trailed off. "They are coming... for the testing... the test" Night said ominously. "Testing who and what who?" Comet asked. "Shadow...his will and resolve" Night said ominously. "So you know about that too? But I haven't broken any of their rules." Shadow said, seeing as he's knowing as much as I, I guess our knowledge is shared somehow. Shadow thought to himself. "know about who?" Night asked, confused. "What do you last remember..." Shadow asked skeptically.

"the last thing I remember is saying 'don't jinx it.' Why?" Night asked, now really confused. "Nevermind." Shadow said. Guess I was wrong. He thought to himself. "All you have to say to that is 'nevermind,' really Shadow? our brother was talking about some called an 'ancients' and doesn't remember it," Comet said. "Our brother? What do you mean 'our'? You're not our brother, we're not even the same species, your nothing more than our best friend." Shadow said, not intending to sound cold. "Hey you may not consider him a brother, but I do." Night yelled at Shadow.

"A. I didn't mean to sound so cold, and B. He's not even the same species as us, like I said he may be our best friend but he's still not our brother, no matter how much of a friend he is to us." Shadow said calmly. "Have you ever heard the phrase 'blood is thicker than water?'" Night asked Shadow. "I think, but I don't even know what that's supposed to mean." Shadow said. Considering the fact that we are 90% water. He thought to himself. "the blood of the battlefield is thicker than the water of the womb, that is what it means. if you haven't figured that out yet, then you aren't a brother of mine." Night said, walking off.

"I'm not saying he can't be considered a brother, I'm just saying he'll never be a true brother." Shadow said, trying to clarify. "uh...I'll see you at the den," Comet said, following Night. "So much for clearing our minds together, eh whatever, I usually do it by myself anyways....like most things." Shadow said to himself. Now to find a proper clearing at a peaceful spot. He thought to himself, going to that place he saw some time ago. suddenly a shadow came over him, and Shadow was knocked out.

With Night and Comet...

"why did I say that?" Night asked himself. "I don't know, Night, I don't know," Terra said. "I don't either, I wish I did" Night said, "ah" "Night, you okay?" Terra asked, concerned. "Shadow... He's gone..." Night said. " what do you mean 'he's gone?'" Comet asked Night. "I mean he isn't in this timeline anymore... what are we going to tell the others?" Night replied.

With Shadow...

Ugh did someone get the license plate of that truck? Shadow thought to himself before snapping back to his senses. "Huh?! What is this place?!" Shadow exclaimed, he attempted to move only to feel a restraint on one of his back legs. When he looked back he saw a chain and something clamped onto his leg, which the clamp looking thing was attached to a chain. "WHY AM I CHAINED?! WHERE THE HELL AM I?!" Shadow screamed. "Hello there, naive little umbreon." A voice said, echoing around him. Dammit, I can't pinpoint where that voice is coming from, nonetheless, I still have my powers and strength.

Shadow thought to himself. He then attempted to use Bite on the chain but it failed. "What the?! My moves don't work?!" Shadow exclaimed. "Tsk tsk tsk, out of all the things we've seen, this was the last thing we'd have expected from you. Also, don't bother trying to escape, this chain is infused with an extremely rare ore that will remove the powers of anything it's touching, only while it's touching that thing. You're here because you are currently too naive, you have no control of yourself, you let your emotions take control and run you down, you are unworthy of this relic you've laid your eyes upon. Shadow then realized why he couldn't pinpoint where the voice came from.

He was surrounded by a big cloud of dust, or possibly smoke, whichever it was, he was unsure. "You'll either take control of yourself or you'll die here, or maybe become one who's succumbed to anger and rage, turning into one of the monsters we use to test those who break our rules, and test those we find unworthy. Your lack of will allows these emotions of yours to take control, if you pass, you'll be returned to your world, dimension, and timeline with the book of spells." The voice said. As soon as those words were spoken the black cloud disappeared and he could see further. He was inside what appeared to be a stadium of some sort with spectators on the sidelines.

"Oh and don't mind the spectators, we not only use this as a way to attempt to help others in the way in which we do, but we also use this as a form of entertainment." The creature said. When Shadow saw it, it looked strange, it hardly resembled a human much less a pokémon. "Hang on....are you?" Shadow paused. "Yes. You may refer to us as the originals, or the ancient ones, this...this is the first timeline, others of our kind that mostly resembles what you know as pokémon scoured the multiple timelines, some which you refer to as the animonics, which those, we do not speak of." The creature said.

"Shadow, I don't know where you are, or if you can hear me, but I'm coming for you. I will find you, I promise." A voice that sounded like Night said in Shadow's mind. "Hm?" Shadow said to himself. So that was Night. He thought to himself. Wait a minute....where's Sylvia?! Shadow asked himself. "Alright who was the idiot that forgot to tell his family that he's fine." The creature yelled. "I heard that" Night yelled. Shortly after Shadow just heard a bunch of frantic screaming. Ok then, I suppose they're fighting over who dunnit. Shadow thought to himself. After a little bit someone came and unchained him and a door opened in front of him.

"The test awaits." It said, walking away. Shadow walked through the door frame and a blinding light appeared, after a few seconds it disappeared. "the first trial: Master of fear, to master your fear is to overcome them, or suppress them..." a loud booming voice spoke. Fear? But I have no fears... right? He asked himself. A familiar scene appeared, but something was off. Home... what does this have to do with anything? Shadow asked himself. "don't worry brother, I am watching" Night said. Shadow walked into the den. If this is my mind then the fact that there are no distortions is kind of trippy.

Shadow thought to himself, but something still was off, Shadow couldn't figure it out though. "Okay this is getting kind of creepy, where is everyone?" Shadow asked himself. A shadow form of Shadow answered, "they left, they didn't need me anymore." It said in a sad tone, "what am I going to do? No one needs me any more..." "they... they need me... unless... wait... no...they don't truly need me... they only need me to keep him sane. Sylvia never needed me, why else would she have abandoned me that day? And Violet didn't even seem bothered by my leaving, if she needed me why wouldn't she have been more concerned?

Lilly has Comet, she doesn't need me one bit... I'm only needed to keep Night sane so they don't die." Shadow said to himself. "and what's worse, No one wants me..." the shadow said. "Th-that's not true, they merely want me around, they just don't need me." Shadow said, coming to a realization. "No, our lives, our destinies, our past and fears are what we make them, our fears are only as real as we allow, even if I'm not needed, I can at least make myself feel like I am." He said to himself, "you are not real, you're just in my mind, trying to tear me down, well I don't need you! NOW GET OUT OF MY WAY!" Shadow demanded the shadow.

The shadow started to glow blue and it shattered into lines of blue. "The first fear: overcame, now for the last one..." a voice boomed, and the scene changed to a forest that has been demolished. "The hell?! What other fear could I possibly have, meh, this one's gonna be easy to beat, I mean I already know it's all in my head." Shadow said cockily. "the knowledge doesn't affect anything, it is your commitment that does it. I would wish you well but it is entirely up to you..." the voice boomed. "This'll be easy regardless seeing as I know how to overcome the fear: pretend it doesn't exist." Shadow said to himself. "don't jinx it, I got a feeling of deja voo just now" Night said.

"Also I couldn't tell what was happening." he finished. Jinxes aren't real , Jynx maybe but not jinxes. Shadow thought to himself. back in the forest that was dead, Shadow heard screaming. He ran in the direction of the scream, when he got there he saw Lilly trapped under a tree, bleeding a lot. "No...n-no! This isn't real....this is fake! GET ME OUT OF HERE! GET OUT OF MY HEAD!!! YOU'RE NOT REALLY LILLY! YOU'RE NOTHING MORE THAN A MERE DEMON TRYING TO TOY WITH ME! WELL IT'S NOT GOING TO WORK!" Shadow said, beginning to ignore it while at the same time staring it down.

"They say to rid oneself of their fear, they need to stare it right in the face and take it by the horns." Shadow said to himself, "and this is a more literal version of that saying." "Shadow, please, help me," Lilly said, weak and pleading. "You're not real! I know you aren't, watch when I 'save you' you're just going to up and die right? Yeah, I'm not falling for it, this...is...not...real!" Shadow said, closing his eyes and attempting to shut out the world. Come on....why won't the dreamscape appear?! The hell is happening?! At least I can escape to my thoughts. Shadow thought to himself. "Shadow, Please..." Lilly said, passing out and dying from blood loss.

10,450 words, omg I think that's a new record for this kind of book... Great job Night.

Shadow
-------Out