Frisk observed the courtyard in satisfaction. Hundreds upon thousands of assassins were training hard. Many had already been injured and were currently in the infirmary. It impressed the Cinccino.

"They're really going all out," Scizor commented from behind Frisk.

"It's all the excitement," Frisk replied.

"Their training regimen has proved to be successful. Putting everyone else on the same level as the aces was smart."

"Thank you, sir."

"Speaking of the aces, what's their status? How close are they to completing the mission?"

Frisk turned away from the balcony. "They were sighted the other day. There's no update on their mission."

"Who found them?"

"An Excadrill. He used to be a messenger of ours."

"Ah, yes. Jay." Scizor turned away from the Cinccino. "Have the Genesect continue their rampage. In the meantime, I want all of these assassins ready for tomorrow."

"Tomorrow?"

He turned back to her, a devious twinkle in his eye. "Tomorrow, everyone will be distracted. Tomorrow is the date of the Moon Cycle festival."

Frisk nodded. She had heard of the festival before but had never experienced one. It was a huge celebration meant to honor Cresselia and Lunala.

"Tomorrow, every city in the region will be bustling with tourists. No one will be expecting an attack."

"I will have the assassins' training regimen extend by five hours."

"Very good." Scizor smiled. "Have Zange and his crew meet me in ten minutes."

A Pinsir burst into Scizor's throne room. A Drapion, Butterfree, and Whirlipede followed behind him.

"You called for us, sir?" the Pinsir asked, bowing deeply. The other three bugs copied him.

Scizor smirked. "I did. Do you three, by chance, know of our aces?"

"The Meowstic, Murkrow, and Banette?" the Butterfree asked. "Sure. What of them?"

"I want you to hunt them down."

This surprised the group.

"Excuse me, but did I hear that correctly?" the Drapion asked.

Scizor chuckled. "Yes, you did. I don't want you to kill them. I just want you to bring them back to me. All three of them. If they resist, feel free to use force. Dismissed."

The Pinsir grinned and punched a fist as the four exited the room. "Been waiting for this."

"Calm down, Zange. You heard him. No killing," the Butterfree said with an eye roll.

"I know that, Hera. I'm just excited."

"Who are the aces?" the Whirlipede asked, looking and sounding innocent.

The three older bugs laughed mockingly.

"Oh, right. You don't know," the Drapion said. "Well, they're stuck-up idiots who have gained everyone else's respect with mind manipulation."

"Shut up, Crag," Zange said. "Don't listen to him. They're actually assassins who are a higher rank than us. Their combat skills are off the charts."

"What rank are we?"

"We're the second-lowest rank. There are three ranks- amateurs, alphas, and aces. We're all alphas; normal assassins. The three Pokemon we're after are aces. Huge skill level difference."

"When we find them, stay hidden. They're not ones to be messed with," Hera warned. "They say each ace has a strong point. Harley is the brains, Gloria is the brawn, Kasper is the stealth. Remove one from the equation and they all crumble."

The Whrilipede looked confused.

Crag, the Drapion, gave him a pat on the back. "Don't try to worry about it so much. Just do as we say and you'll be fine."

The Whirlipede gave a determined nod. His first mission and he was already going after some of the strongest Pokemon in Scizor's army? Arceus worked in mysterious ways.

An Aipom was bounding through the trees, not a care in the world. Her only objective was to stay happy in this dire time.

Movement at the edge of her vision made her stop. The large smile was still on her face as she looked around. She had hoped to make a friend on her travels. This could be it!

A large purple bug-like Pokemon landed in front of her. It regarded her with pupil-less red eyes. A cannon was on its back, though it was dormant at the moment. A blue square-like object was barely visible beneath the cannon. The creature's hands were just a singular long claw. The Aipom paid no attention to the dried blood on it.

"Hello, friend!' she cheered, bouncing up to it.

The creature cocked its head to the side before stabbing the Aipom through the middle. The monkey froze, the smile still on her face, her eyes still wide with happiness. The creature's claw had speared her through the middle. The tree branch began to drip with blood, staining the grass below.

The creature withdrew its claw and disappeared as quickly as it had come. The Aipom, still frozen with shock, collapsed, her body falling out of the tree and landing on the forest floor with a dull thud.

A pair of emerald green eyes blinked in the shadows. They were almost nauseated at what they had just seen. Their owner turned away.

"How gruesome," Harley mused. "How tragic. So he's resorted to the Genesect. How... impatient."

The Meowstic began to walk away, not giving the scene another glance. His mind, however, was swarming with all the problems wrong with that event. The Aipom was a fool. No one could be trusted in a war. The Geneset, even if it was just one, was bad news. It meant certain death to anyone they found. The killing method was tedious. Harley couldn't imagine a scenario where revealing yourself to the enemy was a good idea.

Harley had suspected the Genesect were out and about by now. After all, he had seen many bodies with only a wound in the middle. Either that or the body was only a carcass, but he had figured the latter was the work of Mandibuzz. After all, he knew Genesect preferred to just leave their prey sitting around. It was the reason Mandibuzz were becoming more and more frequent nowadays.

"Speak of the devil," Harley muttered, watching as the form of a bird began to circle over where he assumed the killing had happened. Seconds later, more and more Mandibuzz emerged from wherever and began to join what was now a massive circle of vultures. After a minute, the Mandibuzz decided it was time to feast and began to fly down to the designated spot.

Harley rolled his eyes and paid them no heed. He had no business with the Mandibuzz. If he left them alone, they'd do the same.

More and more bodies began to pop up the further Harley went. The forest wasn't anything special, but it was littered with corpses. Vullaby, Mandibuzz, Joltik, and Galvantula were clustered around every corpse, picking it bone-dry. Most didn't stop to watch the Meowstic.

A large Mandibuzz's head went up as Harley passed. This action attracted not only his but the attention of the other feasting Pokemon as well. Harley stopped, letting his arms swing freely. It was a casual stance of a Pokemon who had no clue what was going on.

The Mandibuzz observed him for a moment. It went back to eating a moment later. Harley continued walking.

It was a massive relief when the forest began to dwindle. The sky was stained with a blood-red, almost reflecting the horrors Harley had seen during his forest trek.

Harley sniffled at the smoky air. He knew it was merely Kasper's Will-o-Wisp, but that didn't make the smell any less awful. Harley did his best to ignore it and headed toward the blue flame in the distance.

"Are you trying to burn down the entire place?" Kasper's voice was full of mockery.

"Yes. That was my intention."

Harley rolled his eyes at their banter. Soon enough, his friends came into view. Kasper was sitting in front of multiple campfires, controlling the flames while Gloria gave them little drafts of air.

"Oh, hello, Harley!" Gloria called, turning her head to look at the approaching Meowstic. As she did, she flapped her wings, causing the flame in front of her to give a violent lunge at the dry grass surrounding it. Kasper put out the flame before it could create a wildfire, leaving a small scorch mark on the ground.

"Careful," Harley said. "I'm impressed. There's no out of control fire."

Kasper sneered at him. "Yes, well, see what happens when you actually give us full trust? We don't start fires."

Harley rolled his eyes and sat down in front of the largest campfire. The warmth of the surrounding ones was pleasing and the mesmerizing blue flames were calming.

"How was the forest?" Gloria asked, settling herself next to the Meowstic.

"Bloody." Harley tried not to shudder as he remembered the scenery. "Scizor's sent out the Genesect."

"Ugh, now we gotta deal with those savages too?" Kasper rolled his eyes.

Harley nodded. "They're merciless. Scizor must be getting desperate if he's sending them out so early."

"Early? It's been years since the beginning of this war," Gloria said. "If you ask me, it's a totally appropriate time to send them out."

"Even so, that means he's angry. And we all know how he is when Scizor's mad."

An eerie silence crept over the three of them. One thing was clear- no one wanted to face Scizor when he got mad.

There was a sudden snap that seemed to echo for miles. All three assassins were on high alert at the sound.

"I'll go investigate," Kasper offered. When the remaining two gave no argument, he phased into the ground.

Zange paled as Crag stepped on a twig. The snap was loud and carried on for miles.

"Idiot!" Hera hissed. "Now they know we're here!"

"Not necessarily," the Whirlipede muttered. "They might not have heard it."

"Rollan is right," Zange said. "We must keep moving." He paused to shoot a glare at Crag. "Quietly."

The group began to move, slowly and quietly. This proved to be a bit difficult, but they managed to get to the abandoned village where the aces were apparently staying for the time being.

"Stop!" Hera hissed.

"What is it?"

"Someone's coming!"

The bugs perked up. Indeed, someone was coming. Although no one was in sight, there was a soft clinking sound that was steadily growing louder.

"Hide!" Zange hissed. He and the rest of the group took cover in a hut that was almost entirely debris.

Soon enough, the noise stopped. The bugs stared. Was it safe? A false alarm?

Zange held out his hand to stop Hera from getting up. She shot the Pinsir a glare. Zange pointed ahead.

Something was materializing in the spot they had been only moments before. Zange, Hera, and Crag stared in disbelief as a Banette appeared. The ghost was almost unrecognizable. It had been so long since they had last seen him; almost 3 cycles, to be exact.

"No. Way," Hera muttered.

"It can't be," Crag mused.

"It is," Zange declared softly.

Kasper's blue eyes gazed around. He was a bit taller and looked older. Hera took notice of the blood-red color his bag now had. His hood once threatened to consume the Banette, but now it was a perfect fit.

The most noticeable change was Kasper's face. It was almost identical, but the bugs could see the beginning of a scar on his right eye. The rest of it was covered with his hood, making his blue eye seem the normal crimson.

"Screw stealth. I'm going to go out there and capture that ghost right now," Crag growled. Zange and Hera were unsuccessful in their attempts to stop him. The Drapion stepped out of the house, claws snapping quietly. He appeared to have the advantage. Kasper's back was to the scorpion. Crag raised a claw over the Banette, poised to strike.

To everyone's surprise, Kasper whirled around and jabbed a needle into Crag's abdomen. The Drapion froze as Kasper backed away. He bounced a small ball of flame on his finger.

"Crag!" Zange rushed to his friend's side. Crag's body was convulsing in violent jerks. They stopped abruptly and the Drapion lay limp.

"He's still alive." Kasper's voice cut through Zange's thoughts. The Pinsir raised his head to look at the Banette.

"Excuse me?" Hera and Rollan had joined Zange's side.

"He'll live. That was only a small dose of poison. Anyways, it was kinda fun but not really. Cya!" Kasper blew on his finger like it was a smoking gun. The flame went out and the area was engulfed in darkness. Zange could make out the Banette's form dematerializing. He lunged for the ghost, but his fingers closed around air, sending the Pinsir faceplanting into the ground. Zange spat out the earth in his mouth and got up, muttering crossly.

"So? Find anything?" Harley asked upon Kasper's return.

"Yeah. Some old... friends." The last word was laced with disgust.

Gloria cocked a brow. "What kind of friends?"

Kasper raised a clenched fist. "Backstabbing, lying friends. I would not hesitate to kill them if I saw them again."

Harley and Gloria exchanged a glance at the threat.

"They must've been, uh, charming," Gloria muttered.

Harley snickered softly at that comment.

"And we still are!" a boisterous voice rang out. The assassins turned to see a group of four Bug-types- a Pinsir, Drapion, Butterfree, and Whirlipede. The Drapion was staggering a bit but remained standing.

"Hello there, Kasper," the Pinsir said.

"Long time, no see," the Butterfree purred.

Kasper groaned. "Ugh, not you."

"Yes, us!" the Pinsir declared. "We're back, baby! 3 long cycles!"

"Do they know you?" Harley asked Kasper.

He nodded. "Unfortunately."

"Hey! We can hear you!" the Butterfree snapped.

"I'm aware, Hera."

The Drapion gave the ghost a grin. "I cannot wait to beat you into a pulp."

Kasper smirked. "If you can even keep up, that is."

The Pinsir growled and lunged only to be stopped with a Psychic blast from Harley. The Meowstic glared.

"Stay back. We have no trouble with you, but we will not hesitate to fight."

The bugs got into a battle stance. "Right. We'd like to see you try," the Pinsir said.

"Fine. Kasper, Gloria, you ready?"

The other two nodded, both of them smiling. Kasper's gaze was on the Pinsir.

Zange turned to his party. "We outnumber them by one but their skills surpass ours. We have to work together if we hope to defeat them."

Unable to hold back any longer, Crag scuttled forward, his sights on Gloria. The Murkrow dodged a jab and fired a sharp cut of air at the Drapion. Crag shielded his face as the winds slashed at his skin.

Harley found himself up against Hera. The two circled each other, sizing the other up. Then, both attacked with Psychic and Bug Buzz respectively. The two attacks canceled each other out. Hera began to rapidly fire Bug Buzz after Bug Buzz, which Harley dodged with ease.

Zange narrowly dodged a Shadow Ball from Kasper. His horns glowed and the Pinsir rushed at the Banette. Kasper sank into the ground and fired another Shadow Ball. Zange let the attack propel him toward a tree. He turned himself in midair and pushed off against the tree, launching himself at Kasper, horns glowing. Kasper dodged it but wasn't prepared for Rollan to barrel into him. The Banette skidded across the ground.

"Nice work, Rollan!" Hera called, dodging a Charge Beam from Harley. She fired an Air Slash at the Meowstic. Seconds before it hit, it was redirected by a powerful blast of air. Hera growled as Gloria's Tailwind decimated her attack. She stopped her assault on Harley and turned her attention to Gloria.

However, this action didn't leave Harley unoccupied. He stared at the Drapion that loomed over him. Crag's tail and claws were poised to strike.

"Hello there," Crag sniggered. His tail came down, the claws on it seeped in poison. Harley unfurled his ears and a long support beam from a nearby cabin took the hit for him.

"Eh?" Crag tried to shake off the beam, but it was stuck tight. Harley, still having a hold on the beam, launched Crag into the horizon.

Zange laughed as he prepared to put the cuffs onto Kasper. Frisk had given them to him and had explained how they worked. Apparently, no Pokemon could escape them.

Kasper pushed Rollan off of him with his feet. The Whirlipede went flying into Zange, making the Pinsir cry out. Kasper got to his feet and fired a quick Will-o-Wisp at them both.

Gloria and Hera were flying in erratic patterns, firing various attacks. Hera grit her teeth. Sure, she had better aerial skills but Gloria was unpredictable. She would change her pattern every time Hera caught on. In addition, she had a moveset one would not expect from a Murkrow. Sure, she had the classic Dark Pulse and Air Slash, but her talon guards hid a whole array of moves.

Gloria fired a Dark Pulse at the Buttefree. Hera tried to dodge it but was surprised to learn that she couldn't. She glanced down to see Harley smirking at her. He winked, his ears unfurled and glowing with energy.

The Dark Pulse tore through Hera. The Butterfree felt herself going limp. Harley released his hold on her and the Butterfree dropped the ground like a bag of rocks.

Zange paled as all three assassins turned their attention to him. Rollan cowered behind him.

"Final warning. Leave now," Harley said, his voice low.

Zange glared and smirked. "Unfortunately for you, I have one last trick up my sleeve."

He raised an arm and he began to glow. Harley and Gloria stared in disbelief. Rollan's eyes widened.

When Zange emerged, he looked different. His horns grew more spikes. His back split open and yellow wings emerged. Two long orange spikes on these wings penetrated Zange's back, which acted as a guard for the new wings. Zange hovered above the ground, laughing.

"Not so bold now, are ya?!" he cried, laughing.

Kasper was the only one unfazed by the Mega Evolution. "I see you can do it, too. Congrats."

Zange cackled. "Indeed! Learned it from a Heracross. Tell me, Kasper. Can you do this too?"

Harley and Gloria looked at the Banette, intrigued to hear his answer.

Kasper sighed and simply adjusted his hood. Underneath the zipper connecting the left eye to the middle head spike was a stone. It was yellow and had a spiral in the middle. This spiral was gray and pink.

"So you have a Banettite," Zange purred. "But can you Mega Evolve?"

"Want to find out?" Kasper asked, a smile gracing his face. He removed his hood and bag before tossing them to Harley. "Fine."

The Banette also began to glow. The Banette's head tail adjusted so it went straight up instead of flopping behind. His body seemed to tear itself apart before it repaired itself with zippers. His claws grew and gained a purple hue. A zipper tore itself up Kasper's head tail, ending at his left eye. His brush-like tail disappeared into hid body.

Kasper stretched as the evolution ended. Harley hardly recognized his friend. His eyes gave it away.

Zange seemed taken aback. It couldn't be! Nonetheless, the Mega Pinsir cackled.

"Good. I've been itching for a fight. Let's dance, ghost boy."

He lunged at Kasper, claw raised. The Mega Banette dodged it nimbly and disappeared into the shadows. As the two Megas went at it, Harley and Gloria turned to face Rollan. The Whirlipede was glowing and his body shape was adjusting. The transformation was quick. Rollan roared as he towered over the two assassins.

Harley chortled. "Well, you know what they say. Right, Gloria?"

She nodded. "The bigger they are, the harder they fall. Let's get him."

The Scolipede roared again and charged at Harley, horns glowing. Harley put his arms to block the hit but found himself being dragged with the charging Scolipede. The Meowstic hung on for dear life as Rollan charged again, this time at Gloria.

A Shadow Ball made Rollan stop. Kasper dashed in front of him, swiped at him a few times, and dashed off. Zange gave pursuit, laughing maniacally as he fired attack after attack. Harley used the small moment given to unfurl his ears and send a strong Psychic blast through the Scolipede. Rollan shuddered and staggered but did not fall. Harley joined Gloria's side, his ears humming with power.

An explosion sounded off close by, followed by more of Zange's deranged cackles. Harley's gaze momentarily went to the two Megas that were having a heated battle nearby. Neither gave up in their relentless assault. It could end either way. Zange seemed to have the upper hand.

Harley's gaze went to the unconscious Hera. He grinned as an idea came to mind and unfurled his ears. Hera's body was lifted from the ground. Harley telekinetically twisted the Butterfree's arm. Her eyes shot open and she began to scream in pain.

The screams caught the attention of Zange. The Mega Pinsir looked over to his friend. His eyes watched Harley, unblinking. Harley gave a cocky wave and repeated the psychic action.

Zange's eyes were full of anger. He completely lost interest in Kasper and flew toward Harley with the full intention of killing him. Kasper reverted to his normal form and followed, sinking into the shadows.

Harley dragged Hera in front of him, using her as a shield, all while further tormenting the Butterfree. Gloria could only watch in horror. Rollan, who had recovered, was attempting to get past the Murkrow's deadly swipes.

Zange pulled himself to a stop. He couldn't kill the Meowstic without hurting his friend. Harley was devious, but not dumb. Zange clenched a fist.

"So, are you going to make this easy on me or no?" the Mega Pinsir asked.

Harley grinned. "It depends."

Zange couldn't wait to kill this cocky Psychic-type. It filled him with euphoria.

Kasper rose out of the ground behind him. Zange knew he was there. Zange grinned. Two could play at that game.

In a single fast movement, Zange grabbed Kasper and held his claws to the Banette's throat. "Release my friend or he dies," he growled.

Harley was silent.

"Did you not hear me? If you don't give Hera back to me, I will kill him!"

Harley's eyes narrowed. "Do it."

Gloria and Kasper shot him looks of horror. Zange was taken aback. He'd sacrifice a friend? Regardless, the Pinsir slowly and gently dragged a claw across Kasper's throat. Harley's emerald green eyes never left the Mega Pinsir.

A stream of darkness came out of nowhere and hit the Meowstic. He wasn't expecting it and took the full brunt of the attack. He hit the ground a few times before lying unconscious. Hera dropped to the ground.

Gloria stared at Harley's unconscious form sadly and closed her beak, the dark energy in it dissipating. Zange turned to her. After a moment of staring, he released Kasper and reverted. The Pinsir picked up Hera and put her on Rollan's back. Crag scuttled out of the trees.

"Let's go. Come willingly. It'll save you a lot of energy and us a lot of time," Zange said softly.

Gloria and Kasper didn't argue. Zange let Kasper put his hood and bag back on before shackling him. He did the same with Gloria. Crag picked up Harley, though he wasn't put in shackles like the other two assassins.

After checking the assassins' shackles, Zange nodded and began to lead the group back toward Scizor's lands.