Chapter 49
The adventure had come to an end.
The team remained upon the temporal pinnacle for a while longer, chatting with Celebi about the challenges they had faced climbing the tower, as well as life back in Ambera, the perpetual struggle with the Master, and thoughts about how the resistance would react when the learned that the Call had no potential to be used as a weapon. Through Celebi's glee and polite humor, Char could see how she jittered with weariness; she was spent, physically, spiritually, and emotionally, and would probably collapse into a deep rest as soon as they left.
And so, it soon became time for the triumphant group of Pokémon warriors to say their goodbyes to Dialga's faithful assistant, descend the tower, and return to the world from which they came.
Char turned his gaze upward one last time, trying to savor the gorgeous, supernatural sight of the Hall of Origin. His heart was loathe to leave it behind. Somehow, some small corner of his spirit yearned for that sky, found solace in those swirling auras of stars, those glowing specks of blues and oranges, that perpetual sunrise and sunset of existence which most mortals would never glimpse upon.
A rare combination of colors in an unlikely place, Char realized.
By itself, it has no beauty.
It only has beauty because I have eyes to gaze upon it, and it means something to my heart.
It means…
…something special. Something most Pokémon, and humans, wouldn't know about. Something they wouldn't appreciate.
But something I know. Or, something I used to know.
"Do you remember the stars?" Celebi asked him, jolting his gaze away from the sky. "They were always your favorite part of the Hall of Origin, A-… Char. You would just… stare at them, endlessly…"
"I think I might," Char admitted, glancing back up at them. "They're stirring something in me… Even when I see the stars at night in Ambera, it gives me this feeling… But it's only just a feeling. There are no memories to go with it…"
Celebi smiled knowingly. "Ahh, you've come so far…" she sighed, flitting in front of him and looking into his eyes. "I still can't believe it's actually you. Wow… you have no idea how hard it is not to call you by your real name. I just – I hope, when you discover who you really are, you aren't disappointed…"
"Celebi, I'm sorry about Dialga," Char told the little weary fairy. "If he's in a Poké Ball somewhere in Ambera, I'll try to find him for you. I promise."
"Oh, you don't have to do that," Celebi returned humbly. "That's not important right now. Lord Dialga can take care of himself. What's important now is that you find Giratina, alright? Trust me."
Char nodded. "I understand. But you never know; maybe I'll find Dialga along the way."
"Right! Fate surprises all," Celebi giggled. "In the meantime, I'm sure I'll be fine up here. Lord Dialga prepared me for this, after all. I'll keep watch over Temporal Tower as long as I need."
Char smiled. Celebi seemed much more confident in her abilities now.
"Oh… I think you dropped something," Celebi chirped, swooping around Char's back before presenting him with a particular object.
It was the golden reviver seed Char had clung to for so long. It was still unused. Char gratefully accepted it, wondering just when he had dropped it.
"You held onto it for so long, even through that whole battle!" Celebi said. "I was impressed, actually. I don't think you dropped it until… well,when the tower fell. It's a shame that there are some things they actually can't revive you from, like cosmic cataclysms… But they try their best, so keep holding onto it, alright?"
Char nodded. "Thank you," he uttered, grasping the seed in both claws. "…for everything."
Celebi just smiled in return. It was a spacey, far-away simile, but a happy one.
"Can you teleport us back to the surface?" Prince inquired. "Do you have the power to do so? It would make our journey much easier."
"Um, I could, but I'd have to teleport with you, and I might end up leaving the tower abandoned for eons," Celebi explained. "And even then, it's a long teleport down to the surface. I might miss. I'm sorry; I don't think I'm willing to take that chance. But on the bright side, you shouldn't have any problems with the dungeons this time. I think that blasted other dimension was doing strange things to the tower's dungeon, so it should be gone now. Just walk down the stairs, swat some of the wilds away if they bug you, and you should have your feet back on the ground before you know it!"
We also have a couple of escape orbs, I think, Char remembered. But they'd separate us. They would only teleport out those of us who have these emblems on our scarves. Prince and Ray would still have to walk the rest of the way down by themselves. So I think we should stick together.
"Then we will enjoy the walk through this godly monument, while it lasts," Prince replied, presenting a subtle bow to her. "And now, we shall take our leave. Your hospitality has been god-like, good Celebi. You will not be forgotten."
With one final heartfelt goodbye, Char and his friends gathered their belongings and approached the stairway to begin their descent. Ray strapped the bag of Team Ember's to his back, and Scythe held Alakazam's bag. Both bags held many unused items, which was fortunate; they would surely become useful in future endeavors. But Char still wondered if more items had been used from his own team's bag than from the one Scythe held; the bag of Alakazam's priceless valuables…
"Char…" Celebi spoke, framed by the last remaining view of the gorgeous starry sky as she watched the visitors descend the staircase. "The Charmander… suits you. Perhaps someday soon, you could grow wings… then you could be closer to the stars you love so much..."
Temporal Spire 8F
The walk was long. Char knew it would take at least a full day to traverse the twenty-four floors and the hundred-thousand stairs needed to return to the base of Temporal Tower. But unlike the climb, it would at least be a walk, rather than a fight. There would be enough fighting back in Ambera. There was always fighting. The resistance fought the Master. The Master fought the innocent civilians of Ambera. The civilians fought the wayward newborn souls who populated the night sky. The police fought the criminals. The exploration teams fought the feral, mindless Pokémon in the mystery dungeons. Resistance team leaders fought with their division leaders. Rivals fought with rivals, and brothers fought with brothers. There was always so much fighting in the world, so much unrest…
And the only way to stop all the fighting was to join it. Such was the life he was headed back to: the life of perpetual struggle; the life of no peace.
In a way, it made sense to Char. Pokémon were built to fight. He knew that now. It was all part of a Pokémon's identity. It was part of their whole culture, their whole reason for living. Arceus had bestowed upon Pokémon, as a birthright, such a strange and wonderful myriad of powers, powers of fire, of water, of lighting, of earth and rock, of steel and darkness, of leaf and wing and fist… and these powers came to define everything about them. Life was a glorious struggle for Pokémon, a climb to the top of the tower. It was a quest for self-realization, mastery of skill, and perfection. It was in their strength, and in their ability to use that strength to shape the world and to help their friends and loved ones, which they found the deepest kind of happiness.
It was something human Pokémon trainers could barely comprehend. Humans would never understand just how important battling was to Pokémon. Trainers challenged one another for recreation and serious competition alike, but for the Pokémon, it was a celebration of life itself. It meant everything to them.
But the kind of fighting that took place here, in this world of Ambera, was different.
Ambera should have been a Pokémon utopia. It was a wide, expansive continent featuring every imaginable formation of land, every kind of terrain, every kind of habitat… And within these habitats lived every imaginable kind of Pokémon, free to live, to fight, to form their own families and cultures and lives apart from human influence. It should have been perfect.
But instead of fighting to grow, the Pokémon of Ambera fought to survive… while others fought to kill.
It was wrong… so, so wrong. Pokémon fought wars over control of the land, a land big enough for all to live in harmony, and many died. And at the center of all these wars, it seemed, was the enigmatic Master who wanted to see Ambera crumble to dust. The Master, who continually reconstructed Ambera's social structure by purging innocent cities from the map, failing to rebuild them. The Master, who saw fit to curse the most innocent newborn souls of Pokémon, creating the Watchers who reigned over each night using fear. The Master, who was so desperate to have his way that he was willing to let Temporal Tower become destroyed, willing to stop time across the face of the whole planet, just to defy the plan of a single human who wanted to make a difference in the world.
In response, Pokémon did the one thing they knew how to do best – they fought. They fought every day to free Ambera from its shackles, to help it become the Pokémon haven it was always meant to be.
Tomorrow, Char would rejoin that fight. But not today; today was to be a day of peace.
Temporal Tower was mesmerizingly gorgeous. The symbols, the designs, the etchings upon each pillar, the swirls of sparkling metal which flowed through the floor and upon every monument… Char tried to appreciate them to their fullest as he passed them by. At one point, as he observed a statuette of what must have been a Rattata curled around three young hatchlings, it occurred to him that Temporal Tower, itself, was a representation of the time stream. It was expansive, stable, and beautiful, housing the complete history of the world within its confines… but at the same time, being a mystery dungeon, it was slightly random and not completely predictable.
Just like fate.
Char knew that the wonders he witnessed within the tower's cathedral-like chambers were not the same as they had been when he had passed through before. Though they kept the same basic formation, they had subtly shifted around and changed in appearance. It was indeed a beautiful design for the temporal god's home, though in a disturbing kind of way.
"Try to remember what you see," Prince recommended. "Keep everything close to your heart, everything you've seen and felt. Hold onto those small details that have defined this journey for you. Legend is going to want to hear all of them."
"I don't think we can…" Ray admitted. "There's just too much. We can't possibly remember enough of… this… to explain it to Legend."
"Yeah… and I don't know how we're going to explain to him what death feels like, either," Saura added. "It didn't feel like much of anything, really…"
"Well, that is why there are six of us," Prince said, pausing for a moment to behold the inscribed runes upon a pillar. "Legend will have six different accounts of this journey, and he can piece together an idea of how it all went. He's skilled at that."
Prince traced his finger upon a plaque. "Hmm, these resemble Unown," he muttered. "Though, they are a bit small…"
There was a blur of motion.
There was a powerful impact.
*SLASH!* *THUMP*
Prince's body slumped to the floor with a large, bloody streak across his back.
Scythe stood over him, his blade dripping with the same blood.
For that instant, time seemed to stop.
The Scyther loomed above the fallen form of his old friend, his blades still drawn in a pose of lethal attack. Pity sparkled in his eyes, though his expression had become one of cold determination.
"Scythe…?" Char gasped, though apprehension swept through his body, sapping the energy needed to move a muscle.
Scythe did not answer. Instead, he placed one of his flat, spiked feet upon Prince's back.
"You…" Prince groaned, a raspy whisper. "You tricked me…"
Prince stirred, pushing against the floor in a shaky attempt to overcome the Scyther's strength. But Scythe forced him back down, pinning him.
"I was… expecting… you to betray me, but this is too soon," Prince uttered, struggling to draw breath. "Thought you wouldn't try… until… we were out of the tower. But… that's why you told Nameless what you told her, isn't it? You… you asked her to help you knock me out after we were done with the tower. You –you expected her to tattle to me… and so… I anticipated your attack coming tomorrow…"
The Infernape writhed, managing to twist his head enough to meet the Scyther's glowering gaze.
"You sly bug," Prince grumbled. It was not a statement of hatred, or bitterness, but of resignation.
"I have fought you twice, and failed," Scythe spoke down to him in a low, threatening tone, one that deeply frightened Char. "Did you think I would fail the third time? No; even now, even after everything which has happened to you, you still underestimate. You have not learned how to anticipate surprises. Now, be gone, Prince Calamar."
Lily shrieked, calling Prince's name as the Scyther raised his blades to strike.
*TWHAP. THWAP. THWAP. THWAP.*
Scythe swung his blades as mighty bludgeons, hammering them into the sides of Prince's skull. The flames upon the Infernape's head danced in rhythm to the concussions, as though they were trying but failing to begin the blaze reaction… Char's stomach lurched at the calculated brutality of each attack.
*TWHAP. THWAP. THWAP. THWAP.*
Char began to tremble. Remembering he held a reviver seed, he began trying to dig his claws into its shell.
"Scythe…" he said again, utterly incredulous.
The Infernape stopped moving. The fire upon his crown dimmed. He was unconscious.
Scythe lifted his foot from the fallen body of Prince, taking a deep sigh. He then turned his gaze, cold and evil, to the cowering Pokémon who had witnessed the act.
"Weakness," he spoke solemnly, taking a deliberate step towards Char and his companions, keeping the sharp, bloody ends of his blades drawn, "is the most–"
His words were interrupted by a supersonic screech.
A glowing aura of yellow, almost like a pillar, flashed behind Scythe in the place Prince had fallen. Scythe twisted his body and spun around, preparing to assault the source of the noise.
His eyes met Prince, standing back on his feet and fully healed. Revived. His fire burned brightly. His hands curled into fists. A determined scowl formed upon his face.
Scythe staggered backward in surprise. He buzzed his wings for a moment in an attempt to keep himself from falling over in shock.
There was another painful, electric moment of silence as Prince and Scythe stood off. Scythe's mouth gaped open, looking utterly baffled.
"Char," Scythe gasped deeply, his voice breaking even upon the one syllable, "I thought I told you to throw away all the reviver seeds…"
"Oh, I'm sure he did," Prince returned, smirking. "Char trusts you. He would have done whatever you asked, you know. It's his character."
Scythe gaped again, his jaw hanging open as his eyes darted intensely across the form of the Infernape. He was desperately asking himself what had gone wrong, how his plan had been foiled…
After a moment, the Scyther's eyes widened – farther than Char had ever seen before. They were dilated and bloodshot. Within them, he saw genuine fear.
"You – you –" the Scyther stammered, taking another step backward. "You hid reviver seeds in that sack with the Frozen Flame!"
Scythe shook his head violently before assuming hostile posture. "How many, Prince? How many do you have in there?"
"Eight," Prince taunted, confidence now ringing in his voice. "Though, since one was just now used, the count is now seven. And since I hold them so close to my form, they will revive nobody but me. Now, old friend, it appears you have a choice to make."
Scythe winced, crossing his blades in a defensive parry as the Infernape took a single step in his direction.
"Tell me what you are planning, Scythe," Prince ordered, talking down to the Scyther. "Tell me, so that I might help you carry it out. That is… unless you believe you can knock me out eight more times, before I can knock you out once? It's your call now. What will it be?"
Scythe cringed, raising his parry higher and closer to his face. He drew short, desperate gasps of breath. He was terrified.
"Why don't you tell me?" Prince pressed. "Am I untrustworthy to you, Scythe? You have trusted me with so many plans before, why not now? Why do you quake with panic at the thought of letting me in on the secret? Scythe… how am I to make any sort of judgment when you will not speak to me? How am I to know that you are not planning to betray… those innocent Pokémon who stand over there?"
The Infernape took another step closer to his rival.
"Let it be known, Scythe… if you lay a blade on those who we were sworn to protect, I will fight until my fire dies," he spoke powerfully. "All my life, I have stood back and witnessed violence and betrayal. And so have you, Adron. But now, the time has come for me to keep it from happening in the first place."
He extended a hand. It was a sign of peace.
"Scythe… tell me what you plan," he spoke carefully. "Ally with me."
"I'll NEVER tell you!" Scythe screeched, opening his wings and his blades to strike.
*CLANG!* *CLANG!*
The sounds of clashing metal rang as Prince parried Scythe's open-blade attacks with his metallic wristbands.
Scythe attacked violently, almost maniacally, moving faster than light seemed to travel. Prince held his ground, dodging and blocking every blow.
Prince ducked under a flying blade, then caught another one on his wristband. He batted it away, countering with a fire-fisted blow to the side of Scythe's head.
*POW.*
Scythe reeled back, stumbling.
"Give up, Scythe," Prince warned him. "You can't defeat me."
Scythe did not listen. Screeching a terrifying war cry, the Scyther opened his wings and struck again, buzzing through the air above and around the Infernape. But he could not hit his opponent, for Prince fought at full strength from being recently revived, and he danced and tumbled out of the reach of every attack.
Prince coiled his body, then leaped straight into the air as Scythe zipped past underneath. He planted his feet upon the stone pillar, twisted his body, then delivered a fiery punch downward, putting the entire force of his weight behind his fisted arm.
*SMACK.*
The attack connected. Scythe tumbled backward in a blur of buzzing wings and flailing blades, slumping to the ground.
"There's a simple way to end this!" Prince called to him after landing graciously on all fours, coiled for another strike. "I don't want to defeat you. Stop attacking me and talk."
From his position on the floor, Scythe pounced. He zipped past Prince, striking him on the forehead with the backhanded tip of his blade. Prince winced and couldn't recover from the surprise; Scythe pivoted and swung his other blade, slamming it into Prince's chest and thrusting him against the pillar. He locked Prince's neck between the backsides of his blades, jumping over his attempt to counter with a kick.
"You can strike me down, maybe once or twice more, but you can't defeat me," Prince begged, his voice once again rasping as the blades choked him. "Will you try to see reason?"
"I have my reasons," Scythe hissed angrily. "It is you who does not see them!"
Prince lurched his body and kicked powerfully at the pillar, throwing Scythe backward and freeing his throat from the deadlock. He dropped close to the ground and bucked his feet at Scythe's abdomen, throwing the Scyther off-balance.
Scythe took to the air again, trying to fly out of the Infernape's range, but Prince jumped after him and thrust himself from the pillar, delivering another swift blow to the Scyther and sending him lurching back to the ground.
Through the fight, Char clutched his reviver seed so tightly it might break.
He didn't understand what was going on. Why was this fight happening? Why was Scythe so intent on removing Prince from the picture, even to the point of battling him like this?
And why did he keep fighting even when he knew he would fail? Why didn't he listen to Prince?
Maybe… Prince was right? Char realized, a cold, dark dread coming over him.
What is Scythe doing?
Did I make the wrong decision in trusting him?
"Guys…" Ray whispered, clearly as frightened as Char. "Guys, I think… we might need to fight."
"Fight?" Saura croaked, cowering from the violence he witnessed.
"Look. If we gang up on one of them, we can end the battle," Ray said. "We probably can't stop them from fighting, but… Five against one… we could win. We beat Dialga together, we could win. But… who do we help?"
Scythe's cries of madness resounded through the cathedral chamber as he zipped in circles around his opponent with the agility of a fly, striking with bared blades around and behind the Infernape's defenses. Prince's skills of dodging and anticipating the Scyther's attacks proved to be incredible and incomprehensible, perhaps because he relied on the primal, terrifying fear of simply having a Scyther take aim at him. A Scyther, whose blades were built for clean and easy dismemberment and decapitation… A Scyther who had cut halfway through the diamond-encased pillar that represented the temporal god's leg.
Prince poured all of his focus and agility into dodging those swings; one stray, unexpected blow could send his head rolling across the floor or his blood spilling in droves upon the ground.
*CLANG!* *CLANG!* *CLASH!*
He twisted and spun, rhythmically catching the Scyther's blades upon his plates of golden armor from any direction they came, stopping them dangerously close from slicing through his fur and flesh.
Scythe lunged, and Prince cartwheeled out of the way, thrusting himself into the air by the strength of his arms and landing back on his feet.
"Char," Ray breathed. "You were closer to them both than any of us were. Who do you think should win this fight?"
Char shook his head blankly, choking his words out.
"I…"
Scythe delivered an unexpected move, slamming away Prince's parry with the brunt of his foot. From his position in the air, he forced the other foot into Prince's face, causing the Infernape to reel back.
I don't know…
Prince tried to guard himself from the next blow, but Scythe attacked from an unexpected direction and managed to strike a shallow slice into his back. Prince propelled himself out of the way before the blade could cut too deeply, but Char could see that it had hurt.
I don't know…
*FWOOM.*
Desperate to keep the crazed insect away, Prince spat a ball of fire into the air before him. It missed, spattering against the chamber wall.
Scythe's fury only seemed to grow. He grunted and shrieked with every move, forcing his calculated might into each swipe of his blades.
*SLICE!*
The tip of Scythe's blade nicked Prince in the arm. A few drops of blood landed on the floor.
Though his attacks were beginning to make contact, Scythe had a long battle to fight if he wanted to deplete his opponent's reviver seeds. His strength was beginning to fail him, his movements becoming jerky and erratic in his desperate attempts to subdue the Infernape.
I just don't know…
Prince dropped to all fours and pounced low, snagging Scythe's airborn leg and whipping the Scyther down into the ground. Scythe cried in fury, smashing the Infernape's grasp between both of his feet and twisting away.
I don't even know why they're fighting…
*FWOOM! FWOOM*
Prince blew more balls of fire into the air, attempting to control the Scyther's route of attack. Scythe instead aimed for one of them, blocking it against the crossed surfaces of his metal blades, then opened his blades into a scissor formation to close upon Prince's neck. Prince ducked below it, thrusting his flaming crown into the Scyther's belly. Scythe reeled back with several embers glowing upon him.
"Char!" Lily cried angrily, stamping her feet against the floor so hard that it looked like she would break them. "Char, why are… why are you even thinking about this? This isn't a hard decision!"
"But I don't know why they fight," Char said simply. "How can you expect me to choose when I don't even know why they are fighting?"
Lily leaped close to Char. "PRINCE!" she screamed desperately into his ear. "PRINCE is fighting for you! Do you realize? He's FIGHTING FOR YOU!"
"…"
"Beautiful, isn't it?"
"…"
Char blinked. It suddenly became clear to him.
"…"
"Even as the darkness of the storm threatens to choke the sun, it shines ever brighter."
"…"
"No," he spoke quietly, holding the reviver seed close to his chest and shaking his head. "No… he's not."
"What are you talking about, Char?" Lily growled at him. "Everything he's done… it has all been for you, Char! You were the one he spent his life seeking! We have to – we have to help him!"
"No," Char said again. "He's not fighting for me."
Char looked at the floor.
"Prince isn't fighting for me at all. And he's not fighting for you, either. He's fighting for himself."
"Char, what are you talking about?" Lily yelled at him, now with a fearful waver in her voice.
"I think he doesn't know what he's fighting for," Char told her, turning to meet her gaze. "The Call is useless now. It doesn't mean anything. Lily… we aren't special anymore."
Lily's mouth gaped, as though to scream a reply at him. Instead, she said nothing, and her face turned to a scowl.
"We're… we're just Pokémon now," Char said. "We're just ordinary Pokémon. You… you heard what he said when we were spirits. His whole life was a lie. He doesn't even know why he's here anymore. He's just fighting because he feels like he has to fight."
"Char…" Lily growled. It was a threat.
Char held his gaze to hers, resolute and steadfast.
"But Scythe," he told her, "is fighting for Ambera."
Char turned to face his Bulbasaur and Raichu friends.
"Fight Prince," he ordered them. "Help Scythe!"
"…Are you sure, Char?" Saura asked him. "Is that really what you want?"
Char nodded, taking a deep breath. "Yeah. I'm sure," he muttered. He wasn't, but he felt as sure as he was going to get.
"Alright. You heard him!" Ray cried, dropping to all fours and letting static arch from his cheeks. "Prince is going down! Let's go!"
Char was about to launch himself into the fight, but felt himself pulled back. A pair of vines twisted around his body.
"No, YOU CAN'T!" Lily shouted. "Don't touch him!"
No…
Char pulled against the vines for a moment. He hesitated to attack.
No…
You don't understand…
He closed his eyes, and for five short seconds, he let his thoughts settle.
This is your chance, he said to himself.
There's no convincing her. She is a friend, but she can't hold you back from what you need to do.
Time for the trainer to step back, and let the Charmander fight.
Go. Don't think, and don't feel. Just fight.
Char opened his eyes.
He twisted around, turning to face Lily and leaping toward her so that her vines loosened.
He launched a stream of fire at the Bayleef.
"YEAAAAGHH!" Lily screeched. Her vines tightened their hold, tried to thrash Char's body away from herself.
"CHAR, you little jerk!" She wailed, blinking the soot out of her eyes.
Char held his breath, attempting to overheat his body just as Prince had taught him. He hoped it would light the vines on fire.
*SMACK!* Ray bolted into her, delivering a powerful head-butt to her side. She staggered, loosening her vines and letting Char wriggle to freedom.
"Sorry…" Ray said meekly, backing off from the attack.
"You're crazy!" Lily spat at the Raichu, scampering a few feet away from him and regaining her balance. "Just like Scythe is! All of you are crazy! You think you can trust him? Do you really think you can trust him and not Prince? Do you have any idea what Prince has been through? Do you know how many times he's pulled through for us?"
"Sorry, Lily," Ray said. "Sometimes you've just got to choose a side and go for broke. We choose Scythe, and if you hold us back, we're going to fight you…"
"But why do you blindly trust him?" Lily cried, taking a few fearful steps backward. "You blindly trust Scythe and you blindly trust Char for blindly trusting Scythe!"
"And you blindly trust Prince," Char shot back. "So we're even."
"NO! You don't get it!" Lily wailed. "I trust Prince because I've been with him for thirty years! He's proven it to me! How much does Scythe have to prove, huh? What has he done to make you so… so attached to him? So far, he's only tried to use you for your Call, hasn't he? You could always see it in his eyes! You're just a thing to him! You've – you always have been just a thing to him!"
"How do you know that, Lily?" Char asked her. "Is it because Prince treated you the same way when he first found you? Did he try to use you as a weapon, too? He did, didn't he? When the call first went off, you were just a thing to him, too!"
Lily's mouth gaped, deeply offended at the insult to her mentor, but Char saw her eyes glaze over as her thoughts drifted back to distant memories.
"YOU'RE WRONG!" She cried, crouching into a hostile battle stance.
A flurry of sharp, spinning leaves flew past Char as Lily flung her glowing leaf back and forth, launching the projectiles. Char awkwardly dodged around them, trying not to fumble the reviver seed.
A leaf struck Ray in the ear.
"Oww…" Ray whined, ducking his head and rubbing the slice with his paw.
This is holding me back, Char realized, looking at the reviver seed he held. I… have to trust my abilities now.
He tossed it aside.
He dropped to all fours and bolted at the Bayleef, blowing a cloud of flame at a leaf that was about to strike him. Lily saw him coming and swatted a vine at him, striking him in the side and knocking him on his back.
Two more vines swiveled through the air. They twisted and tied knots around the Bayleef's vines, detaining them from moving.
"Saura? You too?" Lily moaned, glancing sadly at the Bulbasaur who held her vines hostage.
"Sorry, Lily…" he cried, gasping and struggling to keep her attacks leashed. "I… have to fight for my friends, I hope you understand…"
"Char, why does it matter that he wanted to use my Call?" Lily blasted, unable to untangle from the knot. "He's a good person! Char… Prince is a good person! And Scythe just… he just isn't!"
"Scythe is a good person," Ray said. "I know, I've known him for a long time. Not as long as you, but long enough. Look, Lily… it's nothing personal, but sometimes, good Pokémon disagree with one another and they can't compromise. Then they've gotta fight. There's just not any way around it…"
"FINE! FINE! Then fight, see if I care!" Lily screamed. "But you'll have to get through me first!"
Using her tangle of vines, she picked Saura straight off the ground and flung him away in an attempt to untangle the vines. But the tangle only tightened like a slip-knot, and Saura slammed into the ground.
*Slice!* *Slice!*
Ray leapt over the taut vines, sweeping his tail downward. Shining with white power, it sliced through Lily's vines and freed Saura from their grip.
"AUUUGH!" Lily roared in great frustration. She barreled at Ray, her leaf shining with a charged attack.
She rammed him, sending him tumbling backward. As he tried to roll to his paws, she launched a swarm of glowing, multicolored leaves from her forehead. They slid through the air, honing in on the fallen Raichu and scraping at the skin beneath his fur.
"OW ow ow ow ow ow!" Ray cried, flailing and trying to scratch all of the leaves away. Static sparked brightly across his face.
"Alright, you asked for it!" he cried, from the ground and to his paws.
A flash of lightning arched through the air from the electric rodent, connecting with Lily's head. It clearly fazed her.
Char took the opportunity, attacking from behind her and breathing a stream of flames at her.
Her leaves caught on fire.
"Auhghh, AUGH!" Lily cried, dropping to the ground and rolling to put out the fires. "STINGS!"
Char felt a pang of sympathy, but attacked again. He loosed another pillar of fire at the Bayleef. When the pillar dissipated, a tongue of flame remained on her back.
"AIIIIEEE!" she cried, painfully.
Don't think, Char said to himself. Don't feel. Just fight.
He dodged her attempt to thrash him away, and blew another stream of fire. It caught the leaf on her head.
*SMACK!* Ray had retaliated, launching a projectile orb at the suffering Bayleef, knocking her further back.
Lily's eyes began glowing. She sprouted several brand new vines, all which slithered through the air and tried to detain Char. Parts of her body were still engulfed with flame, but she did not seem to care anymore.
It's her second wind, Char realized. She's really dangerous now. But… I can knock her out. I think.
Char released a small smoke-screen around himself just moments before the twisting vines were able to hone in on him. When they did, they captured empty air. Char had escaped.
*SMACK!* Ray hit her with another ball of energy, directly to the face. She blinked and winced, still laying crumpled in the same position on the floor.
The vines swerved, going after the Raichu instead. He saw them coming and tried to slice at them with his tail, but one managed to wind around the spike at the end of his tail and hold on firmly.
Char leaped onto the burning Bayleef's back.
He dug his claws into her tough, rind-like skin.
Don't think, don't feel… Charmander.
No, I can't.
I can't just not feel…
"Lily, I'm really, really sorry," Char whispered to her. "If you could read my heart-speak, you would know how much I regret this. But…"
He prepared to overheat his body.
Lily gasped in pain, but said nothing. Her vines swerved away from Ray, but they didn't come toward him…
Char realized with horror that she was reaching for the reviver seed which he had dropped. It was very far across the room, but with her overgrown vines, she would have no trouble touching it…
Char released fiery heat through his skin, overheating himself. The Bayleef's green flesh erupted in fire.
Her many tentacle-like vines wavered, then dropped limply onto the floor.
"Look," she gasped with the last of her strength, "I get why you thought you had to do this. But… when Scythe tries to cut off your head or something, don't say I didn't tell you so… And I know he will. It's his character. I've been around longer than you, you know. I've… been in your place. You should have… trusted me."
She went limp. Her eyes fluttered shut.
They were streaming with tears.
Char carefully climbed off of her. As he gazed upon what he had done to her, at the patches of charred flesh that streaked across her hide, some of them still aflame, he realized… his eyes were streaming with tears, too.
He tried to pat the flames away. They must have stung so badly to her, the same way water stung his own tail. But he only charred whatever part of her skin he touched, as his body was still releasing the intense heat he had charged…
Instead, Ray's paw appeared, and he touched the dancing flames upon her skin, making them go away.
"Char…" Ray said, his own face looking distraught. "I'm sorry. I'm pretty sure she'll be okay, though. Pokémon…"
"Pokémon take a lot more than that to die, I know," Char said, clenching his fists, angry at the act he had just committed. "Still… I shouldn't have done that. Now she's probably going to be my enemy for as long as I live. There had to be a better way…"
"Uh, guys…" Saura called to them, finally freeing his vines from the loose tangle as Lily's disconnected pair wilted and fell apart. "If we're going to help Scythe, we should probably hurry."
Scythe's energy was draining quickly. When he tried to fly, he hung low in the air. When he tried to swipe his blades, he was far too slow. His attacks became desperate, sometimes aimless…
…yet, he still fought on, swiping at the Infernape who easily dodged and blocked his weary strikes.
Though, Char noticed that Prince had taken a bit of a beating, too. Bloody streaks stained his fur, and anger and frustration were clear in his face.
Scythe jabbed the tips of his blades toward Prince like needles, a technique Char had never seen him use before. Prince easily dodged out of the way.
"KAAAIIIIIYYYYYYYYYAAA!"
Scythe's cry screeched from his lungs as he lunged forward at his foe, forgetting all semblance of tact and unpredictability. Prince dropped to the ground and kicked at him. Scythe clearly saw the attack coming and tried to fly upward to dodge it, but he was too slow and the attack sent him spinning back down, where he stood upon the floor.
Prince ceased his attacks for a moment.
The Scyther's eyes fluttered and twitched. They were blood-red. His entire form rose and fell with each strained breath, wincing whenever he thought Prince would lunge at him.
"How about now, Scythe?" Prince offered, his voice full of genuine worry and concern. "You are starting to look tired. You know, don't you, that you can't carry out your plan when you are unconscious, right?"
Scythe did not reply. He laughed bitterly and lunged again, continuing the fateful battle.
From across the room, Char, Saura, and Ray watched the fight with racing, panicked hearts.
"Hey, look," Saura suddenly said, nodding in a particular direction. "Scythe put the bag down before he attacked Prince. That's Alakazam's bag. If we can get to it, we can get the speed brace, and the invisible seeds, and…"
"Wait," Ray interrupted, in a hushed shout. "I think I have a better idea. But we have to surprise Prince. He still doesn't know we're going to turn on him, so that has to be a surprise, alright? You guys, watch closely and try to attack Prince at the same time. Then, when he's surprised, I'll use an item that I have in this bag… that I think will beat Prince."
"He has reviver seeds, though," Saura warned. "You know, those will take away curses. So if you use an orb on him, the curse is only going to last until he's revived, you know that?"
"I know, but I think… I think I know what to do. Trust me. Just attack him and make him surprised, and I'll take care of the rest, alright?"
Char nodded. Saura did too.
"Alright, here's to going for broke," Ray sighed, adjusting the bag he carried. "Let's go."
*CLASH!* *CLASH!* *CLANG!*
Scythe lunged at his opponent, never ceasing his efforts. His opponent, though growing wearier with the passage of the battle, continually outmaneuvered him, remaining mostly unharmed.
Scythe lunged with his blades in a scissor formation. Prince dodged.
Scythe attacked from the air. Prince caught the blades on his ridged wristbands and deflected them.
Scythe attacked low, high, and around the back, but Prince was always anticipating his move.
*CLANG!* *CLANG!*
"Attack…" Scythe rasped in mid-stride. "You… are not trying. Why don't you attack me? If you intend to cut me down, attack me!"
"What gives you the idea that I intend to cut you down?" Prince returned. "I didn't want this, Scythe. I don't want to knock you down. Do you know how much it pains me to see you struggle like this?"
*CLASH!*
"Attack… me!" Scythe commanded his foe. "Do… not… hesitate! Attack me! Kyyyaaah!"
Prince batted away the Scyther's blades.
"Why, Scythe? I know you fight the most skillfully when you are the most desperate, but if you expect me to let—"
*THWACK!*
A powerful attack connected with Prince. It hit him in the shoulder, causing him to lurch to the side and pedal his arms to hold his balance.
The fight stopped. Frozen in surprise, the two dueling Pokémon just stopped fighting altogether, both turning to look in the direction which the projectile had flown from…
Saura charged up another energy ball.
"Saura…?" Prince uttered. "What are you doing?"
"Helping Scythe!" Saura replied, letting loose his attack.
*THWACK!* Prince couldn't dodge the unfamiliar attack as it shot toward him, hitting him in the stomach and causing him to reel.
Prince hesitated for a moment. Confusion shone in his eyes, but not lack of confidence; he knew that he would be soon revived, and that he had a chance to survive attacks from multiple opponents if he needed to.
Saura followed by firing several tiny seeds from his bulb. They were well-aimed, striking Prince in the gut and the forehead. The Infernape backpedaled, trying to block the painful pebble-like projectiles…
Char took the opportunity to pounce on him from behind, biting and slashing him on the back before leaping away to safety.
In the confusion, Scythe disappeared in a blur of agility, striking the confused Infernape powerfully in the head with the back of a blade.
Prince was thrown to the floor. The attack had been so strong, it caused the exhausted Infernape's consciousness to waver.
"Ahh…" he gasped as Scythe planted a foot on his chest. "Ahh, you… you got me, I guess… Well-played. I didn't expect to be ganged up on. But… that was only once, and I will still return to full strength seven more times… so the question is… Can you keep up the pace?"
*THWACK!* *THWACK!*
Scythe slammed the Infernape in the forehead with the backsides of his blades, and the Infernape's eyes fluttered closed.
He tensed, awaiting the inevitable revival and the beginning of the next round. He crouched close to the ground in a feral battle stance, ready to strike the moment the reviver seed activated.
However… Prince continued to lie on the floor, motionless. His fire flickered, but it dimmed…
Scythe twitched.
Char, Saura and Ray joined Scythe, standing in a circle around the downed fire-type…
"He's not getting back up," Ray said. "He's done. You win the battle, Scythe…"
"How?" Scythe rasped, poking at the unconscious ape with his blade. "How is that possible…?"
"I know why," Ray said solemnly. "I used… an 'embargo orb'. It prevents the target from wielding any weapons or using any items… even reviver seeds."
Scythe closed his eyes. Something like relief spread all through his body.
"Raikouun," he spoke, "By the gods, I almost just murdered him. If my blade would have been turned to put forth its edge, I would now be standing over the corpse of one of my closest friends. However, I must admit something. You are a master tactician with items. You are gifted… you may have made a worthy addition to my team, after all. And you, Char…"
Scythe opened his eyes, those bloodshot, weary eyes that pained Char to see, and stared deeply into his gaze…
"I think… you trust me, to a fault."
"I only wanted to help," Char said. "I don't know what you're planning on doing…"
*SLAM!* *SLAM!* *SLAM!*
In a blur, Scythe smacked all three of the Pokémon in the face with the back side of a blade. They were sent tumbling backward.
He stood over the three of them, blades drawn.
A strange, frightening emotion glinted in his eyes. It was something like glee, or insanity…
Char tried to recover from the blow, righting himself and turning to witness Scythe looming over him.
Scythe assumed his battle stance once more.
"Scythe…" Char cried to him, a dark terror filling his heart more than ever before…
"My name," the Scyther spoke, "is not 'Scythe'. My name never has been 'Scythe'. It was a fake name I invented for myself. My name… is Adron. I am a servant to the Master, as I have always been."
Char's heart shattered in despair.
Oh… no…
"Weakness," he spoke, stepping toward the three small Pokémon, "is what I despise the most. Weakness is what destroys Ambera, defiles its beauties. Weakness is what the Master hates. It is why he commands offensive strikes against the civilians. He desires the Pokémon of the land to be honed, to become resistant and strong, and the weak to be culled away."
Everything…
Everything was a lie from the start…
"In my time, I have culled thousands of weaklings from the face of Ambera, and I have felt nothing," he proclaimed. "It is my duty, to teach Ambera the holy lessons of the Master, teach Ambera to know the nature of true power…"
Char began pushing himself across the floor in panic, inching away from the crazed Scyther.
"Now… the time has come to show me that you are not weak," he spoke evilly. "Now, it is time that we battle."
Adron the Scyther lowered his blades, adopting the stance of lethal attack.
"Fight like you mean it. Show me what I have taught you. En garde!"
Bitterness, anger, and a wicked, insane glee filled Scythe's eyes. Char knew… this was not the Scyther he had become friends with. This was a completely different creature… an evil one.
"Scythe…" Ray spoke, weakly. "We can't defeat you. You know that!"
"What do you want?" Saura blurted. "We don't pose a threat to you, Scythe! Why do you want to battle us? You have no reason to battle us! We're just… your students!"
The Scyther stood still, ignoring the pleas of the Pokémon before him, as if to calculate his first strike.
He hesitated. He blinked. His posture slouched.
Char thought he saw the wickedness in his eyes fade away. He came to resemble the Scyther, the mentor, he was more familiar with.
"On second thought… no," Scythe said, dropping his blades to his side. "No… I've changed my mind. I'm not going to fight you."
Scythe released an exasperated sigh, slumping to the ground into a sitting position.
The three Pokémon warily surrounded him, waiting for an unexpected movement, expecting a trap of some sort…
"No, it's alright," Scythe chuckled, noticing their wariness. "I'm not going to attack you again. And everything I just now said about being a servant of the Master was false. I…"
Scythe looked straight at the ground, as though in defeat, or shame. Char couldn't tell if the Scyther was laughing, crying, or some combination of both.
"Come close," he told the Pokémon. "I suppose… you have, heh, heh heh, you have earned the right to hear what I was… what I was planning to do."
"Scythe…" Ray breathed, drawing close to him. "What is wrong?"
"I'll tell you," Scythe said, gazing tenderly at the Raichu and at the other two Pokémon who had trusted him so deeply for so long. "But by doing so, understand, that I – well, I will just tell you. My goal, all along, was very simple. I needed to disappear without a trace."
"You mean, like, running away?" Saura replied. "Why?"
"And why didn't you just run away, if that's what you needed?" Ray implored. "It doesn't sound that hard to do. You had lots of opportunities…"
Scythe sighed, once more giving a tired chuckle. "I didn't want to discount the possibility that Dialga would favor us, and grant us our requests," he admitted. "So, I put my faith in Dialga, because if… if the great god of time were to grant us our wishes, there would be no need to run away in the first place, as I could just ask Dialga to accomplish what I wanted, and all would have been well. When I found that… this was not the case, I reverted back to my plan… What a shame it was, to discover the true nature of the Call, and to find Dialga unable to help us… I don't think I have ever felt greater expectations in my heart so suddenly disappointed. I reluctantly decided I needed to follow through with my plan, and run away."
"But you see, it wasn't as easy as just running away," Scythe continued, every word a relieved sigh. "See, I… I realized, long ago, when I read the documents in Iron Town, that Adiel desired to have his final challenge with me. He was… searching for a city, one in my jurisdiction, to use as blackmail against me. He needed the perfect city of hostages he could threaten, to lure me out of hiding, so he could challenge me… And I realized this, long before I believe he wanted me to realize it. So I had the element of surprise. And I knew, the only way I could defeat him, in all his cunning ways, was to utilize that element of surprise. So I wanted to… disappear from the sights of every Pokémon, so that no living Pokémon would have record of where I was at any given time, or even when or where exactly I had disappeared from. And in disappearing, I would be able to begin posing to counter Adiel's plan before he even began it, and he would lack any clue as to where I was."
"That's what Prince wanted to know all along!" Char spoke, astonished. "W-why didn't you just tell him that?"
"BECAUSE if he knew, Adiel would also know," Scythe blurted. "Adiel… knows how to track down information he needs, and he knows how to extract that information… using any means necessary. Mind-reading, torture, burglary… nothing is beneath him. So, by telling Prince this plan, I risked putting him in danger, as well as any Pokémon he would tell in turn, namely his Team Flamewheel, if he chose to share the secret with them. I had no control over how he chooses to keep secrets, or how the members of Team Flamewheel would, in turn, keep secrets… so I knew it was better just to keep the secret myself and tell no one. Because if Adiel caught wind of just one Pokémon who might know my last whereabouts… he would find a way to squeeze it out of them. He… he is very cunning. And he is always watching, much more than you might suspect. Especially when it comes to me."
Char let this sink in.
Scythe… only wanted to keep a secret. A secret that was dangerous to know.
That… was all? It was that simple, all along?
"But Scythe," Ray spoke weakly, "You just told the secret to us… so… we're the ones in danger, now…"
"I KNOW, I KNOW, I KNOW…" Scythe suddenly shouted, shaking his head violently. "I… understand, what I have done, speaking of this to you. It has been a STUPID decision, a FOOLISH mistake, and I might have just doomed you all to a life of fear and suffering and… aborting everything I had previously planned out, and… But… But I couldn't bring myself to carry it out."
"See, the most important part of my plan, perhaps, was to convince you that I was the villain."
"I have been trying to… well, so to say… alter my attitude, during this past month," he admitted. "I wanted you to begin to doubt me, to challenge your trust in me. To begin to suspect that my motives were not… reliable. I wanted you to… to begin fearing for your safety, in my presence."
"Wait!" Saura cried. "So, all along, all that stress you had, and… and all that… That was all an act?"
Scythe chuckled again. "No, no, no, Saura, not an act," he reassured him. "Those sentiments I expressed were all very real; I could not have faked them if I tried. However, I figured, since they were there, I could utilize my burdens and stress to my advantage in the end. So, I began to… exaggerate my behavior, sometimes, with the intent of causing the three of you to worry…"
At hearing this, Char held his breath. The Scyther's master plan had almost worked. All along, Char had been in turmoil over whether Scythe was to be trusted… and now he knew there was a calculated reason for it.
All those times… all those points where he had to choose between trusting Scythe, or not… All those difficult decisions, and those seemingly random bursts of insanity…
It was all… planned. Calculated.
"And when I turned on Prince, I expected the three of you to side with him," Scythe spoke ironically, almost in a frustrated tone. "He was clearly the most pure-hearted and responsible guardian between the two of us. See, it is very difficult for me to operate an escape orb, having no hands… so my chance to get away involved acting like the crazed villain, and having the three of you gang up on me to knock me out, activating my emblem and sending me to the entrance of Temporal Tower, where I could flee in any direction without being seen by a single Pokémon's eye. But, no, Char, you threw your stakes in with me, and trusted me to a fault, and here we are now…"
"But… that still doesn't make sense to me," Ray said. "Why go through all the trouble of pretending to be the bad guy? Why couldn't you have just… well, bolted for the door? You could have tricked one of us into getting an escape orb for you… I just want to understand, I guess…"
"Because you were emotionally attached to me," Scythe said gravely, his gaze shifting between the three members of Team Ember. "And in a war like this… emotional attachment is the greatest of all weaknesses. Empires come crashing down just because one Pokémon's mate, or child, will be threatened, and so those who have the opportunity to oppose the evil will instead acquiesce to their demands. I didn't want you to… to worry about me. I didn't want to risk having you coming to find me when I went missing. I needed to cut off my ties with you. Becoming the villain, in your eyes, was the most efficient way to do that. I wasn't afraid for Prince's safety; I saw his spare seeds when he opened the bag to present the frozen flame to you, Char. So, I wanted you all to knock me out, and say 'Well, we defeated him, good riddance, now Prince will protect us from now on'… "
"You must understand. It was emotional attachment… mine, to be precise… which gave Adiel the power he now has. It was… a mistake I made. Many mistakes, to be honest. I need to defeat him, before he causes any more harm to Ambera."
Char began to understand everything.
It finally all made sense. Perfect sense.
"Though, I suppose there was one issue I might have left up to chance," Scythe laughed. "That being Nameless. I knew she would be watching the surface down below, and would see me when I tried to leave. Though, I didn't exactly expect her to pose a threat when I would try to escape from this tower and become a fugitive to Zerferia. Adiel would be hard-pressed to capture her, and even if she witnessed the direction I left, she would need to stay near the tower to watch for her beloved Prince or the remainder of her team, rather than following me. However… you fixed that for me. You knocked out Lily before Prince, and so, I have no doubt that Nameless rescued the poor Bayleef which came stumbling from the tower's front door, and is currently flying her back to Fort Emerald as fast as those majestic wings can take her, leaving the way free for me to leave unseen."
"In many ways, it was the perfect plan… but in the end, I could not bring myself to become Adron again, or any semblance of… of that… creature I once was. It was too painful, even though I knew it to be necessary. There was a reason I took a new name; a plain, unremarkable name, like 'Scythe', which indicated my species as a Pokémon and nothing more. As I joined the resistance movement, I wanted to forget that part of my childhood, and my early life, and… pretend that Scyther had died. Standing over you, preparing to battle you, even in a fight I intended to lose… it brought back those bad memories in an onslaught from my subconscious, and I could not fight them. In a way, Adiel represents the one I once was, or the one I would have become, had I not found a way out of the Master's servitude. And even now, I struggle with the task of… cutting down that figure, both in the literal sense, and in my soul."
"Congratulate yourselves, Team Ember. You have just now foiled one of my most difficult plans to date. By your undying, unconditional trust in me, you have defeated me, and caused my anticipated actions to come crashing down upon my head. Well done. I am proud to have called you my students, and I mean that earnestly. You would do well in the resistance."
Scythe rose to his feet, stretching his limbs.
"But you know, now, what I must do," he said sadly, walking away from the group. "The time has come. I must leave. Ambera is about to be held captive by Adiel's claws, and there are few besides me who can stop him."
"Wait, Scythe!" Char called, standing up to follow him. "You can't just leave us here! We can't survive in Zerferia!"
"I never intended to leave you here," Scythe told him. "However, by your own actions, you have caused both of your remaining companions to be knocked out and separated from you. That is not my problem. Consider it a consequence for your blind trust in me. Perhaps now you will assess trust a bit more thoroughly and wisely."
Scythe picked up Alakazam's bag of items.
"I was hoping we would not use many of these supplies," Scythe said, appraising the bag's remaining weight. "I will need them for the challenges that lie ahead. Especially the speed brace…"
"Scythe, wait!" Saura called to him, sad and frantic. "You're—you're just… going to… WHAT ARE WE supposed to do without you?"
Scythe secured the bag upon his possession.
He then turned his head to gaze, over his shoulder, upon the members of Team Ember one last time. They were the three Pokémon he had personally trained… and he was very proud of them.
There was a glint in his eye, and a familiar smirk upon his face.
"Survive," he simply told them.
It was an order.
With that, the old Scyther opened his wings and zipped through the air towards the descending staircase.
Panic overcame Char. He couldn't let this happen.
He bolted for the reviver seed and stuffed it into his mouth, biting down on it.
Then he bolted for the direction Scythe had fled.
"Char! Wait!" Saura called from far behind him.
"Char, wait for us!" Ray cried. "Char! Wait!"
He ignored his friends. He fled from them.
Furiously, breathlessly, he motored his little Charmander legs as fast as they could carry him. He had to catch up with the Scyther. He needed to. Nothing else mattered.
He needed Scythe to show him where to go, to tell him what to do.
He needed Scythe to provide direction to his life.
Without Scythe, he was just a weak little Charmander…
…Alone…
He couldn't let go.
But as he dashed for the stairs, he suddenly found himself barreling straight into a solid wall.
"MMPH!" he grunted in surprise, biting down on the reviver seed and thrusting his claws against the floor. They screeched against temporal tower's metallic tiles, and he was able to grind to a halt.
The staircase… wasn't there.
Where had it gone? Char glanced around, sure that he had gone in the proper direction, but unable to determine where he had taken the wrong turn.
That's when he looked back in the direction he had come. What he saw caused his heart to fall into his gut.
Temporal Spire's eighth floor was no longer an elegant, beautiful cathedral-dome, shaped like a circle, with an entrance stairwell on one end and an exit at the other.
It was now a maze of twisting corridors and branching paths. And it had gotten darker, so much darker, without the sunlight streaming in from the high-above windows.
And his two companions where nowhere to be seen.
Char scampered down the first hallway he came to. It led to an empty room. He exited the room to find that the hallway's direction had changed entirely, leading to a brand new set of rooms.
Frightened, he stood on his two feet and spat the reviver seed into his hands.
"SAURAAAAAA!" he called. "RAAAAY? SAURAAAA?"
His words only echoed down the halls.
"No, no, no…" he muttered to himself, biting down on the seed again and bolting down the hall.
The corridors made no sense. They looped back around upon themselves, opened to nonsensical chambers with no exits, and never stayed the same.
He thought he heard something coming down the hallway.
"SAURA?" he called, clutching the seed in his arms. "IS THAT YOU?"
No, he realized… it was not.
It was a windy noise, as though a breeze had blown in from outside.
Something was stirring.
It was powerful, like the whoosh of a waterfall, or the howl of a tornado.
"Oh… oh no…" Char breathed.
It was the wind that had caused both Scythe and Prince to panic.
It was the force that could not be counteracted by the reviver seed. The force that would cause him to instantly faint.
Find the staircase, Char realized, overcome with primal panic. Find the staircase. Get off this floor… I've been on this floor for too long… find that godforsaken staircase!
But he couldn't find it. The corridors merely repeated themselves.
And the wind was coming closer.
No, no, no, no, no! Char repeated in his mind, running for his dear life around and through the strange doors that had overtaken the dungeon. Why did we stay on the same floor for so long? Why? No, oh, no…
The wind sounded again. It was almost there.
Char ran into a dead-end. It was dark, lit only by his flaring tail-flame. There was nowhere else to go.
He sat himself down at the hallway's end, accepting his fate. He clung to the seed, his only remaining ally in life, even though he knew it would do nothing for him.
And he waited.
The wind came for him. To his surprise, he found that it wasn't a wind at all.
It was a force of change.
Before his very eyes, he witnessed the many walls and doors of the temporal tower mystery dungeon shifting around. Walls grinded against walls, floors rose and fell, ceilings lowered… it was as though he was trapped in a giant mechanical device, a device which ebbed and flowed like the ocean tide…
Oh… god… were his only thoughts.
Then he noticed that the two walls of the hallway in which he cowered began closing together.
Char held his breath right as he was about to get smashed between the sliding planes of metal. There was nothing he could do.
And then it all went black.