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Something snapped inside of Larrimore as Beauregard's words bounced around in his head, echoing like a Zubat's cry in a vast cavern. At first the words almost didn't make sense to him, in fact he repeated what the hybrid said back to himself in his mind in both Galarish and Kalosian and in neither language did it seem to make sense. Looking from Beauregard then to the faces of the others, as if trying to find help, his expression became more and more dulled and distant. Eventually fixing his gaze upon a cloud in the skill he would remain like that for what felt like an eternity but was less than a minute, his chest rapidly rising and descending. His demeanor however would change suddenly, no build up or progression.

"Why?" Was all he could say as tears ran down his face, the once stoic hybrid rapidly descending into a sniveling mess. "Pourquoi?" He repeated in Kalosian. There was not an ounce of anger in Larrimore's gaze as he locked eyes with Beauregard, only intense sorrow, the look of a child that had lost their parents and now was left to spiral down the vast chasm of the unknown. Beauregard finally broke Larrimore.

As soon as Freth produced the Absol, Monique felt its Dark-type energy. She was surprised to have never heard of the Pokémon, given its description.

Absol. Dark. The Disaster Pokémon. It senses coming disasters and appears before people only to warn them of impending danger.

If she had probed for more information, she'd learn that its lone home in Alola was Tapu Village, a place on an island long lost to her anyway—no wonder it didn't show up with the Smog.

Freth's idea, meanwhile, had clearly planted a seed in Sub. He suddenly started formulating an elaborate plan and communicating it.

"Monique, I want you to disguise yourself as a Galaxy Team member and rush into Galaxy Hall and free Darts. In the panic and with your illusion no one would think for a moment to question what you're doing. He's being kept in the bottom-most floor; just look for the only door being guarded."

Monique took her assignment with some trepidation. She hadn't seen much of the team, not yet having been in their headquarters building, so she did not know how they dressed.

"I have a question... What do they look like and wear?" She did not want to get this wrong. She did not want to look like a paradox, any more out of time than she already was. This would be the first time since her hybridization that she had projected an illusion that was not her own visage, and she had to do it right.

Amber was shaken from her thoughts by the appearance of Freth's Absol, followed by Sub's words that she, along with three others, were to create havoc in the village. Havoc, she could do. She had a variety of Pokemon that would be perfect for the job, though she really wished her main partner was there with her. He loved playing pranks on other people, especially if he knew Amber wasn't going to get after him for it. Ah, well, she had others that would do just as well. Speaking of which, she pulled out Arauth's Pokeball and let the Misdreavus out.

"Arauth, when we're given the signal, I want you to start sending Shadow Balls at the ground outside the village," she said. "We need to cause a distraction, help the rest of the team free Darts from his cell." The Misdreavus gave a slight smile at the request, nodding her acceptance of the plan. Just like Spooky, she had a penchant for causing mischief when she could, though being with Amber had toned that down quite a bit. Now, however, she was looking forward to causing a little havoc, and having Amber's blessing to do so just made it all that much better.

"...cause chaos, huh?" For some reason, this seemed to spark something in Amaranth, seeing her send out her Minior and Pidgeot. As soon as she had, she'd notice Leon running back with a lot of Smoke Bomb and have an idea form in her mind instantly. "Here, let me see one of those," she spoke up as she took one of them, now looking at her two Pokemon.

"Gale, Quartz, here's the plan. I'm gonna throw this on the ground and slam the hammer down. Once I do, Gale, I want you to stir up the strongest Gust you can, centered around me. Quartz, you stick close to me and once the windstorm begins, use Ancient Power to force a few rocks out. The smoke, wind and rocks with the rest of the noise should be a good start, I think." With the tone her voice took as she explained all this, one would think she'd been around the team too long. Or at least around Cera for too long.

"Sound good?" She'd ask as she readied the hammer, Smoke Ball in hand. She'd get a response from both of them that sounded like they were in agreement. "Oh, and Freth? I'm good, doubt I'm gonna need anything else here. I'm ready as soon as everyone else is and Absol gets to play harbinger."

This new order took Keiko's mind off of the worry she'd felt from being a hybrid in a town full of basically ignorant savages, but she had a new reason to worry. She'd never pretended to try to help people before, and was worried that she wouldn't be able to lie convincingly. She didn't have any experience with acting, either. Still, they wouldn't be able to go home unless they did this, so Keiko knew she had to try her hardest..

Listening to the other Snagems around her, she realized she wouldn't be alone in her part of the mission, and that eased her fears enough to let her think, not that she could come up with any specific plans of her own. How would she be able to face rescuing someone if they weren't actually in danger. Though some Snagems were ordered to make noise and 'cause chaos' so maybe she could use that? If she knew more about this town she could launch an 'evacuation' effort, but she'd largely kept to herself since leaving the wilderness. Then she thought of Freth's Absol and let Daedra out. "Daedra, I want you to look at that Absol," she said, pointing to the Absol standing next to Freth. Once Daedra was focused on it, Keiko continued. "Here soon, I'm going to send you out to fight it, but it won't be a real fight, okay? I need you to look convincing without actually hurting it. Can you do that?" Keiko asked.

The confused look on Daedra's face proved that Daedra was as ill-prepared for what was about to go down as her trainer was. Sighing, Keiko gave Daedra headpats, ignoring the Sliggoo's sticky, slimy exterior. "I guess we're both winging it, huh?" she asked. That statement only added to Daedra's confusion, though.

Wren's words seeded further trepidation on the part of Monique. The only Pokémon she had that she knew existed in this region were Pichu, Stantler, and maybe Murkrow. Yet she was going to have to use her Marowak at some point. She was reminded of being in Jubilife and having someone ask her about the Marowak she had. Yet she couldn't quite care. Hers was a different mission. It might require fire... And it would be far better to deploy a Marowak than inflict a Shadow Camerupt on them.

Larrimore listened to Beauregard, honed in on his words however he couldn’t bring himself to look his friend in the eyes. He wasn’t wrong, the Pinsir hybrid had to admit, everything he said was on point and reflected many of his own thoughts concerning his question for the legendary blade. So much pain and suffering for that sword, wasted, everything they did just to have it cast through space and time to some place far beyond his reach, lost to the infinite. While he was upset, greatly so, part of him felt relief in knowing that there was no hope of finding it. Before when he first set out to find it he knew it was incredibly unlikely he’d ever find a concrete clue over its location but there was always that little glimmer of hope, now however there was none. Was that a good or bad thing? Maybe a little bit of both.

Sniffling and wiping his face Larrimore stood erect and took out a Pokeball, staring at Galaxy Hall ahead of him. He had a job to do, and like all others he would see it to completion. “Excusez-moi monsieur Beauregard, duty calls for this knight.” He would flash Beauregard a toothy Pinsir grin before turning back away and walking towards Galaxy Hall.

—--

Chaos would almost immediately consume Jubilife Village as Galaxy Team members came running out of Galaxy Hall screaming at the top of their lungs. The citizens wouldn’t have time to question what was going on as a gust of wind carrying smoke created by the Smoke Bomb found by Leon, dirt from the streets, and rocks from Ancient Power swept down the street in front of Galaxy Hall, obscuring the view of the entrance. Stepping through the carried smoke came the cause of the panic and disasters about to befall their village, a four legged creature sporting a thick coat of white fur and a menacing ‘scythe’ of a horn on its head. “It’s the White Calamity!” One person screamed and pointed at the Absol as it appeared.

Numerous people were fleeing however some of the guards from the gates were gathering and lining up to present a defense against the creature, each of them wielding spears. This wasn’t good, if they were actually going to fight Absol right here in front of Galaxy Hall then their eyes would still be on the building itself, making Darts’ escape that much harder, plus a large number of citizens were still hanging around, comforted in the defense they were mounting. Not only did they need to amp up the fear factor with more disasters they needed to pull this fight far away from Galaxy Hall so Darts and company can have a clean getaway. It was time for the other Snagems to set off their ‘disasters’.

The other Snagems were to do as instructed and pretend to fight Absol, or help rescue and evacuate the citizens, whichever they preferred, so long as they made Snagem look like the good guys and avoid immediate suspicion over breaking Darts out of jail.

Meanwhile Deo, standing outside the Galaxy Hall building, would spot Darts at the lowest level of the building with his x-ray vision. There were still some guards inside from what he could see but a lot of people had already fled. Deo would remember that Monique was instructed to disguise himself and free Darts but maybe he should let her know which direction to go in once inside.

As for Monique her question would be answered as she would have a good view of the guards gathering together to face Absol, all of them wearing the exact same uniform. It was a safe bet to say anyone on guard duty inside that building would wear similar clothes, plus with all the discord going on and guards running around now would be the perfect time to charge inside.

—--

In the dungeons of Galaxy Hall Darts and the medium would not hear the screaming going on above however Darts, as a Ghost hybrid, would definitely sense their dark emotions of dread and fear. Something was going on up there that had a lot of people spooked. Was it his teammates?

Scowling at Darts’ little scene the medium would grumble. “Mysterious over life and death, ha…” She originally scoffed but then a thought popped into her mind, something she hadn’t thought of in a long while, simply because it was too painful to do so. Why she would think of it at a time like this she did not know, it was as if this memory was pulled from the darkest recesses of her mind and brought to the forefront on purpose. “I could use you…” She said softly, fumbling around her person, looking for something. Was mighty Sinnoh trying to speak to her? Maybe that’s why this devil was here, a gift from their lord. Yes, with that spell she could bring her daughter back.

“I need a piece of your clothing. That jacket looks like it would do.” She said, walking up to the cell and starting to open it up with the only key the lock had. An idea had clearly captivated this woman, mental tunnel vision consuming her. Whatever was going on with her didn’t matter to Darts, so long as she turned that key that’s all he cared about. “You’ll do something good for once in your existence.” She evilly smiled at Darts as she turned the key and the lock clicked open. That smile though, something seemed strange, maybe even familiar. Now wasn’t the time to mull it over though as the cell door swung open.

Armed with the information given by Deo, what looked like a guard calmly walked past the panicked crowds evacuating Galaxy Hall and into the building. The ground floor looked quite well-appointed, but she wasn't here for that. She moved with precision down a hallway and to the staircase to the basement, which shed the warm lighting and wood finishes for cold, tuff stone surfaces on all sides.

The basement was set up as one long hallway. To one side, there were a few doors, but to the other, the wooden doors were replaced by large openings for jail cells. A guard stood watch outside a cell at the end of this long, damp, and very dimly lit hall, the only light coming from a narrow window just under the ceiling at its end. She was lucky she had Zoroark vision, though nobody here could know that. But the guard, seeing only another of his kind, did not suspect anything.

As she approached the last cell, she noticed an empty chair, as well as several paper tags adorning the outside of the cell. It had just been unlocked, and an older woman was apparently trying to tug on Darts's jacket.

"He must be moved!" she commanded, hoping to stop this...guard? intruder? in her tracks. What was this...woman doing?

The medium turned and looked, having been caught in the act. "Who are you?"

Monique racked her brain. What did Sub say their leader's name was? It came to her after a moment.

"He must be moved. Commander Kamado's orders."

The mere mention of the name of the Commander, though, was not enough to jerk the medium out of her mental tunnel vision.

"I'm not letting this devil go!" she spat, still trying to tug at the jacket. This alarmed Monique, given that the jacket was pivotal to the entire plot to get back home.

Time for Plan B. The "guard" reached for a Poké Ball and produced a Pokémon the likes of which the medium had never seen. It was small, but it bore a bone with two flames whose ghastly green light illuminated the cell. The cursed flames of the Alolan Marowak sent the woman into agony. She started screaming, something Monique knew had to be stifled without her identity as a Zoroark being uncovered.

"Unshackle him so he may be moved!" she ordered like an officer commanding a prisoner—except her prisoner was not the one being imprisoned.

The medium did not abide, and Monique moved to push her off of Darts. She might have felt for a moment the fuzziness of Pokémon hybrid hands, but given the sensory overload she was experiencing, that realization might not come to her for some time. With Marowak's twirling bone distracting the medium, hurting her, and providing light, Monique worked as fast as she could to undo the restraints. After several minutes, they were all unbound. Monique recalled Kalama into her Poké Ball, plunging the room into darkness, before running out with Darts, still casting a disguise, and returning upstairs.