Ch. 16 A Brewing Storm

Day 49

Glorfindel sat on the floor, his legs crossed while his strange blue eyes closed. His head lowered, deep in thought. If someone came in without knocking, they would’ve sworn that he was sleeping. At least until they changed into a Pokémon if they were an anthro or changed into an anthro if they were a Pokémon. Because that would be rude, and he disliked having his thoughts disrupted.

A knock came on the door, and he smiled; his eyes snapped open. He extended his right hand out and grabbed onto a staff, picking himself up. His five tails swayed behind him before he turned to the door. Whoever it was, they tried to be polite since they hadn’t come in after waiting for a minute or so for Glorfindel to get ready.

“You may enter,” Glorfindel said, and the door slid open, with A-Ninetales stepping in. “How may I help you, Daren?”

But A-Ninetales replied with, “Sorry for interrupting you.” He gave a slight bow even as Glorfindel smiled to himself. “How are you doing tonight?”

“It’s no worries. In fact, I believe that I was going to another dead end anyways.” Glorfindel grinned before bowing in return. “But you have not answered my question. So how may I help you?”

“For starters, I want to ask about Adrian,” A-Ninetales asked, and Glorfindel chuckled. “I’m serious. Faith and David kept on asking me about him, and I didn’t know anything. You and Saria know what is going on with him. They’re worried sick, and I don’t know how to assure them. May you please tell me what is going on?”

“Ah. The truth is that he asked us not to tell them. For his own reasons, I suspect,” Glorfindel explained while turning to the window, the evening sun going down in red sunset. “And both of us agreed not to let you know as well even though Adrian hasn’t specified you.”

“Huh?” A-Ninetales tilted his head. “Why not?”

“Because, my dear friend, we’re afraid that you’ll reveal the truth to them,” Glorfindel answered with a shrug. “It’s not that you can’t keep a secret,” he added when A-Ninetales’s ears flattened to the sides. “It’s that we know that you’ll find keeping this secret would be ridiculous.”

“When you put it like that, of course, I find it ridiculous,” A-Ninetales said while shaking his head.

“Yes,” Glorfindel said while rolling his eyes. “But I have a couple of things I like to show you.” He extended his free hand, and a couple of marble-sized green orbs appeared above it. They hovered to A-Ninetales bandana, fusing into the badge he wore even as he blinked, and Glorfindel turned solemn. “Those are the footage I found when I managed to get access to the archives. One has the footage that you requested, and the other I think Faith should see.”

“And what I guessed. Is it true?” A-Ninetales’s paws curled into the carpet floor.

Glorfindel nodded. “You guessed rightly.” A-Ninetales’s eyes turned to the sides. “And you can guess what the other is, correct?”

“Yes,” A-Ninetales nodded as he turned to the wall opposite of Glorfindel. “She’ll be so broken-hearted when she saw them.”

“Indeed, but you should show them to her as soon as possible,” Glorfindel said, turning around. “It’s better that she has a broken heart than cling onto false hope.”

“Right,” A-Ninetales said while nodding to him. “And for the last thing. That Faith may have met with an alternative version of myself. Have you found them in the archives?”

“Oh, quite easily,” Glorfindel answered as A-Ninetales blinked. A green orb formed over his free hand before it burst into several still images around the two. A-Ninetales spun around, spotting two anthro foxes on each of them, red and silver. But his focus remained on the red one, with his open red aloha shirt over his green shirt and blue jeans. That fox’s eyes shined sea blue even as he wore a belt that had a golden A on it. “I found him along with the other weeks ago.”

“Weeks ago?” A-Ninetales’s ears flattened back. “And you haven’t told me this when you found out?”

“The simple truth is that I don’t believe that it’s as big of an issue as you may believe,” Glorfindel replied even as A-Ninetales growled at him. He dispelled the images before he shrugged. “After all, there isn’t any hard rule against alternative selves crossing.”

“But you KNOW the power that I have!” A-Ninetales said, his fur bristling while glaring. “And how likely that he might have the same power! In fact, for all we know, he along with that vixen beside him must have stopped that attack that day!”

Glorfindel rubbed his chin. “While it’s true that the ones who saved The Second Capitol remained unknown, and they do fit the description, I am confident that they aren’t the ones who did it. After all, I know them.”

“You know them?” A-Ninetales tilted his head to the side.

“Of course, I know them,” Glorfindel said with a grin even as his tails swayed. “I was the one who gave them those A belts they wore. It was weeks before I came to this universe and, when I noticed his eyes were the same as yours, I checked both of them out. The fox’s name is the same as yours, Daren, but there wasn’t any power in them like you have, and I even checked their backs. There aren’t any A on their back like yours or A-Fox’s.”

A-Ninetales frowned, and he spoke in a calm, yet angry, tone. “I’m not yet convinced. Perhaps they or at least he didn’t get their powers yet by the time you met them, or they are another version than the ones you met.”

Glorfindel sighed as he shook his head, facing away. It’s always the same when it comes to convincing others of the truth or at least his perspective. However he may try to explain it, no matter how logical or solid his points are, they refuse to grasp it and instead bring up ‘alternative viewpoints.’ As though he didn’t think of it himself. Though they call him wise, they forget all of that when they choose to disagree.

“Believe me, my friend,” Glorfindel said as he turned back and extended his hand-paw, holding onto a green glowing orb, “that they have nothing to do with this. I even told them that they had no such power when I told them about you and A-Fox. But, of course, Zelda, that’s the vixen’s name, doubted me just like you did and showed me a temple in a desert. Apparently, she’s an archaeologist and discovered a temple where it’s said that there’s a great power stored within, only granting it to the destined one.”

“And?” A-Ninetales tilted his head.

“I confess that I find it to be curious,” Glorfindel said as the orb expanded, with it displaying a temple with an Unown language in front of it. “It mentioned something about ‘Logos,’ a different power from the one that you have, along with ‘fear.’ But its power has been taken long ago. And yet,” he said, almost absentminded, “it almost felt like the temple is trying to call it back.” He shook his head before dispelling the orb. “Again, you don’t have to worry. They’re just bit characters in the greater multiverse.”

A-Ninetales grunted. “That doesn’t explain how they came to this universe if they were the same ones you encountered.”

“I told them about multiverse travel and how to hop from one to another,” Glorfindel explained with a shrug. “And I did tell them the next five universes I’ll be heading to if they want to speak with me again.”

“I see,” A-Ninetales said as he shook his head. “Still, I am not convinced.”

“Oh well,” Glorfindel said with a sigh. “There’s no use arguing anymore if no one will be convinced.”

A-Ninetales nodded while biting his tongue, with him turning to the door. It slid itself open when he got close and stepped out, his ears still flattened back. It soon shut itself even as Glorfindel shrugged to himself.

“Some just can’t be convinced of the truth,” Glorfindel said to himself. “Still, that just makes me wonder more about this Logos. Does it have any connection with Pneuma?” His tails swayed more. “Might try to do more research in the future.”

Day 50

The few stars hung above the sky even as they faded against the rising sun, while Faith followed A-Ninetales. Even during this early morning, The Second Capitol was just as busy as its midday; she wondered if any anthros slept in this massive city. Even after almost two months of living in this city, she doubted that she would ever get used to it.

She shook her head before turning to A-Ninetales, tilting her head at him. Though two days of rest had passed, he looked as though he went through much worse than her. She wiggled her sore limbs even as A-Ninetales slowed his walk, his head low even as his ears flattened forward.

“What’s wrong, A-Tales?” Faith asked as she went to his side and touched his left foreleg.

“Sorry,” A-Ninetales said as they stopped, and he shook his head, his headturf swaying. “Weeks ago, I had Glorfindel to look into the archives, which meant going through a lot of paperwork. Even with the mayor’s approval, it took a while for us to go through hundreds of hours of footage.” He pressed against his badge, and two green orbs appeared in front of him. “But we founded them, and, well, you remember us talking about a rift due to an anthro tech, correct?”

“Yes,” Faith answered, though her stomach felt cold, and her ears flattened down.

“In those footage, we found—”

“—two Ninetales.”

“Huh?” A-Ninetales blinked, turning up as his ears turned up a bit.

“That rift,” Faith said before she sighed. “It happened in Resladerostadf, right?”

A-Ninetales’s ears twitched, with him poking one of the two orbs, and it expanded in size, with the green becoming translucent. Within was a still image of two Ninetales, both carrying massive packs with Explorers badges on them. Though one was a Kantoian Ninetales with golden-white fur and orange tails tips, the other was an Alolan Ninetales with pale blue fur and white tails and headturf tips along with lower legs. Faith’s eyes wetted, spotting baby blue eyes on the Kantoian Ninetales even as her companion has green eyes.

“Yeah, they are my parents,” Faith said as she reached out, only for her white paws to phase through the image. “I didn’t want to believe it, but it made too much sense. After all, why was Resladerostadf forbidden to go to, and why were my parents treated as though they died? That it was the ground zero for a rift that threatened the state of the universe made too much sense. Not to mention how you and Al mentioned how the anthros had connections with various Pokémon organizations.”

A-Ninetales sighed as he nodded. “I didn’t want to tell you what I suspected, but it seemed that I underestimated how much you guessed. From what the reports said about this incident, various Pokémon from the Pokémon Exploration Team Federation and some anthros tried to stop them. But they were stubborn and fought through, with the reports even suggesting that they knew a rift was there but went through with it. And they entered the rift willingly.”

The orb shrunk in front of Faith, tears forming more on her eyes as she extended out, with the sphere fusing back into A-Ninetales’s badge. “Is there any hope that they’re alive?”

“None,” A-Ninetales answered, and he flinched when Faith’s face slammed against his chest. Her front legs reached around his neck and pulled herself up, with her standing on her hind legs as she sobbed. His ears drooped more, with him turning to the other orb, and he grimaced. He patted her back as he said, “I’m sorry.”

“It’s not your fault,” Faith said as she clung to him tighter. “I can’t bring myself to blame anyone here, outside of the one who sent them there. Not even the anthros, though they should’ve done a better job of taking such a dangerous tech away.”

A-Ninetales nodded, the buildings towering in front of him. “What they couldn’t take, they dismantle, hoping that Pokémon won’t figure out its secrets. Yet, it backfired in this case.”

Faith nodded before she lowered herself, letting go of A-Ninetales and rubbing her tears off. “From the looks of it, they went out doing what they love: helping others even at risk to themselves.”

A-Ninetales nodded as he extended to the second green orb. “And—”

“—we should start training for the day.”

“I’m sorry?” A-Ninetales blinked.

“That’s what we planned for, right?” Faith said as she gave out a sad smile.

“That is the plan,” A-Ninetales said, with him going from the orb to Faith and back again. “But—”

“It’s no worries,” Faith said as she reached up and hugged him again. “I’ve long since accepted that they’re dead. I don’t need any more proof from you.”

“But—” A-Ninetales said only for Faith to smile and walk past him. “Wait!”

Her heart felt heavy but not as severe as before. In fact, with every step she took, the weight within her heart lessened even as her mind processed this information. The false hope that they might be alive, which clung against her will for the last five years, was dispelled from this horrible news. Her ears stood up straight, and she moved on.

But A-Ninetales remained seated, his eyes lowered while his ears drooped. Finally, he turned to the green orb hovering against him, and he sighed, taking it and putting it into his badge once more. He growled to himself, gritting his teeth before he shook his head. Soon, he followed Faith while saying to himself:

“I guess I’m nothing more than a coward.”

Day 72

David sat on a chair, his elbows resting on a table while his eyes closed tight. Even so, he grunted as he felt every bit of his body’s strength flow through, his claws hovering around a blue orb. A large, folded paper lay beneath the ball even as bright lights shined from the lone lamp above. He hummed, with him grunting as his claws splayed.

Soon, the orb glowed bright, enough that his vision was a fleshy red even as his eyes kept shut. His body glowed as well, turning red as the ball hovered up a bit, a red glow flowing into it. Next, the orb changed from blue to orange with a bit of black on the edges while the paper fused into the sphere. Six yellow and white points extended from the center to the very edge, expanding as the light above flickered. Soon, it turned off, leaving the orb and David as the only source of light before they stopped glowing, the orb landing onto the table as he sighed.

He flopped back, sweat forming all over his body as his arms became sore. The room lights turned on, and he turned to Al, who wore a metal mask with tinted glass to see through. Al reached up to the one dead lightbulb, only to flinched upon contact and retract his fingers. He shook his head before he took off the mask, placing it on the table next to the orb.

“That is awesome!” Al said as he sat across from David. “I didn’t think that you could use Illusion to compress light and a blank map into an orb like that.”

“Eh, this is nothing,” David said as he picked up the orb and looked it over. “This Luminous Orb is one of the more basic orbs to create. For example, the One-Shot Orb required precise timing, using a few of the most powerful Pokémon attacks hitting the orb at once. Imagine compressing all of that without getting hit in turn. Plus, it could cause some design flaws that can backfire on the user.”

“How so?” Al asked while tilting his head, putting his hand-paw into his pocket.

“If a Wonder Orb got mishandled so it got cracked and such, all of its power flowed out completely uncontrollable. For example,” David’s grip on the orb tightened, “if this gets cracked, it’ll explode in a powerful flash of light. While normally, it’ll generate a light where it’ll go around an area for miles as a wave before generating a map, having even secret areas on it. But, if it gets shattered, the light will be concentrated in one place, like a sun shining at you inches to your nose. I saw plenty of Pokémon whose eyes bled from such mishandling.”

“Oh jeez!” Al said while wincing. “Good thing you’re good enough to not cause such flaws, right?”

“Yeah, though I am willing to admit that there are others who are better than I am,” David said while stuffing the Luminous Orb into his massive hair mane, leaning back in his chair. “Still, I can’t help but grin when Pokémon who receive my orbs thanked me, with them explaining how my products saved their lives.”

Al nodded, pulling out a silver coin-like disk and spinning it on the table. “You sure are proud of your hard work.”

“I sure am,” David said before he leaned back down. The coin Al spun felt familiar to him before he recognized the circles vertically stacked on each other and the series of lines. His ears flicked a bit before Al grabbed the coin and pocketed it. “Huh. Isn’t that—”

“—the same coin I showed you on your first proper day? Yes,” Al said before shifting himself to the side.

“Why do you have such a coin?” David asked, and Al’s ears flattened back. “Does it mean anything to you?”

“Hmm,” Al averted his eyes away from David even as his expression darkened. He then sighed before leaning upwards. “Some years ago, when I lived in Eckzahn, I had a close friend. We were always together back then, from school to jobs. But then he was approached by a group member who followed the teachings of The Ladder’s architect. For centuries, it was pretty much a dead group until Arceus appeared in a rage. Those who have the architect’s notes and such took it as a sign that the end of the exile is nigh, and we should prepare for it through praying.

“I confess that I was unsure of the group, but my friend, well, has been having a hard time. You see, his father just died from cancer, and he broke from the inside. Not just from the loss of a family member, especially since his father brought in the money when he was alive, but from the government he so trusted. His father tried to get treatment for trouble breathing, only for the hospitals’ system placing him in a three-month waiting period just to get examined. And when he got confirmation that he got cancer, it would’ve taken him three more months to get the treatment. He died before the second month got there.”

Al rolled himself forward, placing his hand-paws against his face as he shivered. David’s ears flattened to the sides, with one eye half-closed. Didn’t Al say that his own dad died from cancer, David thought to himself. Either one heck of a coincidence, or Al wasn’t being honest about much of this tale.

Still, David reached over to Al and patted his shoulder. “There, there.”

“Thanks,” Al said, and he stood up straight as David hid his doubt. “In any case, he joined the group and, being a friend of his, I joined as well. At first, it went well with just weird rituals and odd teachings. And, as a personal confession, it was oddly fulfilling since they emphasized hard work and perseverance against the world to break the cycle. But then the leaders got replaced with those who were more aggressive and bolder. They protested against the politicians and cops of Eckzahn, calling them corrupt and seeing the cops as their personal attack force for their ideals. Even so, their anger lashed out at the everyday folks who had nothing to do with either of them, the worst being is that they were apathetic.

“After a year of such campaigns, the country’s leadership got fed up and attacked the temple where we pray at. Then, after a couple of weeks of a siege, trying to fight back the forces, they managed to get close and burn down the temple, shooting at anyone who ran out.”

Al’s ears flattened forward as he turned to the floor. “We, my friend and I, realized that we got way over our heads, but the faith’s leadership got paranoid. They forced us to live in the temple under the grounds that our ‘spiritual health’ won’t get compromised by fleshy desires, but really to keep an eye on us. They shot anyone who protested this, and the rest of us gave in. But when supplies were running short during the siege, we were force to draw straws to see who would sneak out to find them. I was the winner, and I snuck out. By the time I came back with only a couple of boxes, the fire had already started.”

Al clenched both of his hand-paws before pressing them against his face. He shivered, his ears flattened forward more, and he folded forward as far down as his knees. David got up and walked around the table before patting his shoulder; his eyes also turned down.

“Thank you,” Al said, not looking up. “All I remember afterward was praying that my friend survived this event. And when I saw that all who remained in the temple died, I fled over to here, to The Second Capitol, where I rebuild my shattered life.”

Al groaned through gritted teeth even as David squinted at him, wondering if he was telling the complete truth or not. Perhaps the roles were swapped around at certain parts, such as his friend was the reluctant one while he was the eager one. Maybe there wasn’t a friend at all. Or perhaps everything happened as he said. Perhaps that cult he joined was always evil, and it took him a while to realize it. At the very least, he regretted joining it.

And it might be best not to poke holes in his story just yet.

David sighed, closing his eyes before he lowered his head. “I’m sorry for your loss. And I must say, it’s almost enough to make you lose faith, eh?”

Al unclenched his hand-paws before patting David on the head. “For that group, yes. And especially for anthros, which proven to be too fallible to believe in. And yet,” David turned upwards along with Al, “I found another group, a far older group than that nutty architect group and one far more fulfilling. Even after I confessed my sins to them, they accepted me and were happy that I had found my way. I can only imagine what He will say in my judgment, though.”

David chuckled a bit. “Cannot live without faith even after witnessing that entire mess? I would think that would break any beliefs.”

“It did, for a while,” Al answered before he grinned, with David becoming confused. “But I got to some thinking. If there is an all-powerful God with His mysterious plans up above helping us all, then there’s an opposing force trying to get us to tear us apart from below. And even if there isn’t any God, it’s far better than believing in political leadership or such. After all, to have such a level of faith in imperfect anthros would blind us to flaws we would spot otherwise, eventually doing evil acts in the name of righteousness.”

David blinked a few times before rubbing his earrings. “That’s,” he paused for a couple of seconds, “surprisingly deep. I should have more conversations with you like this.”

Al laughed for a few seconds. “I doubt it was that deep. But thanks for the kind words. And what I do know for certain is that, if a friend is in trouble, I will help out even at a cost to my own.” Both of them grinned at each other. “I hope to talk to you more about this as well.”

Day 89

Kyle sat down in front of a cave, his legs crossed as blue electricity sparked out of his body. His eyes shut tight, his body somewhat floating in the air, and yet his expression was filled with anger and impatience. Black and blue energy flowed from his hand-paws, clenched tight, while his spiky tail wiggled with every sound.

Three months passed since he reencountered Faith and Adrian; three months since he battled A-Ninetales and Saria; three months since Fëanor answered his call. And outside of Fëanor offering a new power source for Maya’s device, nothing came from waiting. And it’s getting frustrating.

He opened his blood-red eyes, uncurling his legs before he stood up straight. He turned over to Maya, who slept near the edge of the cave, and he grunted. The clouds above blocked off the sky, though stars poked out through a few openings. He clenched his fists tighter before he turned to the cave, where Fëanor kept to himself for these months. The air since then had an unwelcoming feel to it, as though he didn’t want to be disturbed, but Kyle felt it thinning for hours.

Kyle pressed against his purple Ninetales mask on his face, and his eyes narrowed. Then, without thinking at all, he stepped into the cave, his paw-pads echoing in the stone ground. Regardless of the state he would be if he left, he would at least find some answers. He cast one last look at Maya, who muttered something in her sleep, maybe ‘brother,’ before stepping forward.

The darkness encompassed in, with him closing his eyes to see through the aura. Instead, he saw a powerful shroud of aura ahead through it, as though he approached a Legendary or a Mythical Pokémon rather than an anthro. He slowed his pace, the echoing fading before he heard some voices ahead. He opened his eyes, and he blinked, a pale green glow ahead around the corner.

“Do you think he will fall for such an obvious trap? After all, he isn’t a fool.”

“He isn’t a fool, yes. But he is a good-hearted one. They are no different.”

“Even so, it’s still a risky gambit.”

“Wars aren’t won without taking calculated risks.”

“And a part of calculated risks is having backups. And having backups to the backups. So make sure that the end goal is the same. After all, she may have it as well.”

“Even if she does, would that Lucario agree to it?”

“He’ll have no choice.”

Kyle twitched, and he frowned, with a few sparks emitting from his appendages before he suppressed it. He turned around the corner a bit, and he blinked a few times. There stood not one Fëanor but three of them, in a circle with the centermost one holding onto the staff with its glowing stones. None of them distinguished themselves from the other, with Kyle wondering if there was a real one there.

One of them spotted Kyle peeking in, and his lips curled into a wide grin. “Speak of the devil himself. Look who finally came.”

The other two turned, with both of them grinning as the leftmost one said, “Ah. Perfect timing. We thought that we’d need a more obvious sign.”

“You must be sick and tired of waiting,” The rightmost one said.

“So, why don’t you join in?” the centermost one, the one holding the staff, said before snapping his fingers. The other two faded into mist before the sound echoed throughout the cave, and he grinned even more broadly. “Hope that didn’t discomfort you.”

Kyle blinked some more before he stepped forward, approaching Fëanor before he kneeled low. Fëanor laughed before pressing against Kyle’s mask just a bit too hard, with him grunting from the force. Then, the pressure finally got released, and he stood up straight, their eyes directly at each other.

“The other two you saw were illusions,” Fëanor said as soon as Kyle opened his mouth, with his arms spread out so that they pointed at where the other two used to stand. “It’s how I ironed out any possible flaw in my plans and to show the beauty of being able to be as powerful as I am. But, after all, it’s best to get any second opinions, correct?”

“I cannot argue with that,” Kyle said, even though his mind offered a few objections in his mind.

“I’m happy that you see the brilliance in my actions,” Fëanor said before he laughed. “Still, I can sense your impatience.” Kyle averted his eyes even as Fëanor chuckled. “Don’t worry. Within two weeks, we’ll make our move to The Second Capitol. I even prepared Maya’s power source.” He extended his arm to Kyle, with a purple gem forming on top of his hand-paw. “With this, her little device will allow her to grow beyond even what she imagined.”

“But will she follow with your plan?” Kyle said, and Fëanor clenched the gem. “When you told her about what secrets may be up in the space elevator, her greed may cause her to sneak through the city to get to it rather than attack openly.”

“Oh, please,” Fëanor said with a sly grin. “Even if she plans on climbing The Ladder for her personal goals, this gem will eliminate her sense of subtlety. It’ll make her lust for domination overwhelming, so she will feel the need to be as big and powerful as possible.”

Kyle closed his eyes before he nodded. “Your sense of planning and power are peerless.”

“I’m glad that I fixed any doubts you have about myself,” Fëanor said, his voice dripping with pride. “My goals will be achieved, and anyone who tried to stop me, even successfully, will regret it.”

“Indeed,” Kyle said as he opened his eyes once more, spotting an endless lust in Fëanor’s eyes. He laughed some more before he raised his staff up high, with a purple orb forming on top of it. It glowed brightly before it lowered down to Kyle’s face, inches away. “More of your memories?”

“More than that,” Fëanor said. “I want you to do an important job.”

He poked the orb, and it glowed brighter before it turned black, blacker than night. It also shrunk down in size, more like a marble, before it lowered down Kyle’s left hand-paw. It soon fused against it, with the spike on the back of it turning black even as he blinked.

“That is a curse,” Fëanor said with a smug grin. “You’re not affected by it. Otherwise, you’ll fall into a coma-like sleep already. But once applied, unless I enacted the counter-curse within 120 hours, the victim would die. You cannot summon it by will alone. It needs to have the target near you before it reacted, then you can fire.”

“What is my target?” Kyle asked, though his stomach tightened.

“In the case that I cannot get A-Ninetales during the first attempt, you are to use it on the Vulpix you call Faith.”

Kyle’s eyes flickered for a moment, and his left hand-paw flinched. “And if I refuse?”

“You know the penalty for that.” Fëanor poked Kyle’s forehead. “Your life is mine, ever since we met, and I can still take it any time I desire.” He smirked when Kyle growled. “Is there a problem?”

“I will not hurt my dear, nor will I put her at risk,” Kyle answered, and Fëanor leaned back and laughed. “You can take my life if that is what you desire.”

“You are hilarious with your idea of love. You know that, right?” Fëanor patted Kyle on the head, who glared back. “Still, let me reassure you. If it comes to using this Faith, I will not inflict permanent harm when searching her. However,” Fëanor gripped on Kyle’s shoulder tight when he smiled, “if time is pressing, if I cannot get to A-Ninetales, and if you cannot get her after too many times, I will do whatever it takes; however it takes, to get and examine her. Is that clear?”

Kyle blinked before nodding. “Thank you.”