Aurora POV

    Dare and Torch looked like they wanted to kill each other, and I couldn't blame them. But it was pretty annoying that we could barely run five feet before they were yelling.

    "No, it's this way!" Torch was fuming.

    "How do we know you're not leading us into a trap?" Dare accused.

    However, before Torch could respond, a Staraptor dropped through the trees and landed between them. Torch screamed and fell over.

    "Thank gosh I found you!" Starry exclaimed. "I've been looking everywhere. Anyways, the Forest Camp says you can come."

    I blinked. I completely forgot about the Forest Camp.

    "Come on," I told her, as our group began to run again. "We'll explain along the way. We're trying to save someone..."

    Shadow POV

As Red-Eyes and his friend darted off to another part of the cave, I stayed at the entrance and stared.

It was that cave- the huge one, filled with Zoroarks. Once again, there was a big, empty space in the middle, while the Zoroarks stayed around the edges. I remembered what I had thought- what if that space in the middle was something big and invisible? Maybe... If I just snuck down there... I could find out what it was.

    I decided that it would be much safer if I just took off the illusion. The Zoroarks would assume I came for "work", or they just won't notice me.

    I dropped the illusion and trotted down to a large group of Zoroarks. To my relief, there were a few Zoruas mixed in, so I really will be hidden.

    But before I could do anything, everybody turned to the entrance. I did too.

    A wild looking Zoroark was standing there- and I mean wild. His fur was ragged and tangling, his "ponytail" on his head was a bit too long, and he had plenty of scars and burns all over him. He grinned, showing yellow teeth.

    "I'm back, guys," he called in a raspy voice. "You can drop that illusion."

    A cheer went up that hurt my ears- "ZITS IS BAAAACK!"

    But the cheer was drowned out by an ear-splitting roar. I turned towards the middle, right as the workers dropped the illusion in the middle.

    I nearly screamed.

    It was a big, black, furious-looking dragon.

    Why is Zekrom here?!

    I took several steps back, breathing fast. What? What?!

    I bumped into someone.

    The wild Zoroark- Zits- grinned at me. "Who are you, kid?" My face felt hot as several Zoroarks and Zoruas turned at me.

    "Wait- isn't that Zae?" Someone shouted.

    "Yeah, the leader's kid!"

    "What is he doing here?"

    "He isn't supposed to know about the black dragon!"

    They closed in on me, and I shut my eyes, afraid of what they were going to do to me.

    Suddenly talons closed around me, and my eyes flew open as I was lifted off the ground. I glanced up to see a Staraptor soaring towards the exit, where Dare, Aurora, Asha, Gardevoir, Torch, Sapphire, and Charmander I've never met were standing. "Come on!" Asha shouted.

    The Staraptor dropped me on the ledge and landed next to me. "Th-Thanks, I said breathlessly.

    "Is that Zekrom?" Dare cried. "But... But I thought Zekrom was out there, following us!"

    "What?" I cried. "Since when-?!"

    "No time!" Asha roared. "Let's go!"

    As one, the nine of us sprinted away. The Charmander was so slow, that Asha actually grabbed his arm and sprinted forward, dragging him along. Sapphire was sprinting ahead, her leaf-like tail streaming behind her. The Staraptor was gliding overhead, shooting random moves at the mob of Zoroarks and Zoruas behind us.

    Just as we reached an intersection, a large cave, all of our possible exits were blocked by Zoroarks. Our group froze, unsure and afraid.

    "Hello," said a female Zoroark. My stomach lurched as Mother stepped forward, her violet eyes cold and furious, opposite of her hard smile. "Zae... You have surprised me... Reinforcements..." She studied my friends. "Your Torchic friend... A Lucario, interesting... An Absol... And an Espeon... All powerful creatures with their own unique powers. And..." Her eyes widened in shock. "That Charmander... Flicker? What are you doing with these Pokemon?"

    Aurora let out a gasp. We turned towards Flicker the Charmander, who Asha had set down on the ground. He was staring at the floor, his eyes shut.

    "Flicker?" Mother repeated, looking infuriated. "Whose side are you on?"

    Flicker raised his head, his green eyes sharp. "Yours."

    "What?!" Aurora shouted. Flicker gave her a guilty, pleading look.

    "Then, Flicker, get out of this," Mother snarled. Flicker hesitated, then darted past her and out of sight. Aurora was trembling, Asha was muttering curse words, Sapphire simply looked shocked, and Gardevoir was looking calm but worried.

"Now," Mother said, turning back to us and grinning wickedly. "Now to deal with the rest of you."

But before she could do or say anything, there was an enormous crash behind us. Rocks and pebbles rained over our heads, followed by an almighty roar. I tensed as a great black shape flew over us- Zekrom- and crashed through the ceiling along with a bolt of lightning which made my fur stand on end. Sunlight steamed in through the enormous hole in the ceiling, where Zekrom had flown out. His roars eventually became quiet as he flew away.

"Out! Through the ceiling!" Asha shouted to us. "And hold them off while you can!"

Everybody took off as one. As the Tribe of Shadows surrounded us and began to close in, we all started climbing and escaping at different rates. Dare leapt onto boulders and scaled the side of the hole like a mountain goat. Starry the Staraptor grabbed Aurora and helped her up. Asha began jumping from boulder to boulder, throwing Dark Orbs at the Zoroarks as she went. Sapphire's vines darted out and tightened around a crack in the wall. Then, to my surprise, her other vine grabbed my wrist, and she pulled me up to the wall, her eyes fearful.

"Are you okay?" She whispered.

I blinked and nodded, looking into her wide amber eyes. Before I could say anything, before I could do anything, before I could wonder whether I was crazy, I kissed her.

The outside noises seemed to silence themselves. After what felt like years, I pulled away, blinking several times. She smiled uneasily at me.

"I missed you, Shadow," she whispered in my ear.

"You coming, lovebirds?"

We both jumped and glanced to Asha, who was clinging to the wall and grinning at us. Highly embarrassed, Sapphire and I darted to the exit. I threw a Dark Orb behind me for good measure and heard an "Ow!" behind me.

Our group landed on grass. I looked around and realized we were in the field where Aurora got kidnapped. The "mini mountains" were behind us, Julie and Britney's hometown was far, far to our right, and Liana's headquarters were in the forest to our left. I wondered if that's where Zekrom went.

Zekrom. What was going on with him?

But I couldn't think now. The Tribe was starting to climb up through the gaping hole.

"Knock them back!" I shouted, sending a Dark Orb at a Zoroark who was clambering up. She yelped and fell. "How to we close the hole?"

"I know what to do!" Sapphire suddenly yelled. "Hold them off!"

I watched as she sprinted forward to the edge of the pit, raising her hands and shutting her eyes. Almost instantly vines and plants began to grow at the edges of the hole, tangling and crisscrossing, until there was a thick green net over the pit. She was panting as she began to add another layer of plants, and another over that. As she worked the Tribe was trying to blast the net apart.

It looked exhausting and painful. Sapphire looked ready to collapse. Once she got to the sixth or seventh layer of plants, she mumbled, "I... Can't..." Then she slumped to the ground and passed out.

Aurora and Gardevoir swooped over. Gardevoir picked up Sapphire and set her on Aurora's back. Then she turned to the net, raised her hands, and what looked like pink glass covered the net.

I decided not to question their powers and tried to think of where to go. Julie's hometown would be a bad idea (too many humans), Liana's forest was a definite NO, and the mini mountains were too dangerous.

Then it hit me.

I spun and faced Sapphire, who was blearily opening her eyes and said, "Do you think Glide has room for eight at the Sanctuary?"