Axl had been to some rather unsettling places before. It was nothing new to him, especially during his early days in Red Alert. After all, Maverick Hunters were expected to arrive at locations they were assigned to go to, no matter what, or where it was.

Caves, abandoned hospitals, swamps in the dead of night, pretty much anywhere that a person could consider creepy.

But the place in particular Axl was investigating was rather unusual. Someplace that a Maverick Hunter has rarely strayed into.

A mansion.

Normally, one wouldn’t be phased at the idea of exploring a typical mansion, but you would be forgiven for not realizing this was not the case.

Because this mansion was haunted.

At least, that’s what others have said. Throughout the past several weeks, rumors regarding a mansion that was allegedly haunted spread throughout multiple people, a majority of them being humans and only a few of them being Reploids.

Axl was one of those Reploids that happened to get word of the rumors. While he was out for a walk during a relatively warm, summer night, he came across a group of human kids, some of them teenagers (not much older than he is) conversing about some sort of mansion.

Axl remembered what the kids had told him when he asked what they were talking about. What perplexed him (but also piqued his interest), however, was that they mentioned ghosts infested the mansion.

“I’m telling you, there are literal ghosts in that place!” One of the kids cried.

“Yeah! There’s all sorts of creepy stuff in there! We wanted to check it out, but we were all too scared, even me!” A little girl spoke, no older than the first kid.

“And worst of all, I’ve heard there was something else in one of the rooms in the mansion.” One of the teenagers said, the oldest of the other kids. “It’s some kind of sarcophagus, but it’s dark and hard to see, though it has glowing red eyes with a creepy smile.”

Admittedly, Axl was a little unsettled by the teenager’s description of that alleged sarcophagus… But he ultimately shrugged it off. After all, it was just a rumor, right…?

But the kids were insistent that everything about the mansion was true. “But it’s true!” One of the older kids spoke, this one female.

At that point, Axl decided to go and investigate the building himself to see for himself if the rumors really are true. The kids advised him not to go, but he reassured them that he would be fine. Plus, he didn’t believe in ghosts, so why should he be scared?

But little did the new-gen know, his visit to the mansion would prove to be the complete opposite, and he would experience the ride of his life that would rattle his mind…

Fast forward to now, and here Axl was, standing right outside the mansion, in the middle of a lifeless graveyard.

Axl shivered slightly, not just from the cold blow of the wind, but also from how creepy overall the mansion looked. The entire building was decrepit, and looked abandoned. It seemed to have not been inhabited by anyone for years.

The young gunslinger gulped nervously. But he had to be brave. He came here for a reason, after all. Taking a moment to psyche himself up and arm his pistols, he slowly approached the door leading into the mansion. With brief hesitation, Axl reached a hand out to one of the handles on the door, and pulled it open. He swallowed nervously again before walking inside past the door.

Once he was inside, he closed the door behind him, leaving Axl in the eerie atmosphere of the mansion.

To his surprise, the interior of the mansion bared no resemblance to its exterior. Instead of being decrepit and worn down, it was much more organized and clean, and almost resembled something that would be seen at a hotel, albeit much more dim and dark in terms of lighting and decorations. The halls were barely lit, only illuminated by torches lit with what appeared to be… purple flames?

Axl took a closer look at the torches, squinting to make sure he wasn’t seeing things. He found it odd that the flames were purple instead of the usual reddish-orange glow it emanates. He didn’t know why, but something about them seemed almost… spectral.

Axl decided to shrug it off, believing he was overthinking things. He knew ghosts weren’t real, and those kids’ imaginations were likely running wild. But at the same time, he couldn’t help but feel he was being watched.

Why was he feeling this way? No one else was in the mansion, so who or what would be stalking him?

Axl shook his head, trying to focus. He came to this mansion to search for so-called “ghosts”.

The gunslinger walked down the hallway of the mansion. Nothing in particular caught his eye, aside from some torn drapes and the carpet he was walking on currently, which was colored a deep purple decorated with dull, golden patterns.

Man, this place gives me the creeps… Axl thought as he walked down the hallway. He had to admit though, the inside of the mansion was well-decorated, though someone should really replace those old drapes and the various other objects and decorations that had been slowly rotting away for several years.

Axl spent the next couple of minutes exploring the halls, watching his surroundings carefully to make sure no one was there to startle him out of the blue, until he stopped at a door on the left side of the hallway.

The new-gen turned to face the door. It looked rustic, like any typical human household would have. But what caught his eye was the handle- it was attached to what looked like a decorative gargoyle’s head. The handle hung from its mouth, and was golden in color, much like the patterns on the carpet laid out along the hallway floor. Axl reached toward the handle, grabbing hold of it and pulling the door open.

“Well, here goes nothing…” Axl said to himself, swallowing nervously, before going in.

As soon as he entered the room, however, Axl jumped and made a startled yelp when the door closed shut on its own behind him. What was that about…? He didn’t even attempt to close it by himself.

Okay, THAT was weird… Axl thought, a bit freaked out. But surely THAT couldn’t have been caused by ghosts… At least, that’s what he told himself.

Taking a deep breath to calm himself down, Axl took a good look at the room presented before him. It seemed to be a medium-sized living room, with two couches in the middle and a table in between them. There was a fireplace against the wall not too far from the couches and table, and at the corner of the room was an old grandfather clock, which was still functioning, ticking softly with each second. The walls were decorated with colors very similar to the carpet in the hallway, being primarily deep purple mixed with golden patterns.

When Axl examined the walls, though, he found something odd- attached to the right wall was a stone shelf or perch, and on top of it sat a large bird, sleeping with its wings tucked in and its head snuggling into its feathered chest. The odd part was that it didn’t look any bird he had seen before. It was large, with dark blue feathers and red accents, and a hefty chest bulging with white plumage. The weirdest feature of the bird, however, was the crest on its head. It looked a lot like some kind of fedora. It was a Honchkrow.

The Honchkrow’s coloring looked rather organic that Axl couldn’t tell if it was really alive or just a statue that happened to be lifelike. Nonetheless, the new-gen decided to ignore it, for now.

Axl cautiously wandered and searched around the room, anticipating for something to come out and scare him. Even though he had his pistols armed at the moment, that did nothing to quell his lingering sense of dread. The reasonable part of him was telling him to leave, but he couldn’t. He was too focused on searching for ghosts.

As he looked in every nook and cranny within the living room, Axl noticed something in the corner of his eye. Turning around swiftly, he aimed his pistols, only to be caught off-guard by what he saw.

Two red orbs floated near the left wall, pure black dots in the centers. Underneath the orbs was a massive, toothy grin.

I don’t remember seeing THAT when I came in here… Axl thought, unnerved at the sight of the red orbs and grin. But he wanted to remain brave. Continuing to point his pistols at the strange objects, the young gunslinger put on a brave face. “I don’t know who or what you are, but I’ll be glad to take you out!”

Axl waited for a response, but nothing happened. It was just dead silence, aside from the ticking from the clock in the corner.

Tilting his head in confusion, Axl lowered his pistols and walked closer toward the mysterious orbs and grinning mouth. For some reason, a part of him felt like he was being baited into a trap… But he disregarded it.

Axl continued looking at the floating objects. He waited for a response like before, but again, nothing came out. It stayed like this for about a minute that Axl found himself wondering if the orbs and grin were just decorations and not some ghost in disguise.

“You.”

Axl jumped, a cry of fright escaping his lips when he was startled by a voice. It sounded like it was coming from behind him. Turning around, he expected to see someone behind him, but there was no one there. In his peripheral vision, however, he noticed something about the stone perch.

The Honchkrow that was resting atop it was missing.

Axl wondered where the Honchkrow had gone, until he heard the same voice from just before clear their throat. The young gunslinger looked down, and what he saw shocked him- it was the same Honchkrow, having flown down from its perch to Axl’s feet.

The new-gen’s suspicions were confirmed- the Honchkrow was very much alive, and not some statue. But was confused him was how he didn’t hear it flying down from its perch. Did it somehow remain quiet during flight?

“What are you? And… why are you staring at me like that?” Axl asked the creature.

“I am Honchkrow. I see you have found this mansion.” The Honchkrow rumbled in a deep voice. He didn’t sound hostile, but not too enthusiastic either. He was probably the monotone and somewhat gruff type.

“Yeah, I came here when some humans told me about this place.” Axl replied. “They said something about ghosts living here, but you’re the only other person in this mansion, and you’re not a ghost, right?”

The Honchkrow nodded solemnly. “True. I am not among those who are the living spirits of this world. But I would not say the same for my Master…”

Axl was perplexed. “Your Master? Who’s-“

Before Axl could finish, he heard a deep, unnerving chuckle coming from behind him. He turned around to see the same floating orbs and grin from before.

Axl was becoming nervous. There’s no way that chuckle came from-

Something suddenly burst from the darkness. The dim lighting of the room made it difficult for Axl to detect any movement, only making out the movement cutting through the air. Before he could react, something grabbed him and pinned his arms to his sides, causing him to drop his pistols.

“What the hell?! What’s going on?!” Axl cried, kicking his legs and squirming as fiercely as he could in the grip of whatever grabbed hold of him as he was lifted off the ground slightly.

Whatever held him carried him closer to the floating red orbs and grin. Axl suddenly remembered the words of the kids from earlier- glowing red eyes, and a wide, creepy smile. His heart began to pound, and found himself struggling to break free of the creature’s grip.

“Aargh! Let me go! W-Who are you?!”

“Why, I am the keeper of this mansion, child.”

A flash of light emanated from the being’s body, causing Axl to shut his eyes from the sudden shift from darkness to light. Once the flash faded, the entire room was bathed in a soft, eerie light. It was then Axl could finally see his captor.

The creature’s body was glimmering gold, and their structure resembled that of a sarcophagus.

Axl’s heart sank. He recalled the human teenager’s words about a sarcophagus resting within the mansion. It was no doubt a Cofagrigus.

“Y-You’re the… you’re the sarcophagus those humans were talking about!” Axl said in disbelief, trembling in fear.

Cofagrigus chuckled. “Fwohoho. That is correct, child. And YOU are the first person to be brave enough to step foot into this mansion. What might your name be?”

“I-It’s Axl… I… I came here to find out if there were really any ghosts here! And, how are you alive?! You’re just a sarcophagus!”

Cofagrigus laughed softly. “You see, young one, I am a ghost. And we ghost Pokémon are capable of many things.”

Axl’s irises shrank and his blood ran cold when he heard Cofagrigus say “ghost”. So there really WERE ghosts living in this mansion…!

“B-But how?! Ghosts aren’t real! They’re just horror story stuff!” Axl was in denial. He didn’t want to believe it, but deep down, he knew it was all too real. This sarcophagus was a phantom, and he had fallen into his trap.

Cofagrigus snickered at Axl’s response. “Oh, Axl… It is true that ghosts are in many terrifying tales. But they are very real. You just didn’t know we exist as we live in secluded places, where the eyes of humanity never reach us…”

“Please, l-let me go!” Axl shouted, starting to struggle in Cofagrigus’ grip again.

“And why would I do that? We have only just met. It would be rude for you to leave now. I will make you scream like never before.”

“S-Scream?! W-What’re you talking about?!”

“It will be the scariest form of torment for such a helpless victim like you, Axl.”

A pop sounded throughout the room, followed by loud, slow creaking. Axl’s eyes widened with fear as Cofagrigus’ shell opened. Strangely, no internal organs or fluids filled him- only a mass of black and purple spectral mist pulsates within. Without any warning, Cofagrigus began to pull Axl into his body.

Axl screamed with fright. He tried grabbing onto the rim of Cofagrigus’ shell to pull himself out and prevent himself from being dragged in, but the phantom was just too strong.

With a rough, final tug, Cofagrigus swiftly pulled Axl into his body before the latter could scream again, and his shell closed silently, sealing the young gunslinger in complete darkness.

As soon as Axl was sealed within Cofagrigus, he began panicking, and the gems on his forehead and chest began glowing to illuminate the inside of Cofagrigus a little. His first action was to bang his fists fiercely against the inside of the opening of the phantom Pokémon’s shell.

“L-LET ME OUT! YOU CAN’T LEAVE ME IN HERE!” Axl yelled, banging his fists as hard as he could against the insides of the coffin.

Although it was a bit muffled, Axl could hear Cofagrigus laughing softly from outside. “It seems you are quite the fighter. But I know how to remedy that…”

As Axl kept banging his fists against the coffin’s interior, he felt his arms being lifted over his head by the spectral mist. To his horror, bandages resembling those used by mummies in Ancient Egypt materialized from the mist, and they wrapped around his arms and ankles to prevent him from struggling.

The new-gen was greatly disheartened, and his dread grew even more. He was left virtually defenseless, especially since he no longer had his pistols with him as he dropped them earlier.

“There. Now you will have no room to squirm.” Cofagrigus rumbled in satisfaction.

“PLEASE! LET ME OUT! I DON’T WANNA BE TRAPPED IN HERE!” Axl shouted in fear, trying to kick his knees against the inside of the coffin despite his legs being bound along with his arms.

“And why would I want to do that?” Cofagrigus bellowed. “The fun is only just beginning…!”

After Cofagrigus spoke those words, Axl anticipated great pain, and closed his eyes tightly, realizing his chances of escaping were slim. Whimpering, he could only brace for what his captor would do to him soon…

But what he felt a few moments later wasn’t pain. Instead, it felt like something skittering over his abdomen. Not enough to hurt, but enough to be felt. The sensation was almost… tingly.

Axl froze and tensed up from the sensation, and felt an ominous bubble of laughter rising up his throat. He recognized the sensation all too well. Trembling, he looked down, and saw what was causing the sensation.

Ten inky, spectral, black and purple fingertips were skittering over Axl’s belly. Their semi-pointy tips danced lightly over the synthetic skin, tickling.

Tickling. It dawned on Axl what Cofagrigus was trying to do to him. No, this couldn’t be happening…!

Axl stifled a giggle by biting down on his tongue. He couldn’t give what his captor wanted, and he feared letting himself break would only result in him suffering more.

“S-Stop…!” Axl pleaded through his teeth, his voice trembling slightly with giggles. Cofagrigus heard this, knowing full well that the young gunslinger was ticklish by now, but he wasn’t cracking… yet.

“It seems you are too shy to laugh… But I can help with that.” Cofagrigus had no intention on giving up.

As Axl continued to fight against the spectral claws dancing over his tummy, two more spectral claws emerged from the mist, and they targeted his sides. The new-gen shivered from the added sensation of his sides being tickled coupled with his stomach. To add insult to injury, one of the claws tickling his belly even moved to teasing his navel by circling around it, occasionally wiggling a finger over and inside the sensitive hollow.

A ticklish squeak elicited from Axl’s throat as he tensed up briefly from his navel being tickled. His navel happened to be one of his weak spots, and having it teased was unbearable. Worse, he could feel his face beginning to redden with embarrassment, and his lips gradually formed into a ticklish grin.

But Axl still tried to keep himself together and not let himself crack. He tried not to think about the claws tickling his belly, sides and navel, but no matter what he did, they always seemed to tug at his mind, slowly bringing him closer to cracking.

Not satisfied with simply tickling Axl’s belly, sides and navel, Cofagrigus decided to change tactics. The spectral claws scribbling over his sides began squeezing the soft muscles within them. The sensation caused Axl to jolt and quiver, and his resistance was continuing to ebb away with each passing moment.

Axl wasn’t sure how much longer he could keep himself together. The tickling was becoming unbearable, and a few giggles rumbled from his quivering chest. He had to get out, he HAD to, or else the Cofagrigus might go all-in on him.

Axl jolted again when he felt something along his back. Another spectral hand was tickling the small of his back with a single claw. This wouldn’t be as bad as the other parts of him being tickled, if not for the fact the small of his back was another one of his weak spots.

“Laugh for me, Axl… Let me hear your helpless, adorable chortling…” Cofagrigus teased, knowing the Reploid trapped inside of him would soon crack…

Cofagrigus’ teasing rang in his ears. At this point, Axl’s blush had grown much deeper, and more giggles rumbled from his between his clenched teeth. The tickling is getting too much for him, as indicated by a couple of tears of hilarity falling down his cheeks.

Eventually, the last thread of his composure was dangerously close to being plucked apart. As much as Axl tried desperately to fight it, the ticklish signals being sent to his brain was quickly becoming overwhelming.

Within just a few seconds later, the last thread of his composure snapped, and fresh peals of laughter poured out of the new-gen’s mouth.

“Hehehehehahahahahaha!” Axl chortled, the dam of his resistance having finally broken. “Stahahap! Lehe-Let me out!”

“I told you I would make you scream.” Cofagrigus replied, laughing softly and darkly. “And I’m sure you will be left shrieking once I am done with you.”

Forcing out more laughter and chortles as Cofagrigus’ fingers toyed with him, Axl shook his head and squirmed. As unlikely as it was, a part of him was hoping that his captor was just messing with him. Surely he didn’t plan on tickling him and keeping him trapped within him forever?

“Gehehehehahahaha!” Axl cried as his sides were kneaded by Cofagrigus. “Stahap! I-I’m too ticklish!”

“Aww, are you not feeling the slightest bit frightened? Think about it. You are trapped within me, and I can keep you and tickle you for the whole night if I want.”

The reality of the situation began to sink in on Axl as the spectral claws tickled his tummy, sides, navel and back. Nobody but the kids knew he was in the mansion, and they were too terrified to enter the building themselves. It was becoming apparent that Cofagrigus was not just playing around with him. He could only hope someone else would come into the mansion and hear his cries and rescue him.

“Hehehehelp! Somebody! Hahahahahaha!” Axl yelled, hoping someone, anyone, would hear him.

Still massaging his fingers into the new-gen’s belly, sides, navel and back, Cofagrigus chuckled. “Do you truly think anyone will hear you from inside this room, let alone inside ME? Think again…”

Another pair of spectral claws emerged from the mist below Axl, targeting his inner thighs and scribbling over the sensitive flesh.

Laughter gushed from his mouth. Each scribble and prod across his inner thighs sent ticklish spasms through Axl’s frame. The claws made sure to spread his thighs apart so they had easy access to the sensitive inner spots. The tickles rendered Axl breathless.

“Ahahahahaha! Hahaha-Stahap! I can’t tahahahahake it anymohohohohore!”

The young gunslinger was not used to being tickled this excessively, and he was laughing uncontrollably. It only made him feel more vulnerable. While it wasn’t painful, which gave Axl a small sense of comfort, it still filled his mind with panic. He desperately wanted it to stop. The ticklish sensation was jarring, intense, unbearable and overwhelming, but that was nothing compared to how embarrassing it was for him to be tickled senseless.

Cofagrigus decided to change tactics again after about half an hour had passed. Adjusting the hands currently tickling Axl’s twitching stomach, he squeezed at it. His thumbs wiggled at the front and around his navel, while the rest of his fingers dipped into the sides of his tummy. This forced Axl into a flurry of squealing and yawping.

“Wahahahahehehehehaha! Nahaha-Nohohohoho!” He cried, trying to twist his body away from the claws to avoid them.

It was ultimately a vain effort. There was simply not much space for Axl to move, and the mist filled almost the entire interior of Cofagrigus, anyway.

“Bwahahahaha! Ahahahaw-stop! Plehehease! I-It’s too muhuhuhuch!”

To Axl’s surprise, the tickling actually stopped. Cofagrigus withdrew his hands from him, and the former used this opportunity to take in several deep breaths. The tickling left his nerves tingling and quivering.

“W… What was that about…?!” Axl gasped.

“Do not think we’re finished yet.”

“W-Wha-?!”

Cofagrigus raised a spectral claw and teasingly scratched under Axl’s chin, making him giggle faintly. “I am merely letting you catch your breath. You will need plenty of it if I’m going to get more laughter out of you. And I intend on getting much, much more of it before we are done, or until the night ends…”

Those words made Axl freeze up. Ghostly hands drifted in front of him, threatening him with wiggling fingers, a terrified look crossing his face. He thought it was over, but it was nothing more than a false hope. Squirming, he tried to crane backwards to put distance between himself and the claws.

“N-No, please! Y-You can’t do this!”

“Tell me, Axl… Are you ticklish… here?”

“Wait, no! Not thehehe-HAHAHAHAHAHAHA! EEEHEEE AHAHAHAHAHA!”

Cofagrigus’ claws phased through Axl’s chest plate thanks to their ethereal nature, and he felt wiggling fingers poking into his ribs.

Axl threw his head back, his laughter a much higher volume than it was before and rising up several octaves. “BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA! OHOHOHO NOHOHO PLEHEHEHEASE!”

Being tickled on his ribs proved to be even worse than his belly, sides, navel, inner thighs or back. The nerves in his thorax were extremely sensitive, possibly even more than what could be considered normal for a Reploid or human. Axl didn’t know why, but it was something about him he always had ever since he was built. Each stroke from Cofagrigus’ devious fingers on his ribs forced guffaws and cackles from his vocal cords. The more he tickled, the more hysterical his laughter became. It wasn’t long until his hysterical laughter turned into belly laughs.

Poking into the hypersensitive artificial bones, the claws carefully wormed around. To Axl’s dismay, the worst part was just how gentle Cofagrigus was. It didn’t hurt a single bit. He would’ve preferred anything, even a little pain, to disrupt the incessant tickling. But Axl didn’t have that kind of comfort. Instead, he suffered a light but constant barrage of tickles. His ribs were so ticklish that even a light touch would send him into a fit of cackling and convulsing.

“BAHAHAHAHAHEHEHEHEHAHAHA!” Axl squawked, the assault from the tickling forcing his body to jerk and thrash.

“Tickle, tickle, tickle~” Cofagrigus cooed. “Isn’t it terrifying? Losing control of your body, that is.”

Cofagrigus pressed the pads of his fingertips against the poor Reploid’s ribs, dragging them around in a slow circle. After circling around, he repeated the process, but this time he delivered quick scratches randomly. The random movement of Cofagrigus’ claws scratching over his ribs spooked Axl each time, and only further increased his anxiety, spitting out peals of cackling which were followed by full-on howling.

Axl cried out for help as tears welled up in his eyes, falling down his flushed cheeks. It was difficult to get any words out due to how hard he was laughing. But no matter how loud he cried, nobody came. Given he was the only person in the mansion aside from the Cofagrigus and the Honchkrow, and no one else dared to go inside, Axl knew no one would be showing up help free him. The very thought alone filled him with dread, worsening his already-growing anxiety.

“Tickling you with my own hands is already entertaining enough, but I’m curious about how you can stand against feathers…” Cofagrigus rumbled. He retracted his spectral hands away from the Reploid trapped within him, and turned his attention to the Honchkrow, who had been watching the whole thing. “My dear, would you give me some of your feathers?”

“Ungh… Wha-What…?” Axl coughed, disoriented. What was that about feathers…?

“Yes, Master.” Honchkrow replied, again in a monotone voice. Oddly, his voice almost sounded like he was possessed. Without saying anything further, he plucked a few feathers from one of his own wings.

“Thank you, my dear.” Cofagrigus said, opening his body just a couple of inches to reach a ghostly hand out toward Honchkrow, who was holding the feathers in his beak, taking the plumage from him. As this was happening, Axl could see a slit of light through the darkness he was trapped in. Was Cofagrigus letting him go…?

Unfortunately, that was proven not to be the case, because once Cofagrigus pulled his hand holding the feathers back into his body, he closed his shell again. Axl watched with dismay as the slit of light vanished. No, he could’ve used this opportunity to escape, but his limbs were still bound!

“Oh, Axl…” Cofagrigus began, his voice echoing in the new-gen’s ears. “Heads up~”

A squeak escaped Axl’s lips. He felt something flicking over his belly. Then twice. Alarmed, he looked down, and saw that Cofagrigus was flicking the tip of a feather up and down his stomach. More giggles gurgled in his throat when the plumage lashed over his belly a few more times. It was very light tickling, but his nerves were still tingling from the earlier tickling, not to mention the fact that his anxiety heightened his sensitivity. His nerves stood on end in spite of the feather, quivering. Axl only felt more helpless than he did before.

Cofagrigus slowly dragged the feather all over and around his torso, over his stomach, navel, and sides. Even the gentle kiss of the feather was enough to draw a few helpless giggles from the young gunslinger. He tried holding his breath, only to crack under the treatment of the feather.

“Nehehehehahahahaha! Stahahap, plehehease! Stahahahahahap!” Axl whined, a few more tears of hilarity falling down his cheeks, which have begun reddening with embarrassment again.

“You’re so incredibly ticklish, Axl… Just the flicking of a mere feather is all it takes for you to beg. But how will you deal with two MORE of them?”

As soon as Cofagrigus said those words, he pulled the feather away from Axl, and he gasped for breath. But that did nothing to quell the dread he felt from hearing what the sarcophagus Pokémon said to him. “N-No, no more feathers! Please!” He begged.

What Cofagrigus did next, however, completely blindsided him.

“But your armor needs to come off first. Well, some of it, at least.” As Cofagrigus finished his sentence, Axl felt something tugging at his chest plate, startling him and filling him with dread as the realization dawned on him.

Cofagrigus was prying off his chest plate.

Crying out in fear, Axl struggled against the ghost’s grasp, desperately trying to force him to let go of his chest plate that protected his thorax. But that proved to be in vain, because his chest plate was popped off a few moments later.

Once the new-gen’s chest plate was pried off, Cofagrigus opened his shell, and tossed the armor pieces aside onto the floor out of Axl’s reach. When that was done, his chest plate was shortly followed by his shoulder armor, which were similarly tossed aside onto the floor. Cofagrigus then closed again, once again sealing Axl in total darkness inside him.

Axl shivered when he felt the cold air of Cofagrigus’ interior wash over his exposed chest and shoulders. They were still covered by his bodysuit, but he knew it would do nothing for what Cofagrigus was going to do him next…

Axl’s eyes widened when he saw three spectral claws each holding feathers of their own, waving them tauntingly at him. Grinning widely, Cofagrigus went straight to the young gunslinger’s ribcage and stomach.

“AAIIIIIEEEEEEHEHEHAHAHAEEEE!!!”

With his thorax being so hypersensitive, Axl felt the tickling much more intensely there. His belly bounced with each cackle that gushed from him as the third spectral claw whisked a feather around his navel. Cofagrigus whisked two feathers in circles over Axl’s ribs, stopping for just a few seconds occasionally to wiggle them against the artificial bones. With his mind going into overdrive once more, the new-gen found the strength to squirm and thrash once more.

“NAHAHAHAHAHAHA-OHOHOHO STAHAHAHAP! I-IT TIHIHIHIHICKLES SO MUHUHUHUHUCH!”

“Fwohohoho… Have you not realized it yet, Axl? There is not a single thing you can do.” Cofagrigus said, his teeth flashing in a terrifying grin, even though Axl couldn’t see it. “You are all mine until I am finished with you, and you will stay trapped within me until I say so.”

“NOHOHOHOHO MOHOHOHOHORE! SOMEBODY! PLEHEHEHEASE! HEHEHEHELP MEHEHEHE!” Axl sobbed, tears falling from his eyes, which hurt slightly as he had a hard time closing them due to his crazed laughter. The feathers showed no signs of stopping on his ribs and belly, which made it much more agonizing for the poor Reploid.

The feather that had been tickling his belly previously found its way to Axl’s armpits, switching back and forth between both of them. While they were nowhere NEAR as sensitive as his belly or ribs, they still tickled to make him holler uncontrollably thanks to his sensitized nerves.

As for the other two feathers on his ribs, Cofagrigus occasionally used the quill end on one of them like he would a pen to scribble over Axl’s ribcage, poking them into each rib bone as the other feather continued swirling and dancing over his thorax. Such merciless scratching against his ribcage sent such a shock through his body that he jerked and thrashed violently.

“GAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!! OHAHAHAHAHAHA STAHAP! STAHAHAHAHAHAP!”

Cofagrigus made a booming, dark cackle as he listened to Axl’s hollering and felt him thrash and buck. He wasn’t going to let a single moment of this go to waste- he trapped the Reploid inside him for a reason. Another pair of spectral hands formed from the ghostly mist within him, jutting out to attack his belly, scratching through his bodysuit.

They tickled softly, at first. But they soon began to move toward Axl’s flanks, phasing through his pelvic armor. Cofagrigus took his hips between his thumbs and fingers to knead the muscles there. Feeling the rhythmic squeezing against such delicate spots on his body forced squeals and squawks from Axl.

“GYAHAHAHAHAHA! NOHOHO-STAHAHAP TIHIHIHICKLING MEHEHEHE!”

Cofagrigus’ thumb dimpled against the soft flesh between the muscles of the new-gen’s hips and stomach, eliciting wheezes of laughter by slightly jiggling the skin there. He even turned his fingers to the back of his flanks to squeeze them as well.

Yet, Cofagrigus was clever enough not to stay in one area for too long. Keeping Axl’s nerves standing on end in anticipation, unable to tell when the ghost’s claws would attack them again, the claws kneading his hips retracted back, though the feathers tormenting his ribcage remained. Cofagrigus grinned sadistically as he subjected Axl’s belly to a barrage of pokes.

“AHAHAHAHEHEHEHEHEHE!!!” Axl wailed, his mind wracked with the combined sensation of his ribs being teased and his belly being poked repeatedly. Even though he had his bodysuit on, the thin, skin-tight fabric of the spandex material barely provided any protection against the claws for the young gunslinger.

Axl’s thorax never received a moment of mercy- not for a single second. The feathers shouldn’t have tickled as much, but his nerves were standing on end, anxious and hypersensitive. One feather licked over his ribs with its soft tip, while the other scribbled over them with its quill end. It caused him to quake and quiver with laughter. Having his hips, stomach, armpits stimulated kept him on edge, but the tickling on his thorax was what truly wrecked him, the severe and vicious torture making the Reploid’s frame react much more violently than anything he had felt before. Having a spot that was usually guarded felt like an arguably worse violation. And on top of it all, it made him laugh, howl, guffaw, and squawk. It made him shriek from laughing so hard to the point his voice was becoming hoarse. He laughed and laughed until his chest and stomach began to ache. Axl’s heart was pounding, adrenaline rushing through his body from the constant tickling, and his red, blushing cheeks were wet with a near-constant stream of tears.

After about a full hour of constant tickle torture, Cofagrigus decided to to send Axl into even deeper torment. Just when the latter thought he was at his limit, the ghost dropped the feathers, letting them float toward the ground, and plunged his fingers into the young gunslinger’s stomach, navel, sides, inner thighs, armpits, the small of his back, and, worst of all, his thorax, all at once.

“WAHAHAHAHAHAAIIIIIEEEEEEE!!!”

Axl’s body seized up so jarringly that tears actually flung from his eyes. As they fell to the bottom of Cofagrigus, the new-gen broke into complete hysterics, and laughed the hardest he ever had ever since he was first sealed inside the coffin, and quite possibly the hardest he had in his entire life. In fact, he was laughing so hard that he was no longer able to form coherent words. Any words that did come out of his mouth only came out as incoherent babbles. Despite his arms and legs being bound by the bandages, he fought with what energy he had left to break free and escape from his confines. Pure instinct forced him to do so, as he knew it was futile. Tears flowed endlessly down his deep red cheeks, and there was no way to escape the inky, cruel fingers dancing all over his body.

The young gunslinger’s laughter occasionally lapsed into silence, before starting up again as belly laughs. It was difficult for him to breathe as he could barely gasp for breath in between laughs that Axl’s lungs began to burn, desperate for air so his body would continue functioning, despite a part of him wanting to faint just so he wouldn’t have to feel the claws ravaging his weak spots anymore.

In fact, Axl was becoming so exhausted from the endless tickling that after several more minutes, he was actually beginning to feel lightheaded. He realized he was going to pass out. Part of him felt a small sense of relief that he wouldn’t have to suffer the tickle torture anymore, but he also felt frightened at that thought. He believed that if he passed out, he would only wake up inside Cofagrigus again, and be subjected to this humiliation once more…

But deep down, Axl knew it was pointless to fight against losing consciousness, despite the possibility of him waking up later still trapped within Cofagrigus. But there was still another possibility he would be let go. With that thought in mind, Axl’s laughter gradually lapsed into nothing but strained wheezing, and warnings began to fill his vision, warning him of sensory overload.

Axl’s vision slowly began to fade into darkness as his systems were beginning to shut down. All he could do, was pray that he would be out of this hellhole when he woke up…

Just before the new-gen passed out, however, Cofagrigus spoke.

“Ohoho, do you think I’m going to let you pass out? I told you, I would be finished with you when I say so, and I think now is the time.”

The door of Cofagrigus’ shell flew open, letting Axl collapse and faceplant onto the wooden floor. He groaned, disoriented, exhausted, and confused, drenched in sweat from his constant struggling and thrashing. He was on the verge of losing consciousness that he didn’t realize he was no longer sealed within Cofagrigus. As Axl tried to move, he realized the bandages wrapped around his arms and ankles had loosened, and he was able to move them freely again. Weakly using his arms to lift himself up, Axl looked around, and saw he was back in the living room.

He’s… letting me go…? Axl thought, his confusion quickly turning into relief at the realization he was finally free.

When Cofagrigus chuckled darkly, however, Axl slowly turned around and looked up to face the ghost, his eyes widening slightly with terror.

“Let this be a lesson to you, Axl. Don’t enter haunted mansions if you are not prepared to be frightened.” Cofagrigus opened his shell again, albeit only slightly, and several ghostly arms snaked out from within and floated before the new-gen, pointing their teasing, wiggling fingers directly at him. “Or you might end up getting tickled to insanity…”

The mere sight of those wiggling fingers was enough to spook Axl that he instantly jumped to his feet, his panicking causing a surge of adrenaline to rush through his artificial veins. Hastily grabbing his chest plate and shoulder armor which had been discarded earlier, he put on the armor pieces back on their respective places as quickly as he could, and turned and ran outside of the room.

In the halls of the mansion, Axl didn’t know where he was running, nor did he care. He raced down the hallway as fast as he could, knocking over objects as he blindly charged through them. As he ran, he could see a door at the end of the hallway. The entrance door! He could finally get out of this place!

Once he reached the entrance door, Axl pushed the doors wide open with all of his strength, and ran back out into the graveyard.

Meanwhile, in the graveyard, two ghost Pokémon, a Dreepy and a Gastly, were conversing near a small tombstone.

“Isn’t it weird how that huge mansion is right inside this graveyard?” The Dreepy asked the Gastly. “I mean, no one’s been living in it for years.”

“Yeah, it’s as if people expect others to go in while mourning their loved ones here.” The Gastly replied. “Seems pointless if you ask me.”

Before the two of them could say anything further, however, they were completely caught off-guard when some odd robot with spiky hair, an x-shaped scar above his nose and indigo armor with red accents ran past them. “NO MORE! NO MORE!” He screeched, his voice trembling with fright as he passed by the bewildered ghost Pokémon.

The Gastly and Dreepy stared in disbelief as the robot continued running out of the graveyard. “Hey, you don’t think that was the guy who was laughing from inside the mansion, do you…?” The Dreepy asked, a bit unsettled.

Gastly thought about it for a moment, but decided to dismiss it. “Eh, I doubt it. Others DID say the mansion is haunted, after all…”

Axl didn’t seem to notice the two Pokémon, nor does he care- all he cared about was to get away from this place, very, VERY far from it, in case the Cofagrigus would track him down and capture him to subject him to the same tickle torture he endured before.

Axl’s legs carried him as far as they could. He didn’t even care when he ran into a couple of spider webs and tree branches. Once he felt he was far away enough, Axl stopped at a grassy spot, and he felt his exhaustion finally catching up with him. Moaning with delirium and exhaustion, he slumped on his back onto the grass, his limbs feeling like jelly. His nerves were still tingling from being overstimulated from the tickle torture that the young gunslinger could feel the grass tickling the small of his back, and he couldn’t help but giggle faintly.

Letting his muscles relax after all he had been through that night, Axl melted into a twitching, quivering mess. He was too tired to go back to Hunter Base on his own, and even though he still had the option to teleport back to headquarters instantly, he didn’t want anyone, let alone X or Zero, to see him in his current condition. He decided that his best option would be to rest until daytime comes, and hopefully most, if not all of his energy would be recovered by the time he woke up. He kept that thought in mind as Axl gradually drifted off to sleep…

But even in his dreams, Axl would not be spared of the torment he had experienced earlier. His dreams were filled with countless spectral hands tickling him mercilessly and in various different ways (the WORST part was when the claws counted the new-gen’s ribs before digging into all of them at once). The Reploid whimpered fearfully in his sleep, wishing anything for these nightmares to stop. The only thing that kept him asleep was the fact that at least he wouldn’t have to suffer from such nightmares anymore when he would wake up in the morning, if only temporarily…