Battered and bruised from the assault, the remnants of the Alliance forces retreated into the snowy wasteland, covering their escape through smokescreens. A few of the Smaugus helped create the diversion, helping Alliance Pokemon escape into their territory.

In essence, war had been declared, and the plumes of smoke rising from Tirasford broke the news. To pretend otherwise was a fool’s errand. All separating the Crest and Smaugus from all out conflict were a handful of diplomatic formalities. If that.

George, Terez and the steel types cut a path through hilly terrain, circumventing the main roads for a few hours before arriving at a raging river. Crossing it with psychic powers would leave them vulnerable, given their exhaustion. They decided against it after a short debate, opting for a bridge on the main road instead. That’s where they were now headed.

All the while, the crushing weight of failure wearing on his soul, one thought burned in George’s mind. ‘Did Blitzer survive?’ The nerves kept him going, even if the chances were dire.

All the while, Blitzer was alive and well, keeping up with the column of refugees and battered black scarves. Some of the backup Pokemon had formed a rear guard, the Alliance no doubt in pursuit.

Most trouble came from the refugees, who desperately tried to turn back around once they realised whose company they were in. Some cried. Some raged. Some came to blows. It was hard to watch. Blitzer tried not to.

When people were screaming at the top of their lungs, that was easier said than done.

Autriss had disappeared with most of the civilians, the column having thinned out by the time they reached the bridge of the main road. He was glad he didn’t have to speak to her anymore, if only so she wouldn’t see him with the mask off. He sighed.

‘Did George survive, at least…?’

Blitzer stayed put until the tail of the column had passed. Weary snout after weary snout, none among the crowd a Dewott. When just about everyone had crossed, and neither George or Terez were anywhere to be seen, the same sunken look formed on the Charmeleon’s face, his tail flame dimming and the blood in his body freezing.

‘N-No…’

Just before tears rolled down his face, a voice Blitzer wouldn't mistake in a million years called out to him.

“Heeey! Wait for us!!”

Blitzer’s eyes flew wide open. He turned towards the river shores to the south. George came running up the hill towards the bridge, Terez chasing after with the steel squad close behind.

“Stop! You’re going to injure yourself further!”

“I don’t care!”

The proud Charmeleon’s spirit was lifted at once, as he scooped up the blue ball of fur and spun him around in his arms. It felt like he’d fallen into a great hot spring, so full of life he’d become. They hugged, squeezed, squeaked into each other’s ears - all in celebration of having survived.

Not even won. Just survived.

“I didn’t think I’d be seeing you again…” George whispered, to which Blitzer suddenly shook George around.

“I didn’t think I’d see YOU again! Did you get the flute piece?” the Charmeleon asked.

The Dewott grimaced at him. “Err… about that…” ‘How on earth am I even going to say this?’ “I…”

Blitzer let out a nervous chuckle. “You… did get the flute piece, right? You know, what all this has been for…?”

In the span of five seconds, the excitement burned away, and new tension rose from the ashes. Blitzer’s tail flopped flat on the ground as he gave George, then Terez, then George a confused look, the steel types silently watching. And as much as George wished he had good news to share, no amount of wishful thinking was getting him anywhere...

…except the same dump the truth led towards.

“We didn’t get the flute piece.”

“...What?” Blitzer’s mouth opened.

“I’m sorry,” Terez answered in George’s stead. “We did the best we could. But we were outmatched… they threw everything they had our way.”

Blitzer’s face rapidly transformed from shock, to outright horror.

“Wh-what?! B-but we just… w-w-we just attacked an entire city for it! I saw so many… A-Allora’s still there! That’s why we’re here! Y-you can’t just be-” He panicked, grabbing tight onto George’s shoulders. “Please tell me you’re joking, you have to be…”

George didn’t attempt to resist with anything more than a long, tired sigh. “I wish I was.”

Blitzer hyperventilated. “N-no! W-what are we going to do? W-what are we going to say?”

Terez shook her head. “We’ll have to figure that out on the way back.”

* * *

To say they struggled while heading back to the Smaugus’ fortress was underselling it. Not because of Crest attacks, common as they were, but the sheer stress. Blitzer explained what he’d seen after Terez had told the bulk of what transpired in the Bastion, and his words painted a grim picture. Many had been killed. Many had been captured, and among them was none other than Allora. George’s mentor, a strong fighter… among other things.

George squeezed his eyelids down hard to make sense of it all. ‘Of all the people, her? She can’t have. She’s too… argh, I don’t know how to describe it. She wouldn’t go down that easily. She had this energy about her that…’

Try as he might, the lack of a definite answer was an answer in and of itself. Not to mention, the ‘how’ was the least of their concerns. By a long shot.

The small group they travelled in stopped briefly at the village near Whitiara for supplies, and that was it. A brief stop, nothing more. Day turned to night, night turned to day. Cold as the winter night was, the snow and the moon kept visibility high. Stopping to rest until dawn would’ve been for the better. They were tired.

But in all honesty, they had spent more than enough time in Whitiara. George knew. Blitzer knew. Terez knew. Everyone knew.

Aside from two attacks which they fought off, and Terez spending an hour with the steel squad, the only thing of note was the angle they’d explain the disaster with, which amounted to Terez saying she’d ‘handle it’. It didn’t stop George from cooking up something himself with the little experience he had.

‘We were surrounded. Didn’t have enough time. We didn’t know enough about the Bastion. Sounds about right, I think…’ He clicked his tongue, then shook his head. ‘Well, I hope so, anyway. Can’t please everyone. Especially if they only want perfection, blegh.’

It wasn’t until evening the day after when they descended on the Smaugus’ lonely mountain, and the Ampharos stood guard as usual… along with a squadron of similarly dead-eyed Pokemon. Ampharos gave George one good look, then ordered the others to open the gate. They were let in with zero fanfare.

Only a subtle, yet noteable contempt.

Inside, there was little time to adjust to the tense atmosphere. Contrary to last time, the halls of the base were filled with Smaugus members running amok, making last preparations for war. Given by the visible fear and stress of the other Pokemon, George guessed Chronos hadn’t told them what was going to happen. Either that, or the reality of war was an awful lot less rosy than they’d been taught, enough to cause pandemonium.

He held a fist against his chest as they moved through the corridors, Ampharos once again escorting them. Chronos couldn’t have been far off. As awful as the first time was, the odds of today’s meeting going any better were nonexistent.

Given what had happened to his wife and men, it not going any better was an understatement.

Ampharos left the three in the middle of a deep, black cavern. The steel squad had been ordered to stay outside, despite being Alliance. And so they were left in the darkness, staring at a distant, dim flicker of light, connected to a reptilian tail hanging low on the ground.

Then, a growl came from the back, rumbling and echoing from the walls. It sounded as if a monster larger than the cavern had awakened, and now slowly moved towards them. Blitzer shivered as the dark beast lumbered their way, a situation Terez hastily tried to correct by calming his mind. George put on as stoic of a face as he could. ‘You’ve done this before… Just a bigger, uglier version of Blitzer. That’s all he is.’

A flame fell out of the Charizard’s jaws as he circled around the three, like a beast tormenting its prey. By his feet, a brazier sparked to life, coating his scarred body in an orange light. His tail gradually flared up as he went around and lit similar braziers, whose crackling was overshadowed by the low growls and the sound of Chronos’ large tail being dragged across the floor. He seemed vulnerable… too much so.

George gritted his teeth while keeping his mouth shut. ‘I don’t buy it for a single second…’

As the final flame was lit, the Charizardstopped right in front of their faces. Without turning to them, he growled out a few words.

“You know why you are here.”

Blitzer squeaked. It felt as if they were trapped in a monster’s lair. Tonight’s dinner.

“To report on what happened,” Terez replied.

Chronos’ throat vibrated as a low rumble spilled out. It sounded as if the earth itself had grown angry. “Did we obtain the final piece of the flute?”

Dead silence came back as an answer. The Charizard stomped, which almost knocked Blitzer off his own.

“No one brave enough to reply… I take that as a no.”

“We didn’t get it, no,” George replied after seeing Terez shiftily eye him. She didn’t look confident.

Chronos’ head whipped around. “What is the point of giving an answer when it is too late? You already admitted to failure without a word,” he growled.

George clenched his fist behind his back.‘You asked for one…’

The Charizard licked his lips as he turned to the trio. “This is not worth my energy… Answer me. Do you know how much has been sacrificed for your sake?”

“No. No, sir,” George answered, still clutching his fist.

Chronos stared straight into his eyes.“Do you know how much we have lost today? All because we put our trust in you?”

The dragon’s growls made George’s ears go flat against his head. Anything to make them less audible was appreciated. “...A lot, sir.”

Chronos spat at George’s feet, instantly making him hop back. Terez stuck her arm in front. Blitzer dropped into a protective stance, his ragged breathing making the hairs on George’s neck stand up straight.

“Fools. I knew I should have trusted my instincts…” The Charizard stepped out of the shadows, all while sniffing the air. “You’re a pitiful bunch. From the very moment you walked into our world, you exposed yourselves. And only the weak couldn’t smell it. But I can smell it. The stench of fear coming off of you all…”

Terez put her foot down. “Do you think we had a choice back there?” she rebuked. “Do you think this is what we wanted?”

A dull growl rumbled in Chronos’ throat, as he tilted his scarred head away. “Yet you came back empty handed… like only a true coward knows how to. Like little Eevee nibbling on kibble, kicked aside when the strong come out to play. If you truly cared about obtaining that flute… if you truly believed in final victory… you would have come home with the final piece of the puzzle, or died trying.”

“Th-there’s always tomorrow,” Blitzer managed to get out before locking up. Chronos unfurled his wings, then flapped them with enough force to knock a fence post over. Blitzer yelped in an instant.

“Coward’s talk. I am not interested in ‘tomorrow’, when it could’ve been achieved now.” The Charizard resumed circling around the group, still dragging his tail over the rough stones underneath. “Look at you… ‘Blitzer’. Still the same old country grassling. Still that innocent little fairy trying to talk his way around things… all while the world burns around him. Thirteen years, and yet you haven’t changed.”

George felt anger brewing inside as he looked at Blitzer from the corner of his eye. The Charmeleon’s throat vibrated, as if his tongue had gotten stuck. He didn’t budge. Didn’t dare speak. Didn’t dare invite wrath upon his head.

‘Come on… say something!’

“Wh-what? Y-you don’t know who I am! I’m not a-”

Chronos growled, silencing Blitzer in an instant. “It doesn’t take much to sniff out the weak… Thirteen years, thirteen seconds. I know the squealers when I see them.” His head cast a growing shadow over the Charmeleon, menacing him even further. “What a sight to behold, isn’t it? Someone of your blood, so timid and shy from a few goddamn words. Disgraceful. You know fulwell what you see in your own reflection… if you were honest with yourself.”

“Alright, stop.”

George had his hands on his scalchops when Terez intervened at last. Her stern attitude against the monster. An unstoppable force met an immovable object, and battle lines were drawn up in an instant.

“Either cut the crap and tell us what the problem is, or don’t say anything at all. You’ve said enough.” Terez whipped her hair dismissively. “And no, I don’t give a damn if that isn’t ‘respectful’ to you! Respect flows both ways. Don’t like it? Feel free to spit out your grievances. RIGHT. NOW.”

Silence took over the room as Terez and Chronos stared each other down, each seemingly waiting for the first aggressive motion, whether through teeth or telekinesis. George kept one eye trained on the huge, scarred Charizard, with another on Blitzer, heart pounding.

Blitzer had just about given up on trying to stand up even a little. All the energy had been scared straight out of him, by someone who looked so similar, yet so different. Uglier. Brutish. With none of the charm or ability to love… in spite of his wife.

George squeezed his fingers tight around his scalchop as the standoff continued, his tail stiff and his eyes sharp.

‘One wrong move and I’m gonna deepen those scars even further you son of a…’

Then, just as the lights in the room dimmed, Chronos let out a low belly laugh. One whose intensity rose by the second, the deep bass in his voice growing a hearty yet humiliating quality. His belly even jiggled, as if to add insult to injury.

“Aren’t you all a special lot? Standing up for someone who cannot even stand up for themselves!” the Charizard growled, wings fluttering behind his back while he posed all mightily. “If you truly believed in him, why not let him raise his own voice?”

Terez wasn’t impressed. “There’s something called ‘going too far’.”

Chronos laughed back in her face. “Too far? Letting fools sink or swim is going too far for you? You have the gall to say this in my presence? Do you have any idea where you are?”

The Gardevoir tilted her head. “Well? Go on then. Explain it to idiots like us, who have no clue. Don’t keep me waiting.”

The dragon spat at her feet. Terez didn’t so much as flinch when the hot saliva spattered against her dress.

“We Smaugus have been around for centuries…” he began. “Centuries of survival, in the harshest lands in the world… When life’s true form reveals itself, you can either rise to the challenge… or die trying. So many have tried to survive, only to disappear. We persevered… because we freed ourselves from burdens like him. Burdens the rest of the world, in all their sappy luxury, took in. And in the end, they too will disappear… while we will remain.”

Chronos scoffed. “I am wasting my breath. None of you will ever understand. And even if you did… you wouldn’t live to make use of them for long..” He licked his lips. “ I have no need for failures in my ranks. The rest of the Alliance? Oh, they fought well… and when Allora returns, I will make the utmost effort to unite our worlds even further. But you three? There’s consequences awaiting you all.”

“Consequences?” George scowled at the Charizard. “Is that a threat?” he asked. Chronos just smirked at him.

“You’ll see once you get home... Get out of my sight. All of you.”

George and Terez both harrumphed at him one last time, before turning to leave. For a brief moment, George wondered if Chronos knew about his wife being gone. Then again, it wasn’t worth risking life over. Chronos already looked ready to kill. And sad as the thought of one of his mentors being dead might be…

…at the very least, he could leave this frozen wasteland behind for good.

* * *

It didn’t take long before they were back outside, having stocked up to make the brief journey back to the Drasal base. The quicker the better, as far as all three were concerned. As far as anyone holding onto a faint threat of sanity was concerned.

Shivering, and with chattering teeth, they journeyed over the snowy landscapes one last time. All the wonder and excitement of feeling the snow on their skin had long disappeared. Every flake felt bitter to the touch. The snow crunching under their feet was heavy, as were the tails they dragged across. No need to take in the sights one last time. They’d seen enough for a lifetime.

The Crest hadn’t found the teleporter yet, fortunately. First George, then Blitzer, then Terez stepped on top. Moments later, the cold vanished, and the damp yet warm air of the Alliance base entered their nostrils. Back in the teleporter room at last, after being absent for what felt like years.

“Look who goes there,” Lurantis Len shouted, dangling his scythe hands around. “Ain’t so fond of the cold?”

Terez looked the Lurantis straight in the eye, her hair messy. “Not now, Len.”

“That’s no fun, you gotta-”

“Not. Now.”

“Right, right…”

The Lurantis confusedly prickled his antennae as Terez shoo’d George and Blitzer faster, eager to get out of the public eye. By some miracle, their presence went ignored. All the other black scarves were either at the market, or loudly chatting among themselves.

“So, you know what we told ‘em?”

“Well?”

“UP YOURS!”

“Haah! Gonna use that one in Luminity?”

“You bet!”

A lot of new faces had popped up inside the tunnels as well. Pokemon from all walks of life, biped and quadruped, lowly bugs to proud dragons, in far greater volumes than before. The cart system which ran through the main tunnel had become active enough to need someone on duty at major crossings. Many market stalls had queues now. Bigger habitats had been built.

George raised an eye at it all. ‘Awful lot of building down here… I thought they were counting on us winning.’

With the lack of attention leaving them unhindered, they had no trouble finding their way to George and Blitzer’s room. Once there, Terez shut the door behind them, and fell onto the floor with a sigh. Limbs dangling from their sockets, George fell into his bed. He’d have looked through the room first, but not a speck of dust looked out of place.

‘Home sweet home…’

He fell onto his bed with a thud. Moments later, Blitzer plopped down as well, a few sparks shooting off his tail.

“...Well boys,” said Terez as she pulled herself up by a handle on the door. “I don’t know how long it’s going to take before Artanouk wants an audience with us. But until then… don’t bother training. Don’t talk about anything these past few weeks. Just get a good long rest for now, alright? You’ve earned it.”

George groaned on the covers. “More than earned it… ugh.”

“I could use a month-long vacation,” Blitzer softly whined, his belly slowly rising up and down as he laid on his back. “Preferably anywhere except hell.”

Terez opened the door without her hands, a blue glow in her eyes. “I’m afraid you won’t get that long… but don’t worry about it for now. Just… take it easy, okay? Please.”

Desperate as she sounded, George didn’t want to question it. “I’d lie in bed for a month if I could, don’t worry.”

Blitzer groaned. “Yeah. Still feel cold. Still feel itchy and just… awful from all of that. Especially that Charizard…”

“Leave that for later,” Terez said. “Goodbye for now.”

“Goodbye.”

Terez held the door open for a few more seconds to stare at George, before finally closing it. George sighed as he and Blitzer were alone. He sighed.

‘How do I make myself too sick to go out…’