"The gray mist—it's the gray mist! The gray mist has appeared!"
Seeing the sight before him, the knight captain's expression immediately turned grave.
"It really is the gray mist! But why… why has it come so soon? Didn't we still have some time before it appeared?"
The other patrol knights also turned pale. The Pokémon beside them began to let out uneasy cries, their instincts warning them of danger.
"Wait—look! Inside the gray mist… there's something there!"
A knight suddenly shouted. As the fog churned and roiled, they could faintly make out a pair of eerie, glowing eyes within it.
The captain's expression tightened. "That's… a magical beast! A Pokémon corrupted by the gray mist!"
"Damn it! Why are there still Pokémon inside the Abyssal Cavern? Didn't we already relocate all the creatures from around that area!?"
The knights' faces darkened. Many of them had fought in the Abyssal War themselves and still carried vivid memories of those terrifying beasts born from the mist.
"Creeee—hee—hee—hee—hee—"
A chilling, guttural laugh echoed through the air.
In the next instant, a strange being appeared—its body seemingly made of vapor, with a gaping mouth and a pair of glaring, blood-red eyes.
After its form solidified, a long crimson tongue slid out from its mouth, dripping with a vile aura as its gaze locked directly onto the knights before it.
"It's a Pokémon! They're corrupted by the gray mist!"
The knight captain gripped the sword at his waist tightly, his expression grim as he stared at the thing before him.
From within its scarlet eyes, he could feel an unmistakable intent—it saw him as prey. The hunger and malice in its gaze were impossible to ignore.
Around him, the other knights also drew their weapons, preparing for battle. But before they could act, their Pokémon suddenly roared furiously, hackles raised.
Then, to their horror, they realized—within the surging waves of gray mist, countless more shapes were emerging, each one taking form as the fog churned and spread into the sky.
"Run! Everyone, run—now!"
The knight captain's voice pierced through the confusion, a desperate cry of warning.
…
At the front-line fortress, Earl Ruize stood atop the battlements, his sharp gaze directed toward the distant forest.
It was here, in the early winter of last year, that the knights of Aspiration City had managed to repel the Abyssal Beast Tide.
He frowned slightly. Would it happen again this year? Would another beast tide come crashing against them?
Behind him, the fortress city was bustling with life—perhaps even more so than usual.
Not long after the first sightings of the gray mist, the commoners from surrounding territories had already begun to gather within the fortress for safety.
Although the lords of each territory had already established ranger defense lines, none of them felt truly at ease. After all, no one knew for sure whether those defenses could really stop the winter beast tides.
If the Pokémon within the breeding zones turned against them, rampaging across the land, the damage to their territories would be catastrophic. They couldn't afford to gamble everything on the ranger lines holding firm.
Still, each lord had left behind a sufficient defensive force, as well as ample food supplies for the Pokémon that would remain in their territories. They didn't completely trust the system—but they were willing to try.
"Star!"
As Earl Ruize was deep in thought about his next move, the sky suddenly echoed with sharp cries.
He looked up just in time to see a Staraptor flying at breakneck speed, diving straight toward the fortress walls.
Boom!
With a thunderous crash, the Staraptor slammed onto the battlement. Its rider, a knight rolled off its back, hitting the stone floor hard.
The nearby guards rushed forward in alarm. Earl Ruize's brows furrowed. He recognized the man—it was one of his patrol knights. A bad feeling began to churn in his chest.
"The gray mist has already spread beyond the Abyssal Cavern!" the knight gasped out. "And there are countless beasts emerging with it— Pokémon corrupted by the mist!"
The words sent a visible shudder through the assembled knights atop the wall.
Everyone there knew what that meant. Many of them had fought in the last Abyssal Beast Tide. They knew that the gray mist didn't just bring monsters—it created them.
"You said… Pokémon corrupted by the gray mist?" Earl Ruize asked in a deep voice.
"Yes," the knight replied urgently. "Their bodies were shrouded in the gray fog. It's the clearest sign of corruption! But these Pokémon … they looked strange—like ghosts or demons rather than normal Pokémon!"
His words grew faster, more frantic. "When I escaped, my captain and the others were still fighting. There were already too many Pokémon for us to count!"
He looked pale and exhausted, his voice trembling. "My lord, please send reinforcements to rescue them! If we delay, it might be too late!"
The atmosphere on the wall grew heavy. Everyone could sense the urgency of the situation.
"Lieutenant," Earl Ruize commanded firmly, "take your knights and investigate the Abyssal Forest immediately. We must know exactly what's happening!"
He continued giving orders without pause:
"Send messengers to the neighboring lords—tell them to keep their knights ready for battle, and warn them that the Abyssal Beast Tide could begin at any moment!"
"And finally, contact Lady Mira and Earl Aven. Especially Aven—he's the one who truly understands how to fight the gray mist and the abyssal beasts!"
The knights saluted and scattered to fulfill their orders.
Earl Ruize exhaled slowly, his eyes dark. "Let's hope the Pokémon emerging from the Abyssal Cavern are just stray Pokémon that wandered too far…"
But even as he said it, he didn't believe his own words.
He already suspected what these creatures were.
He had heard about them before, ghost-type Pokémon, beings that carried traces of death and the abyss within them.
Earl Aven had even warned them about such Pokémon, urging all territories to stay vigilant in case any appeared near their lands.
Now, the two threats, the gray mist and the ghost type Pokémon had seemingly become one and the same.
A bad premonition stirred deep in his heart. "We must prepare for the worst…"
…
Northeast Domains — Brambleford Village.
Sir Berrin was carefully tending to his domain.
His land had been the first to establish Pokémon breeding houses and breeding zones, far ahead of the other territories.
Now, his Pokémon Breeding District was thriving. Dozens of Pokémon species had already settled there, forming peaceful relations with the townsfolk.
Following the methods learned from the Pokémon Domain, Berrin had made agreements with the local Pokémon tribes: his territory would provide them with food throughout the winter, and in return, they would help protect the town.
It was a mutually beneficial arrangement. The Pokémon had eagerly agreed after tasting the delicious food produced by the breeders.
Meanwhile, Brambleford Village's training programs had also matured. The trainer system was now fully established, and it wasn't uncommon to see trainers wandering the breeding zones, seeking to bond with a Pokémon that accepted them.
"Lord Berrin," asked a visiting noble from a neighboring town, "are you truly not planning to evacuate your people to the front-line fortress this winter?"
Berrin smiled calmly. "Do you think I need to?"
"With my knights and the Pokémon of the breeding district, I have full confidence in our defense. Even if the winter beast tide really does come, we'll be strong enough to protect our people!"
There was pride in his voice. In his heart, he was certain—Brambleford Village was now far stronger than Fruitvale Village had been last year, perhaps several times stronger.
The neighboring lord, however, still looked uneasy. "Maybe so… but we're still too close to the Abyssal Forest. If the mist spreads this far—"
"I'm not abandoning my home," Berrin said firmly. "Brambleford Village has finally begun to flourish. If I leave it behind now, all our efforts will have been for nothing."
The neighboring lord sighed. He understood all too well. His own hesitation stemmed from the same place—he simply couldn't bear to abandon everything they'd built.
Woo—woo—woo—woo—!
Suddenly, a sharp horn blast tore through the air.
"That sound—it's coming from the Breeding District!"
Berrin's face changed instantly. The Breeding District was the heart of his territory, if something happened there, it could destroy everything.
Without hesitation, he grabbed his weapon, called for his knights, and rushed toward the district.
When he arrived, his heart froze.
The Pokémon tribes of the breeding zone were engaged in fierce battle against a horde of ghostly creatures floating in midair—monsters shrouded in sinister gray mist.
The sight made Berrin's expression darken with dread. He had a terrible feeling about this.
"Lord Berrin!" the knights greeted him urgently.
Among them, he spotted several familiar faces—knights who had been assigned to train and guard near his side of the Abyssal Forest. They were bloodstained, exhausted, clearly having survived a desperate fight.
"What happened!?" Berrin demanded.
"Lord Berrin—the gray mist has appeared in the Abyssal Cavern!" one knight panted. "These ghostly Pokémon came out of it. They've all been corrupted by the mist!"
"We barely escaped and fled here. If not for your knights and the Pokémon tribes' help, we wouldn't have made it…"
The storm of gray mist had returned. And this time, it brought with it corrupted Ghost-type Pokémon from the Abyss—the harbingers of a new nightmare.
(End of Chapter)
TN: I decided to just call them all Pokémon instead of magical beast. I'll start doing to all people or territories within Aspiration City domains.