Oscar loved it when things just sort of worked out. Here he was expecting the cultivation of his festival carrot to be a chore, only for Cillian Quinn to swoop in and save his sanity. That's a true friend for ya, always there to help you through tedium. Oscar couldn't imagine something worse than gardening, yet he began to look forward to hiking up Mt. Pyre to tend the plots. It gave him a grand opportunity to bond with Gavin, a gift he shall never turn down.

Yet today was different, for as they arrived at the home of their carrots they would be met by disaster. A band of pugnacious primates were feuding on their garden!  The fucking nerve of these wild assholes! Oscar glared slack jawed upon the sight, dumbfounded by this sour luck. He was so focused on the battle that he nearly didn't notice the boulder heading their way.

Luckily Gavin did, and pulled Oscar to safety. He landed with a thump, scooting a bit more behind their cover before peeking out. Oscar shook his head, "Fucking hell, that's some shit luck. What are we going to do?" Oscar looked to Gavin, his heart sinking through his ass when he saw the miasma. "Oh shit."

A darkness began to cover the graveyard, which seemed to not hinder the monkeys one bit. Oscar watched Gavin's corviknight descend upon their intruders, shivering at its majesty. The miasma made Oscar uneasy, seeing it in person was like watching hell open up in front of you. Yet Oscar quickly got over his fear, after all the wielder of this horrific fog was on his side. 

He pulled out his own pokeball, throwing it down to release a Bisharp. This Bisharp was like no other, covered in black crystal armor and wielding a long crystal lance. The black crystal crown on his head shined even within the fog, announcing his noble presence to all. Oscar pointed toward the monkeys, "Get them the fuck off this mountain." King nodded, seemingly ecstatic at the chance to have a proper brawl. King ran in, his lance beginning to spin like a drill. The miasma empowered his strike, delivering it upon a raging Passimian. Yet the impact of the Drill Peck went much further, sending multiple primates flying clear off the mountain.

This was gonna be cathartic.

As the dark fog grows to eclipse Mt. Pyre's own, Gavin sweeps his arm. Like a conductor, he guides the winds to spread the foul miasma. It curls around Corviknight as it dives, wisps around the lance of Oscar's Bisharp, and swathes the Rocket underboss like a sickly shroud. His silhouette shimmers in shadow.

The majesty of the wind is ours. Lugia's cryptic hints during their training take form in this new understanding. Once more, he feels the dizzying spike of his heightened senses and ducks a hurled boulder with unnatural speed.

Corviknight's wings flare as it flutters back to avoid the slash of a Primeape's claws. With a furious shriek, the avian sheds its burdensome feathers and hurls them like sharpened daggers, steel projectiles borne of its wings. Blood sprays from wounds opened and soaks the garden soil.

Oscar wished he could say that Gavin's ferocity scared him. But let's be real, the man reveled in it. Any chance to unleash violence unhindered was time well spent in Oscar's eyes. He snapped his fingers twice, a small code that indicated that King was to go all out. The shadow warrior happily obliged. 

Miasma burst across the battlefield as King spammed his Drill Peck. Over and over he would thrash through the ranks of the primates, sending them flying helplessly into the horizon. Blood coated the soil, sinking deep within. Oscar wouldn't know it, but his carrot seed would be watered by this blood, causing an effect that would not be seen for some time yet.

It was time to step it up a notch. As King slammed his crowned head into a would-be assailant (Iron Head), he would grab it by the fur and begin swinging it like a makeshift club. Slashing with his lance, bashing with his--monkey, King was a whirlwind of aggression that his monkey opponents could not match. The sight brought a smile to Oscar's face.

"That's fuckin' metal--uh no pun intended."

Cillian Quinn

Breathing hard with a spike of adrenaline, Gavin's laughter wheezes in his throat as oscar clayton's Bisharp weaponizes one of the primates against the others. The primal savagery that had once unsettled the underboss now fascinates him, amber eyes following King's path of destruction across the battlefield.

A Passimian lopes too close to where Gavin had sown his carrot seed, and he brings fingers to his lips to let out a piercing whistle. Corviknight swerves in midair to face him, follows the sweep of his arm to its new target.

In Galar, the birds were used as a taxi service. Their strength was considerable, further boosted by the miasma, and Corviknight dives to sink its talons deep into flesh. Though the primate struggles against the shadow avian's grasp, Corviknight carries it high into the air before releasing its hold above a steep drop. Over the shrieks and growls of battle, Gavin doesn't hear the thud of a body hitting rocks, but knows the deed is done when Corviknight turns away from one victim to find another.

"Your shadows are well-trained," Gavin crows, offering a sharp smile. "Good."

As Gavin became more intense, Oscar became conflicted. On one hand, Gavin's nearly rabid demeanor was nothing short of terrifying. It was a far cry from the calm and collected Admin Oscar was used to, and it unnerved him deeply. On the other hand, holy shit power was sexy on him. Mother fucker pulled off the look so well Oscar's heart nearly shriveled from the lack of blood flow. 

Oscar shook his head, best keep to the problem at hand. At Gavin's compliment Oscar snapped his fingers, "You ain't seen nothing yet! King show them suffering!" King the bisharp let out a guttural metallic growl, pointing his lance to the sky. The weapon began to slowly spin, picking up speed as King was joined by what seemed to be phantoms.

Eight phantoms joined his side. Five were his current teammates on Oscar's belt: The shadows of  a Blaziken, Naganadel, Xurkitree, Nidoqueen, and Ariados. The other three were--different. While his teammates looked somewhat solid, these three were undoubtedly shades from another realm. A haunting looking Empoleon, Arcanine, and Accelgor. As the shades put their hands on King's shoulders, his drill would rotate faster yet. 

And then without warning, they would strike. King and his eight companions surged forward, plowing through clumps of monkeys like they were made from paper. The shades flew across the battlefield, attacking relentlessly until they gave out and returned to the shadows. Even when King was left once again alone, he would fight with even more vigor. The simians had lost their numbers, and with no rest in sight it became clear their cause was lost. They began to retreat.

Cillian Quinn

Miasma settles as Gavin idles, curious amber gaze finding King in the chaos of battle. He's not difficult to spot — a crystalline lance pointed to the heavens seems to summon specters to his aid, some more ethereal than others.

They surge as one, an exhilarating display of raw power and promise as they fell the last of the primates with fighting spirit. Survivors flee as the shadows are lost within Mt. Pyre's ambient haze, and Gavin's Corviknight swoops down to land next to its master when the underboss gives a signal. Its talons, wet with blood, sink deep into the grave dirt beneath them.

"I've never seen anything quite like that." With the battle at an end, the dormant miasma disperses under a gentle breeze. Gavin's amber eyes shine with a fervent hunger as they lock with Oscar's. "Is that part of its unique abilities as a shadow Pokemon, or something else...?"

He strides toward the plot of earth in which they'd planted their carrots, kneeling to smooth over the soil.

As the apes ran off and the miasma died down, Oscar let out a sigh of relief. He can't deny that he got a rush from seeing Gavin exhibit his overwhelming power, but it was nice to have him back the way he normally was. Perhaps another time he can get him to show that power again, you know when Oscar is more prepared for it. 

Oscar cracked his neck, just in time for King to walk up to him. The damn thing was covered in blood, but he seemed more or less content. Fine by Oscar, King had been acting up for weeks due to a lack of action so he was just glad he could get some aggression out of his system. As Gavin inquired about the bisharp, Oscar stroked King's crystal crown. It seemed to sooth the shadow tyrant.

"King here used to be called Rook. He was just a normal bisharp that was sent to fight Necrozma with three of my former aces. Those three perished, but Rook's rage helped him survive long enough to transform into a shadow pokemon." Oscar matched Gavin's gaze, his own eyes lusting after the Underboss's power. "That attack of his came with the transformation. It feels a lot like the move Beat Up if it was pumped up to eleven."

Oscar joined Gavin at his plot, looking down upon the bloody soil. His eyebrows furrowed, "We kinda drenched these things in blood. That's uh--that's not gonna ruin the crop right?"

Cillian Quinn

Gavin listens intently, quietly envious of the bond Oscar seemed to have with the shadowy soldier. Before his own ascension to avatarship, most of his own shadow Pokémon were too feral to be safely touched.

They have a storied history, he reasons. Perhaps some shred of the bond does survive through the process after all. He'd never been fortunate enough to find out. The trio of shadows forged in the battle with Necrozma had been relatively new additions to his arsenal, and most of his others had been acquired in similar states of disinterest.

Now, at least, with Lugia's influence at his disposal, his shadows revered him.

"Fascinating, isn't it? How their encounter with the beast seems to have imbued them with such strengths." His Tyranitar was of particularly sinister make; it's sandstorms twisted into a rain of dark shards.

He frowns at the soil. "I certainly hope not. I'm not much for outdoor gardening, and I can't say I've ever poured blood over my hydroponic setup to test that theory."

Fascinating indeed, although the idea made Oscar sigh. "Too bad we can't recreate that energy so that every shadow pokemon came out this powerful." Oscar gave Gavin a sly look, knowing full well his interest in studying shadow pokemon. "Although if anyone can figure that out I'm sure it's you."

Oscar cracked his neck, peering into the dirt as Gavin spoke. True enough, he wasn't sure how blood would affect the carrots--but it'll be fun to find out. Oscar shrugged, silently moving toward the path to pick up his watering can. He began to water his plot, gently pouring the water into the soil.

"I'll tell you one thing, blood ain't gonna hydrate these bitches."

Cillian Quinn