Morning came reluctantly.
The sun rose over Divide City like it was testing the air first, light spilling cautiously across rooftops and streets still scarred by shadow. Smoke drifted upward in lazy ribbons from shattered stone and scorched plazas. Emergency sirens pulsed, then slowly quieted. Pokémon rangers moved in coordinated lines, guiding civilians from shelters, checking structures, calming panicked partners.
Cyrus stood at the edge of the plaza where the battle had raged, hands shoved deep into his jacket pockets.
The ground here was still warm.
Not from fire...from memory.
Ditto rested around his neck in scarf form, unusually still. Every now and then it shifted slightly, tightening like it was bracing against something only it could feel.
Behind him, Ursaluna exhaled slowly, breath fogging the air. The massive Pokémon sat rather than stood, still recovering, still choosing to remain close. Cyrus hadn't recalled him. Not yet.
Across the plaza, Hoopa floated upside-down, legs crossed in midair, watching a group of city officials argue near a cracked monument.
"Thaaaat was loud," Hoopa sang softly, swaying. "Didja see their faces~?"
Cyrus didn't look at him."People could've died."
"But they didn't~," Hoopa replied lightly. "Mostly."
Cyrus closed his eyes for half a second.
That was the problem.
Hoopa wasn't wrong, but he wasn't right either.
A woman in a slate-gray coat approached, flanked by two uniformed officers and a Psychic-type Pokémon whose eyes glowed faintly as it scanned the area.
Councilor Veyra. One of Divide City's senior officials. Older than she looked. Sharper than most.
"Cyrus King," she said. "You're the trainer who engaged Darkrai directly."
"Engaged is generous," Cyrus replied. "Delayed is more accurate."
Her gaze flicked briefly to Ursaluna, then to Hoopa, lingered there just a fraction longer.
"…You stabilized the situation," she said carefully. "For now."
Cyrus nodded. "Cresselia's recovering. Darkrai pulled back instead of pressing the advantage. That tells me two things."
She folded her hands. "Go on."
"One: he's not done."
"And two?"
"He wanted to see what would happen if he pushed."
Silence settled between them.
Around them, the city moved, but quieter now. Pokémon trainers spoke in hushed tones. Fairy-types clustered closer to glowing flora than usual. Dark-types lingered in shadows that hadn't fully receded.
The line through Divide City still held.
Barely.
Veyra exhaled. "We've confirmed reports of a group operating in the lower districts. Hooded figures. Ritual markings. They call themselves Darkness."
Cyrus snorted despite himself."Yeah, I heard. Sounds like something out of a bedtime story."
Her expression didn't change. "They've been anything but childish."
Hoopa spun lazily."Ooooh~ cultists~. They always think they're special."
Veyra's eyes sharpened. "You've encountered them before."
"Indirectly," Cyrus said. "Last night, I saw one of them in the street. Hands raised toward Darkrai. Like… worship."
That earned him a long, troubled look.
"We believe they were responsible for Cresselia's disappearance," Veyra said. "At least initially."
Cyrus's jaw tightened. "Then they're playing with forces way beyond them."
Hoopa hummed, amused."Mmm~ they thought they were."
Cyrus glanced at him sharply. "You knew."
Hoopa tilted his head, feigning innocence."Knew is such a biiig word~."
Veyra noticed the exchange,didn't comment, but filed it away.
"We're mobilizing search teams," she said. "But Darkrai complicates things. The longer Cresselia was absent, the more his influence spread. Nightmares increased. Psychic Pokémon destabilized. Some residents still haven't woken up."
Cyrus's chest tightened. He remembered the way Darkrai had looked at him mid-battle.
Not furious.
Curious.
"I'll help track them," he said. "But not blindly."
Veyra nodded. "Good. Because this isn't a hunt."
She gestured toward the skyline.
"It's a siege we didn't know we were in."
They regrouped at the Axis Atrium by midday.
The hotel's neutral field held, but barely. The hovering fountain rippled now, water trembling instead of floating smoothly. The light-dark mosaic floor showed hairline cracks along the spiral center.
Gengar hovered near the ceiling, unusually quiet.
"…Gen," he murmured, eyeing a shadow that lingered longer than it should have.
Ceruledge stood near the window, armor reflecting the divided skyline, flames subdued but steady.
Cyrus sat at the central table, maps and holographic projections spread out before him. Patrol routes. Incident clusters. Sleep disturbance reports.
A pattern emerged.
"They're moving along the boundary," Cyrus said. "Not crossing it. Reinforcing it."
Veyra nodded. "As if they want the imbalance contained."
Hoopa twirled a ring thoughtfully."Or~ they don't want it to snap back too fast~."
Cyrus looked up. "You still haven't answered me."
Hoopa blinked. "Answered what~?"
"Did you help them?"
The room stilled.
Hoopa floated upright, expression unreadable for once.
"…Nooo~."
Not playful.
Not teasing.
Simple.
Cyrus studied him carefully. Ditto shifted into a small thumbs-down shape at his collarbone, then melted back into scarf form.
"But," Hoopa continued lightly, "I didn't stop them either~. Games need players."
Cyrus leaned back, rubbing his face. "You realize people got hurt."
Hoopa's voice softened, just a fraction."…Not like they would have."
That wasn't comfort.
It was a warning.
Veyra cleared her throat. "Whatever your… arrangement is, Darkrai isn't finished. We've detected energy spikes aligning with the lunar cycle. If he mega-evolves fully again"
"He will," Cyrus said. "Soon."
Silence.
Then Cyrus stood.
"Then we prepare," he said. "We track the cult. We reinforce Cresselia's recovery. And next time Darkrai comes out testing"
He met Hoopa's gaze.
"we don't let him control the board."
Hoopa smiled slowly.
"Ooooh~," he sang. "This is getting interesting."
Outside, clouds drifted across the sun.
And somewhere far beyond the city's edge, the night waited.
Not retreating.
Just watching.