A girl with short black hair dropped from the trees, landing lightly on the ground below. She didn't look surprised to be called out. "You don't have to glare at me like that. I just want to talk. Alone."

"Who are you?" 

I know this girl. I can't recall how or where—partly due to her avatar wearing the Lorekeeper girl's outfit from the Delta Episode—but I'm certain we've met before.

The girl's red eyes glowed in the darkness. "You'll have to find that out yourself. For now, just call me Zinnia."

.....At least put some effort into a fake name....Whatever, it's not important. Being around her didn't make me uncomfortable, so she probably wasn't an enemy.

"Fine, I'll call you Zinnia." I leaned back against a tree, crossing my arms. "But you haven't really answered my question."

"It's not like you to beat around the bush, Zero." Zinnia gave me a teasing smile. "What you really want to know is whose side I'm on. The answer is: neither."

 Without warning she tossed something green in my direction, which I caught. "I just came to chat and give you a gift. I think you'll like it."

My eyes widened as I examined the object in my hand. It was a strange looking stone that had a faint green glow.

This is....but how?!

"Looks like we're out of time." Zinnia crossed her arms, glancing toward the rest house. "You'd better hurry and check on that girl of yours if you don't want her dying in a ditch somewhere. She isn't like us after all."

Um, why does Zinnia seem angry all of a sudden?

While I was busy wondering about her change in mood, she left one last parting remark. "I hope your skills haven't gotten rusty Zero, 'cause you're gonna need them to survive what's coming."

With that Zinnia vanished in a burst of light, leaving me alone with nothing but Victini and a glowing rock.

-------------------------------------------------------------

So that girl can teleport......She must be another skill user.

If I base it off this stone, she probably came from Hoenn. But why would she come all the way here just to see me? Were we that close before?

Another possibility pops into my brain, but I shake my head to get rid of the idea. It's too ridiculous to be true. I hope.

Although they do act similar.....

No. Bad Zero. No dwelling on the past. Just focus on surviving this death game.

Pocketing the stone, I walked through the door of the rest house while lost in thought—

"Zero, duck!"

—And was nearly killed by a stray rock.

The room was a war zone. Everything inside had been reduced to rubble as Crystal's team defended her from a pack of Herdier. Glancing around, I spotted the same idiots from the Dreamyard huddled in a corner as they barked orders. Some people just never learn.

But there's a bigger issue: This is supposed to be a safe zone full of indestructible objects. How are random thugs causing damage? 

I need to investigate this, but unfortunately now's not the time. "Victini, Drillbur, {Rock Smash}!"

My pokemon knocked away the nearest Herdier, giving Crystal an opening. Which she quickly took advantage of. "Tranquill, {Air Cutter}!"

Sensing her plan, I called out a move of my own. "Victini, {Searing Strike}!"

Tranquill's blades of wind merged with Victini's fire, spreading throughout the room and dealing huge damage to all the Herdier. After the assault only a sliver of red was left on their HP bars, so one more strike would kill them.

I debated whether I should deal the final blow or grill the thugs for information, but a new person spoke up before I could decide. "How pathetic."

The coldness in that voice caused everyone to turn toward the source.

Not good.

A ninja had appeared next to the stairs. He had long white hair and red eyes—which strangely reminded me of Zinnia—but above all else he radiated power. This is someone I can't afford to take lightly.

The five thugs immediately turned pale and started shaking. "Boss, we—"

"Shut up, vermin." The ninja looked at them like a pile of garbage. "You had one job: capture the girl. But all five of you couldn't even manage that. Yet you want to be members of Team Shadow? Just die like the weaklings you are."  

I sensed the attack before I saw it. My body moved on reflex, tackling Crystal to the ground as a black streak came out of nowhere. It missed our heads by millimeters, but I doubt it was even aimed at us from the beginning.

A horrible sound similar to flesh being torn apart reached my ears. Turning around revealed all the Herdier had been killed, and the five thugs hadn't been spared either. All their avatars had been sliced into upper and lower halves, and their HP bars were quickly decreasing. Before even a second had passed they shattered into polygons, leaving no trace they'd ever existed.

"No!" This was the first time Crystal had seen someone die in PWO. Shaking with rage, she whirled on the culprit. "Why'd you kill them?! Weren't they your teammates!"

The ninja looked coldly at her. "Team Shadow has no need for useless trainers." A Bisharp appeared at his side, most likely the pokemon that cut down the thugs.

Crystal was so furious she couldn't even speak, but that might've been a good thing. This guy was way too strong for her to handle at the moment. If we fought him I'd have to get serious, and I'm not ready to reveal my ace just yet.

Besides, there were some important questions I needed to ask. "How did you kill those guys in a safe zone?"

Even through his face mask I could tell the man wore a cruel smile. "Team Shadow has one of this world's creators on its side. Disabling a safe zone like this is child's play, as is gathering strong pokemon."

So they're able to alter the code. With Team Shadow bending the rules like this things are gonna get bloody fast. I can't afford to take it easy any longer.

There's still something I need to ask, but I really don't want to. "If you guys are so powerful, what do you want with Crystal?"

The ninja laughed. "You of all people should be able to figure that out. My boss seems to think fighting you directly is dangerous, so we've been looking for some leverage. That girl's the only one who fits the bill. But you showed up before those fools could capture her, so I guess that plan's shot now."

I'd figured this was the reason, but it's still irritating to hear. Crystal had gone completely still beside me, most likely out of shock. Even though I'd warned her about it, I don't think she'd realized just how serious and deadly my enemies were until now.

But if they can change the game at will, why didn't they just teleport Crystal to their headquarters? Either there are restrictions to what they can do, or someone or thing is blocking them. 

Whatever the reason, they're not as omnipotent as they pretend to be.

"You saved the day this time, but don't think your luck will hold forever." The ninja returned his Bisharp to its pokeball. "By the way, my name's Rex. I'm sure we'll meet again soon, so remember it." 

Rex leapt out a window and dissappeared. Once he was gone the room put itself back together like someone had pressed rewind, and a message was displayed that said I'd entered a safe zone.

Yeah, real comforting.